End of the Year review

A bit late to the post. We are DINKs, both started our first full time jobs in 2017, my income ~175k, husband ~25k. 2017 was also the first year that we tracked our expenses.
 
Saving & student loan Repayments-----$76,364 (90k with employee match)
* 401a: $24,894 (10k self-contribution, 14k employee match)
* 457b: $15,639
* IRA x 2: $11,000
* Student loan repayments: $38,831 (finally done with student loans!)
 
Spending (excluding health insurance and FSA, they are deducted directly from paychecks)-- $60,776

Category Amount % Comments
Auto & Transport $11495 18.9% The amount spent on auto came as a shock to us. We have 2 cars: one paid in full, one financed @ 1.99% with 29k left at the end of 2017(worth ~35k). Breakdown of the 11k expenses: car loan payments 6.5k, gas 1.7k, insurance 1.6k, services & parts 900, speeding/parking tickets 550, parking and tolls 300. ***We are debating whether to keep the financed car or replace it with a cheaper, ~10k car. While it costs a bunch, my husband loves the car and said it made his long commute more bearable.
Rent $11271 18.5%
Travel $8154 13.4% 3-week vacation in Japan, Singapore and Malaysia, plus multiple domestic weekend trips over the year
Shopping $8019 13.2% Clothing 2.2k, household goods 3.7k, electronics and furniture 2k
Food & Dining $7239 11.9% Groceries 5.8k, eating-out 1.4k
Health & Fitness $4516 7.4% LASIK 4.2k
Bills & Utilities $2963 4.9% Electricity, cellphones, internet, netflix, hulu
Gifts & Donations $2009 3.3%
Pets $1715 2.8% 2 cats
Personal Care $1405 2.3% Skincare, cosmetics, haircut
Entertainment $935 1.5% Mostly movies
Financial $710 1.2% Life insurance premium for two
Business Services $344 0.6% Professional membership
Total $60776 100.0%

 

2018 Goals
* $73,000: Max 401a, 403b, 457b and both IRAs
* Keep tracking spending, reduce shopping expenses
* Go to the gym twice a week
* Learn more about investments for taxable accounts

/r/financialindependence Thread