Author Topic: Hold Yourself Openly Accountable for Your Spending in 2020 (Read 11653 times)

philli14 · « **on:** December 26, 2019, 12:59:51 AM »

Thanks to @use2betrix for the great thread last year (https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/throw-down-the-gauntlet/hold-yourself-openly-accountable-for-your-spending-in-2019/). I owe that thread to the drastic decrease in spending that I was able to realize from 2018 to 2019.

Despite 2019 being a great success with regards to spending, there is more improvement to be made. Hope this year's version is as useful to others as 2019's was for me.

Use this thread however you'd like, but I am tracking overall spending in addition to a couple of key categories that I had identified as being particularly excessive in the previous year(s).

Bring on 2020!

| Gas/Fuel | Restaurants | "Shopping" | Groceries | Total |
2018 AVG | $ 160 | $ 541 | $ 422 | $ 195 | $ 2902 |
2019 AVG | $ 45 | $ 151 | $ 93 | $ 182 | $ 1464 |
2020 GOAL | $ 40 | $ 100 | $ 50 | $ 200 | $ 1200 |
|------------|-------------|------------|------------|------------|
JAN | $ 0 | $ 0 | $ 0 | $ 0 | $ 0 |
|------------|-------------|------------|------------|------------|
2020 AVG | $ 0 | $ 0 | $ 0 | $ 0 | $ 0 |

Much Fishing to Do · « **Reply #1 on:** December 27, 2019, 10:34:08 AM »

I have my work paycheck set up to go directly into my Vanguard Money market instead of my checking account. I have set up my MM to "pay" my spending checking account every month at a number based on a SWR 4% of my current portfolio, minus a little for building car replacement funds, in the exact same way I intend to have it for RE. Of course my goal is to not run out of money in my checking acct!

I had set this up a little while ago but 2018-19 were the years of me doing the last big expenditures I had planned before RE so had to withdraw for things like "finishing' up the kids 529s, doing a couple of very large home improvement things, replacing cars, etc. I'm done with everything planned so no excuses to pull extra money out this year.

oneday · « **Reply #2 on:** December 28, 2019, 02:36:15 PM »

This is very scary to me, so I think I have to do it. I'll be jobless for part of the year (last day at current job 1/15 with nothing else lined up), so it's really important to keep spending to a minimum this year, unlike the last decade+ when I had lots of wiggle room in the case of overspending.

I think like @philli14 I'll be tracking the overall number and highlightinga few key categories here: eating out for sure, anything considered entertainment (purely my own discretionary spending) and clothing (which I never think of as a problem but have surprised myself in the past).

robincanada · « **Reply #3 on:** December 29, 2019, 03:15:12 PM »

I have $3.45 in the bank (need more to pay $5 service charge a month), 35 cents in cash, $25 or so in cans and bottles to return, 100 km worth of gas in my car, $110 of returns to Walmart. Wood and Pellets for my stove. 1000 lbs of good quality food (need nothing really).

No debts. $28 a month phone (no internet), hydro bill $200-225ish (hope to get this down by insulating better. $3 drop in badminton, pickle ball twice a week.

Also $1500 prop tax bill in April.

No job or income (writing book, low/no cost Reno’s)

I own a $134k house, $8000 Fiat 500 with 50,000 km mileage, a new 2019 moped with 0.7 km.. (less than 1 km!). And all the clothes, sports equipment etc. I need. Plus gym membership until August paid up. No house insurance, paid auto insurance until October.

This is until July 1st (or selling house, listing in spring).

Need $250 a month in expenses. And to save $1500, and improve house virtually for free. Say $300 of spending.

So need to make $3500 Not working for anyone else. Have about $1500 of kijiji/garage sale things. So let’s make that $2000. Minimum.

My goal is to return the cans. But 1 joint to smoke on Dec 31st midnight with people outside a local bar. And but essentially nothing for up to 6 months. If I earn money, it goes in to making the house worth more when I list it in say March.

I am 44, quit smoking, drinking and weed that was costing me $40-$60 a day. I thought it was helping my PTSD, but it was making it all worse.

Also 142 lbs, 5’6” 44 year old male. Weak, chubby by 15 lbs at least I lost 60 lbs getting off meds in
Last 24 months. And I am now slimmer but weak. I could bench like 85 lbs max probably. My legs are pretty strong though. I am right, lumpy lower back muscles.

Physically... July 1st. 145-150 lbs. Benching my weight. With 5 lbs on my belly. Goal is mass gain and yoga and stretching. Shooting on hockey net on driveway rink I made, walk 15 min to pond, or 30 min to skate on maintained outdoor rink. Maybe get my sell to work on a farm in the summer, like I did at 24 years old.

Career... actually write. Either my life story or fiction or poetry. Idk, not really caring about selling it as actually doing it daily, for my spirit and to not be rudderless.

Social, this town is not ideal. But daily dog long dog walks, twice weekly sports, 3 day week gym, being outside. Maybe some self employment, shovel driveways help move wood? Library for movies, books, CDs internet, podcast downloads.

Transportation. 4 bus tickets, 100 km of gas left, new bike this year, endless outfits of best Appropriate winter clothing possible, all new or like new. -30 is no excuse, nor is rain or anything.

Goal: soft weak ass PTSD abuse victim to bad ass stoic muscle bound, graceful, proud athlete. Or be like MMM really, essentially. Not to idolize him... but to kick my own ass out of consumerism, being soft.

I have already started as of Dec 23rd really. But officially Jan 1st after I share that $5 joint with people on New Year’s Eve outside a bar nearby.

That is some badass if I can do it. I get an “out” for finding money, returnable cans etc. I can buy eggs, milk or cream if I earn it 10 cents at a time. Otherwise I don’t Need it.

SotI · « **Reply #4 on:** December 30, 2019, 05:55:03 PM »

I made some progress in 2019 and reduced my spend by approxinately 15% overall.
Still, I focused only on variable spend so far.

As I now have a full year baseline to track against, I will look at total spend per month in 2020 as well as the discretionary part. I would like to get another 10% off the total if I can manage (without feeling squeezed).
So, I am in!

oneday · « **Reply #5 on:** December 30, 2019, 07:34:10 PM »

@SotI 15%? That's great! How much of that do you attribute to participating in last year's thread?

SotI · « **Reply #6 on:** December 31, 2019, 06:42:07 AM »

Quote from: oneday on December 30, 2019, 07:34:10 PM

@SotI 15%? That's great! How much of that do you attribute to participating in last year's thread?

Well, I think the key was the diligent tracking, really. I used to track expenses in the past but not as detailed as in 2019. The thread was just making the outcome more visible. So it was quite motivating to see the stark difference.
I am curious if I can keep it up this way.

Zamboni · « **Reply #7 on:** December 31, 2019, 07:51:05 AM »

That's impressive, @robincanada !

I'm going to get my spreadsheet for 2019 all finished up today before I decide what goals to make for 2020. 2019 was a really fat and off the chain spending year for us, so there is no doubt we can do better.

oneday · « **Reply #8 on:** December 31, 2019, 05:28:44 PM »

Eek! Tomorrow I have to be accountable for my spending. Having a bit of a moment, here.

philli14 · « **Reply #9 on:** December 31, 2019, 05:30:29 PM »

Quote from: oneday on December 31, 2019, 05:28:44 PM

Eek! Tomorrow I have to be accountable for my spending. Having a bit of a moment, here.

Haha me too.. gotta close up my new years eve bar tab at 11:59!

Happy new year

zygote · « **Reply #10 on:** January 01, 2020, 11:32:06 AM »

Just posted my year end wrap up in the 2019 thread. Unfortunately, I spent more in 2019 than 2018 due to some lumpy expenses and also some life circumstances in flux.

My wife and I have always had separate finances. It's worked well because we had basically equal abilities to pay for the household expenses and we liked having control over our own money. However, her financial situation changed last year and we're still not 100% sure what will happen going forward. She is much more private than me, so I don't want to include any of her details.

However, this does mean we are thinking about our finances more jointly, or at least adjusting our contributions to the household expenses proportionally. My overall contributions to the household will be higher in 2020, but I don't yet know by how much. So I don't want to set an arbitrary spending goal I end up being unable to meet.

This does mean, though, that it's even more important for me to be mindful of discretionary spending. I found the monthly check-ins really clarifying in the 2019 thread, so I want to join in here. I think it will be helpful to take stock each month, and I'll see how my spending evolves over the year.

nvmama · « **Reply #11 on:** January 01, 2020, 11:44:16 AM »

I'm excited about this challenge. I have become lazy in the past few years in regards to our spending. Time to get back on track. I'll mostly be focusing on our food budget as I do most of the grocery shopping.

middo · « **Reply #12 on:** January 02, 2020, 07:47:49 PM »

I'm in again. Last year I reduced by 7%. This year I want to reduce by 10%, but I won't be reporting all of my expenses as mortgage payments won't change. I'll be reporting on the following, including last years monthly averages:

Food: $583
Non food: $230
Entertainment and eating out: $565
Health: $485
Utilities: $1862
Transport: $1442
Hobbies/holiday: $1040.

Total: $6208 per month.

Aim is for $5585 per month.

zee dot · « **Reply #13 on:** January 04, 2020, 08:57:55 AM »

In 2019 my shopping totaled $6,633.54.

Aside from one $600 item it was mostly little purchases (primarily on Amazon) and one big day of shopping to replace a bunch of worn out clothing directly related to my 2018 no-new-clothes challenge.

Goal for 2020 is markedly reduced year end tally.

Nederstash · « **Reply #14 on:** January 05, 2020, 02:31:51 PM »

I'm in, but a big caveat: due to my health, I'll start looking for another job once I've recuperated enough. I don't really have the spring in my step to jump into a 'challenge'. Rather, I think I'll post here to keep track.

Budgeted spending 2020 (full year):

Bills (mortgage, insurance, internet, sports etc): 15,600
Groceries: 2,760
Going out: 600
Personal (dentist, massage, clothes): 1,800
Gifts: 600
Pets: 600
House maintenance (outside painting coming up): 3,200
Car (gas, maintenance): 1,200
Healthcare: 4,500
Taxes: 1,000
Travel: 1,200
Extra mortgage payments: 10,000
Investing: 8,700

The last two aren't spending, obviously, but I wrote them down to have a plan for my leftover money. Savings are 36,13% which is okay, but it can all change if my new job pays a lot less or if my healthcare costs go up. We'll see!

philli14 · « **Reply #15 on:** January 10, 2020, 12:54:38 PM »

10 day update:

| Gas/Fuel | Restaurants | "Shopping" | Groceries | Total |
2018 AVG | $ 160 | $ 541 | $ 422 | $ 195 | $ 2902 |
2019 AVG | $ 45 | $ 151 | $ 93 | $ 182 | $ 1464 |
2020 GOAL | $ 40 | $ 100 | $ 50 | $ 200 | $ 1200 |
|------------|-------------|------------|------------|------------|
JAN | $ 27 | $ 72 | $ 18 | $ 156 | $ 923 |
|------------|-------------|------------|------------|------------|
2020 AVG | $ 0 | $ 0 | $ 0 | $ 0 | $ 0 |

Most spending for the month hopefully done! Big costco trip done, some car work done. Otherwise so far so good.

Queen Frugal · « **Reply #16 on:** January 10, 2020, 06:41:47 PM »

First post! I'm in! I like tracking my spending more than my savings rate because I am self employed and don't have a steady paycheck. I am a single mom with a 9 yo. Last year I bought a little house (720 sq ft!) so my expenses were a little higher than normal with the move. I didn't include the downpayment in last year's overall expenses. My biggest struggle is with groceries. I have celiac and can't eat gluten... or dairy... or oats. But some of you on this forum have just blown my mind with how you save on eating and I think with all of this newfound information, I am going to cut my grocery expenses drastically in 2020!

I hope this table posts!

    Groceries     Entertainment     Dining Out     Alcohol     Clothing     Travel     TOTAL
2018 AVG    $738.00     $42.00     $85.00     $41.00     $86.00     $463.00     $3,719.00
2019 AVG    $614.00     $88.00     $45.00     $60.00     $51.00     $63.00     $3,855.00
2020 GOAL    $400.00     $50.00     $40.00     $10.00     $60.00     $100.00     $3,000.00
JAN

2020 AVG

oneday · « **Reply #17 on:** January 11, 2020, 10:35:01 PM »

I have little basis for comparison, as I have not been tracking for some time now. Started Dec 1, so I'll compare month over month for the time being. Thanks philli14 for the formatting.

| Entertain | Restaurants | Groceries | Total |
DEC 2019 | $ 358 | $ 309 | $ 281 | $ 3553 |
JAN 2020 | $ 15 | $ 76 | $ 140 | $ 2009 |
|------------|-------------|------------|------------|
DIF | $ 343 | $ 233 | $ 141 | $ 1544 |
|------------|-------------|------------|------------|

A third of the way through the month, and groceries is half gone. Good check up. Since no clothing spending this month and none anticipated, I'll show groceries in it's place for now.

Also, y'all in this thread stopped me from stopping into the coffee shop *twice* today! I am kicking ass on restaurants so far, glad to have support to keep it that way!

kittykat · « **Reply #18 on:** January 24, 2020, 09:49:58 PM »

I grew sick of my shopping problem and financial self-sabotage just in time to start the new year and new decade right. I'll be back to update these Jan numbers at the end of the month, but the change from previous months will be drastic. promise.

| Fun Out | Restaurants | Groceries | Shopping | Total |
NOV 2019 | $ 412 | $ 843 | $ 510 | $ 2,791 | $ 4,556 |
DEC 2019 | $ 26 | $ 682 | $ 634 | $ 3,473 | $ 4,815 |
JAN 2020 | $ x | $ xx | $ xxx | $ 0.00 | $ tbd |
|-----------|-------------|------------|--------------|-------------|
DIF | $ tbd | $ tbd | $ tbd | $ tbd | $ tbd |
|-----------|-------------|------------|--------------|-------------|

And I'm excited for January 2021 when I will do such a comparison between my 2019 and 2020 total spend.

philli14 · « **Reply #19 on:** January 25, 2020, 11:19:40 AM »

One week to go update:

| Gas/Fuel | Restaurants | "Shopping" | Groceries | Total |
2018 AVG | $ 160 | $ 541 | $ 422 | $ 195 | $ 2902 |
2019 AVG | $ 45 | $ 151 | $ 93 | $ 182 | $ 1464 |
2020 GOAL | $ 40 | $ 100 | $ 50 | $ 200 | $ 1200 |
|------------|-------------|------------|------------|------------|
JAN | $ 27 | $ 137 | $ 73 | $ 244 | $ 1214 |
|------------|-------------|------------|------------|------------|
2020 AVG | $ 0 | $ 0 | $ 0 | $ 0 | $ 0 |

Turning out to be a little more spendy of a month than I was anticipated, just as it was at the beginning of 2019. Will almost definitely be red on all categories. February will be a rebound month.

oneday · « **Reply #20 on:** January 25, 2020, 11:23:25 PM »

| Entertain | Restaurants | Groceries | Total |
DEC 2019 | $ 358 | $ 309 | $ 281 | $ 3553 |
JAN 2020 | $ 231 | $ 455 | $ 190 | $ 4332 |
|------------|-------------|------------|------------|
DIF | $ 127 | $ 146 | $ 91 | $ 779 |
|------------|-------------|------------|------------|

I had "kicking ass on Restaurants" in my brain, and allowed myself to use that as a guide to spending rather than checking in on the budget more frequently. A good lesson. The number actually will right itself a bit, as I spent $190 on pizza on my last day at work, but coworkers also chipped in (cash), once that cash is deposited I'll be in the green again.

Restaurants should go down in future months, as I've convinced a friend to hold our regular "coffee date" at home, alternating her place with mine. :)

Glad to see there is some "entertainment" money left, as I'll be signing up for another fitness class soon. Would pay for it in Jan regardless of the amount left in the budget, as the classes fill quickly. But of course I'd rather not go over budget.

And the overall number is awful! Prompted me to look at why...it's because I haven't transferred Room Mate's share of housing costs from PayPal to my bank. However, the deposit of the pizza cash and also the PayPal money in the next few days will have me back solidly in the red, maybe even underspending Dec by $700!

zygote · « **Reply #21 on:** January 31, 2020, 01:03:26 PM »

January check-in.

Total spending was $3200. Bigger expenses this month were a vet bill, a sushi meal out with my wife, and an Ulta order because my shampoo/conditioner/skincare all ran out at the same time.

More than I spent in January last year ($2950), but due to the shift in my wife's financial situation I am paying more of the rent and picked up the whole dinner bill (we used to split for nights out). So pretty on par taking that into account. No regrets on any of the expenses, at least.

philli14 · « **Reply #22 on:** January 31, 2020, 03:16:07 PM »

Closing up the books for January. Turned out being a more expensive month than I had hoped, but am planning for a no non-essential spend month in February. Looking to turn red into green

| Gas/Fuel | Restaurants | "Shopping" | Groceries | Total |
2018 AVG | $ 160 | $ 541 | $ 422 | $ 195 | $ 2902 |
2019 AVG | $ 45 | $ 151 | $ 93 | $ 182 | $ 1464 |
2020 GOAL | $ 40 | $ 100 | $ 50 | $ 200 | $ 1200 |
|------------|-------------|------------|------------|------------|
JAN | $ 27 | $ 137 | $ 73 | $ 273 | $ 1247 |
|------------|-------------|------------|------------|------------|
2020 AVG | $ 27 | $ 137 | $ 73 | $ 273 | $ 1247 |

oneday · « **Reply #23 on:** January 31, 2020, 06:42:19 PM »

| Entertain | Restaurants | Groceries | Total |
DEC 2019 | $ 358 | $ 309 | $ 281 | $ 3553 |
JAN 2020 | $ 231 | $ 293 | $ 206 | $ 3109 |
|------------|-------------|------------|------------|
DIF | $ 127 | $ 16 | $ 75 | $ 444 |
|------------|-------------|------------|------------|

Not too hard to beat last month, as I was paying attention, it wasn't holiday month, and I had accountability here (thanks!). A good level 1 month. Next month will be more difficult as I have some car maintenance and some possible travel. The shortness of the month will work in my favor, though. Let's call it a good level 2 month :)

Since I now have 2 months tracked, I'll compare Feb against the average of Dec-Jan.

Queen Frugal · « **Reply #24 on:** February 01, 2020, 08:18:41 AM »

Hopefully this post will work better! Thank you philli14 for your table! I decreased the # of things I am tracking to the things I want to influence the most this year - and I revised my "total" column to account for some extra spending that will happen later this year. I am very proud of myself for my grocery spending in January! I hope I can keep it up. Most of it is thanks to the tips and tricks others have shared on this forum. It really was not hard, and I definitely am not going hungry!

| Groceries | Entertainment | Clothing | Travel | Total |
2018 AVG | $ 738 | $ 42 | $ 86 | $ 463 | $ 3719 |
2019 AVG | $ 614 | $ 88 | $ 51 | $ 63 | $ 3855 |
2020 GOAL | $ 400 | $ 50 | $ 60 | $ 100 | $ 3300 |
|-------------|----------------|------------|------------|------------|
JAN | $ 287 | $ 24 | $ 0 | $ 0 | $ 2255 |
|-------------|----------------|------------|------------|------------|
2020 AVG | $ 287 | $ 24 | $ 0 | $ 0 | $ 2255 |

kittykat · « **Reply #25 on:** February 01, 2020, 07:25:56 PM »

| Fun Out | Restaurants | Groceries | Shopping | Total |
NOV 2019 | $ 412 | $ 843 | $ 510 | $ 2,791 | $ 4,556 |
DEC 2019 | $ 26 | $ 682 | $ 634 | $ 3,473 | $ 4,815 |
JAN 2020 | $ 118 | $ 147 | $ 678 | $ 86 | $ 1,029 |
|-----------|-------------|------------|--------------|-------------|

Obviously a huge difference yay!
I was able to cut back massively on shopping and restaurants (whether ordering in or dining out), but since I am cooking more at home now my grocery bill went up slightly, but not in direct proportion thankfully. Interesting to note that in the past I had allowed myself to order in a lot because I figured it was saving me time and effort, but I now realize the only thing I was doing with that time was spending it on my phone. I've been feeling pretty good about cooking at home more, and I've always been a good cook so I'm glad my daughter gets to see more of that side of me and she enjoys the process as well.
I'm not totally sure how to save on groceries in NYC, I get it delivered via FreshDirect like everyone else and it's expensive here so I figure it is what it is...

philli14 · « **Reply #26 on:** February 01, 2020, 09:50:00 PM »

Quote from: Queen Frugal on February 01, 2020, 08:18:41 AM

Hopefully this post will work better! Thank you philli14 for your table! I decreased the # of things I am tracking to the things I want to influence the most this year - and I revised my "total" column to account for some extra spending that will happen later this year. I am very proud of myself for my grocery spending in January! I hope I can keep it up. Most of it is thanks to the tips and tricks others have shared on this forum. It really was not hard, and I definitely am not going hungry!

| Groceries | Entertainment | Clothing | Travel | Total |
2018 AVG | $ 738 | $ 42 | $ 86 | $ 463 | $ 3719 |
2019 AVG | $ 614 | $ 88 | $ 51 | $ 63 | $ 3855 |
2020 GOAL | $ 400 | $ 50 | $ 60 | $ 100 | $ 3300 |
|-------------|----------------|------------|------------|------------|
JAN | $ 287 | $ 24 | $ 0 | $ 0 | $ 2255 |
|-------------|----------------|------------|------------|------------|
2020 AVG | $ 287 | $ 24 | $ 0 | $ 0 | $ 2255 |

Awesome job with groceries! Huge drop from previous averages and way below your goal. Any strategies that really work for you?

Quote from: kittykat on February 01, 2020, 07:25:56 PM

| Fun Out | Restaurants | Groceries | Shopping | Total |
NOV 2019 | $ 412 | $ 843 | $ 510 | $ 2,791 | $ 4,556 |
DEC 2019 | $ 26 | $ 682 | $ 634 | $ 3,473 | $ 4,815 |
JAN 2020 | $ 118 | $ 147 | $ 678 | $ 86 | $ 1,029 |
|-----------|-------------|------------|--------------|-------------|

Obviously a huge difference yay!
I was able to cut back massively on shopping and restaurants (whether ordering in or dining out), but since I am cooking more at home now my grocery bill went up slightly, but not in direct proportion thankfully. Interesting to note that in the past I had allowed myself to order in a lot because I figured it was saving me time and effort, but I now realize the only thing I was doing with that time was spending it on my phone. I've been feeling pretty good about cooking at home more, and I've always been a good cook so I'm glad my daughter gets to see more of that side of me and she enjoys the process as well.
I'm not totally sure how to save on groceries in NYC, I get it delivered via FreshDirect like everyone else and it's expensive here so I figure it is what it is...

Also an awesome job. I had the same experience when cutting restaurants.. but the drop in restaurants massively outweighed the raise in groceries.

zygote · « **Reply #27 on:** February 01, 2020, 10:35:06 PM »

@KittyCat How many people is that $678 covering? I also live in NYC and spend about $250/month for just myself. I can get it down to $200/month if I cook my lowest cost meals all the time, but if I get too strict about the menu I end up wanting to eat out more...

I go to Trader Joe's since there's one on my way home, and I've found it to be the best price/quality/convenience ratio. But if the $678 is covering 3-4 people, that sounds reasonable to me for NYC.

middo · « **Reply #28 on:** February 02, 2020, 03:35:19 AM »

Quote from: zygote on February 01, 2020, 10:35:06 PM

@KittyCat How many people is that $678 covering? I also live in NYC and spend about $250/month for just myself. I can get it down to $200/month if I cook my lowest cost meals all the time, but if I get too strict about the menu I end up wanting to eat out more...

I go to Trader Joe's since there's one on my way home, and I've found it to be the best price/quality/convenience ratio. But if the $678 is covering 3-4 people, that sounds reasonable to me for NYC.

Hmmm I need to get onto a computer to put up my numbers, but for the 3 of us, we spent $807 last month. AUD, so about $540 USD. I thought we were terrible, but maybe not so bad.

kittykat · « **Reply #29 on:** February 02, 2020, 08:14:48 AM »

Quote from: zygote on February 01, 2020, 10:35:06 PM

@KittyCat How many people is that $678 covering? I also live in NYC and spend about $250/month for just myself. I can get it down to $200/month if I cook my lowest cost meals all the time, but if I get too strict about the menu I end up wanting to eat out more...

I go to Trader Joe's since there's one on my way home, and I've found it to be the best price/quality/convenience ratio. But if the $678 is covering 3-4 people, that sounds reasonable to me for NYC.

It covers two of us, I'm a single mom. FreshDirect is definitely more expensive than Trader Joe's, but unfortunately I don't live anywhere close to one. I don't think I buy anything particularly extravagant either but oftentimes organic, not always... pretty much the same few things each week plus one offs. Now that I'm looking at the grocery list I do buy a bunch of prepared items that cost more than if I made from scratch but that is a trade off I'm willing to make as a working single mom...its better than ordering in all the time atleast...🤔
I should note the total also includes household items like paper towels and toilet paper and dishwasher detergent etc... do you include that in your grocery total?

zygote · « **Reply #30 on:** February 02, 2020, 09:09:30 AM »

Quote from: kittykat on February 02, 2020, 08:14:48 AM

Quote from: zygote on February 01, 2020, 10:35:06 PM
@KittyCat How many people is that $678 covering? I also live in NYC and spend about $250/month for just myself. I can get it down to $200/month if I cook my lowest cost meals all the time, but if I get too strict about the menu I end up wanting to eat out more...

I go to Trader Joe's since there's one on my way home, and I've found it to be the best price/quality/convenience ratio. But if the $678 is covering 3-4 people, that sounds reasonable to me for NYC.

It covers two of us, I'm a single mom. FreshDirect is definitely more expensive than Trader Joe's, but unfortunately I don't live anywhere close to one. I don't think I buy anything particularly extravagant either but oftentimes organic, not always... pretty much the same few things each week plus one offs. Now that I'm looking at the grocery list I do buy a bunch of prepared items that cost more than if I made from scratch but that is a trade off I'm willing to make as a working single mom...its better than ordering in all the time atleast...🤔
I should note the total also includes household items like paper towels and toilet paper and dishwasher detergent etc... do you include that in your grocery total?

No, I track household items as a separate category so the $200-$250 is just food. So I bet we're closer in food spending once you subtract out that kind of stuff.

NYC is hard if you don't have a reasonable grocery store nearby! All the ones in my neighborhood are way more expensive than Trader Joe's. It may be worth taking a weekend and looking up all the grocery stores that would be convenient for you to get to once a week (either in your neighborhood or on your way home from work) to see if there's one that would be less expensive than freshdirect. It would even be worth checking Whole Foods if you have one of those nearby. Their prices have gone way down since Amazon bought them. But if your options are still pretty expensive, you gotta do what you gotta do. Freshdirect is still better than a lot of the local grocery stores here, and there's only so much time/energy you can spend lugging huge grocery hauls on the train....And as you've noted, it's definitely better to cook at home than get takeout! That's a great step when it's so easy to fall into the seamless/grubhub trap here.

kittykat · « **Reply #31 on:** February 02, 2020, 10:23:07 AM »

Quote from: zygote on February 02, 2020, 09:09:30 AM

Quote from: kittykat on February 02, 2020, 08:14:48 AM
Quote from: zygote on February 01, 2020, 10:35:06 PM
@KittyCat How many people is that $678 covering? I also live in NYC and spend about $250/month for just myself. I can get it down to $200/month if I cook my lowest cost meals all the time, but if I get too strict about the menu I end up wanting to eat out more...

I go to Trader Joe's since there's one on my way home, and I've found it to be the best price/quality/convenience ratio. But if the $678 is covering 3-4 people, that sounds reasonable to me for NYC.

It covers two of us, I'm a single mom. FreshDirect is definitely more expensive than Trader Joe's, but unfortunately I don't live anywhere close to one. I don't think I buy anything particularly extravagant either but oftentimes organic, not always... pretty much the same few things each week plus one offs. Now that I'm looking at the grocery list I do buy a bunch of prepared items that cost more than if I made from scratch but that is a trade off I'm willing to make as a working single mom...its better than ordering in all the time atleast...🤔
I should note the total also includes household items like paper towels and toilet paper and dishwasher detergent etc... do you include that in your grocery total?

No, I track household items as a separate category so the $200-$250 is just food. So I bet we're closer in food spending once you subtract out that kind of stuff.

NYC is hard if you don't have a reasonable grocery store nearby! All the ones in my neighborhood are way more expensive than Trader Joe's. It may be worth taking a weekend and looking up all the grocery stores that would be convenient for you to get to once a week (either in your neighborhood or on your way home from work) to see if there's one that would be less expensive than freshdirect. It would even be worth checking Whole Foods if you have one of those nearby. Their prices have gone way down since Amazon bought them. But if your options are still pretty expensive, you gotta do what you gotta do. Freshdirect is still better than a lot of the local grocery stores here, and there's only so much time/energy you can spend lugging huge grocery hauls on the train....And as you've noted, it's definitely better to cook at home than get takeout! That's a great step when it's so easy to fall into the seamless/grubhub trap here.

Yeah in my broke days I used to make the grocery shlep to Trader Joes etc and haul the granny cart several stops home. But if there's one thing that can make NYC existence quite miserable its the grocery shlep. That alone makes fresh direct markup worth something in my book.
I was using Amazon Prime Now to get delivery from Whole Foods for a while and you're right, I did item price comparisons and Prime Now was cheaper than FD but they were often out of stock of items without any warning and I could never get a full grocery order delivered without something missing, not to mention the wasteful packaging (one large insulated disposal bag for just one avocado). I found ordering from them really frustrating and not worth the savings. And I'm also trying to limit Amazon in my life so I cancelled my Amazon Prime for now (again).
So other than price I find ordering from FD/Foodkick pretty...seamless 🥁🙌🏼
But yeah I think you're right, if I calculated the household items out and considering price premium between TJ and FD, then I think that covers the difference.
Maybe one day I'll move to an apartment close to a Trader Joe's 😬 (but omg the lines lol)

SotI · « **Reply #32 on:** February 02, 2020, 10:51:03 AM »

So, tracking YoY, total expenses.
My goal is to drop total spend by 10%.

2019 Spend 2020 Spend
Jan 5,797 5,379

Again, a lot if annual bills in Jan., but this year round also unplanned vet bills. So, this month's spend is actually better than expected.

middo · « **Reply #33 on:** February 02, 2020, 08:40:27 PM »

Actual numbers for January. I'm reasonably happy, as we achieved out 10% aim with an extra mouth to feed in the house.

Our best result was in transport, which we are really trying to keep to a minimum this year!

Queen Frugal · « **Reply #34 on:** February 06, 2020, 01:49:51 PM »

Quote from: philli14 on February 01, 2020, 09:50:00 PM

Quote from: Queen Frugal on February 01, 2020, 08:18:41 AM
Hopefully this post will work better! Thank you philli14 for your table! I decreased the # of things I am tracking to the things I want to influence the most this year - and I revised my "total" column to account for some extra spending that will happen later this year. I am very proud of myself for my grocery spending in January! I hope I can keep it up. Most of it is thanks to the tips and tricks others have shared on this forum. It really was not hard, and I definitely am not going hungry!

| Groceries | Entertainment | Clothing | Travel | Total |
2018 AVG | $ 738 | $ 42 | $ 86 | $ 463 | $ 3719 |
2019 AVG | $ 614 | $ 88 | $ 51 | $ 63 | $ 3855 |
2020 GOAL | $ 400 | $ 50 | $ 60 | $ 100 | $ 3300 |
|-------------|----------------|------------|------------|------------|
JAN | $ 287 | $ 24 | $ 0 | $ 0 | $ 2255 |
|-------------|----------------|------------|------------|------------|
2020 AVG | $ 287 | $ 24 | $ 0 | $ 0 | $ 2255 |

Awesome job with groceries! Huge drop from previous averages and way below your goal. Any strategies that really work for you?

Yes! I read APowers thread! https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/share-your-badassity/have-a-sub-$200month-grocery-budget/

middo · « **Reply #35 on:** February 23, 2020, 08:42:13 PM »

I thought we would be having a blow out in February, as we just spent $950 on airfares and have had some big medical costs. Somehow we are still down 11% from last year. Our transport is way below last years figures though, which is always great.

philli14 · « **Reply #36 on:** February 29, 2020, 12:38:14 PM »

Closing up the books for February. Successful month of really reducing spend, mostly back on track for YTD.

| Gas/Fuel | Restaurants | "Shopping" | Groceries | Total |
2018 AVG | $ 160 | $ 541 | $ 422 | $ 195 | $ 2902 |
2019 AVG | $ 45 | $ 151 | $ 93 | $ 182 | $ 1464 |
2020 GOAL | $ 40 | $ 100 | $ 50 | $ 200 | $ 1200 |
|------------|-------------|------------|------------|------------|
JAN | $ 27 | $ 137 | $ 73 | $ 273 | $ 1247 |
FEB | $ 26 | $ 0 | $ 0 | $ 278 | $ 921 |
|------------|-------------|------------|------------|------------|
2020 AVG | $ 27 | $ 69 | $ 37 | $ 273 | $ 1084 |

Groceries have been high, lots of beer buying. Hoping to bring that number down a bit in March.

middo · « **Reply #37 on:** February 29, 2020, 11:20:19 PM »

Quote from: middo on February 23, 2020, 08:42:13 PM

I thought we would be having a blow out in February, as we just spent $950 on airfares and have had some big medical costs. Somehow we are still down 11% from last year. Our transport is way below last years figures though, which is always great.

Well we did blow out a bit.

Medical costs were high again, as my wife got some teeth issues fixed. Our bills were higher than anticipated, as I paid a couple of rates early. Transport was higher due to a $150 taxi bill and a few repairs.

And a $950 airfare cost.

We are down 2.6%. Hoping for 10%, so lots of work to do.

Queen Frugal · « **Reply #38 on:** March 01, 2020, 07:07:05 AM »

| Groceries | Entertainment | Clothing | Travel | Total |
2018 AVG | $ 738 | $ 42 | $ 86 | $ 463 | $ 3719 |
2019 AVG | $ 614 | $ 88 | $ 51 | $ 63 | $ 3855 |
2020 GOAL | $ 400 | $ 50 | $ 60 | $ 100 | $ 3300 |
|-------------|----------------|------------|------------|------------|
JAN | $ 287 | $ 24 | $ 0 | $ 0 | $ 2255 |
FEB | $ 612 | $ 0 | $ 63 | $ 55 | $ 2738 |
|-------------|----------------|------------|------------|------------|
2020 AVG | $ 449 | $ 12 | $ 32 | $ 27 | $ 2497 |

February's grocery spending isn't as bad as it looks. I decided to buy a freezer so I could stock up on more sales. When subtracting the $262 I paid for the freezer, my grocery spending was only $352 for the month. I put the freezer purchase in the groceries category with the goal of having it pay for itself before the end of the year.

In light of the spread of the Covid-19 virus, I do expect that my community will eventually be on lockdown for a while. I only have about 3 weeks of food on hand. Because of that, I fully expect to fill up my new freezer this month. My goal is about 2 months worth of food. So I expect to be way over budget for March too!!! Hopefully it will all average out by the end of the year.

Queen Frugal · « **Reply #39 on:** March 01, 2020, 07:12:00 AM »

Quote from: philli14 on February 29, 2020, 12:38:14 PM

Closing up the books for February. Successful month of really reducing spend, mostly back on track for YTD.

| Gas/Fuel | Restaurants | "Shopping" | Groceries | Total |
2018 AVG | $ 160 | $ 541 | $ 422 | $ 195 | $ 2902 |
2019 AVG | $ 45 | $ 151 | $ 93 | $ 182 | $ 1464 |
2020 GOAL | $ 40 | $ 100 | $ 50 | $ 200 | $ 1200 |
|------------|-------------|------------|------------|------------|
JAN | $ 27 | $ 137 | $ 73 | $ 273 | $ 1247 |
FEB | $ 26 | $ 0 | $ 0 | $ 278 | $ 921 |
|------------|-------------|------------|------------|------------|
2020 AVG | $ 27 | $ 69 | $ 37 | $ 273 | $ 1084 |

Groceries have been high, lots of beer buying. Hoping to bring that number down a bit in March.

You total spend was less than $1,000 for February! Geesh! That is impressive.

zygote · « **Reply #40 on:** March 02, 2020, 07:17:05 PM »

February check-in.

Total spending just below $2800. Down $400 from last month and from last February. Very happy with that. Some higher household expenses this month, but the discretionary/fun spending was lower. I didn't deprive myself or anything, I was just focused on other things.

oneday · « **Reply #41 on:** March 03, 2020, 05:42:01 PM »

February wrap up

| Entertain | Restaurants | Groceries | Total |
|------------|-------------|------------|------------|
DEC 2019 | $ 358 | $ 309 | $ 281 | $ 3553 |
JAN 2020 | $ 231 | $ 293 | $ 206 | $ 3109 |
|------------|-------------|------------|------------|
AVG | $ 295 | $ 301 | $ 244 | $ 3331 |
|------------|-------------|------------|------------|
FEB 2020 | $ 529 | $ 311 | $ 152 | $ 4345 |
|------------|-------------|------------|------------|
DIF | $ 234 | $ 10 | $ 92 | $ 1014 |
|------------|-------------|------------|------------|

Compared to historical average (Dec 2019-Jan 2020):
Entertainment is over largely due to a vacation expense for April paid this month and also spur of the moment road trip taken this month. Hopefully I'll be able to hold April's Entertainment down due to this.

Restaurants overspent also due to eating while traveling, and I think I did pretty great there. Took much of my food along with me and chose carefully while in restaurants, balancing cost, health and sampling local cuisine. Groceries also really low; I ate most of what was left at home before leaving, so this month will likely bounce upward while restocking. So I'll pay extra special attention to keeping eating out costs down.

Overall, there were $616 in other expenses for the road trip (not food or entertainment), $263 auto maintenance (just hit 100,000 miles *before* the road trip) and $463 in auto insurance that I'd set aside for, but it came out of cash flow this month, so counts for the purposes of this analysis. Gifts and Pet were the only categories this month that were lower than last month.

The bottom line:
Travel is expensive, y'all! Approx $71/day, however that doesn't include expenses Lil Sis paid for because she owed me money (so it was actually more expensive). I think I can keep that cost down on future road trips and have more fun by car camping and traveling slower. I was constrained by Lil Sis's need to get back to work at a certain time and our shared desire not to try to sleep two people in the back of a compact hatchback already full of luggage. But this is good info for future trips.

kittykat · « **Reply #42 on:** March 19, 2020, 04:44:52 PM »

| Fun Out | Restaurants | Groceries | Shopping | Total |
NOV 2019 | $ 412 | $ 843 | $ 510 | $ 2,791 | $ 4,556 |
DEC 2019 | $ 26 | $ 682 | $ 634 | $ 3,473 | $ 4,815 |
JAN 2020 | $ 118 | $ 147 | $ 678 | $ 86 | $ 1,029 |
FEB 2020 | $ 232 | $ 253 | $ 687 | $ 229 | $ 1,401 |

|-----------|-------------|------------|--------------|-------------|

I ventured out a bit in February so my spending crept up. But considering the current state of affairs, namely global quarantine, I don't regret it!

I'm not excited to see my March numbers. Due to having to spend a lot of time at home and more home cooking (less eating for free at work and at school for my kid) and a little stocking up, my grocery bill has skyrocketed. I also made a phew pricey home office purchases to improve my wfh experience which will rattle my spending numbers quite a bit. But Fun Out and Restaurants will be zip, sigh.

oneday · « **Reply #43 on:** March 20, 2020, 09:27:20 PM »

@kittykat thanks for posting and prompting me to look at the budget. I'd updated all accounts earlier today but got distracted. I'm very low in the categories I'm tracking, and sitting at $3900 spent overall. I might need another tank of gas and some groceries, so probably $4K overall. At least it's lower than last month, right? Without the $848 car repair, it's comparable to Dec and Jan. Since I had a sinking fund for that, it's not going to cause problems, and it's good info for how much to put in that sinking fund in the future.

I'll try to restrain myself from spending on an auto accessory and some new bike tires until April.

philli14 · « **Reply #44 on:** March 31, 2020, 09:14:54 PM »

March is done. With all the craziness going on, I am looking forward to focusing on my spending in April as a means of maintaining some control. Not sure what will happen with my income next month, but I can control my spending and plan to have a beautifully cheap month. March wasn't too bad, considering the big vacation I had. Goal will be total spend under $700.

| Gas/Fuel | Restaurants | "Shopping" | Groceries | Total |
2018 AVG | $ 160 | $ 541 | $ 422 | $ 195 | $ 2902 |
2019 AVG | $ 45 | $ 151 | $ 93 | $ 182 | $ 1464 |
2020 GOAL | $ 40 | $ 100 | $ 50 | $ 200 | $ 1200 |
|------------|-------------|------------|------------|------------|
JAN | $ 27 | $ 137 | $ 73 | $ 273 | $ 1247 |
FEB | $ 26 | $ 0 | $ 0 | $ 278 | $ 921 |
MAR | $ 41 | $ 164 | $ 0 | $ 142 | $ 912 |
|------------|-------------|------------|------------|------------|
2020 AVG | $ 31 | $ 100 | $ 24 | $ 231 | $ 1026 |

zygote · « **Reply #45 on:** April 01, 2020, 10:03:35 AM »

What a weird month.

Total spending was just under $3400. $600 higher than last month. I thought it would be lower because we obviously aren't able to go out to eat or to the theater, our two main hobbies. But we're pretty sure we got the coronavirus and ended up spending a lot on grocery delivery, some meal delivery, and over the counter meds. My case was really mild, but my wife is still getting over hers. Luckily neither of us was sick enough to need medical care, so we didn't get tested and don't know for sure. Either way, we didn't want to risk going out and infecting anyone. I'm grateful we had the cash to pay for all the delivery we needed without worrying about it.

Definitely looking forward to April and being able to run necessary, limited errands myself again.

SotI · « **Reply #46 on:** April 01, 2020, 01:41:59 PM »

Update YoY, total expense.
My goal is to drop total spend by 10%, but Feb and March were quite bad in expense terms.
Overspending significantly due to end-of-life care/vet bills, additional food bill due to Corona prepping and home and garden improvements which normally were planned for May/June.
So, this is the numbers:

2019 Spend 2020 Spend
Jan 5,797 5,379
Feb 3,523 3,876
March 3,548 4,030

April will see addition gardening and vet bills, DH just has too much lockdown time at hand.
Hopefully this means we will spend less in May/June, despite rising grocery prices.

middo · « **Reply #47 on:** April 01, 2020, 04:04:42 PM »

March Update.

Our daughter has come home from University before lockdowns, so we will be spending more in different areas. It will be interesting over the next few months to see how these go. We have had to up our internet to work from home. Aiming for 10% reduction this year on these areas, and so far we are down 4.6%

Some comments:

Food spending way up - a bit of preparing for lockdowns, and an extra mouth to fill.
Transport way down. Way down.
Lots of holiday expenses for a holiday that didn't happen. We have credits for flights, animal care for the future.
Medical bills have dropped back to normal after my wife got her teeth sorted.

kittykat · « **Reply #48 on:** April 01, 2020, 04:14:35 PM »

Quote from: zygote on April 01, 2020, 10:03:35 AM

What a weird month.

Total spending was just under $3400. $600 higher than last month. I thought it would be lower because we obviously aren't able to go out to eat or to the theater, our two main hobbies. But we're pretty sure we got the coronavirus and ended up spending a lot on grocery delivery, some meal delivery, and over the counter meds. My case was really mild, but my wife is still getting over hers. Luckily neither of us was sick enough to need medical care, so we didn't get tested and don't know for sure. Either way, we didn't want to risk going out and infecting anyone. I'm grateful we had the cash to pay for all the delivery we needed without worrying about it.

Definitely looking forward to April and being able to run necessary, limited errands myself again.

Glad to hear you are both recovering and doing well!

kittykat · « **Reply #49 on:** April 01, 2020, 04:36:44 PM »

| Fun Out | Restaurants | Groceries | Shopping | Total |
NOV 2019 | $ 412 | $ 843 | $ 510 | $ 2,791 | $ 4,556 |
DEC 2019 | $ 26 | $ 682 | $ 634 | $ 3,473 | $ 4,815 |
JAN 2020 | $ 118 | $ 147 | $ 678 | $ 86 | $ 1,029 |
FEB 2020 | $ 232 | $ 253 | $ 687 | $ 229 | $ 1,401 |
MAR 2020 | $ 110 | $ 30 | $ 1,448 | $ 2,420 | $ 4,008 |

|-----------|-------------|------------|--------------|-------------|

Well F#$%#$. I can feel myself slipping back into my old spending habits given the incredibly stressful climate we're in and how shopping seems to soothe me or something, but I have started getting back into mental control and hitting the breaks. At least my spending was not on clothing etc. which was my biggest problem before. The majority of the spend (about $1.3k) was for home office furniture for my new WFH schedule, which is likely to last for months to come. And another $750 was for art from a local artist whom I wanted to support during this crisis. I was in fact calculated when making these purchases, so it was not a totally impulsive move, but it was obviously expensive and I do expect these items to last for years to come given the investment.

The other big spending piece is my grocery bill which went through the roof. This is for 3 reasons, 1) I bought extra of some things to stock up my pantry which previously was usually empty given my small kitchen, 2) now I don't get a free lunch since I can't go to the office, 3) now my kid doesn't get a free lunch since she's not going to school. As a result, I have been cooking a couple of times a day and have been making quite elaborate comfort foods in my bid to soothe my growing anxiety and cabin-fever. This is obviously not sustainable and I need to tone it down asap. On the plus side, I still haven't ordered in in months and don't really feel like it either yet.

News:

Author Topic: Hold Yourself Openly Accountable for Your Spending in 2020 (Read 11653 times)