The first day of school is my January 1st. I really think the Jewish folks got it right with Rosh Hashanah. The fall, not the wiinter or January 1st, feels like the start of a new year. This is when I usually get:

• new clothes
• new shoes
• new routine
• new season

While the summer is a time to kick back and relax, the fall brings a renewed sense of energy and purpose. One of things we always do this time of year is to sit down and do our annual budget for the year. We tend to be backward planners. It goes something like this: the Visa bill arrives and we go, “Holy cow! Why is it so big? Where did we spend all that money?”

Summer is also a relaxed time for spending money. For us, having a second home means increased expenses especially travel expenses. Boat fuel, driving to the cabin and the ferry fees are the main culprits. While gas appears to be coming down, we we’re filling up at $1.40 a litre. The assured loading card which cost $850 a year ago is now $1,300 and is rumoured to be increasing again.

And then there are the cottage improvement expenses like the new dock. The total cost to re-float the dock and build the extension amounted to just under $4,000. Ouch. Thank goodness the labour was free - well almost. Bill did drink more beer that week.

The one thing that’s really important for all cottagers is to keep really good records of your cottage improvements. The new dock enhances the capital value of our property, therefor we can use it offset any capitals gains (if there are any) when we decide to dispose of it.

The majority of capital improvements on a cottage or new property occur within the first four years of ownership, so it is really important to keep your receipts. We have a binder we throw everything into. It’s not pretty, but at least it’s all in one place. Ten or 20 years from now, I will be hard pressed to remember where I parked my car, let alone when or what we did to the cabin.

It was decided at this year’s annual budget meeting that we’ve finished all our big projects. Ironically it’s been four years since we bought the cabin. While there might be a little bit of yard work to do and some paint touch-ups, the cabin is pretty much going to stay the way it is until the next generation takes over. At least I hope.

What did you do to your cottage or cabin this year?

Cheers,

Julie

This entry was posted on Wednesday, September 3rd, 2008 at 10:09 am and is filed under Current News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.