December 2023 Spend
Recapping what I spent in December 2023 and going over my January 2024 budget.
December 2023 Spend: $4,338 vs $4,695
Mortgage: 62% vs 60%
Groceries: 9% vs 9%
Shopping: 1% vs 2%
Dining Out: 12% vs 11%
Health: 6% vs 4%
Transportation: 1% vs 1%
Work: 0% vs 0%
Gifts: 2% vs 2%
Membership: 0% vs 1%
Travel: 0% vs 2%
Misc: 0% vs 1%
Subscription: 0% vs 1%
Charity: 1% vs 1%
Entertainment: 2% vs 1%
House: 3% vs 4%
Taxes: 0% vs 0%
I learned that I will always shop during the holiday season. It’s unrealistic for me to do a no buy November and December due to visiting family and all the sales that make it tempting to shop. I picked up some wish list items like Uniqlo HeatTech pants and skincare during the sales. We’ve been doing more home shopping as we tackle little projects around the house like fixing the mailbox and finding ways to prevent ants from coming into our house (an endless journey). We bought some tickets to see shows in 2024, and I also got some gifts to wrap up the holiday gift giving season. Overall, I’m ok with what I spent in December and now know to not do a no buy during the holiday season.
January 2024 Spend: $4,895
Mortgage: 57%
Groceries: 8%
Shopping: 1%
Dining Out: 12%
Health: 4%
Transportation: 1%
Work: 0%
Gifts: 1%
Membership: 1%
Travel: 6%
Misc: 1%
Subscription: 1%
Charity: 1%
Entertainment: 1%
House: 4%
Taxes: 0%
Let’s try a no buy in January shall we? The rule will be to not buy clothing or skincare unless I have credit. We have a short trip in January so I anticipate eating out a lot. Since we will be driving, there will be gas and rental car costs. I also increased my travel budget as I hope to book a weekend trip in March. My financial goals for 2024 is to contribute more to the mortgage so we can get our principal down. I also would like to refinance since our interest rate is pretty high.
