apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

$100 a year for minutes on a pay as you go cell phone? Where??? When I had a pay as you go, I was spending almost $100 a month on minutes.

I have the Virgin Mobile pay-as-you-go plan, and I usually spend less than $20/month. However, I don't use my cell phone that much.

opening/closing credit card accounts wreaks havoc on credit scores.

I saw these on Yahoo and thought they were kind of disappointing tips. They're so completely random and definitely not one size fits all. Especially buy a breadmaker...I mean, most people (most--not all) I know who have gotten one of these end up not using it, in which case it would not be a savings at all. I think it's important to know your own habits and adapt your own budget to save money.

Some better ideas here than tips I've seen other places in the past.

We have a pay as you go cell plan that we rarely use, costs us about $25 every 3 or 4 months. Of course, that requires that you don't chat on your cell phone all the time. (Fine with me, I hate the things!)

Another idea for movies: There are Redbox rentals now that are only $1 for a night. Way cheaper than anywhere else! In our little town there is one in Walmart and one in front of McDonalds.

Echoing redhook1's comment...please please do not open and close credit card accounts! Even if you never EVER use the account, it's better to leave it open because it shows that you still have a long-standing credit history with a company. That being said, if you sign up for a card with an annual fee, make sure it's one that you will use constantly to make the fee worth it!

Tip #8: Drink Boxed Wine!

I know you are probably remembering your college days when the ubiquitous "Franzia: The Worlds Most Popular Wine" box made you question why people even bothered.

Well today there are many really good wines available in boxes (or "casks" as they are now being marketed).

For our everyday table wine we've started buying "Pinot Evil" boxes at $14.99 for a three liter box (the equivalent of about $3.75 a bottle). Before we were spending about $9-10/bottle for a comparable quality wine. If you really want to splurge, some boxes cost up to $25!

Bonus: It's a greener option, too. The lighter weight and square shape reduces the amount of fuel and space required to ship them!

A bread maker uses electricity in order to work. That has a cost as well, so you don't really save all that money.

A bread maker also requires time and ingredients; our weekly loaf of bread usually only costs $1.50, which is way cheaper than the breadmaker idea.

and what about the ingredients you're putting INTO the bread maker? They're not free. Any experienced bread-machine bakers who can chime in on how much the ingredients cost per loaf?

They just did a post on breakmakers last week (maybe in re-nest?) - I think the ingredients don't cost that much because you buy in bulk, and they were saying that a break maker uses less electricity to run than an oven. So it's a saver environmental wise too.

I wouldn't save that much on coffee. I buy whole beans and grind them myself and the coffees I like are about $13 a pound (Dark Roast Zimbabwe, Sumatra and San Francisco Blend) and brew/drink two pots a day minimum. People that drink "designer coffee" could probably save that much, but I don't consider "designer coffee" to be coffee. It's a dessert drink.

Our bread maker has saved us a huge amount of money. We buy our flour at costco (20 kg bag), and specialty flours at bulk barn. The average loaf costs us less than $1.50 to make (including electricity), and it's a heck of a lot tastier - and healthier - than what we'd be able to buy for that price (rye bread; 100% whole wheat; wheat and flax; etc). For a family of four we usually go through a loaf a day and we haven't bought bread for over a year now. We also bake bread to take to potlucks and such.

That said, the other ideas could be taken far further.
1. don't have a cell phone at all. We don't. It works fine.
2. don't have any form of cable or movie channel and get your videos from the library with that new library card.
3. Make up bulk pasta sauce, chili, etc, and freeze to eat on those days when you're just too tired to cook. It'll save you from spending $$ on a restaurant meal you're too tired to enjoy.
4. Buy thrift or second hand. Clothes, sheets, furniture...books...even gifts. This is not only good for your bottom line, but also for the environment.
5. Don't buy into the 'in/out' lists and save your pennies for a rainy day.

I switched to a pay as you go phone (and am not a heavy phone user). I think I've saved about $200/year.

Here's a couple:

Cancel your newspaper subscription and just read it online. I kind of miss having that big Sunday paper in my hands, but I can deal.

Depending on your circumstances, consider raising the deductible on your auto insurance to lower your premium. Didn't get a lot of savings here, but every little bit helps.

The netflix one: You can get a roku or netflix on xbox live. The Roku, streams movies via your wifi connection and costs $100, plus the lowest netflix plan where you get unlimited streaming - saves on clutter and mailing back and forth too. Not all movies are available on the Roku, so you might want to keep at least 1 dvd mailed. The xbox live costs $50 a year and it has all the Roku capabilities plus all the benefits of xbox live.

The cellphone tip doesn't really work for chronic texters - and for people who don't have landlines/use internet phone. Granted, texting isn't necessary BUT i've tried the whole not texting and got bit in the ass because they charge for all those texts you recieve. People always send way too many and seem to forget you have a plan. Are there pay as you go texts plans?

I have a breadmaker and really only use it for pizza dough. I love pizza and eat it often; I have been making it for so long that I prefer my own homemade pies to the best places in town. I also use that dough to make calzones; delicious, cheap and nutritious (great way to clean out the fridge). I bought a top of the line Zojirushi machine and it has saved me untold $$$ over the years.

I've also got a pay-as-you-go phone and love it. $10 a month w/rollover minutes; no complaints at all.

Sydney--Where did you get that phone/plan?

beyd:

http://www.ecallplus.com/ Lots of choices on this link; I have used Locus Mobile for about three years and love it. You can use any phone you've already got. Very easy, very cheap, very good.

$60 for a YEAR of coffee? That's all?!

Yeah, mischief7 - $60 a year, or $5 a month. Or about half a pound of decent coffee beans per month. I'm guessing the authors of this list don't actually drink coffee. Also, if you're comparing it to "$4" coffee at a place like Starbucks, then you're talking milk and sugar and whatever, and that stuff costs money. Perhaps one could be less ambitious and switch from the caramel non-fat extra-foam lattaccino or whatever fancy coffee one might be drinking to a small coffee (with a little free milk and sugar if you must). That's got to save a bundle right there.

Also, the bread machine might be a great money-saver if I could get in a routine of using it -- I'd probably end up getting half my daily caloric intake from home-made bread (and the other half from butter). There are worse fates, I suppose.

Those tips are lame! Why not ... install a bidet and save on toilet paper! Why not... go on a diet and save on food! Why not... get into polygamy and save on rent! :-P

OK but seriously, I take a different tactic. Cut down on one or two of the BIG monthly bills (such as a more modest home for less rent) then you'll have hundreds of extra dollars per month save up and/or blow on the fancy coffees and little luxuries that make life worth living!

I think most of these tips are good, except growing your own vegetables and making your own bread which I think just take up too much time. Plus the amount of vegetables you can grow in your apartment is not very big.

My biggest tip, if you really want to safe or just see where all the money is going is this: MAKE A BUDGET!
For 2, 3 months write down everything you spend, everything. Clothes, going out, the coffee you bought or the newspaper and magazines. Also consider things you only pay once a year, like certain insurances and see how much they are a months. Once you see where the money is going you can decide where you want to save and where you you don't want to save.

You don't need a bread machine to bake bread. I bake all of our bread, mostly using Mark Bittman's no-knead recipe from the NYTimes a couple of years ago. I think there was a thread on this in the Kitchen part of this website last year.

I haven't run the numbers, but flour (I use whole wheat plus bread), yeast, and salt are cheap. But beyond the savings, it tastes much better than even high-end bakery loaves.

Cooking at home in general is a big money saver and more healthy. Make enough to take a brown-bag lunch to work, increasing the savings. And the more you cook, the easier it becomes--your pantry is stocked, and the process isn't daunting.

Do people really buy bread every week? It takes me ages to go through a loaf. I generally have to freeze half of it so it stays good.

Decent tips (except the credit card thing), but saving money by baking your own bread or growing your own vegetables is only worth it if you like cooking or gardening. Otherwise you are stuck doing chores for money (the cost savings). That's too much like a job!

A great blog about saving and managing money is the Generation Millionaire page.
generationmillionaire.blogspot.com

There definitely is a balance between your time and money. I can always go and make more money...but time..well, we only got what we got.

Echo comment: do NOT open and close credit cards. It will mess up your credit.

And as to growing vegetables, I agree it isn't practical time wise. What IS practical and easy, is growing your own herbs. They are a few bucks every time you go to the store! And generally not that great. But good fresh basil/oregano/sage/rosemary/parsley/cilantro is VERY easy to grow, delicious and really will save a fair amount of money.

Breadmakers require time and money to buy ingredients, time to make the bread, time to bake, time to clean them...plus time to clean the pan. Time to write this and time to read this ....longer than passing a bakery on the way to the subway and saying "one loaf please"
Next , someone will suggest we spin our own cotton on looms!