One of the main concerns I had when considering moving overseas was how in the world am I going to be able to afford this!? It seemed like a big, scary task that I could not accomplish in a less than 6 month period.
What I'm Starting With:
I did spend quite a bit of money I had saved in 2017. I took my trip to Italy, had to pay for moving expenses into a new apartment in Chicago, and did some smaller trips to D.C and Colorado. Plus ya know, normal things like paying to feed myself and occasionally enjoying a night out of the house. However, I've been really buckling down on going out the past month or two. I've been living off homemade salads and Hulu, but its worth it! I thankfully have had a good paying job where I earn a base salary plus commission. Those commission checks have been going straight into my savings account. I'm not a big stickler with budgets. I just try to be extremely mindful of my spending and ultimately, I choose the less expensive option whenever given the choice. There's a quite a bit of expenses to pay for before I leave. Some I have paid for already or partially. Here's a break down.
A Breakdown of Required Expenses:
- Course: $1325
- Airfare: $951 (What I actually paid)
- 1 Month of Housing (With roommate but separate rooms): $550
- Visa Assistance/Paperwork: $511
- Laptop/Tablet: $500-800 range
- Initial Cushion Money recommended: $3500 saved
A Breakdown of Other Expenses:
This list is other expenses that would be ideal, but not necessarily required
- New iPhone: $500 to unlock to use European SIM Card
- I have an older paid off 6S that I can use in the mean time, but I'm hoping to unlock the this new one before I leave since its a bit faster
- Polaroid Camera: $60 (Excluding film)
Paid for (or at least partially):
- Course: $350 deposit made. $975 left to go.
- Airfare: $951 paid in full
- Housing/Visa: This I pay for in Prague on their currency (CZK)
At first, adding all of this up totally freaked me out. I felt overwhelmed on how I was going to make this happen. But once I broke it down and kept other things into consideration - it really isn't too bad.
Ways I am saving and making money:
- Hoarding my income: Especially those commission checks. Those are immediately ignored as any income for me bill wise. I put those directly into my savings account.
- Limited going out: If I feel like being social, I'll invite someone over or go there. Buy a bottle of wine for home instead of going to the bar. I don't really go out to eat too often. If I do, its normally with some friends and I still am selective of what I order to keep costs down. I still think its important not to cut off everything you do while you wait to leave :)
- Grocery shopping: Thankfully Pinterest has an overwhelming amount of ideas for budgeting meals that don't require you eating $0.25 Ramen every day. Lately, I've been buying fresh ingredients for salads and prepping that for an entire week of lunches at work. I stopped bulk grocery shopping because I kept having to throw away like all my food because depending on my schedule, half of it would go bad! I also stopped trying to do anything too ingredient intensive. Meals got a little boring, but food is food.
- Sell your stuff: My major sale will be selling my car. Check out Kelly Blue Book to see the estimated value of your car. Mine should be between $5,000-$7,000, which is good chunk of what I need to pay off expenses and have saved! I've got a few pieces already up on an app called Offer Up. I also have been asking around and getting the word out about bigger things like my sofa, mattress, dresser, etc. My next plan of attack is to sell clothes and books/DVDs to local resale shops. This is an easy way to make quick cash.
- Tax Return Season: I am luckily leaving around tax return season in April. I plan on filing my taxes immediately so I can have my tax refund right around the time I leave.
I'll update this periodically as my finances change up until I leave for the trip and if I learn any new tips and tricks along the way!
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