We’re ringing in the new year aboard our 1978 Fuji sailboat SV Mosaic. Just into the new year and I’m ready to put out our December 2018 budget report. I enjoy posting our monthly expenses for a couple reasons: A) it helps us stay focused each month on where we’re spending our money and how we need to try to improve our spending habits, and B) we hope this information helps fellow dreamers out there that might be contemplating taking the leap into liveaboard life and wondering how much it costs to live on a sailboat as a family of four.

So – a couple things to report on this month’s budget report…

First of all – CHRISTMAS. Christmas, inevitably, kills a budget. Also, it made it really hard to accurately track what expenses were for Christmas and which were for food because we did some shopping during the same trip that was for presents and some for groceries. This is the best estimate I can get for what we spent on Christmas versus food in December.

Secondly, we actually decided to consolidate some of our debts to simplify the pay off process and lower the effective interest rates. This happened during December so our January report will probably look a bit different. Exactly how much different, at this point I’m not sure yet. Time will tell! Alright, let’s jump in.

December 2018 Income

Our total income for December 2018 was $5,197.00

December 2018 Expenses

December 2018 total expenses: $4,973.00 

December Monthly Expenses Breakdown

Boat Expenses: $1,212

• Moorage, electricity bill, cell phone bill, boat loan, paid pump-outs, boat project costs, US Coast Guard Documentation

Car Expenses: $696

• Progressive car insurance, Ford Fusion car loan, gas

Medical Expenses: $547

• Medical/Dental/Vision insurance, outstanding interest-free hospital bills
• No additional doctor/dentist visits this month

Work Expenses: $239

• Daycare, AT&T data wifi plan, parking fees for downtown Portland where Brenden works

Entertainment Expenses: $196

• Netflix, Hulu, Serius Satelite Radio, gym membership, Audible subscription/purchases, etc.

Food Expenses: $1,041

• Groceries, eating out, fast food, pizza, alcohol purchases

Miscellaneous Expenses: $1,042

• Christmas presents & food

Soooo … we still spent over $1,000 on food! But we did do much much better on our fast food expenses with only $40 spent at fast food restaurants this month. And, I reiterate, December is always … just a tough and very expensive month. Onward and upward.

Thanks for reading. I hope this helps somebody out there in the planning phases or curious but unsure of the possibility of living aboard a sailboat with your family. We are a family of four living aboard our 40-foot sailboat in Portland Oregon. We both still work as we’re trying to pay off our pre-existing debts while prepping to go cruising long term. We’ve been living aboard our sailboat, SV Mosaic, for over two years here in Portland and are planning on heading up to the Puget Sound this summer to begin part-time cruising. Cheers!  ~Rachel