What are you doing to cut..?

Question

back now that gas, food, entertainment etc., has gone up. I'm now broke, I use to have at lease 3 grand in my checking and 10k in my saving now I have no saving and only about 4k in checking as a buffer, it getting hard to save and property taxes are coming.

Answer 1

I am only buying small amounts of gas at a time, mainly because I don't want it siphoned off, plus it makes me cut down on driving all over town for stuff I don't need.

I buy at Goodwill, since I can't afford full-price designer clothes.  I am finding an even better selection at Goodwill than I do at the malls.

Finally, I am voting for a change in the White House as well as in my state's legislature.  This economy is pitiful!

Answer 2

Honestly, there are only two ways to combat inflation on a personal level.  You must either increase your income or decrease your expenses.  It comes down to personal choice.  

The first thing I looked at was cutting expenses.  I am a single guy in my 30's so that made it pretty easy.  I make a good living so I bought a use 5th wheel for cash and parked it in a mobile home park.  I bought a good gas mileage car for dirt cheep because it had a smashed fender.  I also quit smoking, quit eating out, and shop carefully at the grocery store.  With these radical cutbacks in my personal lifestyle, I have plenty of money left to play with.  4 times a year I get to fly somewhere on vacation for a week and spend money like it grows on trees.

The alternative to cutting back expenses is to increase your income.  Depending on your preferences, abilities, and moral values, there are lots of ways to boost your income.  ;)

Answer 3

To cut back, I have covered my home's roof with Kool seal, and used tint on the windows, turn off all things not being used during the day, turn up my ac to 80 degrees, turn off my water heater during the day. I am saving quite a bit with that. Now I ration my trips out. i plan everything in one day, or plan my extra trips to fit into my mandatory schedules like work.

I am eating a lot less, and making homemade snacks from scratch for my kids.  

I am also getting into feng shui a lot more. Woo hoo! gotta love that feng shui.

I have also started an online trade and sales yahoo group for my local community to help people trade their items they don't need for items they do, and sell things they don't need.

This hasn't helped me profit, but it is helping others in my town.

You know 4k isn't broke. You still have enough to get 3 cd's from the bank, and live off of the accrued interested in 5 years. You're set if you use it right.

Answer 4

Here are cost cutting measures I've always used: Bike or walk whenever possible for local errands to the store or library.  Wait until movies are shown at the discount theatre ($2 instead of $9).  Combine car trips, run errands on the way home from work rather than making a separate trip.  Take lunch to work rather than buying from the cafeteria, special meals prepared at home are a fraction of what a restaurant charges.

Then, get on a budget so you know how your monthly income compares to your expenses.  Amortize your property tax (divide the amount by 12) and include that in your monthly budget.  Put that amount in savings each month so when it's due you have the money.  Do the same for car insurance, car registration and any other expense that comes up on a yearly or semi-yearly basis.

Keep track of your spending for a month or two, most people are surprised by how much they are spending on one or two items; eating out, phone bills, groceries are typical.

From your budget determine how much you have to spend for such items as clothing and entertainment.  Then stay within your budget!

Pay off any loans or credit card debt.  Don't use a credit card unless you pay the entire balance each month.  Be sure to include money for car repair and home repair in your budget, these expenses come along and can wreck a budget if you don't have some savings for them.

You can download a free budget spreadsheet from: http://www.bankrate.com/brm/news/debt/de... or use an on-line tool at: http://www.kiplinger.com/tools/budget/

God bless!