RE: Tell us how your budget is doing right now '! (Full Version)

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beargonewild -> RE: Tell us how your budget is doing right now '! (8/26/2009 4:58:01 AM)

Since my house is mortgage free, the only major expenses are the monthly overhead costs to keeping a home in good shape. The monthly bills take top priority then comes food. What is left over is banked and I keep myself on a very strict budget and rarely allow myself to binge shop! When I able to take a mini vacation, I set a small portion aside until I have enough, which is how I am able to take 3 weeks next month and travel south of the border to see friends. 



SweetNika -> RE: Tell us how your budget is doing right now '! (8/26/2009 5:01:31 AM)

My monthy bills are paid on time and I have a little left over to save, although I am very frugal w/ my money. I use public tranportation so i dont have the high insurance rates or car payments and we don't eat out but maybe once or twice a mth if that. My budgeting allowed us the extra money for a small family vacation this yr which we have never been able to take before.

I am however, still tech. in debt I owe alot of medical bills from when I was sick and w/o health insurance.



UncleNasty -> RE: Tell us how your budget is doing right now '! (8/26/2009 5:57:06 AM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: CountrySong

My budget is going good. I got wiped out in 2004 when the real estate and lending colapse actually started.

When you go from an almost 10K monthly income to 0 you learn a lot of hard lessons - most of which I already knew since something like that happened to my family when I was young.

Best advice I can give is cut your spending to 50% of your NET income. Most Americans are not broke - far from it! What they are is lifestyle overspenders. Spending is a drug for us (It actually is as it affects our short term happiness hence the saying and reality of "Retail Therapy") and keeping up with the Jones is a national hobby. We buy homes that are too large for our needs (about 2.5 times what they where in the 1950's). Typically these homes have 30 year mortgages that eat 50% or our NET income (lending limits are 30 to 35% but that is based on GROSS income) We then spend money filling these homes with stuff which is often purchased on credit. Worse we decide our home has to be beautified so we spend money on improvements, upgrades, and landscaping (Wonders how much OP is dumping into his place and how it affects his budget?)

Basically most American got used to being finacial gluttons. (Like little subbies with sugar daddies who buy them everything they want.) We had our financial cake and the mantras became "More Toys" and "Charge It." We became financial fat cats. Now we are being forced to pay for that and screaming about it.

My advice - bend over, lube up, and enjoy the ride. It ain't over yet. We just spent trillions that we do not have thanks to our government. So how do you pay for that? Well one portion of the plan is called Controlled Inflation and they are planning on slowly devaluing the dollar so that todays dollar is worth 20 to 25 percent less in 5 to 10 years (this is on top of the normal inflation). Simply put - in 10 years you will need to earn 30% to 50% more than you currently earn in order to maintain your lifestyle.

Getting wiped out was actually one of the best things that happened to me personally. It hurt but having almost reached the other side - I'm much happier without all of the STUFF. I'm free to travel and hike. I almost have financial freedom. My relationships with friends and family have grown. I also now know who my real friends are - the one who hung in there with me when I lost everything.

If I had had this mindset 20 years ago I could have bought and paid for the rest of my life then. Instead of spending 20 years as a slave to my profession. I have three more years to work and then I should be free.

Best Practices Advice - Get OFF the consumer band wagon! And before you start whining like a little subbie who has been told she can not have a new pair of shoes. In every town in America we have people who live on $650 a month with free housing and medical. They have to pay for their entire lifestyle with just that. So think about it or better yet go rent a recreational lot with a travel trailer for a month and live there and think about all of the junk you really have in your life and how you coud be happy with less.

Also stop using money as a quick fix for your happiness. It works short term but in the end it leads to unhappiness.

Try to find cheap but fun things to do (even better if it produces an income or offsets an expense). For example, I found all the free days for the museums in my area. I also eat king crab and prime rid about twice a week for less than $3 a week.

Final Statement - For most of us this is not about the economy - you can't control that! This is about overspending! Which you can control. (If you can't then find a Dom/Domme who can and serve them.)
Peace




Country, can you provide some source/resource links or material  for these statements? I'd like to see them.

Uncle Nasty



HerLovingDom -> RE: Tell us how your budget is doing right now '! (8/26/2009 4:05:56 PM)

Budgets are tight tight tight here in Florida.  I keep a firm grip on my bills by making sure I actually handle the cash.  By that I mean I don't use my debit card or credit cards.  I pay with cash whenever possible so as to keep my mind focused to my budget.



NeedToUseYou -> RE: Tell us how your budget is doing right now '! (8/26/2009 8:54:02 PM)

I forgot something that may help people save money. I just started doing this. The weekly flyers you get for grocery stores, the deals in there are generall good for a week. So, what you do is on the first day you can get those flyers look for the buy 1 get 1 frees. Then head over to ebay, and scour for coupons on those same buy 1 get 1 free items.

Example: Schnucks has buy 1 get free hams regular price 6.49, but on ebay I found 10 coupons for 3.00 dollars of that same ham. So, I get 2 hams for 3.49. whereas regular price would be about 13.00 for those two hams. Quite a deal. I also bought 10 coupons for buy two mountain two liters get 1 free. Well, wal-mart is selling those two liters right now on special for 1.00, with my coupon I get 3 2 liters of Mountain Dew for 2.00.

I just started doing this, but I get hard everytime I get stuff super cheap. LOL.

You have to look at the deals the first day the flyers come out though, because it will take a few days for the coupons to get shipped, and those specials like at schnucks here are only one week long. So, takes a little bit of organization, not much.



StoneFox -> RE: Tell us how your budget is doing right now '! (8/26/2009 9:15:07 PM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: NeedToUseYou


I just started doing this, but I get hard everytime I get stuff super cheap. LOL.




OMG, that PRICELESS! I feel the exact same way. If you're not Jewish, I hereby make you an honorary Jew [:D]



Musicmystery -> RE: Tell us how your budget is doing right now '! (8/26/2009 9:26:18 PM)

Well, my home, land, and car are all completely paid for, so that helps a lot. I max out my retirement account each year and save another $650 a month, though I sometimes have to dip into it. Money is tighter than it was, though, once gas and produce prices jumped, so I definitely pay attention to what I spend. As the gardens and orchards mature, that will help a lot too. I'll always have a home and food!




pahunkboy -> RE: Tell us how your budget is doing right now '! (8/26/2009 10:37:37 PM)

You may recall- an argument I had with my then psychiatrist.   When I mentioned the economic collapse for reducing meds- he pooh poohed it off and said the collapse is going on now for 2 years.  (in other words my action was too severe)

..anyhow- the agency that runs that outfit now is short a million $$...and they might have to shut down.

I got a deal on cough syrup and sinus tabs.  The surplus store had them that are newly expired- $0.50 a pack.  So I bought 4 packs. 




Fnordstrum -> RE: Tell us how your budget is doing right now '! (8/26/2009 11:25:37 PM)

I generally always get excess income (Although not a ton but that can't be changed without changing jobs to something higher paying, heh).... At the moment I'm kind of low on money because I spent way too much on Magic cards the past month, but as I just got back into playing, that's a kind-of-want-to-catch-up-from-not-playing-for-11-years burst and not an always-out-of-money thing.. But I usually just save up for whatever things I want to buy, and then buy them when I have enough extra to get them.

As far as my expenses go, it's rent/food/power/landline phone/internet/electricity.. some medical bills, and that's it... As far as food, I rarely eat out, usually just buy food on sale for a decent price and eat that. (Actually I usually only buy stuff that's on sale, as far as food goes).. So woo. (I'd be much better off, and also 100% debt-free, if it wasn't for crazy medical bills, but unfortunately it's not like you can decide to avoid those)

¤¤¤¤¤¤¤



girlygurl -> RE: Tell us how your budget is doing right now '! (8/26/2009 11:49:06 PM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: StoneFox


quote:

ORIGINAL: NeedToUseYou


I just started doing this, but I get hard everytime I get stuff super cheap. LOL.




OMG, that PRICELESS! I feel the exact same way. If you're not Jewish, I hereby make you an honorary Jew [:D]


You shoulda seen me shopping the other day... I got so many things on sale. like ultra cheap that I was doing the happy dance in the store and told the sales girl to "shut up" when she told me the pair of shoes I was getting was on $1.97... course then I told her I loved her. Twue story, ask Linea.



YoursMistress -> RE: Tell us how your budget is doing right now '! (8/27/2009 12:16:49 AM)

Put it this way.  Tonight I waited until my ex went to sleep and ate the spaghetti she was gonna throw out for my dinner.  If all goes well, I'll be able to have a venti Earl Grey Tea Latte before my therapy session on Saturday.  [&:]

yours



StoneFox -> RE: Tell us how your budget is doing right now '! (8/27/2009 1:56:57 AM)

$1.97?! Holy cow, where are you shopping??



Level -> RE: Tell us how your budget is doing right now '! (8/27/2009 3:19:52 AM)

Another tip is to shop at the end of a season; I got a nice coat at JC Penneys towards the end of winter for $4, regular $60 something.



ShaharThorne -> RE: Tell us how your budget is doing right now '! (8/27/2009 5:08:20 PM)

I get greyhound bus tickets online 3 weeks in advance (save at least 75%), our weekly eating out is 4 Whoppers jr.s for $4. Get our meats in the mornings when they are clearanced down. House and land is paid off, just the essential bills.

I just got approved for SSI, so next month or 2, I will get on Medicaid for my medical. Mom has credit cards to pay off and the car, so I will be helping her on that (I ran her cards up on my sprees before I finally got the right treatment). I have to buy 2 computers since my daughter's computer is acting up (Can't load res-dll). At least I am staying sober and my meds make me stoned anyway. Maybe I will upgrade my internet connection to satellite since dialup is so slow and the company keeps stating that we are a month behind (not according to our bank statements).

Our real testing of the waters comes at the 1st of November when Mom retires after 28 years of nursing. Her back, knees and hips are killing her so much, can barely stand 15 minutes at a time.



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