September Budget Review
Monthly Review: Sep 2019 - 14% Savings Rate <- What????
How did my savings rate get so low? Well I can promise you I didn’t go on a spending spree. The problem was the other side of the equation.
I only had a part of one paycheck this month but it’s a temporary blip.
Quick rundown of the highlights from this month
Hundreds in Free Food at FinCon
Free intimate classical concert
$110 Free REI Giftcard
Free camping
$11 Kayaking in Austin
Free food trucks
Beach trip in Texas
Joined Rock Climbing gym
Now it’s time to get into the details:
Income: $1,858
Again, it was a weird month with only a part of one pay check. It is kind of neat to realize that with even just a fraction of my pay I’d still be able to save money.
Expenses: $1,597
Travel was a big hitter this month with $372 but this covered my FinCon tickets for next year, a flight to Denver, as well as some Ubers.
I’ve also already begun my Christmas shopping (I can’t help it… I’m an elf).
Then rounded out the month with some food and drinks at the beach down in Texas. Now let’s dive into the details.
Going Out: $117.94
The Met $6.48
Shy Bird $12.10
Texaco $3.60
Glow $37.00
Shrimp $29.47
Hong Kong $15.00
Beach Drinks $14.29
What’s not captured here is the hundreds of dollars worth of free food and drinks I had at FinCon 2019.
When people question the value of going to FinCon I always think about the royal treatment I get there and the lack of spending that takes place once I arrive.
Went with the vegetarian entree. Pretty good actually. The cake was 10/10
The tickets are only $200 and you get the better part of a week with some of your best friends. Throw in $20 rooftop drinks over looking the White House, shrimp, mini lobster rolls, crab cake deviled eggs and you got yourself an amazing deal.
And that was just one of many free happy hours….
Groceries: $16.89
How in the world did I do this…Let me tell you.
Stop n shop $3.19
Star Market $13.70
Well I already mentioned all the happy hours full of free food but there’s more. While I was at FinCon I was also able to use my Hilton Diamond status to get free breakfast and dinner anytime a Happy Hour wasn’t available.
What can’t the instant pot do?
I also now get free food at work when in the office and have an allowance while I’m on the road. Previously this allowance could be pocketed but now it’s “use-or-lose”
Bills: $964.82
Bills were pretty standard this month but with the addition of an annual online storage bill
Rent
Car Insurance
Internet
Cell Phone
Travel: $372.32
This month’s spending isn’t completely reflective of the events because some things are pre-payed in previous months and some things showing up here are for the future.
The actual costs for the month were:
FinCon 2020 - $200
Denver Flight - $94.84
Ubers - $45-86
Kayaking - $11.62
Tolls - $20
$100s of REI Freebies
If you read my August review, you saw that I already had a ton of free activities sponsored by REI. They continue the celebration of their new store opening in New Hampshire.
This time included free camping, free food trucks, and ~$150 in free gear.
So everything looks good right?
This was a solo trip for me because Leslie was out of town. This weekend was actually the grand opening of the store. With that meant the first 100 people in the door each day that weekend got a gift card and a water bottle.
99% of those gift cards were for only $10, and on day 1, that’s exactly what I got. It was no problem though because I had just been waiting in line and reading a book. I also got the conciliation prize of free food trucks.
We had no idea the storm that was brewin’
But after Fueling up on free food, hiking, and an amazing free night of camping I decided to try my hand at the gift card door buster one more time.
Steak tacos, fish tacos, calimari, wings…. too much to capture in one picture
And I won $100 gift card
Yep, I got the 1 out of 100 gift card. And since I just joined a rock climbing gym, I ended up getting some rock climbing shoes. They also had some special coupons for the grand opening which allowed me to not only get $100 pair of shoes but some Christmas presents as well.
Then on top of that I got a free Hydroflask metal koozie, Columbia hat, and of course more free food.
Best way to end a day on the water
Texas Beachin’
We finally got a chance to head down to Leslie’s family beach house in Texas. I honestly didn’t even know Texas had beaches most of my life.
We utilized our Southwest companion pass (Buy one get one free flights) and then we didn’t have to worry about rental cars or hotel costs. So it was a super frugal trip.
Never thought I’d be at a Lil Wayne concert
Miscellaneous: $80.73
Christmas season is starting….
Dad’s Bday- $19.24
Christmas Present - $15
Kickboxing - $20
Gift for new little Taylor - $26.49
Gas: $45.25
Nothing special here.
Big Picture: Net Worth Increase $3,783 to $362,349
I thought this was pretty cool. Not only did I legitimately save money with only a fraction of one paycheck but my net worth grew over $3k.
I ended up being able to save $260 the old fashioned way.
