Browsing Category Budgeting
A little bit goes a long way (international edition)
From Central Ohio, the cheapest international destinations are going to be ones in Central America, the Caribbean, or Mexico. You can take an inexpensive cruise to any of these destinations, but you know me… I gotta bump it up one step.
Let’s say we don’t want to go on a cruise, but would like to spend a week exploring another country. I’ve decided to do this trip as a couple, so let’s see how far $2,400 can get. I have chosen $2,400 because I know that the median household income in Ohio is $46,093, and I’m sure that’s based on the fact that many families in Ohio have two incomes. So let’s say that you have $46,093 per year. After taking out 25 percent for taxes, that’s $34,569 a year. That equates to $2,880 a month. Experts say that you should be spending about 1/3 of your income on housing so that would be $865. I would estimate about $300 for utilities. Let’s say you have two $200 car payments, you spend $150 a week on groceries and fuel, you have a $120 a month cell bill. That still leaves $595 for whatever other bills you have to pay. I am guessing there’s at least $200 in there you could save towards travel.
A little bit goes a long way (couples edition)
Let’s say we started saving $100 in January, and by the time the fall comes around, we’re itching to go somewhere. For starters, I want to handle the objection, “I don’t have $100 to save every month.” Maybe you don’t, but allow me to help you trim the fat.
Let me give you some examples of things that you DON’T need that equal $100 for a couple:
- 4 times dining out at $25 a pop (And don’t kid yourself, you know you eat out way more than 4 times a month)
- 2 movie tickets ($22), 1 trip to Jeni’s ($8), 1 trip to Starbucks ($6), 2 Old Navy t-shirts ($24), one trip to Target where things fly into your cart that you know you didn’t need ($40)
- 2 bottles of wine ($20), 4 fast food meals ($28), 1 set of new sheets ($45), 1 impulse grocery item ($7)
A little bit goes a long way
Travel Guide to Miami
In February, we visited a friend in Miami and she gave us a great all-around tour of the city. The city is quite large, and there are so many things that you could go do and see, so I was glad to have a tour guide. It such a good sampling of the city, that I felt like it was worth writing down for all you Central-Ohioans who need a good 4-5 day trip down south in the dead of winter.
Money-saving hacks I’ve been trying recently
I talk a lot about money-saving on here because it seems that is still the number one reason why people can’t travel. It’s not that they don’t want to, or don’t have the time, it’s just that they don’t have the funds. Recently, I posted about ways you can cut down on your actual travel budget. I wanted to share with you ways that I’ve cut down on my every day spending.
Savings can be used for anything, but we often like to spend our savings on travel. My husband and I have our ups and downs when it comes to getting serious about saving money. Some weeks we do real well, and other weeks we through caution to the wind and go straight to the mall and out to eat wherever we feel like.
