This Wychwood couple makes $123,800 a year. How do they spend it?

Who: Meara Medcalf, 32, and Zach Medcalf, 34 What they do: She’s an anti-money-­laundering analyst at a bank; he’s an electrician What they make: $123,800 combined Where they live: A two-bedroom, two-bathroom condo in Wychwood

Regular Expenses

Mortgage: $2,652 a month. “I bought pre-construction in 2017,” says Meara. “It was delayed by over a year, which was fine since we were paying cheap rent in Burlington.”

Condo fees: $640 a month. “They’re reasonable since they include internet.”

Hydro: $150 a month.

Cell: $255 a month. “I’m with Rogers, and Meara’s with Bell,” says Zach. “So it’s a little steep right now. We could pay less.”

Subscriptions: $45 a month. “We have Apple TV, plus we use a family account for Amazon Prime,” says Meara.

Fitness: $55 a month. “I have a class pass that works at various places, so I usually go to Sweat and Tonic or Philosophy Fitness,” Meara says. “Zach uses the condo gym.”

Groceries: $500 a month. “No Frills is our go-to,” says Meara. “We try to prep the week’s meals in advance. It’s a lot of work, but it maximizes our savings.”

Car: $0 a month. “It’s a company car with insurance and gas covered,” says Zach.

Transit: $55 a month. “I take the subway to work two days a week,” says Meara.

Uber: $60 a month. “I take the occasional Uber to visit my family and friends on the weekend,” says Meara.

Dining out: $200 a month. “Our favourite spots are Ferro, Itacate and Goen—all on St. Clair,” says Meara.

Entertainment: $300 a month. “Sometimes we’ll go to a movie, sometimes we’ll attend fun events like Salsa on St. Clair,” says Meara.

Beauty: $250 a month. “The whole less-is-more makeup trend is surfacing again, and I’m grateful,” says Meara.

Clothing: $200 a month.

Fermentation: $50 a month. “Zach bakes sourdough, and I just started making pickled eggs, ginger and beets,” says Meara.

Savings

RRSP: $150 a month. “Our goal is to have more disposable income for our future family,” says Meara.

Wedding fund: $400 a month. “We’re planning a destination wedding in Mexico for January of 2025,” says Meara. “It was too expensive to have it in Ontario. For the number of people we’ve invited, it would have easily cost us over $50,000.”

Recent Splurges

Harp strings: $90. “I’ve been playing the harp since I was six years old,” Meara says. “The strings are freaking expensive! Depending on the octave, they’re about $30 each.”

Trip to Ireland: $8,000. “Meara was a bridesmaid at a wedding,” says Zach. “We spent five days touring prior to the big day.”