Since January is the first real month that our budget is being put to the test since we created it in November I decided it might be a good idea to see just how well we are doing with it at the half way point of the month. Here are the raw numbers:
We haven’t had to spend anything for household items or toiletries this month but we normally incur costs like those on an irregular basis (i.e. when our stocks of stuff run out and we have decided that our hands just don’t do the job like we’d like). Getting free stuff from CVS has helped here too. Also, it has been nice to be able to do our laundry at a relatives house while we enjoy some quality time with them watching Psych. Our gas spending is a little high because I have been categorizing my bus fare under this line item because the bus is now like my car. I am planning on gas being significantly higher this month because not only do I have to pay for my fare for this month, but I will also have to buy my next month’s pass this month. Hopefully, we will have a surplus in the other areas to help offset this loss or the long term savings I am hoping for in riding the bus will materialize throughout the course of the year. Our bills are high right now because I include rent there – a rent which by itself represents 42% of our monthly expenses.
Overall our monthly budget numbers look good. Though we only have 28% of our total budget left to spend, that number jumps to 48% when not counting lines associated with rent, regular expense savings, or giving. We might have even arrived somewhere under budget if it wasn’t for the car trouble we have been having of late. Silly cars, breakdowns are for dancing.
How much one should expect for a 100KM driven and a month old Honda Civic Sports ?