Proposed Budget for 2016: Realistic, but Challenging for me

So I am actually going to try and challenge myself to stick to what I propose as a budget for 2016.

Reasons why I am strictly budgeting this year

Haven’t stuck strictly to a budget since I got out of $60,000 debt; curious as to if I can again or not.
Because. Lifestyle inflation.
I won’t be working in 2016; not at least in the near expected future.
The economy does not look good; I am hoping to keep my net worth stable at least.

Easier to budget when you’re in debt.

It sounds so screwed up but there was an end goal — $0 in debt.

Growing wealth however, it’s limitless which makes it tougher for me to visualize and work towards, so to speak.

THE ENTIRE 2016 BUDGET

Per year: $40,547.86

…..or $3378.99 per month

You can see how my mind works. I’ve grouped it into coloured sections.

Didn’t make it $40,000

I tried to get it down to $40,000 but that would just be cheating and lying to myself.

No budget balances out perfectly to the dollar, least of all mine.

It’s realistic but challenging for me

Obviously I could do things like say: NO SHOPPING! NO SHOES! NO YOGA! NO EATING OUT!

… but will that really be what will happen?

NO.

So I tried to do something realistic but challenging for me.

TOP 10 CATEGORIES OF SPENDING (80% OF MY BUDGET)

I also took a look at the top 10 budget categories of where I am spending my money.

You’ll note that it is pretty much all practical, required things except for Eating Out.

I consider Gifts required because I plan on giving gifts (edible ones, but gifts nonetheless).

I also like to repair what I own (namely my beloved shoes) such as my Manolo Blahniks below, so that I can keep them for years to come:

Also got my beloved @manoloblahnikhq heels back from @leatherspa in #NYC (the recommended them) and they’re #gorgeous .. They look almost like brand new, I’m beyond impressed with my #shoes .. Well worth the $300 repair price tag.

A photo posted by Sherry @ Save. Spend. Splurge. (@saverspender) on Dec 23, 2015 at 1:23pm PST

THINGS THAT MIGHT CHANGE THIS BUDGET

I fall off the wagon so to speak (75% chance of this happening).
I start working again (25% of this happening).

Hey, let’s be honest. I am not the best at policing my spending but… am I really that far gone that I have zero willpower and strength left from my younger days?

Not a friendly thought.

OTHER NOTES

Any “income” I get from reselling my things (consigned clothing, etc).. I will not count as part of this proposed, fixed, budget.

That extra, unexpected income will just be a bonus / free income for me to spend on whatever I want.

I’ll give myself extra brownie points if I save it instead of spending it.

I am actually thinking about saving all that extra bonus income in an account and spending it all on Black Friday and Boxing Day on sales.

Here goes!

I’m already off to a good start. Instead of going out for some pastries, I decided to stay in and eat oatmeal instead.

(Of course.. I am not mentioning the fact that the bakery was CLOSED.. but that’s beside the point, right?)

Bye bye pastries. *tearfully waves*

The #perfectbreakfast is 2 cheddar croissants from @_mamieclafoutis and some matcha green tea from @davidstea #delicious #yummy

A photo posted by Sherry @ Save. Spend. Splurge. (@saverspender) on Nov 2, 2015 at 5:05am PST

#breakfast today is a chocolatine from @_mamieclafoutis and some matcha from @davidstea #yummy #delicious

A photo posted by Sherry @ Save. Spend. Splurge. (@saverspender) on Oct 19, 2015 at 7:19am PDT

A little raspberry and mandarin Orange clafoutis over at #mamieclafoutis for a little sweet snack #dessert #yummy #yuleats

A photo posted by Sherry @ Save. Spend. Splurge. (@saverspender) on Sep 20, 2015 at 12:53pm PDT

#breakfast this morning. I am totally justified because Baby Bun made me lose my mind last night??????

A photo posted by Sherry @ Save. Spend. Splurge. (@saverspender) on Oct 8, 2015 at 11:18am PDT

19 responses to “Proposed Budget for 2016: Realistic, but Challenging for me”

Leigh

January 11, 2016

I’ve actually resolved to not budget in 2016. So far it is going well. I haven’t even checked in on my spending yet but I’m sure it’s fine. My spending is a bit more consistent than yours though and I am working. I bought a ton of clothing in 2015 and took a big trip so 2016 might end up being cheaper in those areas. Time will tell.

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1. save. spend. splurge.
  
  January 15, 2016
  
  YOU bought a ton of clothing in 2015!? I saw your budget, you spent like nothing.. or maybe I am just excessive 😉
  
  Reply
  1. Leigh
    
    January 23, 2016
    
    I spent almost six thousand dollars on clothing :/ That’s a pretty decent amount for me, haha – usually I spend closer to two thousand dollars on clothing per year. I think you’re just excessive 😉
    
    Reply
    1. save. spend. splurge.
      
      January 24, 2016
      
      HAHAHA! I am very excessive. That is true. This is why 2016 is my year of re-discovering my willpower.
      
      Reply
Sarah

January 7, 2016

I’ve been debt free for 6 years and it is SO HARD to stick to a budget, esp food! I’ve done really well with going to Starbucks less, though my crazy work schedule might have something to do with it. I’m also going to try to limit my spending on my wardrobe, and put that towards more books. I realize that as much as I like beautiful clothes, I find more value in a good book.

BTW, loved the interview with you on So Money!

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The Asian Pear

January 6, 2016

How can your website be just a dollar for the year? You have your own website name. o_o? Is it that affordable? Can I afford an theasianpear.com!??! 😀

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1. save. spend. splurge.
  
  January 7, 2016
  
  I prepaid about $1000 in 2015 for the next 10 years. 🙂
  
  Reply
Anne

January 6, 2016

I just found your blog and am digging everything about it. I do have one question: what kind of work do you do? It sounds like you have/had various side gigs but you also mentioned earning good money freelancing. Earning is the primary issue in my budget right now, so I’m not sure I’d be able to use your budgeting tool yet!

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1. save. spend. splurge.
  
  January 7, 2016
  
  1. I’m a consultant — that’s my main job.
  
  2. I do not do various side gigs the way others do…. per se. I mean, I sell on eBay, Craigslist, consignment, sometimes I do some consulting work (a week or so) for assessment analysis but that’s about it.
  
  3. Then I blog. That sort of makes some money.. under $50 a month, negligible because it goes towards paying for the name, hosting, etc.
  
  Reply
Ramona

January 6, 2016

Being in debt really put a finder under my ‘you know what’. Now that we forgot how it felt back then we do tend to be more lax with money. This year I also plan on getting back on track and be more responsible. Lifestyle inflation is indeed an issue for many of us.

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1. save. spend. splurge.
  
  January 6, 2016
  
  I agree. I’m not in debt so I am not under fire..
  
  Reply
Lani

January 6, 2016

Curious to know how this ends up for you. I always set up budgets, but the unexpected always pops up and ends up blowing my budget. I also under budget for food (eating out, a glass of wine, that yummy looking cake at the grocery store), and under budget for clothing (something always tears…especially with the dog and her long nails snagging on my sweater…true story…happened last week!) Keep us posted with monthly updates! 🙂

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1. save. spend. splurge.
  
  January 6, 2016
  
  Gah. We’ll see. Income is $0.. so that’ll be painful 🙂
  
  Reply
Xin

January 6, 2016

Those pastries do look delicious, especially the cheddar croissants. I’ve never actually thought about what my budget for the entire year would add up to, though I have every transaction tracked so I always have the data to look back on my spending at the end of the month or the year. I do shudder a little at the thought of tracking how much I spend on food as a percentage of my total expenses though. I eat out a fair bit, though I try to keep those costs under control by sticking with moderately priced (for NYC) restaurants, but somehow my grocery expenditures always push me into spending way too much on food every month. NYC groceries are unusually expensive though…

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1. save. spend. splurge.
  
  January 6, 2016
  
  Food.. food is going to be my demise this year.
  
  Reply
middle class

January 6, 2016

I like how you also figure out percentages in terms of spending. I think I’ll have to do this although I’m afraid to see the percentages for housing, car and health care. . I think $500 for clothing might be the biggest challenge for you. However, if you get “extra’ income from selling stuff, you can probably spend a lot more in this area. I bet you can spend less than $250 on baby clothes though. Are you not working to stay home with Baby Bun? Maybe I need to read older posts to catch up….

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1. save. spend. splurge.
  
  January 6, 2016
  
  I am going to try and conserve every penny with $0 income coming in…
  
  Less than $250 on Baby Bun will be fine for me, I need a hat, a swimsuit, long pants, long shirts.. just little things for the summer.
  
  I am not working to stay at home with Baby Bun. I am working to not stay home with him and go crazy.. LOL
  
  Reply
Kim @ Needing The Dough

January 6, 2016

I agree it’s so much easier to budget when you’re getting out of debt! It’s much easier to visualize the end game – you can easily measure and track progress towards a zero balance. It’s much harder to do that when you’re looking at an infinite amount of options when looking at growth potential. Also, a debt is an obligation to someone else. You’re not obligated to save, but you are obligated to pay your debts back. I think that’s what makes it easier to budget and stick with it. You have someone holding you accountable (the loan holder) to pay back the debt – no one is going to really say anything if you don’t save your money and spend it all.

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1. save. spend. splurge.
  
  January 6, 2016
  
  Yeah, you really see your debt going down with each payment, whereas building equity.. it is limitless which is hard to define.
  
  Reply