2016 $38K Savings Challenge...December Update and FINAL TALLY

Every year I keep a close eye on our monthly expenses and our monthly income.

Our income is mainly the salary my Hubs draws from his job.  We have money taken off each paycheck from the top to put into savings, before we even get our hands on it.  This money that's taken goes into various pots....life insurance, health insurance premiums, long term care insurance premiums, investments and retirement savings.  It's automatic so we are never tempted to NOT put it into savings or these other categories.

Once the automatic savings amounts, plus taxes and medical/dental/vision premiums are taken out, it leaves what we get to "live on".  From this amount we budget for bills, both monthly and irregular bills(semi-annual, annual etc.) and our variable bills(like food, eating out, clothing  etc.)  Anything left over once our monthly expenses are paid, I put aside into an interest bearing Savings Challenge account.

For 2016 I am continuing my Yearly Savings Challenge.  I am raising the Goal amount to $38,000 this year, $8K more than my goal for last year.

On to the December report.....

I have posted my December End of Month $38K $AVING$ CHALLENGE Totals.
Check out the Savings Challenge page tab at the top of the blog for the specific numbers HERE.

I have 2 goals each month.....
The 1st is to actually finish each month in the black and not the red.
The 2nd is to hit the targeted savings amount of $3,166.66.

I have to report that we finished up December with a surprisingly to me large amount, given the challenges this month.
The extra amount we ended the month of December with?.......$3650.62

Income

We had $3265.80 left over from our income after our monthly expenses were deducted.

Other monies received in December totaled $384.82.  This was interest made on non-retirement accounts, a tiny car insurance refund, 2 stock dividend checks, blogging revenue and $9.15 in spare cash I didn't spend on groceries in December.

This brought us to our gain of $3650.62
Since we have no debt, some of this goes into savings, not all. As it's January 1st we need to fund the $3K high deductible of our health insurance plan for 2017.

Outgo

As for the expenses this December, here are the good and the bad side of things....

HERE are the GOOD THINGS

*  Phone charges and internet were approximately the same as last month(Within $1 or so).
*  The water bill was $4.37 lower than last month's bill.
*  The gas card bill was $150.28 less than November's bill. Not that less gas was purchased really, it was just put on the Master Card instead. Plus after Hubs' accident he wasn't driving to work or anywhere else for that matter. ;-)
*  Cash withdrawals were $200 less than last month.  This was due to Hubs being incapacitated and not leaving home so he really didn't have much opportunity to spend money.

HERE are the BAD THINGS

*  The credit card bill was up $347.65 from November's amount. Not a surprise really, being as some Christmas spending went on it this cycle.
*  The electric bill was $128.09 more than in November.  Two reasons for this-December is colder so the thermostat got nudged higher plus with Hubs living on the daybed in the living room I have to keep the downstairs warmer 24/7.  I usually don't heat downstairs very much at night when everyone sleeps upstairs.
*  We had a $10.04 balance on Daughter's Louisiana medical bills that showed up this month that I paid.  I knew it would come eventually as I knew they had under billed something.
*  There was a Kohl's charge bill for Christmas purchases I paid in December.  Not too bad at $281.12(I also used some Kohl's gift cards I had to pay part of the total and $281.12 is what was left on the balance.) Plus I'll be getting $60 of this back in rebates on some small appliances which were part of what I bought.
*  There were $154.00 in cash gifts made at Christmas so another small drain on the income for December.

The Food Budget costs for December are in another post, which is located HERE.

Since we have a High Deductible Health Plan I like to reserve some December savings for the following year to help cover the $3,000 deductible that kicks in January 1st.
The $3,651.47 saved in December will be split thus-$1,960.28 goes into the 2016 Savings Challenge to get me to my goal of $38,000 saved and the remaining $1,690.34 of what was saved last month stays in the checking account to help with the high deductible costs.

With 12 month accounted for, our Savings Challenge Grand Total for 2016 is $38,000.00.

FINAL THOUGHTS on December---

Compared to December 2015 we saved $327.70 MORE and put $184.72 MORE into savings this December. 8-)
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We have $38,000 saved from our regular take-home pay for the challenge.  This is an amount in addition to our retirement accounts, for which we have monies deducted from Hubs' pay before we receive his check.

THOUGHTS going forward into January of 2017----

I will continue to do this Yearly Savings Challenge in 2017.  Not sure yet what my targeted amount to save will be as we haven't finalized our budget.  Our food expenses will be more than they were in 2016.  Energy costs are going up here in 2017(both state gasoline taxes on each gallon purchased(actual cost of gas is a variable each month too, as well as the cost of electricity from our utility company).  Add in that property tax rates are also rising slightly over last year's rates.  We also have to bump up College Boy's college fund as the percentage rate at which the state colleges costs have risen have out paced the little bit our monies there have grown over the last 5 years.  He also had a 1 semester internship and we don't know yet where in the world that will be happening so room/board/transportation costs during that semester are a big black unknown at this point.  I am figuring it won't be cheap on our wallet.  8-(

So how was your December financially?
  

Did you spend less than the income you had in December?
Did you stay within your budget or not?
What did you do with any money leftover at the end of the month?
Did you pay off any debts or put extra toward your mortgage principle or into savings, in an emergency fund or a retirement account?
Or did you blow it on a want?

If you posted your financial progress on your own blog, leave a link in the comments so we can go check out your progress too and celebrate or commiserate with you!

I hope this year was the one were you cleaned up your finances and paid off your debts.
That you planned to set something aside if you didn't already or increased what you banked now for your future self.
Or paid extra on the principle of your mortgage if your house isn't already paid off.

Live below your means and keep some change for a rainy day....because no matter how sunny it is in your life now, dark clouds come along and you'll be glad you have that umbrella to keep you dry.

Sluggy

2016 $38K Savings Challenge.....November Update

Every year I keep a close eye on our monthly expenses and our monthly income.

Our income is mainly the salary my Hubs draws from his job.  We have money taken off each paycheck from the top to put into savings, before we even get our hands on it.  This money that's taken goes into various pots....life insurance, health insurance premiums, long term care insurance premiums, investments and retirement savings.  It's automatic so we are never tempted to NOT put it into savings or these other categories.

Once the automatic savings amounts, plus taxes and medical/dental/vision premiums are taken out, it leaves what we get to "live on".  From this amount we budget for bills, both monthly and irregular bills(semi-annual, annual etc.) and our variable bills(like food, eating out, clothing  etc.)  Anything left over once our monthly expenses are paid, I put aside into an interest bearing Savings Challenge account.

For 2016 I am continuing my Yearly Savings Challenge.  I am raising the Goal amount to $38,000 this year, $8K more than my goal for last year.

On to the November report.....

I have posted my November End of Month $38K $AVING$ CHALLENGE Totals.
Check out the Savings Challenge page tab at the top of the blog for the specific numbers HERE.

I have 2 goals each month.....
The 1st is to actually finish each month in the black and not the red.
The 2nd is to hit the targeted savings amount of $3,166.66.

I have to report that we finished up November with a yummy amount.
The extra amount we ended the month of November with?.......$2,792.51

Income

We had $2,645.68 left over from our income after our monthly expenses were deducted.

Other monies received in November totaled $146.83.  This was solely interest made on non-retirement accounts.

This brought us to our gain of $2792.51
Since we have no debt, this goes into savings.

Outgo

As for the expenses this November, here are the good and the bad side of things....

HERE are the GOOD THINGS

*  Phone charges and internet were approximately the same as last month(Within $1 or so).
*  The electric bill was up $41.15 from October's total.  This is a "good" thing since the weather was warmer this year than in past years and very little heat was used/needed.

HERE are the BAD THINGS

*  The credit card bill was up $972.60 from October's amount. Half of that was for groceries(and paying it in full each cycle)and the other half was mostly car repairs, and medical bills.
*  The water bill was $9.86 more than last month.
*  The gas bill was $57.29 higher than last month(more purchases for gas put on the c/c rather than the gas card.)
*  Semi-annual car insurance was due this month so there is $938.84 out the door.
*  Hubs had a dental bill for work done last month so there is $145.00 of irregular bills due.
*  Cash withdrawals were $50 higher(I took $200 rather than $150 this month, though I didn't spend it all.).

The Food Budget costs for November are in another post, which is located HERE.

With 11 month accounted for, our Savings Challenge Grand Total for 2016 is $36,039.72.

FINAL THOUGHTS on November---

Compared to November 2015 we put $1,569.52 LESS into savings this November. 8-(
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We have $36039.72 saved so far in 2016, and we have only $1960.28 left to save over the next month at this point to reach our goal of $38K saved.    We have higher everything bills now with 2 extra adults in the house plus can I mention that Christmas is coming!?!?

THOUGHTS going forward into December----

It's a two paycheck month here.  The credit card bill will be high again as there is over $1K in medical charges on it(co-pays, rxs, DMEs)as well as all the grocery charges. Other than a Kohl's charge bill there are no other irregular bills due in December.  But there is having to keep half of whatever we have leftover this month in hand to put toward offsetting the medical high deductible that kicks in Jan. 1st.  So all income leftover at month's end can't go into the Savings Challenge kitty, only roughly half of it.  It would be nice to have expenses in December come in at $3K or less as November's turned out to be just shy of $4K.  My personal "sweet spot" is $2K but with the added expenses that one isn't happening again anytime soon.  But we soldier on and do what we can to reduce costs.

So how was your November financially?
  

Did you spend less than the income you had in November?
Did you stay within your budget or not?
What did you do with any money leftover at the end of the month?
Did you pay off any debts or put extra toward your mortgage principle or into savings, in an emergency fund or a retirement account?
Or did you blow it on a want?

If you posted your financial progress on your own blog, leave a link in the comments so we can go check out your progress too and celebrate or commiserate with you!

As we go forward into the last half of 2016 why not make this year the one were you clean up your finances and pay off your debts.
Plan to set something aside if you don't already now or increase what you bank now for your future self.
Or pay extra on the principle of your mortgage if your house isn't already paid off.

Live below your means and keep some change for a rainy day....because no matter how sunny it is in your life now, dark clouds come along and you'll be glad you have that umbrella to keep you dry.

Sluggy

2016 $38K Savings Challenge......October Update

Every year I keep a close eye on our monthly expenses and our monthly income.

Our income is mainly the salary my Hubs draws from his job.  We have money taken off each paycheck from the top to put into savings, before we even get our hands on it.  This money that's taken goes into various pots....life insurance, health insurance premiums, long term care insurance premiums, investments and retirement savings.  It's automatic so we are never tempted to NOT put it into savings or these other categories.

Once the automatic savings amounts, plus taxes and medical/dental/vision premiums are taken out, it leaves what we get to "live on".  From this amount we budget for bills, both monthly and irregular bills(semi-annual, annual etc.) and our variable bills(like food, eating out, clothing  etc.)  Anything left over once our monthly expenses are paid, I put aside into an interest bearing Savings Challenge account.

For 2016 I am continuing my Yearly Savings Challenge.  I am raising the Goal amount to $38,000 this year, $8K more than my goal for last year.

On to the October report.....

I have posted my October End of Month $38K $AVING$ CHALLENGE Totals.
Check out the Savings Challenge page tab at the top of the blog for the specific numbers HERE.

I have 2 goals each month.....
The 1st is to actually finish each month in the black and not the red.
The 2nd is to hit the targeted savings amount of $3,166.66.

I have to report that we finished up October with a yummy amount.
The extra amount we ended the month of October with?.......$4,449.89

Income

We had $4298.78 left over from our income after our monthly expenses were deducted.

Other monies received in October totaled $151.11.  This was solely interest made on non-retirement accounts.

This brought us to our gain of $4449.89
Since we have no debt, this goes into savings.

Outgo

As for the expenses this October, here are the good and the bad side of things....

HERE are the GOOD THINGS

*  Phone charges and internet were approximately the same as last month(Within $1 or so).
*  The credit card bill was down $50.77 from September's amount.
*  The water bill was $17.18 less than last month.
*  The electric bill was down $42.90 from September's total.
*  The gas bill was $57.29 lower than last month(more purchases for gas put on the c/c rather than the gas card.)
*  Cash withdrawals were $700 lower(due to using the c/c for most if not all grocery spending + Hubs took less cash in October).

HERE are the BAD THINGS

*  The direct medical spending was up again $190.09 from September's costs plus we still have an $800+ bill not received yet for Daughter's August procedure. gulp
*  We had a $275 non-recurring bill for attending a local Church's auction.  Not really a bad thing as we go each year and bid on local services/goods we would used anyway and pay less than retail for them.  We get a deal, the church gets some funds raised....win/win!  And we did spend $45 less at the auction this year compared to last year.

The Food Budget costs for October are in another post, which is located HERE.

With 10 month accounted for, our Savings Challenge Grand Total for 2016 is $33,247.21.

FINAL THOUGHTS on October---
I was able to tuck away about $1K more than I had projected in October.  Mostly that was due to the car insurance payment moving from October to November, so really, we still have that expense, it just gets dumped into the next month so no gain or loss really.
Medical co-pays were the only category that we spent more in, compared to September(and it was under a $200 increase)so that's good.

Compared to Octoberber 2015 we put $1,972.44 LESS into savings this October.  This can mostly be explained away because of car insurance premiums, $500 more spending on the c/c and medical co-pays of over $800 last October compared to October 2016.
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We have $33,247.21 saved so far in 2016, and we have only $4,752.71 left to save over the next 2 months at this point to reach our goal of $38K saved.  That averages out to $2,376.40 a month for the rest of the year.  This means for the rest of the year I need to average $790.26 per month LESS than our monthly savings target goal of $3,166.66.  But even with that, this will still be a tight race to get to $38K this year.  We have higher everything bills now with 2 extra adults in the house + more medical co-pays plus can I mention that Christmas is coming!?!?

Only 2 months left in the year to get to my savings goal.  We are quickly running out of time in 2016.


THOUGHTS going forward into November----

Semi-annual car insurance comes due in November.  The electric bill will rise as we will see the heat being turned up in November.  More medical co-pays will be due(including Daughter's $800+ one from August)in November so that will increase outlays this month.  But want based purchases should stay steady/low and we have no trips planned this month which always derails our spending.  We have some "already accounted for in the finances" gift cards/certs for eating out so not much spending on that category for November.  Gas charges will be up as we need to retrieve and return College Boy for the Thanksgiving holiday this month but that expense shouldn't top $50 for gas.

Besides the electric bill and medical payments it should be a fairly regular/low expenditure month for us....if I can keep the food spending down.

However....since I need to keep part of what I save in December out of my Savings Challenge to cover when the High Deductible Medical Plan deductibles kick back in on January 1st(and the cost of the first $3K in medical bills fall on us totally before we see any sort of benefit),
I need to aggressively save more in November than the $2,376.40 I "need" to save in each of the next two months, because in December I probably won't be able to save the other $2,376.40 I need to meet the 2016 Goal.  (Plus there will be increased holiday spending on at least gifts in December.)
So I am getting into Savings Ninja Mode for November.  Or I at least hope to. ;-)

So how was your October financially?
  

Did you spend less than the income you had in October?
Did you stay within your budget or not?
What did you do with any money leftover at the end of the month?
Did you pay off any debts or put extra toward your mortgage principle or into savings, in an emergency fund or a retirement account?
Or did you blow it on a want?

If you posted your financial progress on your own blog, leave a link in the comments so we can go check out your progress too and celebrate or commiserate with you!

As we go forward into the last half of 2016 why not make this year the one were you clean up your finances and pay off your debts.
Plan to set something aside if you don't already now or increase what you bank now for your future self.
Or pay extra on the principle of your mortgage if your house isn't already paid off.

Live below your means and keep some change for a rainy day....because no matter how sunny it is in your life now, dark clouds come along and you'll be glad you have that umbrella to keep you dry.

Sluggy

I am Not Hopeful

Not hopeful on many things lately, including where our country is heading if either Trump or Clinton are elected(combined with the current collection of chuckle heads in the Congress), but that's NOT what this post is about.

It's about my Savings Challenge Goal for 2016.

I doubt that I will actually hit my targeted amount of $38K.

I am at $28,797.32 saved with three more months to go.  That means I need to stash away $9,202.68 before we ring in 2017 to hit my goal.
That comes out to $3,067.56 each month of the next three months.

We've got 6 paychecks to receive here until the year ends.

Besides the regular bills, we have 2 irregular bills coming due out of those paychecks as well-- a quarterly garbage bill for $84 due this month and a semi-annual $950.33 car insurance bill due in November.  Plus there is the financial mayhem of the Holidays.....well not really mayhem for us as I save and buy for Christmas during the year and don't put it on credit so there is no January financial hangover.

But still, holiday spending puts a dent into what we have left to save.  ;-)

I just don't see, with our increased spending in electricity, water, food and in medical co-pays since June, how we are going to save $9K+ out of those 6 paychecks.

Plus there is the issue of keeping part of December's savings liquid in our account to use in January when the high deductibles of our medical plan kick in for the new year before we see any reductions in what we are required to pay for prescriptions, DMEs, tests and office visits.
Oh goody......

It's just doubtful if I am going to make my goal.

Yes, it's still AWESOME that I have saved $28K so far and anything more I can stash away into savings will be great.
But I so had wanted to make that $38K goal, especially since this will be the first year since I started doing these Savings Challenges that I won't reach the year's mark. sigh.

But it's all good.  A few thousand saved more or less won't change the big financial picture and I am grateful for what I've been able to put away.
After all, every little bit helps! 8-)

Sluggy

2016 $38K Savings Challenge.....September Update

Every year I keep a close eye on our monthly expenses and our monthly income.

Our income is mainly the salary my Hubs draws from his job.  We have money taken off each paycheck from the top to put into savings, before we even get our hands on it.  This money that's taken goes into various pots....life insurance, health insurance premiums, long term care insurance premiums, investments and retirement savings.  It's automatic so we are never tempted to NOT put it into savings or these other categories.

Once the automatic savings amounts, plus taxes and medical/dental/vision premiums are taken out, it leaves what we get to "live on".  From this amount we budget for bills, both monthly and irregular bills(semi-annual, annual etc.) and our variable bills(like food, eating out, clothing  etc.)  Anything left over once our monthly expenses are paid, I put aside into an interest bearing Savings Challenge account.

For 2016 I am continuing my Yearly Savings Challenge.  I am raising the Goal amount to $38,000 this year, $8K more than my goal for last year.

On to the September report.....

I have posted my September End of Month $38K $AVING$ CHALLENGE Totals.
Check out the Savings Challenge page tab at the top of the blog for the specific numbers HERE.

I have 2 goals each month.....
The 1st is to actually finish each month in the black and not the red.
The 2nd is to hit the targeted savings amount of $3,166.66.

I have to report that we finished up September with a yummy amount.
The extra amount we ended the month of September with?.......$5,543.68

Income

We had $4998.87 left over from our income after our monthly expenses were deducted.

Other monies received in September totaled $544.81.  This included interest made on non-retirement accounts, stock dividends, blogging revenue, a medical refund for over payment and a car insurance refund for over payment.

This brought us to our gain of $5543.68
Since we have no debt, this goes into savings.

Outgo

As for the expenses this September, here are the good and the bad side of things....

HERE are the GOOD THINGS

*  Phone charges, electric bill, and internet were approximately the same as last month(Within $1 or so).
*  The credit card bill was WAY DOWN $2023.76 from August's amount.
*  We received a car insurance refund of $192.48 on the car that was donated to charity.
*  We received 2 stock dividend checks in September.

HERE are the BAD THINGS

*  The gas card bill was up $115.66.  Hubs used it more than the Mastercard to purchase gas in September.
*  The water bill was $9.69 higher than in August.
*  The direct medical spending was up again $24.63 from August's spending.
*  We received a car insurance bill of $70.60(I don't understand why)but this now moves our semiannual car insurance payments to November and May from October and April.
*  Property taxes were due and paid.  'Nuf said.....  If they had to be due better to be due in a month with a third paycheck, right?  ;-)

The Food Budget costs for September are in another post, which is located HERE.

With 9 month accounted for, our Savings Challenge Grand Total for 2016 is $28,797.32.

Final thoughts on September---
Though we had some high expenses in September(Hello property taxes, I am speaking to you!)the third paycheck more than covered that and gave us a bit extra to tuck away into savings.

Compared to September 2015 we put $3625.32 MORE into savings this September, mostly due to this year's September being a 3 paycheck month.
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We have $28,797.32 saved so far in 2016, and we have only $9,202.68left to save over the next 3 months at this point to reach our goal of $38K saved.  That averages out to $3,067.56 a month for the rest of the year.  This means for the rest of the year I need to average $99.10  per month LESS than our monthly savings target goal of $3,166.66.  But even with that, this will still be a tight race to get to $38K this year.  We have higher everything bills now with 2 extra adults in the house + more medical co-pays.

Only 3 months left in the year to get to my savings goal.  We are quickly running out of time in 2016.


THOUGHTS going forward into October----
I don't see any unusual or irregular bills coming up in October since the semi-annual car insurance bill moved from this month to November.  The electric bill will rise as we will see the heat being turned on in October.  Credit card purchases should stay steady and we have no trips planned this month which always derails our spending.

So how was your September financially?
  

Did you spend less than the income you had in September?
Did you stay within your budget or not?
What did you do with any money leftover at the end of the month?
Did you pay off any debts or put extra toward your mortgage principle or into savings, in an emergency fund or a retirement account?
Or did you blow it on a want?

If you posted your financial progress on your own blog, leave a link in the comments so we can go check out your progress too and celebrate or commiserate with you!

As we go forward into the last half of 2016 why not make this year the one were you clean up your finances and pay off your debts.
Plan to set something aside if you don't already now or increase what you bank now for your future self.
Or pay extra on the principle of your mortgage if your house isn't already paid off.

Live below your means and keep some change for a rainy day....because no matter how sunny it is in your life now, dark clouds come along and you'll be glad you have that umbrella to keep you dry.

Sluggy

2016 $38K Savings Challenge......August Update

Every year I keep a close eye on our monthly expenses and our monthly income.

Our income is mainly the salary my Hubs draws from his job.  We have money taken off each paycheck from the top to put into savings, before we even get our hands on it.  This money that's taken goes into various pots....life insurance, health insurance premiums, long term care insurance premiums, investments and retirement savings.  It's automatic so we are never tempted to NOT put it into savings or these other categories.

Once the automatic savings amounts, plus taxes and medical/dental/vision premiums are taken out, it leaves what we get to "live on".  From this amount we budget for bills, both monthly and irregular bills(semi-annual, annual etc.) and our variable bills(like food, eating out, clothing  etc.)  Anything left over once our monthly expenses are paid, I put aside into an interest bearing Savings Challenge account.

For 2016 I am continuing my Yearly Savings Challenge.  I am raising the Goal amount to $38,000 this year, $8K more than my goal for last year.

On to the August report.....

I have posted my August End of Month $38K $AVING$ CHALLENGE Totals.
Check out the Savings Challenge page tab at the top of the blog for the specific numbers HERE.

I have 2 goals each month.....
The 1st is to actually finish each month in the black and not the red.
The 2nd is to hit the targeted savings amount of $3,166.66.

I have to report that we finished up August with a staggeringly low amount.
The extra amount we ended the month of August with?.......$964.60

Income

We had $669.66 left over from our income after our monthly expenses were deducted.

Other monies received in August totaled $294.94.  This included interest made on non-retirement accounts, a small per diem payment and a medical refund for over payment.

This brought us to our gain of $964.60
Since we have no debt, this goes into savings.

Outgo

As for the expenses this August, here are the good and the bad side of things....

HERE are the GOOD THINGS

*  Phone charges, electric bill, internet and cash withdrawals were approximately the same as last month(Within $1 or so).
*  The gas card spending was down $65.47 from July as Hubs put less gas charges on the gas card.
*  The water bill was $9.69 lower than in July.  Obviously someone was not showering as much. ;-)
*  The direct medical spending was down $247.09 from July's total.  Lots of little co-pays and no big bills from Daughter's LA medical stuff....that is all paid off as of now.

HERE are the BAD THINGS

*  The credit card bill was UP $1550.02 from the previous month's bill. Much of that was vacation spending.
*  The Electric bill was up 5.25.  Not bad considering more a/c was used in August than July.
*  House Insurance was due in August.  This is an annual bill.
* While I though I could get away with ditching car insurance on the third car, per state law we have to keep it insured until the designated dono charityr hauls it off, so I had to pay 3 months worth at $218.76.
We will get a pro rated refund once the car is physically gone.

The Food Budget costs for August are in another post, which is located HERE.

With 8 month accounted for, our Savings Challenge Grand Total for 2016 is $23,253.64.

Final thoughts on August---

If not for the vacation spending on the c/c, a charity cash donation, an annual house insurance payment + a partial car insurance payment we would have hit the monthly goal of putting $3166.33 into the Savings Challenge kitty.
But life happens, doesn't it?

Compared to August 2015 we put $1897.55 LESS into savings this August.
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We have $23,253.64 saved so far in 2016, and we have only $14,746.36 left to save over the next 4 months at this point to reach our goal of $38K saved.  That averages out to $3686.59 a month for the rest of the year.  This means for the rest of the year I need to average $519.93 MORE per month than our monthly savings target goal of $3,166.66.
bleh.

Only 4 months left in the year to get to my savings goal.  We are quickly running out of time in 2016.


THOUGHTS going forward into September----
September Bill Armageddon month-Property Taxes are due. bleh.
Fortunately our 3rd paycheck month is September this year so that will offset taxes.
Add in that we have finally hit that mark in the year where the government taxes go down so we get a little more in each payment.
We should be on track to have a large amount to dump into the Savings Challenge at the end of September....unless life happens again.  ;-)

So how was your August financially?
  

Did you spend less than the income you had in August?
Did you stay within your budget or not?
What did you do with any money leftover at the end of the month?
Did you pay off any debts or put extra toward your mortgage principle or into savings, in an emergency fund or a retirement account?
Or did you blow it on a want?

If you posted your financial progress on your own blog, leave a link in the comments so we can go check out your progress too and celebrate or commiserate with you!

As we go forward into the last half of 2016 why not make this year the one were you clean up your finances and pay off your debts.
Plan to set something aside if you don't already now or increase what you bank now for your future self.
Or pay extra on the principle of your mortgage if your house isn't already paid off.

Live below your means and keep some change for a rainy day....because no matter how sunny it is in your life now, dark clouds come along and you'll be glad you have that umbrella to keep you dry.

Sluggy

2016 $38K Savings Challenge.....July Update

Every year I keep a close eye on our monthly expenses and our monthly income.

Our income is mainly the salary my Hubs draws from his job.  We have money taken off each paycheck from the top to put into savings, before we even get our hands on it.  This money that's taken goes into various pots....life insurance, health insurance premiums, long term care insurance premiums, investments and retirement savings.  It's automatic so we are never tempted to NOT put it into savings or these other categories.

Once the automatic savings amounts, plus taxes and medical/dental/vision premiums are taken out, it leaves what we get to "live on".  From this amount we budget for bills, both monthly and irregular bills(semi-annual, annual etc.) and our variable bills(like food, eating out, clothing  etc.)  Anything left over once our monthly expenses are paid, I put aside into an interest bearing Savings Challenge account.

For 2016 I am continuing my Yearly Savings Challenge.  I am raising the Goal amount to $40,000 this year, $10K more than my goal for last year.

I have reconsidered and changed my Goal from $40K to $38K for 2016.  With some things coming down the pike this year I thought it prudent to back up my Goal a couple of thousand.  8-)

On to the July report.....

I have posted my July End of Month $38K $AVING$ CHALLENGE Totals.
Check out the Savings Challenge page tab at the top of the blog for the specific numbers HERE.

I have 2 goals each month.....
The 1st is to actually finish each month in the black and not the red.
The 2nd is to hit the targeted savings amount of $3,166.66.

I have to report that we finished up July with a less than stellar amount.
The extra amount we ended the month of July with?.......$2889.54

Income

We had $2620.34 left over from our income after our monthly expenses were deducted.

Other monies received in July totaled $269.20.  This included interest made on non-retirement accounts and a blogging check..

This brought us to our gain of $2889.54
Since we have no debt, this goes into savings.

Outgo

As for the expenses this July, here are the good and the bad side of things....

HERE are the GOOD THINGS

*  Phone charges, electric bill and internet were approximately the same as last month(With $1 or so).
*  The gas card spending was down $53.63 as there was no traveling in the previous month, June(which this invoice covered).
*  The credit card bill was down $1300+ from the previous month's bill.

HERE are the BAD THINGS

*  The cash withdrawals were up $200.  This mainly due to spending more on groceries in July.
*  Water use was up $23.05 from last month.
*  The Electric bill was up $24.08.  Not bad considering more a/c was used in July than June.
*  The direct medical spending was up $233.84 mostly due to paying from of Daughter's copays from visists she had to docs in Louisiana.
*  We had a garbage bill I pay quarterly due in July so another $84 out the window.

The Food Budget costs for July are in another post, which is located HERE..

With 7 month accounted for, our Savings Challenge Grand Total for 2016 is $22,289.04

Final thoughts on July---



Compared to July 2015 we put $1200.02 LESS into savings this July.  This looks really bad on the surface until you realize that July 2015 was a third paycheck month.  Then it's not so hopeless.... ;-)
.
We have $22,289.04 saved so far in 2016, and we have only $15,710.96 left to save over the next 5 months at this point to reach our goal of $38K saved.  That averages out to $3142.19 a month for the rest of the year.  $42 per month less on target than June's average but still essentially on target.

Only 5 months left in the year.


THOUGHTS going forward into August----
August and September are my Bill Armageddon months.(House and car insurance AND property taxes.)
Add in credit card charges from our early August trip to Maine(the c/c bill cuts after we get home...ugh!)which will be paid off by the end of August.
Plus our three paycheck month won't happen until late September this year.
August will not be pretty financially.  8-(

So how was your July financially?
  

Did you spend less than the income you had in July?
Did you stay within your budget or not?
What did you do with any money leftover at the end of the month?
Did you pay off any debts or put extra toward your mortgage principle or into savings, in an emergency fund or a retirement account?
Or did you blow it on a want?

If you posted your financial progress on your own blog, leave a link in the comments so we can go check out your progress too and celebrate or commiserate with you!

As we go forward into the last half of 2016 why not make this year the one were you clean up your finances and pay off your debts.
Plan to set something aside if you don't already now or increase what you bank now for your future self.
Or pay extra on the principle of your mortgage is your house isn't already paid off.

Live below your means and keep some change for a rainy day....because no matter how sunny it is in your life now, dark clouds come along and you'll be glad you have that umbrella to keep you dry.

Sluggy

2016 $38K Savings Challenge.....June Update

Every year I keep a close eye on our monthly expenses and our monthly income.

Our income is mainly the salary my Hubs draws from his job.  We have money taken off each paycheck from the top to put into savings, before we even get our hands on it.  This money that's taken goes into various pots....life insurance, health insurance premiums, long term care insurance premiums, investments and retirement savings.  It's automatic so we are never tempted to NOT put it into savings or these other categories.

Once the automatic savings amounts, plus taxes and medical/dental/vision premiums are taken out, it leaves what we get to "live on".  From this amount we budget for bills, both monthly and irregular bills(semi-annual, annual etc.) and our variable bills(like food, eating out, clothing  etc.)  Anything left over once our monthly expenses are paid, I put aside into an interest bearing Savings Challenge account.

For 2016 I am continuing my Yearly Savings Challenge.  I am raising the Goal amount to $40,000 this year, $10K more than my goal for last year.

I have reconsidered and changed my Goal from $40K to $38K for 2016.  With some things coming down the pike this year I thought it prudent to back up my Goal a couple of thousand.  8-)

On to the June report.....

I have posted my June End of Month $38K $AVING$ CHALLENGE Totals.
Check out the Savings Challenge page tab at the top of the blog for the specific numbers HERE.

I have 2 goals each month.....
The 1st is to actually finish each month in the black and not the red.
The 2nd is to hit the targeted savings amount of $3,166.66.

I have to report that we finished up June with a less than stellar amount.
The extra amount we ended the month of June with?.......$1962.66

Income

We had $1734.33 left over from our income after our monthly expenses were deducted.

Other monies received in June totaled $228.33.  This included interest made on non-retirement accounts, a per diem and stock dividends.

This brought us to our gain of $1,962.66
Since we have no debt, this goes into savings.

Outgo

As for the expenses this June, here are the good and the bad side of things....

HERE are the GOOD THINGS

*  Phone charges, electric bill and internet were approximately the same as last month(With $1 or so).
*  The cash withdrawals were down $100 from last month.  Considering we took $500 in cash on our LA trip and we didn't go anywhere this month but had more food spending, that sounds about right.

HERE are the BAD THINGS

*  Water use was up $21.35 from last month.  More people's laundry and showers so it was expected.
*  The gas card spending was up $111.89, mostly due to charging gas on the May trip to that card.
*  The credit card bill was up $1948.10 from last month.  Most of that was trip spending in May.
*  The direct medical spending was up $110.65 from May's total.
*  We "recycled" 2 tvs in June and had to pay $60 OOP in fees.

The Food Budget costs for June are in another post, which is located HERE.

With 6 month accounted for, our Savings Challenge Grand Total for 2016 is $19,399.50.

Final thoughts on June---

June was a fairly expensive month for us, given all that credit card/trip spending.  Some regular expenses went up too and will be up for a couple years into the future.
No irregular bills due this month, that happens next month.

But compared to June 2015 we put $593.29 more into savings this June. 8-)
.
We have $19399.50 saved so far in 2016, and we have only $18,600.50 left to save over the next 6 months at this point to reach our goal of $38K saved.  That averages out to $3100.08 a month for the rest of the year.  We are just a little over saving half of what I want in 2016 so we are right on target at this point in the year.

We are at the halfway mark for the year folks!  I can't believe the year is half over.

In 2015 we put $18,797.36 into savings at the halfway mark so we are averaging slightly more saved per month in 2016 so far.

THOUGHTS going forward into July----
The only irregular bill I have to pay in July is a quarterly Garbage bill and that's not much.
August and September will be my Bill Armageddon however.(House and car insurance AND property taxes.)
There may be a short trip in July which will mean some c/c spending to pay in August. Our c/c balance due in July is hovering at $1K($550 of which is a car repair...ugh) so that bill will be a bit less this month that what it was in June(over $2500).

So how was your June financially?
  

Did you spend less than the income you had in June?
Did you stay within your budget or not?
What did you do with any money leftover at the end of the month?
Did you pay off any debts or put extra toward your mortgage principle or into savings, in an emergency fund or a retirement account?
Or did you blow it on a want?

If you posted your financial progress on your own blog, leave a link in the comments so we can go check out your progress too and celebrate or commiserate with you!

As we go forward into the last half of 2016 why not make this year the one were you clean up your finances and pay off your debts.
Plan to set something aside if you don't already now or increase what you bank now for your future self.
Or pay extra on the principle of your mortgage is your house isn't already paid off.

Live below your means and keep some change for a rainy day....because no matter how sunny it is in your life now, dark clouds come along and you'll be glad you have that umbrella to keep you dry.

Sluggy