As stated in post 1, to save cash for our journey Natalie and I are attempting to cut our expenses and increase our income.

Increasing our income

1. As Natalie is currently working part time for Starbucks, we can greatly increase our income if she begins to work full time. To that end, Natalie has taken a full time job in Dearborn, Michigan.
2. In addition to working full time at her new job, Natalie will also continue working at Starbucks. Currently, she is attempting to transfer to a store in the Metro Detroit area. Starbucks is usually very accommodating but as her transfer has not gone through yet we are not sure whether working 1 or 2 nights a week at Starbucks will be a possibility.
3. As a consultant, I am paid on an hourly basis but I am expected to work 40 hours a week (so is everyone else right?). However, currently I am involved with several projects and my work load lends to exceed 40 hours a week. This extra money will be helpful in saving for the trip.

Cutting Expenses

1. Our current largest monthly expenditure is rent. Drastically decreasing our rent is a vital part of cutting our expenses. Currently Natalie and I live in Winter Park, Fl but we will be moving to Livonia, Mi in 6 days. As Natalie and I grew up in Livonia, the easiest way to lower our rent would be to move in with someone with an extra room or two.
   • Suffice it to say that Natalie and I will be living in my parent’s house (for a small monthly rate) for the 5 months we will be in Detroit. This will only work because during the summer my mother moves 3 hours north where she takes up residence at my parents vacation home. Meanwhile, my dad works late most nights and commutes to Northern Michigan on the weekends. In reality, the 4 of us will not be spending much time living in the same house. I point this out not because I don’t love my parents ( I do) but because I would not want our dream to inconvenience their lives. I think sharing a home with their son and his wife might qualify as an inconvenience.
2. The only other way to cut our monthly expenses is to live as cheap as possible. This means that we will not be going out to eat, not buying stuff we don’t need, and generally making every dollar we spend go as far as possible. (I will try to post some specific examples of what this actually means in the future.)

At the moment, this is all I can think of. in terms of increasing our income and decreasing our expenses. I know that the list is small, but the calculations show that these sacrifices (yes I know some of them are drastic… beer is not usually considered a need) will allow us to save the necessary cash to make this trip a reality.
Disclaimer: My parents are not getting divorced nor are they planning on an extensive separation . Although it is a bit odd, my parents do live in different locations every summer. Trust me, they talk enough on the phone that they may not realize that they are living in different geographical area

Tags | money, Planning