Saturday, December 19, 2009

Next Year's Budget

Over the course of 2009 and leading up to 2010, I've done a good job of reducing my expenses. Here are some that I've managed to cut:

Rent: From $1800 to $1675 = monthly savings of $125
Anti-virus: Saved $50 annually by switching to a free one (praying to Internet gods this does not bite me in the butt)
Taxes: Used TurboTax instead of an accountant to save $900 annually
Phone: I finally cancelled my Verizon account. This should save me in 2010 anywhere from $30 to $70 a month.
Personal Care: I started coloring my own hair during the second half of 2009, so that's reduced that category expense in half from about $150-$200 during the months when I would get my hair colored to more like an average of $60.

So, what am I going to do with all these savings? Spend them! haha. But on things I need/want. I"ll allocate more $ in 2010 to buying clothes, entertainment such as dance performances and the opera as well as travel. It should be a fun year! I also plan to move from my current place to a more convinient location and might end up paying a little more for rent again. Not a crazy amount, but for my mental and emotional health, it will be important for me to be a little more conveniently located next year.

Sunday, December 6, 2009

End of Year and Holidays

To keep with the theme of the last post, I'm enjoying the holidays and for once am spending money (while still saving of course). Having reached the limit on taxable social security income, I have extra money in my paycheck during Q4, so that's nice. In theory, I will also recieve a bonus in the next few weeks -- something I've been dreaming of all year. And I'm making my end of year charity donations, which is fun. So between extra money and all the fun spending on gifts, charity (and myself), this is a great time of year!

Of course that means I'm not too excited for Jaunary, but I'm thinking of planning an inexpensive trip to try to ward off the winter blues.

I'll post my Q4 net worth post-bonus. I hope the stock market continues this winning streak. Bonus + stock market gains + end of year income bump = nice Q4!