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Get insights into the Canadian Budget Binder family’s April 2024 budget journey. Learn how they manage their money, track expenses, and strive for financial success.
If you’re new to CBB, this is a monthly budget breakdown so you can see how we spend and save money.
Why I Share Our Monthly Budget
For anyone new to CBB, this briefly explains our monthly budget update.
I look forward to putting this post together as it lets us see where our money was spent.
A budget also acts as a diary for your expenses so you can look back to see success and failure.
Our budget update also lets readers know that we are not perfect and must make changes like everyone else.
We use the tools (Free budget Binder), and I hope you have downloaded your free copy.
Alright, let’s get into this.
Percentages For Our April 2024 Budget
Our year-to-date percentage chart is another way to chart our household budget.
April 2024 Household Budget Percentages
Savings of 29.9% include investments and savings based on our net income.
Our life ratio is 27.71% and contains everything from groceries, entertainment, miscellaneous items, health/beauty, clothing, etc., all variable expenses.
The life ratio is over again in April, which we attribute to Health and Beauty and Prescriptions.
Transportation is 3.06%, which covers gas, insurance, and maintenance for our vehicle, which is fully paid.
Our house and vehicle are paid for, and we have zero consumer debt; however, we still pay property taxes and maintenance fees. In April, this cost was 28.78%.
The projected expenses of 12.69% can change based on what we encounter monthly, such as a new item we need to save for.
52-Week Savings Challenge
In December, I started a 52-week Savings Challenge and asked my readers if they wanted to participate.
Below is the jar we created to save the money for twelve months.
Our son wanted to participate, so he decided to save his allowance or any other money he earned.
He’s saving $5 weekly from his allowance in the savings jar.
The total for April 2024 is $80.
He created a Moolah Jar label for his money savings jar, which I thought was funny.
CBB Fan 52-Week Challenge Update
Below is a CBB fan, TFSASaver, joining us for the 52-week savings challenge and keeping herself accountable by sharing with all of you.
Hello Mr CBB,
I used a $25 gift card and transferred the funds to my savings account to cover that amount.
- Found $1.10 cart/on-ground
- Used $3.50 coupons– added cash amount to savings
- Redeemed $10 of Rexall drugstore points: added that amount to savings.
- Resisted take-out pizza all month– added $35 to savings.
Total this month: $74.60 in savings.
Thanks,
TFSASaver
Grocery Food Savings Jar April 2024 Update
Why will we track our grocery discounts for the entire year?
Tracking Our Grocery Discounts For One Year + Free Printable
I will tally it at the end of the year to see how much we saved buying reduced food products.
Read the 2023 End of Year Grocery Food Savings Jar Review.
We saved $143.42 for April using coupons, rewards apps, and Flashfood.
So far, in 2024, purchasing discounted food has saved us $500.96
April 2024 Budget Estimation and Actual Budget
Below are two tables: Our April 2024 Budget and our Actual Budget.
Our April 2024 budget represents two adults and a 9-year-old boy.
Budget Colour Key: It is a projected expense when highlighted in blue.
Since May 2014, we’ve been mortgage-free, redirecting our money into investments and home improvement projects.
Spending less than we earn and budgeting has been the easiest way to pay off our debt and save money.
This type of budget is a zero-based budget where all the money has a home.
Estimated April 2024 Budget
We may not need all the money we budgeted for in each category; however, remember the number is only an estimate from the previous year.
Don’t forget to budget for projected expenses because your entire month can fail due to not planning.
Actual April 2024 Budget
Our Canadian Banks
- Chequing– This is the bank account from which we pay our household bills. We use Simplii Financial, TD Canada Trust, and Tangerine Bank. Join Simplii Financial today! Read more about the best Canadian online virtual banks.
- Emergency Savings Account– This money is in a high-interest savings account (HISA)
- High-Interest Savings Account (HISA)– This savings account holds our projected expenses.
Breakdown Of Our April 2024 Budget
Below are some of our variable expenses from April that I will discuss.
Prescriptions
$202.29 expenses were higher in April due to paying for new allergy meds.
The above is after my work benefits cover 90%.
Grocery Budget April 2024 Budget
Our monthly grocery budget is $900 plus a $25 stockpile budget.
We spent $542.95, or $357.05, under budget for our April groceries.
I don’t know how we did it, but we did it!
Lately, we haven’t been overeating apart from salads and protein.
Our grocery cart contains beans, vegetables, frozen pizza, cheese slices, cheese, salad bags, 50% off only, fruits, bread, milk, yogurt, eggs, butter, cream, and condiments.
Occasionally, we have a bucket or two of ice cream and cones.
Also, our stand-up freezer is still half full with loads of fish and meat, so we don’t buy any.
I don’t see this as a trend, but if we can stay under budget, that matters most.
Pet Expenses
We spent $218.67, which was under budget for once, but we still got some great deals from Amazon.
I also ordered from Chewy Canada and bought three new types of cat food to see if they would eat it.
One cat likes one brand, and the other fancies another.
We are happy if they eat it and don’t waste it.
The only problem is that the cat food we bought is far too much money when not on sale.
- BFF OMG Best Feline Friend Oh My Gravy!, Tuna & Duck Devour Me in Gravy Grain-Free Wet Cat Food, 3-oz pouch, case of 12
- Applaws Fish Selection in Broth Pot Variety Pack, 2.21-oz, case of 8
- Weruva Cats in the Kitchen Mack, Jack & Sam Mackerel, Skipjack & Salmon in Gravy Grain-Free Wet Cat Food, 3-oz pouch, case of 12
- Applaws Adult Complete Whitefish Recipe with Country Vegetables Grain-Free Dry Cat Food, 4-lb bag
- Inaba Churu Creamy Puree Chicken Variety Pack Lickable Cat Treats
So, we will only buy it when there’s a good sale at Chewy or on Amazon.
P.S. The Catio that we bought for the two cats is going well. They love hanging out in the morning and watching the outdoor creatures.
Health And Beauty
Like in previous months, our health and beauty budget has been over budget.
In April, we spent $447.92, but with good reason.
Mrs. CBB has been suffering from diagnosed chronic hives, which are said to last 1 to 5 years.
Before her diagnosis, we tried different over-the-counter creams and ointments to help her.
Near the end of April, our son was ill for two weeks, which sent us to Shoppers Drug Mart to buy cough medicine.
We also participated in two 20x points days where health and beauty supplies were purchased.
Also, her bloodwork returned with deficient iron at 7, but her hemoglobin was ok.
Our family doctor instructed her to buy the best iron pills she could for $65 per bottle.
Her vitamin D levels were also low, so she was told to double them to 4000mg daily.
On Amazon, we purchased six boxes of Jamieson Prenatal vitamins on sale for $11.99, RestoraFibre Prebiotic Gummies, Biotin Gummies 2-pack, and Extra Strength Vitamin D3.
Home Maintenance
I know what you’re thinking! How did we spend $2284.90 on home maintenance in April?
Blame it all on me because I’ve been scoring great deals buying tools for my garage.
I’m stocking up so I have enough tools to fix my truck without having to bring it to the shop.
Some of the items I purchased in April were;
- Roller brush for our Dyson vacuum
- Nitrogen Regulator with Hose
- Hybrid Air Hose
- Air Hose Fittings
- Compressed Air Filter
- Supercool A/C Leak detection Dye
- AC Oil Injector kit
- Feeler Gauge Set steel Metric
- Refrigerant Oil
- Gearlight UV LED Flashlight
- CK Auto 30piece Black Tire Repair Strings
- Solar Powered Auto Welding Mask
- Air Tool Lubricant
- Socket Organizer Tray
- 50 Amp Power Outlet Box
- Ingersoll Rand Edge Series Air Die Grinder
- 1/2-inch Drive Click Torque Wrench
- Outmate 304 Stainless Steel Carabiners
- Thread Locker
- Armoured Cable and clips
- Jack Daniels Half Barrel for our fig tree
- Polymeric Sand
FlashFood App
Every person who signs up gets a $3 or $5 credit, a freebie Flashfood offers for new app customers.
Also, Flashfood has added a small service fee to every order, which I feel is acceptable.
Use my referral code, MOCD28ZN4, for the $3 or $5 credit.
Your first purchase must be over $15.
PC Optimum Rewards Points 2024
Over the last 45 days, April into May, we have earned PC Optimum Points or approximately $7094 of free product.
We started 2024 with under 7 million PC Optimum Points, or $7000, and now we finally hit the mark.
I know many of you might think this is a massive number of points, and we agree.
The process of saving them started after our son was born in 2014.
Between diapers and formula, we amassed points faster than we could spend them.
Yes, we have redeemed many times, but only during their Mega Bonus Event at Christmas.
Redeem 250,000 points for $500; I believe it was $600 at one point.
Below are blog posts for anyone wanting to learn how we earn PC Optimum Points.
- How To Earn PC Optimum Points Fast
- How We Earned 4 Million PC Optimum Points
- President’s Choice Financial World Elite MasterCard
TD Rewards Credit Card
Our TD Visa has a cash-back balance of $441.90.
Canadian Tire Rewards Credit Card
I redeemed $800 in Canadian Tire in April for a new air compressor.
It went on sale at 50% off with 20x Points, so I redeemed and paid nothing for it.
Dream Air Miles April 2024
Most points are from our house and car insurance, which offers Air Miles.
There was a point where we had to choose Cash Miles or Dream Miles.
Since my family lives in the UK, we felt the Dream Miles would have worked best for us.
I hope to explore this program in 2024 and would love feedback from all of you who invest the time into building miles.
Hit reply and tell me about your Air Miles experiences.
April 2024 CBB Net Worth Update
After tallying three rewards cards, we found $7578.64 in cash/rewards to redeem.
For April, we saw an increase in our investment portfolios by $13,401.95 or 1.24%.
Our cash and emergency savings increased by $24,213.64, or 13.51%.
We increased our net worth by 2.29% or $37,615.59 in April.
Investing is a big part of increasing our net worth, and it’s essential to prioritize your finances.
Until Next Time!
That’s all for our April 2024 Monthly Budget.
I will be back in May to review our May monthly budget.
If there’s something you’d like to see in our monthly update, hit reply to this email and let me know.
Thanks for stopping by, and please subscribe if you are new to CBB to get my weekly blog post and monthly newsletter.
If you have any specific questions about how we invest our money, please comment below, and I’d be happy to answer them.
Read our budget updates from 2012-current.
Mr. CBB