So, as I was stepping out to lunch, my phone rang from a number I didn't know. It was Tom calling me about the mortgage. He had a chance to look it over and found everything to be in order, and I was approved for up to a $130,000 mortgage. He told me that my credit score was good, I guess they run it against all three bureaus, and they were 701, 745 and 790. Averaged at about 742 (I do so wish it were just a bit higher), so that was great.
He asked me about what amount I was actually looking to spend, because as it turns out if my approval is for too much higher than the amount of the house I wanted it would give me less bargaining power. So I told him $100,000 was the max I was considering spending (at least for now, until I actually start looking around at houses). So he told me he'd be firing a pre-approval letter off to me shortly.
With all this in mind, I'm thinking to myself "This is really happening." I know I was going through all this stuff leading up to where I am (and to where I'm going), but until now there really was nothing, I was planning ahead, doing stuff to prepare, but now the search actually begins.
I did hear back from the credit union, but their response left a little to be desired, so I'm going to see about calling them instead. It does seem like I really don't have to though, as I'll have a letter, and I'm certain the credit union would have the same requirements, so I might wait a bit before getting back in touch with them.
The approval is valid for only 60 days, which is unfortunate, but the timing might work out well, since if I start the process of actually buying a house near the end of the period, I'll be right in line with when I was hoping to move.
Tom did say that he couldn't give me an actual rate on the loan, but that I could expect around 4% on a 30 year fixed.
Next step, find a realtor. . . .
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
The Saga Continues
I have done it! I submitted the first mortgage pre-qualification form. The evil form, the one that badly designed. I did find a way around having to fill it out by hand, and I didn't have to reformat the whole thing either, so that's good.
I did find a couple of the things they asked odd. Like wanting account numbers for where my money resides and such. But I figure they need to be able to contact the other bank and verify that what I'm saying is accurate.
Filling in that form made me look at some stuff I hadn't thought a lot about. I did not realize that I have over $25,000 in retirement savings, and that my car, even though it's a couple years old, is still holding its value really well.
So I filled out the form, printed, signed it, scanned it and then e-mailed it to the loan officer. Almost immediately I got a reply too! I was surprised to get a response so quickly, I'm assuming they're not getting a lot of mortgage applications lately.
After all that, I sent out an e-mail to my credit union in the hopes to get this process started with them as well. I'm hoping that they'll be able to make me a better deal than the bank, but we'll just have to wait and see.
So, there you have it, this dreaded thing of filling out the paperwork and getting the process going in earnest has boiled down to me worrying for nothing. I really don't know why I kept putting this off, but the idea just filled me with a bit of dread.
I did find a couple of the things they asked odd. Like wanting account numbers for where my money resides and such. But I figure they need to be able to contact the other bank and verify that what I'm saying is accurate.
Filling in that form made me look at some stuff I hadn't thought a lot about. I did not realize that I have over $25,000 in retirement savings, and that my car, even though it's a couple years old, is still holding its value really well.
So I filled out the form, printed, signed it, scanned it and then e-mailed it to the loan officer. Almost immediately I got a reply too! I was surprised to get a response so quickly, I'm assuming they're not getting a lot of mortgage applications lately.
After all that, I sent out an e-mail to my credit union in the hopes to get this process started with them as well. I'm hoping that they'll be able to make me a better deal than the bank, but we'll just have to wait and see.
So, there you have it, this dreaded thing of filling out the paperwork and getting the process going in earnest has boiled down to me worrying for nothing. I really don't know why I kept putting this off, but the idea just filled me with a bit of dread.
Monday, February 27, 2012
Want Vs. Need
So, the contract for my mobile phone is finally up and I was planning on buying a new one and changing carriers to save some money. But after doing some research I realized it wasn't the best move. A new phone would set me back a couple hundred dollars and I can't find a better plan with my existing carrier that is less expensive. I could buy a new phone, switch carriers, and save money month-to-month, but it would take me at least six months to pay off the phone from the savings I'd get. In the long term, it makes sense to do it, but in the short term, I'd have to put it on a credit card and would carry a balance for a little while until I got it paid off.
I do really want a new phone, and I could do it easily, but I don't really NEED a new phone. I used the lessons I learned earlier about smart spending and ran through the decision process. After much consideration and debate, there really aren't any phones out there at a decent price with a carrier I want. I could upgrade to something, it might be better, but the money spent wouldn't be worth as much because the upgrade wouldn't be as great.
I've had this phone for two years now, but the phones available at a price-point I'm willing to spend just aren't what I want. There's no way that I'm going to spend so much money on a phone that was released a year ago just to save a bit of money on my phone bill every month. Especially when there's probably going to be a whole new phone out there soon that I'd prefer. Only if there was a really good phone that just jumped out at me as the one I wanted would I consider going through with it at this point.
I do really want a new phone, and I could do it easily, but I don't really NEED a new phone. I used the lessons I learned earlier about smart spending and ran through the decision process. After much consideration and debate, there really aren't any phones out there at a decent price with a carrier I want. I could upgrade to something, it might be better, but the money spent wouldn't be worth as much because the upgrade wouldn't be as great.
I've had this phone for two years now, but the phones available at a price-point I'm willing to spend just aren't what I want. There's no way that I'm going to spend so much money on a phone that was released a year ago just to save a bit of money on my phone bill every month. Especially when there's probably going to be a whole new phone out there soon that I'd prefer. Only if there was a really good phone that just jumped out at me as the one I wanted would I consider going through with it at this point.
Friday, February 24, 2012
Friday Roundup
Here we go again, not a whole lot is different though.
I have been procrastinating with the FSA but really need to get around to spending that money.
I now have $3,804.17 in savings for down payment and closing costs.
My Credit Sesame score has not fluctuated from 754.
Also my Credit Karma score hasn't changed from 766.
I've also been putting off applying for a mortgage, but I WILL do that next week! You betcha!
I have been procrastinating with the FSA but really need to get around to spending that money.
I now have $3,804.17 in savings for down payment and closing costs.
My Credit Sesame score has not fluctuated from 754.
Also my Credit Karma score hasn't changed from 766.
I've also been putting off applying for a mortgage, but I WILL do that next week! You betcha!
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Market Research
Today we're going to talk more about free money. Yes yes, I know that there is no such thing as free money, but market research is about as close as you can get. Last night I got paid more than I do at my day job for just a few hours. All I had to do was show up and tell someone my feelings on the topic at hand.
The really interesting thing about all this is that not a lot of people know about this. It is easy cash (yes, I said cash, not check or anything, just cash in hand at the end) for telling someone how you feel about a certain topic. What I took part in last night is what is known as a focus group; a few people who meet certain criteria are chosen and put together in a room to talk about a topic for a couple hours.
There are other forms of market research, I once took part in a group that took two nights; I sat there listening to parts of songs for two hours and filled in a multiple-choice sheet about each one. Another time I was fed different versions of a chicken sandwich and wrote down my opinions on them. It doesn't matter where you live, there are opportunities to take part in market research all over the country.
And there is even a lot of stuff you can do online to make money filling out surveys. Taking surveys online for money can be risky though, there are a lot of scams and sites that just aren't legitimate, so you'll need vet any site you're interested in.
If you're interested in making money by giving your opinion, please feel free to leave comments below and I'll gladly pass along any information I have, as well as help you find what you're looking for.
The really interesting thing about all this is that not a lot of people know about this. It is easy cash (yes, I said cash, not check or anything, just cash in hand at the end) for telling someone how you feel about a certain topic. What I took part in last night is what is known as a focus group; a few people who meet certain criteria are chosen and put together in a room to talk about a topic for a couple hours.
There are other forms of market research, I once took part in a group that took two nights; I sat there listening to parts of songs for two hours and filled in a multiple-choice sheet about each one. Another time I was fed different versions of a chicken sandwich and wrote down my opinions on them. It doesn't matter where you live, there are opportunities to take part in market research all over the country.
And there is even a lot of stuff you can do online to make money filling out surveys. Taking surveys online for money can be risky though, there are a lot of scams and sites that just aren't legitimate, so you'll need vet any site you're interested in.
If you're interested in making money by giving your opinion, please feel free to leave comments below and I'll gladly pass along any information I have, as well as help you find what you're looking for.
Friday, February 17, 2012
Another weekly roundup
So, where we at this week?
I have been way lazy with my FSA. I really need to spend that money before it's too late.
I now have $3,779.17 in savings for down payment and closing costs.
My Credit Sesame score is still sitting pretty at 754.
My Credit Karma score is still listed at 766.
I have spoken to my friend and looked over the form I got, now I just need to get it filled out and talk to the other bank I was considering going with.
I have been way lazy with my FSA. I really need to spend that money before it's too late.
I now have $3,779.17 in savings for down payment and closing costs.
My Credit Sesame score is still sitting pretty at 754.
My Credit Karma score is still listed at 766.
I have spoken to my friend and looked over the form I got, now I just need to get it filled out and talk to the other bank I was considering going with.
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
The worst form ever
So, I got a form from the bank that sent me the flyer about a deal for mortgage pre-qualification, and boy do they want to know a lot. I really don't mind filling out forms, but this one is dumb. As an IT guy, it bothers me when someone wants something filled out and goes about it the wrong way. Why would I want to get a word document that I have to fill out by hand, then mail, fax, or scan back to the sender instead of one I can fill out and just send back electronically?
The lines to fill in are just underscores, so typing displaces the lines and totally messes up the document. What does that mean? I MUST fill it out by hand or go through an ordeal trying to fix the document after filling it all in. You would think that one of the big banks would be kind enough to invest in a pdf document that could be filled in and submitted, but unfortunately, no.
So, what do you think I should do, fill it out by hand and fax it back in? Scan it back? Fill it electronically? Or just ignore the bank altogether? I was told by a friend that I should limit the number of banks I apply to, so I don't have to go with this bank. But I was planning on it, in the hopes that they keep this deal going long enough for me to take advantage of it.
The lines to fill in are just underscores, so typing displaces the lines and totally messes up the document. What does that mean? I MUST fill it out by hand or go through an ordeal trying to fix the document after filling it all in. You would think that one of the big banks would be kind enough to invest in a pdf document that could be filled in and submitted, but unfortunately, no.
So, what do you think I should do, fill it out by hand and fax it back in? Scan it back? Fill it electronically? Or just ignore the bank altogether? I was told by a friend that I should limit the number of banks I apply to, so I don't have to go with this bank. But I was planning on it, in the hopes that they keep this deal going long enough for me to take advantage of it.
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
That's too bad
So, my son is almost done with middle school, and next year he'll be moving on to high school. We had been hoping he would get into a magnet school in our county. Yesterday was the random lottery that chose who would be enlisted and who would be on the waiting list, and my son didn't make the cut. It was completely random, nothing could be done to influence the outcome.
You may be wondering how this is a matter for this blog, well the reason is because it might actually affect my choice of housing. For one, it means that I have the choice to stay in the same school district and have my son go to school with kids he already knows. Doing so will limit the choices of houses and neighborhoods available.
Of course, I haven't talked to my son yet about this aspect of it, but he may not care if he stays with the students he's been at school with for the past 3 years. If that's the case, I could choose any other area, even outside the county like I was originally considering.
Obviously, the choice of where we move affects not only me, so I will have to consult with him before we actually start looking at houses.
You may be wondering how this is a matter for this blog, well the reason is because it might actually affect my choice of housing. For one, it means that I have the choice to stay in the same school district and have my son go to school with kids he already knows. Doing so will limit the choices of houses and neighborhoods available.
Of course, I haven't talked to my son yet about this aspect of it, but he may not care if he stays with the students he's been at school with for the past 3 years. If that's the case, I could choose any other area, even outside the county like I was originally considering.
Obviously, the choice of where we move affects not only me, so I will have to consult with him before we actually start looking at houses.
Friday, February 10, 2012
One more Friday
So here we are again, time to look at where I stand in relation to where I'm going.
I've still not touched that FSA and really need to get something done with the $358 in there.
I now have $3,754.17 in savings for down payment and closing costs.
My Credit Sesame score has gone down, it is now at 754. I don't know exactly why, but it might have to do with the recent credit card I started a couple months ago. I'm not sure exactly how quickly things like that affect the score, but of the things they list that may affect it. I'm still over 740, which is good. I also had a decent amount of debt on one credit card, which may have also decreased my score, but that has been paid down decently by now.
I just signed up for a new service Credit Karma, and my score listed there is 766 which is great! This score seems similar to the Credit Sesame score, and I think it is pretty close to an official credit score.
I spoke to my first lender yesterday! I haven't filled out any paperwork yet, because I'm waiting to hear back from my friend about how I should do this, but I'm at least on my way!
I've still not touched that FSA and really need to get something done with the $358 in there.
I now have $3,754.17 in savings for down payment and closing costs.
My Credit Sesame score has gone down, it is now at 754. I don't know exactly why, but it might have to do with the recent credit card I started a couple months ago. I'm not sure exactly how quickly things like that affect the score, but of the things they list that may affect it. I'm still over 740, which is good. I also had a decent amount of debt on one credit card, which may have also decreased my score, but that has been paid down decently by now.
I just signed up for a new service Credit Karma, and my score listed there is 766 which is great! This score seems similar to the Credit Sesame score, and I think it is pretty close to an official credit score.
I spoke to my first lender yesterday! I haven't filled out any paperwork yet, because I'm waiting to hear back from my friend about how I should do this, but I'm at least on my way!
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
Lunch by the numbers
A while back I used to eat out for lunch everyday. I was lucky to spend less than $5 for fast food and I was even luckier if I ever ate healthy. It was a dark time in my life, then I had to start watching my budget, so I went down an even darker path, I ate Ramen noodles for lunch. Every. Single. Day. It was cheap, there's no doubt about that, but it was supremely unhealthy, and not very good.
So I did some research and came up with a cost-effective alternative. Sub sandwiches. Now I've never really done the math, so we're going to do it together. I know you can go out and buy a 6in sub from Subway, so we'll use them for comparison. All my prices I'm basing off what I've found at my local Sam's Club too. Let's dive right in . . .
We're going to base our costs off one of the more popular sandwiches, a club. That is 3 different meats, some cheese, lettuce, tomato, and some condiments.
First, we need bread, you can buy 6 footlong rolls for only $4, so for one sandwich, that's only 33c. Next we add our meat, which costs roughly $8 for about 10 servings, so that's 80c per sandwich per meat, we're looking at 3 types of meat, which is $2.40 total.
That brings us so far to a total of $2.73. Now we need some cheese, that's about $9, and you can get 30 full sandwiches out of that, so that's another 30c bringing us to just over $3. Now we need our lettuce. Personally, I prefer to pay a little more and buy the pre-packaged shredded lettuce, that runs about $2 for a week's worth, but you can save money by buying a whole head of lettuce. So, if I were to make it, my lettuce would add another 40c on to the cost, bringing us to $3.43.
"What about the condiments?" You might ask. Well, who doesn't have mustard or mayo in their house? Luckily, condiments seem to last forever, so their cost would be just pennies per sandwich.
"What if you want something special?" Now you might be thinking how you might want more things on your sandwich, like onions, cucumbers or jalapenos, well you can do that, it just means you need to buy them. They will obviously increase the price for the sandwich, but it is highly doubtful you'll make it cost more than you'd pay at Subway.
Personally, I much prefer having a sub sandwich for lunch everyday, made just the way I like it. And it's even better that it's home-made. It might take a little bit of time and effort, but I think the savings and piece of mind go a long way.
What things do you do to save money on everyday expenses?
So I did some research and came up with a cost-effective alternative. Sub sandwiches. Now I've never really done the math, so we're going to do it together. I know you can go out and buy a 6in sub from Subway, so we'll use them for comparison. All my prices I'm basing off what I've found at my local Sam's Club too. Let's dive right in . . .
We're going to base our costs off one of the more popular sandwiches, a club. That is 3 different meats, some cheese, lettuce, tomato, and some condiments.
First, we need bread, you can buy 6 footlong rolls for only $4, so for one sandwich, that's only 33c. Next we add our meat, which costs roughly $8 for about 10 servings, so that's 80c per sandwich per meat, we're looking at 3 types of meat, which is $2.40 total.
That brings us so far to a total of $2.73. Now we need some cheese, that's about $9, and you can get 30 full sandwiches out of that, so that's another 30c bringing us to just over $3. Now we need our lettuce. Personally, I prefer to pay a little more and buy the pre-packaged shredded lettuce, that runs about $2 for a week's worth, but you can save money by buying a whole head of lettuce. So, if I were to make it, my lettuce would add another 40c on to the cost, bringing us to $3.43.
"What about the condiments?" You might ask. Well, who doesn't have mustard or mayo in their house? Luckily, condiments seem to last forever, so their cost would be just pennies per sandwich.
"What if you want something special?" Now you might be thinking how you might want more things on your sandwich, like onions, cucumbers or jalapenos, well you can do that, it just means you need to buy them. They will obviously increase the price for the sandwich, but it is highly doubtful you'll make it cost more than you'd pay at Subway.
Personally, I much prefer having a sub sandwich for lunch everyday, made just the way I like it. And it's even better that it's home-made. It might take a little bit of time and effort, but I think the savings and piece of mind go a long way.
What things do you do to save money on everyday expenses?
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Working for a living
So, a couple of Youtube Commentators I watch recently went on about happiness in their work, and it got me thinking. Obviously, everyone has to do something for their money. Everyone does something different, but for most of us, we work.
There are two main schools of through when it comes to working. One is that it is a necessary evil, a means to an end. That end being money to spend on things we want and need. The other is work can be enjoyable and it is possible to not only survive, but thrive doing what you love. Obviously, no one is 100% happy with their job, there's always something that they would change if they could, or someone they don't get along with at the office.
But how does a person actually find happiness at work? And I'm not talking about the corporate initiatives to improve employee morale to get more out of them. I'm talking about doing what you love while making money to live. The answer is hard work.
There are people making good money just uploading videos to Youtube, and they make it look easy, but it's not. Sure, they may have a lot of fun doing it, and love the content they're putting out, but it takes a lot of time and effort to get the most out of it. The biggest and hardest part is the beginning, just getting content that people want to see, and even after that, getting people to actually see it. After that, it takes planning for future content, demographic analysis, and timing.
There are a lot of other dream jobs that have similar hurdles, like game development, blogging, or even graphic design. Working in the industry in a larger corporation could help get you closer to the job you actually want, but whatever your dream job is, remember that it may be possible if you're willing to put in enough work.
What about you? What do you wish you could do and how can you get where you want to be?
There are two main schools of through when it comes to working. One is that it is a necessary evil, a means to an end. That end being money to spend on things we want and need. The other is work can be enjoyable and it is possible to not only survive, but thrive doing what you love. Obviously, no one is 100% happy with their job, there's always something that they would change if they could, or someone they don't get along with at the office.
But how does a person actually find happiness at work? And I'm not talking about the corporate initiatives to improve employee morale to get more out of them. I'm talking about doing what you love while making money to live. The answer is hard work.
There are people making good money just uploading videos to Youtube, and they make it look easy, but it's not. Sure, they may have a lot of fun doing it, and love the content they're putting out, but it takes a lot of time and effort to get the most out of it. The biggest and hardest part is the beginning, just getting content that people want to see, and even after that, getting people to actually see it. After that, it takes planning for future content, demographic analysis, and timing.
There are a lot of other dream jobs that have similar hurdles, like game development, blogging, or even graphic design. Working in the industry in a larger corporation could help get you closer to the job you actually want, but whatever your dream job is, remember that it may be possible if you're willing to put in enough work.
What about you? What do you wish you could do and how can you get where you want to be?
Monday, February 6, 2012
When to look for a loan
So, I've got the money from my tax refund now, which means the next step in buying a house is going to be getting a loan. Technically, it's getting pre-approved for a mortgage. I know that mortgage pre-approvals have a expiry date, it's not like when you're pre-approved you can wait 3 years to actually buy a house, but what kind of deadline is there?
Well, with a little bit of google-fu, I've found that it can vary, but normally it is good for 3-4 months. With the timeline I have in place, I'm hoping to have a house by the end of May. I could close a bit earlier, so that's not an issue, so even if I were to get pre-approved for only 3 months, I think I'd be ok.
Interestingly enough, I got an e-mail from Credit Sesame linking to an article "When is the right time to apply for a mortgage?" And according to the article the best time to apply is the first week of the month. So for me, I need to talk to a bank NOW or wait till next month, and I don't think I'm prepared to wait that long.
So, with money in the bank, it's time to contact my credit union and see what they can do for me. I'll give you guys updates on the process as I have them!
Well, with a little bit of google-fu, I've found that it can vary, but normally it is good for 3-4 months. With the timeline I have in place, I'm hoping to have a house by the end of May. I could close a bit earlier, so that's not an issue, so even if I were to get pre-approved for only 3 months, I think I'd be ok.
Interestingly enough, I got an e-mail from Credit Sesame linking to an article "When is the right time to apply for a mortgage?" And according to the article the best time to apply is the first week of the month. So for me, I need to talk to a bank NOW or wait till next month, and I don't think I'm prepared to wait that long.
So, with money in the bank, it's time to contact my credit union and see what they can do for me. I'll give you guys updates on the process as I have them!
Friday, February 3, 2012
A week in review
Here's another Friday, and it's time to look at where I stand. This week, I didn't post as much as I would have hoped for a few different reasons that I won't go into here.
I really need to get with the FSA thing and spend that money. I still have that $358 in my FSA from last year.
My refund came through! Because of that I now have a whopping $3,723.54 saved in the house fund.
Credit Sesame still hasn't updated for February yet, so I'm still sitting at 772, but it should give me a new score in a day or two.
I still haven't talked to any lenders yet, but now that I have my refund I'm ready to start. I think in the next week I'll call the guy who sent me that hand-addressed envelope.
I really need to get with the FSA thing and spend that money. I still have that $358 in my FSA from last year.
My refund came through! Because of that I now have a whopping $3,723.54 saved in the house fund.
Credit Sesame still hasn't updated for February yet, so I'm still sitting at 772, but it should give me a new score in a day or two.
I still haven't talked to any lenders yet, but now that I have my refund I'm ready to start. I think in the next week I'll call the guy who sent me that hand-addressed envelope.
Thursday, February 2, 2012
Monthly review
So, it's a new month, which means it is time for me to look at where all my money is going and adjust my spending, and expectations, accordingly. I figure I'll go down the list from biggest to smallest expenditures, and as always I'll not be giving you exact figures, but I will give you percents to give you an idea of what I'm doing. Mind you, all of these numbers are just on money spent, nothing about my savings.
So first, I went through all my transactions for the last month in Mint and verified that they were all correct and accurately categorized. Then I clicked on my trending tab and Viola! All the information I need.
At the top of the list, as expected, is housing. Rent. Hasn't changed, can't be changed, nothing big there, except it's my largest overall expenditure almost every month, totaling almost 29% of my money spent in January! This is one big reason I'm really looking forward to buying a house, spending that much money to get nothing in return is just crazy. I will admit, that since I'm renting from my parents and basically paying the mortgage on their second house is on positive thing in there.
Second on the list is Auto! This one is a bit higher than normal because my birthday is coming up and I had to pay my tag fees and such. But as it stands this past month this category took up 27% of my spending. I expect that without the added fee, this category will be 75% of what it is now.
My third highest category of spending is Bills and Utilities. This category was 18.1% of my total spending. That might seem high, and really it is. There are 4 things in total in this category, each taking about 25%. They are Gas, Power, Cell phones, and Television (actually, this is both internet and tv). Now, at this point in time, I can't do much of anything about these bills. I do everything I can to conserve energy at home and even keep the place cooler than my son likes, but it's winter and the heat will have to run. I'm in a contract with my current phone carrier, which will be ending really soon, and when it does I will be switching plans at the very least, or even carriers if I find a really good deal. As for television and internet, I absolutely refuse to consider changing my internet, but I may see what I can do to reduce the cost of my tv service.
A close 4th is Food and Dining at 18%! Now, I feel I did really good this past month on that one. I have been saving a ton of money shopping sales and using coupons. I'll admit, I have probably missed out on a few coupons, and I'm sure I can work harder to find more of them, but when I go to the grocery store and only pay 75% of what I would have without coupons, I feel good! Now, I did say food and dining, the food was over 80% which means I spent less than 20% (or around 3% of overall spending) on eating out at restaurants. I have had issues in the past where I would spend a lot more money than I wanted in this category, and seeing these numbers makes me feel good.
And, last but not least is entertainment. 5% of my spending in January was on video games and Netflix. I'm sure I could change my spending in this category, but it was actually larger than normal this past month as well because I paid for a full year of one service up-front, saving money in the long run. But, even if I did spend 5% of my money in this category, I wouldn't be too upset.
Of course, there's also another few percent left over of my spending which is just random stuff, like office supplies and interest charges. Overall, I think I had a successful month, and looking over these numbers makes me realize that I've already done a lot of work streamlining my spending. Even though I don't actively employ the process outlined in the You Need A Budget (The Book), I still follow the basic tenets behind it.
So first, I went through all my transactions for the last month in Mint and verified that they were all correct and accurately categorized. Then I clicked on my trending tab and Viola! All the information I need.
At the top of the list, as expected, is housing. Rent. Hasn't changed, can't be changed, nothing big there, except it's my largest overall expenditure almost every month, totaling almost 29% of my money spent in January! This is one big reason I'm really looking forward to buying a house, spending that much money to get nothing in return is just crazy. I will admit, that since I'm renting from my parents and basically paying the mortgage on their second house is on positive thing in there.
Second on the list is Auto! This one is a bit higher than normal because my birthday is coming up and I had to pay my tag fees and such. But as it stands this past month this category took up 27% of my spending. I expect that without the added fee, this category will be 75% of what it is now.
My third highest category of spending is Bills and Utilities. This category was 18.1% of my total spending. That might seem high, and really it is. There are 4 things in total in this category, each taking about 25%. They are Gas, Power, Cell phones, and Television (actually, this is both internet and tv). Now, at this point in time, I can't do much of anything about these bills. I do everything I can to conserve energy at home and even keep the place cooler than my son likes, but it's winter and the heat will have to run. I'm in a contract with my current phone carrier, which will be ending really soon, and when it does I will be switching plans at the very least, or even carriers if I find a really good deal. As for television and internet, I absolutely refuse to consider changing my internet, but I may see what I can do to reduce the cost of my tv service.
A close 4th is Food and Dining at 18%! Now, I feel I did really good this past month on that one. I have been saving a ton of money shopping sales and using coupons. I'll admit, I have probably missed out on a few coupons, and I'm sure I can work harder to find more of them, but when I go to the grocery store and only pay 75% of what I would have without coupons, I feel good! Now, I did say food and dining, the food was over 80% which means I spent less than 20% (or around 3% of overall spending) on eating out at restaurants. I have had issues in the past where I would spend a lot more money than I wanted in this category, and seeing these numbers makes me feel good.
And, last but not least is entertainment. 5% of my spending in January was on video games and Netflix. I'm sure I could change my spending in this category, but it was actually larger than normal this past month as well because I paid for a full year of one service up-front, saving money in the long run. But, even if I did spend 5% of my money in this category, I wouldn't be too upset.
Of course, there's also another few percent left over of my spending which is just random stuff, like office supplies and interest charges. Overall, I think I had a successful month, and looking over these numbers makes me realize that I've already done a lot of work streamlining my spending. Even though I don't actively employ the process outlined in the You Need A Budget (The Book), I still follow the basic tenets behind it.
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