The Monthly Expenses of an Early Retiree – April 2020

We incurred many one time expenses for this month and our spending is A LOT higher than usual.

In April we spent $8,666.55.

The Monthly Expenses of an Early Retiree

529 College Plan – $3200

Our contribution to the kids 529 college plan was high for this month. I opened AHP’s 529 account with a one time contribution of $3000. Vanguard has a minimum requirement of $3000 to open an account. We did the same with MBP and now we have one with AHP.

Property Taxes – $3,043.38

This was the first half of our property taxes. The first half was due in April which was extended to July because of COVID-19. We decided to pay it now since we have the money anyway.

Lawn and Garden – $771.56

Aaahhh we live a very luxurious life and hired someone to take care of our lawn. We reseeded the front lawn last year, but it didn’t seem to work. We don’t have the time to take care of the lawn with the newborn and the toddler, so we decided to hire some one else to do it. We will see by this year if it is worth it.

Groceries – $689.8

Groceries are averaging to be about $600 – $700 per month even pre COVID 19. So, the pandemic didn’t seem to change our spending habits. Mr. MMD is currently in charge of our groceries, planning our meals and our main chef. At one point, we used to switch every 7 days but, pregnancy, giving birth, and having a newborn happen. At some point, I’m sure I’ll get back out there.

Others

Auto insurance also kicked in this month. The insurance is for 6 months liability coverage of our Prius. We did not insure my Volkswagen because we never used it.

It’s really weird to be writing this monthly expense in the midst of pandemic. Our spending wasn’t affected at all. We passed the first quarter and our total spending for the year was at 15k. The trend was also downward, perhaps because of the lockdown. Although I’m not sure if we will spend more in normal circumstances. Just to recap, our spending for the year is below:

DescriptionAmountComments
529 College Fund 3,200.0 As described above
Property Tax 3,043.4 Half of our 2020 property taxes
Lawn & Garden771.6Bill for our lawn and garden maintenance
Groceries689.8Food, mostly Costco and Winco
Utilities379.5This includes garbage and water for this month
Auto Insurance192.5Car insurance for our Prius for 6 months
Kids129.2Some items for the kids
HOA Dues68.3
Household Supplies67.4TP, Paper towels, sponges
Internet48.0
Pet Food & Supplies31.4
Mobile Phone16.0Another month of Xfinity mobile for 2 lines using less than 1GB of data
Electronics & Software15.3
Alcohol & Bars7.7A beer for Mr. MMD
Subscription6.6Prime monthly subscription
Grand Total 8,666.55