For 5.2 years, I have recorded every dollar I have spent, where I spent it, what it was spent on, and categorized the expense.
Here are the results as categories: http://ift.tt/2jfsbt1
Total expenses: $65,000 over 5 years.
83% of money spent was for three things:
- Rent payments
- car maintenance, car insurance
- car fuel
| Background | info |
|---|---|
| Age | Late 20s |
| Income | Ranged from $25-54,000/year before taxes, health insurance, union fees |
| Location | northern New Jersey |
| Independence | Not married, no children, no pets |
| Category name | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Grocery | Food, personal hygiene, household cleaners |
| Vehicle | Maintenance/repair, parts and labor, and insurance |
| Luxury | Alcohol, eating at restaurant, theater/shows, day-trip/vacation, etc, or a household item that was cool but unnecessary |
| Shelter | Rent payment, furniture, shelves, lamps, etc |
| Utility | Electricity, heat, internet, phone |
| Tools | Household and vehicle tools for performing maintenance |
| Computer | Desktop, tablet and anything related to them like cables, cases, mouse, keyboard, monitor. |
| Legal | Parking/traffic tickets, municipal administration fees |
| Anticipated questions | - |
|---|---|
| Why so low for grocery? | Coupons. Got used to eating nearly no meat and seafood. Cook my own meals with inexpensive staples. |
| Why so low for utility? | Last couple years my rent included electricity, heat, and internet in the price. For phone service, I use a severely limited prepaid service that costs about $65/year to keep active through TracFone after the initial buy-in of about $100 which included a smartphone. |
| Why so low for clothing? | Shirts and pants for my office work were bought at thrift stores. I take them off when I get home - wearing them only at the job makes them last a long time. Have clothing/footwear you do not mind getting severely dirty or ripped, and avoid wearing expensive things in situations likely to damage them. Take care of more expensive items like shoes and coats by keeping them clean. Check the weather prediction before leaving the house, dress appropriately. |
| Where are medical expenses? | Health insurance premiums are taken out of paycheck pretax, so I recorded it as a decrease of income instead of an expense (just like any other tax). No habitual medical issues, not on medications. Only saw doctors for fully covered services like yearly exam, vaccinations. I do not do extreme physical things that may cause accidental injury. Be alert to avoid accidents both as a pedestrian and driver. Lift with your knees. Do not run with scissors. |
| Are you miserable? | Quality of life difference between $24,000/year and $54,000/year is huge. Money does buy happiness at this level. I am still living like I earn $24k/year, but stress is gone and I live in an area with more local recreation, less car traffic, nicer people. I can afford to do or buy things occasionally that give me enjoyment, and that is good enough. |
Submitted January 07, 2017 at 03:21PM by teabowlbaggings http://ift.tt/2jobnny
