With the economic downturn tightening budgets I have seen several articles discussing how frugality is now becoming cool. They usually support this claim with a few anecdotes from ordinary citizens. Based on my own observations I doubt that frugality is actually becoming cool or even becoming much more socially acceptable. There are more people becoming frugal from necessity or perhaps because they are worried about the economy. They aren’t becoming frugal because they want to though, they are becoming frugal because they have to or because they feel that they need to be frugal due to the economy. Perhaps people will discover that a frugal lifestyle is a good choice regardless of whether it is necessary. My guess is that once the economy recovers the vast majority of these people will abandon their frugal ways and return to being regular consumers.
November Credit Score
My credit score for November was 729 up from 722 the month before. My credit score seems to be staying in the 720 range the past few months which makes sense since I am not doing anything that should have much effect on my credit. 720 or better is considered good credit so this is good enough for me. I don’t plan on borrowing any money but it can be helpful to have good credit regardless.
I receive my credit score for free from one of my credit card companies. I never use that particular card anymore. The only reason I ever sign in to my account is to see my latest credit score.
November Investment Income- $39.17
November was another bad month for my retirement savings. My monthly investment income went down from $41.34 last month to $39.17 this month. I actually made more money in interest and dividends last month than what I’m projecting as my income. This is because I received a quarterly dividend payment and I earned interest on accounts that I don’t consider part of my retirement savings.
Disclaimer:This is not my actual investment income. To get this figure I first add up my retirement accounts, emergency fund, and any other money I consider permanent savings. What the total of my savings would earn at 6% interest for a month is my monthly investment income.
November Expenses- $1027.14
Here is a breakdown of my expenses for November.
| Household | $530.00 |
| Transportation | $127.09 |
| Food | $33.31 |
| Entertainment | $212.47 |
| Debt/Education | $90 |
| Phone | $34.27 |
| Total | $1027.14 |
I just missed my target of $1000 for monthly expenses. My household expenses were high because they include Christmas shopping. I have very little shopping left to do this month so my household expenses will decrease. Entertainment was way too high for the month. Now that I have the gambling bug out of my system this expense will be significantly reduced. I did manage to get my food expense lower and plan to maintain this expense at the same level this month. My food expense only includes lunches out or snacks that I buy. I plan to get rid of my car this month so my transportation expense will decrease. The total for November is artificially high because it includes payment of my auto insurance. I will get back most of that when I cancel my insurance after I get rid of my car. I expect to get my expenses well under $1000 this month, I just have to make sure Christmas or other unexpected expenses don’t get out of hand.
November Income- $630.09
Here is a breakdown of my income for November.
| Online Income | $369.03 |
| Cash Back | $22.40 |
| Interest | $12.77 |
| Dividends | $35.89 |
| Medical Study | $175.00 |
| Surveys/Mystery shopping | $15.00 |
| Total | $630.09 |
My income was down quite a bit from the previous month but that was mostly expected. I did do some things to try to increase my income but any results will not be seen until this month. I count my income when I receive it, not when I make it.
I do have a new category this month for stock dividends. I will be receiving dividends every month but the total will be lower this month since I won’t be receiving any quarterly or semi-annual dividends. Overall, my income will probably stay the same this month but I will try to increase it.