Anyone , cut back on expenses etc ?

[Nomad]

We’re doing well, but still it’s always good to reevaluate where ones money is going and for what . I have a snowblower and time to use it , I actually enjoy it  to a point, but I’ve also paid a plow guy, mostly so when we’re gone our daughter and son-in-law can drive in to do the house checks, he went up $100 so I figure they can wade through the snow now .

Ive not signed back up for our lawn fertilizer program either .

We’ve cancelled a streaming service , something many seem to be doing ,both our daughters are cancelling Hulu plus, it’s going up,to $70 or $75 a month ! 
 

Our Fla. stay will be shorter this year , rents went way up ,oh we’ll be there for a bit, but more freeloading with others this year too lol . 
 

Lunch for six last week , sandwiches too , roast beef, Nashville chicken ect , three alcoholic drinks total $226 tax and tip Inc . 

[Robhuntandfish]

Got a salary enhancement at the end of the year. It's going all to winter fuel.  

[Bucksnbows]

We cut to the bone this time last year knowing the economy was on the ropes back then and only continues to implode.  We really can't cut back more or either don't need to or are unwilling to do so.  We both do okay financially, but just getting past paying tens of thousands each year for our daughter's private college education for four years.  That wiped out our short term savings, but that was what it was for.  She's now applying for PhD programs, but with her grades and resume, someone else will pay for that and she will teach her way to her PhD.   This new year should be a good to excellent one for my business, but our plans are to build a reserve again which we are largely flying without.  Our one splurge this year will be a destination wedding in Puerto Rico.  Otherwise, it's coupon clipping, price comparisons, and not going out to eat or other fancy vacations.  Things could get dicey over the next two years or more.    

[mowin]

22 minutes ago, Nomad said:

 he went up $100 so I figure they can wade through the snow now 

He went up $100 over last year?  How friggin long is your driveway? 

[Moho81]

Luckily as inflation went up so did my pay so I haven’t felt it as much but I also don’t have more fun money like I should either which sucks. 
 

My wife and I are pretty frugal to begin with. We really don’t splurge on a lot of things but we still make sure to watch our budget. 

[Buckmaster7600]

I live as frugal as possible so I can live as much as possible. Small off grid house that’s paid for, paid for truck, etc. I can pay every bill and living expense and have some left over with 1/4 of my monthly income. I’m way too young to worry about the market.
 

Inflation affects me at the grocery store and the gas pump. Luckily I raise my own beef. The difference between 50$ or 100$ in gas will never be a deciding factor in me fishing/hunting/snowmobiling for the day so although it sucks it doesn’t really affect me.

[G-man]

I tend to skimp on everything to begin with  .no holiday lights ( no one will see them anyway) 

Lawn was planted with biologic clover when it was created. Mow lawn as little as possible  love dry summers when it browns up and doesnt grow. No internet,   no streaming, dont drink at home so less expence when  here.   Biggest expense  is habitat work  and  i tend to do as much as i can myself  though there are companies that do the hard labor  i  just go at it myself. May take me a bit longer  but  its  my time not $$

[mowin]

We definitely don't go out to eat no where's near as often.  Try to buy stuff we need on sale.  

Got a little beater car to run around town that gets 35mpg.  Put 6000 miles on that little yota this yr.  6000 less miles on my new truck and almost triple the mileage. 

Bought a pellet stove from a client for cheap money.  When it's really cold I'll use 1.5 bags a day to heat the house.  Far less $$ than the oil furnace.  I buy 2 tons of pellets for $600 and that covers the coldest months of the winter. 

[Bolt Action]

I tend to be resourceful / frugal in general. I've always been of the mindset that I'd rather something that is needed and functional rather than something that is flashy and unnecessary. I have no problem buying some things used and am a bargain / sale / clearance rack shopper. Anything I save goes toward other expenses or savings. With two young boys in the house, my grocery bill isn't going to get cheaper any time soon. Add to that kids sports, braces, inflation in general, etc.. I got a raise at the end of the year, but inflation outpaced that by a lot. 

I actually have it on my list of things to do this month to reach out to a financial professional. I want to see what my options are to strengthen my financial strategy. I am looking for 2 key areas of improvement: additional revenue streams; and financial independence. If anything happened to my job, that would potentially cause some hardship. I have enough put away for short term, but if i didn't get back on my feet relatively quickly we'd have to start making some hard choices. 

[Nomad]

It’s interesting the number of young neighbors we have who’ve recently planted gardens and fruit trees . Two that I know of have chickens , (this is under the radar ) , one put up a greenhouse and they’re all canning as well . Food prices was a topic at the neighborhood New Year’s Eve get to gather .

Once our old hot tub either goes all together or needs parts over a certain amount , it’s going to go . Keeping it at 102 around here can’t be cheap and electric rates will only go up and up . I’m thinking of selling the camper, reg. , Insurance , storage ,repairs that’s over a grand just to own it .

I have one friend who raised 90 chickens ,he said with feed cost he had to get $4 a pound .

[mowin]

3 minutes ago, Nomad said:

 

I have one friend who raised 90 chickens ,he said with feed cost he had to get $4 a pound .

Most around me are getting $8+ a lb for farm raised chicken.  Average weight of 4 lbs, and your $32 for a friggin chicken. 

I got rid of my two separate flocks of chickens this fall. They were getting older, and I want to scale down to one coop this spring.  Now I wish I kept them.  A dozen eggs at the store are $5. 

[JJBat150]

COVID forced me to work from home starting St. Patty's Day 2020 - from that that alone I've saved money on commuting expenses like fuel / Maintenace and the work-associated lunch / coffee shop expenditures, so that's helped the budget.  Surprisingly, electric and propane (heat /cooking / water) usage didn't really jump up that much.

We've been raising meat chickens; costing around $3 / lb. including having someone process them.    Normally do 1 batch butchering in the fall, but this year, we're discussing doing 1 set in the spring and them another one in fall.   Also have 9 egg layers keeping family and my father supplied with eggs.

Always had a large garden and saved our own veggies; the last few years, I've had to be a bit more pro-active getting seeds and plants purchases because there's a noticeable increase in folks getting into gardening and supply is a issue.   Same way with fruit trees - the existing orchard is doing well, so we haven't needed to add trees.  

We've been working at cutting back some expenses in response to inflation, but also in preparation of us both retiring in 3 years; raising the chickens the past few years had got me looking into getting back into hobby farming as retirement entertainment & potential income.

We've also been working very closely with the financial advisor and retirement advisors to protect our investments.  Wife is in the NYS retirement system with a 457 fund and I've Federal with a TSP fund; any extra money we save from expenses get funneled into them.

We're also trying to find a balance spending a bit more $$ on date nights to help escape the doom and gloom the news and social media seems to thrive on - no sense having lots of money in investments if you're not happy.  

 

Edited January 4, 2023 by JJBat150

[Wolc123]

I switched from buying 1% milk, to 2% and dilute it with enough water,  so that  it tastes the same.  If the price doubles again, I’ll switch to whole milk, and add more water. 
 

Almost all of the red meat and fish that we consume is a byproduct of my personal “entertainment”. We grow some of our vegetables, and most of our heating fuel, on-site.  
 

 

 

[mowin]

15 minutes ago, Wolc123 said:

I switched from buying 1% milk, to 2% and dilute it with enough water,  so that  it tastes the same.  If the price doubles again, I’ll switch to whole milk, and add more water. 

 

 

 

Please tell me your joking... 

[phade]

Cutting back expenses is sometimes prudent, necessary, and/smart. It’s a really tough topic. Sometimes sensitive due to the situational context, of which others may not be aware of. Kudos to those making tough decisions. I’ve learned through experience not to pick apart what people have to do when times are tough because we are not walking a mile in their shoes. Especially not make light of it.

One thing that people sometimes miss here is the ability to increase income as well. Cutting expenses is only one half of the books being balanced. If you can find a way to do both, often that presents a really favorable outcome.

Dining out is a big one for our family. It’s hard to avoid because we enjoy the time spent with each other but it’s really not a great financial decision. We are going to try to reduce that a few times a month during this winter.

Edited January 3, 2023 by phade