<p>On the Class of 2015, a short discussion ensued regarding saving to pay a familys EFC that including reducing expenditures to add additional funds to pay for future tuition costs. We may not all agree on methodology or strategy, but can all agree on using todays income to pay for tomorrows college costs, or ?</p>
<p>So, here were are at the cusp of 2014. </p>
<p>Let the penny pinching, tightwading, thrifting and miserly methods of saving money begin!</p>
<p>In reading the one on how to save $10K a year, I am kind of wondering how I would save $40 a month on a water bill that is only $25 a month to begin with! </p>
<p>I can give a few things I have done for years now to save money on food. First off, I tried clipping coupons but found that most of those products, with the coupon, is still more expensive than the store brand. I use a lot of store brands, although there are a few things, like peanut butter, I can’t compromise on. </p>
<p>For the “don’t feel like cooking” and to save on eating out, I do most of my entree cooking on Sunday morning. I will brown ground beef or turkey and make taco meat from some, lasagna sauce from some, sloppy joes from some, etc. It’s a HUGE time saver too because I’m dirtying the pan once, instead of three times during the week and it really doesn’t take any longer to brown 3 lbs than it would take to brown 1 lb. While I’m doing that, I’m making meatballs for pasta night, meatloaf, or salisbury steak. I’m also breading chicken or porkchops (or both) and cooking those up. It takes me about an hour and a half in total plus about a half hour for kitchen clean up afterward. I also use the crock pot once or twice a week, especially when people have activities at all different times, so the kids could grab their food and go when they needed to. We have always tried to sit down together for dinner as a family whenever possible. </p>
<p>I freeze a lot of stuff. I found I threw out a lot of food- especially things like lunch meat. If I get a package of ham now, I break it down into individual sized portions in snack size ziplocks and put them all in one big ziplock. The cost of the ziplocks is worth the food savings and waste. You can put frozen ham on a sandwich when making a lunch in the morning and it’s thawed by lunchtime. You can toss frozen ham into a frying pan to put in your omelette. It’s just so simple. </p>
<p>I toss my spare change into a huge jar. It ends up being our spending money for vacations or my emergency fund if I’m short one pay period. </p>
<p>I use the programmable thermostat so at night and when nobody is home, the temp goes down automatically and goes back up to a comfortable level when we are home and moving around. </p>
<p>I make my lunch almost every day to save on eating lunch out at work. Leftovers are great for this. I love leftovers When I do buy lunch at work, I buy from the Chinese place because I can get two meals out of it instead of just one. If I’m spending $7 on lunch, it can be two lunches instead. Good deal :)</p>
<p>Save for a rainy day nest egg first. This depends on family obligations.
Put as close to 1/3 of income as you can afford into investment. Learn how to put your money to work for you. Compounded interest is a wonderful thing. A fairly safe investment will go further than trying to save on crummy haircuts or re-using coffee filters. It sends kids to college.<br>
Realize that money not spent is money saved that can go to work for you and therefore worth more.
Don’t use credit cards unless you are responsible and have the ability to pay them off monthly with no fees. Easy money doesn’t mean free.
As much as possible, use a rule of 3’s–1/3 to live on (basics), 1/3 to balance, 1/3 investment.</p>
<p>We just wrapped our loose change from the year tonight - it’s a New Years Eve family tradition. :)</p>
<p>My H is awful about wasting lunchmeat - he is the only one who buys and eats it but I am the one who cleans out the refrig and finds the random not-used deli packages - threw away almost a pound of ham today. :(</p>
<p>Thursday night is often clean out the refrig night - meaning, dinner becomes whatever is left in the refrigerator. Either combine stuff to make a whole meal for all or throw all the leftovers on the table and take what you like and complete the meal with some fruit or raw veggies. Guess I need to look more closely at that lunchmeat drawer on Thursdays!!</p>
<p>We bring lunch to work every day and eat out on Friday and Saturday, but we eat at pizzeria type places and use coupons that we get in the mail. My daughter has never been on an airplane. Any vacation we take is by car and we use points for hotels. We have never paid for a hotel. Lately our vacations are college visits. </p>
<p>I rarely shop for myself. My winter coat is 4 years old ( the previous one made it to 6 years) and my boots just ripped. This is no easy feat- I can shop at Bloomingdales in a heart beat!! </p>
<p>I have not been inside a movie theater in over 10 years. My husband cuts coupons and does all the food shopping. He is the type to travel to 3 different supermarkets to get the best deals. We cook Sunday through Thursday. </p>
<p>My house still needs a lot of work but I am at the point where I do not care. My goal is to get both of my kids through college and be able to retire. </p>
<p>Oh- and I never buy coffee when I go to work. I bring two cups with me from home every single day. </p>
<p>We have a very ugly picture in our living room that is fairly large. We were going to take it down but realized that we would need to paint- not happening. The hideous picture stays.</p>
<p>let me stop you right there. Saving for college is one of worst things one could ever do. To everyone who have sought for my advices on college, that is the first thing I told them.</p>
<p>I read a blog post the other day I came across on pinterest describing in detail how this family of two survives on $20 a week on groceries, and how ANYONE can do it if they just really try. That boggled my mind because we keep our cupboards pretty bare these days and still spend $70-$80 a week. Some of the difference must be due to cost of living differences or something, but she also confessed at the end of the article that they never eat breakfast and basically eat nothing but carbs. Largely “spruced up” ramen noodle recipes. The amount of money I would spend on doctors appointments if I ate like that would cancel out the grocery savings.</p>
<p>Gouf, is there a resource you would recommend to youngster like me as an intro to investing? We are giving a lot of thought to our longterm financial goals lately.</p>
<p>You have to start early for this one (too late for Class of 2015), but… if your kids are in daycare when they are small and you have a pre-tax account to pay for it, take the chunks of money you are reimbursed from the pre-tax account periodically and sock it away in the college savings account (529 or whatever you choose to use). It is money you already spent out of pocket, and it has a long time to grow that way. I was able to fund two kids through private colleges with that method in spite of a divorce and ex-H who did not pay a penny toward first kid’s college (he is helping a bit with the second). It didn’t cover all the cost, but sure helped a lot.</p>
<p>Dad II, people who don’t save generally don’t get to give their kids as many choices when it comes to college because cost becomes the biggest driver. As far as I am concerned, saving for college like that was possibly the smartest thing we have ever done.</p>
<p>Exactly! This is where I am at, but the ratios are a bit different–1/3 net to live on, 2/3 investment/savings. I own my home mortgage free and do not have a car payment. </p>
<p>I use coupons for specific items, but not super processed foods. I just do not do the junk, box thing. Whole Foods allows stacking of coupons, so I usually stock up on items such as grains, frozen vegetables, sauces, H/B, and etc. I also shop Costco’s, Trader Joe’s & Aldi’s. All the stores are within 3 blocks of each other. I do not shop weekly and certainly do not shop at four stores a week–lol. I HATE shopping. </p>
<p>I do have a pricebook/spreadsheet that I track grocery,H&B & household item costs & try to spend no more than $80-100 a week on all our food, H&B and household needs.</p>
<p>I do not have one of those hoarder stockpiles you see on TV. :eek: I hate clutter. </p>
<p>We make our own household cleaners, and have done so for years</p>
<p>Shop 2nd hand and consignment shops for 80% of clothing needs, then turn around and yard sale the items we no longer wear for almost cost–D has an Etsy shop that she sells clothing finds she no longer likes, etc. We spend an average of $50 per month on clothing and shoes before taking in consideration money made via the yard sale and D’s Etsy sales. </p>
<p>If you shop second hand, shop off season. For instance, we are purchasing spring and summer clothing at the moment while everyone else shops winter clothing. Our Goodwill and Saver’s stores have tag sales and $1.99 or $1.49 days. If you shop off season, you can obtain clothing with the retail tags still attached. </p>
<p>I do not shop in at regular retail stores unless 50- 60% off and only on certain items–just because an item is on sale, it is not a deal if one cannot control their spending. How many widgets or pairs of jeans, shoes, and etc., does one need?</p>
<p>Take advantage of free undies from Victoria’s Secret along with their $10-$15 off a Bra coupons on bras reduced to $30-$35, or when the sports bras go on sale semi-annually from $56 down to $25.00. For example, for my Bday, I had 2 free undie coupons along with a $15 off a bra $35 or higher AND $10 off any purchase coupon. I purchased a clearance bra and two pair of undies for $10.00. My D does the same deal for her Bday, too. Any other time, the total is $20ish for the bra & free undies. </p>
<p>If you like Bath & Body Works–they have awesome deals numerous times a year. This is when you use coupons and stock up for gifts, etc. (We can give a gift bag of goodies valued at $45-$60 for under $10)</p>
<p>I cook at home</p>
<p>We bag lunch it except once or twice per month</p>
<p>I bake from scratch</p>
<p>Upcycle/recycle</p>
<p>Do my own yard care as I invested in a riding lawnmower and a snow blower</p>
<p>I do basic home repairs</p>
<p>Can install sheetrock, light fixtures, etc</p>
<p>We grow a massive garden each summer–we try to freeze as much as possible for the winter. I can pickles and salsa.</p>
<p>We do not replace an item unless absolutely necessary–and it may be a want and not a need! We just replaced our TV that went out with a flat screen this year–the first and only flat screen and/or TV in our home.</p>
<p>I plan ahead for such things as car repairs, appliance replacement, roof replacement, car replacement, b-days, gift giving, prom–just everything</p>
<p>I purchase used vehicles due to their enormous depreciation rate</p>
<p>I seldom do Starbucks, etc, and If I do, it is because I was given a gift card</p>
<p>We go to movies–after they hit the $2.00 show & use Redbox, Netflix & Amazon Prime. </p>
<p>We do not have cable TV service</p>
<p>We go to concerts, plays, etc, but try to find deals, go to matinees, or obtain free tickets from friends and relatives with connections. </p>
<p>Our bedroom furniture is OLD, really OLD–antique OLD, lol. Good furniture lasts forever and is of better quality. I have my great-grandmother’s bedroom suite, my daughter has my mothers, and my son has my traditional, unisex furniture my parents purchased at a used store in the 60’s.</p>
<p>There are so many ways to save money and still enjoy life!</p>
<p>The easiest areas to cut are food, household, H&B, clothing, utilities, and entertainment/eating out.</p>
<p>If you have credit card debt or car loans, pay yourself first (savings & investments), and put as much as you can towards the debt.</p>
<p>LOL @ save $10k per year. I don’t even spend 10k/year! :)</p>
<p>I’m frugal. Always have been. ~$200/month on food. Paid off my used car (which should last me very long). Never go clothes shopping unless it’s absolutely necessary. I don’t own make-up and very little jewelry. I buy most everything else on sale. Etc, etc.</p>
<p>“My starbucks latte is my treat to myself on the way to work. Switched to a tall instead of a grande save $ per day and some calories too!”</p>
<p>And I’m assuming you have a gold Starbucks card, after the 12th, you get one free…make that one a vente latte.</p>
<p>We are going to try harder to spend less and save more this year, paying down debt. But we can still spend tonight, right? Just 5 hrs, 48 min left till the budget starts. I’m looking forward to keeping my eye on this thread!</p>
<p>I am going to come clean on this one. Whenever I feel like I am on a budget, I feel the need to spend. I think it is kind of like losing weight. Whenever I feel like I need to go on a diet, I want to eat more. I am at a point of my life that I feel if I really want something, I’ll just get it, but I have less wants now.</p>
<p>Wow…just a few posts and I’ve already gotten some new ideas! I love the idea of collecting change and then having a tradition of counting it out at year end. I also love the Thursday night grab bag dinner.<br>
Two girls…instead of painting the wall…paint over the ugly painting! ;-)</p>
<p>I beg to differ. If a family of 4 has a net income of $50, 000 or more per year and not a ton of credit debt, or living above their means with their mortgage and vehicles, they can save $20K -$30K BEFORE their child’s freshman year in 2015. I know for a fact it can be done. Class of 2015 has 18 months before college bills begin rolling into email and mailboxes beginning in June/July of 2015. It’s all about mindset and how determined one wishes to save. </p>
<p>We as a nation are spendthrifts. I live well below my income, but no one is the wiser, as I do not live like a pauper just because I chose to invest my income and spend less than the average family. </p>
<p>If one wrote down every single purchase for 60 days, they will find all kinds of money. Debit and credit cards makes it easy to spend up to one’s net income every paycheck. Once a family finds a method of controlling spending on perceived needs, savings increase significantly. </p>
<p>Saving is a choice, and a doable one at that. Let’s look at savings differently. If the class of 2015 child was in daycare and both parents wanted to continue their careers, what would they do? Reduce spending to pay the horrifying high daycare bill. Saving for college in a short period of time is no different. $20K over 18 months equal $1111.11 per month & $30K is $1666.66. </p>
<p>I challenge everyone in a 2-income household to live on one income for 3-6 months, and bank the second income by direct depositing it into a passbook only savings account a
t a bank 15-20 miles away from home and work. What your college fund grow!</p>
<p>If you are single/divorced/separated, your challenge is to live on 1/4-1/2 of your net income for 6 months and direct deposit the difference into that far away from home and work passbook only savings account.</p>
<p>Because I make enough money most years that colleges think I can just fling $60K their way without blinking. Income is a much bigger factor than savings in whether you get need based aid. So if I saved nothing, it wouldn’t make much difference in the need based aid my kids might receive from colleges. And they would have much more limited choices, since (like most people), I can’t readily pay out of pocket.</p>
<p>Bunheadmom, did you read my post? MY suggestion would be too late for the class of 2015 – but you seem so driven to get your point across that you didn’t actually look at the suggestion I made. It can really only be executed when your kids are younger. I am not by any means saying there aren’t other ways to live on less (of course there are), but I don’t think you actually read what I posted…</p>
When I do buy lunch at work, I buy from the Chinese place because I can get two meals out of it instead of just one. If I’m spending $7 on lunch, it can be two lunches instead. Good deal :)</p>