Happy new financial year . . .

. . . and may it be a good one for you. We’ve reassessed (again!) and hope that the first pay of this new tax system means more in the bank. Regardless, I am only going to count on what I know we have ~ anything else can be counted as a bonus (and swiftly be placed on the credit card). Tipping MyMan would like to salary sacrifice any extra on a new mobile phone ~ because I know he does *winks*

I don’t really know how this post came to be. I don’t like talking dollars and cents to the specific ~ but many people I know just do not seem to believe that
a) our shopping bill is less than $100 per week
b) our energy bills are down low (and in credit with water)
c) we have been shopping at $10 per head per week for the last 6-8 weeks.

I certainly am an expensive little creature. *preens* What’s more ~ that which we do spend on me is not all it should be. I should be seeing the osteopath every week – that is financially infeasible. I should be seeing the acupuncturist every week – again – infeasible. But it works out fine if I alternate which one I see which week and get by. This from someone about to get their pain meds up’d and hopefully on oxycodone in higher mgs. HA!!


I have also let the counselling slide a little *gulp* – my proffered excuse is the outlay has been a bit difficult to manage with the playing catch up with bills (although most utilities have had provisions to enable delay payment without disconnection). Yes, you can get the ‘free’ sessions through Medicare ~ you need to pay the bill first THEN get a rebate. We were still always $40 out of pocket. I know, I know – it is important and I think I would like to re-address that. Next week . . .

At least we were ‘intelligent’ enough to have only taken out a mortgage we could sustain. Sitting currently around 1/3 of take home pay. We took a mortgage out on two incomes, factoring we could manage it to the level of 50% of one income. Mind you - definitely no massive mortgage on a Mansion!!

So far this has turned out to be a good strategy seeing as two years in to our first mortgage I had to stop work (one full year without pay for me so far, hopefully only another 2 before I can be working again!!).

So there is me. While I might be a costly wench, I am a heck of a lot cheaper now I have the pension card granted – and that is $86pf that gets put away for rates, rego and ‘savings’ ~ I used to need over $500 a month JUST for medications. Three meds were $70-$90 ea and two were needed twice a month. Adds up. Now my meds are $45 a month, and as I am about at the threshold, they will be free!! THAT will be a break and $45 a month up the sleeve. 2hrs work ‘earned’ – or 3 hours if I take a pay cut!

OK ~ time for the breaking down of the budget . . .

It goes without saying ~ we are on an OK income, but not a big one. *grins* It was a heck of a lot better before I had to stop working. Let’s just say, from the $100-$120k bracket, we are now half that. And we’d only had that for a few years, squirreled for the mortgage, zero’d and rid ourselves of one CC and reduced the other by 2/3 – so there was no frivolous spending.
It’s a huge drop ~ but here is the management!

• Monthly in : $ 4294 (this includes my $412pm in disability pension and family allowance)
• Monthly Meds : Osteo - $110; Acupuncture - $140; Hydro - $45; Meds - $30 (mind you – pre PCCard this was $544pm!!); counselling - $80 (after rebates - $220 up front). So that’s : $405pm
• Monthly Majors : Morty - $1380; Fare - $490 ($600 if hubby travelled daily – so he stays in Melbourne if he cant be in on the train by 7pm – no buses after then); Fuel - $250; Fred’s counselling - $45 (after rebate); Credit Card - $300 : That’s $2465pm
• Monthly Musts : Home phone - $60; My Mobile - $49; MyMan’s mobile - $89; Electricity - $120; Gas - $80; Firewood - $95; Internet - $69; Insurances - $161; Fred’s Guitar lessons - $132, Overdue bill payment - $40. That’s $935pm

Food is around $300 per month. Adding that to the rest – we have $4105 going out and $4294 coming in. The 'surplus' is used for those accounts we need to pay in full and claim rebates ~ we collect the account for rebates and cash in for Christmas, birthdays, rates and rego! It works as the money is not spent – and this way we’ve kept track of the paperwork for the last few years ~ never been so good at doing that for ourselves!!

SO ~ ~ the head stays up – how?

Oh – how often do I ask myself that question! By my understanding, now that our taxes are up to date, our Centrelink debt will cease to exist and there may be a little windfall in a higher rate of payment. Using the centrelink rate calculator and over estimating MyMan’s income by $10k – as you do – that should be an extra $100 or so a fortnight. And the debt we have with the overdue account payment plan should be almost finished – October I believe.

Of course, optimistic rose-tinted me has faith in the Victorian Public Health system and anticipates that surgery will hopefully occur within the next 3 months = as per a category 2 patient would anticipate (and it has already been close to 4 months waiting…). This way rehabilitation and recuperation can be underway before the year’s end – hopefully resulting in some income earning capacity by the start of the next financial year?!

Always planning . . .
Always positive . . .

I prefer my glass half full