So I know it's been quite some time since my last post (over a month). But I've been pretty busy with the end of the semester. However, now that it's over, I will not have to worry about homework and studying for awhile.
I will be increasing my hours at work-hopefully to full time-for the rest of the summer. Which means I will be getting more money! But because I would really like to save some, not be a spending fiend; I used a template in Microsoft Excel to make a budget! It was surprisingly easy-and even a little fun-basically it was a good feeling to know that I have such a realistic financial plan for the summer.
I get paid over $8 an hour (can't remember exactly at the moment-I'd have to see my check-but I do direct deposit into my checking account) and preferably I'll be getting 40 hours a week. But since I don't know that I'll be getting the full 40 every single week, and I don't know exactly how much is taken out for taxes; when I put my income into the budget, I calculated $8 an hour and 35 hours per week. This came to $280 per week, $560 per paycheck, and $1120 per month. This is just a projected budget at this time, I will adjust it as the summer progresses.
But here are some of the things I've factored in so far for monthly expenses:
Rent: $322
Utilities: about $30-my roommate and I only pay for electricity, which is great-all else is included
Car payment: $80
Fuel: about $60
Supplies/Other: $20-I'm just giving myself a some extra money for any maintenance or such things
Groceries: $80-I have never actually figured how much I spend on groceries-so I just threw out a number
Dining Out: $25-this includes any food while I'm at work. Although I need to bring my lunch more often
Cat stuff: $20 for food and litter
Clothes/Personal: about $60-this is for work clothes too (I go through a fair amount of khaki pants-spilling on them and what not) and shampoo, toothpaste, etc.
Prescriptions: about $25 (actually a little less, but I'm rounding up)
Church offering: $20
Entertainment: $80-10 for DVD's, 30 for movie theater, 20 for sports (namely-baseball games), and 20 for other
Yes, I know this seems like a lot of spending-but since I've never actually made a budget for myself or kept track of how much I spend on certain things-this is truly just an estimate. Once I get a better idea of how the summer will go, I will (try to remember to) post another-more accurate budget.
I would definitely appreciate tips and advice you may have!
