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Name, age: Brendan, 29
Annual income: $75,000
Debt: $0
Savings: $38.22 in savings account; $4,995.26 in TFSA
What he does: marketing analyst
Where he lives: Calgary
Top financial concern: “I didn’t know where my money was going. So I set up a spreadsheet. Long-term, I’d like to have a house. But my TFSA is becoming more of a ‘vacation support fund.’”
Paycheque Project is a non-judgmental look at how young adults in Canada are spending their money. If you would like to participate, send us an e-mail.
Brendan’s start in money management was inauspicious. The 29-year-old marketing analyst got his first credit card as a teen and quickly became comfortable with debt.
“I took an $8,000 line of credit to buy a car,” he says. “But I didn’t really have a structure for paying off the line of credit – the debt just sat there for three or four years.” At 8-per-cent interest, he was also being hit with fees.
At around the same time, he left his hometown of Ottawa and moved to Calgary, enjoying the city’s bar scene. “The Calgary Flames were going to the playoffs,” he says. “I didn’t know where my money was going.”
Several years ago, Brendan decided it was time to get his finances in order. He started tracking his expenses and eliminated his line of credit. Debt-free, he has managed to save almost $5,000. “I set up a spreadsheet and my girlfriend thinks that I’m a little insane” regarding the budgeting, he says. “But it has been a weight off my shoulders.”
Despite some coming expenses – Brendan has just moved into a two-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment in central Calgary – he’s confident his savings streak will continue. He recently landed a new role and expects to earn more money in the new year.
His future goal is to buy a home in Calgary with his girlfriend. “Long-term, I’d like to have a house,” he says. He’s also begun dabbling in investing, purchasing exchange-traded funds in his tax-free savings account using an online brokerage, and learning what he can do online. “I’d like to grow my investment portfolio a bit,” he says.
But he acknowledges that his TFSA is becoming less of a down payment fund and more of a “vacation support fund.” He and his girlfriend have recently returned from a two-week trip to Ireland and have three out-of-town weddings this summer.
As for retirement, Brendan admits it’s not at the top of his priority list. “I should be focusing on it a bit – but it seems so daunting,” he says. He hasn’t begun making registered retirement savings plan contributions and he has yet to join his employer’s group RRSP.
But he knows he plans to stay in Calgary, a city known for its beautiful vistas and more relaxed approach to life. “I fell in love with the mountains,” he says. “And the work-life balance is a lot better out here.”
He spends his weekends getting out of the city to camp, fish, hike or snowboard. “It’s pretty much the life,” he says.
His typical monthly expenses:
Investment and savings: $250
$0 to RRSP. “I should be focusing on retirement a bit but it seems too daunting.”
$250 to TFSA. “I typically put any savings into a TFSA, in the hopes for a better return. I’m with Wealthsimple. It’s mostly ETFs.”
Household and transportation: $2,270.81
$900 to rent. “I split $1,800 with my partner. It’s a two-bedroom, two-bathroom with 1,200 square feet in pretty central Calgary.”
$50 on utilities.
$41 on renters’ insurance.
$574.48 on car payment. “I got a new truck during COVID. It’s a 2020 Toyota Tacoma. It’s mostly for getting out of the city to go camping, fishing, hiking and snowboarding.”
$212.91 on car insurance.
$300 on gas. “I just got back from a bachelor party in Kelowna, B.C. I filled up three times during the weekend.”
$58.75 on cellphone. “It’s Fido Unlimited Talk and Text, with 17G of data plus 10GB of bonus data for 24 months.”
$95.96 on Internet. “I split it 50/50 with my partner.”
$37.71 on subscriptions. “I pay $13.64 for Spotify, $8.33 for Crave, $15.74 for NHL. My team is Chicago.”
$0 on transit pass. “If I’m not working from home, I walk to work.”
Food and drink: $650
$400 on groceries. “I am very frugal and buy store brand where possible. We are not coupon clippers. We shop at Superstore or Costco and use a PC points Mastercard. My girlfriend is the cook. She makes butternut squash soup, curry bowls, salads with roasted beets.”
$150 on eating out. “My partner and I prefer to cook for ourselves and eat out for occasions. If we go out it’s got to be something exotic – not burgers and fries. We like the unique fusion restaurants in Calgary. There aren’t any cheap date-night places.”
$100 on alcohol. “We got used to bringing beer to someone’s place during COVID. You realize the liquor store is half the price of going out. We like craft beer – it’s $16-$18 for a four-pack. We like Old Beautiful. We collect the empties and bring them back.”
Miscellaneous: $830.67
$146.50 on sports. “I pay about $50 a month for a gym membership, play on two rec hockey teams in the winter and a couple of rec multisport teams through the local social club. We play a different sport each week – it’s not too competitive.”
$16.67 on haircuts.
$12.50 on clothing. “I like Old Navy and outlet malls.”
$0 on Netflix. “My parents pay for a family plan , which is also used by my two older sisters.”
$50 on courses. “It’s a Coursera course on Google Data Analytics. I wanted to hive my current employer to give me a chance at doing something I’m interested in doing. Hopefully I will complete it in the next couple of months.”
Vacations: $605
$7,260 total on vacations a year. “We just got back from a two-week trip to Ireland in May and June. We spent $5,000 between the two of us. My sister who lives in Belfast gave us her credit card and we will pay her back later. We also have three weddings this summer.”
Some details may be changed to protect the privacy of the person profiled. We want to thank him for sharing his story. Are you a millennial who would like to participate in a Paycheque Project? Send us an e-mail.
