Airbnb.com? Absolutely amazing! Thanks to Sam and Michele P for the recommendation. There is ONE house in Temple, and it looks perfect :) Definitely following up on that as soon as Darling gets the call that the project is going ahead.
I'm kind of exhausted and pretending to do the dishes just now, but I need to go ahead and posts the results of my 2012 tabulations before I forget. Fortunately, I wrote most of the following several days ago:
My first big surprise was our total income for 2011. Besides May, when Darling and I earned only $538.16, we brought home an average of $1,921.56/month. In October, when Darling and I both worked full time, we earned nearly twice that. That is significantly more than I would have guessed. It was also fairly steady, despite what felt like huge gaps in employment and a total career change.
That's the good news. The bad news is that we spent significantly more than I figured. Every month we swung from deficit to surplus and back again, but ultimately the deficit reigned. All told, we spent $1,179.71 more than we earned.
What did we spend $98 a month on that maybe wasn't totally necessary? Gods. Well, eating out. A lot. It didn't seem like a lot on a weekly basis. Meals with friends, dates with Darling...each hour at the table seeming as lovely and worthwhile as anything. Only now, totaling the yearly bill, do I blush with embarrassment...How much did we spend eating out? An average of $140 a month!
What else could I have curbed? I spent nearly $230 on late and overdraft fees this year. For $19 a month I could have purchased used books or DVDs instead of going to the library and video store (or, dare I say, get that subscription to Netflix I do not want).
I spent $107 on entertainment a month, mostly on gifts and my birthday party. I'll have to keep that in mind in the coming year...All other spending was fairly minimal: a total of $166.84 for office supplies, $308.22 for licenses (particularly Darling's pricey passport renewal), $103.92 on non-work clothing, and $300.48 for non-commute travel.
I spent an average of $351.64/month on debt, $42.39 of which went straight to interest. We spent $81.52/month on health-related expenses, and I spent $2,283.52 on work and work alone. Living at the co-op, where share the cost of the bulk of our groceries and utilities, costs us $11,620.94 (besides the late rent fees).
So, what do we do with all this information?
The really cool thing about last year was how, well, normal it was. Now, quitting multiple crappy jobs, experiencing months of unemployment and uncertainty, and undergoing a drastic career change isn't a daily occurrence in the Softly household, but overall our lifestyle, earning, and spending patters were steady. And that's really what counts. I knew how much we basically needed to pay rent, but not how much we tend to spend on top of that, especially in terms of holiday spending and the like.
With this information I can realistically plan for the future. I have a basic idea of how much Darling and I should bring home a month, despite our fluctuating schedules, and I can make educated choices about expenses. For example, I've always believed that knitting birthday gifts would be too pricey, as yarn is quite expensive. Now I know that if I spent $50 a month on crafts supplies, I'd probably come out ahead (Feel free to announce "I Told You So," in the comments).
There is a lot more I'd like to do with these numbers, including creating weekly goals to shoot for and regular updates - maybe on a Friday? I can come clean on the fifty-million times I've eaten out, you can chide me for being naughty, and I'll brag on sending that same amount (or more) to debt. Oh yeah, did I mention I'm going to use this all as incentive to pay down my debt super fast this year? I'd ask you to wish me luck, but you all have about a dozen times...so, I'll just say it again: Happy New Year and Clean Slate everybody!
5 comments:
I'm glad you looked into it! I would read all of the reviews that are listed for the person who is renting it. The person I rented from had around 100 reviews, and they were all good.
If you ever like the yarn at Michaels or Hobby Lobby (they have some cotton and some mostly-wool) and if it's at all convenient to get to, you could sign up for their newsletter. They each send out a coupon for 40% or 50% off one item every week. So you could get a discount if you buy your yarn one skein at a time (well, maybe enough for one project at a time so you're more likely to get all the yard from the same lot number).
I'm happy to wish you luck again!
I dont know............$50 a month is $600 a year - lot of money for crafts on a budget.........you could do much better. I spent $400 on Christmas and that included hand made gifts for a lot of adults and children and all the food over a 10 day period and I thought that was a lot. Unless you are really expert dont spend a lot of money on yarn etc. Garage sales are the place to look for craft supplies - if you dont see them.......ask
@Michelle- Sadly, there is only one house and it is only recently offered, so no reviews yet. On the bright side, we're near enough that it won't be a disaster if this house isn't perfect.
@Debbie- Thanks for the coupon tip! I'll have to look into that.
@Lizzie- I couldn't spend $50 on crafts every month if I tried (Darling would revolt), I just meant to illustrate how much money I could save by knitting instead of buying presents new. I PROMISE to look into that this year...
If you have some decent thrift shops, look into recycling yarn from old sweaters. I ignore acrylics and machine knits. My best recent find was from a $2 Goodwill sweater with a beautiful lightweight green yarn (linen and bamboo mix). It's in the process of being transformed into a hat from a free Ravelry pattern and I will have more than half the sweater left after that. Here's a good tutorial on deconstructing a sweater: http://www.handspunartyarn.com/p/how-to-unravel-sweater-to-recycle-yarn.html
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