Money managing tips?

Most of my spending is based on strict percentages of my NET income, rent is X%, groceries Y%, savings Z%, ...

Really helped me form good spending habits, esp right when I moved out for my first real professional position and started getting some real paychecks. After a while I got the percentages pretty tight, and my routine spending is kept at pretty low/conservative %s while my savings is nearly 50% net income (and that's with NoVA living expenses :x:x)

The Buffet quote about saving then spending what's left is pretty much how I spend and keep my savings (or brokerage account) growing

- Think of every purchase in terms of how many hours it took to earn that money. That was one of the biggest things I did to stop spending on smaller things while I was younger.

- Save about 20% of each paycheck in an account at a separate bank. That way it's harder to access and you can't just transfer it over to blow on stupid stuff. You'll actually have to wait 2-3 days and think about it before you spend that money.

- It's never too early to start learning about investments. The best thing you can do when you're young is open a Roth IRA for retirement and put $100 in it each month. If you don't know what you're doing, stick with a target date fund, or S&P index fund until you learn a little bit more. Historically, each dollar you put in now will be worth about $7 by the time you're retired. The earlier you start, the richer you'll be.

- Cut your cellphone plan in half. $100/mo. is insane. You can easily get a prepaid plan for half that. Sure you'll pay the full price of the phone, but within 6 months, you'll be banking an extra $50/mo. which will come out to $300 for the year. Right now, you're basically working a whole month just to pay for your cell plan.

Suberzat1 said:

What are some good lunch boxes to get?

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Idk the one with the ninja turtles on the cover

If you must...Treat yourself only once a month with shoes to get your fix, but you're either serious about saving or not. You can't really have it both ways until your making the real money, so discipline yourself. The first thing you need to realize is that saving and money management starts with a mentality and not just a plan written on paper. You're desire to see your account balances grow has to be greater than your desire for material things.

First, where do you live OP? I may have missed it but do you live at home or with your girl or in the dorm? Lot of good tips in here: there's so many ways to save and manage money that sometimes it's hard to list them all. I'll attempt to list some things I can think of that I do from the top of my head.

1. I know you mentioned sneakers and I also like sneakers. But I've learned from my first job and my experiences. Remember this: SNEAKERS WILL ALWAYS BE AROUND and THERE IS ALWAYS A SALE SOMEWHERE ON THAT SNEAKER YOU WANT. Half of the sneakers I currently have = I didn't pay over $110 on them (Jordans included). I'm always looking for deals whether it be coupons, sales on websites, a slightly used pair like 8/10 or 9/10, etc. My last pickup was some true blue 3s for $123 and the only thing wrong is the midsole chipping which can easily be fixed. When you find a shoe you like and wanna buy look around a couple of websites and stores before you make that purchase. If it's something like a retro release on a Saturday, don't be too upset if you don't get them because most of the time they come back around and sometimes come with deals you can use on them to get them cheaper.

2. Should've put this first but for this year, if you have all your receipts and statements, go back and calculate how much money you spent month to month. If you're lazy then just start tracking each dollar you spend for the whole month of May and determine where you need to cut back. I did that back in March and I realized I had spent over $1,000 - even though some of that money was for school and car, but still. Doing this helps a lot because you have an idea of what you're spending your money carelessly on.

3. For food, it gets expensive eating out. You really do not notice it until the end of the month sometimes or when that $20 you had in your pocket 2 days goes missing. If you can hit up Publix or somewhere and cop some fruit, chicken, etc and start making home meals. If you can't cook then cop some bread and meats to make your own sandwiches, get the BOGO snacks like the lays chips and separate small baggies for your self so you can have a little snack each day for lunch. You don't gotta stop eating out all together but limit yourself. They also got coupons for the fast food restaurants that come out all the time in the mailers that you can use which will save ALOT

4. If you can see if you can get that bill lowered. Maybe you can get a student discount, job discount, or do a family plan or something for it.

5. And always ask yourself 3 times "should I purchase this?" And when you ask yourself that question go into more depth with each response

SRGSniper08 said:

Okay so im out of school for the summer and i have a job in which im now usually bringing in 550-600 every 2 weeks...i live at home still so im not paying any bills besides my phone which is usually about 100 a month. im horrible with money and i just would like some advice on how to better manage my funds...id also like to pick up some shoes this summer. Can anyone out there give me any tips on better budgeting/managing money? Any and all help would be greatly appreciated

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I was horrible with getting money and jus spending it because it was there, I opened up an account at a different bank that was about 25-30 mins away and gave my card to my parents. Set it up that money would automatically come out of my main account and into that account.

look into mint.com (or any similar site/app).

gives you a very clear picture of ALL of your accounts/debts/credit cards/etc in one place.

I am very happy that you have a job and you are doing some things right.

One of them is living at home. You know, there is no shame in this. You are saving money and free meals.

In regards to free meals, PACK YOUR LUNCH! You do not understand how much money you waste if you go out to eat for lunch everyday. I see these people here eat out for lunch everyday. The shops around here at not cheap. It's at least $12 for a meal and they do this 5 times a day. Please just bring your lunch.

Buy only two shoes if you really need it.

JohnnyRedStorm said:

if you make 550-600 every two weeks automatically stash 100 on the side for your phone bill. that'll leave you with roughly 1,100 bucks left on the month. save 800-900 of that and leave 2 bills to yourself for food, etc. at the end of the month, anything that's left from those 2 bills that you survived on, put aside and save it for whatever kicks you wanna buy.

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Doing this you will probably have a good wipe before you start fall semester.

Making $1100 - $1200 a month is good money. I've worked retail before with the same monthly pay. Don’t take it for granted because a job is very hard to find in this economy.

Like everyone else said, "SAVE, SAVE, SAVE." By simply creating a monthly budget you will be very successful with your plan to get a car by fall. Always try to pay yourself first. Put this money in your savings until you have enough to put it in a CD account to incur interest. Once you finish college that CD account money may help with your future rent expenses.

Pay yourself first (10 %) = $120 saved

Now you should only be living off of 10 % - 20 % of what you earn so that you have something.

Living expenses (20 %) = ( $240/ mo) $120 for two weeks until your next check. After you pay your cell bill you have about $140 left.


You can save this $140 for a monthly emergency fund, save to buy a new phone, or just spend $35 or so a week to have fun. Even better you could use this towards your fall tuition and books so don't have to borrow money to pay for school.

If you save $600 a month you still have like $240. You could get a cut, buy some jays, and quality gear to say fly until you can afford that wipe. But remember sooner or later that shoe / cloths money will become monthly insurance and gas. I suggest buy classic sneakers like New balance 993s, timberland, white air forces ones, carmine 6, and a pair of 11 lows and build you wardrobe for when you get that wipe and start classes again. Buy white and black tees for the summer and don’t eat out for 4 months. By the time Fall hits you should have around $2400 and can pay off your car in cash and never have to see a car note. Now you have something of value. You just have to keep it in good condition so when you sell that car you can get the full KBB value. Save some more money on the side after you buy your first car. When your ready to sell you car add your saving to it and probably you can by a foreign when you have the income to maintain it. By doing this you may never have to see a car note.

If you don't put that 10 % in savings by the end of the summer but save it you will still have like $500 to splurge with when the semester starts and you go back to school or you can save it for future car repairs



P.S. Get a cheaper cell phone bill , utilize sales, use coupon codes when buying shoes, clothes, and when getting your future car serviced. Don’t drink or do drugs.

Improve your credit. The better your scores, the better .......

-mortgage rates

-car loan/lease rates

-insurance rates

-job oppurtunities (especially if going in financial. they check these things now)

-apartments (u get the better deals on move in and deposits)

etc. 

As my credit got better. it opened me up to the better deals, which allow me to spend less of my own cash. 

Many different ways to save. all great advice here. u can build a plan tailored to you from a lot of this stuff. 

Also..... 

MAKE IT A GAME!! i made saving a game. and im competitive. So now its fun. 

Example:

I told myself i want to spend only 260 a week. Gas, food, fun, etc. Whatever is left i throw in my safe, so i can have cash in there and feel like a baller. I found myself getting obsessed with this personal game. It was fun. Also after every week i would count the money, make it rain in my bedroom, whatever i felt like doing to have fun. even if corny. who cares. my privacy, i do what i want (dont read too much into that). After about 3 or 4 months, i had enough to start wrapping it in rubber bands by the thousand. And it felt good to open up my safe and see a few bands. 

Find a game or goal that fits you. nobody elses business, if it motivates you and keeps you on track. Trust me i didnt tell or ask anybodies opinion on that game because most people arent in the mindset or have their own way or opinion on how to do it. 

good luck

Would I be wrong if I just stocked up on Lunchables for lunch? $3 a pop.

^there's no "wrong", but for a dollar or two more per meal, you can bulk cook chicken breast, brown rice and veggies and not have the same diet as a neglected 3rd grader

GetYaShinebox said:

^there's no "wrong", but for a dollar or two more per meal, you can bulk cook chicken breast, brown rice and veggies and not have the same diet as a neglected 3rd grader

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