I consider myself financially savvy 90% of the time because I still look at the price
tag on things, I still shop by price.
I do splurge here and there because I've worked so hard the last five, six years of
my life that I think it's time for me to splurge a little bit.
This is Alex Sanchez, a millennial money veteran and a new father who lives in
Warrenville, Illinois.
Between his full-time job as a lineman, running a lawn mowing company and owning
six rental properties, Alex estimates his yearly income to be around $360,000 per
year.
I'm an overhead lineman, and I've been doing this for about five, six years now.
I think I average about 60, 65 hours a week.
Alex has been frugal in past years, but between working and balancing life as a new
dad, it's been tough to keep track of finances.
This week, Alex is working on one of his properties where he'll have new tenants in
August, so he knows he'll need to purchase supplies for the renovations.
Here's how much he spent the week of July 12, 2021.
My name is Alex Sanchez.
I'm 26 years old.
I make around $360,000 a year, and I believe I spend $500 a week.
Alex typically skips breakfast and opts for a protein bar in the morning, which helps
him save money. Lunch is his first purchase for the day.
Later in the afternoon, Alex runs to the local hardware store to buy some drywall
for one of his properties.
I'm about to go over to Home Depot and buy some drywall so I can get started putting
drywall on one of my rental properties.
He saves money by eating dinner at his mom's house, but rents a movie later in the
evening.
We spent $4 renting a movie.
I really don't remember what movie was, but I'm sure my girlfriend does and she's
going to be mad that I don't remember.
"Good morning, can I get a large black iced coffee, easy ice?"
On Tuesday, Alex saves money on food again.
He eats a protein bar for lunch and his dinner is covered.
Later on that day, I found out I was working a 16 hour shift at work, and my
crew leader bought food for me that day.
On Wednesday,
Alex's first expense of the day is filling up his truck with gas.
I think I drive about 10 miles one way, so 20 miles a day for lunch.
Alex saves money again by turning to his trusted protein bar, but he purchases a
steak burrito bowl from Chipotle for dinner.
It's not even 7:00 a.m., and I already spent $100.
I found out that my girlfriend's family was going to Miami, and it was a trip we
had planned before, but then it got canceled and last-minute it was back on.
After learning about the trip, Alex treats himself to Chick-fil-A.
My first meal of the day: Chick-fil-A.
Later in the afternoon, he makes another stop at the hardware store for more
supplies.
We paid $285 for these cabinets for the rental house.
So, you know, these little trips add up.
For dinner, Alex has a business meeting with a friend who pays for the meal.
But on the way home, he picks up McDonald's for Rosy.
So now I'm at McDonald's ordering my girlfriend some food.
Friday is a busy day for Alex as he gets ready for the family trip.
He purchases a hotel room for the weekend, but he doesn't have to pay for lunch, and
Rosy's family makes him dinner.
And then from there, we got on the road.
On Saturday, Alex makes a small purchase at the gas station.
And I bought some caffeine and that was pretty much what I spent on because
I knew I was already spending a lot of money for the week, so I didn't want to
spend any more than I had to.
He also gets a free lunch as a thank you for driving 15 hours to Miami.
My girlfriend's parents bought food for the driver because, of course, I drove a long
way. That's pretty much all I ate until it was time to go out.
I decided to drink instead of eating.
Once they've arrived in Miami, Alex spends $35 on drinks at the hotel.
The only other expense for the day were batteries, which Alex purchased for Rosy's
breastfeeding pump. The first expense on Sunday happens early in the morning.
So after we got some drinks at the hotel, we were a bit hungry.
So I think around 1:00 in the morning, we stopped by a pizza joint to get pizza for
the family.
Alex and his brother-in-law purchase alcohol for the day.
Alex covers half of the costs and spends $50.
We spent most of the day relaxing by the pool and getting some drinks, and then we
ended up going to dinner around 9:00 p.m.
later that day to one of the most popular Cuban restaurants in Miami.
Alex went over budget by one $1,237.56.
Here's how he felt about his spending for the week.
The trip doubled my expenses.
And the other things, I mean, I have to pay for materials on rental property
because that money, to me, it's not even an expense, it's the cost of doing
business. So this was a great experience because I haven't budgeted in I think about
three years. So when I look at the paper and I see everything I spend money on it,
it kind of made me cringe a little bit, so I think I am going to start budgeting
again.
Even though Alex's spending isn't completely under control, he's still on
track to reach one of his biggest goals.
I know in the last video we did, I mentioned I wanted to be a millionaire by
30. I think I'll be hitting that next year when I'm 27, so I'm a little bit excited
for that.