This week’s update blurb is brought to you by CF! Lots of stuff happening in my life so thought I’d share and tell.
Real estate empire here I come…
Brian and I have made some good headway into our master plan. Have you guessed the big news? We bought a new condo! This is our second real estate purchase and its mine all mine… *hysterical laughter* We’re planning on living in this condo for the next 2-3 years and then re-evaluating our prospects. It’s a beautifully renovated unit in the
heart of Vancouver’s hipster area – so lots of coffee shops, lots of healthy food markets and lots of dining and drinking options. The only downside? Itty bitty living space. It’s a svelte 500 square feet and, trust me, there is no fat to speak of. We’re excited to move in!
Taking a risk
Personal finance is a all about juggling the two basic tenets: making money and saving money. Brian and I often focus on saving money – things like bringing your lunch to work, making the most of your grocery money, and so on. But unlike saving money, there’s no limit to how much money you can make. Unfortunately, it’s often the harder of the two options because it involves risk. When I went back to school to start a new career, that was a risk. Sure, it didn’t cost me any money, but who knew if I would find a job afterwards? But it paid off – I effectively got a 30% raise with
the job I found right out of school. And now, I have taken another risk. I’m quitting my job to take a new position in the same field. The upside? A salary that’s 25% higher than my previous, a nice little bundle of stocks, and (get ready for this…) overtime pay. Software developers hardly ever get overtime!
So that’s my big two pieces of news for the week! I’m going to be writing about each item in more detail in the following weeks, so stay tuned! Now back to Brian for your weekly reading!
We are hosting a Thanksgiving dinner tonight, so I’m off to the kitchen to bake the pies before moving on to the turkey. At the end of the road is perhaps my favourite seasonal beer, the Howe Sound Pumpkineater Imperial Pumpkin Ale. How can you not love this?
- Tie the Money Knot looks at some suggestions for avoiding debt. After taking on another mortgage, it definitely important to limit other forms of debt!
- Mo Money Mo Houses provides a bit of information on buying property in the US. We’re not looking south of the border at this point, but good information!
- My Alternate Life discusses the evolution of minimalism. As mentioned, we’re also moving into a tiny living space – we might with Jordann for some tips!
- Add Vodka provides some useful tips on saving money on Christmas. I liked her suggestion about buying discounted gift cards – this is something we do ourselves when we want to buy something from a specific store!
- Halloween is approaching! Do you have your frugal and fun costume ready? I love these suggestions for DIY Halloween costumes from Femme Frugality.
Thanks to everyone who included us this week:
