2018 Income & Spending Report.......June Edition

Now that we are living on an annuity(like a pension) and 401K$ withdrawals(retirement savings), I am still going to keep track of our monthly spending and income, and hopefully we'll still be able to live BELOW our means and I'll have some leftover monies each month to tuck aside.

But this money leftover at the end of each month, at least for now(as we find our new financial "normal")won't be saved toward a yearly Savings Challenge.  This leftover cash will go into a "Slush Fund" for now to be used if we have any emergencies come up during the year.  If we still have Slush Funds at the end of the year we'll decide then what to do with them.

I have set up a page to track the Slush Fund.  Click on the tab marked "Slush Fund 2018" at the top of the blog.

  I am trying to be as transparent as I can with how much is coming in and how much is going out.  8-)

On to the June 2018 report--

I had 2 goals for June......
The 1st is to actually finish the month in the black and not the red.
The 2nd is to try to have a little cash leftover at the end of the previous month to tuck back into a slush fund.  This slush fun may be to apply toward unforeseen bills that are coming due in subsequent months, to spend on "extras/wants" during the year or to just sit there and grow until the end of 2018.

I have to report that we finished up June in the black.
The extra amount we ended the month of June with?.......$3744.42

Income or Funds We Can Access

The "income" in June---

* Monthly annuity payment of $3218.16(after tax withholding)
* RMSA(Healthcare account)reimbursement of $1813.48
* One third of 401K withdrawal balance(after funding Sinking Fund)for June of $1255.65 #
* Interest earned on non-retirement accounts of $339.16
* Quarterly Stock Dividends received for $99.12
* Electric Co. Deposit from LA  $324.25
* LA house insurance refund $175.28(received in May but not deposited until June)

Total "Income" for June......$7225.10

# We made a 2nd quarter 401K withdrawal in April of $6K.  After withholding for taxes due we got $5170.70 net.  $1383.24 of that gets put into the Sinking Fund to cover irregular bills coming due this quarter(long term care insurance due in April, car insurance due in May). $3766.95 is the balance of the 2nd quarter 401K withdrawal.  This got divided by 3 and gives us $1255.65 extra in June to add to the income for the month(April and May also got $1255.65)for general expenses.


Expenses in June---

* Healthcare Premium for June was $1813.48.(paid with RMSA reimbursement)
* Variable Expenses in June came to $1667.20
* Quarterly Long Term Care insurance came to $520.27.(paid for from Sinking Fund)##


## Quarterly Long Term Carre insurance premium expenses are due in June.  The carryover in the Sinking Fund coming into June was $1077.75.  $520.27 in LTC insurance paid leaves us $557.48 in the Sinking Fund going into July.


We went into June with $13,265.78 in the Slush Fund.
Add in June's overage of $3744.42 to the Slush Fund and it stands at $17,010.20 going into July.

Outgo

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

HERE are the GOOD THINGS

*  Phone charges and internet were approximately the same as in May(Within $1 or so).
*  The electric bill was $29.19 lower than last month.
*  The gas card charges were $97.48 lower than in May.
*  The cash WAM withdrawals were the same as last month.
*  The health insurance premium was the same as in May.
*  Medical bills were $87.24 lower than last month.

HERE are the BAD THING

*  The water bill was $24.47 higher than May.
*  The credit card bill was $57.45 higher than last month.
*  Quarterly LTC insurance was due this month. This irregular bill is paid out of the Sinking Fund account.

The Food Budget costs for June are in another post, which is located HERE.  Food costs are covered in the credit card payment(sometimes our WAM cash too).

So we end June in the black with $3744.42 in new general overage to add to the Slush Fund.
The Sinking Fund goes into July standing at $557.48,

FINAL THOUGHTS on June---
I did get some items sold on the local FB group page. go me!lolz
Regular bills were quite low generally.
We received quarterly dividends and two different refunds from the LA house.
The $1255.65 of the 401K withdrawal taken wasn't really needed to pay bills in June.
This all combined to give us quite a good overage for this month.
Hubs and I will be sitting down to discuss financial things again as we have passed the 1 year mark of his retirement now.

THOUGHTS going forward into July 2018----This month there are no irregular bills due and the Sinking Fund will get an infusion of $3290.60 from the 401K raising that Fund to $3848.08 in preparation for two large irregular bills due in August/September(house insurance and taxes)and the much smaller Long Term Care premiums due in Sept.  That leaves $1880.12 of the 401K withdrawal to divvy out into each of the next 3 months, giving each month an additional $626.70 toward other expenses.
The WAM withdrawal will be the same in July, $200.
Eldest son changed his plan and is now coming to visit in July so there will be higher spending on food and drink and outings this coming month.

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!

Make this year was the one were you clean up your finances and pay off your debts.
Plan to set something aside if you didn't already or increase what you have banked 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

$32K Savings Challenge for 2011.....March Totals

Since I foresee food prices, as well as other expenses/costs/taxes to rise in 2011, I am only upping my Savings Challenge Goal by $2,000.  While I hope to bring in more income this year, I feel we will be spending more on necessities in 2011, thus the small increase in goals.

So I present to you March of the 2011 $32K Savings Challenge!

I have posted my MARCH End of Month $32K $AVING$ CHALLENGE Totals.
Check out the side bar to your right for the specific numbers.

I have 2 goals really 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 $2,666.67.

I have to report that we finished up March in the black!
The extra cash amount we ended the month of March with.......$2353.56.

Income
We had $2282.19 left over from our income after our expenses were deducted.
Add in $71.37 of Rebates applied against the food expenses and you have a deposit of $2,353.56 toward the Savings Challenge!

Our monthly target is an average of $2,666.67 to reach our Year End Goal.  We came in about $313 short in March.

Outgo
As for the expenses in March....
HERE are the GOOD THINGS
*The credit card bill was well under $1K.
*The electric bill went down about $50.
*We ONLY spent $342 something on car repairs/maintenance.  Unfortunately, this amount is a good thing for us. ugh
*Hubs took less WAM out of the bank this month....yay! 8-)
*I didn't need to take any cash out of the bank since I was able to do the last 2 month's food/HBA shopping on what I withdrew in Feb.

HERE are the BAD THINGS
 *The quarterly sewage bill came due this month, I went ahead and paid up for the full year, earning a 3% discount....hey!, it's something.lol
*I paid the garbage bill ahead for 3 months, which is good overall but not for this month's outgo.
*The Final BIG marching band payment(for #2 son's trip in the Spring)came due...$460. bleh.


The Food Budget costs for March are in another post, which is located HERE.  The actual Food/Toiletries spending in March was more than $100 under budget.

What's ahead for April.....
Looking back at last year's check register, I see that the County/Local taxes are due this month....that's a big one!
We also have another car repair to pay.
The credit card bill is up to $400 with another 10 days to go until the billing cycle closes.  I'm hoping to keep it under $600 by the time it closes on the 10th.
Other than that it's just the usual suspects this month--electric, water, phone, cable, food, prescriptions, dr. visits, etc.

YEAR-TO-DATE TOTAL.....
With 3 months behind us, our Savings total to-date for 2011 is $5,136.53.

And if you need to start putting money into savings......What's that you say?  You don't have an emergency fund of 6-8 months worth of expenses!!??....consider playing along in 2011 with me and Challenging Yourself to Save Money each Month Toward a Realistic for YOU Savings Goal!
Not everyone can shoot for $32K, I fully get that!
But everyone can shoot for some number, right!?

Find a money goal that works for you and put that number out there for everyone to see.  It will help keep you accountable to your goal if other eyes are on you.
Ooo, that sounded kind of creepy didn't it? ;-)

So how was your March financially?  Leave a comment and share with us what you did with your money, both the good and not-so good.   Do you have any tricks or tips that help you to end your month before the money runs out?    Let us know!
If you posted your financial progress on your own blog, leave a link in the comments so we can go check you out too!

Sluggy