Developing Frugal Habits.

[mommy4ever]

Getting to be truly frugal has been a real process. There are so many tips. I try alot of them. Sure they save money. But it's one time. As I don't always continue with it.

So I am approaching it from another angle. Started Before Christmas, changing though patterns and behaviors and forming habits, habits become second nature, making it easier.

My first success, and it might seem funny..lol. Balancing my checkbook. This was REALLY hard to do. Because everything is post dated, handed out in September. Everything else in debit or auto payments, internet. But I developed something that works for me.

Since december, I have not ONCE used overdraft. My check register might show that because i might not enter things in the right order. IE, write all payments then deposit, but my bank statements reflect that.

The other thing that has been a challenge has been keeping track of the mortgage payments. In January dh went to a weekly payment schedule. Before his payday was the day before mortgage day. I never worried about it, we didn't transfer money until after the mortgage was transfered. So now I have have a routine. I printed a calendar(just found a pocket calendar at the dollar store to use). I mark down all the mortgage days. I also mark down how much needs to stay in that account each pay period. IE. week before mortgage, needs 1/2 the mortgage and 1/4 of insurance payment. Next week is full mortgage, 1/2 insurance. Next week is 1/2 mortgage and 3/4 of insurance, next week is full mortgage and full insurance. I bought a calculator for my purse as well. So on payday, I go to the bank machine, get account balance, look at my calendar, figure out what can be transfered out, and do it. We never use interac on this account, too many fees. So there is ALWAYS money in this account. I'm slowly building it up, I want to have a couple months mortgage payments sitting in there eventually. But with snowballing everything else, this isn't taking priority right now. Just $10 here and there. Next year we'll fund that completely.

In my calendar I'm also inputting due dates on bills as they come in. I'm also marking when I pay them. I feel so much calmer now. As I don't panic that I might have overlooked something. Now, I only have 1 billa little late, but caught up this Thursday. Before all were a day or 2 late. Hate the changing dates! So I can see at a glance that x bill needs.

So i'm saving on bank fees and late fees consistently.

Next .... hmmm... Not sure. Need to get a new habit formed to save somewhere else consistently too. I still do different things to save, but so many other things are 1 time or very rarely able to use. I want to form as many habits that save us money as possible. This will take alot less energy.

Any ideas of other things that should be routine that I might be overlooking? Since my parents didn't involve me in things around the house, I'm not sure what *should* be routine and habitual. There may be things that are very obvious to some people, that are foreign to me(and others).

[mombottoo]

When we were raising our kids I had a spiral notebook I used to keep track of what needed to be paid & when. That way I knew exactly how much money was needed for the bills each week and what I would have left over for groceries & the rest of it. Some weeks there was nothing left and other weeks I might get lucky.

Now, I have anything that can be auto paid set up to be auto paid and subtract those things at the beginning of month even if they aren't actually going to be pulled out of our account until the end of the month. To save on bank fees I leave the required cushion in our checking account, that amount is currently $400. The only things paid via snail mail are medical bills, magazine subscriptions and taxes.

I am also going to set it up for a certain amount to be auto transferred from our checking into a savings account.

[shoiji]

On your calendar you may want to write down when you buy something. I note down when I buy my glasses, clearance sale clothes, dentist visit, etc. Why? So I know when the sales are if I want to buy something next year. Plus it helps me to plan ahead in saving money for a purchase or checkup.

[Athena31]

Good job at finding a system that works for you! We all have to do what is best for each of us.

[Marie78]

Good job at finding a system that works for you! We all have to do what is best for each of us.

I agree that we all have to find something that works for us.

My latest frugal projects are

1. shopping sales/matching coupons to them.

2. making some foods from scratch: alfredo sauce, pizza crust/pizza, granola bars, and soups.

3. turning off all of our power strips when not in use

[DJ1972]

I have a "bill binder". It's a zip up binder that has 3 rings in the center and also a small accordian file on one side. In the rings I have pocket folders (to hold the bills) and a years worth of printed off monthly calenders so my bill schedule is done at least 6 months in advance..I make adjustments when needed. I also have a typed up list of all my bills with their due dates and mailing address. And I keep my stamps, address labels, and envelopes in the binder. I check my binder every friday to see what needs paid that week, I also keep the previous months paid bills in the accordian file side so I can compare them to the new bill. This is what works for me because it keeps everything in one place and stored neatly at my desk...and I am a little on the OCD side lol.

[PlainCash4]

Looks like you got it all down. Good going on no overdrafts by the way, i havent used my overdraft since February . Its so much less to think about

[frugal is fun]

I find that cutting my utilties is the easiest most consistent way for me to save money. I make it a challenge to see how low I can get my electric/water bills.

To me electricty is the easiest to control. Find out when your off peak hours are and then use them. try not to run any major applicance on peak. Hang your clothes, unplug everything that doesn't need to be plugged in, change to the new energy saving light blubs, turn off your lights, use candle light.

I try to do the majority of my cooking out side on the grill while the weather is still nice. If I do have to use my oven I try to cook for more than one meal at a time so I'm not using my oven twice.

I just bought a house and this is the first time I will be paying for water so I am extra aware of the water I'm using. I installed a new toilet, new showerhead and you can even buy low flow "things" for all your kitchen and bathroom faucets.

Knowing how much money you have and how much you spend is the real key. It will show you where you can cut back.

[mommy4ever]

Things have morphed a little. Dh and I now have a joint account since April. This has been challenging. But we got it to work.

I log in every day, and when I know dh is using the bank card. So sometimes 2 or 3 times just to be sure. I have a cushion that is always there, so it is highly unlikely that we would have over draft issues.

Also, we are working on living solely on dh income. My income gets deposited straight to savings. It's never in the checking. So when a bill comes in, I have a paper that is kept with the check registry that I have all the payday dates on it for the month, and as teh bill comes in, I write from which check it'll be paid from. On pay day, I pull it out, and it's paid. We are never ever late anymore.

Also, for other things, such as my karate, it was decided 2 weeks ago that I would sign up for a semester. So I didn't hav emuch time to save for it. But I divided by 3, and each payday I record a debit for a 1/3 of the feeds. So come next week I have enough to pay for it. I am doing the same for dance, school bus fees, insurance, etc. Each pay a debit is marked. The money doesn't leave the account until that day, and at that point I mark those debits as cleared, just like you would with a check. If I have written a check, then I credit the account all those debits and record the check when it is supposed to be deposited.

So there are always several uncleared amounts in our account, but I balance the account all the time, and it has been working. I mark those transactions that have yet to clear so I know which to calculate into my balancing.

So my account is never at a balance of $0. I usually have a $300 cushion in there, but it's rarely under $500 due to these "post dates".

[rowdy35]

if you can menu plan, or do a modified menu plan, that helps save money

cooking from scratch (big money saver)

online bill pay

for finances, I track on a spreadsheet to see what is due and how much

bartering (I will mow your lawn if you fix my computer, etc)

dollar store for stuff you need and will use (don't buy unnecessary junque)

do it yourself home repairs

make gifts if you are crafty or cook/bake gifts if you are a good cook

limit your bad or expensive habits (alcohol, cigarettes, shopping, hobbies, etc)