Savings?

[dragonfly411]

In light of the economy, and as something of interest to all, what are your ways of cutting costs and saving money? What do you do to get that little extra?
I do a lot of coupons
I also plan meals for SO and I that will last us more than one sitting.
We will be cutting our cell phone bill down soon
I also sell books after I have them for a while if I don''t think I''ll read them again.
Coupons are my biggest thing, we look for good deals on sales items and try to combine them with the sale coupons.
We also try to be more efficient with electricity and water, and don''t use AC when it''s cool enough.

 

[steph72276]

Well, my biggest way to save money is to do a written budget every month. Have you ever heard the saying "if you don't tell your money where to go it will go away?" I'm a big believer in that. I also do coupons and plan meals that will last more than 1 meal. DH and I used to eat out all the time, but now we rarely do. I have been making really yummy copycat meals of our favorite places on the weekends, and we actually like our versions better. I have also been making my hubby's lunch a few days a week and that really saves (and he's lost some weight!). We added it up one time and we were spending $2000 or more a month on food (both groceries and dining out)! Wow, now it is down to about $600 a month, major difference!

 

[sunnyd]

We''re going to get an oil space heater this winter instead of running the electric baseboard heat. We have a huge lofted ceiling in half of the downstairs, so all the heat just goes nowhere useful anyway. This way it''ll cost less! (We hope!

)

Eating out is a huge one too. Mmmm food.

 

[Rhea]

We haven''t. We''ve always been careful to switch off appliances we aren''t using at the wall and take them off of standby. We''re very careful about when we eat out or go out. We use public transport when possible and we don''t tend to shop a lot.

For us, nothing has changed. We''re both in our mid-20s. We''re just starting out so cutting back isn''t really something that we''re considering. We''re both savers and just watch our bills, as always.

 

[dragonfly411]

Addy
That''s actually part of what I''d like to hear!!

What do you do daily that helps you to know you are saving a bit extra, and are that much more secure, not necessarily you are just starting to do, but that you''ve always done even.

 

[oobiecoo]

We use coupons ALOT. My parents get the newspaper so they always save the coupons for me. They don''t use them and it drives me crazy! I went to the store the other day and saved 20% due to coupons!

I usually try to make $5 meals that will feed both of us. It''s usually something like chicken, steamed veggies, and a carb. We also do casseroles and other recipes. I had a whole list of $5 meals on my old laptop but it crashed

I''ve tried to be more conscious of turning off lights when I leave the room/house.

We''re also saving alot right now which is really great.

 

[fisherofmengirly]

I''ve always been a saver and Paul''s gotten a lot more "on board" with me since we married. I think seeing what we could save, and then watching it happen has been the thing that kicked it off in his mind.

We do coupons and take them to the grocery store that still does double coupons. We don''t buy what we don''t need. We don''t do impulse buying. We think about and check our budget before we buy anything over $50. We plan out a menu (which we don''t always, always follow) before we go shopping, so food doesn''t end up being wasted. We do a budget every month and stick to it. We set aside money at the beginning of the month (which is the key) to be put in savings, and once it goes there, it stays there, and we put aside money each month for what we''re saving for (plane trip home for Christmas, etc.). We shop for Christmas presents all year long and by doing that, you can get really great stuff on clearance. You can also go to the grocery store really, really late at night and get meat on sale, but I''ve not done that since college. I''m in bed by 10:45 these days.

We did the Dave Ramsey Financial Peace University thing and really gained a lot of knowledge from that. Luckily, we don''t have credit debit eating away at our income, but Paul does have a student loan he''s paying off.

Anyway, we enjoy finding ways to save. It''s fun and it''s something we like to do together.

Maybe we''re nerds that way... but it''s fun.

 

[fisherofmengirly]

A friend of ours buys stuff at yard sales for nothing, pretty much, then sells it on Craigs List for a profit. He''s been doing that for a while.

 

[pennquaker09]

I''ve tried to clip coupons, but I just don''t follow through. Other than that, nothing. It''s bad, I know.

 

[Clairitek]

To save at the grocery store we try to only buy what we''ll need for meals that we will eat in the upcoming days. We buy produce and deli meat a little at time to make sure we go through it before it goes bad. Before I moved into our home with FF I was living alone and I was horrible about this and would throw out $15 of food a week probably.

I hardly ever buy anything but generic or store brand- especially when it comes to OTC medication.

I try to take advantage of my wholesale club membership as often as I can, especially for products that won''t ever go bad like detergent, paper products, and cleaning supplies.

This winter we plan to use our programmable thermostat religiously in order to keep our oil heating bills low. The oil man estimated that we would use about 450 gallons of oil this winter for home heating. I''m hoping we can keep it to 400. Thankfully the old owners of the house left us with 200 gallons in the tank.

I only ever run the dishwasher or laundry machines when I have a full load. Even if I set the water level on low for a small load I don''t think that its as energy efficient as using the largest setting possible and only doing 1 load instead of 3. I also sweep between vacuuming to minimize use of the appliance. This way I use less electricity and fewer expensive vacuum bags.

Whenever I buy something online I always do a search to find some coupon codes for free shipping or a discount off of the merchandise. I can''t STAND paying $8 for shipping on something I know only costs like $3 to send to me.

My final tip is showering at the gym as much as possible. I''m paying for the membership so I might as well use their facilities instead of mine! I''ve recently gotten back into my 3-4 times a week gym regimen so I have been taking that many fewer showers at home. I''ll let you know if it makes a difference in my next water bill.

 

[qtiekiki]

I''m clipping a lot of coupons now, especially with our new baby.
I don''t shop as much as I used to, and am more conscientious about purchases in general.
I always search for deals/discounts. Look for sites with free shipping and are tax free, if purchasing online.
We eat out less, but it''s probably more because of the baby.

 

[dec2410]

Date: 9/23/2008 10:35:32 PM
Author: fisherofmengirly
I''ve always been a saver and Paul''s gotten a lot more ''on board'' with me since we married. I think seeing what we could save, and then watching it happen has been the thing that kicked it off in his mind.

We do coupons and take them to the grocery store that still does double coupons. We don''t buy what we don''t need. We don''t do impulse buying. We think about and check our budget before we buy anything over $50. We plan out a menu (which we don''t always, always follow) before we go shopping, so food doesn''t end up being wasted. We do a budget every month and stick to it. We set aside money at the beginning of the month (which is the key) to be put in savings, and once it goes there, it stays there, and we put aside money each month for what we''re saving for (plane trip home for Christmas, etc.). We shop for Christmas presents all year long and by doing that, you can get really great stuff on clearance. You can also go to the grocery store really, really late at night and get meat on sale, but I''ve not done that since college. I''m in bed by 10:45 these days.

We did the Dave Ramsey Financial Peace University thing and really gained a lot of knowledge from that. Luckily, we don''t have credit debit eating away at our income, but Paul does have a student loan he''s paying off.

Anyway, we enjoy finding ways to save. It''s fun and it''s something we like to do together.

Maybe we''re nerds that way... but it''s fun.

I''ve read all of dave ramsey''s books and I totally live by what he teaches. i give every dollar a name the day before i get paid and stick to that budget. I''ve been attacking my student loans since april and hope to be done by next year! Even with the "economic crisis", i don''t stress about money AT ALL!!

Read "The Total Money Makeover" - it''s change my life!! (shameless plug for dave ramsey!)

 

[steph72276]

Date: 9/25/2008 11:51:15 AM
Author: waitingpatiently

Date: 9/23/2008 10:35:32 PM

Author: fisherofmengirly

I''ve always been a saver and Paul''s gotten a lot more ''on board'' with me since we married. I think seeing what we could save, and then watching it happen has been the thing that kicked it off in his mind.


We do coupons and take them to the grocery store that still does double coupons. We don''t buy what we don''t need. We don''t do impulse buying. We think about and check our budget before we buy anything over $50. We plan out a menu (which we don''t always, always follow) before we go shopping, so food doesn''t end up being wasted. We do a budget every month and stick to it. We set aside money at the beginning of the month (which is the key) to be put in savings, and once it goes there, it stays there, and we put aside money each month for what we''re saving for (plane trip home for Christmas, etc.). We shop for Christmas presents all year long and by doing that, you can get really great stuff on clearance. You can also go to the grocery store really, really late at night and get meat on sale, but I''ve not done that since college. I''m in bed by 10:45 these days.


We did the Dave Ramsey Financial Peace University thing and really gained a lot of knowledge from that. Luckily, we don''t have credit debit eating away at our income, but Paul does have a student loan he''s paying off.


Anyway, we enjoy finding ways to save. It''s fun and it''s something we like to do together.


Maybe we''re nerds that way... but it''s fun.

I''ve read all of dave ramsey''s books and I totally live by what he teaches. i give every dollar a name the day before i get paid and stick to that budget. I''ve been attacking my student loans since april and hope to be done by next year! Even with the ''economic crisis'', i don''t stress about money AT ALL!!


Read ''The Total Money Makeover'' - it''s change my life!! (shameless plug for dave ramsey!)

I''m also a fan....read his book and watch his show on Fox. It''s common sense, but it works sooo well!

 

[UCLABelle]

We are not really doing anything differently, but I guess we should start...I think we could eat at home more (which is good for the wallet and waist) as well as stop shopping (basically, just me

). I feel lucky it hasn't hit us yet...but awaiting it to.

 

[dragonfly411]

I''m planning to go get a David Ramsey stock pile at the library this weekend to read. I''m also reading smart couples finish rich which has been informative for me.

 

[phoenixgirl]

We too have started planning meals and cooking in most nights. If we do go out, it''s much more likely that it will just be for dessert. I love www.eatingwell.com and would welcome other recipe website suggestions as well!

We''ve also been looking over monthly expenses for stuff to cut/reduce. If I switch the Merry Maids from biweekly to monthly, I''ll pay something 57% of what I was paying before for 42% of the service I was getting. That doesn''t sound attractive, so I''ve just called a few times to cancel cleanings here and there but stay on my cheaper rate. (Shhh! Don''t tell on me!)

There are so many things we could cut -- our land line, HBO, Netflix, the Merry Maids altogether -- but we''re not yet at the point where we have to, and as such I just can''t cut the strings yet. The problem is compromising. I wouldn''t mind getting rid of HBO, and DH probably feels that way about the rest of the list, but our priorities are not in order.

I think my mom is planning to gift us some money from my dad''s life insurance late this year and early next year (to be in two different tax years), and I plan on using the money to pay off DH''s stupid student loan (I just do not understand why they get to charge so much interest -- as high as 9.2% -- and apply so much of what I pay over the minimum to interest still) and my car. Then we''ll have no debt except our mortgage, and we''ll have $700 or so a month extra (car is $315 for 4 years, but I''m only 6 months in, and student loan is $175 but I''ve been paying $375-$450 a month to try to eradicate that stupid thing) to add to savings and not stress about canceling things that make us happy.

But if we get pregnant soon and this is my last year of teaching, all bets are off. $700 a month will not make up for the loss of my salary!

Oh, and we got an American Express One card a few years back. We use it to charge everything (except places that won''t accept AmEx) and pay it off each month. They put 1% in an interest-bearing account for us. We have almost $1k in there now, which is our emergency cash. I know, if you do the math, that means I''ve spent almost $100k on my credit card in just a few years. Gulp. But we would have spent that money anyway and are not carrying CC debt, and it makes me feel happy to know I''ve got that little fund not attached to other accounts so I can''t raid it easily. I''m sure it''s some kind of psychological trick, but it seems like free money!

 

[Independent Gal]

Just as a matter of course, I: take public transit or walk (waddle, these days), keep the heat at 68, don''t eat out at fancy places more than once every month or two, I don''t go ''shopping'' without needing something specific, and if I buy something, I have to get rid of something, that''s the rule! Really cuts down on clutter, and makes you think twice before impulse buying. For entertainment, we''re as likely to go for a hike or go to the movies as anything pricier, except for the occasional treat of theater or live music.

Overall, I have always preferred living frugally with day to day things, and saving all that money for big things: my condo, my bling, my travels.

And then there''s the golden rule: pay yourself first. Save right off your cheque each month and then you never miss the money!

 

[neatfreak]

Phoenixgirl They put so much of that $ to the interest instead of principal so that it takes you longer to pay down your principal because that is what generates most of the interest. BUT that being said, you CAN usually tell them to apply overages to your principal only and they have to do that. But you need to request it.

 

[Cass]

Ok, let me first just say that my fiance is awesome when it comes to money and saving. I think it has a lot to do with his frugal dad, but let''s just say that if it wasn''t for him I wouldn''t be where I am today. He has really helped me realize how important it is to not just spend money as soon as I get it.

These are some of the things we do to save money:

1. We use coupons, but just because we have a coupon for something does not mean that we buy it. Half the time the generic store brand product is cheaper than the big name brand that actually has the coupon.
2. I make fiance''s lunch everyday.
3. We bought a membership to a Sam''s Club. It''s great for cheap gas and we buy fiance''s lunch snacks (applesauce, chips, cookies, etc) from there to stock up since everything is in bulk there.
4. Fiance calls up the cable company whenever our promotional price ends (usually once a year) and pretends he is interested in canceling to go with satellite. They usually drop us down to the promo again. And if they don''t, he cancels and then calls back up and puts it in my name and because I''m a new customer, I get the promo price! We save about $30 a month doing this.
5. We turn the thermostat down at night (around 8pm) during the winter and don''t turn it back up until I come home after school (around 1pm).
6. We have our mortgage through Country Wide and they have a credit card that gives you $50 towards your principle for every $2500 you spend on it. Lets just say we put everything on that card and pay it off a few times a month. It''s like our debit card.
7. Fiance and I used to sell cell phones, so we know how the phone companies like to rip people off. Fiance and I used to be on a family plan together, just the two of us, but now we are on a Premium Verizon Nationwide Family plan with his sister and bil. The premium plans include unlimited text messaging for each phone. Anyways, we get the same amount of phone time per couple, but now we have unlimited texting and each couple saves $25 a month! Don''t ask me how it works. But Fiance and his brother in law figured it out.
8. Lastly, if you have a Verizon Wireless plan, see if you get a discount because of where you work. Fiance and I both used to get a 20% discount because we worked at Best Buy. We have since long moved on from Best Buy, but we still get the discount.

And that''s all I can think of for now.

 

[Aloros]

FI and I try to be very frugal. Financially, our priorities are the same, so that makes things easy.

-we don''t get any type of cable. Instead, we buy boxed sets when they''re on sale, or off of ebay, where we can get them cheaper. Or we borrow them from friends.
-buy books used or online
-bicycle to work instead of drive (5.5 miles each way)
-bake our own bread
-growing a vegetable garden
-keep our waste down (we pay less for a smaller weekly garbage can)
-go to the drive-in movie theater. It''s cheaper!
-buy clothes from thrift stores, Ross, or off of ebay
-use the "free" section in craigslist and freecycle.org
-overstock.com
-take our own lunches to work instead of purchasing
-coupon-clip - since moving into a house, we''ve gotten a lot of "welcome to the neighborhood" deals. We got a free chicken dinner from the local grocery store, free treats for the pup, and a free oil and air filter change.
-buy from costco.
-don''t eat very much meat
-don''t turn on A/C or heat (yet). Our house is very well insulated, so we haven''t even felt the need so far.

We moved into our house in August, and now we have nearly saved our three-months rainy day cushion. My mom is bringing us a soymilk maker in November, so we hope to stop purchasing milk or soymilk. And we''re planning on purchasing a scooter for those jaunts around town. Fun, and they get great gas mileage!

In 1-2 years we''re considering keeping some chickens for eggs.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

We''ve changed a lot of habits. . .

I try and use coupons, but it seems most of the ones in the Sunday paper are for junk food, so I only can utilize one or two.

I buy all household goods at Target as they''re A LOT cheaper than buying at the grocery store.

I buy generic/store brand foods and also get my kids'' lunch snacks at Target.

DH brings lunch to work and I cook my lunches at home.

Less shopping and random buying of stuff while at the store.

Buying clothes only on sale and buying kids'' clothes at Old Navy.

No dinners out.

Sneaking snacks into the movie theater.

Keeping the heat off at night AND during the day if the kids are at school.

Driving an extra 5 mintutes to go to a different grocery store that has lower food prices.

 

[Haven]

We''re doing a few small things, but I love this thread because it''s giving me more ideas.

We just started trying to save up because we hope to start TTC in a year, and we''d like it if I can stay home full-time. SO, we want to sock away as much as possible now.

- I went on a clothing fast--no new clothes at least until the spring. That one''s going to be hard for me, but it makes sense.
- We''re eating at home until we finish everything that is stocked up in our freezer and pantry. We have pasta, frozen chicken, and many other things just waiting to be eaten.
- I''m bringing lunch to work every day instead of buying a sandwich in the student caf.
- We''ve replaced our Friday nights at the movies with Friday nights at home with a DVD. Now, instead of going out for dinner and buying Max & Erma''s chocolate chip cookies to sneak into the theatre, and paying $10 a movie ticket, we eat at home, bake our own cookies if we have the urge, and watch a borrowed or rented flick. It''s still just as fun, although hubby is complaining about missing out on all these horror films.
- We make lists of where we need to run errands and what exactly we need to buy on the weekends. This way we map out our route and don''t waste gas driving around more than necessary, and we only buy what''s on the list.

I love David Back and Dave Ramsey, both are so informative.

 

[dragonfly411]

Phoenix - allrecipes.com is fantastic

Indy - great rule about getting rid if you buy!!!

Aloros - do you have secrets for growing veggies? I need to learn to have a green thumb, as I REALLY want to do this!!


I have been doing a lot of couponing still and am doing well with it. But right now my bills are eating away at me.

 

[saltymuffin]

1. We don''t own a car. That saves huge $$$. We live in the centre of a major city, and rely on transit and car sharing. I figure that saves us at least $400/month.

2. We have a really small townhouse that is very efficient to heat and light, our bills are pretty inexpensive - less than half of our friends who have big suburban homes.

3. We buy meat in bulk at Costco and freeze it. That saves on the initial cost, but always having something on hand to cook also means we eat out less.

4. When we do eat out, we go to local asian restaurants and other inexpensive places.

5. I don''t buy ANYTHING other than groceries at regular price. I only buy clothing, linens, electronics, toys etc on sale.

6. When I do see a really good price on something that I will need at some point, I buy it, even if I don''t need it right now, and stash it away for when I do.

7. We get the cable tv movie channels. Some might thing that this is an extravagence, but now we never spend money going to or renting movies. It is good value for us.

My weaknesses are that I eat lunch out every day, but I don''t spend more than $5, so I don''t think it is a huge waste. It would cost me $3 to make my own.

 

[Aloros]

Date: 10/14/2008 1:56:25 PM
Author: dragonfly411
Phoenix - allrecipes.com is fantastic

Indy - great rule about getting rid if you buy!!!

Aloros - do you have secrets for growing veggies? I need to learn to have a green thumb, as I REALLY want to do this!!


I have been doing a lot of couponing still and am doing well with it. But right now my bills are eating away at me.

I''m new to the green thumb thing too

. It''s been hit and miss so far, but if you know someone who is into gardening, it''s great to have a resource! I call up my mom anytime I have questions. Or even just find a really good nursery nearby. We have one close to us that is amazing - it''s like visiting a theme park! But the people there are super super helpful and very knowledgable.

Starting a compost heap is a good idea. Check your county and city websites. I know our county (and my parents'') offer a free compost bin, delivered to your doorstep!

For our winter vegetables, we pretty much mixed up our local soil with some gardening soil, put the plants into the ground, water and fertlize, and crossing our fingers! I go out there every day to water them and to check on them. So far, it seems to be working well - I will be harvesting some sugar snap peas soon!

 

[hlpkaixin3344]

SO can make me one from wire I think Thanks for that tip! I plan to plant a bunch of seeds someone sent me in the spring.

 

[Elmorton]

DH and I have been talking about this a lot due to the state of financial affairs - in the last year, we''ve really changed how we live and I feel like a much happier person knowing that I''m leading a life that''s a lot less excessive.

We just bought a house, and when we did, we went smaller than we''d planned. Our place is a little over 1000 sq feet - so that definitely cuts down on energy expenses.

We cut down our cable to basic.

We only have cell phones, no land line.

We used to grocery shop once a week, now we stretch it out to 2.

I haven''t bought new clothes in months - neither has DH.

We try to look for second-hand items, whether it be on E-bay, Goodwill, etc - we just found a brand new Scene It! game at Goodwill for $3.38. Most of the game was still in the plastic wrapping.

We''ve cut down on eating out.

During the summer, I did a lot of shopping at our farmer''s market.

We''ve done a LOT less travel - we invite people to see us instead of vice versa.

We invite friends over to our place instead of meeting friends out.

I''ve stopped getting manis/pedis/massages (and oh do I miss them!)

We''ve actually been eating our leftovers for lunch instead of throwing them out/going out to eat.

When DH and I do go out to eat, we go at lunchtime when meals are cheaper.

We also split meals - for example, if we go to Subway, we''ll split a footlong value meal instead of two six inches, etc.

We plan purchases in advance and look for the best deals or compare prices online.

We set our thermostat lower than usual by a few degrees (and use energy efficient settings).

We use energy efficient light bulbs and unplug most appliances when not in use.

Great thread idea! I''m really enjoying reading what others do, too

 

[peonygirl]

Everyone has had great suggestions so far! One thing that we did to reduce grocery bills a TON is sign up for the grocerygame.com. For a small fee, they keep track of all advertised and unadvertised grocery and drugstore sales and match up coupons and sales for you. This has ended up being SO much cheaper than even buying generics or Target or Costco for us, and it's not much work at all because they do all of the research for you. We don't even have double coupons here, but through this program I've stockpiled a lot of our staples for free. For example, I have 6-12 months of toothpaste, razors, body wash, shampoo, and pads/tampons that were FREE because I had a coupon or rebate that exceeded the sale price. I've also gotten a bunch of other food staples at 80-90% off. Of course, I only buy things we use. I was really surprised that this worked for us because we hardly eat any packaged food. The only thing that I can't get on a big sale is organic milk.

 

[April20]

I am a big couponer. While generic brands may be cheaper than a name brand with a coupon, they''re not if the name brand is on sale and you combine that with a coupon. I save 50 to 60% on average by couponing. I do a lot of stock piling, buying when it''s on sale vs when I run out, which saves in the long run. I haven''t had to buy shampoo/conditioner for about 6 months due to getting name brands for less than $1/bottle a while back. I also have, according to DH''s calculations, about 2 years worth of Electrasol tabs. Hey, on sale with a coupon made them like 50 cents a box. I''ve got about 10 boxes of pasta because they were basically paying me to take it home. I also buy all of our spices, produce, etc at the local Farmer''s Market. It is significantly less expensive than buying in the grocery store. But I digress.....

I also take my lunch to work and rarely, rarely eat out. I did the math once after watching a co-worker eat out every day and figured that he was spending per day what I was spending per week on meals. That was enough to keep me brown bagging.

I''ve also cut waaaaaay waaaaaay back on the latte habit. I grab one once a month at best now. It''s a nice treat, but it adds up quickly if you aren''t paying attention.

There are areas we could do much better in, but I think we do pretty good on the whole.

 

[dragonfly411]

peony and april - I am working on mastering the art of couponing. I''ve done well with CVS but am still working on groceries! I''d love tips if you have any!

peony - what is the website you are referring to?


Aloros - We''re going to make a compost bin out in the corner of our pasture, using chicken wire I think... SO can make them pretty easy and If it''s back there It will be easy access without taking up the pups'' running space.