What Our Real Monthly Expenses Look Like Right Now — And What We Expect Going Forward

 What Our Real Monthly Expenses Look Like Right Now — And What We Expect Going Forward

There comes a point where “we should probably look at the numbers” turns into “well, I guess we live here now.”

That is where Kellie and I are.

Not in a panic-movie way. More in a “pull up the bills, make some coffee, and stop pretending vibes are a financial strategy” kind of way.

Lately we have been trying to get brutally honest about what life actually costs us right now, what parts are rising, and what we should realistically expect going forward. Not fantasy-budget future. Not guru-budget future. Real life. Mid-Michigan. House still standing. Bills still arriving with the confidence of a government form and the warmth of a parking ticket.

What our housing costs look like right now

Our housing picture got clearer once we stopped lumping everything together and started breaking it into parts.

Right now, our monthly housing costs look like this:

• Mortgage principal and interest: $271.55
• Property taxes: $258.90
• Homeowners insurance: $317.70
• HELOC: $680.00

That puts our current housing total at $1,528.15 per month.

And yes, that number has moved around.

The mortgage-related side jumped when property taxes went up. That alone added about $150 a month, which is one of those changes that sounds annoying until you realize it quietly rewrites the whole budget. The HELOC also has not stayed flat. Over the past several months, it climbed from about $410 in September 2025 to $680 by March 2026 as the balance shifted and new advances hit. That means the total cost of simply continuing to live in the house has been creeping upward even before we talk about groceries, gas, or life deciding to freestyle.

What our utility bills have looked like

The utility side tells the same story: life costs more in real life than it does in your head.

Here is what our natural gas / heat looked like over the last six months:

• September 2025: $22.88
• October 2025: $22.74
• November 2025: $26.95
• December 2025: $88.96
• January 2026: $167.99
• February 2026: $193.41

And here is what our electric bill looked like over the same stretch:

• September 2025: $371.71
• October 2025: $249.72
• November 2025: $202.46
• December 2025: $242.25
• January 2026: $310.12
• February 2026: $398.80

That means winter does what winter always does in Michigan: it walks in like it pays taxes here and starts spending our money.

By late winter, heat plus electricity were no longer a cute little line item. They were a real force in the budget. And if you have ever stared at a utility bill like it personally insulted your bloodline, you already know the feeling.

What our income looks like right now

Right now, our income is not being driven by regular full employment.

Jason is currently receiving unemployment, which works out to about $1,681 a month based on the weekly amount we used in the application. Kellie is self-employed as a realtor, but current income has been inconsistent and low enough that month-to-month cash flow is not something we can treat as dependable.

That changes the whole planning model.

When income is unstable, the question stops being “How much do we make in a normal year?” and becomes “What do we need to survive this month without doing something stupid next month?”

That is a much more useful question.

What this means for us today

Today, the big lesson is simple:

our fixed and semi-fixed costs are doing most of the damage.

Housing is the anchor. Utilities are the wave behind it. Everything else gets squeezed after that.

That means today is about:

• protecting medical coverage
• protecting food support if possible
• preventing utility problems
• keeping housing stable
• avoiding the trap of pretending a temporary dip is just a “bad week”

Because it is not just a bad week. It is a season. And seasons need plans.

What we should expect going forward

Looking ahead, I think there are a few realistic truths.

1. Housing is not likely to get magically cheaper

Taxes rarely wake up one morning and decide to become lovable. Insurance is not exactly on a humility tour either. Even if the main mortgage stays controlled, the total cost of staying in the house will probably keep feeling heavier than it used to.

2. Utility swings are normal, but still painful

Winter will continue to hit harder than summer on heat. Electricity can still run high depending on usage, weather, and rate changes. The point is not to be shocked every season. The point is to plan for the shock before it shows up dressed as a bill.

3. Irregular income needs a different kind of mindset

Self-employment income, unemployment timing, and any future part-time or contract work do not behave like a neat salary. So the future probably needs more cash-flow awareness and less pretending the average month is real. Sometimes “average” is just statistics wearing a fake mustache.

4. Benefits matter more than pride

Medical coverage, SNAP, energy help, and related support are not side issues right now. They are part of the strategy. When income is unstable, protecting access to those programs can matter more than chasing the appearance of self-sufficiency.

5. We need to plan for the future in layers

Not just “Can we pay this month?” but:

• What happens if utilities stay high?
• What happens if taxes rise again?
• What happens if income stays patchy?
• What happens if one bill tips everything sideways?

That is not doom-thinking. That is grown-up thinking.

The real takeaway

The biggest surprise in all this is not that life is expensive. We already knew that.

The surprise is how fast a household can move from “we’re getting by” to “okay, now we need a real plan.”

And honestly, that may be the most useful shift of all.

Because once the numbers are real, the choices can be real too.

Not glamorous. Not Instagram-worthy. Not accompanied by a shirtless finance guy yelling about passive income from a rented duplex in Arizona.

Just real.

And right now, real is good enough.

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Practical summary

Right now, our household is carrying:

• about $1,528.15/month in housing costs
• highly seasonal utility costs, with winter hitting much harder
• reduced and uneven income
• a growing need to manage cash flow, benefits, and future risk together instead of pretending they are separate problems

That means the goal is not perfection.

The goal is stability.

And at this stage of life, stability is not boring.

It is the whole game.