Budget Updates
Since it’s near the end of the year we took a look at our overall income and spending this year and have made some budget category changes. We were estimating too low an amount for average monthly income so we’ve tweaked that up a bit. Based on that and the financial moves we’ve made this year, here’s how we stand now:
- Committed Expenses - 69.32% This was 75% at the start of the blog. We’ve managed to lower this by paying off a car, paying off some our HELOC balance, handling property taxes and insurance ourselves, and increasing our income.
- Irregular Expenses - 5.38% This was 5% at the start of the blog. We actually set aside $700/mo in our Irregular Expenses account which is more than 5.38% of our income, but we want this account to grow into a true emergency fund.
- Fun - 4.3% This was 5% at the start of the blog. The decrease here is due to a stronger focus on paying off debt.
- Retirement - 6.98% This was 7.2% at the start of the blog. There is no change in real dollars here, the decreased percentage is due to our increased income.
- Savings & Debt - 14.02% This was 7.8% at the start of the blog. We’ve increased this substantially due to increased income and diverting some Fun and Committed Expenses money to this category.
Between Retirement and Savings & Debt we’re saving 21% of our gross income. This is substantially above the national savings rate, which hovers near 0%. It is this focus on savings that is allowing us to meet our goals and build our financial foundation. I have a bonus plan at work and they’ve never missed paying a bonus, but I have not included my target bonus amount in our income. If I do get bonus payouts as I expect to, that money will all go to Savings & Debt.