shape
carat
color
clarity

If you were gifted money, what would you do with it?

Status
Not open for further replies. Please create a new topic or request for this thread to be opened.
Probably the same thing we do with all windfalls: bank half of it, divvy up the remainder. Practically speaking, this amounts to banking 3/4 of it, since my husband is a remarkably frugal man (though, one of these days, he's actually going to take some of his vacation days, and then there is going to be a trip). As for me? If I got a random 5K, I'd be torn between getting a BIG eternity band, or a new desk. My old one, poor thing, is looking quite the worse for the wear after having gone through something like ... good lord, 9 moves. With another coming in September. ARGH I HATE MOVING.
 
Buy a house with cash!

I'd also like to pay off DH's student loans (though the interest rate isn't too bad) and buy a new car for me with cash (mine is 11 and won't last more than a couple years). But if we could buy a house with cash we could easily afford these other things, so the house would be first on my list.
 
Depends on how much money. A few thou, I'd buy jewels!!! A few hundred thou, I'd invest AND buy jewels.

But at the risk of being a grouch, I wouldn't be GIFTED money, I'd be GIVEN it. Aaargh. "Gift" is a noun, folks!!! I HATE seeing it used as a verb when doing so adds nothing to its meaning. Like saying you're going to OVEN your cake. Pardon me, but barf! :angryfire:

--- Laurie
 
$5k to jewelry
$5k to a family vacation
$10k to savings

Edit - oh, if my DH wanted some then that would come out of jew/vac fund.
 
The entire amount would go into savings. Do we have to pay taxes on the $20K or is it under-the-table? lol
 
20k? I'd put it on the morgage. We don't have student loans or other substantial debt, but lowering our mortgage would definitely be a good thing!
 
Elrohwen|1296829094|2842777 said:
Buy a house with cash!

I'd also like to pay off DH's student loans (though the interest rate isn't too bad) and buy a new car for me with cash (mine is 11 and won't last more than a couple years). But if we could buy a house with cash we could easily afford these other things, so the house would be first on my list.
hmmmm...with $20,000? ;))
 
Let's see...I would give DH and myself $2,500 to put towards our own thing.
Then, the $7,500 would go towards my student loans. The other $7,500 would go into savings.
 
I'd love to spend a few thousand on a pair of 1.4 ctw diamond studs that I really want as a push present for our second child (2 diamonds seems like the appropriate gift for having a second child ;)) ). DH really wants a tablet PC. The rest would go into savings.
 
We would probably use half to build a second garage and the other half to pay down our mortgage.
 
JewelFreak|1296830173|2842795 said:
Depends on how much money. A few thou, I'd buy jewels!!! A few hundred thou, I'd invest AND buy jewels.

But at the risk of being a grouch, I wouldn't be GIFTED money, I'd be GIVEN it. Aaargh. "Gift" is a noun, folks!!! I HATE seeing it used as a verb when doing so adds nothing to its meaning. Like saying you're going to OVEN your cake. Pardon me, but barf! :angryfire:

--- Laurie

This made me laugh the laugh of the semanticist (I abhor the abuses to which we subject our poor language - they're like Pringles, I can't pick just one, even as an example), but it also gave me pause, 'cause I though of it more as an archaic construction than a modern abomination.

So I Googled ... looks like it's actually more a victim of renewed popularity than anything else. Phew!

http://staringatemptypages.blogspot.com/2006/06/gift-as-verb.html
 
OK 20K will not pay off my house...so I would pay off our credit cards and my hubbys truck, that would be about 13,000 and then I would bank the rest of it till I figured out what I would want to spend it on....lol
 
There is a diamond that I want.......
 
Probably pay off DH's car and some of his law school debt. Although I'd be sorely tempted to use it for home improvement projects instead...
 
My hubby and I are sort of in this situation now...he received a nice sized sign on bonus at his new job we were NOT anticipating.
The money is going to a few thing: 1) I got a new DSLR camera to document all the exciting stuff going on in our lives...plus he royally screwed up Christmas so that was a bit of a get out of the doghouse gift. 2) pay off my car completely. We want to sell it this summer and get a new (used) car anyways, so this will negate my car debt so when we sell my car, that money will go towards the new car. 3) anything extra will go towards any upgrades we add to the house we are building (ceramic tile, upgraded carpet).

Not the most exciting way to spend the money, but makes me happy! :bigsmile:

We've also decided that any other bonus either of us gets will go to paying off my student loans until they are GONE. I've got 7 years left on them....but we want to make them disappear in <5.
 
fountainfairfax|1296791216|2842521 said:
Ahhh, how I love threads like this. If dreaming equaled doing I'd be a happy lady!

Ok, half would go for a little kitchen "spruce-up." New floor (laminate that looks like tile- I hate tile on kitchen floors- spills & grout lines= a bad combo for me,) new counters, appliances & backsplash. Totally do-able if I DYI the floor with my handy FIL, DYI the backsplash on my own, give up my dream of Silestone for the counter & accept high-def laminate and contact a former co-worker since her Dad is the manager of a major appliance store. I'd also DYI a little bit of a cherry glaze to my oak cabinets to warm them up.


Can you tell I've been giving this a little thought already... :tongue:


The other half would be split equally between debt and savings, although I'd keep thinking Maui is calling for my 45th b-day in two years.

WAY do-able. I did my backsplash myself with travertine tile, had a blast doing it and spent roughly $150 on supplies :) And it looks pretty good, it I do say so myself!
 
I'm very frugal so my gut instinct would be to put it all on the mortgage.. but I could probably tolerate 1,000$ each to use for fun :cheeky:
 
According to Miriam Webster Dictionary:

2. gift
verb
Definition of GIFT
transitive verb
1: to endow with some power, quality, or attribute
2: present <gifted her with flowers>
— gift·ee \ˌgif-ˈtē\ noun
See gift defined for English-language learners »
Examples of GIFT
 
jaysonsmom|1296800753|2842658 said:
Funny that you should post this, we DID get something in that range (between my husband and myself), and I really wanted to buy my 1.5 tcw studs, and maybe a nice designer purse....but dh talked me out of it, and instead we're re-doing our backyard, and getting some new furniture.

Ooh, that sounds like fun!
 
Circe|1296846734|2843085 said:
JewelFreak|1296830173|2842795 said:
Depends on how much money. A few thou, I'd buy jewels!!! A few hundred thou, I'd invest AND buy jewels.

But at the risk of being a grouch, I wouldn't be GIFTED money, I'd be GIVEN it. Aaargh. "Gift" is a noun, folks!!! I HATE seeing it used as a verb when doing so adds nothing to its meaning. Like saying you're going to OVEN your cake. Pardon me, but barf! :angryfire:

--- Laurie

This made me laugh the laugh of the semanticist (I abhor the abuses to which we subject our poor language - they're like Pringles, I can't pick just one, even as an example), but it also gave me pause, 'cause I though of it more as an archaic construction than a modern abomination.

So I Googled ... looks like it's actually more a victim of renewed popularity than anything else. Phew!

http://staringatemptypages.blogspot.com/2006/06/gift-as-verb.html


Okay, I should have used "given" instead of "gifted." Obviously "gift" is a noun, but I thought it had become acceptable to use "gifted" (verb) lately.

ETA: Thanks for pointing that out, Iugurl!
 
DH and I have no debt other than our house, so I'd say we'd slap 10k on the mortgage and halve the rest between the two of us for play money. And yes, I would buy a pretty shiney :rodent:
 
I would take out 10% of whatever amount to enjoy and do something out of the ordinary, and the rest would get split between paying off bills and savings. After the recession hit two years ago, we learned that there's nothing like having saved cash available for emergencies.
 
manderz|1296876037|2843598 said:
fountainfairfax|1296791216|2842521 said:
Ahhh, how I love threads like this. If dreaming equaled doing I'd be a happy lady!

Ok, half would go for a little kitchen "spruce-up." New floor (laminate that looks like tile- I hate tile on kitchen floors- spills & grout lines= a bad combo for me,) new counters, appliances & backsplash. Totally do-able if I DYI the floor with my handy FIL, DYI the backsplash on my own, give up my dream of Silestone for the counter & accept high-def laminate and contact a former co-worker since her Dad is the manager of a major appliance store. I'd also DYI a little bit of a cherry glaze to my oak cabinets to warm them up.


Can you tell I've been giving this a little thought already... :tongue:


The other half would be split equally between debt and savings, although I'd keep thinking Maui is calling for my 45th b-day in two years.

WAY do-able. I did my backsplash myself with travertine tile, had a blast doing it and spent roughly $150 on supplies :) And it looks pretty good, it I do say so myself!

Manderz-

I will definitely be paging you here for pointers when I'm ready to begin.....which "might" just be this year!
 
fountainfairfax said:
Manderz-

I will definitely be paging you here for pointers when I'm ready to begin.....which "might" just be this year!

It depends on how big your room is, of course, my kitchen is teeny tiny, and I found my tile at a discount home improvement store, but doing it yourself saves SO much money. If you have a big box near you, I would recommend the classes they offer. They can be really helpful. Of course, my baby brother works at one, so I have my own free "contractor" should I have any problems :)
 
I'm very lucky and there's nothing that I'm just dying to have or do *right this minute* so I would want to put it all towards student loans, and maybe just go out to a slightly nicer dinner that week or go to an extra yoga class. DH would probably want to spend part of it on himself, and then go on vacation with the rest towards loans.
 
I would get. rid. of. debt.
 
it would depend how much it is and who it was from... when my grandfather died his property and investments went to my mom and when she died it went to me. My initial inheritance from being a grandchild was $1000 and it got earmarked for a future purchase but sucked into our general money as we were still struggling to get settled at that point. I plan to buy a hope chest with it - or MAYBE put it toward a grandfather clock. I haven't bought either and he's been gone more than a decade. There was no where to put it in our house before so I'm hoping when we return from China we will be in a new house with room for one or the other (haha or both). But it's important to me to have something specific that is heirloom quality from grandpa to me. Other money I got later from the estate I put toward buying our 2nd house. We don't have any debt other than our houses so if I got under 5k I would probably buy something nice for the house that I intended to keep for the rest of my life and pass to my children. If I got more than that I would invest it in something (like yet another house lol). It's a great time to buy a house... market can't get much lower and there are renters to be found.
 
We weren't gifted money but we did get a nice bonus at the end of 2010. We did a little of everything... and there were some definite splurges in there but there were trade offs too. So I'll just share what we did.

I got my Aurora Band. And I splurged on platinum and a few other things for it. I wanted a no-compromise ring. I got G SI BGD signatures... I consider higher color a waste of money FOR ME at that size and eyeclean= mindclean for me. This was a pure reward for hte money. The reason we got the money was through a bad thing that happened to me. And I wanted something that would last and that would remind when I looked at it that I won. So that was a non-negotiable.

Our old couches were hand me downs, our coffee table defective and we didn't get any new linens at our wedding so it was all student quality, not 'adult' quality. So I replaced some of it. For the furniture I definitely watched sales and price shopped, only replacing certain items. I'm repurposing a lot of stuff (doesn't sound like it, I know, but I am), donating some of it for tax write offs, and I went budget on the accessories because I can't justify expensive accessories. I'm reusing everything I'm not selling or donating in our guest room (which is empty except for a desk at the moment).

It IS lovely to have towels that aren't sand paper if you don't dry them just right with runs all up and down them. Ands sheets that actually STAY ON THE BED. Yahoo!

We updated our wardrobes with essentials (new nice boots and a nice leather jacket for Dh and two high quality suits that fit my professional status at work for me were the splurges-- but on Christmas sales or after Christmas sales for them).

A lot of it (over half) went to:
Putting money in savings.
Putting money in investments.
Paying down debt.

We never did get a honeymoon. But we still aren't going for one. It was new furnishings or a vacation. And we figured that we see the furnishings everyday. If I get one of the new jobs I am interviewing for, which will mean a nice increase in my income AND DH gets the promotion he is up for we'll probably try for a nice trip in 2011, but that's dependant on a lot of ifs.

Oh, and one more splurge... a maid every two weeks. But this isn't permanent. Just until John's back heals and my health evens out. Then we'll move it to once a month. But I can't keep up with the house with everything right now and the maid has been a stress and sanity saver.

If I had to give something up: the furniture. Hands down. I like the towels too much and they were on sale. LMAO.

Oh and we got bling for our moms as just general 'spoil them' gifts. They both helped us through the bad stuff that lead to us getting the money.
 
I like the word gifted - it can be more accurate, more specific, than just "given". You can be given your paycheck, you can be given your change... being "given money" is far less specific than being "gifted money". guess that's just not one of my pet peeves lol
 
Status
Not open for further replies. Please create a new topic or request for this thread to be opened.
GET 3 FREE HCA RESULTS JOIN THE FORUM. ASK FOR HELP
Top