Needs vs Wants

Moom's comment re my budget overview made my do a quick recalc and double check of my figures vs moomin's budget breakdown for last FY

My figures seem pretty much correct, although I count my investment property expenses and loan interest as part of 'savings' as it is basically the cost of holding the investment property, so is effectively spending current income to purchase a future CG benefit (which will get taxed at 50% of tax rate that would apply to income).

My tax deductible investment expenses are 31% of gross income (vs. 5% for Moomin) which (in conjunction with lower gross income and a progressive tax scale) accounts for my tax expenditure coming in at 18% of gross income vs 26% for Moomin.

Spending on 'needs' (housing, food, healthcare etc) is roughly comparable - except that my employer pays for our life insurance and private healthcare, and we have paid off our home mortgage, and I spend a lot less on transport as I work from home FT these days.

The biggest difference seems to be in the spending on 'wants' (3% vs 23%) which is mostly due to either big ticket items that I don't have  any use for (private school fees and childcare) or don't want (travel, mail order and restaurant meals). As with all 'wants' this comes down to perceived utility - I did a lot of international travel in my teens and twenties (as my dad was an international airline pilot) so don't feel the urge to do expensive international trips these days. DW and DS1 did go on a trip to China earlier this year, and DS1 did trips to the US and Japan, but I've already been around the world multiple times so no longer have any 'wunder lust' left (I might use my QFF points for a return trip to NZ next year to walk the Routeburn track with DS1 -- but a hiking trip using frequent flyer points won't blow out my 'travel' budget either).

And DW and I had decided a decade ago that selective HS was likely to be as good for DS1 and DS2 as a private HS education would have been. Apparently the ACT doesn't have any academically selective high schools (probably not in keeping with the more socialist overall electorate in a territory with an outsized public service and government sector compared to other regions of Australia).so in the ACT this expense may fall into the 'needs' category rather than 'wants' given the general standard of non-selective public high schools these days?

Spending on knick-knacks (mail order) and dining out are probably the only two obvious categories where I choose to spend disposable income on investments rather than lifestyle. As I have coelliac disease and our kids both have lots of food allergies, eating out was always more of a nuisance than an enjoyable experience anyhow. DW does spend quite a bit on eating out with her friends (I think), but as we keep our finances mostly separate, this doesn't appear in my budget. And I already have a garage full of unused hobby stuff (HO trains, scuba and ski gear, plastic models in original 1980s boxes etc) and a farm shed full of unused boat, hovercraft, kayak, windsurfer etc. etc. so I hardly need to buy any more 'stuff' ;)

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