I can't save a d*mm cent!!!
Well My fiancee and I are trying to save up for when I graduate from college (a year and 1/2 to go) so we can staryt putting money away for our wedding and we also need to start an emergency fund.
Our problem is that the harer we try to save money the worse it gets. Does anyone have any good ideas on how to save money? Like what to cut back on, I already do my own nails, shop only at sales, buy off brand food to save money, drive less, etc. But at the end of the month there is still no money to put into a saving account!
Please offer any advice if you can! Thank You!
Re: I can't save a d*mm cent!!!
When you have to save for multiple things consider which ones are priority. I believe out of your list of things you want to save for an emergency fund is the most important.
Saving is kind of like dieting... when you diet and retrict so much it seems impossible to stick to your diet. In this case youre on a financial diet. Trust me the money is going somewhere wheather its eating out or that cute top you had to have even if its on sale... the money is leaving you.
For me I started a nightly savings. When I come home from work I put at least 30% into an envelope for my new car and 20% into an emergency savings. You can adjust your percentages according to your income. The thing is to put something anything away for later. My suggestion is to get something like Microsoft money or any other finance organizer and write down everything that goes in and out of your wallet. For example, when I wrote down EVERYTHING I was spending turns out I was spending too much on clothes, entertainment, and eating out. You gotta find out there the money leakage is coming from.
Re: I can't save a d*mm cent!!!
^ Exactly. I have saved $5,300 since august. I only buy clothes when i absolutely need them. Same with makeup. I go to the movies about twice a year. I hardly go out to eat. I write down in a journal everynight, what i made that night, and what that money needs to go towards. Savings, rent, car payment, grocerys, gas. Just put your mind to it. Im 18, and im doing it. Im sure you can too =)
Re: I can't save a d*mm cent!!!
read the book "Total Money Makeover" by Dave Ramsey. He also has a radio show that can add to your motivation to become financially independent.
Although the guy is outwardly christian and kind of preachy, the basics are all lined out in this book and really make a lot of sense. I've managed to save and get out of debt with the basic steps in this book. It isn't about 401k plans or playing the stock market or making money with real estate as a lot of financial advice books.
Re: I can't save a d*mm cent!!!
Like people are saying, the big thing is to pay yourself first. If you don't have the money, you'll find ways to work around it and make do. But if you've got a pile of cash staring you in the face, it's much easier to justify little $2 and $5 purchases here and there.
Re: I can't save a d*mm cent!!!
You mean little $20-40 purchases!
I say put the money in the bank ASAP. If it's out of my hot little hand it goes to bills and savings. If it's in my hot little hand--Mama's goin' shopping!
Re: I can't save a d*mm cent!!!
Me and my husband had this problem the first year we were living together. We made plenty of money, shopped sales, and still went through every dime. I put us on a STRICT budget. IMO it has to be super strict, because it is in our nature to splurge and if the budget isn't so tight it squeaks, the splurging eats up savings. Our BIG prob was eating out, a couple of dinners on the weekend and picking up lunch 2 or 3 times during the week ended up costing over $1800 one month! Here is a sample of our budget plan when we were first together. BTW we payed off about 20K in credit cards and saved almost 40 for our house in about 2 years on this plan. The first few months of adjustment can be a bitch though.
Monthly Budget:
Rent: $1100
Utilities: $300
Food: $240 - $60/wk
Gas: $160 - $40/wk
Credit Card: $150
Cell Phones: $75
Fun Money: $320 - $80/wk
Total Expenses: $2345
Total Income: $4000
Savings: $1655
I increased the Fun Money (Which BTW is just money you can go out to eat with, buy clothing, or whatever), ours was actually $40, and the Food allowance, $40 again, so I know you can survive on numbers like these. Also, we dropped to the cheapest phone service we could get, got caller ID and Call waiting removed, dropped all pay channels of TV (we actually found they had a plan for $10 in NJ where we lived, you just had to ask about it, we got like 30 some channels for a little under $10). This has helped a lot of our friends out of debt to. BTW I am an accountant, my hubby is a Financial Analyst (with Ivy MBA), just letting you know I'm not a crazy woman for working up such a Budget!
Good Luck!
Jasmine
Re: I can't save a d*mm cent!!!
I was having the same problem! I have so many bills to payoff from spending the last 2 years screwing off...$10,000 or so in credit cards and another $40,000 or so in medical bills. I'm bound and determined to pay this off AND start putting away for retirement and/or investment, and I don't want to be denying myself little treats here and there while I whittle these bills away.
Here's what I started doing about a month ago: As soon as I get home, I take 10% right out of what I made and that goes toward retirement/investment. Then, I take the rest and split it in half. One half goes toward my debt pay-off and the other half is for bills and anything else I want/need. Since I work so much, I've also decided to take whatever I make on Saturdays and put it toward whatever I want/need. I'm not gonna post numbers (too personal), but so far, it's looking really good.
I hope this helps!
Re: I can't save a d*mm cent!!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Glamazon
I'm not gonna post numbers (too personal), but so far, it's looking really good.
I hope this helps!
I guess I should mention, those are sample numbers in my listing, the rent, income and all that I just made up. I gave good examples of what I thought expenses would be and those were close to what I actually had budgeted, but the income, rent and cc bills were totally fictual estimates. I don't even remember what all those numbers were exactly, just the food and fun money, because that was the biggest adjustment for me. I had never made a menu plan or grocery list before and wasted a ton. I had also never had to put off getting that new lipgloss, or shoes, or pair of jeans I just loved. Just didn't want to mislead anyone.
Jasmine
Re: I can't save a d*mm cent!!!
I hate not having money for an emergency. :'( I just can't seem to save up. I cannot work and work without buying something for myself. Just yesterday I bought a LE Lancome lip brush and 2 MAC items. Seems simple right? I just realized it cost me over $40 for those 3 items. :(
No matter how much we seem to make we're still not getting ahead. I rarely go to the movies and when I do it's always matinee. I haven't bought a DVD in forever and no regular clothes- just dance clothes here and there because I hate wearing the same thing over and over.
Is it just me or is cooking at home sometime just as much as going out? Or am I buying the wrong things? I'm tired of buying ingredients for recipes that I never use again! /:O
Re: I can't save a d*mm cent!!!
Cut out everything that is fun j/k . It takes time, make a list of live with or without and see what is practical . For me I cut out the wedding and all that crap and just went down to the Jp and got it done . I know not very romantic but it sure did save a few bucks and a lot of drama ! Oh and its lasted almost 20yrs .( and still going )
Re: I can't save a d*mm cent!!!
* You can save on your food budget if you shop at a warehouse-type store (like Costco, which is a great company BTW) & plan meals, store food correctly & invest in an small freezer to store pre-cooked dinners, desserts & seasonal fruit. It does take some labor to do this but they payoff is worth it. You can also have an herb garden to grow fresh herbs that are otherwise expensive to purchase...
*Never pay retail for anything. Today, with Ebay, Craigslist & consignment shops, there is no reason to buy clothes, makeup or furniture at the retailer's price. You can even swap items with people instead of paying cash.
*Makeup- all of us here know that most of the drugstore brands of makeup are made by the same companies that make high-end department store makeup. So why spend more...? If this is stuff you use every night at work, that can add up.
I'd have to agree with people who say you have to treat your savings like another bill & once the money is put away it is not "there" for you anymore.
Re: I can't save a d*mm cent!!!
Here are some of my tips:
1. Buy frozen dinners (the cheaper ones-I like SmartOnes) especially if you're single....dinner for under 2 bucks is a lovely feeling and the portions are the right size.
2. Don't buy cable. I used to have cable and was spending way too much time and money on that....now that I don't have it, I am much more productive and save about 60-80 dollars/month. I watch movies and dvds when I'm in the mood to veg out. Which brings me to my next point....
3. Don't buy the brand new dvds for 20 or 30 (or more!) Do invest in a dvd/vcr combo and check out movies at the library (for free!), find a discount movie rental chain (Screenplay Videos), or buy your videos at 2nd-hand stores (Goodwill and 2nd-hand bookstores are great for those movies you haven't seen in a long time!)
4. Clean out your closet and bring the old clothes, shoes, and accessories to a store that buys and resells clothes.....you may only get 20 or 30 bucks but hey, that's like a couple of dances, right? :)
5. Start engaging in activities that cost less money. I know this may be a little difficult now that it is going to start getting colder but start a new exercise routine or running program, take walks, have more sex, go to the library, or start journaling. The idea is that the activity is FREE!
6. Write down the amount of money you make every night when you get home. Admittedly, I haven't been doing this lately and I truely believe I was doing better before with saving......it's thrilling to see the numbers add up vs. just estimating how much money you think you made.
7. Stop subscribing to magazines and newspapers if you do; the internet is a wonderful thing and you can access most of that kind of stuff on here!
8. Here's a good rule I've started following recently. If you get your hair done professionally on a regular basis, STOP! I realized I was spending ab 200 dollars on average (more oftentimes) per month to have my hair colored. I'm naturally blond but like my hair dark brown.....well, now I do my own root touch-ups for ab 7 or 8 dollars a week vs. going to the salon every week and half for 75 dollars. Also, my club has a hair stylist who works in the dressing room and,for a fee, you can have him style your hair before work. F*** that! I save 25-40 dollars by doing my own hair. Sure, it's sometimes a hassle (I have a lot of hair!) but it's worth it to save the money. The same goes for make-up if you have a make-up artist, as my club does. I've seen girls spend, ahem, WASTE 50 dollars to have their makeup done!!! Whew!
9. If you can't help but to buy new work outfits, try to buy them from those teeny-bopper stores that sell all of the slutty clothes for 14 and 15 year olds. (Lol, no judgement, we were all 15 before!!!) You can spend a hell of a lot less on several different things from there and mix and match vs. buying one, expensive outfit at a "stripper" store/website. Or better yet, make your clothes if you know how to sew.
10. And last but not least, never buy your drinks. :)
Hope this helped. :D
Re: I can't save a d*mm cent!!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by madmaxine
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I'd have to agree with people who say you have to treat your savings like another bill & once the money is put away it is not "there" for you anymore.
It's interesting that you say that, because when I tell my friends or Boyfriend that I'm broke, they look at me like I'm crazy, because they know that I'm making good money and saving alot of it...but I don't touch it...I feel broke all the time!! But it's a good kind of broke, because I know that I'm taking care of things that have been neglected for far too long.
Re: I can't save a d*mm cent!!!
This is mainly for Australians however there is still plenty of stuff on there for everyone:
Simple Savings website - http://www.simplesavings.com.au/a.php?a=228737
It has helped me more than once. It will definatley help you save money ;D
Re: I can't save a d*mm cent!!!
Having a sense of humor about living frugually helps. Last night Lady Gwen & I were laughing about "Extreme Ghetto" saving & cash-raising tips, like siphoning gasoline out of other people's cars & organizing gambling at your house ("Is cockfighting illegal in Montana? I don't think they've had enough Latinos doing that here to outlaw it..yet.") Then there's independent pharmaceutical sales.... LOL
OK seriously, you can make saving money a game. My uncle is this way & he went from poor white guy from BFE Pennsylvania to very wealthy man with obscenely valuable CA real estate. He could retire now & live well. Of course, we dubbed him an "Honorary Jew."
"Life's a Mind Game."
Re: I can't save a d*mm cent!!!
I'm in the same boat...can't save shit. It's really depressing, feeling like you're never going to get ahead, and everything is just so far beyond reach. Even with myself and my guy working full time, we eat boxed pasta probably 3-4 times a week.