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Tentative Numbers

September 23rd, 2016 at 03:46 pm

Below is our tentative joint budget. For now, I will still keep my debts paid out of my own bank account, but that may change. We'd agree that once we were married, I'd close my individual account and pay everything out of our joint account, and DH would keep only his fun money in his individual bank account. We've both sort of changed thoughts on this. He's leaning towards closing his individual account and doing everything out of the joint account, and I'm leaning towards keeping my own account to still pay my debts out of. We'll have more conversations on this coming to figure out what the best plan is. For now, the below numbers only cover our joint expenses.

Our income is up in the air at the moment. My second October paycheck will be the amount I will make until July of next year. Until then, I can just guess. My last paycheck was 1770, but our 401k loan hadn't started hitting yet ($90/pay period). Between that and our insurance changes taking effect in October (I'm moving medical to DH's military plan, but we're keeping dental and vision with my company), I'm not sure exactly what my paycheck will be, but I'm guessing around 1650. The plan is to put 950 into our joint account for a total of 1900/mo from me. DH's paycheck will make up the rest. Based on my math, he'd need to make at least 34k/yr to cover our bare bones budget. He was contacted for a interview at a different company yesterday, so if he ends up getting either of those new jobs, we'd just have to make sure the numbers are right. It seems salary for those positions run between 35 and 40k, not counting overtime, so we should be good. In his current position, DH's income is variable but ran around 60k last year and should be about the same (if not more) this year. While it makes more financial sense for DH to stay in this job, I'm really concerned for the toll it takes on our relationship and his sanity, so I'm hoping he is able to transition into this other industry. It's less money for now, but he'd be home by 4 pm every weekday, have weekends off, and would only have a 10-15 min. commute as opposed to the hour-plus he'd have if he kept his current job after the move.

Anything missing from the list below that I haven't considered? I know we do want to start a home maintenance fund, but I don't how much we'll be able to allocate to that yet.

Rent (PITI) 2370.79
Gas 100
Electric 150
Verizon 90
Groceries 200
Entertainment 50
Miscellaneous 100
Pets 100
Marriott Card 50
Cap One Card 50
Ring 101
Geico 114.76
Med. Insurance 210.83
Total Expenses 3376.55

16 Responses to “Tentative Numbers”

  1. PatientSaver Says:
    1474642888

    Do both of you have good credit?

    If not, I would NOT close your accounts. It's a good idea for each of you to maintain some accounts to maintain and build on your own individual credit. If something happened that damaged the credit of one of you, like a major slip-up like not paying the mortgage that was in one person's name, or something like that, you could still rely on the other person's good credit if you needed to apply for a car loan or any other kind of loan if you needed it.

  2. Laura S. Says:
    1474643980

    If you DH is commuting so far (at least temporarily) shouldn't there be a little more allocated for gas?

  3. creditcardfree Says:
    1474644594

    Clothing. Car maintenance. Money set aside for home repairs (plumbing, a/c and heat). Retirement. Internet. Lawn maintenance. Home decorating...you'll be surprised how quickly you will want to start making changes!

  4. CB in the City Says:
    1474644721

    I have categories for home maintenance and for auto repair/maintenance. Also, gifts/charity and vacation are big categories for me. You may be including these under miscellaneous. OH yes, and I have an eating out budget in addition to groceries.

  5. Jenn Says:
    1474649293

    Medical expenses (beyond insurance premiums) including vitamins or supplements

    That huge house payment is restricting your budget. I suspect that you're going to have to prioritize and sacrifice to set an acceptable pace for financial progress.

  6. Kiki Says:
    1474653659

    Congratulations on the house!

    I just bought about 18 months ago and it is so exciting, overwhelming, scary, time consuming, fun to plan for and frustrating to have to wait for savings for the things I want to do. But it is such an exciting time! Enjoy the planning!

    And thank your husband for serving and for you for becoming a military wife. We have two in our family!

    I just want to confirm the accounts you are closing are a checking account not something that would impact your credit ratios?

    I don't see a water or sewer bill on here? I am billed bi-monthly separately for both.

    Garbage and recycling? Also billed bi-monthly. You can get the rates from the companies as it is usually based on the size of the containers you have.

    I see gas but is that gas for car or gas for house? I budget for each.

    Your fun spending money amounts?

    House Maintenance/upkeep (savings into a bank account for emergencies)

    House changes you wish to make savings
    (like the fencing and painting you mentioned which is different from a house emergency fund for plumbing emergencies)

    Gardener? House cleaning?

    Car Payments? Saving for car renewal? Do you have AAA emergency road side service cards to pay annually that you can save for monthly?

    Saving for car repairs monthly?

    Gym memberships?

    Cable / internet? Netflix or other services or subscriptions (including magazines)

    vacations?

    Student loans?

    Clothing or personal care? Sports equipment?

    Military spending (saving $ for those things he will need to buy for his military duty?)

    contacts/glasses? medical co-pays? prescriptions? (I save into a "personal HSA" account $20/month for potential copays and $75/month for glasses and contacts.)

    Saving for Christmas/holidays? This year make a list of things you would like for the house and when people ask for a Christmas list give them either the items you want/need or mention the stores where you plan to buy paint or fencing or other materials. I received a ton of stuff for the house for birthdays and holidays and gift cards are always welcome!

    Pay attention to interest rates and how your house appreciates if you have to pay PMI. Refinancing can take care of that if the house appreciates - but plan to pay closing costs out of pocket.

    If you would like a copy of the updates budget I use especially since I moved into the house let me know. I'd be happy to email you a copy.


  7. Kiki Says:
    1474653941

    And a rough estimate of what to save monthly to build a home emergency account is 10% of your total payment. I remember reading that someplace when I was researching home buying and it was a pretty good number so far.

    I save 10% and allocate 5% monthly for things I may want to buy for the house or simple things to fix if something breaks so I don't have to go into the emergency fund. I haven't always used it but I know it is there if I choose to - although I am saving for new flooring so that it where it usually goes.

  8. snafu Says:
    1474657128

    I suggest a set aside for rental contract agreement...just in case. If not needed, it supplies funding for next prioritized item. Is there a possibility of a damage deposit rebate? What is the budget for moving? all electric bulbs & light covers.

  9. snafu Says:
    1474657383

    so sorry, wretched Mac has sent comment to cyberspace. will try to fix....

  10. klarose Says:
    1474658637

    Whew that is a big house payment. I think you are going to have a hard time staying in that budget... Especially since as others mentioned you are missing quite a few larger items. Including utilities, gifts, spending, etc. What is your joint monthly take home pay?

  11. Butterscotch Says:
    1474659222

    I totally understand your husbands job needing to change. I've been married 5 years and my husband is so stressed and angry because of his job that I am considering divorce. I just can't stand to be with someone who is so miserable. At least your husband is willing to change jobs. Mine won't because the money is too good, but I don't even care about the money. It isn't worth it. Good luck.

  12. MonkeyMama Says:
    1474669160

    Another thing to consider is that you can probably adjust tax withholding downward with the tax deduction from the mortgage (& also with decrease in income). I know most people prefer big tax refunds, but that should give you some breathing room if you need to loosen up the monthly budget a bit. (Living in San Francisco, we ran through these numbers since it was significantly cheaper to own once you factor the tax breaks of home ownership. Given the size of your mortgage, I expect that your tax break will be large).

  13. FrugalTexan75 Says:
    1474685843

    What about car taxes? Do you have a yearly registration fee, or a yearly inspection? Here in NE we have a $76 wheel tax, plus a yearly registration fee.

  14. Debt-free by Thir-ty Says:
    1474720883

    Thanks everyone for the comments. I'll sit down with them and revise. A couple of things:

    Gifts and clothing come out off miscellaneous or our own accounts. The same for car taxes and maintenance in addition to gas. The gas in our budget was the utility. I did forget water and trash as those had always been in my rent.

  15. ceejay74 Says:
    1474741328

    If I might make a suggestion, I think it's important for each person to get the same amount of "fun money." I'd have all your paychecks go into your joint account and then transfer your discretionary funds into your separate checking accounts. That way you could ensure each of you has the same amount of play money and all the rest goes for mutual needs and wants.

    Some folks do well with variable amounts of fun money, but in my house we appreciate equal amounts, even though we all make different salaries.

  16. snafu Says:
    1474766024

    Is there a possibility of a damage deposit rebate? What sum is needed for moving costs? Will you need deposits for any of the utilities like water/sewerage? I wonder if operating two budgets will add stress to a tight budget. Late payment or going over limit causes penalties and increased interest rates at a time of so much change

    There are expenses not yet addressed in your budget like cost of supplies for gutter repair, medical co pays, pet vet, life insurance, regular home insurance. Adding an hour's commute increases maintenance and operating costs. I believe it's critical to note interest charged on car, ring, CCs etc. So helpful to know your FICO score.

    You need an emergency fund. Sewers plug up, pipes freeze and crazy things happen. Yard work will be immediate to prepare for winter. Outdoor water supply needs to be checked and dealt with as does raking mulching etc. For example... November 5th will need changing all clocks, checking fire and furnace alarms, replace furnace filters, clean all light bulbs and ceiling fixture covers. We check all flashlights and usually replace batteries because of power grid failure. It's important to keep a flexible list of tasks [available on line] so that we do one small thing each day and not get overwhelmed. Small seasonal misses easily become expensive emergencies



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