This Upper Beaches writer makes $80,000 a year. How does he spend it?
“Almost every meal I eat is takeout. I’m not sure buying groceries saves much money these days”
Who: Josh Sherman, 36 What he does: He’s a writer for a real estate company and a freelance journalist What he makes: $79,460 Where he lives: A one-bedroom apartment in the Upper Beaches
Regular Expenses
Rent: $1,025 a month. “I live in a 440-square-foot unit on the main floor of a multiplex. When I started renting here, in 2017, it was $950 a month.”
Cell: $70 a month with Koodo. “I’ve had this plan for about 15 years. It comes with eight gigabytes of data and unlimited talk and text across Canada.”
Internet: $80 a month with TekSavvy.
Groceries: $300 a month. “My fridge is full of fruits, veggies and La Croix, but I rarely cook because it’s too time consuming. I’m also not sure that buying groceries instead of takeout saves much money these days.”
Takeout: $500 a month. “Almost every meal I eat is takeout. There are great cheap falafel and pizza places along Danforth. But I have started limiting my Uber Eats usage to four times per month, because the fees do add up.”
Transportation: $80 a month. “I take the TTC to work about 10 times in a month. Otherwise, I cycle everywhere. I don’t have a driver’s licence.”
Entertainment: $340 a month. “I’m on a trivia team with a few other writers. We’ll have beers and dinner during matches, so that costs $60 a week. And when I host parties, I’ll buy alcohol and finger food.”
Vinyl: $200 a month. “I used to be a DJ, and I own about 800 records. Most of them are from the website Discogs, but I like to visit Sonic Boom on lunch breaks to buy 12-inch singles.”
Books: $100 a month. “I like buying books as collectors’ items. I just got The Works of Guillaume Dustan at BMV for $10.”
Hot Wheels: $150 a month. “I’ve loved these toys since I was a kid. I make several trips to Walmart and Dollarama every month and now have about 2,000 cars that I feature on a dedicated Instagram page.”
Savings: $700 a month. “I’m trying to step up my investment game. I have a TFSA and a high-interest savings account. I may buy some stocks and bonds soon.”
Recent Splurges
Four-day trip to New York: $1,500. “My Airbnb belonged to a friend, so it was free, but the rest of the vacation was expensive. I landed at Newark and ordered a Bloody Mary and a mimosa—$70. That set the tone for the entire trip.”
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