My Frugal Miser - April Expenses: $6,244

My April expenses were much higher than normal thanks to the one-time expense of converting my IRA to a Self-Directed IRA.  Since I plan to use the fund to buy rental houses, I categorized the $3,000 fee as a rental expense.   The only other out of the ordinary expense was the $360 I lost at a casino on one of my mystery shopping trips.  I should really stay away from casinos; they seem to be my one and only vice.




April Personal Expenses ($1,312)

$148 Auto ($148 fuel, $0 service)

$10 Bank Fees
$0 Clothing
$368 Entertainment (movies, gambling, alcohol)
$63 Food
$0 Gifts Given
$0 Home Repair

-$9 Household
$0 Homeowner's Association Dues

$139 Health and Dental Insurance
$0 Medical
$99 Miscellaneous
$383 Mortgage Interest (primary residence)
$0 Personal Care

$0 Subscriptions
$0 Taxes

$111 Utilities
$0 Vacation

April Business Expenses ($4,932)

$750 Mortgage Interest (rental properties)
$238 Interest on Debt (not including Mortgage Interest)
$3,944 Rental Properties - Maintenance and Repairs (includes a one-time expense in April)


Total April Expenses : $6,244


Notes

• If not for my gambling loss I would have spent less than $1,000 this month.  Even with that expense it was a frugal month.
• I spent $148 on gas.  The majority of my driving was to do mystery shops, including two out of state trips. I also made a few trips to my grandfather's house to cut the grass and tend to things there.  
• I was told the normal fee from Guidant Financial to do the IRA conversion (which is much more than just swapping funds from one account to another; it includes forming an LLC as well as two consultations with a lawyer) is $4,000 but they run an annual sale around tax time.  Normally I don't believe such nonsense but when I did some research online, most of the reviewers said they paid $4,000, so maybe I really did get a fair price.
• Utilities includes my unlimited smartphone plan with Republic Wireless, natural gas, electricity, water and sewer.
• I shopped so many restaurants and other food establishments that my spending in this category was only $63 in April.
• I returned a few things I bought prior to April.  This explains how Household expenses were a negative.