Several months ago, I wrote a post on the expenses I’ll have to face once I graduate & move out on my own.
Well, now that I’ve been out for 3 months, let’s revisit that post and see how I did compared to how I thought I’d do.
1. Dry cleaning: I planned on spending $35-$45/month here… but surprisingly I haven’t been to the dry cleaners even once. I wear business casual clothes everyday, so my suits have been hanging in my closet. The Delicate cycle seems to work fine.
2. Internet access: I had no idea how much DSL would cost… turns out, not that much. The service costs $35 a month (the first bill was much higher, but that included a router and set-up fees), but that amount is split with my roommate, so less than $20/month for wireless? No complaints here.
3. Car insurance: Naive little me… my original estimate was a $1,200 premium for a year. Imagine my shock when I got quotes for $1,200 for six months. Fortunately, I found something more affordable at $145/month, with $1,000 deductibles for collision and comprehensive.
Well Heeled Blog 
I had a slight accident with my car. It was the other driver’s fault. His company paid me the cash, and I am pulling the dent with a toilet plunger and buying new door molding. Net gain of about $800.
Okay, who do you get your auto insurance through? Mine is roughly 1,200 every six months.
Vixen, you should consider getting your car insurance through a credit union. I get a great discount on mine through a credit union that I am a member of. (about $90/month, $400 deductible)
I don’t recall where you live but that still seems a bit high for car insurance. I pay slightly less than that for TWO cars.
@Gecko
She lives in California… auto insurance is always high here! Furthermore if you are young and in the So. Cal. area.
I had the same experience with car insurance. After I turned 25 (and with no accidents or tickets on my record, and no claims filed), I thought my insurance should be $1200 for the year. It was still over $1600. Even shopping around hasn’t helped much.
Ah yes, one of the reasons I left Cali 😦 My car insurance tripled when I lived in NorCal.
I live in Northern California, am 24, with an at fault accident (just one, no tickets) and a newish car (2006 model year), and pay about $1000/year for comprehensive insurance with a $500 deductible. If you’re like me and considered a “good driver” (no more than 1 accident OR ticket within the last 3 years), I seriously recommend you check out Wawanesa. They don’t advertise and only take good drivers, which is why their rates are so cheap, and while I’ve never needed to file a claim with them, all the reviews and a few people I know have told me they’re great about that too. I got quite a few $1200 for 6 months quotes from other insurance companies before a coworker recommended them.
That auto insurance sounds painfully expensive! Have you tried Metlife or Liberty Mutual? I paid $800 a year with Liberty Mutual for an ’85 Civic when I was 23. At 24, I paid $600 a year, just one way coverage, for a ’92 Toyota Camry with MetLife.
I’ve had great success with Progressive–their rates were about half of what I was quoted at Geico and State Farm. I get new quotes every time I renew, and Progressive is always much lower.
I do pay about $1200 every six months though, in Dallas–but I have a ticket and 2 accidents on my record right now (one at fault, one not). 😦
Have you thought about adding google adsense to your site to offset some of those costs?
I’m making around $500/mo from my blog. Every bit helps!
I’ve also added you to my blogroll. I’d appreciate the retun favor too!