how do you save your $? and how do you choose your purchases?

[Nocturnal]

ok, i recently got a pretty phat check. most went to bills, but i had quite a lot left over. i bought a pair of turn tables and a mixer. im broke, again. anyways, the mixer isnt all that up to par, and i need to get a new one soon. a new mixer cost in the range of $400-$1200.00. now, when and if i saved up 1200.00 i would think that i would probably not want to spend it on a mixer, but rather something else. i have a lot of things i still want. i still want impact sockets for my impact wrench. so many other things. a computer for my father's house. i recently sold my computer off so i could pick up the tables.

HELP!?

i dont have any credit cards because i didnt use it wisely before. i have one gas card and thats it. the rest are debit cards. im kinda glad i dont have a credit card. but how do i save, or what should i do? what approach should i take? prioritize what i want etc and then reach for that goal? what shall i do?

 

[RossMAN]

Open a savings account with a local Credit Union, contribute $xxx amount of dollars every time you get paid.

Or open a savings account with INGDirect.com.

 

[Nocturnal]

Originally posted by: RossMAN
Open a savings account with a local Credit Union, contribute $xxx amount of dollars every time you get paid.

Or open a savings account with INGDirect.com.

its hard!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

is there ANY type of account where I can't touch the money inside it for say xxx amount of months? and im not talking about a CD. im talking about a regular bank account that just holds something closed for me. or something that requires two signatures in order for me to reach in and take my money out.

 

[McPhreak]

Originally posted by: Nocturnal

Originally posted by: RossMAN
Open a savings account with a local Credit Union, contribute $xxx amount of dollars every time you get paid.

Or open a savings account with INGDirect.com.

its hard!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

is there ANY type of account where I can't touch the money inside it for say xxx amount of months? and im not talking about a CD. im talking about a regular bank account that just holds something closed for me. or something that requires two signatures in order for me to reach in and take my money out.

What's wrong with a CD?

 

[RossMAN]

Originally posted by: Nocturnal

Originally posted by: RossMAN
Open a savings account with a local Credit Union, contribute $xxx amount of dollars every time you get paid.

Or open a savings account with INGDirect.com.

its hard!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

is there ANY type of account where I can't touch the money inside it for say xxx amount of months? and im not talking about a CD. im talking about a regular bank account that just holds something closed for me. or something that requires two signatures in order for me to reach in and take my money out.

Some banks offer this. You would need to open a JOINT savings account and have a stipulation that BOTH signatures are required in order to withdraw funds but either of you can make a deposit.

 

[PHiuR]

either get an account opened with your parents or someone with the dual signature thing or just open an account and DONT TOUCH IT im sure YOU CAN DO IT!!! : )

 

[Nocturnal]

i can probably do it, but im contemplating how much to direct deposit into the savings account each paycheck? is like say, $50.00 a pay check good enough? itll take me roughly a year to save up 1200.00 for that mixer i really want. but hey, i guess it is worth it. im going down to my school's credit union monday.

 

[Yzzim]

I've been having a problem saving my money as well.

What I'm planning on doing is opening up 2 checking accounts. One of which is in town and the other is 30 miles away. Since I get paid every other week (twice a month for you slow people) I'll deposit one check in the local checking account and that will be for gas money/food money/entertainment/atm cash card/whatever. My other check will go to my checking account in the bank 30 miles away and the majority of the check will be used to pay off my car payment, my insurance, and whatever other bills I have.

Whatever is left will just stay in there. Eventually it'll build since I don't have easy access to it (ie: no cash/debit card for it). I figure it's an easy way to save the monye. Granted, it won't have the highest interest rate, but it'll work.

 

[Draknor]

Here's about the best savings trick you can do...

Decide on a %age, no lower than 10%, I'd say try for 15% or even 20%. Every time you get paid, take that percentage right off the drop, drop it into a good savings account (ING-Direct, like Rossman suggested), and forget you have it! I've been doing this for, I dunno, 2-3 years now, and I'll soon be blowing the wad on a pretty rock for my girl - and I'll be able to get a nice one, with no debt! Of course then I'll be flat broke, but $0 is still better than debt!

So, in case that wasn't clear - let's say you get $1200.00 check. Before you do *anything*, you take out $180 (15% of $1200), save that. Then you pretend that you just got paid $1020, and you use that to pay your bills, or save even more for a mixer or turn-table. But the key is to skim off the top right away (unless you have credit card debt, in which case paying off the debt becomes the most important; but it sounds like you don't - good for you!! - so drop it into savings).

Good luck!

 

[rival]

i dont save anything and i buy whatever i want

 

[Frosty3799]

Hot Deals forum keeps me spending... How can they have another sweet deal on a Dell computer just 1.5 weeks later??? Sooo tempting to pick up another.

 

[dolph]

$1200? what kind of mixer are you looking at? rane mp44? allen & heath Xone:V6?

 

[RossMAN]

LOL

 

[Nocturnal]

Originally posted by: dolph
$1200? what kind of mixer are you looking at? rane mp44? allen & heath Xone:V6?

the vestax pmc-07 samurai.

 

[shanC]

You could put your money into a timed government savings bond, or get a savings account that charges you a penalty every time you make a withdrawal...

Or, you can do what I have, and have two accounts, one which is for saving & only used to deposit money, and the other being your chequing account. Sounds like a joint account might be your best bet, though. Needs to be a relative... we gave non-related customers a hell of a hard time when they tried to open one. If you're really desperate, you can do power of attorney too.

 

[shanC]

Oh yeah, if you're living in Canada, if you deposit a US cheque, a 30 day hold gets put on it (at the bank I worked at, anywayz), which basically seizes your funds. The same might apply the other way around too, I dunno...

If you're worried about temptation, maybe you could get a safety deposit box and give the key to someone you trust, or your debit card. Or, don't get a debit card.

 

[Booster]

I have never seen such an expensive mixer. Must be something special.

how do you choose your purchases?

I don't buy expensive stuff and don't shop in the wrong places (like center of the city where the prices are about doubling). Also, I don't go to bars or restaurants often. I don't know if it helps me, but it's what consumes a good amount of my time - looking for things that fit the bill.

I know some people say that you can't get a cheap and a good thing, but I don't strive to buy absolutely the cheapest, just what isn't overpriced.

 

[shanC]

Oh yeah, you can also get the bank to put a $0 cash back limit on your account. Limits your ability to play with the money in your account. I'm going to stop posting here now before I come up w/ any more ideas!

 

[Cyberian]

Yzzim

Since I get paid every other week (twice a month for you slow people)

Actually, that is not the same thing.
$2000 every other week is $52,000 per year.
$2000 twice a month is $48,000 per year.

I hope you do well on your savings strategy. I would be tempted to just write a check on the account 30 miles away.
Just be strong!!

 

[Darein]

When ever I want to buy something I sleep on it for at least a day or two. Then I really start to think about the situation.

 

[rh71]

Keep as little money in your wallet as possible and avoid using credit cards. That should do it.

I never keep more than $20 or $40 in my wallet at any given time. That way, I eat $5 lunches and it'd last me almost a week. I've found that if I withdraw $60, that amount will be gone in the same amount of time... because I am thinking I have the money to spend.

 

[Grasshopper27]

It is assumed that by the time you're an adult, you have enough self restraint to control your own spending and save your own money.

That being said, I screwed up with credit cards when I was 18 too, so don't feel alone in that department.

The simple fact is, there is no easy way out of this. Personal freedom means that for the most part, you're free to spend or save your money as you see fit, socity won't do it for you.

First rule is, pay yourself first. Remember that always. In the long run, you'll be glad you did. What does that mean? Open a Roth IRA account and start putting money in there. You can't touch it without penalty until you're 65, but you earn money there tax free and can withdraw it when you retire tax free. This makes more difference than you might expect.

The Motley Fool web site is the best place for new savers/investors to start. They are not in the business of selling anything, they simply provide good impartial advice to consumers. Check out their 60 second guides, a great place to start!

http://www.fool.com/60second/60second.htm?ref=LN

Take a look at the ones for:
Short-Term Savings
Opening an IRA

Also, take a look at this one:

Want to Be a Millionaire? You Can Be One!
http://www.fool.com/teens/teens01.htm

If you leave your money to grow for a long time, $1,000 can turn into a Million dollars. Think about that the next time you want to buy a mixer for a thousand bucks...

Grasshopper

 

[Keego]

IRA people!