Thrift thread: What practical things do you do to save $$ ?

H.G.P. · 08-20-2005, 07:45 PM

i.e. Practical day to day things:

Some here:
1. Make multiple stops on one trip.
2. Driving the 911 to work each day (as I do all the maintainance on the Porsche).
3. Cut our own grass
4. Do all the yard work.

RANDY P · RANDY P's Garage

Only go out 1x a week. Majority of the time drive cars with 3 digit price tags to avoid car payments. This rule has been broken recently - just got tired of fixing trash. But, I'll do it without hesitation if I get a deal.

Try to fix things myself. Try to be a cash customer.

MikeCT · MikeCT's Garage

I smoke.

H.G.P. · 08-20-2005, 08:00 PM

Although for health reasons also we seldom eat out.

tabs · 08-21-2005, 11:10 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by SoCal911SC
Fix everything around the house.

Do my own haircuts.

Do all my own car repairs (I can count on one hand the times my cars have been in the shop in the past 15 years).

Eat leftovers for lunch, or if I go out for lunch almost never spend more than $5.

Wash my own cars. In my 23 years of driving, I've NEVER paid for a car wash. Not once!

My daily driver is 19 years old with 160K miles. Cheap maintenance (all DIY, natch), cheap insurance, and cheap registration.

Don't buy trinkets and doodads that immediately depreciate 80% the second you take it out of the box. No plasma TV. Heck, I don't even have a DVD player!

Family eats breakfast lunch and dinner at home 6 days/week. On the night we go out, lunch is usually $10, dinner less than $30.

Consciously chose to live walking distance from elementary, middle and high school. And 3.5 miles from work. $3 gas bothers me not a bit. (Car and transportation expenses can kill you).

Never had a car payment. Never would.

Paid off house by the age of 35.

Don't pay a penny of interest to anyone. Don't owe anyone anything.

Got married relatively early, and stayed married to the same woman! (Divorce is a finance killer!)

I don't view any of the above as sacrifices. Spending time with my wife and son, watching my son grow up, is PRICELESS to me. Everything else, as I am famous for saying "is just a bunch of crap."

ARE YOU SURE YOUR NOT MY MOTHER? U sound exactly like her.....

bryanthompson · bryanthompson's Garage

Quote:

Paid off house by the age of 35.

That is my biggest goal. If I can accomplish that (I have 14 years to go before I'm 35), I will be very happy.

Joeaksa · 08-21-2005, 11:21 AM

Mother was part Scottish, so it comes naturally.

Do a lot that SoCal does but sorry, going to spend some of my bux to enjoy life a bit. Have a small problem with stereo (Bang & Olufsen) and enjoy my HDTV and Tivo but otherwise no real frills. Every hobby or collection I have makes money as it appreciates in value as the years go by.

Also do 99% of the work on everything I own. Paid to have a A/C guy come to the house last week. Just cannot do everything and not going to mess with my house air conditioning.

Do a lot of shopping at the Costco, Sams and .99c stores. Save more money at the .99c store than most and the quality is good there, just have to watch out as some of the brands there are poor quality. Have a freezer in the garage and use it to store stuff when it goes on sale.

When you take a shower I assume that you let the water run until it gets warm before getting in? I do not and have a couple of old milk jugs around that I catch the cold water in. It gets saved and is used to water the plants in the house and yard with. Every gallon you pour down the drain is wasted.

Ride a motorcycle to work when the weather is good and not too hot. Drive my 16 year old Honda wagon otherwise. Let the nice cars get used on the weekend. Airplane is a investment and it also flies on car gas, saving 50% the cost.

House should be paid off a year or two before I retire, and thats just fine by me.

JoeA

tabs · 08-21-2005, 11:24 AM

In addition to my Mothers post...Buy and shop smart...sales, coupons, closeouts... Buy things that last...be a value shopper

3 year old cars, consignment shops and auctions for furniture and general household goods...

Also read the book....The Millionaire Next Door....great primer as to how the wealthy really live in America....and not all this Hollywood hype...a Millionaire would rather have the BUCK in his pocket than a new Porsche in the garage...

tabs · 08-21-2005, 11:33 AM

Sometimes it is best to carry a mortgage...especially if you have a large taxable income...I could very well have paid my Trailer here in LV off, but I have put monies away equal to the mortgage I have, and those monies earn a greater % than the interest rate on the mortgage...

also the same thing is true on 1% or 1.9% auto financing...put the money to work at a greater rate instead of paying it off...

tabs · 08-21-2005, 11:41 AM

In addtion to Sam Club, Costco, Walmart, 99C store...I go to Big Lots, Trader Joes, Food for Less, Ranch King Market (mexican grocery store), Grocery Outlet, and Grocery Warhouse stores (dented cans and closeouts)....check out the damaged or discontinued cart in the supermarket and shop the sales at the Supers...

I buy my cigars on the Indian Reservation...no state sales tax and no state tobacco taxes

tabs · 08-21-2005, 11:43 AM

Oh yeah...Joe I bought McIntosh Stereo equipment back in 79...not only does it still sound great..but it is worth more than I paid for it...

LeeH · 08-21-2005, 12:06 PM

Shop from a list. I buy what I need then get out.

Pay no interest for any reason.

Drive an eight year old Isuzu Trooper despite really wanting something newer. This truck has never broken in any way!

Research major purchases. If it costs a lot of money I want it to last (see Trooper above).

techweenie · techweenie's Garage

Last month, I paid $5 for a squad of bikini-clad high school cheerleaders to wash my Audi at their fundraiser.

tabs · 08-21-2005, 12:16 PM

Hey techie not only did you get a free show with the young girlies, a clean car but U go a TAX DEDUCTION AS WELL

fireant911 · 08-21-2005, 12:35 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by SoCal911SC

Paid off house by the age of 35.

I did this when I was 39 and it is truly amazing the amount of freedom that this provides (actually, paying the home off is what allowed me to start looking for my Porsche). When I bought vehicles, or anything else for that matter, I always paid cash. I had to get a credit card for business travel and was declined by several companies before one would give me a chance because I had no credit record - I had $45,000 in my bank account and all I could get approved for on the credit card initially was a whopping $250...

I clip coupons. The cost of buying a Sunday paper is easily offset by the plethora of usable coupons contained within. Like tabs, I frequent Big Lots - once a week I go. Monthly trips to Sam's Club for consumables and wine (does anyone here have a taste for Penfold's - that is the most amazing wine). All the yardwork is done solely by me. I am currently painting the exterior of our home. I do all the maintenance to our cars.

Aurel · Aurel's Garage

I have a rewards card for the grocery store where I always do my shopping. I earn points that gives me rebates, which I can redeem instantly. On top of it, I pay that with a credit card that earns 5% on purchases at this grocery store (and on gas too). Thus, I get a $100 check about every six months. Of course, I always pay off the credit card, and do not carry any debt on it. It is like legal double dipping.

Aurel

billyboy · 08-21-2005, 05:58 PM

I see that several of you spoke of paying off your home mortgage. I am getting the golden handshake so to speak, very soon. I will have plenty to pay off my home and some left over.I would like to do this for the security since my income will probably take a dip for a while at least. It seems that financial advisers like stock brokers, tax preparers and insurance salesmen say that I should not do this since I'll loose the deduction. I say that since my income will certainly dip for a while that who cares about deductions, especially for money thrown away(interest). To me, piece of mind is worth plenty. I can afford to take a lesser paying job until something better comes along without sweating my house payment. Once I get rolling again and get back to my current income levels, then I can funnel the portion that was my house payment into income producing investments, but at least I'll have the choice then. Is this atotaly wrong way of thinking?

pwd72s · 08-21-2005, 06:35 PM

Bill, IMHO, that is the correct way of thinking! Stock Brokers & Insurance salesman don't want you to pay off the house because they want you to give the money to them...thus increasing their commissions.
I'd suggest getting another tax advisor...the mortgage interest deduction isn't deducting ALL the interest paid...merely the %age of interest matching your tax bracket. Meaning, if you're in the 28% bracket, you deduct 28% of the interest paid.

yellowline · 08-21-2005, 07:17 PM

I'm really surprised nobody mentioned checking the air in their tires.

Or is this a given, since the people on here tend to maintain their cars?

emcon5 · emcon5's Garage