If you have more than enough money, but are frugal-minded, how do you decide how much to spend?

[Anonymous]

We are late 30's, aggressive savers, live beneath our means, etc. and as such have a healthy amount of money.

I'll give a real life example, but my question is more broad: If you are making a household purchase and you can afford "anything" (and I obviously don't mean truly ANYTHING) how do you decide a reasonable budget?

Example: I clean my own house. I would like some kind of stick vacuum to do quick cleans of the bathroom floors when I'm not wanting to get out my big vacuum with attachments, etc. In the stick vac world, there is a $400 Dyson, a $160 shark, and lots of other options under $100. I can easily afford any of these options, however I don't want to spend $400 on a Dyson when a $50 Bissel will do. But I'll also be annoyed if I buy a less expensive one, and I end up replacing it because it sucks.

How do you make this everyday decisions when you are frugal minded, but not actually on a strict budget?

[Anonymous]

I hire a cleaning lady. Seriously. It’s time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I hire a cleaning lady. Seriously. It’s time.

It was an EXAMPLE. How do you decide how much to spend on ANYTHING? A new washer? A new fridge? A new patio set?

[Anonymous]

When money’s no object, I find that usually you get what you pay for. I’d just by the Dyson and be done with it.
Exception for us is wine when most any $20 bottle will work.

[Anonymous]

I base my purchase decisions on value rather than purely price. I don't want to buy something cheap that won't do the job properly, but, similarly, I am not about to buy an expensive tool or appliance when a cheaper one will meet my needs. I use the items I have until they no longer perform satisfactorily.

I am starting to "buy time" in the sense that I am outsourcing more tasks that use up my time, particularly low skill tasks like lawn mowing.

[Anonymous]

I buy things on sale or discounted when possible to get what I want or need - thrift store clothing, aldi groceries, etc. I also look at amazon reviews before buying something. Name brands mean nothing to me. Example: my houseclearer suggested a Miele vacuum last year. I bought it and it didn’t work at all. I went to amazon, got the best one for wht I needed ($159) and then went to bed bath and beyond and bought it there with a 15% coupon. It’s perfect. If the Miele was perfect, I’d happily buy that one. My decades old dryer is a workhorse. I’ve paid to repair it once and it is worth it to keep it. The general answer is therefore: I am not looking to waste money, have no budget if I want something, but prefer something that’s reliable over a name brand.

[Anonymous]

I buy the highest quality, because I want something that will last and work well, and I wait until it's on sale.

We bought our Dyson on sale, and our mattress.

I would hate to be like Donald Trump - who should be tons richer than he is, but is horrible about decision-making and buys useless things.

[Anonymous]

I never buy the top model. I check consumer reports and buy the "best value".

[Anonymous]

I would buy Dyson.
For other things it depends and also depends on my priorities. For example I always wanted Wolf and as soon as I will feel comfortable with such purchase I am going to buy it.

So it just depends on what you really want. If you really want something and money is not an issue I think it’s psychological already.

[Anonymous]

I would buy the cheaper one because I also have a cleaning lady so I don't really vacuum that much. Since you clean your own house, I would get the Dyson because you will probably get your money's worth. They are much nicer.

[Anonymous]

Here an example: when we travel internationally as a family we go business class. We try to use points but that doesn’t always work. But I’d never ever pay full fare for 1st class (sometimes it’s triple the cost of business and the difference I not worth it in our view). We also stay in nice hotels, get car service, etc. But we still live in a normal house (good neighborhood, good schools but not what you expect if you knew how much $ we have).

[Anonymous]

Similar age and attitude toward money. We save a lot and max out retirement and 529.

For household, I tend to go for a reputable maker and I tend to go for the middle range. I read all the reviews and compare features. So in your stick vac world, I'd probably pick the best option based on research in that range around 100-200 bucks. My own vacuum is in that range.

Now, mind you, my house doesn't have tons of carpeted surface, and I do not have a pet. If I had a dog and 5,000 SF of carpet, I'd probably also look at heavy duty models in the higher price range.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Here an example: when we travel internationally as a family we go business class. We try to use points but that doesn’t always work. But I’d never ever pay full fare for 1st class (sometimes it’s triple the cost of business and the difference I not worth it in our view). We also stay in nice hotels, get car service, etc. But we still live in a normal house (good neighborhood, good schools but not what you expect if you knew how much $ we have).

And? We live in similar setting with similar travel scenario. I would still buy Dyson.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I never buy the top model. I check consumer reports and buy the "best value".

+1. Whether that is the $400 dyson or otherwise.

[Anonymous]

Research.