Budget

Here is my new budget I'll be following until I leave Korea in June 2013.  All the items are allowances, it's the most I expect to spend in any given month.  In reality I usually have money left over which I can use to purchase more stock or to have fun.  Probably 99.99% of the military does not receive a TSP match (federal employee 401k).  They put me in the TSP matching pilot program when I enlisted in 2008 as an incentive to pick my particular job.  It's very rare and is set to expire in less than a year as far as I know.  When the matching is gone, I'll stop contributing to the TSP.  It's a horrible program with only 5 investment choices.  100% of mine is in the G fund.

Income:
$2,500 - Take Home Pay
$125 - TSP Contribution
$100 - TSP Match
$2,725 - Total Income

Fixed Expenses:
$0 - Rent
$0 - Utilities
$45 - Car Insurance
$60 - Cell Phone/Internet
$225 - Car Savings Acct
$250 - Travel Savings Acct
$580 - Total Fixed Expenses

Variable Expenses:
$200 - Groceries
$0 - Gas
$40 - Haircuts
$500 - Fun Money
$145 - Misc. (clothes, uniforms, etc.)
$885 - Total Variable Expenses

Investments:
$1,035 - Dividend Stock
$125 - TSP Contribution
$100 - TSP Match
$1,260 - Total Investments

Savings Rate - 46.2%

Since I lasted posted a budget in February I find myself in a different set of circumstances.  Being stationed in South Korea means I have reduced expenses and increased pay.  I also received a small raise a couple months ago of like $100/month.  My car is in storage yet I still set aside money every month to buy a newer vehicle in the future.  I still have insurance on my car, even though I don't drive it.  I found out I have to keep some liability unless I turn in my registration and plates (which I can't do now that I'm here).  I also increased my fun money by 2/3 and save money every month for a trip to Thailand.  I'm going to live like a king while there :)

I ended up getting a Samsung Galaxy M-style smart phone, which is nice to have.  It has unlimited data so I tether it to my computer.  $58/month gets me unlimited data, I doubt it would be so cheap in the states.  It's 3G though so my internet is not blazing fast like before.  Overall I do not need a smart phone, but it's nice to have portable entertainment.

I'm very pleased with my savings rate, it doesn't feel like I'm sacrificing anything.  I could easily achieve a 80%+ savings rate if I wanted to.  I know I'll be working for another 15 years, I want to live in the present a bit.  No reason for me to get excessive with retirement saving, think I found a good balance.