My Frugal Miser - January 2025 Income

January was another strong month for income.

I received rent from both rental properties in Alabama. I also received a small monthly distribution from Open Door Capital and Realty Mogul.

Open Door Capital continues to pay interest on the promissory note.  I also earn interest on the cash balance in my Self-Directed IRA. 

Meeting income was roughly in line with the work I did.  I had a gap in the month that didn't get filled = February is much busier.

January Income: $13,229

$6,452 Meeting Jobs
$634 Gig Apps (Rideshare, Food Deliveries, etc.)
$1,126 Amazon Deliveries

$2,674 Rental Income (Rental Expenses: $1,367)
$2,298 Interest Income

$44 Other Sources

Investment Accounts Change in Value:  $5,138

Stocks were up in January.  

My Frugal Miser - January 2025 Expenses

My spending in January wasn't too crazy last month.  The $1,100 I spent on reimbursed job expenses will be paid to me in February, and generally I make money in this category because it includes mileage reimbursement.  I also paid the yearly insurance bill on our house.  Take those out and it cost about $2,000 to maintain my lifestyle in January.

• I spent nearly $300 on gas.  I drove to Sarasota and Orlando a couple of times for work (mileage was reimbursed).  I also did several Amazon routes using my own vehicle.
• Spending on food improved, but I think I could do better.  The good news is that I spent less than $20 on eating out; the rest is for groceries.
• Bank Fees were for two credit card annual fees.  I generally recoup those fees with the value they offer.
• The largest expense was my Homeowner's Insurance payment.  It went up a few hundred dollars to $1,569.  Insurance in Florida is high.
• Health and Dental costs are creeping up, too.  I paid $255 for my marketplace health insurance, $9 for dental insurance, $90 for a dermatologist visit, and $249 to Sesame for an online prescription for weight loss medication.  If the medication works, I think I can offset it by spending less on food.

Fun

We love adventures.  Spending on experiences makes us better humans.  

• I paid the $677 balance for our summer cruise.
• I bought our alcohol-substitute powder (U Relax) and our AMC A-List subscriptions.
• All of my fun spending was offset by deposits from the Chumba Casino sweepstakes entries I submitted.

January Expenses:  $4,794

$361 Auto (service, gas, insurance, AAA, etc.)

$547 Bank Fees (annual fees on credit cards)
$154 Clothing/ Personal Care

($452) Fun (vacations, movies, gambling, alcohol, concert tickets) income this month

$453 Food

$633 Health and Dental

$1,610 Household/Home Repairs

$140 Unreimbursed Job Expense

$1,109 Reimbursed Job Expense

$0 Interest Expense

$154 Miscellaneous (cat sitter, gifts)

$75 Taxes

$11 Utilities 

My Frugal Miser - 2025 Goals

Every year I publish a handful of goals.  I usually meet some and fail at others.  Without this roadmap, I would lack the direction I need to achieve anything.  Here are my 2025 goals.

• Learn to play an instrument.
• Read one book per month.
• Do something with our mopeds (carryover from 2024).
• Fun Budget:  Net Zero.
• Financials:  1) Fully Fund Roth IRA, 2) Add $1,000/mo. to short-term savings account, 3) Add $25,000 to brokerage accounts.
• Lifestyle:  Prepare for The Next Chapter.

Learn to Play an Instrument

Who doesn't love music?  I have wanted to have a basic understanding of music for years.  It's time to exercise my brain more.

Read One Book per Month

I watch too much TV.  This too will exercise my brain.

Mopeds

They have been sitting in the backyard and haven't been used in years.  Time to dispose or repair.

Fun Budget:  Net Zero

A friend of mine introduced me to sweepstakes-based online casinos.  It's been slow going, but it's going.  Basically, I send in a request for free sweepstakes credits.  The site I am using gives me $5 for each request.  To make things fun, I want to submit enough entries to completely offset my fun budget.  This could even give me the opportunity to take more trips and see more shows.  It will allow me to do these things "guilt-free."

Financials

It's straight-forward.  Last year I used percentage of income goals.  I'm making it even easier in 2025 with three financial goals tied to a dollar amount.

Prepare for the Next Chapter

I'm not ready to discuss this yet, but I am exploring some major changes to shake things up.

My Frugal Miser - December 2024 Income

Miraculously, I earned more in December than I spent.  

I received rent from both rental properties in Alabama. I also received a small monthly distribution from Open Door Capital.

Open Door Capital continues to pay interest on the promissory note.  I also earn interest on the cash balance in my Self-Directed IRA. 

Meeting income was overstated as I was paid in December for work done in November.  Since I didn't do much meeting work, I did several Amazon routes and began driving for Rideshare again.

December Income: $13,983

$7,200 Meeting Jobs
$551 Gig Apps (Rideshare, Food Deliveries, etc.)
$1,769 Amazon Deliveries

$2,162 Rental Income (Rental Expenses: $570)
$2,297 Interest Income

$6 Other Sources

Investment Accounts Change in Value:  $2,195

Stocks were up in December.