How To Save Money?

Discussion in 'Money Matters' started by anika987, Sep 2, 2019.

  1. anika987

    anika987 IL Hall of Fame

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    Things I do right now..

    1) I eat out rarely.Good savings and good for waistline:)

    2) I stick to my grocery list and don’t buy things for my whims and fancies.
    Usually end up throwing stuff but happy to see am using it all.

    3)I feel in america the quality of clothes are very high.I buy when there is need or absolute need for a huge party which is rare in my case or splurge one or two for vacations.
    Initially used to shop every week literally but not anymore:)

    4) I do have spa time but started doing it not so often (not talking about eyebrows and stuff)

    5) I try to maintain my stuff at home so that I don’t spend on their repairs uneccesarily.

    6) I just try to invest more money in health and experiences than just things( Maybe aging)

    7) Maintaining a budget sheet and joting down what I spent and intend to.

    8) I do splurge on luxury items but do it more mindfully and at the right time.

    I was happy to see I had saved a lot compared to what I used to spend:)As a homemaker,I felt in this way am helping my husband.

    Is there anything I missed?
     
    Last edited: Sep 2, 2019
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  2. PurpleRoses

    PurpleRoses Finest Post Winner

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    You covered it all. I'm working and I also do the same as you mentioned above.

    Few more I do -
    1. Buy flowers/puja items 3 days before festival as I stay in India and 1 day before festival the cost reaches sky high.

    2. Previously I used to have 10 different face washes and 3 or 4 different scrubs, 5 bottles of shampoos and conditioners etc.
    Now I dont buy till 1 is almost getting over.

    3. When I want to buy something, I will think for 3days and if I still feel I need to buy it then I buy.
    Sometimes we like something and want to buy it but we don't really need it. So waiting will give clarity and we can decide to buy or not.

    4. Apart from house hold, I will save certain percentage of money as fixed deposit.
    I'm very poor in financial knowledge though.
     
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  3. anika987

    anika987 IL Hall of Fame

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    Me too am very bad in financial knowledge but trying to start small:)

    You are right when it comes
    To point no 2..I used to
    Do the same before:)

    Another one I mentioned is try not to waste food and end up buying more pulse and grains too soon..seems so small but I have saved a lot through groceries!!!
     
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  4. Sunshine04

    Sunshine04 Platinum IL'ite

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  5. Caughtinbetween

    Caughtinbetween Gold IL'ite

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    I am also looking forward to some ideas here . Am terrible at this .

    I always try to buy my clothes from costco, mostly in the 10-15$ range. Very rarely have shopped from other stores for myself . I would always keep two pairs of shoes .

    i did spend on outside food a lot in the last two years ... now trying to control it big time .
     
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  6. Sunshine04

    Sunshine04 Platinum IL'ite

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    The major expenditure for us is the sightseeing trips within USA.
    With clothes I buy at Walmart.com
    Ebay. Its cheaper than buying instore.
    I buy offseason. When summer end, summer clothes are on sale . I buy them and store it for next summer.
    Same with winter clothing
     
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  7. Amulet

    Amulet IL Hall of Fame

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    Health-issues, Job-loss, Family Emergencies, Home-infrastructure-issues
    Those are usually the major items for which you need a cushion of money. Imagine couple of days as an inpatient in an American hospital, (even with insurance) your out of pocket expenses could be substantial.
    Trump is now engineering a recession with this tariff fights with China. When we do indeed go into one, and there is a job-loss in the family, does one have the savings to go through one year of no job ?
    Things are always happening to the extended family in far away "home"; do we have money for a quick trip for all ?
    What if hurricane Dorian takes out a roof, a wall, or there is a water leak in the house, caused by earthquakes -- do we have good insurance ? or Savings ?

    Add them all up.... and save until you reach your goal.
     
  8. Needtobestrong

    Needtobestrong Platinum IL'ite

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    Anika realy appreciate what youre doing to save money..
    few things I do..
    eat out very rarely and prefer home cooked food...
    i always check online for deals on groceries and household items.. I get good discounts online and difference between online and MRP is quite significant. Also, we buy vegetables and staples from wholesale stores.
    im always on lookout for special promotional offers on essentials in stores and online.
    my family members are sometimes amazed by this!
    spend only on essential self-grooming like eyebrows and facial hair threading...pedicure very rare.
    I prefer to do hair removal at home itself using wax strips or razor or epilator..I do facial at home with natural ingredients.
    I dont buy very high end branded beauty products. I prefer good quality herbal products which are decently priced.
    I dont buy branded clothes but prefer those which are reasonably priced and decent quality..i watch out for end of season sales and offers.
    if i step out somewhere alone i try using public transport as much as possible..auto cab etc only if required and situation demands.
    I saved lot of money on baby care and child care products by shopping online and by using more of re usable cloth diapers and less of disposable diapers..
     
  9. Anusha2917

    Anusha2917 IL Hall of Fame

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    Good for Mother earth also.. :thumbup:
     
  10. Thyagarajan

    Thyagarajan IL Hall of Fame

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    :hello:I read the post and all the foregoing responses. Everything looks fine. @Amulet forethought is gleaming among FBs.

    2. But where do you all keep that unspent money? Certainly hidden not in rice container(in India) or other unthinkable places. Huge Money thus saved is normally kept in bank in savings account or transferred from their to fixed deposit a/c or and in mutual fund/stocks.

    3. With the way our currencies gets the Beating, the way inflation fluctuates, interest rates come down and the interest accrued on our savings does not make up for the erosion in value. With tariff war and other kind of war round the globe, the share markets in fits and starts and progressively it is trying to find its nadir, our savings seemed to diminish in value with progress of time.

    4. Those who converted their savings to metal seemed to have mitigated the loss to a great extent. My late mom was thrifty and her savings for over four decades were only in gold jewelleries. She somehow felt savings in bank or FD or RD all humbug.

    5. Simple living & high thinking is good which eventually proves robust life for entire family. When one is rich he or she thinks like poor and when one is impoverished the person thinks like rich - either way it paves way for doom and gloom.

    6. A graffiti on the wall says “God only SAVES”. A naughty boy with charcoal Writes below- “all others spend”.

    7. True saving results only if money habitually saved in proven established methods. I recall words of my dad in Tamil, after visiting the site marked for digging to lay the foundation for building our future house: சிறுக கட்டி பெருக வாழ் - observe austerity live prosperously.
    Thanks and Regards.
    God in temples lives on income from HUNDI(S).
     
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