The Season of Spend

The holiday season is quickly approaching! This is such a fun time of year with the decorations, gorgeous lights, time spent with family, and of course gifts.

It is the gifts that can be a problem. As someone who is obsessed with personal finance and saving money I hate to spend a lot of money on gifts (unless I know the time will be used all the time). Below are some of the ways I keep gift costs in check.

• Limits - My sister and I set a $50 limit on gifts for each other. We do this for our birthdays as well. $50 is enough money to buy something nice, but keeps both of us from breaking the bank.
• Work - My office has a secret santa every year. The limit is $20, I almost always spend a little bit over, but it is not that bad. The one thing I hate about office gift giving is that it isn't something you can back out of easily. I would prefer if we did a dirty santa/white elephant game. I think those are easier to decide not to participate in and still fun to watch! 
• Extended Family - My family-in-law and my cousins have all moved to the dirty santa plan. We have various rounds that you can choose to either participate or not participate in. My cousins and I keep in cheap, $1 and a $10 round. The gift giving here is more for the fun then the actual gift! My family-in-law has a couple more rounds, but they are all voluntary!
• Parents - With my parents I worry less about money and more about finding them gifts they will actually use. This is harder than it sounds!
• Husband - This has been different every year, but we sit down together and decide on a limit or items that we really want. We make it a conversation, so that each year doesn't become about upping what we did the year before. The best Christmas gift for me is to be able to spend both Christmas Eve and Christmas day with him. 

How do you keep costs down?

picture by bobsfever

Budget Fail

So I didn't make my budget challenge this month. I signed up to run a turkey trot on Thanksgiving. As we were driving home from picking up our numbers and t-shirts I realized I forgot the most essential item I needed to run in the race.

I have exercise induced asthma. I'm completely fine until I start exercising. Luckily all I need to do is use my inhaler before I get started and I'm fine.

So yes, I realized I forgot my inhaler. I could have easily borrowed anything else, but of course I forget the one thing that I can't borrow. The pharmacy I go to in the city does not have a location in my hometown. So instead I went to the nearest CVS to explain my predicament. I was lucky. They were able to call my pharmacy and get a copy of the prescription and fill it right then and there! So I was able to run in the race (and had an amazing time doing so), but I spent $35 and missed my budget challenge.

At least now I have an extra inhaler that will live in my toiletry bag!

photo by GlacierTim

Thankful

I've been pretty frustrated at things in my life right now (such as my job), so I think it is particularly important that I take a little time to acknowledge the blessings I have in my life.

I'm thankful for my husband and to have just celebrated our first year wedding anniversary. I'm so lucky to have him in my life.

I'm thankful for my family, because really they are what is most important.

I'm thankful that I'm about turn a year older, every year is a blessing.

I'm thankful that I have a job in which I'm respected and coworkers I respect.

I'm thankful for my health and the ability to go for a run.

I'm thankful for my friends, who I couldn't survive without.

I'm thankful for my ability to read and write, and my desire to continue to learn.

I'm thankful that I understand personal finance.

I'm thankful for this blog and for my readers, because you help me make decisions and hold me accountable.

Happy Thanksgiving!

photo by iwona_kellie

Thanksgiving

I love Thanksgiving. Delicious food, the Macy's parade, family, the leftovers, and of course the dog show! This year I'm running a 5 mile turkey trot the morning of with my sister and two of my cousins. I'm looking forward to getting in some exercise before stuffing my face.

I'm also looking forward to just hanging out and relaxing for a few days. One of the great things about Thanksgiving is that you often get the day after Thanksgiving off as well.

Finally, my birthday is on Sunday. I love when my birthday falls around the Thanksgiving holiday. I get a nice long weekend to celebrate and enjoy turning another year older. Yes, even though I'm turning 31, I still enjoy getting older!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

picture by Edsel L

Update on My Budget Challenge

After picking up some essentials and having a fun Saturday night I'm down to $40 in cash to last me until December 1st.

For some reason when I was thinking about the challenge earlier I completely forgot about the days after Thanksgiving weekend. While I shouldn't have to spend much money over Thanksgiving, I will need to buy food once we return home. There is a chance I'll have to start December's budget early. However, I'm hoping that I can make it without doing that.

It is going to be a tough challenge, but I'm up for it!

picture by Images_of_Money

Updated My Blog & Started a Facebook Page

I've been wanting to update the look of my blog for a while, but I just couldn't seem to find the time. I finally did it! For those of you who read my posts in a reader, stop by and let me know what you think! I'm not quite done playing around, but I'm loving the fresh clean look.

I also finally created a facebook page. Again, I'm in the very beginning stages, but I'm very excited about finally having one for my blog!

Happy Friday everyone! 

Budget Challenge

November has turned into a tight budget month. As of today I have $70 left for the entire month. Thankfully, all of my monthly expenses have been paid, so this $70 is for food and life expenses.

So here is my budget challenge - survive the rest of the month on $70.

Normally, I wouldn't think this would be possible. However, Thanksgiving is coming up. We already have the wine to bring to the celebration so all we have to do it get ourselves out there, a $25 round trip train ticket will do the trick. Once I'm home my parents will have plenty of food (and leftovers) to survive on.

I also have a birthday celebration coming up this weekend. Since I haven't been drinking regularly my tolerance is very low. I'm happy that this works in my advantage! At most I expect to have one celebratory beer (with tip $10).

Finally, I need to get more milk and body lotion. I drink soy milk which is a little bit more expensive. I imagine I can buy both for $10.

So I have plans for $45, which leaves me with $25. This is going to be a tough challenge, but I'm up for it!  

The Hidden Expenses in Owning a Car

Melanie Slaugh is enthusiastic about the growing prospects and opportunities of various industries and writing articles on various consumer goods and services as a freelance writer. She writes extensively for internet service providers and also topics related to internet providers in my area for presenting the consumers, the information they need to choose the right Internet package for them. She can be reached at slaugh.slaugh907 @ gmail.com.

Owning a car is a dream that many people have. A car gives you a sense of freedom, or independence. Purchasing and paying for a car can also raise your credit score and show how responsible you are. Some cities almost require a car to get around, while others have better forms of public transportation. But no matter your reason for wanting a vehicle, there are some hidden costs you should know about before you buy..    

1. Insurance – Insurance is a huge cost for almost any driver. Even if you buy a car totally and get only liability insurance, it still is a sizeable amount. Accidents are a part of life, and insurance usually doesn’t cover as much as you would think. Remember that you are not just covering your vehicle, but you are also covering other people’s- insured and uninsured. Don’t even get me started on medical coverage if someone is hurt. In a big city, full coverage insurance (the minimum that financers require) can run you hundreds of dollars a month.
2. Repair – Car repair is expensive. If something breaks down, you can get estimates that vary in the hundreds if not thousands of dollar range to repair it. Even if you know someone or have a friend that does car repair, sometime it just gets expensive. And, no matter the age of the car, all cars will require repair sometime. The warranty? Forget about it. The minute it expires, that’s when the car will break down.
3. Maintenance – Not only does a car need repaired sometimes, but it needs maintained all the time. Oil changes, new tires, fluids changed and topped off. It is an endless battle. Be prepared to pay every ten thousand miles for some major maintenance. Yu can skip it, but remember, you’ll end up paying a lot more for repairs later if you do.
4. Inspection–The yearly inspection isn’t that big of a hassle… unless something goes wrong. The price for inspections varies greatly depending on where you are located, and the laws behind them are ever-changing. Even over-tinting can get your car disqualified. No inspection? Prepare for a big ticket.
5. Registration – Thankfully, you won’t have to get your plates replaced too often, but you will have to change your registration sticker yearly. It comes in the mail, and you can pay either through the mail or at a store, even online in some states. It’s a small fee, but those add up.
6. Gas- Last but not least, gas prices. At the rates that gas increases every year, investing in a bike sounds like a good idea. Your car will never get as good of mileage as the manufacturer claims. Prepare to spend a bundle, especially if you live where there’s stop-and-go traffic. 

How It Went

I ran the half marathon on Sunday and ended up only 8 minutes over my PR. As far as I am concerned this is fantastic news! The half marathon took place on the water in a very cute New England town. It was a beautiful run, especially for someone who is used to running in a city.

I was one of the last people to start because of a long line for the ladies room. I would guess that I crossed the start line a minute or so into the race. I started jogging at a very comfortable pace and before I knew it I had caught up to the 10 minute mile pacer. When I train I can run a half marathon between a 8:30 and 9 minute pace. However, since I hadn't run over six miles in maybe two years I decided to stick with the 10 minute pacers.

Even though I had determined to stay with the 10 minute pace group, I felt myself pulling away and before I knew it I was at the 9:30 pace group. At this point I decided that I needed to stay no matter what. Around mile 3 I felt amazing and wanted to pull ahead, but wouldn't let myself. It was only mile 3 or 13! Thank goodness because come mile 10 I was exhausted. Running with the pace group kept me going (combined with the mental game of I've run 10 I can finish a measly 3). I stayed with the group until the last mile. At one mile to go I was faced with a steep uphill plus some knee pain. I slowed down considerably. I was still determined not to walk since I was so close to the finish line, but I was okay with running slower. As I turned the corner and saw the finish line I heard the pace leader yelling at me to finish hard. So I did.

It was a great race where I really pushed myself mentally and physically. I'm so glad I ran it! Of course my legs are hating me right now. I was going to go for a jog tonight, but I've decided to give myself one more night of rest before heading out again.

Thank you to everyone who encouraged me to run. I may have bowed out without your encouragement and missed a great race!

photo by aarmono

What To Do

I'm signed up to run a half marathon on Sunday. My first half marathon in probably 2 1/2 years. I'm supposed to run it with four other people (though not together). The problem - I haven't been training. The most I've run in months is 6 miles. 6 miles is a long way away from 13.1.

I know I can run the distance, the problem is that I won't run it well. Most likely I'll end up walking big parts of it. So do I run or do I not run?

Any recommendations?

picture by kharied

Retirement

One of my biggest concerns has always been whether or not I'll have enough money to retire comfortably. I think some of my worry comes from the fact that I didn't start saving until I was 26.

MSN Money recently posted an article on Gen Y's retirement: $2 million. It is scary to think about how much you will need in retirement (and to then look at how little you have now), but it is also important to be prepared and to practice good habits. According to this article there are a few things you should be doing now -

• setting goals
• take advantage of employer benefits
• control costs
• invest in a Roth IRA or 401k
• maximize social security
• plan on retiring later in life
• and don't get hung up on a number

I don't really have an amount that I want to save by the time I retire. Instead, my goals are to put away as much as I can and still be comfortable. Between my contributions and my employers I'm putting away 17% of my salary. I'd love to get that number to 20%, but right now it isn't in the cards.

I take full advantage of my employer retirement benefits!

Controlling costs refers to your investments. Many mutual funds, especially those actively managed have high fees. You don't want to end up spending all your money on fees. I almost exclusively invest in index funds. They are not actively managed and the goal is to follow the market. I'm looking long term and I don't believe I can beat the market. So these funds are the perfect investment for me.

I invest in a 403b through work and I have a Roth IRA. I don't put as much in this as I would like, but I'm am contributing and that is what matters.

Maximizing social security and not planning to retire until later in life will have to be decisions I make when that time comes. Nevertheless, it is good to have that in the back of my mind.

Finally, I agree with not getting hung up on a number. If you want to worry about a number decide how much you want to contribute in a given year and focus on that. However, everyone works differently. If focusing on a million or two million dollars helps you save more. Then do it! The point is to make sure you are putting enough money away for your retirement. 

Update on My Sidebar Goals

I'm very very happy to report that my student loan is down to $10,038. Just $39 will get me under 5 figures! I'm so close and pretty much guaranteed to reach my goal before January! I'm very excited about this I can't emphasis enough about how I want this student loan debt gone and this is the first step!

I haven't been doing as well with my emergency fund goal. In fact I backtracked a little bit. This month is going to be tight as it is so I won't be able to put extra money into this fund. However, if I dedicate myself to a couple austere months I should be able to make a real dent. I actually have a longer plan for my emergency fund. The first step is to get it to $5000. Once I do that I want to create a short-terms savings of $1000 to help with any overages in my budget. Once that is complete I want to work on getting my e-fund to $12,000. I have a long way to go, but with some focus I can hopefully get there. 

Where I Spend My Dollar

I decided to particapate in 20's Finances Where I Spend My Dollar. The rules are simple put it into percentages and use the following categories:

1. Housing
2. Transportation
3. Food
4. Insurance
5. Personal Care
6. Entertainment
7. Savings
8. Other

I found the categories to be missing one for paying down debt. My mortgage fits in housing, but there was no place for my student debt so I added a pay down debt section. 

First a caveat, anything that is taken out of my paycheck pre-taxes is not included in these numbers. The two big items include my retirement savings and my metro card ($103 for transportation). 

1. Housing - 64%

64% of my budget goes towards housing expenses. This is a lot, but it includes my mortgage, maintenance, rent and electricity. I also live in NYC so it is not surprising that I spend a lot of housing. 46% of this 64% I get in rental income, so if you remove that I pay 49% of my budget towards housing. Still high, but again not surprising. 

2. Transportation - 0%

0% comes out to $22.60 in this category. This month it was on train tickets. Since I get my metro card pretax I only pay for transportation when I take the train out of the city or the occasional cab. 

3. Food - 7%

7% of my total budget is on food. After housing this is always a big percentage for me as DH and I tend to order in and eat out quite a bit. 

4. Insurance - 0%

I pay my insurance in big payments so it is 0% the rest of the year. 

5. Personal Care - 1%

I spend 1% on drugstore runs. What can I say, I'm a girl I make drugstore runs at least once if not twice every month!

6. Entertainment - 3%

I spent on average 3% on entertainment. This category tends to cover movies, going out and buying wine.

7. Savings - 11%

I spend 11% of my budget on savings. I love that this is the biggest category after housing. I only wish it was even higher!

8. Other - 10%

I put 10% of my budget in this category. Basically, I put a bunch of things in this category that I wasn't sure what to do with. This includes my cell phone payment, gifts, sports and cash spending.

9. Paying Down Debt - 4%

Finally I spent 4% every month paying down my student loans.

How do you spend your money?