Hello everyone,
So while I'm scouring sites like simplyhired, snagajob, monster & careerbuilder for a second job, I wanted to know if any of you had tips on how to save for emergencies, a cushion for your bank account, and even the tiniest bit of spending money.
When I factor in my monthly bills, I don't even make enough in month to pay them all. The only way I've been getting by is by selling some of my belongings on Ebay. I've applied to various jobs and currently only have one interview set up- the hunt isn't going so hot.
However, when I do find that other job, I should be able to squirrel away TINY bits of money. I'd like to start using cash only for personal spending money and gas. Gas probably costs me about $70/month. What should a personal budget be? I don't plan on using all of this money at one time, obviously. If I didn't use it one week, then it would roll over to the next and so on. That's how I'd like to do it.
And what about an emergency fund? Should I try to establish a fund before I go and try to pay more than the minimum on my CCs? I feel like I should... I've been thinking about this so much lately and last night I actually did have an emergency. My 3 month old puppy got bit by another dog and needed to see the vet. Thankfully, it was only $100 dollars, but it was still money I can hardly afford to be spending.
I may also take out a little extra on my student loan for the summer semester and use that as an emergency/cushion fund. Is this a good or bad idea?
If any of you have tips or suggestions, I'm all ears. Pleeease :]
Now, I'm obviously in a much different situation than you are, but I can understand your problem.
I realize this probably sounds harsh, but I give the same to my receptionist (who has 2 cats and a dog, and is beyond broke). No more pets. Now, I have a certain bias because I HATE cats, but really, you can't afford a pet. I know you're probably attached, and I wouldn't recommend dropping your puppy off at the pound, but I wouldn't take on any more pets until you're on more secure financial footing. I did the math, our receptionist spends about 3,000 after tax dollars each year on her pets between vet bills, food, and a dog walker. That would put a substantial dent in her substantial credit card debt.
In terms of savings, when I was way in the hole, I picked up a job as a referee. The money wasn't always consistent, but the work was easy, and I have a passion for the sport, so I enjoy it (and I still do it, and truth be told, I'd do it for half the money they pay me). That puts an extra $300 - $600 of mostly cash in my pocket. Being older and presumably wiser than the 15 year old kids who make up most of the referees put me on the fast track to higher and higher level games. By mid February I was asked to events in May, June and July that should bring in around $4000, in addition to the $500 or so I make doing my normal summer league games during the week. Working as a referee, a job I thought was beneath me, essentially paid off more than half of my debt. If you think about it, you probably have some hobby that you could translate into a super easy job.
Beyond that, it depends on your level of discipline, and what your debt is. If you have current credit card debt at a high interest rate, and you have the discipline to not run the cards back up, it might be wise to pay down the card with some extra money from your student loan. The interest rate on the student loan is much better than the 25% or more you'd pay on a card. That said, if you turn around and run your card back up, you've now taken debt that could be discharged in a BK or settled, and turned it into debt that'd backed by the federal government, which is much more difficult to hide from. You also run the risk of burying yourself in student loans that you can't afford to pay off at graduation.
In other areas, I have mixed feelings on using cash. Obviously if you use cash, you can't spend what you don't have, but there are advantages to using cards. If you can get 1% or 2% cash back and you PIF monthly, credit cards can actually be cheaper. It all comes down to discipline again. Cash back cards are a winner for issuers because most people lack the discipline to take advantage of them. If you even think you MIGHT not have it, use cash. If you use cash, don't spend your change, collect it in a bottle and deposit it in a savings account every few weeks. I virtually never use cash, and I usually have $30 after 3 months or so. If you used cash on an exclusive basis, you'd accumulate much more.
Good luck!
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No no, I want the constructive criticism, so thank you. Truth be told though, I mean, of course I'm attached, but the puppy was a gift. A gift I love and could never possibly give away, but she will cost me, I know. I totally understand your point.
I read through some of the pinned topics and signed up with a couple of the survey taking sites that pay. It's not much, but it's better than nothing, and I could use even a few extra dollars coming in. The hobby thing is a great idea! I've actually been thinking about knitting some things and selling them on Etsy. People charge a lot of money for hand-knitted items, and I'm not bad with needles.
I've actually cut all my cards up. I know it's pretty easy to just report a lost or stolen card and get a new one in the mail, but chances are if I'm looking to spend (this is me personally,) I'll do it spontaneously. I wouldn't wait around for a credit card to come in the mail. So I'm definitely trying to be more disciplined about that.
I'm still thinking about taking out a little more on my student loan. I'm not sure what I'm going to do with that area yet.
But hey, thank you for all of your advice. I really appreciate it!
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It's hard to give quality advice without knowing the details of your unique situation.
But here are some general tips:
* Come to terms with what has caused you to be in this situation. Medical emergency, job loss, out of control spending, generally not understanding your finances...
* Make a list of all your debts, plus the interest rates, balances and min payments for each
* Find a way to lower your interest rates. Call the creditors and ask for a lower rate, transfer balance to a lower rate card, or if you can be disciplined, maybe utilizing your student loan is not a bad idea.
* Keep looking for that second source of income
* Focus on paying off one account, while making the minimums on all cards. Since cash flow is your biggest issue, I'd start with the smallest balance, the use what used to be the minimum for that card to throw at the next account. It may be the next smallest account or the one with the highest interest. Depends on your situation.
* Instead of cutting up cards put them in large tupperware, fill it with water and freeze them and keep them in the freezer. That way they are still available for emergencies, but not easy to use spontaneously.
* If you feel you can be responsible with credit cards, take advantage of reward cards. I'm in a family of 4, so it's not just my spending that goes on these cards, but my family earned right about $2000 last year in cash back on AMEX, Discover and Chase cards. We paid in full every month though. And we did have our set backs last year. My dog swallowed a corncob and it cost $4k to remove it. And my youngest daughter was in the hospital and had many tests before determining what was wrong. Insurance paid most of it of course, but we still had a high deductible to pay.
* It really is important to have an emergency fund. We couldn't contribute at all last year to it due to our setbacks and other expenses that come with buying a house. But now we have paid off those setbacks and are contributing about 20% of our net income to savings. As soon as you've paid off one account, start putting some money in savings.
* Shop around your car insurance: I saved ~$400 this year doing that.
* Reduce your phone and cable packages. Disconnect what you can. This is saving me about $1000 this year.
* Do your own yardwork; fire the landscaper. I used $300 from my rewards cards to buy a lawnmower. I'll save about $1100 this year.
* I've started letting my wife cut my hair at home. I'll save about $200 this year.
* Make sure you take advantage of any flexible spending account your employer offers to pay for eyeglasses, prescriptions, OTC meds and other medical expenses.
* Keep your home a few degrees warmer in the summer and cooler in the winter. Turn down the temp on the water heater. Wrap the water heater in an insulative blanket made for it.
* CFL bulbs are getting cheaper, look into using those when current bulbs die.
* If you own a home, now might be a great time to refinance for substantial savings. We already have a decent rate on our mortgage, but think we can do much better and save hundreds per month.
* Make sure you're getting any tax reductions you can using the homestead exemption as an example. Same goes for federal tax deductions, don't overlook anything.
* Do as much of your own car maintenance as you're comfortable with.
* Stop eating out (as much). When you do, find places that are running specials that day, particularly "kids eat free" if you have kids.
* Now might be a good time to stop smoking. Save money and your health.
* Use coupons and learn to shop smarter. Buy store brands. Buy things you use frequently (and that won't perish) in bulk when they're on sale.
* Drop the gym membership and pickup something else, like running, biking (if you have a bicycle), etc.
* Go through you home and consider selling anything that you just don't use.
These may not all apply to you, but I wanted to get them all down. I feel like I'm missing something else that will save me a lot this year. If I remember, I'll edit this.
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Great list, DharmaDog. Doing even a few of the things on that list will save a lot of money!
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It should be a roadmap for your income.
-Add up every penny you have coming in.
-Subtract necessary expenses, things you have to pay (rent, utilities, food, etc)
-Subtract a fixed amount for savings, even if it's just $20/month.
-Then subtract things you *want* to have, but do not need- cable TV, etc
Got anything left? If so- you're in pretty good shape! If not, work backwards though the list and cut/reduce things until you break even.
If you can't get to that point without cutting things you absolutely have to pay and cannot reduce- you have some big decisions to make, such as finding cheaper rent, selling the house (if there is one) finding higher-paying employment.
Yes. Put away $500-$1000 as an emergency fund ASAP, before accelerating the card payments. If you don't you'll find yourself using the cards when an unexpected expense comes along, erasing the gains you make paying them down.
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Do you have papers on the pup? If so perhaps in a year you can get some sort of compensation for breeding. How's our car situation? Do you make monthly payments or own it? It is a relatively cheap car to ensure? Require premium fuel? Good MPG? Downgrading your car could help, depends on the situation.
What do you like to do for fun? Do you like to go out a lot? I think spending on some cheap activities would keep you at home more if you feel you always want to go out. Dartboard with darts and a cheap badminton set are both under $20 each at walmart. Take up some other at home cheap hobbies. Cooking would really be advantageous, once one gets the skills they'd be able to make better dishes than at restaurants.
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Thousands of animals are euthanized DAILY in shelters across America.. Please do NOT breed more animals! This is not a fabulous way to "make money"...
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Another tip to save money: You can get a mutual fund company to pull money from your checking account and/or payroll check and invest the money in a mutual fund. This can be as low as $50 per month. (Payroll works best for starters --- you never see the money.) The money is not immediately accessible and you can lose some of the value.... but IMHO we are in a bear market with historical lows, so now is the time to invest.
Suitable mutual fund companies include Vanguard, Dodge and Cox, Greenspring. (I have long term investments with these companies.)
Another investment place is "www.sharebuilder.com".
A little bit of personal experience: In the 1990's, I got into the habit of putting away $200 per biweekly paycheck into a mutual fund. In 1999, my world dissolved into a PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) cyclone. I took 3 months unpaid absence, dissolved the mutual fund account, and lived off the proceeds while recovering.
-BigCowboy
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lots of sound advice on the thread
let me chime in with just a couple thoughts on cutting spending
- if your cell is on a month-to-month contract consider switching to a prepaid
- if your landline is with a traditional phone company or includes long distance, evaluate whether you really use it; if you have broadband and absolutely need a landline digital phone may be cheaper shop around vonage may be cheaper than cable company's offering
- if you have cable, switch to basic cable, to save a few dozen bucks a months
- if your lease is up soon, could you move into a smaller accommodation without sacrificing quality of life, with school and two jobs, it's really just a place to sleep; you need not move far (moving expenses) just consider a smaller unit, maybe ask friends to help out with moving rather than go to a professional mover
- pets are expensive but individual opinions on whether it's ethical to give them up in time of need could vary; animal shelter is an option; if you give up the pet for free you'll still be saving on food, vet/meds/insurance etc; it may come down to whether to put food on the table or provide medical care for you/your family or the pet, I think it's better to give up the pet before you have to make those choices or the pet gets sick
- eating out or going out adds up, perhaps it can be cut as can new clothes purchases; it's tough if you're at school but you can save a few hundred bucks a month that way
- if you have a car you may save some money by raising deductible on the insurance and shop around for better rates, if it's old and no longer financed you may drop collision coverage; depending on where your commute to school/work takes you is public transit or carpooling an option;
- if you have a kid in need of childcare, is daycare available at your school/work or can you partner up with a trusted friend who also needs childcare to split costs
- if you're at school is need-based aid available, and does your school offer work-study for which they get federal dollars; these jobs are generally much less onerous than working retail or fast food off-campus
for savings, maybe set up an automatic withdrawal from the checking acct to a savgs acct (maybe even at another bank to reduce temptation to transfer it back out)
if your income is low and you do not have an emergency fund, you may want to hold off on buying stocks until you have a cash cushion - an emergency fund has to be liquid so if you need money asap disposing of stocks in the midst of a selloff can take a chunk out of the principal; interest rates on savings accts are low but so is inflation, CUs may offer higher interest rates, make sure you shop around, in any case find one where you will not be paying an AF
good luck!
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Thousands of animals are euthanized DAILY in shelters across America.. Please do NOT breed more animals! This is not a fabulous way to "make money"...
+1.
On top of that, breeding can get EXPENSIVE. There will generally be additional vet fees, additional food, additional items (beds, toys, etc), plus unless you're home all day you need to pay someone to watch them -- you can't leave a litter of puppies at home alone for 8+ hours while you work. You may also need city and/or county permits depending on your area and how many litters you're having, which costs money.
The top breeders may get that back from the sales, but the small breeders won't.
Some general advice about pets:
1) It's usually best to NOT buy the cheapest food out there. If you buy higher quality food you pay a little more/lb, but your pet will eat less of it, so the better quality is actually cheaper in the long run.
2) Make sure your pet is getting the right amount of food. Most people give their pets too much (and if you give what the average bag of pet food says it WILL be too much). This causes the pets to end up overweight. That costs more in food, and also costs more in vet bills. (Note that for a puppy you also want to be especially careful not to underfeed. Give your vet a call if you need advice.)
3) Check your area for cheap pet clinics. Sometimes vets and the city/county get together and offer cheap shots one or a couple days/year. If you take your pet then it'll be a lot cheaper than an office visit.
4) Your pet does NOT "need" and sweaters, diamond studded collars, shoes, or whatever other silly things the stores sell for them, nor does it need 500 toys. Give them a couple good chewing toys and a squeaky toy, and lots of attention, and they'll be happy.
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Our cats usually get more fun out of the cardboard box the toys we've bought for them came in...
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Our cats usually get more fun out of the cardboard box the toys we've bought for them came in...
Yeah, cats tend to be easier to deal with than dogs.
One of my cat's absolute favorite toy in the whole wide world is a paperclip. I just pick up a paperclip and her eyes light up and she starts following me around and mewing.
Dogs are a little more difficult, especially a puppy, because they are going to NEED a durable, safe chew toy for their teeth. Otherwise you'll risk them chewing something they shouldn't and damaging something of value and/or injuring themselves on on pieces of it.