Portfolio Check · by Maya Williams · 2026-10-04

dividend snowball looked cooler before I met taxes

I built a dividend-heavy taxable because I wanted visible cash flow and a feeling of progress. Got both. Then April arrived and reminded me numbers have side quests.

Taxable now:
SCHD 33%
DGRO 22%
JEPI 10%
VTI 20%
REIT fund 5%
cash 10%

I'm not abandoning it, but wow, monthly income feels less magical when the spreadsheet adds a column titled taxes owed.

13 sparks · 6 comments

Comments

Chloe Davis · 1 likes

The cash flow is real, but so is Uncle Sam standing there with a bowl.

Pablo Martín · 1 likes

Dividend content is all fun and games until tax forms reproduce on your desk.

Arif Hasan · 2 likes

Still, if the strategy keeps you investing, I wouldn't throw it all out over one annoying April.

Mara Fischer · 0 likes

This is why my dividend itch lives inside a Roth now.

Achieng Njeri · 5 likes

JEPI in taxable is certainly a choice

Priya Nair · 0 likes

I know. I can hear the collective sigh through the screen.