April 2010 Monthly Recap

Whoo-hoo, I hit yet another all-time networth high at the end of April: $445,960. The stock market was up, I didn't spend too much, and my outstanding credit card balance was lower, so everything went in the right direction. You can see the details at NetworthIQ.

As for income and expenses, one thing to note was that I got a state tax refund of $926 this month. I did my taxes back in February but I guess I was one of the people caught up in New York State's cash crunch, in which many refunds were delayed. Here's the rest of the details by category:

Taxes Deducted	$2,070
Housing & Utilities	$2,049
Dining	$653
Gifts Given	$205
Misc	$182
Household	$127
Information & Entertainment	$98
Clothing	$90
Travel	$77
Gym & Fitness	$22
Medical	-$187
Total Outflows	$5,385
Salary (before taxes)	$8,017
Interest & Other Income	$282
Total Inflows	$8,299
Net	$2,913

I didn't include the tax refund there so total net was actually $3,839. I almost can't believe it's that high, but I guess I just didn't do much spending this month. Dining was pretty normal, gifts were things for my niece and nephew's birthdays and a few miscellaneous things I bought when they visited me. The miscellaneous category is a haircut, some conditioner, a notebook, and an iPhone case. Information & Entertainment includes internet access, a book, some iPhone apps, some music from iTunes, and Netflix and New York Times subscriptions. Medical is negative because an insurance reimbursement came through. Gym & Fitness was a new pair of swim goggles. Household included a new alarm clock, some batteries, drycleaning and an extra iPhone charger. (This iPhone is costing me a lot of money not only in terms of the device and the monthly fee, but also in various accessories as I try to figure out what sort of case is best, what apps I want to use, and how to keep the *&*%!^ battery charged while playing with it constantly!)

Anyway, that was my month in money, and it was a pretty good one. I don't think May's picture will be as pretty, but you never know! Onwards and upwards....