A $3,000 monthly budget

[EngineeringMyFinances]

couple of expenses you don't seem to include.

A biggy is car depreciation. I'm guessing you have paid-up cars, because I see detailed car expenses. What about replacing the car when it wears out? And major repairs?

Perhaps your HOA covers exterior maintenance, including painting and roofs. What about interior maintenance? If your cooling system needs to be replaced, who pays for that?

 

[haha]

Insurance - $10 (Liability only)

I may have misunderstood, but are you saying that the only homeowner's insurance that you carry on a house built in 2003 is liability?

I have considered dropping damage and contents insurance on my old house, but so far no one will sell it to me.

What kind of policy is this?

Ha

 

[Helena]

The two of us are able to live a simple but comfortable life on
less than $2000 a month; but we have no debts & don't play golf


No HOA fees either... what a rip off !

 

[oma]

Home Owners sometimes covers a lot of things like H20, garbage, cable, and building insurance, landscaping, and pool/gym maintenance. In FLA, building insurance is becoming outrageous - some large insurance companies like USAA refuses to even start new policies there, so having the HOA cover it is sometimes a good deal.

 

[zoey]

ArizonaAZ Mo Cost Taxes $265 Home Ins $50 HOA $150 Med Ins (Medigap & son's insur $300 Electric $200 Sewer & Garbage $70 Water $60 Tel (reg line & Internet line) $60 TV $75 DSL $45 Landscaper $100 Maid (twice a mo) $160 Eating Out (two people) $240 Eating In $600 Misc (all other stuff) $900 Car Insur $200 (two vehicles) Gas $ 160.00 Total $ 3,635.00 **Plus income taxes

Here is how our expenses compare:

Prop tax: $24
House Insurance: $83
HOA: none
Med insurance: $266
Electric: $75
Gas (propane): $25
Sewer: None (have cesspool)
Garbage: zero (we take our garbage to the dump, which is free)
Water: $18
Telephone: $25
Internet: $10 (dial-up)
TV: Zero (use Bunny ear-type antennae)
Landscaper: Zero (we do the yardwork)
Maid: Zero (I clean the house)
Eating out: $10-$15 (McDonald's or Taco Bell dollar menu 2-3 times)
Food: $450
Auto expenses: $162 (includes $100 for maint acct, car ins, registration)
Gasoline: $55
Prescriptions: $180
Misc: $250 (hair cuts, clothes, house and garden products, soap, shampoo, cat food and litter, supplements, etc.)
Cell phone: $40 (will be zero when contract is up in July)

Our total monthly expenses have been coming in under $1,600 per month, so your expenses seem really high to me.

 

[zoey]

Doesn't anyone take a vacation here or budget for it?

I know when I retire I would like to have a minimum of 10,000 per yr budgeted for vacations. After all, that's a big reason for ER, for me.

No, we live in Hawaii and don't feel the need to go someplace else for a vacation. We never did travel much. We're pretty much homebodies.

 

[dixonge]

This was a great opportunity to examine our current and projected budget. We're still a few years away from ER but it's obvious that even though we were paying off debt at an accelerated pace we were leaking money elsewhere. The future projections assume we are still in our house. In retirement we will be renting only (no property taxes or insurance) and will be overseas, somewhere cheap.

                      Our      Our
OP's Budget           YTD   Projected
Taxes          $265   400      400
Home Ins        $50   138      138
Mortgage             1129     1129
HOA            $150    50       50
Med Ins        $300    20       20
Electric       $200   290      200
Sewer & Garbage $70     0        0 (included in water bill)
Water           $60    70       80
Tel             $60   115      100 (cell only)
TV              $75   115      115 (Cable + internet)
DSL             $45     0        0
Landscaper     $100     0        0
Maid           $160     0        0
Eating Out     $240   125      100
Eating In      $600   787      650 (may include non-grocery)
Misc           $900  1264      624
Car Insur      $200   132       90
Gas            $160   267      250
Student Loan         1719        0
Total        $3,635 $6600*   $3946*

* Approximate

 

[RetiredGypsy]

When I had my apartment in San Diego, my expenses went something like this.

Taxes $0
Home Ins $0
HOA $0
Rent $825 (About the cheapest in San Diego without living in the ghetto)
Med Ins $0 (Military)
Electric ~$35
Sewer & Garbage $0
Water $0
Cell $40/month (unlimited calls/text)
TV $0
DSL $0
Landscaper $0.
Maid $0
Eating Out $0
Eating In ~$300
Misc (all other stuff) ~$1,000 for some major motorcycle maintanence (tires, clutch, etc)
Car Insur $58/month
Gas ~$80/month

So, around $1,325/month, or $15,876/year, plus $1,000 last year for some major motorcycle maintenance items. Once I'm free from w*rk, I'll be able to cut that down to <$900/month for the essentials.

Entertainment hasn't been included because it's based on funds available at any given time. It does get budgeted in, but it's much more fluid.

 

[oma]

When I had my apartment in San Diego, my expenses went something like this.

Taxes $0
Home Ins $0
HOA $0
Rent $825 (About the cheapest in San Diego without living in the ghetto)
Med Ins $0 (Military)
Electric ~$35
Sewer & Garbage $0
Water $0
Cell $40/month (unlimited calls/text)
TV $0
DSL $0
Landscaper $0.
Maid $0
Eating Out $0
Eating In ~$300
Misc (all other stuff) ~$1,000 for some major motorcycle maintanence (tires, clutch, etc)
Car Insur $58/month
Gas ~$80/month

So, around $1,325/month, or $15,876/year, plus $1,000 last year for some major motorcycle maintenance items. Once I'm free from w*rk, I'll be able to cut that down to <$900/month for the essentials.

Entertainment hasn't been included because it's based on funds available at any given time. It does get budgeted in, but it's much more fluid.

Surprised utilities are so low ($35), as well as eating out (can't think of anyone who doesn't). If one doesn't mind renting, you can save a lot on real estate taxes and insurance. With a budget like yours, a person could continue to invest $$$$ as well as live w^rk-free.