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Post by TML on Dec 7, 2014 16:01:19 GMT -5
Just starting up a thread from chat the other day. I decided it was a good time to start looking at my financial squalor. I have not had a budget in ages. I know my credit card debt has grown. So today I went through and worked out a budget and circled the wagons around the credit card debt. I tried not to make the budget too OMG stressful since with work, diet, house, family, and etc; I have enough stress in my life. However, I put down what I have been spending with some areas sort of grey such as my household general expense and my food budget. I have been eating out a lot and I also have no clue how much I am spending on detergent, cat box supplies, and etc. If I work at it. I can save each month to try to build a little savings and I can pay a chunk of my credit card debt this year. I will try to post a link to the credit card debt eliminator website. I have not used it for a while so I will have to look. It lets you pick from paying off the one with the highest interest first to paying off the one with the least amount if it is low enough so that you get a sense of accomplishment. I am also going to try to get a handle on my food/household spending and try to take my lunch/eat at home and see what I can do to bring it inline so that I am not suffering but that I am living the best (healthiest) I can without waste. Any body else that wants to post saving or financial ideas is very welcome It is always good if living in chaos to get a plan and Dec 2014 is a good month to figure it out in so the New Year starts off right and is productive.
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Post by TML on Dec 7, 2014 17:36:11 GMT -5
As part of my financial reassessment I am trying to figure out my TV viewing.
A friend suggested cutting my cable - so that means getting an antenna and testing to see if I can get local channels. I went online and figured out the tower configuration in my area so I got (hopefully) the right antenna. I will know in a week. Then she recommended Hulu Plus at 7.99 a month and Netflix at 7.99 a month plus amazon prime (which I already have amazon prime). So in theory my tv cable which costs $100 per month I should be able to replace for $16 a month saving $84.
So I looked at towers near me and got an indoor antenna that covers that range.
Next I will test out the antenna and if it works for local, I am cutting the cable.
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Post by woolybooger on Dec 7, 2014 17:39:10 GMT -5
Yep, we only have Netflix and will occasionally stream a movie from amazon.It saves a lot of money for us.
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Post by cyn on Dec 7, 2014 20:25:23 GMT -5
Rah rah, cut the cable! But if you're someone who likes to watch alot of tv, it might be difficult. IDK, I never watch tv. I did watch an episode of Hoarders the other night, but that was on youtube. Would you miss it? Because $100/mo is a nice chunk of change to spend paying off your debt instead. I was able to get a line of credit, and consolidate my higher interest cards. Then chopped one, and made a vow to pay cash instead of using the other - except in extreme cases, like if toilet paper is half price, rotfl. But I pay it off asap. Not like before, when I was getting carried away, and spent it like I actually *had* it. Good luck with your budget, TML!
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Post by larataylor on Dec 7, 2014 20:54:11 GMT -5
Great idea, TML. I think I'll do this, too … sort of get ready, get set this month, and try to track everything for the new year.
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Post by cyn on Dec 7, 2014 21:20:03 GMT -5
One thing that also hugely helps me in not spending, besides trying to only use cash: getting all of my smaller denomination bills converted into larger denominations. In Canada, it's very easy to squander money because you can have $30 in change at the bottom of your purse, in $2 and $1 coins! So that's money out the window - a coffee here, a whatever there - trade it in for bills, then get the highest bill: I'd have to think twice before breaking a $100 bill for a coffee. Or for most things, ha.
I'm using my hoarding tendencies to my advantage, with money. I wouldn't break a $50 to buy a $0.50 book...it makes me question those expenses. I'm also putting aside all my change that's got the different images on them - like the Olympic ones, the Provincial quarters (and any US coins) the special edition commemorative loonies and toonies, whatever neat coin I find. I don't expect them to increase in their face value, but I must have a few hundred bucks stashed aside already, just saving those.
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Post by lesaulerouge on Dec 8, 2014 1:22:09 GMT -5
Wow, had never realised just how much TV could cost, is $100 a month about that most people spend then? That does seem an awful lot.
We don't currently have local (French) TV, we would need a new satellite dish and decoder and it just isn't worth it for how bad the content is. Instead we have a dish and a British FreeSat box, which was a one off payment to buy it and we then get all those channels free forever. Is there this sort of an option available for you?
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Post by larataylor on Dec 8, 2014 2:13:07 GMT -5
As this house gets cleaner and cleaner, I'm slowly gathering all the lost change … and even some bills here and there. We've recently had a long, long spell without money coming in, and we're almost down to nothing … I cleaned the change out of the second car (having already done the first), washed it because it was disgusting, and counted and rolled the pennies.
I'm down to my last $2 in rolled pennies now … but we're expecting money tomorrow!
There were things I loved about having a credit card … I used to do all my food shopping on it, get it to pay lots of the bills, so I had fewer bills to pay, and it would give me a nice record of purchases.
But money got tighter, and our income more sporadic, and cash-only keeps us living within our means. Like the past few weeks, with food dwindling and the house cold … a credit card would have been too big a temptation.
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Post by lesaulerouge on Dec 8, 2014 2:56:47 GMT -5
We have debit cards, but have never either of us had a credit card. Tbh I don't think credit cards are all that common here. We have never wanted one so have never had one and I acknowledge that we have been lucky enough to be able to save up and then buy what we want without borrowing (with the exception of our house and 2 cars, though not cars for a long time now). As a result should we ever want to borrow money we are likely to be in a tricky place because never borrowing money means that our credit rating is terrible. Sometimes you cannot win!
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Post by imamess on Dec 8, 2014 4:42:35 GMT -5
Before a friend of mine retired, he wrote everything he spent in a little notebook, down to a stamp, a piece of gum, everything. He did this for two months and then added yearly/semi-yearly things like car & house insurance, Christmas spending, etc. and figured out what he normally spent in a year and divided by 12. I did pretty much the same thing when I was thinking about retiring to see if I would have enough income to make it. As a result of that, I knew what I spent in groceries, gas, and other odds & ends per month. I also went back on my bank statements to get an average of essential bills. At the beginning of the month, I go to the bank and get enough cash for groceries, laundry, gas and a little extra and put it in separate envelopes. Essential bills are automatically deducted from my bank account each month. I balance my check book once a week. Some months, especially in the summer when I have a garden, I save whatever leftover cash and put it away. I try not to go in big box stores unless I have a list and I cannot get the item any cheaper anywhere else. As a result, I am in better financial shape now than when I was working and spending rather mindlessly.
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Post by CourageouslyLion SeeksSerenity on Dec 8, 2014 8:32:16 GMT -5
Before a friend of mine retired, he wrote everything he spent in a little notebook, down to a stamp, a piece of gum, everything. He did this for two months and then added yearly/semi-yearly things like car & house insurance, Christmas spending, etc. and figured out what he normally spent in a year and divided by 12. I did pretty much the same thing when I was thinking about retiring to see if I would have enough income to make it. As a result of that, I knew what I spent in groceries, gas, and other odds & ends per month. I also went back on my bank statements to get an average of essential bills. I tried not to make the budget too OMG stressful since with work, diet, house, family, and etc; I have enough stress in my life. These two tips are some of the most important things I've learned from Debtors Anonymous. Here is how that works in Debtors Anonymous: A) Write down everything you spend, even a stick of gum, and find the other periodic expenses like taxes and insurance, and then average everything over a year, and then from that see what your monthly spending truly is. [ Edit to add: If all your old statements, receipts, and checkbook registers are buried in piles of clutter, then don't worry about doing this perfectly. Just start from where you are today. You can always add to your list any of the periodic expenses (taxes, insurance, etc) that you remember off the top of your head. Or you can simply phone your insurance company or county tax agency and ask them what your annual fee or average month;y payments are. It's better to get into the habit of recording expenses from NOW forwards ... than to waste hours/days trying to reconstruct old records and give up in despair.] Editing to add again ... If you miss a day of recordkeeping, just start afresh. Learn the patter of tracking today's money. Don't beat yourself up if you mess up. Just start again. This takes practice. B) Take your monthly spending averages and divide them into categories that are reflective of your personal family lifestyle and needs. A single mother who works as an artist will probably have different categories than a childless married man who has a scuba diving hobby. Just observe how much you usually spend in each category, without judging it. C) Do what TML says -- arrange your spending plan to not be too stressful. In Debtors Anonymous we brainstorm with one another to get get a more objective point of view -- and this often helps bring in some Higher Wisdom or Greater Perspective to the planning. We often receive encouragement to be nicer to ourselves. In D.A., we don't even use the word "budget" because that feels constrictive and triggers Demand Resistance; so we use the phrase "spending plan" instead (Even though it's basically the same thing, it feels different). A *healthy* spending plan allows decent amounts toward having a full happy life, and includes allotting money for savings, vacations, healthcare, creativity, and fun. And a portion set aside monthly for unforeseen emergencies. If this is well-balanced, then we are more likely to follow it. Somehow increasing the "fun" category makes us more likely to save money in various areas, and ... eventually, this leads to pay down debt in a more sustainable way. It's a psychology thing. And it's also more realistic. It often works out better to focus on living *today* in a balanced way with a reasonable spending plan. This gives us practice in following a discipline that isn't too constricting. This may reduce the amount paid towards old debts but ... it *prevents* NEW debt from amassing. The goal in Debtors Anonymous is to abstain from incurring any new unsecured debts -- a great skill to learn. In DA, we allow ourselves new *secured* debts. A "secured debt" is one legally anchored(secured) by tangible collateral -- such as a home mortgage, a car loan, or a pawn shop loan -- if you don't pay your debt, the creditor gets your item in exchange. In DA, we avoid incurring new *unsecured* debts -- which is using a credit card or borrowing money -- with only your promise to pay but no collateral. D) By following this, there were times when I was able to pay only $3.00 per month towards an *old* debt -- This may seem silly but I've done it and it works. Why does this work? Because I learned to do things in a sustainable way, and gained confidence. The confidence was learning to make realistic promises to creditors and to actually pay what I promised on the day I promised it. That created great self-esteem and got me to *want* to keep it up. We learn how to communicate with creditors in writing so that we *tell* them what we'll pay each month, rather than trying to have a frustrating argument over the phone. (There is a lot of info on how to do this, but that's a whole other post). E) in DA, we also brainstorm with others and seek Greater Wisdom for ways to increase our income. This doesn't mean working two jobs to the point of exhaustion and illness. Overwork leads to burnout and usually to binge spending and increased healthcare costs. Instead of overworking, we seek new approaches -- such as: getting encouragement for reasonable ways to ask for a raise at work, or how to slowly and realistically learn a new skill so that eventually I could apply for a better job. What do I own that I could sell? Could I get a grant (not a loan) to learn new skills? Is there a hobby I enjoy that I might earn some money from on the side? Do I have skills that my friends see in me, that I haven't recognized in myself -- that could eventually lead to more income? F) By learning sustainable plans for spending and for increasing income, I can gradually pay off debts -- and not incur new ones. And I've learned a new way of life that I can successfully maintain. Note: This isn't easy. I may have stated all this in a cheery voice, but it wasn't easy. Have I fallen down? Sure I have. But I've been able to get back with the program. I can follow these ideas only with lots of encouragement from buddies. And from working alongside others, I can tune into the intangible assistance that comes from the essence of "inspiration" or "wisdom" or "hope" or "divinity" (whatever term feels appropriate).
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Post by lesaulerouge on Dec 8, 2014 8:48:48 GMT -5
Fantastic post Lion, loads of helpful, and realistic, stuff there, thank you for the time it took to write it.
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Post by cyn on Dec 8, 2014 9:23:56 GMT -5
Lara, that's exactly where my troubles started: I gave my credit card info to the propane company. They wanted cash on delivery, and I was underemployed...my card took a beating that winter, and didn't recover for years - because I was making payments that barely covered the interest, so I couldn't get the balance to go down. You're wise to stay out of that trap!
ETA: installing a wood stove is what I'd recommend, because this saves us a huge amount of money every winter. My DH typically has a 3 week layoff over the Christmas holidays every year, while the plant is in shut-down/inventory. He uses this time to find free wood (storm damaged) or chop wood he's already collected (like when the Park's Dept. cut down all the overgrowth, and the worker told him he could take what he wanted, he made 4 trips and had a huge pile of old limbs) he was feeling discouraged last year, and I pointed out that the wood he'd cut had a dollar value equal to what he would have made by working his paid job!
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Post by Dit on Jan 5, 2015 11:56:39 GMT -5
The one thing I learned about budgetting. One of the few things I am good at. Is this.
Create your own budget for what is important to you. No budget ever worked for me till I did this. Do it on excel or Google doc so you can copy one for each month. Expect it to take a year to get your budget down pack, because you will find new things arise. You forgot something etc. You will find yourself adapting your budget till it suits you as you add and create changes. Make future plans in your budget , put some joy in it, even if its small. We gave ourselves a 100 a month spending money. For movies and dinners out, gifts etc. And see how far we can stretch it with 2 for 1 coupons etc.
Reframe in your mind what you are doing, Instead of a budget what I cants do anymore, see it as a creative way to spend and save money differently. Like a challenge or a game.
Do not go so extreme in your desire to save that you end up in backlashes of needs to splurge.
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Post by momof3boys on Apr 3, 2015 17:42:55 GMT -5
I think I need to join this thread too! It's Easter on Sunday and we don't have anything for that holiday food or other wise. I'd like to start some sort of savings but how? Also I want to get on a grocery budget.
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