Andy Hough

Here is a breakdown of my income for September.

Interest	$414.59
Dividends	$8.10
Job	$2974.70
Selling	$46.61
Cashback	$25
Bank Bonus	$100
Credit Card Bonus	$750
Insurance Refund	$41.09
Odd Job	$200
Total	$4560.09

September was a great income month.

Dividend income came in at $8.10.

Interest income was $414.59 This was much higher than usual due to a CD maturing during the month and a fund paying me at the beginning of the month rather than the end of the month like my funds usually do. This month’s interest income will return to a normal level.

I made $46.61from eBay and other selling. I currently don’t spend much time on this since it is more profitable to spend that time working at my job.

I made $25 from cash back.

I made $2974.70 from job income.

I had a credit card bonus of $750. That was for the U.S. Bank Triple Cash Card. I need to do more bonuses like that.

I made $200 from an odd job. I probably won’t have any odd job income this month. It isn’t something I seek out, but occasionally it finds me.

I made $100 from a bank bonus and received a $41.09 refund from the health insurance company I used last year.

This month should be good again, but it is unlikely to be as good as September. My job looks like it will continue through the end of the year. This will be my best money-making year since before the pandemic.

How was your month?

Here is a breakdown of my expenses for September.

Household	$45.56
Mortgage/Apt	$0
Utilities	$249.69
Entertainment	$37.97
Transportation	$240.50
Food	$427.09
Visa	$0
Health	$46.48
Travel	$0
Phone	$15
Total	$1062.29

September’s expenses were once again very reasonable. If I can keep my monthly expenses around this level, I will be happy.

Entertainment expense was for one month of Amazon Prime, one month Netflix, and a trip to the movies. I had a free popcorn for my birthday and also had a couple of gift cards to use. Without those I wouldn’t have gone since the movies no longer seem like a good value.

My transportation expense consisted of $151.70 for gas and $88.80 for maintenance. I had more long trips than usual which increased the gas expense. I should have fewer long trips this month and shouldn’t have any maintenance so this expense should go down this month.

My food expense was $427.09. That is divided between $260.57 for groceries and $166.52 for restaurants. The restaurant expense was inflated by the purchase of a gift card. I bought a $75 Mcdonald’s gift card for $64 and counted all of the expense for September. Still, I feel like my food expense was too high. My restaurant expense should be much lower this month since I have two gift cards to use that were already counted in previous month’s expenses. I will try to keep the grocery bill down too. Hopefully, that will lead to this month’s food expense being much lower.

Travel expense was $0, and it will probably be $0 again this month. This is unusual for me, but I probably won’t go to Thailand again until sometime next year and I’m unsure if we will have any domestic travel this year.

Utilities came in at $249.69. This was for electric and internet. This month I also paid the trash bill so this expense will be higher even though the electric bill should be a little cheaper.

Household expense came in at $32.55.

I spent $15 for one month of phone service for my wife.

The $46.48 spent on health consisted of $30 for a doctor visit and $16.48 for medicine.

This month’s expenses will probably be about the same. How was your month?

Here is a breakdown of my income for August.

Interest	$57.53
Dividends	$23.57
Job	$3144.40
Ebay	$23.04
Cashback	$181.35
Other Selling	($23.75)
Credit Card Bonus	$50
Odd Job	$50
Total	$3506.14

August was another good income month.

Dividend income came in at $23.57.

Interest income was $57.53. This was down significantly from the previous month due to investing some money in a CD that won’t pay out until next month and investing in a fund that paid out this month rather than in August. This month’s interest will be much higher.

I made $23.04 from eBay. When I’m working full-time, I don’t spend much time trying to sell on eBay, but some stuff that I already had listed still occasionally sells.

I made $181.35 from cash back.

I made $3144.40 from job income.

I had a credit card bonus of $50. This was for adding an authorized user to one of my accounts. I wouldn’t open a new account for that low of a bonus.

I made $50 from an odd job. I’ll have more income in this category this month.

I lost $23.75 selling things outside of eBay. I bought some stuff that was going to make me a small profit to help meet a spending goal for a new credit card. Things changed and I ended up with a small loss. The credit card bonus will more than make up for the small loss though.

This month should be about the same. My job looks like it will continue until at least next month and maybe longer.

How was your month?

Here is a breakdown of my expenses for August.

Household	$98.47
Mortgage/Apt	$0
Utilities	$281.83
Entertainment	$13.10
Transportation	$437.97
Food	$355.05
Visa	$0
Health	$28.41
Travel	$0
Phone	$15
Total	$1229.83

August’s expenses were very reasonable. If I can keep my monthly expenses around this level, I will be happy.

Entertainment expense was for one month of Amazon Prime, one month Netflix, and a book.

My transportation expense consisted of $70.97 for gas and $367 for six months of insurance.

My food expense was $355.05. That is divided between $142.67 for groceries and $212.38 for restaurants. The restaurant expense was inflated by the purchase of a gift card. I bought a $100 Wendy’s gift card for $69 and counted all of the expense for August. This month’s food expense should be much lower.

Travel expense was $0, and it will probably be $0 again this month. This is unusual for me, but I probably won’t go to Thailand again until sometime next year and I’m unsure if we will have any domestic travel this year.

Utilities came in at $281.83. This was for electric and internet. Our water and sewer bill is also bundled into our electric bill. This month I will also have to pay the trash bill so this expense will be higher.

Household expense came in at $98.47. This was for skin care stuff for my wife, toilet paper, toothpaste, mouthwash and various other household items.

I spent $15 for one month of phone service for my wife.

The $28.41 spent on health was for medications and a supplement.

This month’s expenses will probably be about the same. How was your month?

Here is a breakdown of my income for July.

Interest	$196.03
Dividends	$19.71
Job	$3544.62
Amazon Merch	$18.20
Cashback	$35.54
Other Selling	$15.11
Surveys	$15.21
Class Action	$0.12
Capital Gain	$7.12
Online Income	$170.32
Total	$4021.98

July was a great month for income. I worked all month, and the income was helped by having five paydays.

Dividend income came in at $19.71.

Interest income was $196.03.

My earnings from Amazon Merch totaled $18.20. This was higher than usual due to receiving one payment on the first day of the month and another payment on the last day of the month.

I made $15.21 from surveys. Since I’m working more, I have less time to spend on surveys.

I made $15.11 from selling stuff.

I made $0.12 from a class action settlement.

I made $35.54 from cash back.

I made $3544.62 from job income.

I had a capital gain of $7.12. I only count my investment gains when I sell something in a taxable account.

My online income was $170.32. That is probably all the money I will make from my blogs for the year. Given how little time I spend on blogging now I am lucky that I still make more than enough to cover my expenses.

This month won’t be quite as good since I will have the normal four paydays rather than five. It should still be a good month though.

How was your month?