The REAL cost of living: should I be scared?

So I'm unemployed, broke and living at home at 26....well...the first two things aren't true, but it makes me feel better to write them knowing that. That way I know that there could be worse things than still living at home at 26. Granted - I was in school full time until last April, so it's a tad justified; and I only started working full time in August, so there....even moreso (at least that's what I'll keep telling myself).

Me...except my mother doesn't cook me breakfast, and
she definitely has better design sense than this woman

Somehow, living at home though - I still manage to spend enough money that I keep telling myself that I could probably move out and spend no more than I am right now. How is it possible you might ask? Well...I'm trying to find that out myself. Am I way off my rocker on this one? Who knows.

In a perfect world, I would have been working full time for a few years now - and have a significant down payment ready for a house, or other investment, but it's just not how the cookie crumbled. I could stay home for another year or two and save hardcore, and buy something on my own - but let's me honest, I'm not getting any younger and I don't know if Michelle would appreciate me telling her that I'd like to put off any forward movement of life for a couple of years...pfft..forget that, IIIII don't even like that idea. So here I am - wondering how I can go forward without holding myself back.

Let me start with my current situation...I live at home - so you'd think that I'd be living a lifestyle where I have alllllll the room in the world to save - wrong! Living at home I feel sometimes leaves you with this carefree sense, where you convince yourself that it's true, because not all of your money is spoken for...but with bills, driving, and actually doing stuff, you don't always leave yourself all the savings in the world. I mean, you SHOULD, but sometimes you forget that you're a grown-up, when you still have a 'room' instead of a 'place'.

Even at 26 - sometimes this is what it feels like when you hang
out with friends in your room. 

Needless to say, I feel like I need to move along. I love my mother, and I love my house...but it's not MY house. It's keeping me from things.

Right now....here are the costs that I have going for me...

$400.00 goes to my parents every month...I help out...at the very least, it doesn't make me feel like a bum for living at home still - at least I'm paying to be there. Whether I should be or not is up for another debate.

$50.00 goes to my cellphone plan - which is rounding up a few dollars, but that's what I pay. I could definitely make this cheaper, as I don't even use all the features. So when I get to the part where I  talk about future living situations, this will definitely change.

$260.00 includes $160 insurance, $20 regular maintenance (broken up over 12 months), and about $80 in gas, which includes the 400 km I drive to work every week, and then another 300 km which includes going to Michelle's house twice, and and some random driving.

$150.00-200.00 on food every month. That's right, I spend about that much - and it includes  sometimes going out for dinner with friends, or Michelle....but I should NOT be spending this much on food. It all comes back to the carefree lifestyle of living at home. If I   were living on my own and buying groceries, you better be sure that I'd be sticking to my grocery budget. If I were living with Michelle it'd be even easier, because we definitely wouldn't be going out to eat so much. 

I have a bunch of miscellaneous costs as well - which include the biggest of them - my student loan payment (which is manageable, but still a cost that I've started covering on my own). On top of that, there's entertainment and shopping - which I've cut back from doing so much of, but still something you have to do once in a while. 

So...looking at my costs....it's a lot...for someone living at home....it's definitely more than you'd think.I'd say rounding up and including any sort of miscalleaneous costs, I'm spending about $1100-1200 a month....to LIVE AT HOME. It's crazy...but it's life I suppose. The question is...how much would it really cost me to move out...

Here's the plan....first off - I'll say, that I'm looking ahead to when I live with Michelle...because....well...at this point, it doesn't make much sense for me to move out on my own - even if it was for 6 months, I can suck it up and cut back a little more at home, and contribute more to my savings. On top of that, there's the cutting back - when I move, it's going to be a whole different ball game....I'll explain why for certain things, but as an example, I won't be driving to see Michelle 60 KM away every other weekend, or have the need to have a good calling plan to talk to her. 

Anyway...onwards and upwards....

$910.00 is according to Michelle's housing estimates....on if we were to wait and move into her condo. This would be my half of the mortgage, electricity, taxes, internet, cable and maintenance fees. Michelle..if I'm wrong with these numbers...don't kill me. (+$510 from what I'm paying now)

$30.00 is what I could be paying should I somehow swing the change with rogers, or possibly opt out of my contract and go with somebody else.  (-$20)

$218.50 (see previous blog post). This is one of the big decisions I'd be making...taking transit...which doesn't look like that much less. But if you factor in all the miscellaneous gas costs on weekends, etc, it cuts down a lot of costs. (-$41.50 or more)

$75.00 which is a big drop from the amount  I'm spending now. Sure we'd go out here or there, and have some more expenses, but we'd have groceries all the time, and believe me - it makes a difference. Cooking for two, but you can buy stuff in bulk. Right now, if me and michelle want a salad on  a Wednesday night each....I have to go buy a head of lettuce, and Michelle does too..you can't buy half of one...so everyone thinks you need to buy twice as much with two people, but that's not always true.

The other costs go down a lot here...I'll still have my student loans...which cancel themselves out...but the gas to go out on the weekends...the parking....the things Michelle and I do just to see each other....a bunch of it will kind of go away. Add that to the fact that we'll be stingier with our money...well...this section will go down....

So....let's say that rounding it off, and being generous....moving out will cost about $1500.00 or so a month. A lot more than I thought...that's for sure...but....I guess taking into account things like the near $400.00 maintenance, and travelling between two cities on transit....that's what I get. 

All in all...it's worth it....it's a step forward....but not the final step....we're both early on in our working lives, and I'm still at the lowest of low in terms of careers....so it will only get easier. Like I always say, if you're going to work your ass off at any point in your life, it's going to be while you're young (which is a term I'm using loosely...)

Here's to the future! and being broke now...to be better off later

Short term finances...

Long term finances...