The true cost of living

yycgzd on 03/05/2017 - 20:24
Last edited 03/05/2017 - 22:52

First off a bit about myself.
Single living by myself in Brisbane southside.
Work in Govt and earn $64k a year.
Have a home loan with which pay $500 every fortnight (interest rate is 3.95% currently).
So I paid off my credit card and closed it (the limit was only $2000) and I now have only one bank account which is the home loan offset account. With only one bank account I can track how much I spend and thus budget.
So this is my spending for the period 1 April to 30 April 2017. Please let me know how I'm doing.

FOOD - MONTHLY
Cashout $130 (most likely to pay food)
Dinner $95.98 (most take away nothing fancy)
Lunch $113.80
Grocery $283.10 (with which I make dinner and lunch)
Total $622.88 per month ———-$20.76 per day

FIXED LIVING EXPENSES - MONTHLY
Health insurance $105.46 per month
Digital subscription $101.28 (home broadbank $68.99, digital tv $10.30 and and netflix $11.99 and stan $10)
Bank charges $2.65
Mobile $35 (aldi mobile)
Daily travel $70.13 (petrol parking and public transport)
Total $314.51 per month ———- $10.48 per day

ONE OFF EXPENSE - MONTHLY
Family gift $118.15
Travel $530.47 (Sydney and Caberra trip airfare, accommodation and daily expenses)
Unknown $75.10 (some purchase on the bank statement I cannot identify)
Electronic gadget $165.58
Total $889.30 ———- $29.63 per day

HOUSE EXPENSE - MONTHLY
Water $100 (the Brisbane city council water bill comes every quarter, $100 is apportioned)
Council rates $96 (the Brisbane city council rate bill comes every quarter, $96 is apportioned)
Body Corporate fee $242 (quarterly fee is $726)
Origin electricity $73.3
Gas $42
Home loan repayment $1000
Total $1553.3 ———- $51.78 per day

TOTAL DAILY EXPENSE $112.65

Now comes to take home pay $3894 ———$129.8 per day comparing to my daily expense $112.65 I'm only saving $514.50 per month. I thought my life was so humble but how come my expenses are so high???

Further comment:
My body corporate fee is quite high given the only thing provided is the pool and mowing the lawn.

General Discussion

Comments

  • iforgotmysocks on 03/05/2017 - 20:27
    +7

    You could always change careers.

    Plenty of jobs that are over $180k a year discussed here

    • yycgzd on 03/05/2017 - 22:54
      +2

      I should become a politician to get a really decent salary and entitlement!

      • [Deactivated] on 05/05/2017 - 19:14
        +11

        The best part is the schedule. Think of it as a FIFO job, 6 years on rest of your life off.

    • Thaal Sinestro on 05/05/2017 - 17:10
      +2

      Come on! Nobody ever leaves the public sector for the private sector. The job security is amazing compared to a private sector job, superannuation is better, and you can take everything nice and easy. Everyone wants to be a government bureaucrat, and nobody quits, which makes it very hard to enter the public service unless you have connections.

      • Tr0jan on 06/05/2017 - 12:20
        +3

        I left the public sector for the private sector and last year earned $60k more than I was earning when in state government. Job security is all well and good, but you have to look at how much that security is costing you.

        • Serapis on 06/05/2017 - 20:46
          +1

          I've worked both public and private sectors and it's not just job security but work/life balance and flexibility as well.

          Having the ability to take time off when i want most of the time and being able to come back from sick leave when actually dock without having to face a disgruntled manager was the best part of public sector work.

          Sure the pay is better in private but it wasnt worth it to me considering you burn out a lot faster

        • Tr0jan on 07/05/2017 - 10:45

          @Serapis: I guess it comes down to who you choose to work for in private as well then, as I have all the flexibility anyone could need. I earn TOIL so can supplement my annual leave nicely. If I need to take a day off at short notice or work from home to work around some personal errands, there are no issues there.

          Taking sick leave isn't an issue either, unless you're a serial 'sickie taker' however at that point you deserve the additional scrutiny.

      • [Deactivated] on 06/05/2017 - 20:46
        +1

        you should have said that to those who had their jobs (terminated) under Campbell Newman in QLD.

      • konazz on 07/05/2017 - 00:19
        +2

        I left the public service. Was on a cruisy job for $76k + 15.4% super.

        First 2 years out I was on $95k + 10%. Then I became partner and this year being the first year as partner I'm on 130k (business expanded by 30% and 2 new offices so no dividend). Next year looking at conservative growth and consolidated budget, should be around $250k (balanced is $320k and growth is $370k). As an owner, I also can do a fair bit of income splitting with my non-working wife.

        I'm 31 now and the APS was killing me - no career path, poor morale, just an overall crappy time. I miss the flexible working times, but at least hardwork is rewarded through my dividend. It comes with it's ups and downs (last 7 days I worked 95 hours). But I sneak off here and there and no one cares. And I get 6 weeks holidays during quiet times.

      • sareth on 07/05/2017 - 10:59
        +1

        Ask all the people who have been fired from CSIRO how good public service job security is.

    • [Deactivated] on 10/11/2017 - 08:23

      That discussion is full of lying neckbeards.

  • Richardc on 03/05/2017 - 20:31

    I would cut the gas if I only live by myself(don't want to pay for the gas line, cancel digi sub.

    • scrimshaw on 03/05/2017 - 20:36
      +12

      errr. cutting off the gas means no home cooking and no hot water. Think you can handle cold showers in the winter?

      • modsec802 on 03/05/2017 - 20:38
        -2

        Brisbane winters are mild

        • gimli on 06/05/2017 - 21:13
          +1

          lol ds9etc
          like your sense of humour

      • Gronk on 03/05/2017 - 21:06

        Defs wouldn't be going electric hot water, we had one in the last place we rented and power bills were regularly over $1000 / qtr - couldn't get out of that place quickly enough.

        • Harold Halfprice on 03/05/2017 - 21:36
          +3

          Yeah, using electricity to heat things up is highly inefficient - when you consider the electricity you're using was generated by burning things in the first place. You're turning fuel into heat into electricity and back into heat again, and turning the fuel into electricity wastes about 70% of the energy already.

        • poboy on 04/05/2017 - 06:58
          +1

          There will be a huge shift to electric when solar and battery prices come down. Gas prices will continue to climb, forcing people to reassess their energy mix.

        • trongy on 06/05/2017 - 13:28

          The cheapest way to do electric hot water is use a controlled load (off peak) circuit that heats overnight and has a lower tariff. A tank with a large enough capacity to for the households daily hot water usage should also be used.

          My controlled load charge for electric hot water was $30 last quarter. That's for a single person dwelling and I'm pretty frugal. Nonetheless that's a lot lower than the supply charge for gas would be.

          For small households electric only is probably cheaper, but it would depend on how much energy is used overall for hot water, cooking and room heating.

      • Richardc on 03/05/2017 - 22:37
        +1

        check ur gas bill, see how much is the line cost per day, and how much gas u use for ur self, also using electricity for cooking is safer and quicker for me.

  • Mika1234 on 03/05/2017 - 20:35
    +1

    Digital subs seems high, do you need home broadband and mobile? Maybe combine with a high data plan?

    Presumably the sydney/canberra trip isnt monthly so that would be savings any other month.

    I was with Origin (also in Brisbane) and just changed to Click energy, for my usage it saved me about 7% off a typical bill, though yours may differ.

    Only other thing is to try and buy less lunches/food.

    • lgacb08 on 04/05/2017 - 20:04
      +2

      No mobile plan could handle those Netflix and Stan subscriptions. Maybe cut all those and switch back to sbs night movie.

      • YRT on 05/05/2017 - 16:04

        Optus now includes free Netflix streaming on all mobile plans. I'm actually on a 70pm mobile broadband plan, which gives me 50gb data + unlimited netflix, so far it has work well as a family internet as we don't use much.

        • bonkers22 on 06/05/2017 - 19:39
          +1

          It's only SD streaming which is unlimited however.

    • bs0 on 05/05/2017 - 18:36

      Agree with this - dont needall of them, one is probably enough, max 2.

  • modsec802 on 03/05/2017 - 20:38
    +19

    The thing that stands out immediately is this:

    FOOD - MONTHLY
    Cashout $130 (most likely to pay food)
    Dinner $95.98 (most take away nothing fancy)
    Lunch $113.80

    That's over $330 a month for one person just one eating out. Not very humble IMO

    • leiiv on 03/05/2017 - 20:42
      +3

      Considering breakfast, lunch, and dinner, that is not much for a single, about $10 per day.

      • Gronk on 03/05/2017 - 21:15
        +6

        The $330 per day is just for eating out, OP mentioned that they make their own breakfast and lunch and spend an additional ~$280 on groceries in addition to the take away.

        It's still not a huge amount of eating out but assuming $30 transactions it equates to one take away feed every 3rd day, which is a heck of a lot more often than I have take away :)

    • mhasan on 04/05/2017 - 10:04
      +1

      Totally agree, $130 cash out for food, plus dinner $95 plus lunch $113 plus $283 groceries.. that's alot. I think we can cut down on take away dinners and lunch and i think home cooking in advance is the key to save, we have commit to once in a week for take aways. Use money to buy groceries and do some wonders in kitchen.

      • virhlpool on 07/05/2017 - 10:23

        Totally agree, $130 cash out for food, plus dinner $95 plus lunch $113 plus $283 groceries.. that's alot.

        Agree with suggestion for home cooking though isn't that a very basic cost if he was to buy breakfast, lunch and dinner outside ANYWHERE in Australia? Unless he flies out to Bali to buy some everyday, not including air tickets and taxi charges, his expenses can't be any lower.

        Of course, food in Australia is absurdly expensive and every time this topic is raised, we justify it using higher rentals and higher wages. Just $4.50 a tiny coffee when milk is $1 a litre.

    • phocus on 05/05/2017 - 09:38
      +1

      agreed. OP's food bill looks the same as mine, but i also feed my wife and 1yo

    • [Deactivated] on 05/05/2017 - 12:51
      +1

      That is 70 dollars per week on groceries on top of some dinner and some lunch eating out.

      Thats definitely not humble.

      Can easily cut to 50 dollars per week with another 25 for eating out. Leading to 300 per month for all food bills. Half his expenditure

      I do about 40 a week groceries with one or two meals eating out. I try to keep my meals to less than 3 dollars per meal. E.g Chicken 10/kg makes it about 1.70 per meal for the meat portions depending on how hungry I am (try to eat more for lunch and less for dinner).

  • RiseAndRuin on 03/05/2017 - 20:43
    +3

    get one (or more…) girlfriend/boyfriend/whatever…, possibly earning more the $64k a year, and get them to move in and share expenses. if you fail at that, hopefully you have a spare room you can rent out and share expenses.

    • yycgzd on 03/05/2017 - 23:07

      Had a partner who was living with me but not paying anything. My partner has moved to another city recently but I'm not sure if I want to get a housemate…

    • Black Brown Blue on 06/05/2017 - 10:30

      "Or more" I see what you are getting to there. So if you have a gf/bf then you would get another one just so you could cheat on the first one.

      • Miss B on 06/05/2017 - 14:19

        I think they mean more polygamy style than cheating. So that they're all contributing to expenses.

        • RiseAndRuin on 06/05/2017 - 16:45
          +1

          non monogamous relationships seem to be trending these days, so I'd not assume someone is monogamous by default anymore.

  • [Deactivated] on 03/05/2017 - 20:50
    +17

    You are buying a house and you want to save on 64k , I think you are doing really well… Enjoy

    • yycgzd on 03/05/2017 - 23:06

      Yeah thanks to my parents' help I was able to pay for a deposit.

  • tsunamisurfer on 03/05/2017 - 21:30
    +4

    OP why are you including one off expenses (your own categorisation) as though it happened monthly?

    If you afford yourself a gadget every few months, apportion it that way.

    If you travel once or twice a year, divide that by 6 or 12.

    Your body corporate fees are high, is that in an apartment with a lift, swimming pool and gym?

    • yycgzd on 03/05/2017 - 23:05

      Yeah the gadget was really a one-off thing.

      My body corporate is quite high that's for sure. The only thing it provides is the pool and mowing. But I don't think I can do much to change the fee…

      • McBanjo on 25/08/2017 - 15:12

        Get on your BC Committee and look at the where the damn money is going. I found out we paid 40% of our fees on false fire alarm callouts. $700 building report later, we disconnected from calling the fire brigade (we didn't need to be auto-dialling them), instant drop of 30% on everyone's BC bill. Get double or triple quotes for everything. Get more involved and you can save heaps of money on maintenance, electricity, cleaning contracts, etc.

    • outlander on 04/05/2017 - 10:15

      I'll say. That is crazy high. If I were OP I would be doing a little digging to see where the moneys going.
      Never know what you might find, or how that information might be useful to you later

      • yycgzd on 04/05/2017 - 17:14

        Most of the body corp fee goes to the manager's salary - $70k.

        • Ekliptix on 05/05/2017 - 21:56

          This is actually not correct and a very common misconception.

          The money goes into the admin and sinking funds used to take care of the building and common areas

          Your Strata Management company simply manages the building and charges a fee to do so. Have a look at your quarterly levy notices and you will see that the actual management is a very small proportion of the actual body corporate fees you pay.

        • trongy on 06/05/2017 - 13:45

          Does your body corp really employ a full time manager? Is it some giant high rise?

          You are a shareholder in the body corporate so you should have access to the financial reports and be able to go to the AGM.

          About 20% of my body corps budget is spent on insurance. Management fees are around 15%. There's also an electricity bill for the common areas (e.g. external lighting) and other miscellaneous expenses. The bulk goes on building maintenance.

    • [Deactivated] on 05/05/2017 - 12:55

      Yea the one off expenses does skew things a fair bit, but its hard to calculate because one-off expenses of a similar size tend to occur to me with some frequency.

      Like I fly inter-city about Once a month. Theres car insurance, rego and servicing, wash and wax. IT phone and gadgets. Yea its quite hard to plan for those so I cut down whatever regular expenses I can to give me a bigger buffer for my unplanned purchases.

  • Gronk on 03/05/2017 - 21:40
    +3

    Not knowing anything about your proximity to the office - $70 per day for travel expenses seems a lot, can you do anything about that? I live a bit under 20km from the office and I'm spending about $30 per day so that's my basis for comparison.

    Edit - I just re-read your post and I think I'm misinterpreting that amount because the monthly total is only like $300.

    • Olokun on 03/05/2017 - 21:57
      +2

      Daily travel is he name of the expense, $70 is the cost per month.

    • yycgzd on 03/05/2017 - 23:04

      I was considering dropping Netflix instead. I watch Stan more. I was also thinking to get a friend to sign up Netflix so both of us can use each other's subscription.

  • garetz on 03/05/2017 - 22:57
    +3

    Your food costs are through the roof, you can cut that way down.

    • yycgzd on 03/05/2017 - 23:02

      Yeah I agree, I should be doing more home cooking rather than eating out.

      • garetz on 03/05/2017 - 23:23

        Not to mention manage your cooking, make big batches for multiple meals, reduces the cost per meal, check some guides, they can cut costs even when you cook at home drastically.

        • yycgzd on 04/05/2017 - 17:15

          Do you have any good recommendation as types of meals suitable for cooking as batch?

        • Speckled Jim on 04/05/2017 - 19:13

          @yycgzd: We'd freeze soups, stews and meat pies that were bulk prepped. Not suited to all styles of food IMO.

        • phocus on 05/05/2017 - 09:40

          @yycgzd: just look through taste.com.au and just try things that will microwave well. Soon enough after doing a few recipes you will find what works for your tastes.

          Also buy I like to buy a $300 woolies GC with 5% discount and use that to buy groceries. $15 a month adds up

        • redpump on 05/05/2017 - 15:59

          @yycgzd: https://mymealprepsunday.com/ and I subscribe to mealprepsunday on reddit for the pics! https://www.reddit.com/r/MealPrepSunday/

        • johnno07 on 06/05/2017 - 09:23

          @yycgzd: Most pasta meals are great for cooking up as a batch. A big pot of bolognese can do you for the week. You can also freeze the sauce and cook up fresh pasta down the line.

  • PissLUR on 03/05/2017 - 23:35
    +8

    Why do you need private health insurance? I don't see the point, as your income is lower than the threshold.

    • Silvertonguedmenace on 03/05/2017 - 23:53

      Extras cover is indispensable, dental costs yearly and other expenses covered by this small cost outweighs the initial expense if not for the peace of mind alone.

      • Gunther on 04/05/2017 - 11:16
        +3

        Nah, self insure with dental if you actually look after your teeth and its cheaper.

      • PissLUR on 04/05/2017 - 11:25
        +2

        ok. so just get extras cover, without hospital cover.

    • Hansi on 07/05/2017 - 00:16
      +1

      I do not quite understand what you are referring to, could someone explain or provide a link for me to do my research?

      • ripesashimi on 07/05/2017 - 03:20

        would love an explanation here too

        • Hansi on 08/05/2017 - 22:11

          Thank you for the link.

          I think that health insurance + extras is something you shouldn't save on, especially since basic covers are not very expensive.

          In case something happens you are covered in addition to what Medicare offers you and above a certain age you can save on tax too when having private health insurance.

  • Seraphin7 on 04/05/2017 - 09:18
    +1

    If you are doing air travel and buying electronic gadgets monthly, that's not living humbly. Take those out (make them quarterly rather than monthly) and there's a heap of saving right there. Looks like about $5k a year.

    Also, I notice you have $1,000/month going on your home loan repayment. Only the portion of this that is interest is an expense. The amount that is going to principal is actually a saving.

    Your budget (other than the two items mentioned above) is actually not that bad.

    • aussie28 on 05/05/2017 - 10:55

      Only if the property value remains the same or increases unlike in Gladstone QLD where prices have fallen as much as 60-70%…

  • Gunther on 04/05/2017 - 11:35
    +1

    I can see a few costs to be reduced and savings to be made….

    Dinner $95.98 – easily a waste
    Lunch $113.80 - easily a waste
    Health insurance $105.46 – have faith in Australia’s public health care system, especially on lower incomes.
    Digital subscription $101.28 – cheaper options available.
    Bank charges $2.65 – who pays bank fees in 2017?
    Mobile $35 – Kogan, Jeenee and others are cheaper.

    Keep a credit card to channel your expenses and have money sitting in the offset account for longer. Pay in full balance every month – just make sure the card itself has no annual fee.

  • [Deactivated] on 04/05/2017 - 12:08
    +21

    Rent out the place to 15 illegal immigrants and live in a van in your work's carpark
    Then buy another luxury unit with pool and grass with savings and repeat
    Soon you'll be a real estate mogul who can buy as many chicko rolls as you want

    • yycgzd on 04/05/2017 - 17:15
      +1

      I'm serious considering this!

  • ChillBro on 04/05/2017 - 17:38

    I think OP's food expenses are quite reasonable likewise with most other things listed. I'm especially jealous at your monthly commuting costs of $70 per month since I'm paying $40/week in Sydney. The one off travel expenses of $500 does stand out a bit though, do you travel often?

    It's clear that the only way anyone living by themselves can afford their own home is to be born 30 years ago.

    • yycgzd on 04/05/2017 - 17:42

      I drive to work and get there before 7 to get free parking. The travel expense is really petrol which is minimal.

    • callum9999 on 06/05/2017 - 18:56

      Well yes, they're reasonable in relation to their salary. They aren't remotely "humble" as they previously thought though, especially if the goal is to cut back and save money!

      My weekly food expenditure is probably not much higher than $100 (which is around than 15% of their budget!), and I eat fresh nutritious meals (and could cut that back further pretty easily if I stopped buying treats/ate less variety etc.)…

      • ragrum on 07/05/2017 - 21:29

        Do you mean your monthly food expenditure?

        • callum9999 on 08/05/2017 - 10:35

          I did mean month but I have no idea why I said that was the present (probably laziness!). While I was seriously saving every cent I could I spent about that much on food, though its rather extreme!

          I don't spend much more than that now though - maybe $150/200.

  • niknah on 04/05/2017 - 19:32
    +2

    You should check the "Unknown $75.10", there're scammers out there who take a little bit from everyone's account and it adds up to a lot.

    Here's mine for comparison(average numbers for the past 9 months). In a similar situation as you but without mortgage or travel costs. But my internet + electricity costs involve having 2 x internet connections and several servers at home.

    FOOD - MONTHLY
    Cash out $50
    Eating out $166
    Grocery $241
    Total $457

    FIXED LIVING EXPENSES - MONTHLY
    Health insurance $113
    Internet $120
    Bank charges $32
    Mobile $20
    Total $285

    HOUSE EXPENSE - MONTHLY
    Water + Council rates + Body Corporate fee = $416
    Electricity $127
    Total $543

    Other stuff…
    Donations $111
    Sport related $187
    Health related $33
    Things for the home $70

  • CI on 04/05/2017 - 20:04

    Have never shared this before - but might aswell.
    Heres pdf of my past 2 months exact
    https://files.ozbargain.com.au/upload/68522/48709/personal_b…
    S1 to S4 are just spends for that day, usually dont spend money more than 4 times in a day hence easier to track.
    Comments welcome.
    Max budget per day is $50 inclusive of everything but rent or holiday.
    As you will see YTD I am avg around $58 so need to cut more to reach my allowable limit. This limit is based on factors such as savings, and future plans etc. Some nights I have managed to save all of my allowed budget and some nights gone over by a lot ! :/

    • angelkulit025 on 05/05/2017 - 12:01
      +1

      woah, im suprised when i opened your link and you calculate your expenses daily??? Too much time and effort for that. When do you fill up your spreadsheet?

      • EnALup on 05/05/2017 - 14:09

        Yea, I have never done that micro maths and check the balance of the account monthly. Few months are fine and few have more expense due to buying big stuff like mobile, laptop, small home renovation, holidays, etc

      • CI on 05/05/2017 - 17:47

        I got excel office all on my iPhone. On desktop I setup a script within the sheef. When I open this spreadsheet it prompts me to enter a number. Which automatically allocates a dollar amount to that timestamp upto 4 times a day. Pretty simple and super quick. Result is what you see.

      • ndoan on 05/05/2017 - 21:27

        Search for the app 'Money Lover' in AppStore Or Play Store. You can input the expenses in your phone or from website.

    • Tyrx on 05/05/2017 - 18:15

      5.5k monthly rent? I'm thankful to live in Canberra when I see figures like those - do you live in North Sydney or something?

      • CI on 05/05/2017 - 20:37
        -1

        Man.. that's sharing aswell.. our total rent is $16k a month but the place is pretty slick though

        • BartholemewH on 06/05/2017 - 01:06
          +4

          Not sure if serious. You city dwellers crack me up.

    • keverns on 07/05/2017 - 14:54
      +1

      that party 1k!
      better have had strippers booze and god knows what else otherwise im calling this a waste haha

  • ConanTheBarbarian on 04/05/2017 - 23:11
    +3

    Mate. A $500 a month holiday factored into your cost!

    Plus a $1000 a month home loan repayment (not an expense it's paying off your home - asset (purchase))

    That and you have $500 a month still extra for contingencies = over $6000 a year savings when all your current needs are taken care of with a monthly national trip / holiday.

    You aren't doing bad at all I wouldn't be upset over that. Once your home is paid off, that's an extra $1000 a month to spend on whatever too.

  • lainey13 on 04/05/2017 - 23:15
    +1

    Water seems high, we pay well under $200 per quarter for two people, inc one person who loves the long showers and has pushed us well over the 150L pp/pd when previously I would barely hit three figures…

  • antonthenet on 05/05/2017 - 10:48
    +5

    I think you are doing fine.

    Ozbargainers really like the idea of saving every little cent ever. But at the end of the day you should enjoy your life first and foremost.

    My mantra is 'always be saving money when I can, to be able to get and enjoy things I want'.

    • iDroid on 05/05/2017 - 11:50
      +4

      A colleague I once worked with had an excellent expression:

      Money comes and goes. Time only goes.

    • EnALup on 05/05/2017 - 14:11
      +1

      Thats my mantra as well. Dont have time to do micro things to manage.

  • movieman on 05/05/2017 - 11:21
    +3

    Hello,

    Usually I don’t bother replying, but since you’ve provided such a good break-up, here goes:

    Grocery – try ALDI, colesworths only for specials (ie 50% off)

    Health insurance – not required – we have medicare, and your current salary makes it unviable.

    Digital subscription – too high. Change internet to Aussie Broadband (100GB for $55 NBN, 25/5 speed) No need to pay for content, let alone for 3.

    Mobile – Coles mobile = $20/28 days = $240 per year MAX (there are cheaper sims for starter packs, etc, or Kogan)

    Bank charges – query this with them, find out why, and ask for it to be waived? Or switch banks (ie ING have no fees for their standard account)

    Parking – why do we accept to pay for parking? Just park further and walk..

    Unknown – query the $75 to see if it legitimate – possibly bank error??

    Electricity – move to ‘Pacific Hydro’ – much better standard rates (no discount gimmicks)

    Otherwise, well done.

  • MementoMori on 05/05/2017 - 11:53
    +1

    Not sure if it has been mentioned, but have you considered a housemate, or renting out your current place and moving into a share house?

    50% (or more) off all utility + rent/interest bills + major appliances + netflix/stan etc etc. Possibly even cook together.

    Living by yourself is an expensive luxury, and if you're young, living with others can be great social wise.

    Also riding a bicycle to work is great for fitness and basically free (if you have a safe path to work - which I just lost :( )

  • CGradeCyclist on 05/05/2017 - 11:59

    Gonna +1 the focus on the Food Spend. Waaay too high. And it's low-hanging fruit too, a few small changes could easily wipe out a third of that (eg making sangers for lunch, cheap & easy home-made dinners, etc).

    Digital subscriptions seems ripe for some cutting too. Have a good look at what you actually use. Do some research on your internet & mobile plans.

    That said - you are saving money already on $64K a year and you have a mortgage, so you are on the right track! :-)

  • cloudy on 05/05/2017 - 12:07

    Well you do have a once off monthly expense of $889 every month in your calculations. So either they are not every month, which makes ur calculations a whole lot better OR you are indeed treating yourself and family a lot.

    I mean$889 every month is like saying every month I EITHER take a trip somewhere and spend $889, or buy a gagdet for $889 or spend ~$100 on 9 people's birthday a month, every month.

    That is pretty crazy in my eyes.

  • aussie28 on 05/05/2017 - 13:48

    My budget with $60,000 income is $650 fully furnished 2 bedroom unit live alone. $300 Food, $80 Electric, $70 Fuel, $30 mobile so monthly expenses at around $1,130 not including one offs like registration. Monthly income of $3,987 after tax so Savings of around $2,857 a month or $34,284 a year.

    • El Cap on 05/05/2017 - 14:41

      Where do you live!?

      • aussie28 on 05/05/2017 - 14:57

        Gladstone QLD where the market has all but collapsed. Some property's have dropped as much as 60-70% in value, the place I'm renting now fully furnished could be had for $580 a week back in 2011 now 6 years later a measly $150 and it's very modern inside the 2 story unit with high end appliances

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