What I Spent in April 2024: Monthly Reset

Spending and goals reset from April heading into May

Thanks for checking out Ten Dollar Latte! I’m not a financial advisor, just a 27-year-old trying to afford life in NYC. I write about how I spend my money while enjoying a $10 latte.

April was an exciting month for me. I went on multiple trips, including seeing the total eclipse in northern Vermont and a friend’s wedding in Mexico, but it was still a tough month emotionally. I won’t get into details, but I just wanted to start today’s post by saying—regardless of your financial situation, everyone has good and bad days (and moments in life).

From a few minutes before the total eclipse. I didn’t take any pictures of the total since I wanted to soak it all in. It was an incredible experience.

Because I traveled for about 30% of the month, and had paid a lot of my travel expenses up front in previous months, this was my lowest spend month this year in terms of variable expenses! Which was great, because I had to pay back $5,409.00 in taxes a couple weeks ago. Long story short, my employer wasn’t deducting New York City taxes from my paychecks last year, and anyway...New York City is expensive. I know, I know, having the money in my bank account last year was better because it was making interest in my high yield savings account—but it still hurts.

My fixed costs were $2,420.50 (rent plus utilities, minus my rent abatement for lack of cooking gas in my apartment).

Here’s the breakdown of variable expenses:

1. Dining Out: $75.15

   This included a couple of sandwiches and smoothies out, plus a lunch I got when a friend visited me from out-of-state. I’m happy I kept this category relatively low this month.

2. Groceries/Household: $410.18

   This was higher than it’s been the past couple months. I had to stock up on cat food. Plus, when my friend visited, we bought more groceries to avoid having to eat out as much (which was definitely worth it). I also included the fee to file my taxes in this category (why is there a fee for this!?!)

3. Transportation: $156.60

   This included a couple train rides home to the suburbs and many, many subway rides. Beats spending money on gas (insert shrugging girl emoji).

4. Coffee Out: $59.59

   I went out for coffee 9 times this month. As always, I’m happy with this category. This newsletter (and other work I do) is fueled by coffee shop visits! Always at local, independent shops.

5. Drinks Out: $256.39

   I am so curious if you all think the hundreds I spend on drinks out each month is insane. Drinking is such a large part of NYC culture, and to be honest, I enjoy going to a bar alone to journal just as much as going to a coffee shop.

6. Health: $49.00

   This month, I just bought my 23 Classpass credits, which is about enough for 2 pilates classes. I’m glad I lowered my subscription—I’ve been enjoying running and walking outside now that the weather is nicer. I still have my Cyclebar classpack, which I don’t expect to renew for at least another month (I still have 10 classes left).

7. Hobby/Experience: $236.61

   Otherwise known as my Exploring NYC category. This month, I bought tickets to a Yankees game, a couple concerts, and a

   Drinks First
   event. All of these were so fun and so worth it—I hardly ever regret a ticket for a cool event. This also included a monthly subscription to a creator I enjoy.

8. Travel: $96.63

   This included miscellaneous expenses from the trip to Mexico, including tips, snacks, and a taxi from the airport. The vast majority of the trip was paid for earlier this year. I also didn’t pay anything to see the eclipse besides for my train ticket home—I got our hotel room with Marriott points I had saved up from work travel, and my dad paid for our food and the gas for the drive.

9. Gifts/Donations: $90.24

   This included donations to a couple charities on behalf of some friends (including a friend running the NYC marathon this fall!) and a gift of The Sisteryard cold brew coffee concentrate for my sister since I spend a lot of time at her house eating her groceries.

10. Clothing/Makeup: $20.00

    I spent $20 on sticky socks for pilates because I forgot to bring mine to class (and honestly could have used another pair anyway). I challenged myself to get by the trip to Mexico with clothes I already own or could borrow, and I did! Sometimes, it’s really fun to buy new clothes for a vacation. But I knew I didn’t need more fancy dresses or bathing suits (things I hardly ever wear in NYC), so I’m happy this category stayed low this month.

Totals:

• $1,450.39 in variable expenses

• $3,900.59 in total expenses (including rent and utilities)

• $9,309.59 in total expenses (including planned tax payments paid out this month)

Not including taxes, this was my lowest spend month this year! Can we forget taxes exist?

Some things I’ve enjoyed consuming this month:

• Beach Read by Emily Henry. I still think this book is entirely unrealistic, but it was enjoyable to read on the beach in Mexico.

• The Tortured Poet’s Department by Taylor Swift and Cowboy Carter by Beyonce. Enough said.

• There’s 168 Hours in a Week by

  Elle Sundberg
  , which inspired me to read a book my sister recommended, Off the Clock by Laura Vanderkam. Maybe I’ll post my personal time-tracking one day.

• Home Economics No. 4 from

  Lindsey Stanberry
  . I always love money profiles (which is part of why I plaster mine online), and this one in particular was very interesting.

• How I Use Airtable to Track Cost per Fit by

  Cost per Fit
  . I track every penny I spend on Google Sheets, and appreciate anyone else who is a tracker!

• Supernatural. Sorry to be stuck in 2012, but I just discovered this show and I’m now on season six.

And my START, STOP, CONTINUE Reflections:

START: Taking better care of my home. I’ve gotten in some bad habits of leaving out clutter, and I want to be more on top of taking care of my home. For the past few years (and now!) I’ve spent a good chunk of time working from home. I want my home to be both a haven for productivity and relaxation, and it can’t be that if it’s cluttered!

STOP: Imposter syndrome. Okay, this is a tall order, but I’ve been feeling a lot of self-doubt lately, especially around growing my small business. I listened to this great small business podcast about “Fake It Until You Make It” and I realized that it’s all in my mindset.

CONTINUE: Spending hours outside every day. New York City comes alive in the spring, and I want to enjoy it.

The flowers are in bloom here in NYC!

Drop your start/stop/continue in the comments or notes! Here’s to a fabulous spring month.

Thanks for reading! I post weekly about living in NYC, personal finance, and growing my small business. I also post a monthly reset on the 1st of each month sharing everything I spent money on the previous month and goals for the next month. My small business is called Sidetracks—it’s a collection of party card games I designed. Grab a game to make your next happy hour unforgettable.