In my last post I asked you to help me decide if I should stay here in New Jersey, or move to West Palm Beach, Florida, and I haven't posted since. I'm sure you're wondering, am I staying, or am I going?
The answer is, I still don't know.
In my favorite sorts of books a parallel universe is sometimes created when a major event could go either way, with both possibilities then playing out oblivious to one another. I feel like this has happened to me. In one universe, I chose to stay here, and life goes on pretty much as it always has. In the other, I chose Florida and am living life among the palm trees. From here where I stand, at the point where the universe split into two, I can see both lives playing out in great detail, and it is in those details where the difficulty lies.
Neither universe has "happy ending" written all over it. In both realities there is both good and bad. In New Jersey, I'm here with my family, and still have my job, but as the years pass and the cost of housing increases it becomes more of a struggle. I'm not able to help as much as I would like with Big Brother's wedding, or the Princesses quinceañeras. In Florida, the money situation is better, but it is a lonely existence; I have sunshine and blue skies, but I don't see my son or family nearly as often as I would like, and the Princesses and Baby Brother even less; As they grow up, we begin to drift apart.
Anyway, for now I've decided not to decide. I spoke to the relative who has been holding his condo for me. We agreed he can't wait indefinitely, so if he rents it, he will let me know. If things change here, and Big Brother gets a better job and his own place, I will let him know.
Who knows what the next six months might bring for all of us? By then I might feel ready to take on a new horizon in a new state. Until then, you can continue to find me right here where I've always been, Stuck in the Slow Lane.
Showing posts with label Dollars and Sense. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Dollars and Sense. Show all posts
Monday, November 3, 2014
Monday, July 28, 2014
Meal swap test run results
In an earlier post I mentioned one of my cost-saving strategies was going to be to start a meal swap club. Not just to save money, but also to save time and to ensure we eat well even on busy nights.
I decided to do a test run, to see if bulk cooking was something I felt I could keep up with if this got off the ground.I planned my menu, did a shop, then got cooking.
The three entrees I decided on were veggie lasagna roll-ups, meatloaf patties (to make it easy to freeze individual portions), and two kinds of pot pies (tofu and chicken). I picked these three things at random, mostly because I thought they would freeze well.
The cooking wasn't too bad. The hard part was having three different meals going at once.
I decided to do a test run, to see if bulk cooking was something I felt I could keep up with if this got off the ground.I planned my menu, did a shop, then got cooking.
The three entrees I decided on were veggie lasagna roll-ups, meatloaf patties (to make it easy to freeze individual portions), and two kinds of pot pies (tofu and chicken). I picked these three things at random, mostly because I thought they would freeze well.
The cooking wasn't too bad. The hard part was having three different meals going at once.
Once I got into a rhythm, it wasn't too bad. After the first entree was finished and packaged the rest seemed to go quicker.
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| Lasagna rolls separated with wax paper, ready for the freezer. |
All-in-all, it took me about three hours to do all the preparation, plus the cooking and packaging.
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| It felt good seeing all these meals ready for the freezer |
Unfortunately, the idea of a monthly meal swap group didn't really take off. My social circle isn't that big and not enough people were interested, but I am still cooking a few extra meals for the freezer each weekend. I love not having to worry about dinner during the week, and I'm having fun planning multiple meals around a theme ingredient. Last week it was chorizo, this week it will be fennel.
Whether cooking to swap or just for us, planning meals in advance saves money. Cooking over the weekend gives me time to try new recipes I wouldn't attempt on a work night. But there was one reason, in particular, why I've kept it up, something I discovered in the days after that first test run: Because I wasn't spending so much time on week nights preparing dinner, I had more time to linger over each meal with Big Brother. And that, my friends, is priceless.
If you need a reminder once in awhile to slow down and pace yourself read taking it slow in the slow lane.
Monday, July 14, 2014
Me versus the grocery bill
I recently heard an expression that stuck with me: "The best way to save money is to double it up and put it back in your wallet."
Good advice!
I'd like to keep more money in my wallet, but I already cook at home, pack a lunch and carry my coffee to work in a ceramic travel mug. Not to mention, I dumped cable for a Roku, and I'm driving a twenty year-old car.
What else can I possibly cut out?
Dog food, for one.
Before you panic, I don't intend to stop feeding the dog. I just want to make his food myself. And the cat's food, too. I used to make it, but I stopped when it became too much to manage with the kids and all their activities.
Now I know what you're thinking--cat and dog food sold in the grocery store is already pretty cheap (about .60 for a can of cat food). The thing is, most supermarket pet food is made with non-food grade meats and is loaded with chemicals and fillers.
Even if I can't match supermarket prices making my own pet food, I'll still save something and I won't be sacrificing quality to do it. Not to mention, better nutrition means better health. Since healthy animals have fewer vet bills, that means even more money stays in my pocket.
The other Big Kahuna of expenditures I want to try to tackle is the human's grocery bill. This one is a bit tougher. At first I tried offering my services to weed/water people's vegetable plots in exchange for some of the produce, but I didn't get any takers.
My new plan is to get serious about weekly menu planning. I've got a chest freezer in the basement, so I'm going to try to maximize that resource by buying in bulk as much as I can. I'd also really like to get a freezer meal swap group going with family and friends. Participating in a meal swap group might not save me any money, but it will save me time and time is the most valuable commodity of all.
I would love to hear your tips and suggestions, too. Do you use coupons? Are you a member of a meal swap group and, if so, how is it working out? Do you have some other secret budget-busting tactic of choice? Your comments and suggestions are most welcome.
Good advice!
I'd like to keep more money in my wallet, but I already cook at home, pack a lunch and carry my coffee to work in a ceramic travel mug. Not to mention, I dumped cable for a Roku, and I'm driving a twenty year-old car.
What else can I possibly cut out?
Dog food, for one.
Before you panic, I don't intend to stop feeding the dog. I just want to make his food myself. And the cat's food, too. I used to make it, but I stopped when it became too much to manage with the kids and all their activities.
Now I know what you're thinking--cat and dog food sold in the grocery store is already pretty cheap (about .60 for a can of cat food). The thing is, most supermarket pet food is made with non-food grade meats and is loaded with chemicals and fillers.
Even if I can't match supermarket prices making my own pet food, I'll still save something and I won't be sacrificing quality to do it. Not to mention, better nutrition means better health. Since healthy animals have fewer vet bills, that means even more money stays in my pocket.
The other Big Kahuna of expenditures I want to try to tackle is the human's grocery bill. This one is a bit tougher. At first I tried offering my services to weed/water people's vegetable plots in exchange for some of the produce, but I didn't get any takers.
My new plan is to get serious about weekly menu planning. I've got a chest freezer in the basement, so I'm going to try to maximize that resource by buying in bulk as much as I can. I'd also really like to get a freezer meal swap group going with family and friends. Participating in a meal swap group might not save me any money, but it will save me time and time is the most valuable commodity of all.
I would love to hear your tips and suggestions, too. Do you use coupons? Are you a member of a meal swap group and, if so, how is it working out? Do you have some other secret budget-busting tactic of choice? Your comments and suggestions are most welcome.
Wednesday, May 14, 2014
Detour to the Express Lane
June will mark the official end of my first year working my three-year plan. When I look at the goals I set for myself I'm pleased at how well I did during year one, despite more than a few complications along the way.
Year one was challenging for a variety of reasons, but the biggest one was the kids didn't move out with their mom as originally planned last August. Instead, their mom moved in with us. It was great for the kids and I'm glad it worked out this way, for their sake, but it really put a wrench in the works as far as my plan to move to a cheaper apartment went. Not only did I not reduce the amount of rent I was paying, not moving meant another winter grappling with a huge heating bill; I spent nearly $3,500 on heating oil and electricity in only four months.
Even though things didn't go as planned with the living situation, I thought I still had time to catch up. After all, my three year plan had two more years left to go. That is, until a chat with a local realtor revealed that housing prices were finally starting to rise. She showed me what was available around here in my price range, which turned out to be exactly nothing.
After digesting that information I decided it was time to move on to "Plan B," which is to buy a home in Florida where the cost of housing is more reasonable. That might sound a little drastic, but I have family there and know the area well. But there was a problem with "Plan B," too. Inventory in my price range was moving fast and prices were rising.
The problem wasn't just the slow speed of building up my credit rating or saving for a down payment. The bigger issue is I'm a single home buyer with a modest income. Even if I save for two more years and have stellar credit, the maximum amount I can spend on a house isn't going to change much.
The reason for this is something called a debt to income ratio, which a lender uses to calculate how much house an applicant can reasonably afford. Lenders look for the debt to income ratio to be below 28% of the applicant's gross monthly income. When I do the calculations for myself, I can afford a monthly mortgage payment of no more than $950. In other words, my maximum price range is about $125,000 for a single family home, or $90,000 for a condo (HOA fees count as part of the monthly maximum payment).
The writing was on the wall: if I stuck to my three year timeline, it was very likely that I'd find myself priced out of the market by the time I was ready to buy.
Talk about a majorly depressing revelation.
Things get even more depressing when you consider I'm currently paying $1,525 in rent every month, an expense which will only continue to rise over time. My best strategy to reduce my housing costs and break out of the hand-to-mouth lifestyle (or the Slow Lane, as I like to call it) was still buying a home of my own, but could I pull it off given this new information?
I considered giving up, I really did. The thought of trying to come up with the additional down payment funds I need before the end of the year was daunting, to say the least. I wasn't sure I could pull it off. But something kept niggling at me and wouldn't let me quit. It was the fact that the only reason I could think of not to try was fear. Fear of failure, fear of looking like an idiot, fear of asking for help, fear of rejection.
I've never let fear stop me before, and I don't plan on starting now. It is time to shift gears and get serious about purchasing a home as soon as possible, before my narrow window of opportunity closes for good.
So put your seat belts on because we're about to merge into the fast lane, ready or not!
Watch for my next blog post, where I'll lay out my plan for beefing up my down payment on an expedited timeline.
Year one was challenging for a variety of reasons, but the biggest one was the kids didn't move out with their mom as originally planned last August. Instead, their mom moved in with us. It was great for the kids and I'm glad it worked out this way, for their sake, but it really put a wrench in the works as far as my plan to move to a cheaper apartment went. Not only did I not reduce the amount of rent I was paying, not moving meant another winter grappling with a huge heating bill; I spent nearly $3,500 on heating oil and electricity in only four months.
Even though things didn't go as planned with the living situation, I thought I still had time to catch up. After all, my three year plan had two more years left to go. That is, until a chat with a local realtor revealed that housing prices were finally starting to rise. She showed me what was available around here in my price range, which turned out to be exactly nothing.
After digesting that information I decided it was time to move on to "Plan B," which is to buy a home in Florida where the cost of housing is more reasonable. That might sound a little drastic, but I have family there and know the area well. But there was a problem with "Plan B," too. Inventory in my price range was moving fast and prices were rising.
The problem wasn't just the slow speed of building up my credit rating or saving for a down payment. The bigger issue is I'm a single home buyer with a modest income. Even if I save for two more years and have stellar credit, the maximum amount I can spend on a house isn't going to change much.
The reason for this is something called a debt to income ratio, which a lender uses to calculate how much house an applicant can reasonably afford. Lenders look for the debt to income ratio to be below 28% of the applicant's gross monthly income. When I do the calculations for myself, I can afford a monthly mortgage payment of no more than $950. In other words, my maximum price range is about $125,000 for a single family home, or $90,000 for a condo (HOA fees count as part of the monthly maximum payment).
The writing was on the wall: if I stuck to my three year timeline, it was very likely that I'd find myself priced out of the market by the time I was ready to buy.
Talk about a majorly depressing revelation.
Things get even more depressing when you consider I'm currently paying $1,525 in rent every month, an expense which will only continue to rise over time. My best strategy to reduce my housing costs and break out of the hand-to-mouth lifestyle (or the Slow Lane, as I like to call it) was still buying a home of my own, but could I pull it off given this new information?
I considered giving up, I really did. The thought of trying to come up with the additional down payment funds I need before the end of the year was daunting, to say the least. I wasn't sure I could pull it off. But something kept niggling at me and wouldn't let me quit. It was the fact that the only reason I could think of not to try was fear. Fear of failure, fear of looking like an idiot, fear of asking for help, fear of rejection.
I've never let fear stop me before, and I don't plan on starting now. It is time to shift gears and get serious about purchasing a home as soon as possible, before my narrow window of opportunity closes for good.
So put your seat belts on because we're about to merge into the fast lane, ready or not!
Watch for my next blog post, where I'll lay out my plan for beefing up my down payment on an expedited timeline.
Sunday, January 19, 2014
Taking a bite out of my to-do list: Dental Work
One of my goals for this year was to finally take care of a laundry list of dental care items that I've put off for far too long now. I had the basic cleaning done, a filling, a post-and-crown put in, all soon to be followed by the extraction of two wisdom teeth.
I've known these things needed doing since 2011, but I couldn't afford to do it at that time. Then the foster kids came and I didn't have the time. Now, fashionably late by a year or two, I'm finally getting around to it. While I'm not at all enamored with the expense or the discomfort of doing so much dental work at once, I am kind of enjoying checking it off my "to do" list.
So how does all this fit into my three year plan? Why does it matter enough to be blogging about it?
It really all comes down to this: if you don't take care of the machinery it breaks down. What good is achieving any life goal if you're health and well-being had to be sacrificed to get you there?
One thing living life in the Slow Lane has taught me is putting things off might make today easier, but it makes tomorrow that much harder. Being proactive not just with my money and my writing, but with self-care, is going to be key to getting from where I am today to where I hope to be tomorrow.
I am fortunate that I have both medical and dental coverage at work, but if you don't and if you can't find a dentist in your area who works on a sliding scale, you might try looking for a Federally Qualified Health Center. You will find more than just dental care there, so check them out.
Until next time, here's reminding you not to forget to floss, from the Slow Lane.
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| My newly renovated choppers on display |
I've known these things needed doing since 2011, but I couldn't afford to do it at that time. Then the foster kids came and I didn't have the time. Now, fashionably late by a year or two, I'm finally getting around to it. While I'm not at all enamored with the expense or the discomfort of doing so much dental work at once, I am kind of enjoying checking it off my "to do" list.
So how does all this fit into my three year plan? Why does it matter enough to be blogging about it?
It really all comes down to this: if you don't take care of the machinery it breaks down. What good is achieving any life goal if you're health and well-being had to be sacrificed to get you there?
One thing living life in the Slow Lane has taught me is putting things off might make today easier, but it makes tomorrow that much harder. Being proactive not just with my money and my writing, but with self-care, is going to be key to getting from where I am today to where I hope to be tomorrow.
I am fortunate that I have both medical and dental coverage at work, but if you don't and if you can't find a dentist in your area who works on a sliding scale, you might try looking for a Federally Qualified Health Center. You will find more than just dental care there, so check them out.
Until next time, here's reminding you not to forget to floss, from the Slow Lane.
Wednesday, November 6, 2013
Inching Forward
I'm having a hard time reconciling myself to the fact that the holiday season has officially begun. Halloween is behind us, Thanksgiving is looming on the horizon and Christmas music reverberates through every store I enter, yet somehow my brain keeps expecting it to be summer.
Today I realized that I posted my three year plan six months ago already. SIX MONTHS! Where has that time gone? Have I made any progress at all on my plan? I felt very unprepared for this check-in, but when I went back to my plan to look at what I've done I was actually pleasantly surprised at what I found:
Writing
I have NOT improved my blogging skills. If anything, I think I've back-slid. I never got around to creating an editorial calendar, either, which probably accounts for how random and infrequent my blog posts are. Clearly, this is something I need to work on.
On the other hand, I do write daily, I've joined a writing group and I have taken several writing classes. I have even created a solid outline for my novel already. In fact, I am working on a fist draft of it right now for NaNoWriMo. So far it is going well. I have about 25,000 words written already (disclaimer: a good 4K of my word count consists of chapter sketches and notes that don't count towards my final word count).
Finance
If you remember my last update, this was the area where I took the biggest hit. I was really struggling, having wiped out my savings after a series of unfortunate and unpredicted incidents.
Today I am able to say that I have built my savings up again, but really only because I finally got my taxes back. Saving continues to be a challenge and, since I haven't found a part time job yet, I expect it to continue to be challenging until I do.
To the good, getting my taxes back means I can take the next big step on the road to rebuilding my credit. I have taken out a secured credit card. I will begin using it to make routine, planned purchases which I will pay off immediately, things like groceries, the utility bills and the like.
Self-Care
The self-care area has been challenging, too.
I started out doing great. If you recall, I bought a set of pedals for under my desk and I pedaled all day long. I lost about thirteen pounds this way. Unfortunately, I pedaled so much I broke the machine. I've gained all the weight back, sadly, but I have a new set of pedals on order and intend to pedal my way to victory once again.
I suppose you can say the moral to my six month story so far is don't give up. Things will happen. It will be hard. Keep going anyway.
Today I realized that I posted my three year plan six months ago already. SIX MONTHS! Where has that time gone? Have I made any progress at all on my plan? I felt very unprepared for this check-in, but when I went back to my plan to look at what I've done I was actually pleasantly surprised at what I found:
Writing
I have NOT improved my blogging skills. If anything, I think I've back-slid. I never got around to creating an editorial calendar, either, which probably accounts for how random and infrequent my blog posts are. Clearly, this is something I need to work on.
On the other hand, I do write daily, I've joined a writing group and I have taken several writing classes. I have even created a solid outline for my novel already. In fact, I am working on a fist draft of it right now for NaNoWriMo. So far it is going well. I have about 25,000 words written already (disclaimer: a good 4K of my word count consists of chapter sketches and notes that don't count towards my final word count).
Finance
If you remember my last update, this was the area where I took the biggest hit. I was really struggling, having wiped out my savings after a series of unfortunate and unpredicted incidents.
Today I am able to say that I have built my savings up again, but really only because I finally got my taxes back. Saving continues to be a challenge and, since I haven't found a part time job yet, I expect it to continue to be challenging until I do.
To the good, getting my taxes back means I can take the next big step on the road to rebuilding my credit. I have taken out a secured credit card. I will begin using it to make routine, planned purchases which I will pay off immediately, things like groceries, the utility bills and the like.
Self-Care
The self-care area has been challenging, too.
I started out doing great. If you recall, I bought a set of pedals for under my desk and I pedaled all day long. I lost about thirteen pounds this way. Unfortunately, I pedaled so much I broke the machine. I've gained all the weight back, sadly, but I have a new set of pedals on order and intend to pedal my way to victory once again.
I suppose you can say the moral to my six month story so far is don't give up. Things will happen. It will be hard. Keep going anyway.
Monday, August 19, 2013
Trimming Back the Budget
In my quest to spend less so I can save more my goal has been to find creative ways to reduce, or even eliminate, some of the bigger monthly bills.
The first monthly expense to go under the microscope was my cable bill, which was coming in at $160 a month. When I moved my cable company gave me a "deal" on a bundle, phone, internet and cable, all for $99 a month. Once I began paying attention to what we were actually consuming, I saw we rarely used the phone and were watching more on-demand than regular cable.
The evidence was clear, it was time to dump cable and go with streaming media instead.
Things got a little ugly with my cable company when I called them to make the change to internet service only. They wanted me to renew my bundle at the promotional price, but would not let me access any of the more affordable internet-only promotions they were running for new customers. After a lot of fruitlessfighting negotiating I picked up the phone and called the other of our two area service providers. Their deal wasn't great either, but I could get high speed internet only (no bundle) at a slightly better price of $55 per month. While I'm glad I had that option, it still pisses me off that my cable company wouldn't negotiate. It would have been easier for me if they had, plus they wouldn't have lost a customer.
Once I had the internet provider question nailed down I opened up a Netflix account at $7.99 a month and a Hulu Plus account, also $7.99 a month. The two Roku boxes (media streaming devices) cost me $50 each, plus there will be a monthly rental fee on the modem of $6.99 and a one-time installation fee of $15.
Here is the final break down:
There were some up-front costs, and I had to go through the hassle of changing internet providers, but the monthly savings gained adds up to $984.36 a year. By my three year house-buying deadline this one change alone will have added $2,953.08 to my down payment fund.
Now, the question that remains is will this arrangement truly meet our needs? Only time will tell. I'll report back in a month or so to let you know how dumping cable has worked out for us - or not!
The first monthly expense to go under the microscope was my cable bill, which was coming in at $160 a month. When I moved my cable company gave me a "deal" on a bundle, phone, internet and cable, all for $99 a month. Once I began paying attention to what we were actually consuming, I saw we rarely used the phone and were watching more on-demand than regular cable.
The evidence was clear, it was time to dump cable and go with streaming media instead.
Things got a little ugly with my cable company when I called them to make the change to internet service only. They wanted me to renew my bundle at the promotional price, but would not let me access any of the more affordable internet-only promotions they were running for new customers. After a lot of fruitless
Once I had the internet provider question nailed down I opened up a Netflix account at $7.99 a month and a Hulu Plus account, also $7.99 a month. The two Roku boxes (media streaming devices) cost me $50 each, plus there will be a monthly rental fee on the modem of $6.99 and a one-time installation fee of $15.
Here is the final break down:
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| Click to enlarge image |
Now, the question that remains is will this arrangement truly meet our needs? Only time will tell. I'll report back in a month or so to let you know how dumping cable has worked out for us - or not!
Saturday, June 22, 2013
My Finances are Minty-Fresh!
Being Stuck in the Slow Lane has more to do with inertia than money
or a lack thereof, but the bottom line is still important. Whether you
bring home a bundle or are living on a shoestring it makes sense that
you would want to maximize every penny.
Once I gave myself a deadline to make my home ownership dreams come true, I knew I needed to get a handle on where my money is going and how much of it might be diverted to savings. A friend told me about a tool that could help me do just that. It is called MINT and can be found at www.mint.com.
If you're like me, looking at your bank statement each month tells you that you spent too darned much, but not much else. What MINT does is link your bank and other accounts all in one spot so you can view the data in a variety of ways. For example, I can pull up a pie chart that shows me visually where my money went. I'm very visually-oriented, so this really works well for me. I can rotate the chart to view details of each category, drilling right down to individual transactions.
If pie-charts aren't your thing, you can elect to view your data in list form or contrasted against a budget.
This is powerful stuff!
As you can see by the graphic above that I print-screened from my own account I am spending more than half my income on rent and food, followed by a big chunk of change going to kid stuff.
My homework now is to drill-down through each category and figure out which expenses are valid and where are the areas where I can trim back my spending so those funds can go to savings instead.
In future posts I'll keep you updated on my progress building my savings, and on my experience using MINT.com and other tools I might find along the way.
Disclaimer: I make no claims or representations as to the security of Mint.com's product. I am not endorsing this product, merely sharing my own experiences with financial planning. What works for me might not be a good fit for you, so you should still do your due-diligence and read all the fine print to make sure you know what you're getting into before you try it out.
Once I gave myself a deadline to make my home ownership dreams come true, I knew I needed to get a handle on where my money is going and how much of it might be diverted to savings. A friend told me about a tool that could help me do just that. It is called MINT and can be found at www.mint.com.
If you're like me, looking at your bank statement each month tells you that you spent too darned much, but not much else. What MINT does is link your bank and other accounts all in one spot so you can view the data in a variety of ways. For example, I can pull up a pie chart that shows me visually where my money went. I'm very visually-oriented, so this really works well for me. I can rotate the chart to view details of each category, drilling right down to individual transactions.
If pie-charts aren't your thing, you can elect to view your data in list form or contrasted against a budget.
This is powerful stuff!
As you can see by the graphic above that I print-screened from my own account I am spending more than half my income on rent and food, followed by a big chunk of change going to kid stuff.
My homework now is to drill-down through each category and figure out which expenses are valid and where are the areas where I can trim back my spending so those funds can go to savings instead.
In future posts I'll keep you updated on my progress building my savings, and on my experience using MINT.com and other tools I might find along the way.
Disclaimer: I make no claims or representations as to the security of Mint.com's product. I am not endorsing this product, merely sharing my own experiences with financial planning. What works for me might not be a good fit for you, so you should still do your due-diligence and read all the fine print to make sure you know what you're getting into before you try it out.
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