These Dufferin Grove parents make $240,000 a year. How do they spend it?
“We would love to buy our own home once we pay off some debt”
Who: Erica Moore, 40, and Trevor Moore, 38
What she does: Owner and principal of Hudson Kruse
What he does: R&D manager at a manufacturing company
What they make: $240,000 combined
Where they live: A three-bedroom detached in Dufferin Grove, with their sons, Otis, 5, and Charles, 3, and their Ganaraskan, Montrose
Regular Expenses
Rent: $4,600 a month. “Erica’s firm is based in our home, and the business contributes to rent,” says Trevor. “We would love to buy our own home once we pay off some debt.”
Internet: $140 a month with Bell.
Cell: $90 a month for a shared plan with Freedom Mobile.
Groceries: $1,500 a month. “We’re always trying to bring this cost down, but with two growing boys and clients often visiting, we’re at the grocery store a lot,” says Erica. “Typically, we shop at No Frills for basics.”
More Toronto Budgets
Eating out: $900 a month. “Sometimes, after an exhausting day, we’ll just order a pizza for the kids,” Erica says. “This cost also includes dinners and drinks with friends and the rare date night for us.”
Subscriptions: $48 a month for Audible, Spotify and Netflix.
Car: $250 for gas and insurance. “Our car is a 2013 Hyundai Elantra,” Trevor says. “Having the kids and dog in the back makes road trips very snug.”
Child care: $1,385 a month for daycare and after-school programs. “This will go down even more thanks to the new provincial daycare subsidy,” Trevor says. “Two years ago, we were paying $3,200 a month.”
Pet care: $120 a month for food and insurance. “Luckily our old guy is pretty healthy and hasn’t required the vet much. We keep him up to date on his vaccinations and checkups,” Erica says.
Charity: $200 a month. “When the boys are older, we may resume volunteering,” Trevor says. “For now, we do our best to set money aside each month for the causes we feel strongly about, like disaster relief.”
Recent Splurges
King-sized bed from West Elm: $2,849. “It may be too big for our room, but it’s incredibly comfortable, and we’re so happy we made the switch from a queen,” says Trevor.
Saint Laurent handbag: $3,500. “For my 40th birthday, I spoiled myself,” Erica says. “I don’t spend a lot on shoes or clothes compared to some of my friends, but I’m a sucker for a fancy handbag.”
Chanel and Hermès beauty products: $604 for a set including Chanel’s Le Blanc foam cleanser, Hydra Beauty liquid moisturizer and Hydra Beauty Gel Crème moisturizer as well as Hermès’s Eau de Merveilles perfumed soap. “I used a friend’s skin products recently and fell in love,” Erica says. “I’ve found that a little goes a long way with these, so I don’t anticipate needing to stock up again any time soon.”
Roxy Kirshenbaum is a freelance journalist based in Toronto. After graduating from Columbia University’s journalism program, she worked as a copy editor at InStyle magazine in New York and then as an editor at Surface magazine. When she returned to Toronto, she worked at Blue Ant Media and Cottage Life, and she has been a contributing writer and photographer at Toronto Life for many years.
