2006 Budget Overview - The BAD
How did I do? Not very well. I overspent on my budget by ~$3000.00.
I was about $1000.00 off on my income due to my budgeting healthcare benefit expenses off my old employer and not adjusting it to actual costs with my current employer.
Specific category notes:
The rising price of gas definitely shows on my budget. I spent ~$300.00 more than planned.
My car repairs were a budget killer at ~$4000.00, because I track that as a separate item from fuel expenses. This single budget item explains away the entire budget deficit.
Buying a motorcycle was *VERY* unplanned and it shows. I could blame this as the budget killer, but it cost me less that the deficit total.
My entertainment budget was over by ~$300.00, but almost that entire amount represents pre-paid tickets for 8 adults to the once in a lifetime Tutankhamen show in Philadelphia for 2007. I hope to recoup most of that from my friends next year when the show takes place.
The ‘household’ category was over by ~$250.00, which is about what I spent on a home warranty service. It sounds crazy, but I renewed it since it’s a one-stop service for household applicance repair. I actually ended up using it to replace my garbage disposal in 2005. I found the convenience to be a worthwhile expense. I sleep better at night knowing I have a number to call. (I was a total wreck during my first home repair crisis, which is a buyer’s remorse story. I know that am a panicker in a crisis, which is why I obsess about being prepared for stuff. I freak out less.)
I am not sure what to make of this one. I overspent on mortgage interest in 2006 by ~$900.00. But since I capped my HELOC to a fixed rate and I can take almost all of mortgage interest amount as a deduction, I can’t call this all horrible since I’ll actually get back some of this category when I file my taxes.
I grossly under estimated my property taxes by ~$500.00. That represents what I paid for my condo and for my car. In VA, there is personal property tax on your vehicle. Now that I know what a full year of taxes are upon my car, I should be able to budget this better. But due to annual real estate reassessment in VA, I might still be way off again. Since markets are flattening, I should be alright. (This may require another post to explain.)
I have the good stuff in another post. Though the overall budget picture was that I overspent, I did a lot better on a few things which surprised me. Stay tuned.
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