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Spending notes
Jan. 3rd, 2018 12:53 pmAs I mentioned in the previous post, one of my aims last year was to reduce my spending, and I failed horribly, instead letting it increase substantially. This is mostly notes to self based on analysing my YNAB records, so I can try to reverse the pattern next year. I'll count getting back to 2016 levels+inflation as a success.
House account: This went up 39%, and was the biggest absolute increase. Fortunately I think most of this was one-off expenses like getting work done and buying furniture for the new house, and I'm expecting it to return to roughly 2016 levels next year.
Dining out: This was actually only a moderate increase of 24%, but from quite a high starting point. I think my problem here is that I decided what I thought was a reasonable amount to spend in an average month, but then spent that amount in a /typical/ month, and then had a few particularly exciting meals that pushed the average up, so this year I'll plan for that.
Groceries top-up: This is all the spending on food that doesn't either come out of the house account or count as dining out. It includes food on the go and coffee&cakes and takeaways and work lunches and that sort of thing. This rocketed by 133%, but has come down considerably in the last couple of months, so I think I just need to keep doing what I've been doing.
Health: This went up by about 30% - quite a bit on physio, and also a few one-off purchases like standing desks and so on. I'm now back to only needing occasional physio, and getting top up massages from Ramesh, which I can pay for with kisses and cups of tea in the morning rather than cold hard cash ;) On the other hand I'm probably going to buy a new mattress this year, so that's quite a lot of savings to make to balance out.
Clothing: This was another big increase of 129%, although not from a huge starting point. I bought a couple of new suits recently, replacing ones that were around 18 months old, so hopefully that's an expense that won't repeat until 2019. And some leather trousers that I assume will last me for years. My style is evolving a bit, so I don't think I'll be able to cut this category a lot from 2016 levels, but it should be easy enough to get back there.
Subscriptions: This stayed about the same, about half Patreon pledges and half other things. It's not a huge proportion of the budget, but I think there are some potential savings I can make there.
Holiday: This was one of the biggest increases at 184%, but we're planning on holidaying at home this year, so that will come down naturally. Inevitably it'll bump up in 2019 cos honeymoon, but that's okay, I just need to plan for it.
Theatre tickets: This was the biggest increase in % terms, up 242%. Most of this was driven by the Ian McKellan show and Hamilton, both of which I spent a small fortune on. I don't regret it for a second, but I should resist any similar temptations next year. One observation worth making is that apart from those two, the amount I spend on a pair of tickets varies by a lot more than my enjoyment of the shows does, and also that I tend to buy theatre tickets on impulse, and that I could probably get more pleasure for less money by mostly going for cheaper shows, and planning in advance a bit more.
House account: This went up 39%, and was the biggest absolute increase. Fortunately I think most of this was one-off expenses like getting work done and buying furniture for the new house, and I'm expecting it to return to roughly 2016 levels next year.
Dining out: This was actually only a moderate increase of 24%, but from quite a high starting point. I think my problem here is that I decided what I thought was a reasonable amount to spend in an average month, but then spent that amount in a /typical/ month, and then had a few particularly exciting meals that pushed the average up, so this year I'll plan for that.
Groceries top-up: This is all the spending on food that doesn't either come out of the house account or count as dining out. It includes food on the go and coffee&cakes and takeaways and work lunches and that sort of thing. This rocketed by 133%, but has come down considerably in the last couple of months, so I think I just need to keep doing what I've been doing.
Health: This went up by about 30% - quite a bit on physio, and also a few one-off purchases like standing desks and so on. I'm now back to only needing occasional physio, and getting top up massages from Ramesh, which I can pay for with kisses and cups of tea in the morning rather than cold hard cash ;) On the other hand I'm probably going to buy a new mattress this year, so that's quite a lot of savings to make to balance out.
Clothing: This was another big increase of 129%, although not from a huge starting point. I bought a couple of new suits recently, replacing ones that were around 18 months old, so hopefully that's an expense that won't repeat until 2019. And some leather trousers that I assume will last me for years. My style is evolving a bit, so I don't think I'll be able to cut this category a lot from 2016 levels, but it should be easy enough to get back there.
Subscriptions: This stayed about the same, about half Patreon pledges and half other things. It's not a huge proportion of the budget, but I think there are some potential savings I can make there.
Holiday: This was one of the biggest increases at 184%, but we're planning on holidaying at home this year, so that will come down naturally. Inevitably it'll bump up in 2019 cos honeymoon, but that's okay, I just need to plan for it.
Theatre tickets: This was the biggest increase in % terms, up 242%. Most of this was driven by the Ian McKellan show and Hamilton, both of which I spent a small fortune on. I don't regret it for a second, but I should resist any similar temptations next year. One observation worth making is that apart from those two, the amount I spend on a pair of tickets varies by a lot more than my enjoyment of the shows does, and also that I tend to buy theatre tickets on impulse, and that I could probably get more pleasure for less money by mostly going for cheaper shows, and planning in advance a bit more.
