A Frugal Monthly Budget-From 2013

[Kaleva]

I found this posted here at DU in 2013 when searching for something else:

"Income

$1119 SSDI
+$16 SNAP
---------
$1135 Total

Expenses

$75 Phone & Internet
$33 Natural gas for heating, hot water and cooking
$39 Electricity
$88 Property taxes and homeowners insurance
$25 Garbage pickup
$48 Water & sewer
$150 Payment on hospital bill
$8 Netflix
$120 Food, personal hygiene
$16 Dog food
$90 Cigarettes
$34 Dog's medications
$5 My medication
$100 Miscellaneous, clothing
-----
$831 total expenses

$1135
-$831
------
$304 available for discretionary spending "

The above was when my wife and I divorced and I had moved back to the small house in town and she stayed at the big house. Since then, we've gotten back together and live at the big house. As for other changes, I quit smoking in spring of 2013, my dog was put down earlier this year, the hospital bill was paid long ago and some costs have gone up.

I woke up really early this morning and just for giggles, thought I'd kill some time updating the budget with the assumption that I was still living at the small house.

$1192 SSDI
+$133 VA pension
---------
$1245 Total

Expenses

$82 Land line phone & internet
$30 Natural gas for heating, cooking and hot water at small house (monthly average for year)
$40 Electricity (monthly average for year)
$90 Property taxes and homeowners insurance
$33 Garbage pickup
$50 water & sewer small house (monthly average for year)
$22 Hulu and Great Courses
$200 Food, personal hygiene
$25 Cell Phone
$5 My medication
$100 Miscellaneous, clothing
-----
$677 total expenses

$1245
-$677
------
$568 available for discretionary spending


If something were to happen to either my wife or me, the sensible thing to do would be to sell the shop, sign over the big house to whichever of the adult kids with a growing family that wants it and then move to the small, very economical house in town.

[3Hotdogs]

1. How do you get the food expenses so low?

[Kaleva]

3. Potatoes, rice, beans, cabbage are relatively cheap

Meat and dairy products were a very rare luxury. The nearby Holiday gas station often sold eggs for $.99 a dozen

[safeinOhio]

2. Moved out of town/village to

a township. Taxes went from $2K/year to 600/year. On a main highway so I still have natural gas and high speed cable-internet. My own well and septic.

[Kaleva]

4. That's a big savings on taxes!