Expense/Income Tracking

Here is a breakdown of my expenses for May.

Household	$16.34
Mortgage	$355
Entertainment	$101.60
Transportation	$151.45
Food	$154.3
Phone	$26.67
Health	$39.92
Travel	$258.2
Total	$1103.48

My May expenses were lower than my April Expenses. I didn’t quite hit my stretch goal of keeping my expenses under $1000 for the month.

Entertainment expense was for a one month digital subscription to the New York Times, a couple meals out with friends, seeing a movie with popcorn and soda, and a new tent for backpacking. I returned the tent I bought last month since I was skeptical of its quality. I took the refund as an Amazon credit and bought the new tent elsewhere so the refund didn’t reduce the cost of the new tent.

The mortgage payment was my regular mortgage payment.

Transportation was $106.45 for gasoline and $45 to get my car unlocked when I locked my keys in the car while out of town. .

My food expense remained high. It was at least a little lower than the previous month. Even at what I consider a high level it is still fairly reasonable. I plan to spend less on food this month.

My phone bill should be about this much every month.

Household expense was for flip flops, ant poison, and a haircut.

Health expense was for my monthly gym dues.

Travel expense was for a one way flight from SGF to ALB that will get me back to the Appalachian Trail to hike later this month. .

I think I can get my expenses back down to close to the $1000 level this month. It will depend on how much I spend while hiking and whether any unexpected expenses pop up.

How was your month?

Here is a breakdown of my income for April.

Interest	$16.39
Amazon FBA	$25.51
Class Action	$2.50
Job	$2527.77
Cashback	$65.15
Capital Loss	($7.39)
Online Income	$0
Dividends	$41.08
Ebay/Other Selling	$69.34
Total	$2740.35

April was a decent income month. My income was almost double my expenses which is pretty good.

I made $2527.77 from my doc review job. That was for about three weeks of work. I’ll hardly have any job income this month.

My Amazon FBA side hustle made a tiny bit of money.

Dividend income came in at $41.08. That is my highest ever monthly amount of dividends. I’ve been buying more dividend stocks and I should have some months with over $50 in dividend income later this year. If you sign up using my Robinhood referral link we will both get one share of free stock. Thanks to anyone who signs up using my link. Every little bit helps.

I had a capital loss of $7.39 from selling some stock. I almost never remember to report my capital gains or losses here. I’ll try to report them more consistently from now on. This is only for my taxable brokerage accounts and not my retirement accounts.

I made $69.34 selling stuff on eBay and elsewhere.

I also received $65.15 in cash back income.

Lastly, I received $16.39 in interest and $2.50 from a random class action.

This month’s income will be down again since my job has ended and I’ll be traveling and not actively making money. How was your month?

Here is a breakdown of my expenses for April.

Household	$12.33
Charity/Gifts	$105.40
Mortgage	$355
Entertainment	$82
Transportation	$138.85
Food	$174.49
Phone	$27.5
Health	$48.70
Travel	$434.86
Total	$1380.13

My April expenses were higher than usual, but still not too bad

Entertainment expense was for a one month digital subscription to the New York Times and a new tent for backpacking. Both of the fiberglass poles on my old tent need to be replaced and I decided to go ahead and upgrade to a new tent.

The mortgage payment was my regular mortgage payment.

Transportation was $54.61 for gasoline and $84.24 for two years of car registration, a car inspection and new wiper blades.

My food expense was rather high since I ate out almost every day and didn’t worry about how much I was spending.

My phone bill should remain about this amount now. The last $4 payment on my phone was made last month so the bill will be a little lower, until I decide to buy another phone through their payment plan.

Household expense was for deodorant, laundry, and a baseball cap. Charity and gifts was for a $100 donation and a small gift.

Health expense was for 90 day blood pressure medication refills and gym dues.

Travel expense was for two checked luggage fees, the taxes on an award flight., two nights in a hotel, the annual fee on a hotel credit card, a long Uber ride, and a $110 shuttle from near the trail to an airport almost an hour away.

This month I will be traveling again, but I think I can get my expenses back down to close to the $1000 level.

How was your month?

Here is a breakdown of my income for March.

Interest	$5.66
Amazon FBA	($0.52)
Amazon Merch	$9.71
Job	$3683.09
Cashback	$23.43
Brokerage Bonuses	$100
Other Bonuses	$100
Online Income	$230.54
Dividends	$31
Ebay/Other Selling	$740.74
Stimulus	$1400
Total	$6323.65

March was a great income month. It was probably one of my best ever.

I received $1400 from the economic stimulus payment.

I made $9.71 from Amazon Merch.

I made $3683.09 from my doc review job for a full month of work. I did work over 40 hours every week which helped the income total. I don’t get overtime pay or the total would be even higher.

My Amazon FBA side hustle lost a tiny bit of money.

I made $200 from a couple of brokerage bonuses and a couple of Swagbucks offers.

Dividend income came in at $31. I believe that is my highest ever monthly amount of dividends. If you sign up using my Robinhood referral link we will both get one share of free stock. Thanks to anyone who signs up using my link. Every little bit helps.

I made $740.74 selling stuff.

I also received $23.43 in cash back income.

Lastly, I received $5.66 in interest and $230.54 in online income.

This month’s income will be down significantly since my job is ending and I’ll be traveling and not actively making money. How was your month?

Here is a breakdown of my expenses for March.

Household	$268.21
Mortgage	$355
Entertainment	$78.49
Transportation	$216
Food	$118.92
Phone	$37.73
Health	$86.19
Travel	$5.60
Total	$1166.14

My March expenses were a little over my $1000 goal, but still quite reasonable.

Entertainment expense was for a one month digital subscription to the New York Times, an entry to the virtual Boston Marathon, and a water filter for hiking. The marathon entry was a bit of a splurge. I’ll never be fast enough to enter the actual Boston Marathon and they may not have the virtual event after things return to normal so I decided to do it now.

The mortgage payment was my regular mortgage payment.

Transportation was $15 for gasoline and $201 for six months of car insurance.

My food expense returned to a normal level.

My phone bill was a little higher than normal. Our internet was out for a day so I used my phone as a hotspot so I could work and get paid.

Household expense was for a mattress, pants, socks, shoes, and a small charitable donation. My old mattress was rather uncomfortable but somehow it didn’t occur to me until last month to just go ahead and buy a new one. The new mattress is very comfortable. Unfortunately, I still don’t sleep very well most nights.

Health expense was for health insurance and gym dues.

Travel expense was for the taxes on an award flight. I will be doing some domestic travel this month. I have received my first vaccine dose and feel it is reasonably safe to travel.

This month should be around the $1000 level as well. Whether I make it under $1000 will depend on how much I spend while traveling.

How was your month?