November Budget Overview

Posted on | December 5, 2007 |

November marked my second whole month of using the YNAB software* and I feel as if I’m getting a firmer grip on what the software can do for me and how to get the most out of it. The Husband willingly sat down with me on the last day of the month and looked over the results of our November spending/budgeting. This was an exciting step forward in my plans to become more involved and informed in our complete financial picture.

Included in my numbers below are ALL of my expenses plus whatever expenses The Husband told me about or gave me copies of invoices/receipts for. What are not included in these numbers, like last month, are his everyday expenses (dry cleaning, the occasional grocery stop, his prescriptions, gas and car expenses, and his lunches). I’d estimate his expenses this month at about $150 - 200.

The expenses outlined below are categorized just as they are in my YNAB budget. The first number is the amount spent in that category in November. The second number is the difference (+ more) or (- less) between November’s number and October’s. If you’re comparing these numbers to the ones I published in my October overview, things might not come out perfectly — I found one or two instances of expenses that were recorded but not saved and a few things that were miscategorized, etc.

In November, I/we spent a total of $8,552.06 (that’s $2,008.09 more than in October).

Here’s the breakdown:

Auto Expenses — $1,092.74 (-1,232.72)

Gas — $184.89
Loan — $904.15
Maintenance, Repairs, Tires — $3.70

Charity — $186.00 (+98.68)

Offerings — $185.00
Miscellaneous — $1.00

Food — $815.12 (+11.86)

Groceries — $764.27
Eating Out — $50.85

Gifts — $479.10 (+388.68)

Immediate family — $296.39
his family — $32.09
my family — $111.98
other — $38.64

Household — $148.93 (-20.43)

Consumables — $72.22
Durables — $13.79
other — $17.16
Postage, shipping, supplies — $45.76

Housing — $1,971.64 (+157.06)

Improvements — $331.54
Mortgage — $1,640.10

The Son — $131.48 (+93.60)

Allowance — $7.50
Clothing — $123.98

Kids — $140.00 (-198.43)

Equipment & Rentals — $35.00
Lessons & Activity Fees — $105.00

The Daughter — $2,935.75 (+2,710.62)

Allowance — $30.00
Clothing — $90.00
School Lunches — $23.75
School Tuition — $2,792.00

Medical/Health — $151.66 (+40.03)

Co-pays — $25.00
Prescriptions — $72.42
Vitamins/Supplements — $54.24

Personal — $114.42 (-109.74)

Books & Music — $13.97
my Clothing — $34.27
Other — $15.82
Toiletries — $50.36

Recreation — $26.28 (-26.00)

Entertainment — $26.28

Utilities — $358.94 (+94.88)

Cable & Internet — $38.84
Gas & Electricity — $103.30
Phone — $143.24
Water — $73.56

Well, there it is in it’s full glory. You really can’t ask for more transparency than that, can you? Could we live cheaper? Most definitely. I think we can cut our expenses to some degree without feeling a pinch. If drastic measures were required, we could make drastic cuts. But for now, they aren’t needed. My goals in the next year are 1) to continue to track and anticipate/budget our expenses using my YNAB software* and 2) to see how many pennies I can pinch before my family says “ouch.”

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