I have money, but this is where I cheap out

[Anonymous]

I put on my MBA hat to manage our finances and recognize that I would much rather have cash in reserves than have had a bunch of BS experiences and things.

NP. Love that statement......'BS experiences and things'.

[Anonymous]

Clothes and cars. I dress like I did in grad school and drive beaters.

I spend money on my kids and bikes.

[Anonymous]

Travel upgrades (flight, rental car, and hotel). If I'm not bumped up for free, I'm almost never willing to pay.

[Anonymous]

Buying clothes I never buy clothes and wet my stuff till it literally has holes in it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't buy second hand anything. Definitely not clothes. But, I buy new clothes mostly from Costco, Kohls, Target, Macy's, Old Navy, TJ Maxx, Marshalls, Amazon, Lands End and Nordstrom Rack. I buy clothes on sale. If I buy something name brand, I will buy it on sale. Like buying NorthFace parkas on sale.

I do not buy souvenirs or mementos from my trips abroad. I only buy fridge magnets and anything that can be consumed quickly (chocolate, wine, snacks, cheese, coffee...).

I get a haircut every month, but I do all my beauty treatments at home from coloring my hair to skin treatments, waxing, mani pedi etc.

I host a lot and I hire a helper for the event but I cook all the food myself because I can control quality, taste and cost. (I am an excellent cook).

We do not have pets though we lavish love on our parents's dog. Pets cost a lot of money and also I cannot stand pet hair, smell and taking care of them.

I do not pay for lawn treatments. I have seeded clover on top of the existing grass, and reseed every year.

I buy my groceries from a number of stores. I am not store loyal at all. My favorite stores for groceries - Costco, Whole Foods, Great Wall (Chinese store), Patel Brothers (Indian store). I will visit Aldis, Target, Walmart, Traders Joe and Giant for miscellaneous grocery items. I buy wine in bulk from Costco in VA.

Wow. Your clothing shopping practices are horrible for the environment, esp. the shopping at Old Navy.

Lol what

DP, but I kind of agree. Now that I have money, I try to do better. I buy clothing made from sustainable materials and practices and not from sweatshops. This means I have to stick to a few known brands, or buy second hand when I really want something different.

To me, spending my money wisely on earth friendly and people friendly clothes is more important than saving a dollar. Now that I have money. Obviously, my calculus was different when I couldn't afford that

Same. I do try to buy 2nd hand - because it is the best thing you can do for the environment. I don't have time to thrift in stores, but do buy online. It is harder, though, because I am skeptical of fakes on 2nd hand sites. I tried ThredUp for jeans but sent them back due to quality concerns, despite them supposedly being a premium brand. (Sent back less for the refund, I just definitely did not want them.) Kids is the easiest, can usually get those on buy nothing or a local 2nd hand site that does online orders.

If I don't have the patience for trying to buy 2nd hand, I buy more expensive quality clothes from brands that represent themselves as sustainable. I'm also skeptical there, but it is exhausting to try to shop sustainably these days.

[Anonymous]

Try to opt out of as much consumerism as possible. One car family. I don't really do the whole beauty products / make up / mani/pedi routine that many women do. This is maybe more out of ADHD and the immense amount of time all that takes than $$$$, but it helps in both places. Designer bags/shoes are not interesting to me.

I spend on quality housewares, food, vacation/travel (not super high end, just do more of it), kid activities, time savers for things I hate, etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Food. We eat out maybe 2-3 times a week, and even then it's pretty basic (wings, Chinese). I also am vigilant about not wasting food and we eat simply at home unless it's a special occasion - lots of pasta, soup, sandwiches. I do splurge on sourdough from our local bakery - $7 a loaf!

We share a car and it is a non-luxury brand.

Clothes. I will occasionally get a nice dress from Nordstrom but only for a wedding or similar. Day to day my family wears clothes from TJ Maxx, Target, and Walmart (esp the kids). We also don't buy clothes that often. I do have a LOT of shoes - my weakness - but nothing designer. I've been using the same handbags for years.

Our house. We bought a small and not updated house and I have no interest in moving or expanding our existing space. Our mortgage is $1600 a month and we live in an excellent school district.

I do have cleaners. I consider it worth every penny.

I spend a lot on makeup (Dior, Chanel) and perfume. And I will get a professional massage/facial every month or two, which I recognize is a total splurge.

We do spend on vacations/travel.

Combined we make a very comfortable HHI. (Low-to-mid six figures.)

Both my DH and I are spenders by nature but I manage the finances, and just approach it as I would a small business. I put on my MBA hat to manage our finances and recognize that I would much rather have cash in reserves than have had a bunch of BS experiences and things.

Eating out 2-3 times a week is not frugal.

Right? I love how they think 2-3 days out of 7 isn’t a lot and say “even then.”

[Anonymous]

Luxury cars and first class tickets.

I used to basically only buy cheap household goods but have experimented upgrading in several areas and have been happy with the results in some areas where I feel like I really do get what I pay for. I now order Philz coffee beans, which have been a big upgrade, Soapply hand soap, which made a big difference with my dry hands this winter, and better Charmin toilet paper, which really holds up and feels better. I've also tried a few that were not worth it like an expensive deodorant and floor cleaner. I recommend trying a few things and seeing what small increases might make a comparatively large difference!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Food. We eat out maybe 2-3 times a week, and even then it's pretty basic (wings, Chinese). I also am vigilant about not wasting food and we eat simply at home unless it's a special occasion - lots of pasta, soup, sandwiches. I do splurge on sourdough from our local bakery - $7 a loaf!

We share a car and it is a non-luxury brand.

Clothes. I will occasionally get a nice dress from Nordstrom but only for a wedding or similar. Day to day my family wears clothes from TJ Maxx, Target, and Walmart (esp the kids). We also don't buy clothes that often. I do have a LOT of shoes - my weakness - but nothing designer. I've been using the same handbags for years.

Our house. We bought a small and not updated house and I have no interest in moving or expanding our existing space. Our mortgage is $1600 a month and we live in an excellent school district.

I do have cleaners. I consider it worth every penny.

I spend a lot on makeup (Dior, Chanel) and perfume. And I will get a professional massage/facial every month or two, which I recognize is a total splurge.

We do spend on vacations/travel.

Combined we make a very comfortable HHI. (Low-to-mid six figures.)

Both my DH and I are spenders by nature but I manage the finances, and just approach it as I would a small business. I put on my MBA hat to manage our finances and recognize that I would much rather have cash in reserves than have had a bunch of BS experiences and things.

DP - you sound very sensible .

Re: folks critiquing your eating out 2-3 times a week at cheap eateries as not frugal - I am not a fan of the “gotcha” mentality of some on DCUM - nitpicking minor details and not seeing the bigger picture - your cost cutting measures spun sensible to me and balanced by a desire for sanity. Well done getting such a low mortgage in a good school district.

I often can’t make certain foods cheaper than you can buy them at lower prices eateries in the US so we do the same. Also you are both working and saving time counts .

I agree on need for cleaner and it being worth every penny.

I diverge though on spending a ton on makeup and shoes. Just the basics for me. But hey yiu save a ton by your house and car choices so you can afford that.

So I’m one of the “2-3 is not frugal” posters. I stand by that statement in that it is not particularly “cheap” of pp to eat out that often and that was her lead. The OP is asking what you are cheap about and this is not it. That doesn’t mean PP isn’t balancing well.

Why hyoer focus on one negative detail? She/he has a mortgage of $1600 a month in modest house in good school district and driving modest cars - saving herself tons of money - it smacked of gotcha !

Not sure why you continue to perseverate about this, but people responded to what she said. We get it. You think it was an attempt at a “gotcha.” Noted. Luckily, no one elected you board monitor.

[Anonymous]

Take own beverages to the movies; stop and get candy at Dollar tree first; if and when we rarely go to the movies.

Don't pay for streaming service for TV-use friends subscriptions and old Netflix--barely watch TV;I do have a frame TV and pay for the art subscription monthly.

Try to only buy clothing and things discount or on sale; I return what I don't need/love.

I also like to vacation; not cheap ones.......

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Luxury cars and first class tickets.

I used to basically only buy cheap household goods but have experimented upgrading in several areas and have been happy with the results in some areas where I feel like I really do get what I pay for. I now order Philz coffee beans, which have been a big upgrade, Soapply hand soap, which made a big difference with my dry hands this winter, and better Charmin toilet paper, which really holds up and feels better. I've also tried a few that were not worth it like an expensive deodorant and floor cleaner. I recommend trying a few things and seeing what small increases might make a comparatively large difference!

I'd be suspicious of this particular all-in-one product no matter what it cost.

[Anonymous]

I think we save most by not updating/redecorating our house and keeping cars for long unless necessary to change. We did buy nice house and efficient cars. We don't buy high end clothing, bags, jewelry.

We do spend extravagantly on parents, travel and children's colleges.

[Anonymous]

*extravagant travel meaning nice destinations not fancy hotel, first class or lux style

[Anonymous]

Not overstretching yourself for housing is a big save.