When you started tracking your spending, what were you overspending on
![[Post New]](/jforum/templates/default/images/icon_minipost_new.gif){kind=icon}
Anonymous
| I see You Need A Budget suggested often enough here, but hoping to get some insight from those who went through the process of diligently tracking their spending to see if there are some common themes. |
Anonymous
| Eating out |
Anonymous
| Takeout/delivery |
Anonymous
|
Takeout / delivery
Baby clothes (started shopping second hand instead) Random target runs/Amazon orders. |
Anonymous
|
Same as everyone here so far - eating out. It is nuts, well over $800 a month and I honestly don't feel like a person that eats out often. In a month where we'd go to a nice restaurant, we'd be over $1000.
Also travel, but that didn't surprise me. Weekend cabins or Airbnbs, 1-2 trips per year, visiting family once or twice. For a family of four, it's a fortune these days. |
Anonymous
| Random impulse purchases from Amazon. |
Anonymous
| Like the others - takeout food. |
Anonymous
|
Food
I realized that I am almost a prepper |
Anonymous
This. My husband was worse than me, but we were both guilty. |
Anonymous
| We realized we were overspending on mid priced restaurants. We felt like fancy dinners out and fast food for convenience were worth it but random trips to Chipotle and pizza weren’t. |
Anonymous
| Definitely eating out |
Anonymous
|
Our take out budget is embarrassing, even for DCUM. Much higher than some posted. I hate weeknight cooking.
If I wanted to cut back, I'd batch cook on the weekends. I know how to reduce the line item, but the will is weak. |
Anonymous
| Whole foods |
Anonymous
|
Home improvements/interior design; gambling; Starbucks.
I was surprised that I don't spend as much on entertainment as I thought I did. |
Anonymous
|
What is overspending? Does every thing over bare necessities and fixed cost overspending? Is having more than one car for a person, overspending?
Ok. So discretionary spending that we can cut off if there is a need to tighten our belts. - Eating out, take out, delivery, catered food (we entertain a lot) and buying coffee and snacks. - Over prepping and more food buying than we can use - from WF and Costco. - Cleaning service. Yard work. - Subscriptions and services of all kinds of random stuff. - Fines for bills. - Amazon stuff. Just stupidly random. - My "fun car" - Entertaining and hosting parties - Travelling in comfort - Treating my extended family - Not filing for reimbursement for medical expenses or college stuff. I only mind the bolded because that is wasteful and lazy. Rest is ok. We want to do that. |