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I was able to increase my hours during the last part of March and throughout April, which turned out really good for my April Savings Report as you will see below.
For a side hustle, I am considering picking up a video relay interpreting position. Several colleagues have mentioned how they are able to go into the call center and pick up hours anytime they need.
The call center is close to my home and picking up hours anytime I need is really appealing right now since the first half of the spring semester was a lot slower with work out in the community. We shall see.
Extra money this month
- Craigslist sales $5
- Money skimmed from regular budget items $43.01
- Budget items saved for annual bills $224
- Trimmed expenses (i.e. internet/cellphone) $80.08
- Found money $1
- Extra hustle money $886
- Cash back from bank $7.81
- Returned Premiums/deductible $262.78
- Total saved: $1,509.68
Where is the money going?
- Regular checking/annual bills: $899.97
- Emergency Fund: $359.71
- Car Repair/Replace: $250
Running totals
- Emergency fund-$409.77
- School- I paid for the summer session, which drained the fund. Now, I need to start saving for fall.
- Car Repair/Replace: $250
Grand total of savings in 2015: $2,240.94
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Reflections
I ended up working more freelance work last year, plus several income reducing items for taxes were decreased (which is nice for our monthly budget, but not for taxes), which resulted in a large tax bill in April. I had some of the money saved up, but had to take the rest out of savings because most of my paychecks came in after April 15th.
After worrying about how to juggle the timing of getting paid and paying my tax bill for a couple of weeks, I finally had a light bulb moment. I had the money in savings. Yes, the money was earmarked for something else, but yes, paychecks were coming in later in the month to pay myself back.
So I went ahead and cleaned out my savings. What do you know, I had more peace and was not worrying about it any longer. Sometimes, I just need to move forward and act instead of juggling the questions and the worries. I finished the month with lots of margin, even with enough to put some money towards expenses in May.
I am readjusting the amount which is taken out of my check at the college and will be sending in more on my estimated tax payments. I will be much happier if I do not have such a large tax bill next year!
Another note, switching banks, with accounts at two separate banks being merged into one new account, is confusing as all get out! I persevered, cleaned up my Quicken
Regarding my car replacement fund, my husband and I decided to first build up a repair fund of $1,000 before putting money aside to replace the car. Receiving a portion back of a deductible I paid on a claim was a nice surprise this month and will start off the repair fund.
One more school semester has been paid for; I am crossing Summer 2015 off of the list! We are getting closer to the end. If all goes well, there are 3 more semesters (with maybe a summer class) on the horizon.
My car insurance premium was coming due, so I called to see if there was any way I could save some money. Score! I was able to save just under $40 per six month period and I found out that we did indeed have full glass coverage. Since I had two huge cracks in my windshield, I was able to put in a claim and get a replacement. For Free!
This is the third regular bill I have been able to decrease just by making a couple of phone calls. My monthly commitments have decreased by about $80 so far, which means in one year I will be able to save $960. When are you going to start making some phone calls yourself? Now, I just have to decide which bill needs to be tackled next.
Hey, I wanted to thank you all for being so encouraging last month when I was complaining about the small amount I was able to put into savings. You cheered me up and reminded me even the small amounts will continue to grow.
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Hi! I’m Charissa. I’m on a mission to help hardworking women overcome money struggles and gain financial peace with a Biblical perspective so they can have the freedom to impact their families and communities. Ready to make some changes that will impact your finances in 2020? Click here to get a free worksheet to help you make it happen!
Way to go! Making the phone calls is so worth it! We were able to reduce our car insurance premium and phone bill this way.
I totally agree! Now, I am trying to challenge everything to see if I can reduce the monthly amount. How much did you save per month with reducing your car insurance and your phone bill? Are you keeping track of the savings?
We were able to save $30/month on our cell phone bill and add a a third car to our insurance for the same amount we’re now paying to insure two cars. We are keeping track of the savings on these items.
Nice work! 3 cars for the price of 2…hmm makes you wonder how the insurance figures that one out.
You are doing awesome with the side hustles and increasing your savings! That’s great that you won’t have to travel so far to earn a little extra money. I just paid my car insurance for 6 months so now I will start saving for the next installment ahead of time. Unfortunately, I haven’t even started contributing to my new car fund since I’m still paying my current one off and I expect it to last me a few more years. I will start putting money aside for sure next year though.
Thanks Chonce! The not traveling so much aspect is very appealing to me right now. I can easily spend two hours or more a day driving around the city to my various jobs and traffic gets old real fast. The video relay position would be my side hustle. It is hard to say what is ‘side hustle’ with my current job, though I guess working Saturdays could be considered a side hustle.
Paying insurance in installments is great after you make the initial lump sum, I just keep the monthly amount in my budget and throw it in savings each month. An easy way to save for your new car is pay off the car and keep making those payments to yourself. I wished I would have done that along the way, but tuition kept taking priority. When do you think you will have your car paid off?
This is the first time I actually made a 6-month insurance payment and it’s so much better than doing it monthly, and I just save the monthly amount each month so I can be ready for the next payment. I’m excited that my car should be payed off in full by December of this year. So I can start saving for a new one in January.
Good for you! Now you will be able to save a little bit on your monthly premiums too, by paying it in full. December? You don’t have much longer to go until it is paid off, I am excited for you!
Great job finding ways to save money! So glad you were able to get your windshield for free, that’s awesome!
Thanks Kristin! Replacing my windshield was such a huge blessing; I had so many chips and two giant cracks causing the sun glare to be pretty bad and there will be $200 I can put into my car repair fund to actually start building that up. Finding out I had full glass was worth far more than the $7/month I will be saving on the premium!