Money for One: Edition #2
Welcome to the second edition of Money for One, where solo earners share their budgets with us. Once again, thank you for those who offered to participate. If you’re interested in participating, email me at singlebudgette@gmail.com. Our next Money for One participant comes from Canada. (I’m definitely looking for people outside of Canada, hit me up.)
Age: 42
Pronouns: She/her
Occupation: Writer and editor
Important background information:
I think it’s extremely important to be upfront about any family help anytime you’re discussing personal finance. I find it infuriating when people hide these contributions; it just makes people who don’t have this type of support feel even more confused and behind, wondering where they’re going wrong. The more open and honest people are about any financial support you receive from your family or other loved ones, the better.
My mom died when I was a kid, and my dad sold her house and split the proceeds between her kids. I was only six when it happened, so the money grew to around $120k with interest, which I got when I turned 19. I used the money to pay for school and finance extras in my twenties (mainly travel, clothing, and home stuff). Thus, I did not have any school or consumer debt entering my thirties.
My parents gave each sibling $100,000 when they sold our childhood home. I used this money as part of the down payment of my first house in 2022.
My parents gave each sibling $150,000 when they sold their vacation home last year.
I used $15,000 to repay the second half of a $30,000 bridge loan my friend gave me to cover the deposit on my current apartment after I sold my house in the wake of me and my ex’s split.
I put $50,000 on my new apartment mortgage last year, and will put $44,000 on it this year.
I’ll probably use the remaining $6,000 for my emergency fund or travel.
Annual income
My income can vary wildly, although it’s been more stable over the past five years. During a couple lean freelance-only years, I made, like, $35k in a year. Then I started working for a large corporation and made $85k plus freelancing. Then I started doing a busy part-time freelance gig on top of that corporate job and was making, like, $130k a year or something.
It can be hard for me to remember exactly how much I make in a year due to the fluctuating contracts and the fact that I use different accounting systems: I track the freelance money I make via the time of assignment, but pay taxes on when the money is paid out. Last year, for example, I had a full-time contract ($97,500, or $85k after you subtract unpaid stat holidays and vacation), a part-time contract bringing in between a few hundred bucks and several thousand dollars per month, and assorted freelance work. ADHD doesn’t help with any of this, nor does the varying tax situations (some are taxed at source, some are not; some charge HST, some do not).
This year I switched into a new full-time contract job paying $92k (plus 4% vacation pay, paid stat holidays, and some decent benefits), and will continue that old part-time gig. I will probably freelance less, so I’ll probably bring in, like, between $100k and $110k or so.
Do you have kids or not?
No, but I share custody of my dog and cat with my ex. We split vet costs (probably $500 for routine care for the both of them per year, including check-ups and vaccines) and prescription cat food costs ($100 every few months); I pay for my own dog food ($75 a bag), and toys and treats for both.
Amount in RRSPs
None—I have to repay the $35k I took out to buy my first house. I’m probably just going to use the remaining parental gift and dump the $35k repayment on there this year in one lump sum and be done with it.
Amount in TFSAs/RESPs/RDSPs: None
Savings
I have $42,000 in emergency savings, which would 100% cover me for seven months if needed. I should, in theory, put it in something with better yield than a standard savings account, but my ADHD makes it difficult to bother changing it up.
Do you have any student loans? No
Do you have any credit card debt? No
How much is your monthly rent or mortgage?
My monthly housing costs are around $3,100. My mortgage and property tax are around $2375, my condo fees are around $663, and my home insurance is around $70. I rent out my parking spot for $100, which covers most of my phone bill.
How much do you pay a month for groceries?
I don’t cook so I don’t buy groceries. I use two meal delivery services that cost about $700 a month or so between them (this covers lunch and dinner most days). I usually get UberEats or eat out a couple times per week for fun, which racks up another several hundred bucks monthly. Food is one of my biggest expenses in life; I toggle between “you are destroying your savings buying all these stupid meals” and “life is short and I truly enjoy eating whatever I want.”
How much do you pay a month for cable/streaming services?
Cable, Crave, and STARZ are included in my condo fees. I get Prime and Mubi through work. I got a Criterion subscription for Christmas. I get Disney+ through an offer with my bank until April. I pay my own human money for Netflix, which is $19 a month, I think, but I’m trying to get work to pay for it. I also have AppleTV but literally don’t remember when I signed up for it or how much it costs.
How much do you pay for hydro?
All utilities are covered under my condo fees.
Do you pay for health insurance? How much?
No, but I just got benefits through work, for the first time in seven years: wheeeeeee! It covers dental, glasses, and therapy.
How much do you pay in insurance a month? (Could be home, car, disability, critical illness, life)
Just the $70 for home insurance.
How much do you spend on travel?
A lot. I love to do one big trip per year at least. Last year was a very busy year for travel; I did a nine-week, eight-country trip that cost about $18,000. I was lucky to get a contract that ran the exact length of the trip that paid for the entire thing. I did a bunch of smaller trips as well that probably totalled several grand. I also go home to a different province twice a year, but I often buy those trips on points. If not, it’s probably $500 a pop or so, depending on when you buy the ticket.
I also am big on convenience and spend way too much on Ubers. I’ve been trying to cut back on Uber expenses, both in terms of food delivery and rides.
What else do you spend on, monthly? (Glasses, classes, equipment, etc.)
The movies: $9.99 per month for a Cineplex CineClub membership (it gives me free and discounted movie tickets, plus concession discounts; I go to the movies at least once or twice a month these days, although it’s relatively low-cost, as I use my free tickets, discounted $9.99 tickets, and my giant pile of gift certificates people have given me over the years)
TTC pass: $146 per month
Audible: $15 per month (I got this to download celebrity memoirs to listen to while walking but haven’t been walking enough to get through them, so now I have a big stockpile; I wanted to cancel it but you lose your books if you do, so I keep it for now)
Nails (Shellac manicure): $55 per month, including tip (I have been on a self-care journey to take better care of my nails and establish routines, so I have been getting my nails done monthly, which has been been extremely rewarding; I also get a $65 Shellac pedicure three or four times a year)
Sauna and cold plunge: $156 per month for four visits (this is my #1 mental-health self-care activity; truly, it has changed my life)
Therapy: $165 for one psychotherapist session per month (I have slowed my cadence to once per month to keep costs down, plus I am not in immediate crisis so it’s more of a regular check-in vs. active work.)
Do you have an employee pension? How much do you contribute to it? Do they contribute? No
It’s payday, what three buckets are you putting money? (Could be travel, renovations, retirement, glasses, health, etc.)
I notoriously do not put money in any buckets and merely dump it in a single account; I only recently started doing auto-transfers into a savings account again to put aside money for tax installments. I don’t really save up for specific things; instead, I have always just generally had one kind of side hustle or another and make sure to make as much extra income as possible so that when I want to take a vacation or buy something fancy, I don’t really have to budget for it or worry about it too much, as the money is already just, like, there.
But in terms of where my general money priorities are, the answers are probably:
Emergency fund (I have high albeit somewhat unfounded anxiety about precarious employment and an irrational fear of Losing My House, so I always feel better if I have at least six months of emergency savings in the account.)
Travel (I like staying in nice places and enjoy visiting new, faraway countries.)
Any extra money I would probably just dump on my mortgage, in theory.
Other stuff I spend money on:
Bougie candles ($60/pop several times per year)
Plants ($30 to $60 once or twice per year, although I am always eyeing gigantic cacti that cost, like, a month’s rent)
Vintage home stuff and art (several hundred bucks a year for various pastel ceramics or weird old portraits)
Junk food (crippling pop addiction that probably costs several hundred a year, plus assorted chips and ice-cream)
Fresh flowers ($100 per bouquet, maybe five or six per year)
Sex stuff (condoms, lube, sex blankets)
Culture events (festival passes at $200 a pop, stand-up shows, weird movie screenings)
Gifts (around $500 per year)
Stuff I don’t spend money on:
Breakfast (don’t eat it)
Coffee (don’t drink it)
Beer or wine or any booze at home (don’t drink it)
Kitchen stuff (don’t cook)
Car, boat, or motorcycle (don’t drive)
Clothes (I make ‘em last a long time and only buy Canadian, independent, vintage, or second-hand)
Sports or outdoor stuff (other than the cottage once per year, $675/3-day weekend)
Physical entertainment (already have a lifetime’s worth of books, DVDs, vintage game consoles, and boardgames)
Gym membership (gym and sauna in building)
Freebies (as a writer, I’ve received hundreds of thousands of dollars of free stuff over the course of almost 20 years in this business, from press trips, home goods, and skincare to clothing and accessories, fancy sex toys, and snacks; it really adds up).
How do you feel about the financial freedom and challenges that come with being the sole provider for yourself? What aspects feel empowering, and what aspects feel limiting?
Empowering:
I like being able to buy whatever I want, whenever I want. That goes double for travel. I don’t want anyone else giving me shit about staying in cute hotels.
It’s rewarding to see my little pile of savings grow, knowing that I made that happen in a rapidly dying industry in between bouts of precarious employment.
Not having to buy stuff for others is also helpful for building those savings.
Limiting:
It is slightly terrifying knowing that if something happens to you, you’re on your own.
You also don’t get the sweet, sweet perk of splitting everything. Sigh.
What does one week of spending look like? (Think Sunday to Sunday). Please track everything down to taking the TTC, buying gum, etc.
Monday:
UberEats (fast food), $31.97 (had a cheat day after a stressful day at work)
Tuesday:
Chipotle, $21.15 (pre-movie dinner with a friend)
Movie, $19 (pricier 70mm screening)
Movie snacks, $11.25 (Milk Duds and orange Crush to survive all 3.5 hours of The Brutalist)
Uber, $18.95 (it was midnight and freezing-cold)
Wednesday:
Salad x 5 meal delivery for next week, $64.44
Thursday:
N/A
Friday:
UberEats (fancy sushi), $85.21 (it took three hours)
Saturday:
UberEats (trashy pizza), $41.15 (came with a free pizza, which I will freeze)
Sunday:
Shellac pedicure, $65
Index:
RRSP: Registered Retirement Savings Plan
RESP: Registered Education Savings Plan
RDSP: Registered Disability Savings Plan
TFSA: Tax-free Savings Account
This week’s readings:
How financial stress affects Canadians (Money Mentors)
There are so many tariff stories but I’m going with this one. Trump says US prices ‘could go up’ as he threatens new tariffs on trade partners (The Guardian).
Maybe now is the time to invest your money (The Cut, paywalled)
Five ways to talk to your kids about money (Nicola Wealth)
So last week’s newsletter had an article comparing Canadians and Americans’ desire to talk about money. I forgot to do a survey so here’s one.