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It's Budget Report Time Again!

Welcome to another monthly budget report. Let me just take a moment to officially welcome you to winter! Hopefully, you enjoyed your holiday season, even if it looked different than normal. Did you remember to ditch the resolutions and set some New Year’s SMART goals instead?

I’m a little ashamed to admit that I actually haven’t written a budget report update since September. At this point, I honestly don’t see the sense in going back and trying to publish them this late.

Let’s just do a quick recap. In October, I may have overdone it a bit with Halloween stuff, especially considering we wound up in quarantine and couldn’t even leave the house We went over budget. In November, we both received small bonuses to our base pay. The extra money was enough to balance our overspending from the previous two months with a little room to spare.

We also paid $1,700 in unexpected repairs to remove a tree that threatened to destroy our fence and my car. Plus, we had to pay to replace a gasket that blew on the wrong side of our water main. Luckily, we still have some cash squirreled away for home repairs and surprises. The money came from savings and not our monthly budget.

In those two months, I also earned $113.40 from the blog! December won’t be nearly as impressive…

Anyway, let’s look at last month’s earning, spending, and saving!

The world continues to be a scary place, and I urge everyone to start getting finances in order, and get prepared for emergencies. Preparedness, financial freedom, and money management go hand in hand. You simply can’t have one without the others! If you’re looking for some reading material to get you started, I’ve got a few that might be helpful.

Want more budget report goodness? Check out these links to see our previous months!

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Why Create A Monthly Budget Report?

The first real budget I set was back in 2014 when I made A LOT less money than I do today. I had been idling along for years in my retail service job, scraping by from paycheck to paycheck, and making very little headway. Way back then, it wasn’t even debt reduction or budgeting that got me interested in getting my finances under control. An interest in prepping lead me there.

In learning about preparedness, I began to realize that if there were ever an emergency, I was going to be out of luck. There was no savings to speak of, cash or otherwise. Stocking up was out of the question. The debt I had accrued was taking up all my expendable income and then some. I thought I was okay with money, but it turned out, I had absolutely no idea what I was doing. At best, I was JUST okay. So, I started to research.

I probably learned about every system under the sun. Cash envelope systems, spreadsheets, percentages and ratios… There was so much to absorb. I made a lot of mistakes. To be honest, I still do. But I did find a system that worked for me, and it made a difference almost instantly. In finally creating a physical budget, I could see that my money was being wasted all over the place. It was no wonder I couldn’t catch up.

If I could share only one takeaway, it’s this. You do, in fact, need to set a budget and put it on paper! Yes, technology counts as paper here!

Why Am I Sharing My Spending And Earnings?

Simply put, it helped me when others showed me what they were doing. I can only hope that sharing my own monthly budget report can help others out there who aren’t sure where to start.

I also think it’s really important that we talk about money. Like, as a society. The secrecy and shame surrounding spending makes it so much harder to figure out a system that works for you. There should be less fear of judgement and failure around money. If I can contribute to expanding the conversation, I want to!

Now that I have a child, I am realizing she learns so much by watching me. The best way for me to set her up for success is by showing her what’s out there and how it could be handled. It might not have taken me until I was almost 30 to realize I didn’t actually know what I was doing if there had been more conversations about healthy spending going on around me.

Budget Report Details Before We Start

Everyone budgets a little differently. There’s not really a right or wrong way. Just what works. Mr. P&P and I don’t track our budgets exactly the same way. But we’re working on getting there.

For a little consistency on our budget report, I’ll calculate monthly spending based on purchases made during the calendar month.

As for income, I work on a zero based budget using last month’s income. Basically, this means that all the money I earn this month is budgeted and spent next month. It’s an absolute life saver, especially if money is tight or inconsistent. Having the ability to borrow from my future self has saved my life a few times! Want to learn more? Check out this post where I break down how and why I budget this way!

Mr. P&P is still budgeting the current month’s income, so we do a little of both. Since most of our income is salary, this really only effects extra earnings and rental income.

December Income Budget Report- $7,341.49

Teacher Salary – $7,092.98 This includes both teacher salaries after the automatic withdrawal of taxes and health insurance.
Rental Income Property – $224.91 Our first home was a townhouse we paid under $100,000 for in good condition, which is unheard of today. When we bought our last house, The Pit, we decided it was better to keep the town home as rental income rather than sell it to put money toward the new house.
Extra Income Deposited – $0 Nothing this month. I’m still working crazy long hours, so not much time for survey sites.
Extra Income Paid in Cash – $0
Rebates – $0
Blog Income – $23.60 Guys, how exciting is this? I officially get to report blog income! This is payment I received for an Ultimate Bundles affiliate sale back in October. My next couple months might not look so great. I’m working on improving my strategy and hopefully getting more consistent with my blog income.

December Spending Budget Report - $7,245.89

We’re still slowly figuring out our new normal with household expenses. Since we have yet to experience “normal”, it’s still hard to estimate our regular expenses in advance. I’m starting to think we may never experience it.

Monthly Living Expenses - $4,551.24

This budget report category includes typical monthly expenses that come out of our budget pretty much every month. These are our “basic living” expenses that we need to pay in order to get through the month.

Mortgage – $2,152.66 This is our total mortgage payment on our new house, including insurance, escrow. etc. It’s a lot higher than we paid at The Pit. However, we wanted to stay in our area, and we now have considerably fewer rodents living with us.
Utilities – $349.51 This covers the electricity, water, sewer, and pest control services. We don’t spray for mosquitos in the winter (even though they’re still active), and we got a small refund from a former electric company.
Daycare – $700 Paid during the school year. We are fortunate to know an incredible lady who provides services for teacher’s kids at a very affordable rate.
Car Payment – $234.35 On top of the home issues last summer, Mr. P&P’s 14 year old car died right in the midst of everything. The car seat doesn’t fit in mine, and we were basically living in a hotel, so we were stranded. We purchased a used car through Hertz Rentals because we knew it would be maintained, and their process is very straightforward. But we didn’t have the cash saved up after foundation repair, so we had to finance. I am still driving my 13 year old, paid off sub-compact.
Gas, Toll, and Other Transportation Expenses – $223.27 Terrible timing means that I somehow filled up twice even though I haven’t driven since December 19th. We also had to replace a car battery.
Car Insurance – $90.00 We decided to start setting aside money each month to cover estimated insurance premiums. We renewed this month, and our sinking fund actually has $18 left in it! We’ll keep it there for next time.
Groceries – $801.45 This is high for us, but I’m blaming Christmas/New Year’s Eve and an 18 day holiday break. Honestly, a chunk of this is also gifts since we always give homemade Chex Mix, jelly, and candy, but I don’t know what percentage.

Debt Expenses - $1,099.97

This is money we spend in order to pay down previously existing debts and any expenses resulting from debt. Just look at how much money we’re giving away!

Student Loans – $800.00 Mr. P&P is still making his payments. (Federal student loans older than 10 years DO NOT qualify for COVID related assistance!) Recently, the amount of my loan has gone into savings, waiting to make a lump sum payment when student loan payments go back to normal.
Debt Repayment – $699.97 We got to pay extra for the first time in months.
Fees and Charges – $0
Medical Debt – $0 No payments this month, though we might be settling one in January.4

Other Recurring Monthly Expenses - $490.46

These budget report expenses happen every month, but they are not vital spending categories! It’s the stuff we could get rid of and survive if we needed to.

Phones – $195.86 This is both cell phone plans. I also paid the bill on the line I share with my mom to make up for the fact that she has to remind me to pay it basically every month.
Digital Media, Streaming, and Internet – $54.82 This covers our internet. It’s a bit lower because we didn’t renew Hulu. Peacock is free and has nearly everything we were watching on Hulu.
Rock Climbing Gym – $75.78 We love rock climbing together! But when we learned that Baby Girl was coming, we stopped attending and haven’t picked back up. The gym is closed, but we’re still being charged. We don’t want the place to go out of business, so we will pay.
Monthly Renewals – $164.00 We each have some subscription boxes for various hobby interests throughout the year. My box that renews twice a year went through this month. I’ll probably start a new sinking fund to cover the renewal in June.

Variable Spending - $1,092.22

These expenses change every month. They are somewhat unpredictable and variable.

Health Care – $27.05 Replacement N-95 masks for work. Ours were falling apart.
Home Improvement – $15.58 New outlet covers to try and help with some electrical shorts we’re having in our outside outlets.
Home Expenses – $82.00 Lots of new seed varieties from Baker Creek to grow in the spring garden.
Dining Out – $97.72 Long stretches at home don’t usually bode well for our restaurant budget.
Blog Expenses – $0
Baby Expenses – $149.81 Big diaper order (potty training can’t come soon enough…), some bigger clothes, and organizational baskets for Baby Girl’s new kitchen.
Classroom Spending – $0
Digital Streaming/Media $0
Gifts – $74.42 Gift wrapping (ours was all lost to rats last year) and stuff from Santa.
Hobbies and Entertainment – $143.64 Mostly stuff I gifted myself – a bundle, a few Sims 4 expansion packs (I’m low key obsessed), and a few pretty bits and bobs.
Other Spending – $102.00 I got a few clothing items for holiday dress up days at school, some batteries that didn’t do what we needed (boo, sunk costs), and a second good chef’s knife, so we don’t fight over the good one when we cook. And so I continue to have fingertips when I cook…
Holidays – 0 Make no mistake, we spent money on the holidays. It’s just accounted for in other places. No decor items this month.
Savings – $400 My student loan payment. As it stands, I’m planning to make a large lump sum payment at the end of January when student loan payments and interest rates kick back in.

Donations - $20.00

Those of you who read this post might remember that I’ve decided to start donating half of my online income to organizations that support black causes in light of recent events in my country. I’ll be doing this for 9 months. I don’t make much, but I felt a strong pull to do something to help fight racism and the mistreatment of humans in my country.

If you’d like more details or information, go check out my post. This month, I donated the full amount of my extra income to a cause, plus a little extra.

The Loveland Foundation – $20 The Loveland Foundation is dedicated to bringing opportunity and healing to communities of color, especially black women and girls. Donations provide financial aid to black women and girls seeking therapy and mental health support.

Do you have a favorite organization that needs support? Comment below and let me know who they are. Maybe they’ll show up in my next budget report.

Budget Report Goals Progress

There’s definitely room for improvement, but I’m feeling pretty good about how our budget turned out on one of the biggest shopping months of the year.

I’m excited (and a bit anxious, if we’re being honest) to see what 2021 will bring. I do know that a refinance is on the horizon. We’ll also pay off our last credit card at some point this year. Likely by summer’s end. That means we’re on track to meet our 2 year credit card debt payoff goal!

I know that not everyone out there is as fortunate as us. If you’ve lost your income, or it’s been cut drastically, I recently wrote this post about how to cope right now if you didn’t have an emergency fund to fall back on. I outline a bunch of ideas to help cut costs and increase income while times are tough.

A Quick Word On Preparedness

In the P&P household, we’re all still healthy and relatively untouched by the madness of 2020. But nothing is permanent anymore. I’ll be honest, I’m even a little bit worried about what education will even look like come 2021.

Here in Texas, our infection numbers continue to grow, and both our schools now have confirmed positive cases. The first wave wasn’t that long ago, and hopefully, you still remember the stress of food and supply shortages that snuck up on so many people. If you can prevent it the next time, I urge you to do so. Don’t wait until things get worse.

NOW is the time to take steps and get prepared if you haven’t already. Get money in the bank, food in the pantry, and supplies in storage.

Here’s that list of helpful posts again, just in case you’d like more information.

What Does The Future Hold?

Facing your financial burdens head on does not feel good, but it is important if you want to grow. You can’t fix a problem if you don’t know it exists. No matter where you are, figure out what you’re starting with so you can decide where you’re going.

If you need help getting started, well, that’s what I’m here for. Check out this recent post that will give you a step by step guide to help you make a plan and get out of debt.

We longingly dream of the day we can say we are entirely debt free! I don’t know if that day will come, but why not dream big? Today, our goal is to make progress. But someday, we want to have as much control as possible over how we use our money. So, I’m giving you a breakdown below of our major debt goals and monthly progress. Who doesn’t love a nice graph?

All totals except the credit cards go back to the original loan amounts, and the credit card total comes from our calculations in September 2019.

The percentage bar shows the percentage paid off.

The numbers beneath show the total remaining / original loan.

Credit Card Payoff Goal

Debt Paid 83.4%

$6,370.02 / $39,558.61

We are shooting for a goal of payoff in 2 years! Just 7 months to go.

A little up this month due to all the poor budgeting choices, but we’ll get it back under control!

Medical Debt Payoff Goal

Debt Paid 16.4%

$11,885.63 / $14,169.05

This includes only the debt I took on with the birth of Baby Girl. The cost of her conception through treatments and prenatal care were paid in cash, as was the hospital down payment. It’s just the debt accrued after delivery complications and emergency services that I couldn’t deal with due to a mostly unpaid maternity leave. A lot of this is currently in collections because I just don’t have enough money to settle yet, but I’m chipping away.

Medical Debt Payoff Goal #2

Debt Paid 9.5%

$5,000.27 / $5,526.63

This is the debt we took on as a result of Mr. P&P getting an infection that went septic and needing hospitalization in October.

Car Payment Payoff Goal

Debt Paid 22.8%

$10,892.95 / $14,111.92

We’re not putting extra here yet.

Student Loan Payoff Goal

Debt Paid 26.8%

$58,982.97 / $80,567.17

Someday, we might qualify for debt forgiveness due to becoming public school teachers. We’re not really putting a ton of eggs in that basket though. If I can get them paid off earlier, I will. A lot of the progress I made here happened in the years where my income was fairly low, so I’m pretty proud of that.

In January, I officially paid off one of those loans! Slow progress is still progress.

Mortgages Payoff Goal

Debt Paid -37.7%

$402,667.50 / $292,407.00

I left our previous mortgage total because I thought it would be interesting. Mostly, it’s painful. This move increased our debt total in this category significantly. There’s no guilt here, though.

We had to make the best choice for our family’s health and finances. The best choice for us was to get out of The Pit, and start again somewhere else. Between the purchase of the new home and the refinance on the rental property, we took on a lot more mortgage debt. It’s weird, though. For the first time in a while, we feel like we can breathe. We see a light at the end of the tunnel and an opportunity to actually make some progress.

We are definitely gambling a little bit. Not much can go wrong, and the budget will be tight for at least a year. Of course, with Coronavirus, we have some anxiety about this change. I couldn’t imagine, though, self isolating and working from home in a house infested with rats! We still think the move was a good choice.

The mortgages are last on our list of payoff priorities. They’re pretty huge amounts for us, but we really would like to pay them off early and save some interest!

Now, It's Your Turn

If you haven’t sat down yet and faced your debt head-on, I really encourage you to do it! Figure out what you owe. Write it down. Stare those numbers in the eye and acknowledge them! Here’s a step by step guide to help you get started.

You can’t fix a problem you don’t know about!

What was your spending month like? How have recent events altered your budget or plans? What are you doing to stay on top of everything?

How are your personal finance goals coming along? We would love to know!

While you’re at it, don’t forget to share this post on your favorite social media, follow us, and subscribe to our newsletter, so you can stay up to date on all the latest updates and events.

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