Need shoppaholical advice!

[partgypsy]

I think it''s really true that if you only deal in cash, you spend less money. I rarely carry cash, but when I do, have that 20 I would look at it, then put it back in my wallet rather than breaking it for a cup of hot chocolate, snack, whatever.
The problem, unless you do the envelopes or document everything, is more difficult to find out where the money goes using cash. What we do is try to deposit all our cash, and use debit cards for almost everything, and strangely enough put gas, grocery and internet purchases on our 1 credit card (we get points and we pay off our card every month). For me I really do like having my credit card and would not want to be without a credit card, but then I''ve never had an issue with keeping balances on the card either.
This is probably not ideal. Supposedly there are studies that if you use credit cards (I''m assuming debit cards psychologically are the same) people spend approximately 15% more. Yikes! If I lost my job or really needed to get hard core I think I would do the envelope deal because then you are super-aware of spending the money.

Being on Pricescope has honed my appreciation it is better to wait and get exactly what you want than 2,3 lesser versions. I''m not perfect, but that''s what I''m striving for. We recently redid our closet and it looks so nice I really value the cleanness and organization of it more than having extra stuff that needs to be cleaned, stored, managed, etc.

 

[dragonfly411]

Scarf Linky

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Date: 10/29/2009 11:04:46 AM
Author: dragonfly411
Scarf Linky

Yummy!

I have the purple one from last year. . .also, the gloves, but I'm not sure where I put them!

For scarves, I won't pay very much. At Nordstrom's last sale, I found a cute rayon one in BP for $9.99 that I'm excited to wear. There are always fun ones at the Rack. The only part that sucks is that I paid $10 for a knitted one, but have spent over $25 combined on all the dry cleanings. lol

 

[dragonfly411]

MC - I try to get them at the end of season, when they are on sale. Pennies has great sales on their scarves and I always find cute ones there. If I want just something light and fun, forever 21 is my best friend.

 

[Dancing Fire]

MC...you need to shop for a bigger fish tank.

 

[wsu12]

Date: 10/28/2009 11:56:55 PM
Author: Haven

Date: 10/28/2009 10:03:23 PM

Author: Mara

fsu, curious, what does he say about the negatives on closing your cc accts and paying everything off and living off cash? what about when you want to buy a house or need credit for something?

This is from ''Credit Card Q&A With Dave'' on daveramsey.com:



“But Dave, I have to build my credit.”


Bankers, car dealers, and unknowledgeable lenders have told America for years to “build your credit.” They are telling you to get debt so you can get more debt because debt is how you get stuff. Those of us who are debt free know that cash buys stuff better than debt.


“But Dave, what about buying a house?”


Since you aren’t “building your credit” you will need to find a mortgage company that does actual underwriting. That means they are professional enough to process the details of your life instead of using only a Beacon score (lending for dummies). You can qualify for a conventional 15-year fixed-rate loan if:


* You have paid your landlord early or on time for 2 years.

* You have been in the same career field for 2 years.

* You have a good down payment.

* You have no other credit.

* You are not trying to get too big a loan.


The big question is, What do millionaires do? They don’t get rich with free hats, brownie points, or air miles. What do broke people do? They use credit cards. I rest my case.

Haven, Thank you for posting that! Saved me time. I know for some Dave Ramsey''s Total Money Makeover sounds ludicrous, because most americans have been following the status quo in this country which is to collect debt our entire lives...and then justify it by calling it "good debt" (i.e. student loans, Mortgages, HELOC''s, etc). We pay cash or use the debt card for EVERYTHING. And it is the best feeling in the world IMHO.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Date: 10/29/2009 10:02:48 PM
Author: Dancing Fire
MC...you need to shop for a bigger fish tank.

Oh, no way. . .I have a few more thans than I did when I last posted about my fish. There is NO way another one can be added in. It''s nearly hoarding disorder quantity at this point

 

[neatfreak]

I think what is key for me is to pause and remind myself that we really don''t need whatever it is. Just pausing to think about it helps me put a LOT of things back!

 

[AmberGretchen]

I think there is some great advice in this thread, and many options for helping to control your spending. I know this is something that DH and I have been working on since we graduated from college and moved in together.

I did want to point out though, that using only cash and debit cards for everything isn''t necessarily a realistic possibility, or even the best option, for everyone. I think it can work really well for some people, and is a great way to try to track and control personal spending.

That said, however, I don''t foresee giving up my credit cards as a way to help control spending. For one thing, I have to use them for work - I travel almost every week for my job, and expenses get put on credit cards I''m responsible for paying off, with weekly expense reimbursement from my company. There would simply be no way to do this exclusively with cash - the amounts are too large, and many of the travel booking agencies, hotels, etc...don''t accept anything except certain types of credit cards.

I''ve found that what works for us is to make a budget, and track it using our credit card statements on a regular basis - that way we can monitor what we are spending vs. what we budgeted.

I also second having goals to save for, and thinking really hard about whether you want/need/will really use something. I find this last is crucial for me - if I really, honestly ask myself if this is something that will become a "classic" in my wardrobe or my house or whatever, that helps enormously. Because if it won''t, I''m almost always unwilling to spend money on it. I also like the waiting rule - DH and I scale up the waiting period depending on the size of the purchase - for a clothing item or a similarly small item, perhaps 24 hrs to a week. But for something larger, like furniture, up to several months, and for cars, six months or more, because it gives time to plan, save, and be truly certain about the decision.