We're not always sure how we became the money obsessed people we are. It's probably a combination of classes from Richard Johnson (which we both had as a professor), family, and nature. Either way, Stephen and I care alot about money. Its not that we're obsessed with money itself, rather what purposes it is used. That said, we're probably not always the best stewards with our money, especially lately. There's something about medical bills that make saving a dollar here and there seem utterly insignificant. Anyway the purpose of this blog post is to get ideas from you my our readers on what you do (big or small) to save money and/or be good stewards of money.
Ideas?
13 comments:
This is something Joel and I find ourselves evaluating quite frequently, probably because we pay more in student loan payments per month than we do in rent. There are the typical answers--clip coupons, cut back on eating out, shop sales, etc.
We've been very much un-southern-californian-like and have limited ourselves to only one car since we got married, and it's saved us a LOT of money. (This will be changing once the new baby gets here, but hey, we had a good 4-year run!)
Another creative idea my friend had for saving money is to make fewer meals with meat and use a lot more fresh veggies as the base of the meal. She's found some great recipes and has saved a bunch of money on meat over the last few months. And hey, healthy benefits, too! I've been trying to implement that in our meals, and it's pretty fun.
I wish I had more creative ideas for you. Good luck!
We take money out of each check and put it into a separate savings account that doesn't have accessibility (i.e. no checks or atm cards) unless we physically go into the bank. So it is basically money that we just forget about and it allows us to save for things like trips to Russia, babies, etc.
I've found that you can usually talk phone companies, moving truck companies and many other things down in price if you look into the competition.
hmm, what else?
Live in your parents basement.
Don't live in California.
Create a retirement fund now that uses long-term compound interest and put something away in it every month, even if its just a little.
Then budget the rest. One penny under budget=joy. One penny over=misery.
I always save my spare change. Sometimes I'll leave little coins (pennies in your case) in my wallet, but quarters (or 20 cent pieces and above in my case) generally get put into a bank. It's amazing how fast this adds up and somehow you don't really even miss it and then magically you have lots of money.
We do a few things to save money. I'm starting to use coupons and cook and bake more from scratch, we don't have cable, and we're going to avoid a second car as long as possible.
Okay, I'm back. I forgot to share some of my favorite blogs for saving money:
www.moneysavingmom.com
www.everydayfoodstorage.net (tells how to use food storage and make things from scratch)
http://keepinglifecreative.com (This woman has a goal to eat beans or rice each day for a year to save $)
www.passionforsavings.com
We save money by having automatic transfers into our savings. We use ING and you can set up several different accounts so we have an account that we put away money for a financial reserve, one for retirement (although we need to look into better long-term investment for that), a savings for each person in the family, and a recently set up account for when the time comes that we need to buy a bigger car. Even if it's just $10 a month, it will slowly add up, and you don't really miss the money when it disappears automatically.
Other ways I try to save are like Heidi, cook from scratch. I make double and we eat the leftovers for lunch the next day. I shop sales and use coupons. We shop at yard sales and thrift stores and peruse craigslist. I'm trying to grow some vegetables in our garden.
Other ideas I've heard but haven't had success implementing yet are getting rid of a thing before you buy something (like before you buy new clothes, go through your closet and take a load to DI). Also, when you think of something you want to buy, put it down on a list, then come back to it later, and you can see all the things you want and decide which is most important to you now and how to save up for it.
I second Heidi's website suggestions. I also like foodstoragemadeeasy.net which breaks down accumulating food storage into nice small steps. Carlos daily checks websites such as bensbargains.net and slickdeals.net to find great deals. So when he wanted to get a new hard drive to back up our files on, he watched those sites for awhile until he found what he wanted for the price he was willing to pay.
I feel the same way as you...I try to be really frugal, but that often equals a bit of an obsession with money.
First off, do you buy produce at Buy Low? On Wednesdays, they have some produce that is ridiculously cheap!
Also, I subscribe to a few personal finance/frugality blogs. Even though I already do a lot of stuff they talk about, I often get new ideas for saving money. Here are some of the blogs I follow:
thesimpledollar.com
getrichslowly.org
bargaineering.com
I also agree with your friend that mentioned about an automatic withdrawal into a separate account. We do this even though we are already pretty good at saving our money. I don't even miss the $50/month, but over time we've accumulated a good emergency fund with this method.
Also, I shop around for insurance and other recurring costs every year or so. I guess the point of that one is just that I am constantly reevaluating our expenses to see if there is any way to cut it. Unfortunately, now I think we're about at the point where we just can't figure out how to cut anything else.
Well, you can always check out Dave Ramsey for ideas on better budgeting. We're big fans (cash envelope system is something he has suggested to avoid over-spending, along with a monthly budget plan etc.).
There are always lots of things people can do to save money. You could switch to cloth diapers (I just did). You could evaluate your meals and plan for simpler, less costly meals/snacks. Bring snacks from home to classes/work. Eat out less. Have a yard sale. Be faithful about turning off lights. Use watersaving showerheads and the like. Walk/bike instead of driving whenever you can. Brush, floss, rinse faithfully to avoid future costs at the dentist. I could go on, but I'm sure this is already more than you wanted to hear.
Good luck...
A couple ideas off the top of my head:
Get a bunch of cheap white washcloths (I got 18 for $4 at Walmart). Use those instead of papertowels to clean up messy babies, spills, etc.
Use bar soap instead of the pump kind.
Before any purchase over $50compare online and in stores. Also look for printable coupons. Ask a salesperson when they think the item will go on sale. Sometimes they will give you a discount or alert you to an upcomming sale.
Craigslist or thrift stores for all baby clothes and children's items.
Have items for a quick, easy meal on hand to avoid eatting out on those crazy, busy days.
Hang out with other frugal people. They will alert you to deals, and their good habits will rub off on you.
Cheap dates: rollerblade or bike up Provo canyon, dollar movies, picnics, temple trips, go some place beautiful and sketch together, BYU bowling, hiking, attend devotionals together, etc.
Probably the most important thing I've found to help me is to cultivate a attitude of gratitude and contentment with what you have.
Focusing on what you lack just makes you want to spend more.
Everyone has really good ideas. I do agree that we have saved a lot only having one car, although it is not easy. In the long run, I don't think it matters so much what you do specifically as much as how consistently you do it. Enduring in all things is the trick in life, isn't it? Well, that's all for my 2 cents worth of wisdom.
Rachel,
I just found a blog today that I think you might like to read. It is organized well and easy to find things you are looking for. I really like it. http://www.notthejetset.net
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