SavingsTalk.com

nootrac22 · 03-18-2008, 10:26 AM

Looking to get feed back on my monthly budget. For those of you who don't know me I'll fill in the details in shot. 2 years ago began tough divorce and custody, got custody of my son, son has some development issuses, stayed with parents to get a handle on parenting/ behavioral issues, moving back into my house in a few months, first time rasing a child on my own and nervous, and looking for feed back to make sure I didn't miss anything.

sorry bout the multiple posts and all. feel free to ask question, critique and flame away

nootrac22 · 03-18-2008, 10:30 AM

for some reason the cut and paste won't work

nootrac22 · 03-18-2008, 10:40 AM

got it

nootrac22 · 03-18-2008, 10:42 AM

this is the straight 40 hour week, and where i run into problems

titan22 · 03-18-2008, 04:30 PM

The first thing i notice is that you don't have a subsidy for your child. you should be getting some sort of child support.

next, i'm not totally sure what your entertainment expenses consists of. seems pretty high. I personally try to limit myself to only going out on the weekends and taking the gf out 1 night a week. usually saturday. friday nights will be "in house dates" usually dinner, movie and some ice cream. but it keeps things alive.

the big hitter here is the gas. $400/month is quite a bit. thats 100/week. try to trim that in 1/2 and put that into some sort of savings plan. you should be putting more than 100/month into savings.

also not totally sure about the $400/other household expenses. you might be able to trim that also.

a couple things you could do. track 100% of your spending for 1 month. down to the penny. and see where you can trim. writing everything down on paper will make you want to spend less, just so you don't have to write it. that way you can see what you actually spend. this is a good expense list, but there are some more out there that break it down. try to do a google search for a "financial plan expense list". i would do it for you, but i'm at work. they are a lot more detailed.

if you can, being a single father, try to get some money from the state. you might make too much money though. see what you can get for having a "special needs" child also. anything extra will always help.

I try to give myself a weekly allowance. usually $30/week cash for coffee, junk food, fast food, etc. that helps me cut down from using the debit card.

briansol · 03-18-2008, 11:41 PM

the pocono's is a vast area of nothingness. It's not like the city... you pretty much HAVE to drive an hour to get to the store/work/etc.

I have a hard time believing that your car costs 100 a month to insure. Call around for a re-quote. you're 31. you should be paying ~50 a month for an older honda. I pay $110 a month for the M with full coverage! certainly you shouldn't be paying the same rate.

your water/garbage fee is crazy. i don't see 90 bucks until 3 months. That's probably not an expense you can circumvent... just pointing it out.

what is the 400 in there for Other under housing expense?

IMO, you need to go after the deadbeat mom and get some help. Nothing on there is too outrageous IMO.

nootrac22 · 03-19-2008, 09:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by getnick

The first thing i notice is that you don't have a subsidy for your child. you should be getting some sort of child support.

next, i'm not totally sure what your entertainment expenses consists of. seems pretty high. I personally try to limit myself to only going out on the weekends and taking the gf out 1 night a week. usually saturday. friday nights will be "in house dates" usually dinner, movie and some ice cream. but it keeps things alive.

the big hitter here is the gas. $400/month is quite a bit. thats 100/week. try to trim that in 1/2 and put that into some sort of savings plan. you should be putting more than 100/month into savings.

also not totally sure about the $400/other household expenses. you might be able to trim that also.

a couple things you could do. track 100% of your spending for 1 month. down to the penny. and see where you can trim. writing everything down on paper will make you want to spend less, just so you don't have to write it. that way you can see what you actually spend. this is a good expense list, but there are some more out there that break it down. try to do a google search for a "financial plan expense list". i would do it for you, but i'm at work. they are a lot more detailed.

if you can, being a single father, try to get some money from the state. you might make too much money though. see what you can get for having a "special needs" child also. anything extra will always help.

I try to give myself a weekly allowance. usually $30/week cash for coffee, junk food, fast food, etc. that helps me cut down from using the debit card.

1) child support: I get $169 a month but nothing I can count on regularly

No.Issue DatePayment MethodCheck Number AmountStatus
1 03/03/2008 PA.EPPICard $486.00 Deposited 2 07/06/2007 PA.EPPICard $84.92 Deposited 3 06/21/2007 PA.EPPICard $84.92 Deposited 4 06/07/2007 PA.EPPICard $84.92 Deposited 5 05/24/2007 PA.EPPICard $84.92 Deposited

2)yes the entertainment is high. I'm trying to factor in some cushion room in the budget. $100 a week is alloted and what ever is left over goes towards extra payment on bills or savings.

3)gas for the car: 35mi one way to work X2 =70 X5= 350 @25mpg = 14gal @ 3.60/gal is ~ $50 then I need gas to run my errands for the week also.

4) $400/month other is home heating oil and furnace maintinance. That is what it costs me in heating oil durning the winter. It will leave a surpluss in the summer. The plan for the surpluss is to save it for cost of a new furnace. My current furnace is about 10yrs old I should get at least another 10yrs out of it so saving a couple hundred a year for 10 years, I shouldn't have to come out of pocket much for a new furnace

Quote:

Originally Posted by briansol

the pocono's is a vast area of nothingness. It's not like the city... you pretty much HAVE to drive an hour to get to the store/work/etc.

I have a hard time believing that your car costs 100 a month to insure. Call around for a re-quote. you're 31. you should be paying ~50 a month for an older honda. I pay $110 a month for the M with full coverage! certainly you shouldn't be paying the same rate.

your water/garbage fee is crazy. i don't see 90 bucks until 3 months. That's probably not an expense you can circumvent... just pointing it out.

what is the 400 in there for Other under housing expense?

IMO, you need to go after the deadbeat mom and get some help. Nothing on there is too outrageous IMO.

1) car insurance: $100/month is for 2 cars. PA is high for insurance. The insurance is for minimum coverage with the tort option on 2 hondas 93 accord 92 prelude. It is high should prolly be closer to $70/month.

2) water/garbage: this is $60/month water + (($130/yr garbage + $150/yr sewar + $150/yr recycling) / 12) ~ $90/month

3) $400/month other is heating oil/ furnace maintainance

here is my list:

550 mortgage/escrowe
400 daycare
60 electric
60 water
70 cable/net
400 food
400 gas, car
400 oil
100 car insurance
110 nelnet (student loan)
400 spending/ cushion
50 car maintainence
50 clothes me and my son
100 credit card
15 sewar
15 recycling
100 home maintain
100 attorney
60 cellphone

3440 total

my big concern is with out overtime I run a deficit of $665/month. I don't ever see that happening with my job and the war going on. I should have all the ot I want for about 2 to 5 years after the war is over with all of the equipment coming back. Also there are a few things to cut back on if need be I will have the credit cards paid off so I wont need that 100/month. once i have 1500 saved for the attorney that will be another 100/month. I can realisticly cut my spending my by 3/4 to free up 300/month. I will have extra out of the food and car insurance and if need be could drop the 70/month for cable/net.

I really appreciate the feedback on this. I'm very nervous about living on my own with my son. Sucess or failure of my family is directly on my shoulders I have no one else to share the burden. It's a daunting proposition, as much as it is exciting. I know it will work for me, cause I'm willing to do what ever it takes, but it's still nerve racking.

titan22 · 03-19-2008, 12:22 PM

living on your own with your son.

watch the movie "pursuit of happyness". it will either make you cut your wrists or give you a new perspective.

try to save as much as possible. start a change jar, eat some ramen, buy generics for a while. it's tough, i grew up with a single mother. the shit sucks, but it gave me a perspective that i have to work hard and i'm a better person because of it.

nootrac22 · 03-19-2008, 12:28 PM

most of the shoping will be done here ALDI - Home page . if there's one in your area check it out, the savings are unbelieveable. you can fill a whole cart for bout $100.

titan22 · 03-19-2008, 12:38 PM

looks like a midwest type place. looks good to cut back on expenses.

03-18-2008, 10:26 AM	#1
nootrac22 Piggy Bank Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: pa Age: 35 Posts: 77 Rep Power: 5	Looking for feedback on my monthly budget Looking to get feed back on my monthly budget. For those of you who don't know me I'll fill in the details in shot. 2 years ago began tough divorce and custody, got custody of my son, son has some development issuses, stayed with parents to get a handle on parenting/ behavioral issues, moving back into my house in a few months, first time rasing a child on my own and nervous, and looking for feed back to make sure I didn't miss anything. sorry bout the multiple posts and all. feel free to ask question, critique and flame away Last edited by nootrac22; 03-18-2008 at 10:43 AM.

03-18-2008, 04:30 PM	#5
titan22 Super Moderator Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: West Coast Posts: 773 Rep Power: 7	The first thing i notice is that you don't have a subsidy for your child. you should be getting some sort of child support. next, i'm not totally sure what your entertainment expenses consists of. seems pretty high. I personally try to limit myself to only going out on the weekends and taking the gf out 1 night a week. usually saturday. friday nights will be "in house dates" usually dinner, movie and some ice cream. but it keeps things alive. the big hitter here is the gas. $400/month is quite a bit. thats 100/week. try to trim that in 1/2 and put that into some sort of savings plan. you should be putting more than 100/month into savings. also not totally sure about the $400/other household expenses. you might be able to trim that also. a couple things you could do. track 100% of your spending for 1 month. down to the penny. and see where you can trim. writing everything down on paper will make you want to spend less, just so you don't have to write it. that way you can see what you actually spend. this is a good expense list, but there are some more out there that break it down. try to do a google search for a "financial plan expense list". i would do it for you, but i'm at work. they are a lot more detailed. if you can, being a single father, try to get some money from the state. you might make too much money though. see what you can get for having a "special needs" child also. anything extra will always help. I try to give myself a weekly allowance. usually $30/week cash for coffee, junk food, fast food, etc. that helps me cut down from using the debit card. Last edited by titan22; 03-18-2008 at 04:38 PM.

03-18-2008, 10:30 AM	#2
nootrac22 Piggy Bank Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: pa Age: 35 Posts: 77 Rep Power: 5	for some reason the cut and paste won't work

03-18-2008, 11:41 PM	#6
briansol Savings Advisor Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Central CT Age: 32 Posts: 761 Rep Power: 7	the pocono's is a vast area of nothingness. It's not like the city... you pretty much HAVE to drive an hour to get to the store/work/etc. I have a hard time believing that your car costs 100 a month to insure. Call around for a re-quote. you're 31. you should be paying ~50 a month for an older honda. I pay $110 a month for the M with full coverage! certainly you shouldn't be paying the same rate. your water/garbage fee is crazy. i don't see 90 bucks until 3 months. That's probably not an expense you can circumvent... just pointing it out. what is the 400 in there for Other under housing expense? IMO, you need to go after the deadbeat mom and get some help. Nothing on there is too outrageous IMO.

03-19-2008, 12:22 PM	#8
titan22 Super Moderator Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: West Coast Posts: 773 Rep Power: 7	living on your own with your son. watch the movie "pursuit of happyness". it will either make you cut your wrists or give you a new perspective. try to save as much as possible. start a change jar, eat some ramen, buy generics for a while. it's tough, i grew up with a single mother. the shit sucks, but it gave me a perspective that i have to work hard and i'm a better person because of it.

03-19-2008, 12:28 PM	#9
nootrac22 Piggy Bank Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: pa Age: 35 Posts: 77 Rep Power: 5	most of the shoping will be done here ALDI - Home page . if there's one in your area check it out, the savings are unbelieveable. you can fill a whole cart for bout $100.

03-19-2008, 12:38 PM	#10
titan22 Super Moderator Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: West Coast Posts: 773 Rep Power: 7	looks like a midwest type place. looks good to cut back on expenses.

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