Is it just me......Always overbudget

kenazfehu

I don't know how families make it anymore! My husband and I go through about $120-140 for groceries about every 10 days (give/take a day). Yikes!

Charlie003

Those are the cheapest shoes where I live. In canada.

:noway: Wow, do you guys get paid more than we do in America I wonder?

Less actually. Thats why we sneak over the border a few times a year.

You COULD always..dip your foot in molten rubber every morning. Every night just peel it off.

Or shop online :-D Lots of good deals can be found if you look hard enough!

Yeaahhh, my first thought was "how many kids do you have?"

And no, that's a lie about the price of shoes in Canada. I just spent time looking around online for how much shoes cost in Canada. You can easily find good shoes for as little as $30. And for brand-name, which aren't necessary in the first place, like Nike I found starting at $45.

You need to not confuse "I want expensive things" with "I need expensive things".

If I wanted to wear plastic rubber faux leather. sure. But i am not talking about online. And thats tax in.

ejohndrow

All of these posts are absolutely scary. I'm going to need a job in January and all I read 'Doom and Gloom!' I really hope I can find something by then.

Until then I spend as little and save as much as possible.

Charlie003

Thats what I do. But **** keeps piling up.

GurleyGirl524

I'm with you. I can't even seem to break even, much less get ahead. I'm not buying any extras, just the necesseties. We don't eat out, we are not eating high on the hog at home. 3 boys in the house plus me and my husband. Some weeks I don't even buy my food (chicken, tilapia, & frozen veggies). I eat whatever is on sale and watch my portion sizes. It is tough these days.

Briteblu

I hear ya! Struggling single mom here :frown:

sarah44254

I work at circle K and go to university of arizona. I put money into my savings every week. I have debt, yes, I have bills, yep! but I also buy NO fun things, NO vacations, NO outings, NO clothes. it sucks. really bad. but i keep going. and my car broke down a few weeks ago. it was stressful but it was ok, because I had all that money in my savings to pay for it to be fixed.

liittlesparrow

Sometimes you just gotta say no to things you even NEED. Like food, or cable/internet etc. We didn't have cable and the like for about a year, just got it back. Now we're cutting down on how much food we eat, how often we use the gas in the cars, making sure to keep the electricity off a lot. Little things help. Plus we don't carelessly spend. If I need new clothes/shoes/ something I really NEED, it's gotta be un-useable. It helps we moved into a smaller, cheaper apartment though. No kids, just my fiancee and me.

kimad

Though... gotta say... $150 on a pair of shoes? wtf man? I've never spent more than $60. Do you have champagne taste on a beer budget?

Those are the cheapest shoes where I live. In canada.

I live in Canada and $150 for shoes would be TOP of the line. Just curious what area you are in?

iysys

Learn the trade of couponing you will be surprised at how much you can save. I shop at Publix, and cvs and I spend very little compared to what I spent before I started couponing. I can eat the good stuff not the cheap stuff since I started couponing. It has also allowed me to share with others. I love it

i don't think this works everywhere. we get our sunday paper and the coupons inside are very rarely for anything i would consider consuming. just very very processed junk. there are coupons for things like deodorant, soap, cleaning supplies, and shampoo but really what good is saving $.0.50 3 or 4 times a year going to do? i've watched these couponing shows on tv. people always have carts full of asprin, toothpaste, frozen junk food, ramen noodles. no meat, poultry, fish, fresh veggies. i know in some places you can save more than the cost of an item so that you can have store credit toward the other things you buy but saving $0.50 on a tube of toothpaste that costs $4 on it's own isn't going to do anyone any good. that may be because food is as expensive as it is here and there is no such thing as "double coupons" here. actually one store i know of does double coupons during the day (i think 10-4) on tuesdays.

Charlie003

Though... gotta say... $150 on a pair of shoes? wtf man? I've never spent more than $60. Do you have champagne taste on a beer budget?

Those are the cheapest shoes where I live. In canada.

I live in Canada and $150 for shoes would be TOP of the line. Just curious what area you are in?

montreal

determinedbutlazy

If I wanted to wear plastic rubber faux leather. sure. But i am not talking about online. And thats tax in.

Well, there you go... You don't want to wear synthetics, it's out of your means, you go over budget. I'd bite the bullet and buy synthetics because I can't AFFORD leather. I bought my suits for work in a sale because I CAN'T AFFORD tailored or full price off-the-rack.
Being on a budget means just that. I live on 200CAD a fortnight, most of that goes on food, bills and travel. I don't drive, I don't go out to eat, I can budget in one night out at a club with no cover charge if I don't have to pay for taxis... I don't mean to sound like a *****, but you can take your $150 shoes and go cry into them, some of us really have to fight to even make grocery budgets stretch.

cior

For me, I have one day where I buy what I've had my eye on and eat where I want (within reason, of course)! It is usually pay day and enjoy it for that day, then every day after that, I really stick to not eating out and not buying anything that I want. I feel like I get to have a luxurious day, stay within a budget, and am working towards saving more.

Oh, I treat myself to a coffee or tea when I am out and about and try to get it around 3 dollars. It lets me feel like I am treating myself, not cutting corners, but three dollars a day? Not bad!

GeekGirl23

Here is an example. Shoes for kids $150.00 School fees $200, birthday presents for other kids $75.00 come on! New shoes for me $150.00 Needed them.

Do you not have a payless shoes near you? 10-15 bucks for shoes

mdcjmom

I am currently taking the course by dave ramswey for specifically this reason. it is an amazing resource!

kit8806

Im there too! I'm a single mom with a daughter in daycare..daycare alone is almost what my rent is every month! It's horrible! Once she is in Kindergarten, it won't be so bad, but I can barely afford to pay bills, add groceries into that, I'm beyond broke right now! I just tell myself, it will get better! It has too.. can't be stuck here forever!

redheaddee

I tnk the whole damn planet is broke right now. Except for politicians, Wall Street, and banks. I know I ain't got no money. :sad:

healthymom76

Here is an example. Shoes for kids $150.00 School fees $200, birthday presents for other kids $75.00 come on! New shoes for me $150.00 Needed them.

Sorry but no one NEEDS a 150.00 pair of shoes. those aren't needs those are wants. Learn to buy less expensive stuff. I can outfit all my kids in clothes for 150.00 not just shoes. Learn to look for bargains. That usually helps! Sales, sales, sales are your best friend, hope that helps.

SirZee

Here is an example. Shoes for kids $150.00 School fees $200, birthday presents for other kids $75.00 come on! New shoes for me $150.00 Needed them.

There lies your problem. $150 shoes. Thats about 5 times more than what I would pay for any piece of clothing. It all adds up

Jacwhite22

Damn. How many pairs did you get for $150? I buy Rockports at a Rockport outlet and I normally pay about $40-$50 / pair.

SirZee

Here is an example. Shoes for kids $150.00 School fees $200, birthday presents for other kids $75.00 come on! New shoes for me $150.00 Needed them.

Sorry but no one NEEDS a 150.00 pair of shoes. those aren't needs those are wants. Learn to buy less expensive stuff. I can outfit all my kids in clothes for 150.00 not just shoes. Learn to look for bargains. That usually helps! Sales, sales, sales are your best friend, hope that helps.

What she said!.

We shop clothing and all for a family of four each season and the bill is right around $150. (Hint plan seasons ahead, we just bought a bunch of stuff for next summer at end-of-summer clearances.. 75-80% off)

The shoes I wear, I bought 6 pairs for $55 including shipping four years ago, a couple are still in the box in the closet, should last me another 4-5 years.

randomtai

You wind up spending more money in the long run when you buy cheap shoes. It's better to invest a good amount of money for good shoes than keep buying new ones over and over again.

Litlbeast

Though... gotta say... $150 on a pair of shoes? wtf man? I've never spent more than $60. Do you have champagne taste on a beer budget?

Good shoes sometimes cost that much. Once in a blue moon, as long as they're made well (and they damn well better be), it's a good choice.

kelseyhere

i work my *kitten* off at 2 jobs, still can't get ahead. everytime i think i'm going to catch up, something happens. last week it was the truck- tire blew out, $170 + $1100 for tires + ??? for body damage= i'm broke again.

escloflowneCHANGED

I've honesty never spent less than $100 on a pair of shoes lol I mean the ones I'm wearing now were $120 and my running shoes cost $145 so I don't see why poeple are shocked lol

morningmud

Sheesh $150 is not that bad. My bf just got some work-boots that were regularly priced at $200 and my son constantly buys shoes that are well over that. I mean, compare that to Jimmy Choo and Prada prices and it will look like nothing.

slackerwoman

I was like this until someone told me the pay yourself first rule. It's crazy but it works. Five years of doing it and now I'm buying a house.

What you do is figure out 10% of your monthly take home pay. Then you have to reframe your thinking and consider yourself the absolute most nasty *kitten* feed-you-to-the-pigs mob gangster possible. So the very first 10% of every paycheck MUST get paid to yourself - put it in savings and leave it there. Nothing is allowed to be considered more important, not your food, not your gas, not your rent... YOU WILL SWIM WITH THE FISHES UNLESS YOU PAY THAT 10% to thegang boss.

Do it, seriously. It's a rule to live by. Why work if you're not paying yourself anyway?

This is a great idea! I'm very frugal anyway. I could probably do this.

Charlie003

O.k. Why everyone hating on the shoes. That is not the point of this thread. But maybe I will go to work tomorrow in sandals. See how that works out. Or better yet, billy boots. Now how many of you ever spent money on things like jewelry, purses, etc...for me that is a waste. Spending $100 on your hair. I shave my own. Going to get your nails done. Make up..............

kimosabe1

I shop thrift stores for special items and every now and then I get lucky. I just got a pair of brand new Adidas running shoes that look like they've never been worn. Basically I just got a new pair of running shoes for $5 that would have cost over $100 in stores.....

Erienneb

Would you rather spend $150 on quality shoes, that you can wear for years, or spend $60 every 9months? When I'm on a budget, I buy cheap shoes, and they last me like six months. When I was younger and my mom bought shoes, she would save and buy a nice pair because I cuold wear them for years without spending money again. Sometimes the long term investement means spending more up front.