On July 19 we went to the Brakley Drive-In to view Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. This turned out to be a great idea as both the drive-in experience is quite entertaining and it is far cheaper than going to a traditional theater. Here's a break down of the costs:
Drive-in
Admission: normally it would by $7.50/person, but we went to the Drive-in website and printed off some coupons for $1 off each person so $13.00. Note though that this is the cost for two movies. We only stayed for the first one, but if you watch both then your savings will be even better.
Snacks: we brought our own air-popped popcorn, water, as well as our delicious 7-layer dip. I'll say as an estimate that this cost $2
Fuel to get there: the drive-in is about 17 km out of town so based on my data for mileage at 9.824 L/100 km, this works out to $3.89 based on an average gas price of $1.165/L.
Total Cost: $18.89
Traditional Theater
Admission: ticket prices Mon-Thurs are $8.75 and more on the weekends. If we had of gone to the regular theater on the same night, this would have cost $17.50.
Snacks: here's where things get interesting. For the equivalent food that we ate, had we bought it at the theater, we would have paid $6.74 for two 591 ml bottles of water priced at $3.37 each, $12.80 for two things of nachos at $6.40 each, and $6.05 for a large popcorn for a total of $25.59.
Fuel to get there: it's about 3.5 km to the theater from our place so given the numbers above, fuel would cost a mere $0.80.
Total Cost: $43.89
Conclusions
To no one's surprise, the traditional theater is about 2.3 times more expensive than the drive-in. This is pretty much an expected result given the huge mark-ups on food. However, you can combat that somewhat by bringing in plastic bags and taking liberal advantage of the unlimited free refill policy on large popcorns :D.
Monday, July 30, 2007
Monday, July 16, 2007
PEI Public Transit: Hard on your wallet and the evironment
I've occasionally been commuting to work via a mixture of public transit and driving our car. To ease on wear and tear of our vehicle, I've have been toying with the idea of getting a monthly bus pass. The cost for a single bus trip is $2 (see UPDATE below)
You can see the route here and it works out to be just over 6 kilometers. Conveniently enough, I've also been tracking our mileage on the car for the past 3 months and have built up a good data set. The pink line is the average #L/100km while the straight blue line is the trendline.
Our average mileage for this time period was 9.7L/100km.
With this information I can see roughly how much it would cost in gasoline to drive to work for every 5-day work week. Six kilometers there and back = 12 km round trip gives 60km per week and 240 km/month. This distance equates to 23.3L. If I take the average gas price for this time period to be $1.17/L (I kept track of prices as well) then this amount of gas would run me $27.24.
This is significantly cheaper than the $50 per month student bus pass. A regular pass costs $60. Thus in order to break even on the student pass I would have to drive an extra 200 kilometers per month which would cost $22.76 in fuel. These extra kilometers would have to be in areas where the bus services of course. As well, gas prices are always fluctuating so those extra kilometers are just an estimate. For an extreme, gas prices would have to be $2.15/L for me to break even with no extra kilometers.
In addition to the high cost of the pass, there is also a time investment. It takes roughly 10 minutes to drive to my job. However, the adventure that is public transit begins at 6:54 am followed by a transfer at 7:21 am and finally arriving at work at 7:37am for a total of 42 minutes of transit. Coming home, the bus doesn't arrive until 20 minutes after my shift is over at 4:00pm, then there is a transfer at 4:40 and arriving at home at approximately 4:48. For those following a long, you'll note that the grand total for transit and wait time for the day is 90 minutes.
That is a lot of time to spend doing essentially nothing although it does give me a chance to read.
Finally, the environmental side. I find that many people do not take advantage of public transfer and the buses are usually quite empty. I am often the only passenger. It would be interesting to see what the break even point for a diesel engine versus several cars would be in terms of emissions. I think more people need to be using this service for it to help the environment in any significant way.
One can argue that the bus will be running anyways regardless of the number of passengers, so that by driving, you are only saving money at the expense of the environment. This is a valid point. However, using a portion of that $22.76 difference between fuel and bus pass, one can offset those C02 emissions by purchasing a re-usable shopping bag, purchase some CFLs, or some other green venture. Thus for now, I think the majority of my commuting will be done by car unless I can be convinced otherwise.
UPDATE: As mentioned, I have been using a mix of bus trips with public transit. Curious to see where the break even point was between a combination of both and just getting the pass, I fired up Excel and did a few calculations.
To drive to work assuming $1.17/L (we get midgrade), costs 11.4 cents per kilometer. If I buy a pass and just use it for work related commuting, the cost per kilometer is 20.8 cents. If you just pay $2 every trip, the cost is 33.3 cents per kilometer. Thus driving is actually cheaper per kilometer than public transit. This of course ignores maintenance related issues for my vehicle, but for 240 km, I'm assuming the cost is negligible. Our oil change is about $40 every 3 months so you could tack on an extra $13.33/month or 5.55 cents per kilometer to the driving cost and still end up saving money.
Assuming that I choose to continue what I am presently doing, if I take the bus 18 times and drive the remaining 22 trips, the cost is $51, at which point it would be cheaper to have just gotten the pass (ignoring the value of time concern described above).
You can see the route here and it works out to be just over 6 kilometers. Conveniently enough, I've also been tracking our mileage on the car for the past 3 months and have built up a good data set. The pink line is the average #L/100km while the straight blue line is the trendline.
Our average mileage for this time period was 9.7L/100km.With this information I can see roughly how much it would cost in gasoline to drive to work for every 5-day work week. Six kilometers there and back = 12 km round trip gives 60km per week and 240 km/month. This distance equates to 23.3L. If I take the average gas price for this time period to be $1.17/L (I kept track of prices as well) then this amount of gas would run me $27.24.
This is significantly cheaper than the $50 per month student bus pass. A regular pass costs $60. Thus in order to break even on the student pass I would have to drive an extra 200 kilometers per month which would cost $22.76 in fuel. These extra kilometers would have to be in areas where the bus services of course. As well, gas prices are always fluctuating so those extra kilometers are just an estimate. For an extreme, gas prices would have to be $2.15/L for me to break even with no extra kilometers.
In addition to the high cost of the pass, there is also a time investment. It takes roughly 10 minutes to drive to my job. However, the adventure that is public transit begins at 6:54 am followed by a transfer at 7:21 am and finally arriving at work at 7:37am for a total of 42 minutes of transit. Coming home, the bus doesn't arrive until 20 minutes after my shift is over at 4:00pm, then there is a transfer at 4:40 and arriving at home at approximately 4:48. For those following a long, you'll note that the grand total for transit and wait time for the day is 90 minutes.
That is a lot of time to spend doing essentially nothing although it does give me a chance to read.
Finally, the environmental side. I find that many people do not take advantage of public transfer and the buses are usually quite empty. I am often the only passenger. It would be interesting to see what the break even point for a diesel engine versus several cars would be in terms of emissions. I think more people need to be using this service for it to help the environment in any significant way.
One can argue that the bus will be running anyways regardless of the number of passengers, so that by driving, you are only saving money at the expense of the environment. This is a valid point. However, using a portion of that $22.76 difference between fuel and bus pass, one can offset those C02 emissions by purchasing a re-usable shopping bag, purchase some CFLs, or some other green venture. Thus for now, I think the majority of my commuting will be done by car unless I can be convinced otherwise.
UPDATE: As mentioned, I have been using a mix of bus trips with public transit. Curious to see where the break even point was between a combination of both and just getting the pass, I fired up Excel and did a few calculations.
To drive to work assuming $1.17/L (we get midgrade), costs 11.4 cents per kilometer. If I buy a pass and just use it for work related commuting, the cost per kilometer is 20.8 cents. If you just pay $2 every trip, the cost is 33.3 cents per kilometer. Thus driving is actually cheaper per kilometer than public transit. This of course ignores maintenance related issues for my vehicle, but for 240 km, I'm assuming the cost is negligible. Our oil change is about $40 every 3 months so you could tack on an extra $13.33/month or 5.55 cents per kilometer to the driving cost and still end up saving money.
Assuming that I choose to continue what I am presently doing, if I take the bus 18 times and drive the remaining 22 trips, the cost is $51, at which point it would be cheaper to have just gotten the pass (ignoring the value of time concern described above).
Monday, July 2, 2007
A Public Apology
Over the history of the Boyz Boyz, no one was more vocal than I in giving Sam a hard time about his not spending money.
However, now that I am older and (somewhat) more responsible with my money, I realize that Sam had his head on straight from a very early age. As far as I know, he simply didn't buy frivolous things. The only major money that left his hands was for skim milk (8 litres a week?!) and for vehicular reasons; first with a truck that I believe he went half on with his brother and then his current car. I'm sure Neil will correct me on any particulars here.
When we went out cruising, often without Sam, we'd joke and go on about his unwillingness to part with money. I don't think that we really understood why he wouldn't want to go out and spend time (and usually money) with his friends. The comment I believe I made about this was in reply to Sam saying "there's more ways to have fun than by spending money". My response: "Yeah, that's called masturbation." I realize now that he was right.
I still don't know what the origin of Sam's frugality is. Whether it comes from his parents instilling the value of a dollar in him early on or through his own realization that yes indeed, I don't have to spend money to have fun. It might have come through an early determination about what his values and goals are and that money only played a role in fulfilling those. Or it really might be an attitude of "it's my money you can't have it." I'm not sure, but I am going to find out.
However, now that I am older and (somewhat) more responsible with my money, I realize that Sam had his head on straight from a very early age. As far as I know, he simply didn't buy frivolous things. The only major money that left his hands was for skim milk (8 litres a week?!) and for vehicular reasons; first with a truck that I believe he went half on with his brother and then his current car. I'm sure Neil will correct me on any particulars here.
When we went out cruising, often without Sam, we'd joke and go on about his unwillingness to part with money. I don't think that we really understood why he wouldn't want to go out and spend time (and usually money) with his friends. The comment I believe I made about this was in reply to Sam saying "there's more ways to have fun than by spending money". My response: "Yeah, that's called masturbation." I realize now that he was right.
I still don't know what the origin of Sam's frugality is. Whether it comes from his parents instilling the value of a dollar in him early on or through his own realization that yes indeed, I don't have to spend money to have fun. It might have come through an early determination about what his values and goals are and that money only played a role in fulfilling those. Or it really might be an attitude of "it's my money you can't have it." I'm not sure, but I am going to find out.
Monday, June 18, 2007
Grocery Musings
Recently we moved to Charlottetown and with that comes a myriad of new expenses. Food is obviously one of the more important ones and as anyone that has moved before knows, that first few weeks of groceries can get pretty expensive.
With that in mind, I made up a shopping list of items we would need for our first foray back into the supermarket scene. Once I had the list, I decided to go through it at each of the two main supermarkets, The Atlantic Superstore and Sobeys to see which place had the cheaper product. This was done prior to actually going out to purchase items so there is an extra travel cost associated with doing this. As well, it takes a long time if you have a big list. I spend about an hour at each place finding items as well as calculating their unit cost.
I found that around 75% of the items on my list were cheaper at Superstore, while the remainder was less pricey at Sobeys. There seemed to be a general trend that the items that we needed which required freezing or refrigeration such as frozen veggies, extra lean ground beef, and margarine, were cheaper at Sobeys. Staple items such as canned goods, fresh produce, and toiletries could be found at lower cost at Superstore.
Naysayers to this method may state that their time is too valuable to be doing this every time you go shopping. Well to save a trip the following week, we went to Superstore first, priced our new list there and the following day went to Sobeys, priced items and purchased them at the same time if they were cheaper. However, this run we noticed that no items on our list were cheaper at Sobeys, so back to Superstore for us.
As well, despite taking time and effort to determine the location of cheaper goods, that time is only overhead for the first few months at most. Once you've done that and collected a good database of information about the prices of items you regularly buy, then a simple comparison of grocery list vs. spreadsheet can tell you where to go. So over the long run, you will save money and time.
Some additional points should be mentioned. In addition to the basic cost of goods, both stores have flyers every week that should be looked at and factored in to where you will shop. Both stores also have reward plans for shopping: Superstore has PC points and Sobeys has Air Miles. Both points can be redeemed for merchandise other than groceries, though with Air Miles the selection is much broader. If these plans would influence where you shop, make sure you pick the one that makes the most sense for you.
In closing, I'm still on the fence about doing price checks again as it does take a fair bit of time and I haven't convinced myself that the potential savings are worth it. As well I can say one thing for sure: If you are shopping at Superstore, you are probably already saving money. I say probably because the amount of items that are more expensive is so low, that the savings you generate from other items outweigh their extra cost or at least break even.
With that in mind, I made up a shopping list of items we would need for our first foray back into the supermarket scene. Once I had the list, I decided to go through it at each of the two main supermarkets, The Atlantic Superstore and Sobeys to see which place had the cheaper product. This was done prior to actually going out to purchase items so there is an extra travel cost associated with doing this. As well, it takes a long time if you have a big list. I spend about an hour at each place finding items as well as calculating their unit cost.
I found that around 75% of the items on my list were cheaper at Superstore, while the remainder was less pricey at Sobeys. There seemed to be a general trend that the items that we needed which required freezing or refrigeration such as frozen veggies, extra lean ground beef, and margarine, were cheaper at Sobeys. Staple items such as canned goods, fresh produce, and toiletries could be found at lower cost at Superstore.
Naysayers to this method may state that their time is too valuable to be doing this every time you go shopping. Well to save a trip the following week, we went to Superstore first, priced our new list there and the following day went to Sobeys, priced items and purchased them at the same time if they were cheaper. However, this run we noticed that no items on our list were cheaper at Sobeys, so back to Superstore for us.
As well, despite taking time and effort to determine the location of cheaper goods, that time is only overhead for the first few months at most. Once you've done that and collected a good database of information about the prices of items you regularly buy, then a simple comparison of grocery list vs. spreadsheet can tell you where to go. So over the long run, you will save money and time.
Some additional points should be mentioned. In addition to the basic cost of goods, both stores have flyers every week that should be looked at and factored in to where you will shop. Both stores also have reward plans for shopping: Superstore has PC points and Sobeys has Air Miles. Both points can be redeemed for merchandise other than groceries, though with Air Miles the selection is much broader. If these plans would influence where you shop, make sure you pick the one that makes the most sense for you.
In closing, I'm still on the fence about doing price checks again as it does take a fair bit of time and I haven't convinced myself that the potential savings are worth it. As well I can say one thing for sure: If you are shopping at Superstore, you are probably already saving money. I say probably because the amount of items that are more expensive is so low, that the savings you generate from other items outweigh their extra cost or at least break even.
Monday, June 4, 2007
A Good Feeling
Last week I performed an action that felt very rewarding. This was the first time I did said action and it's everything everyone says it is. What action is it, faithful readers? That of paying yourself first.
If you've noticed the growing list of financial advice books on the sidebar, you know that I have been acquiring knowledge at a reasonably brisk pace. The common theme throughout many of the books is the importance of paying yourself first. This is also known as The Golden Rule. In short, look at your gross income on your paycheck and take 10% of it and set it aside in a savings account or in some sort of investment. Doing it automatically would be an even better idea as it takes the thinking and sitting-down-to-do-it-ness out of it. The idea sounds simple (and it is) but rarely do people put it in action. It is a key step in setting yourself up for financial freedom/independence in the future.
What I have done prior to last week was pay all our (fiance and me) bills, not spend very much, and what was left at the end of the month was dumped into our PC 4% savings account. This did work out pretty well because our monthly expenses are rather low. We have no rent, no groceries, and no utilities because we are living with my parents. A fine system with which to save money. Many people have the mentality that they will save what ever is left over from paying the bills, but often time there is none left. Little things come up that eat away at your income and erode your potential savings.
So even though our savings were growing every month, I was still paying everyone else first, as if they are more important than us. They aren't. Pam and myself are the two most important people in our lives and as such, we should come first. Thus, last week I looked at our paystubs, figured out 10% of our gross income and transferred the amount into the savings account. No thought was given to car insurance. I couldn't care less about a cell phone bill. I was putting money away for the first time that would help ensure that we will be able to retire early. And it felt good. Try it yourself and I think you will agree.
If you've noticed the growing list of financial advice books on the sidebar, you know that I have been acquiring knowledge at a reasonably brisk pace. The common theme throughout many of the books is the importance of paying yourself first. This is also known as The Golden Rule. In short, look at your gross income on your paycheck and take 10% of it and set it aside in a savings account or in some sort of investment. Doing it automatically would be an even better idea as it takes the thinking and sitting-down-to-do-it-ness out of it. The idea sounds simple (and it is) but rarely do people put it in action. It is a key step in setting yourself up for financial freedom/independence in the future.
What I have done prior to last week was pay all our (fiance and me) bills, not spend very much, and what was left at the end of the month was dumped into our PC 4% savings account. This did work out pretty well because our monthly expenses are rather low. We have no rent, no groceries, and no utilities because we are living with my parents. A fine system with which to save money. Many people have the mentality that they will save what ever is left over from paying the bills, but often time there is none left. Little things come up that eat away at your income and erode your potential savings.
So even though our savings were growing every month, I was still paying everyone else first, as if they are more important than us. They aren't. Pam and myself are the two most important people in our lives and as such, we should come first. Thus, last week I looked at our paystubs, figured out 10% of our gross income and transferred the amount into the savings account. No thought was given to car insurance. I couldn't care less about a cell phone bill. I was putting money away for the first time that would help ensure that we will be able to retire early. And it felt good. Try it yourself and I think you will agree.
Monday, May 21, 2007
66 Goals in 1001 Days
This post ties in with the importance of goal setting and though it doesn't necessarily tie to personal finance, I think these exercises are good for personal development. This can help with finances in the long run.
I think it would give me a great sense of accomplishment to follow along the lines of some other sites such as The Simple Dollar and make the following list of goals I would like to achieve in the next 1001 days (2.75 years). The stipulations of the list are as follows from Triplux:
The Mission:
Complete 101 preset tasks in a period of 1001 days. [I've worked on this for a week and came up with 60 or so that is what I am using. It will still give me a sense of accomplishment and I can add more goals later on.]
The Criteria:
Tasks must be specific (ie. no ambiguity in the wording) with a result that is either measurable or clearly defined. Tasks must also be realistic and stretching (ie. represent some amount of work on my part).
Why 1001 Days?
Many people have created lists in the past - frequently simple goals such as new year's resolutions. The key to beating procrastination is to set a deadline that is realistic. 1001 Days (about 2.75 years) is a better period of time than a year, because it allows you several seasons to complete the tasks, which is better for organizing and timing some tasks such as overseas trips or outdoor activities.
Some common goal setting tips:
1. Be decisive. Know exactly what you want, why you want it, and how you plan to achieve it.
2. Stay Focussed. Any goal requires sustained focus from beginning to end. Constantly evaluate your progress.
3. Welcome Failure. Frequently, very little is learned from a venture that did not experience failure in some form. Failure presents the opportunity to learn and makes the success more worthy.
4. Write down your goals. It clarifies your thinking and reinforces your commitment.
5. Keep your goals in sight. Review them frequently, and ensure that they are always at the forefront of your thinking.
And thus, my list* (in no particular order) that I hope to have done by February 15, 2010:
1. Read the complete archive of The Simple Dollar Website DONE
2. Obtain my Bachelor of Education Degree DONE
3. Sort through my comic books and see which ones can get the boot DONE
4. Read the complete works of William Shakespeare
5. Locate an apartment in Charlottetown DONE
I think it would give me a great sense of accomplishment to follow along the lines of some other sites such as The Simple Dollar and make the following list of goals I would like to achieve in the next 1001 days (2.75 years). The stipulations of the list are as follows from Triplux:
The Mission:
Complete 101 preset tasks in a period of 1001 days. [I've worked on this for a week and came up with 60 or so that is what I am using. It will still give me a sense of accomplishment and I can add more goals later on.]
The Criteria:
Tasks must be specific (ie. no ambiguity in the wording) with a result that is either measurable or clearly defined. Tasks must also be realistic and stretching (ie. represent some amount of work on my part).
Why 1001 Days?
Many people have created lists in the past - frequently simple goals such as new year's resolutions. The key to beating procrastination is to set a deadline that is realistic. 1001 Days (about 2.75 years) is a better period of time than a year, because it allows you several seasons to complete the tasks, which is better for organizing and timing some tasks such as overseas trips or outdoor activities.
Some common goal setting tips:
1. Be decisive. Know exactly what you want, why you want it, and how you plan to achieve it.
2. Stay Focussed. Any goal requires sustained focus from beginning to end. Constantly evaluate your progress.
3. Welcome Failure. Frequently, very little is learned from a venture that did not experience failure in some form. Failure presents the opportunity to learn and makes the success more worthy.
4. Write down your goals. It clarifies your thinking and reinforces your commitment.
5. Keep your goals in sight. Review them frequently, and ensure that they are always at the forefront of your thinking.
And thus, my list* (in no particular order) that I hope to have done by February 15, 2010:
1. Read the complete archive of The Simple Dollar Website DONE
2. Obtain my Bachelor of Education Degree DONE
3. Sort through my comic books and see which ones can get the boot DONE
4. Read the complete works of William Shakespeare
5. Locate an apartment in Charlottetown DONE
We found a nice 2 bedroom apartment in Charlottetown on Falconwood Drive near that messed up intersection of St. Peter's Road and Belvedere Avenue by the Esso. We move in on June 1.
6. Make my own windex
7. Have $18,000 in savings
8. Measure my body fat percentage in some scientific fashion
9. Become lighter by on average 0.5 pounds a week
10. Get Married
11. Open an RRSP
12. Invest in a mutual fund
13. Buy stock in a single company
14. Liquidate unwatched DVDs DONE
15. Purchase a Paderno pot set DONE
16. Beat Halo 2
17. Beat Jet Set Radio Future
18. Get rid of my old computer DONE
19. Liquidate old books DONE
20. Make 5 homemade gifts for people for various events (birthdays, Christmas, etc...) (5/5) DONE
21. Go on 10 relaxing drives around the island with my fiance (0/10)
22. Get in touch with Jon Ben DONE
23. Walk the equivalent of Summerside to Toronto not including every day walking (0/1700 km)
24. Watch Season 1 of The Shield
25. Read the Complete Cerebus series (4/16 TPBs)
26. Talk to Sam about his history with money DONE
27. Plant and grow my own tomatoes
28. Visit Neil in Halifax DONE, but in Winnipeg
29. Vacation in Vancouver DONE in August 09
30. Play 5 games of Ultimate Frisbee (2/5)
31. Cook 12 romantic dinners for my fiance and I (0/12)
32. Become an Ebay seller
33. Open an online trader account
34. Get flowers for my fiance "just because" 5 times (1/5)
35. Paint another 2 paintings in the Bob Ross style (0/2)
36. Do 100 push-ups without taking a break (personal best: 0/100)
37. Spend 10 complete days with my fiance (0/10)
38. Help my fiance's parents clean out a room in their house
39. Write an e-mail to the Guardian about why I won't be voting in the upcoming provincial election DONE
40. Offer to babysit 3 times for my friends so they can go out (0/3)
41. Call Mastercard to see if I can get lower or no annual fees without changing cards
42. Write a letter/e-mail to the guardian explaining my thoughts on the Nitrate groundwater issue and why debating about it in the upcoming election instead of just fixing it is stupid DONE
43. Write an e-mail explaining to Diamond Publishing why Comic Foundry should be included in their catalog
44. Plant a tree
45. Attend a farmer's market and if I like what I see 30 more times (0/30)
46. Determine my personal CO2 emissions (estimate) DONE
47. Reduce those emissions by 20%
48. Convince 5 people to switch to PC Financial for their banking (0/5)
49. Go through unwanted clothing and donate it to the salvation army DONE
50. Reinforce my computer desk with a 2x4 to get the bow out of it DONE
51. Reinforce my makeshift TV stand so it doesn't get a bow in it DONE
52. Read 52 in one sitting to see if it makes much sense
53. Make 10 jars of homemade pasta sauce and give it as gifts (0/10)
54. Finish the few pieces of the puzzle for the paper based on my masters project DONE
55. Do 150 sit-ups without taking a break (personal best 0/150)
56. Wash and wax our car 4 times (0/4)
57. Clean and vacuum the car interior 4 times (0/4)
58. Check the car's air filter and replace/clean if needed 4 times (every 6 months) (0/4)
59. Calculate our net worth DONE
60. Attempt to make my own laundry detergent as per the Simple Dollar DONE
61. Have the only animal I eat be fish/seafood for 4 consecutive months
62. Have my only beverage as water for 8 consecutive months
63. Try being a vegetarian for 5 consecutive months (no animal flesh - eggs/milk/cheese OK) DONE
64. Organize our filing container DONE
65. Pay off completely the debt I expect to incur over the next 2 years from my Bachelor of Education degree
66. Sit down and work the numbers to see if my Mosaik Mastercard is worth paying $100/year for it DONE
*Bear in mind that this list was pieced together over a week or so, so some of the items are complete as of posting.
64. Organize our filing container DONE
65. Pay off completely the debt I expect to incur over the next 2 years from my Bachelor of Education degree
66. Sit down and work the numbers to see if my Mosaik Mastercard is worth paying $100/year for it DONE
*Bear in mind that this list was pieced together over a week or so, so some of the items are complete as of posting.
I will post updates to what I have accomplished every three months as a way to track my progress.
Monday, May 7, 2007
Mmmmmmmmoney
So I have begun to reach my goal of mastering Microsoft Money 2006 Edition in order to track our purchases and finances. It is a very cool program and it is pretty easy to get the basics set up. I currently have all our bank accounts entered and there's a nice little pie chart that shows the distribution of expenses. You can set an expense or asset with the use of categories. For example, there is a category for Hobbies/Leisure and I have two sub-categories under this right now: one for Comics and the other for Sewing (for Pam, not me). Another is Automobile with the sub-categories gasoline, maintenance, payments, etc... Categories are a very nice and necessary feature. More on categories later. Here's an example of a typical pie chart that I found.
However, I have encountered an issue which is solved here, but I have yet to implement it. Any time that money is taken out of an account, Money treats it as an expense. This is fine normally except with the situations of transfers between accounts and credit card payments. For example, if I transfer $1200 from my savings to my chequing account, it thinks I spent $1200 and wants me to categorize it, even though the money hasn't really gone anywhere. The same idea happens with credit card payments. Ideally you would like the credit card as an account and everything you put on it (DVDs, comics, and of course junior bacon cheeseburgers) to be tracked as an expense. The issue lies when you pay the credit card from your bank account. Again money is leaving your account so Money wants to know why. You could put it in the Credit Card Payment category. Do you see the problem with that approach? Money tracks the $10 you spent at Wendy's on the CC, but also considers the $10 for the CC payment as an expense so it looks like you actually spent $20.
Apparently there is an easy fix to this with special categories that cover transfers. Thus bank transfers between accounts and transfers of monies onto a credit card are not counted as either income or expenses. I had tried this during my first run with Money but I must have did something wrong as it messed up my balances within the program to a ridiculous degree. So I deleted all my accounts, including the credit card one I had there originally and started fresh. I have yet to put the credit card back on as I wanted to figure out the transfer problem first. As well, when I redid all my bank accounts there were many more default categories than I had initially. I have zero clue as to why this is.
In short, I am still learning the ins and outs of this program and it should be fun to figure out what useful information I can extract from our spending habits. If you're interested in using a software program to track your monetary endeavours that has more bells and whistles than a simple spreadsheet, think about Microsoft Money. A free alternative called GnuCash can be found here.
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