Every month, I post a report of our expenses to show that it is possible to live a comfortable, exciting, and adventurous life without breaking the bank. The less money you spend, the less you need to make. 🙂
This report includes ALL of our expenses, in US$, for the two of us. Under groceries we incorporate all the food, produce, and non-alcoholic drinks predominantly bought in supermarkets. Toiletries belong in that category as well. Dining out means eating at a restaurant/event or purchasing take-out food. The health category covers non-prescription medicines and Mark's vitamins and supplements; medical contains prescription drugs and doctor's visits. Because of our income level, Mark and I are eligible for free health care within the state of Massachusetts. For check-ups, we both return to the East Coast.
Mark, Maya, and I are living and traveling full-time in our van again, recently in the Maritimes (East Coast) of Canada. That - and a "surprise" hurricane - explains the delays with my blog posts, as we don't have a cost-prohibitive data plan in this country. Ironically, we still pay for the one in the US without using it. Luckily, it is quite easy to find free WiFi here in libraries, visitor centers, Tim Horton's, McDonalds, Walmart, and Canadian Tire, among other businesses. Usually, we briefly stop to grab emails and send the next batch, prepared offline. Once in a while - ideally on a rainy day - we do more effort to find long-term internet.
Boondocking in the city of Halifax, Nova Scotia
August was an average spending month, I'd say, except for the extras, like my dentist visit in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, a haircut before we left on our adventure, and new shoes and flip flops for Mark. But, every month has something special in store! I was tempted to put that $8 for parking under "camping" as we spent the night on the same lot in Halifax, but, parking there is free between 6pm and 8am, so - once again - we boondocked (or "urban camped" in this case) for free and had a nice evening out on top of it.
September 16, 2019 at 11:33
I didn’t get a notice about this blog. But saw it since I’m catching up on my blog reading – next to catch up on my blog writing and our August expense report!
As always you did great – especially since I’ve heard that Canada is more expensive on some things.
Interesting that you can get free wifi at Canadian Tire.
September 20, 2019 at 19:18
Hi Duwan – something must have gone wrong with the notifications for this blog post, as it feels like not too many people saw it. I’m not even sure whether I detected the email about it in my inbox, which I signed up for to test things…
It’s really annoying me how settings seem to change, without me changing anything. For example the last batch of comments ended up in my spam folder, while they usually appear in my inbox. Things go berserk, especially related to WordPress and there is nothing we can do about it.
We find Canada is more expensive in general, despite our stronger US dollar. Especially fuel and alcohol. It does help that all these provinces charge 15% tax on everything and that prices usually lie a bit higher for products than south of the border.
Happy catching up with blog writing and such!
September 16, 2019 at 18:49
You guys must eat like birds. Our grocery bill in our very expensive city, I don’t even want to say so you won’t fall off a chair, lol. 🙂
September 20, 2019 at 19:38
Debby, we (and especially me) are pigs when it comes to food and eating! We always eat more (and faster) than anyone else at the table. If there is anyone else. And, luckily, Maya does not sit at the table.
I think prices in the US are just much lower than in Canada and especially Toronto. We always compare prices, buy things on sale (or in the cheaper shops) and stick to basic goods and produce. That being said, we eat very well and healthy, but not much meat.
By the way, our camper doesn’t have chairs, so there is no worry of me falling off one. 🙂
September 21, 2019 at 07:57
Lol, that was funny! But seriously, you guys are rocking this budget thing! 🙂
September 18, 2019 at 11:38
Once again you’ve managed to keep it lean! Our household expenses are quite manageable, but we pay more in insurance per month than we do for living expenses. The problem with insurance is that once you have it, you’re afraid to get rid of it. 🙂
September 21, 2019 at 16:09
I assume when you mention insurance expenses, it’s for properties and cars and such, as health care should be manageable in Canada, right? Yep, once you have it, it seems extremely risky to get rid of it. We paid for boat insurance for eight years when we lived, worked and cruised on our sailboat. $3,000 a year… I’d rather not think about what that added up to, without ever using or needing it! 🙁
September 22, 2019 at 22:45
Ouch! That’s the problem exactly. If you never need it or use it, you feel gypped; but doing without it is scary!