Eye opener! Saving money!

elannis

I can't remember now, maybe it was Jemmini who said she charted everything she spent for a year to see how much she was spending on stuff she didn't need. I started that and only 9 days into the month, I'm amazed! I have bought a few birthday items that I normally wouldn't have, but I am definitely going to continue doing this because I can't believe how much money I've wasted already on stuff.

So thanks for the suggestion! Anyone else doing this to save money this year? Any other tips for saving money?

tuarceatha

The thing that has worked best for me is automatically withdrawing $ each week to my savings. I've heard it is even better if it comes straight from your paycheck, because you get used to not seeing that money each payday, and there it is growing in your savings account!

leia1979

I was using mint.com for awhile to set budgets. I got kinda lax, though.

The best thing is that I put over 40% of my paycheck straight into savings. It used to be more, but that was before I was paying $900 a month in rent.

ravenray

mint.com.  Best thing ever. 

elannis

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/special-topic-wedding-boards_not-engaged-yet_eye-opener-saving-money?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Special%20Topic%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:136Discussion:3a2d57b1-f0b9-4bf8-9d68-cf5b3d95b7fdPost:3893aa4b-d7de-46e0-9724-e8037f4bd8b1">Re: Eye opener! Saving money!</a>:
[QUOTE]The thing that has worked best for me is automatically withdrawing $ each week to my savings. I've heard it is even better if it comes straight from your paycheck, because you get used to not seeing that money each payday, and there it is growing in your savings account!
Posted by jenjenniferf[/QUOTE]

Yeah, that actually works really well. I used to do that, but then got behind on Christmas and birthdays, so now I'm catching up. I'm thinking about starting early and making a Christmas savings and putting so much into it so I have an actual budget this year instead of spending way more than I know I should.

I'm not sure if my work would do the automatic deposit to savings or if the bank does that, but I was pretty good at it before Christmas. I'll have to get back into it after I get my credit card paid off.

Another goal I have is to stop spending money on my credit card. That adds up pretty quickly too.

elannis

Ok, majority rules. Gonna check out mint.com, lol.

I wish I could put 40% into savings, but my job does not pay as well as I'd like and I've got school loans and car loans up the wazoo!

tuarceatha

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/special-topic-wedding-boards_not-engaged-yet_eye-opener-saving-money?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Special%20Topic%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:136Discussion:3a2d57b1-f0b9-4bf8-9d68-cf5b3d95b7fdPost:9fc12aea-43e3-45bb-affb-65a77b2f8207">Re: Eye opener! Saving money!</a>:
[QUOTE]In Response to Re: Eye opener! Saving money! : Yeah, that actually works really well. I used to do that, but then got behind on Christmas and birthdays, so now I'm catching up. I'm thinking about starting early and making a Christmas savings and putting so much into it so I have an actual budget this year instead of spending way more than I know I should. I'm not sure if my work would do the automatic deposit to savings or if the bank does that, but I was pretty good at it before Christmas. I'll have to get back into it after I get my credit card paid off. Another goal I have is to stop spending money on my credit card. That adds up pretty quickly too.
Posted by elannis[/QUOTE]

I'm right there with you. My Christmas shopping stole all my extra cash. Damn gift giving season! ;)

elannis

I even started early this year and was proud of myself for not doing everything last minute, but then I ended up doing more shopping than I normally do, and it was all spread out so it's easy to forget what I've spent and I ended up spending way more.

This year is going to be different ... of course, I say that every year, lol. I just can't help it though. I love giving people things.

elannis

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/special-topic-wedding-boards_not-engaged-yet_eye-opener-saving-money?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Special%20Topic%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:136Discussion:3a2d57b1-f0b9-4bf8-9d68-cf5b3d95b7fdPost:c95c961d-d199-41b1-8953-2e3e703377a2">Re: Eye opener! Saving money!</a>:
[QUOTE]I spend so much money that I don't intend to spend. I track all my spending too and thus far it has been very informational but not enough to make it stop. It mostly happens when I go to Target. Gah. 
Posted by LivLeighton[/QUOTE]

Maybe, if you know Target is your weakness, you could leave any plastic at home and only take a set amount of cash with you? That way you can't spend more than you intend to. I think it's always hard to use good judgement when you're out shopping, and online shopping is probably the worst for me. It's just a click away and doesn't even seem like you're spending money, lol.

KiloBravo7

Neither of us are huge spenders in the first place, but a few months ago, FI and I cut out all unnecessary subscriptions.  Magazine subscriptions, online memberships, etc.

And also... I must admit that this money-saving method has been rather half-assed, but shortly after we moved into our townhouse in April, we took out a lot of incandecent bulbs and put CFL and CFL hybrid bulbs in all but a few of the light fixtures.  The reason I say it's half-assed is because we haven't really bothered to caclulate how much it is saving us.

doubleSS07

Our credit union has a Christmas fund account I sign up for every year. You designate an amount and how often and they do an automatic withdrawal to a savings account. They charge you a hefty fee if you pull the money early which prevents you from sneaking money out. You get access to it in November. It works for me since I do shopping last min. And it's all in cash!

SheSincerely

I'm going to cook & pack my lunch more.The SO & I are terrible spenders when we're together! We waste most of our money on going out to eat. We only really see each other on the weekends now, and when we do we eat out like literally 2-3 meals each day. I personally spend a lot of money not packing my lunch on school days (the school cafeteria is outrageously overpriced). I realized that I was spending no less than $50 a week eating on campus alone. Oh and I recently told the SO that we're only going out for dinner once a month (he has serious spending problems & he needs to save too).

Another thing I've cut down on is going to the salon. When I was working full time I used to go to the salon like every week to have my hair washed. This was running me $45.00 a wk. I also cut my manicures from 2x's a month to only once. I'm even going to start couponing. I also put my budget in an excel spreadsheet, so I can stay mindful of what I have to spend. And I won't even walk into a grocery store without a list. Like another poster mentioned, I only take in the cash have allotted to spend in the store. I leave credit cards, debit cards, and checkbooks in the car. 

My student budget can't handle my old habits.

elannis

Kilo: I know what you mean. We've cut down on our energy usage and trying to on water too, but I haven't really done any comparing to see how it has been going, lol.

Double SS: I think I could probably get into something like that. I don't think I'd start Christmas shopping too much before November, so that could be something I need to look into!

She: I know what you mean about eating out. We don't do it very often, but it does add up pretty quickly. As for salons, I pretty much neglect myself, lol. I only go get my hair cut like twice a year and then it's at some cheapo place. I'm growing it out though, so it's pretty low maintenance right now. I think I might pick up your grocery list trick though. I usually have a list, but then I always add things to it. Maybe if I just stick to the list I can save some money. It's always stuff we'll use, but definitely not necessary.

HULU

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/special-topic-wedding-boards_not-engaged-yet_eye-opener-saving-money?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Special%20Topic%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:136Discussion:3a2d57b1-f0b9-4bf8-9d68-cf5b3d95b7fdPost:3893aa4b-d7de-46e0-9724-e8037f4bd8b1">Re: Eye opener! Saving money!</a>:
[QUOTE]The thing that has worked best for me is automatically withdrawing $ each week to my savings. I've heard it is even better if it comes straight from your paycheck, because you get used to not seeing that money each payday, and there it is growing in your savings account!
Posted by jenjenniferf[/QUOTE]

<div>This.</div><div>
</div><div>Luckily, I bank with Wells Fargo and am part of the "Save as You Go" plan. Every time I use my debit card, $1 is automatically taken out of my checking account and put into my savings. But, if you're running low on cash, you can always just have your card run as Credit, and it doesn't transfer anything.</div>

elannis

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/special-topic-wedding-boards_not-engaged-yet_eye-opener-saving-money?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Special%20Topic%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:136Discussion:3a2d57b1-f0b9-4bf8-9d68-cf5b3d95b7fdPost:77d22dc2-cbad-498d-8949-11d54a45cbeb">Re: Eye opener! Saving money!</a>:
[QUOTE]In Response to Re: Eye opener! Saving money! : This. Luckily, I bank with Wells Fargo and am part of the "Save as You Go" plan. E<strong>very time I use my debit card, $1 is automatically taken out of my checking account and put into my savings</strong>. But, if you're running low on cash, you can always just have your card run as Credit, and it doesn't transfer anything.
Posted by HULU[/QUOTE]

That's awesome! I don't ever use cash, so this would probably really add to my savings! I've got 5/3 ... anyone know of anything awesome they offer? lol

wink0erin

I tracked my spending for several months last year and saw I was spending most of my money on utilities, rent, groceries and gasoline. So I guess that's normal, haha. I don't have rent anymore (just utilities) but I spend more on food since I'm feeding BF and I. I make a grocery list when I notice we're running out of something, and I stock up when things are on sale/use coupons. I try to shop around the perimeter of the store too. We eat out once or twice a week and trade off on who pays. 
 
Other than that, I find that I spend more money on home improvement/organization type items, which I feel is a good place to be putting my money. BF contributes to this too.

I transfer money into my savings whenever I think about it. I try not to let my checking acct drop below a certain amount and I never withdraw from my savings. This has helped me a LOT since I continue to add to savings, but if I have a month where I need to pay medical bills or buy something I just cut out other things to avoid taking money out of savings.