Car- this includes both car insurance and car payment, totaling about $350/month. I bought my car about a year and a half ago, and plan to keep this car until it no longer runs. My APR on my car is 2.9%.
Utilities- depending on the season, my portion of utilities comes out to about $90/month.
Phone- $65/month.
General Savings- due to cutting back in a LOT of areas, I’m able to save almost 30% of my income. I keep my general savings in a high yield account, with an APY of 2%.
Subscriptions- my only monthly subscriptions include Spotify, my professional website and my gym membership. These come out to $42/month. I try to keep these low, in order to save on things I really don’t need. (Years ago, my monthly subscriptions included makeup boxes, massage and spa memberships, etc.)
Groceries- I spend about $40 a week on groceries (approximately $160/month) for breakfast, lunch and dinner. I always shop at Publix and tend to go for the weekly deals.
Miscellaneous- this category varies from month to month, but typically includes weekend spending, gas and coffee. $240/month, give or take.
Travel Savings- I contribute about $100/month to this account + any extra I make from freelancing or side jobs. This comes in handy for when I feel like getting away for the weekend, to avoid taking out of general savings. This can also be used to pay for work days when and if I’m out of PTO.
What do you do for a living?
I work full time (approx 36 hours/week) at a private orthodontic practice as a patient and marketing coordinator, part-time as an operations coordinator, creating content for a small business (10-15 hours/week), and part time at another job (6-10 hours/week). I love to stay busy and get pretty bored working just one job, so I have three! I still manage to have free time to do the things I love, so no worries. 😉
Do you use credit cards?
Of course! I’m a huge advocate of credit cards and taking advantage of them to build your credit. It should never be a scary subject, but just make sure you’re spending responsibly and not more than you actually make. What does this mean, exactly? Take advantage of the reward system that the company offers! Use your credit card exactly as you’d use your debit card, but pay every dime off before its due date. This means you’ll reap the benefits of the rewards, build your credit score AND you don’t have to suffer the ugly consequences of a high APR.
I opened my first credit card when I turned 18, and have been aggressively building my credit since. I bought my first car at 21, and having a score in the high 700s even then made it possible for me to get an auto loan with no down payment and a very low interest rate. It also prepared me to get approved for my first apartment, with a low security deposit of just $75. I knew that I wanted to be prepared to buy a house one day, so I had to start thinking about this early. In 5-10 years, I’ll be ready for my most important purchase. I knew I had to be aggressive about it. The longer your credit history, the less you’ll be blind-sided by everything life will throw at you.
I hope that this has helped anyone looking to get into budgeting, or just wanting to learn how to manage their money more effectively! Take a look at your expenses, and I guarantee you’ll find you can cut a few things. Save, save, SAVE.
Comments
Post a Comment