So I ended up paying off a credit card that was $1,800 this month. This frees up $49 a month which will go into my next credit card. I setup my payments my automatically taking out $500 from my paycheck into my money market account and leaving it there until I have $1,500, then paying off a credit card with the lowest balance, while keeping my other cards at the minimum payment. I decided to do it this way because then I sort of have an additional emergency fund for 3 months besides my regular emergency fund of $1,200. If I put the $500 immediately into the credit card I would save about $3 in interest, but I like having that extra safety just in case something big happens.
I recently bought a food processor for $30, and I love it! So far I have diced onions and garlic for a stir fry, ground beef, and made pizza dough from scratch. It is well worth the investment. I also went back to my classroom this week and noticed some of the random food items I had sitting there. It gave me quite a few good cooking ideas. Not counting eating out, I will spend about $200 this month on food (My plan is to average one night out eating a week; that will give me new cooking ideas and time with friends).
I am on pace to spend $1300 this month on living!
Saturday, August 16, 2008
Sunday, August 10, 2008
Friday, August 8, 2008
Spending More and Enjoying it less
MSN money has a good article on how repeat purchases give less satisfaction as the first time.
http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/Investing/StockInvestingTrading/SpendingMoreAndEnjoyingLess.aspx
http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/Investing/StockInvestingTrading/SpendingMoreAndEnjoyingLess.aspx
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
Fiscal Fast every month!
I am going to be doing 7 days of fiscal fasting every month. I will not do them all consecutively but randomly throughout the month.
For readers that do not know what a fiscal fast is, it is when you go a certain amount of time where you do not use any money for anything. I have already completed a fiscal fast in July, and I will be fasting for 7 days out of every month until I have no more debt.
I think that this is easily possible to accomplish in my situation. At school I am too far to go somewhere for lunch and Ive been cooking a lot more thanks to the newfound beauty of leftovers. This is all I have to do for 2 days during each week and its equal to a fiscal fast each month!
I challenge you to go 7 days out of the month where you do not spend any money. Its really not as hard as it seems and you will clearly see ways you can cut expenses and budget better.
For readers that do not know what a fiscal fast is, it is when you go a certain amount of time where you do not use any money for anything. I have already completed a fiscal fast in July, and I will be fasting for 7 days out of every month until I have no more debt.
I think that this is easily possible to accomplish in my situation. At school I am too far to go somewhere for lunch and Ive been cooking a lot more thanks to the newfound beauty of leftovers. This is all I have to do for 2 days during each week and its equal to a fiscal fast each month!
I challenge you to go 7 days out of the month where you do not spend any money. Its really not as hard as it seems and you will clearly see ways you can cut expenses and budget better.
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Envelope Method to Budgeting
Many of us wonder where our money goes in the end of each paycheck, and may of us find more month in the end of the money. One of the ways that I recommend to handle your budgeting is to make a zero based budget. In this budget you first start with your income for the month and then allocate reasonable amounts of money to each major expense.
Here is an example of a zero based budget. The first column is amount of money allocated to each expense, and the second column I subtracted the next expense (for example I started with 3229 in income, subtracted 150 for saving and ended with 3029
An important thing to notice is that I ended with 0. the $1006 I had left over went into additional debt payments, but in this case you should put your most important priority in the last column.
Right now I follow this method to budgeting and I have enough control to make sure I dont go over my limits. However, many of us always go above and then wonder why they have no money left over. I recommend following an envelope method to budgeting in this case. From the example above, you pay your fixed expenses (housing, car, debt) and you take out money for every other expense. In the example above you make 3 envelopes for recreation, gas, and food, and then write down the amount you are starting with. You put the amount of money you wrote in the envelope and you ONLY USE CASH for these expenses.
This is a good way to track where your money is going and should be used for people who are serious about tracking expenses.
Here is an example of a zero based budget. The first column is amount of money allocated to each expense, and the second column I subtracted the next expense (for example I started with 3229 in income, subtracted 150 for saving and ended with 3029
| Income | 3229 | 3229 |
| Saving (roth) | 150 | 3079 |
| Housing | 400 | 2679 |
| Car Payment | 170 | 2509 |
| Car Insurance | 83 | 2426 |
| Debt | 670 | 1756 |
| Recreation | 250 | 1506 |
| Gas | 300 | 1206 |
| Food | 200 | 1006 |
| Extra Debt | 1006 | 0 |
An important thing to notice is that I ended with 0. the $1006 I had left over went into additional debt payments, but in this case you should put your most important priority in the last column.
Right now I follow this method to budgeting and I have enough control to make sure I dont go over my limits. However, many of us always go above and then wonder why they have no money left over. I recommend following an envelope method to budgeting in this case. From the example above, you pay your fixed expenses (housing, car, debt) and you take out money for every other expense. In the example above you make 3 envelopes for recreation, gas, and food, and then write down the amount you are starting with. You put the amount of money you wrote in the envelope and you ONLY USE CASH for these expenses.
This is a good way to track where your money is going and should be used for people who are serious about tracking expenses.
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Good multimedia Article from NY Times on Debt
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2008/07/20/business/20debt-trap.html?ex=1217304000&en=fa14ac1edfcc28a9&ei=5070&emc=eta3
Monday, July 21, 2008
What would you like me to write about?
Id like to make an open forum on anything that is concerning you and your finances. I try to give sensible advice on your money, and I would like to know what things are concerning you.
Are you concerned about the current economy?
Are you having trouble reaching your financial goals?
Are you looking to change jobs/careers?
Are you having trouble budgeting?
Please leave comments below. You can keep it anonymous if you like and I will answer it the best I can. Remember, I was a financial planner and I feel that I have learned a lot about money by the book and on the street.
Are you concerned about the current economy?
Are you having trouble reaching your financial goals?
Are you looking to change jobs/careers?
Are you having trouble budgeting?
Please leave comments below. You can keep it anonymous if you like and I will answer it the best I can. Remember, I was a financial planner and I feel that I have learned a lot about money by the book and on the street.
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