7/30    How do you try to save money?
        \_ The big things are obvious.  It's the little things that add up
           real fast.  My big pet peeve is credit cards and debt in general.
           I have never had a CC that had any sort of monthly/yearly/etc fees
           associated with simply holding it unused.  I pay off my entire
           bill every month so I don't pay interest.  I things I need.  I buy
           very little crap that I merely want.  A new ipod, cell phone, mega
           digital camera, faster computer, etc doesn't bring happiness.  And
           lastly, the first thing my wife and I did after getting jobs was to
           immediately put all extra cash into paying off school loans and now
           we try to put extra cash against the mortgage which is our only
           remaining debt.
        \_ Eat out less!  Including lunch.  That's the biggest one for me.
           Get a copy of quicken or something and really keep a budget for
           a month or two.  It sucks, but stick at it.  Really look at what
           you are spending.  Then you can try to devise a budget that trims
           some stuff that is excessive.  If you are a gadget freak think about
           cutting down on your gadget budget, or having a gadget budget
           if you currently just sort of buy when you like.  Oh and yeah,
           get a fixed amount from the bank every few days and try to pay
           for things in cash.  It really does make you pay attention to
           how much you are spending on crap.
        \_ fuck money!  money's a tool of the Man to keep us tied down to
           jobs we hate and toys we don't really need!  we should tear down
           the banks and credit card agencies and revert to direct trade of
           goods and services.
           \_ Hi Paolo!
              \_  hey!  that was me!  -sax
        \_ Calculate your monthly expenses. Autodeposit this to your checking.
           Autodeposit some other amount into a Mutual Fund/Brokerage account
           where you don't see it and won't spend it. The rest is yours to spend
        \_ Make most purchases with cash, withdraw a fixed amount from the
           ATM once a week.  Have to make the cash last the week.
           \_ sounds like it worked for you.  did you have to cut back
              on expenses?  what did you cut?
              \_ Eat out less at expensive places.  When I get the craving, I
                 cook something really nice for myself.  Also, fewer impulse
                 purchases and you start to thing of the credit card as only
                 for major purchases so you don't just whip it out for some
                 new shiny toy.
                 Oh, and stay off online shopping sites, especially eBay.
        \_ direct deposit some money to a special account.
        \_ housing is ~1/2-1/3 of your salary. Once you've figured out how to
           reduce that cost, you've saved a lot.
           \_ The motd has previously established that owning real estate is
              A Good Thing; although you shouldn't buy more space than you need
              \_ just wait till the bubble pops...
                 \_ Then what? I'll have a fixed rent I can afford and a
                    house that falls all the way back down in value to what
                    I paid for it - except my interest rate is lower now
                    than it was then. How scary is that?
                    \_ Uh, there's a thing called "property tax" that's
                       based on the worth of the house, moron. People
                       keep forgetting to factor the cost of that in.
                       \_ Right....so when the bubble pops, you get a
                          reappraisal and your prop. tax goes down...
                          \_ Don't try to argue with the bitter renters.
                             \_ Hey, if it makes you feel better about your
                                shitty investments to think that all renters
                                are bitter, then hey!  Go for it!
                       \_ You think you're reminding a homeowner about
                          property tax? Writing those massive checks twice
                          per year is a pretty good reminder, I think.
        \_ Don't have family, don't have a car, share your appartment/house
           with other roommates.
           \_ that worked 1 year after we graduated. But then my roomate got
              a gf. She told him to move out, and move out he did. Then they
              got married. Bought a house. Had a kid. Doesn't play computer
              games and doesn't hang out with his buddies. Does laundry and
              lawn and backyard work every weekend. Me? I'm still paying a
              shitload of rent in my apartment. At least no one bosses me
              around. Oh well.                          -getting old
              \_ Why don't you get a new roomate?
                \_ I went through a few, but they either moved out, got a gf,
                   or both. Getting old.        -getting old, 30 something
                   \_ On average, how much of your time does it take to get a
                      new roomate?  And on average how much money do they end
                      up paying you before they move out?  How much is your
                      time really worth?  You must 'make' hundreds per hour
                      when looking for a roomate!
                        \_ But you can't run around naked when you have a
                           roommate!  And when having sex on the kitchen
                           counter you gotta always keep one ear on the
                           front door.
                           \_ that's why it's good to have your roommate be
                              the person you have sex with on the kitchen
                              counter.  then you can save money *and* listen
                              to motorhead while having sex on the kitchen
                              counter.
        \_ A car should last 10 years easily.  Buy a 2-3 year old car, take
           good care of it and drive it into the ground.  You only need a new
           car if your job depends on your image, and if you're a Sodan it
           probably doesn't.
           \_ I don't think that has much to do with sodans -- I think that's
              just generally true.  CSUA is a surpisingly diverse crowd -- it's
              too bad that, as a group, we've all allowed the 9-5 suit types
              and ex-fratboys to define our self-image.  I'm not sure what's
              worse: that we've bought into the stereotype of computer
              tech people as overweight, socially clueless, stinky people - or
              the type of people that we're bought into that image from.
              \_ The peole who's jobs depend on having a new car are people
              \_ The peole whose jobs depend on having a new car are people
                 like car dealers, real estate agents and plastic surgeons.
                 \_ you left out drug dealers, pimps, and lawyers.
              \_ I get lots of h0t aZn ch1x with my new car.
                 \_ You get Ac-ur-Uh Integ-rah hah?!!!!1!
              \_ Why do you let other people define you?  Either you're a
                 smelly geek with no social skills or you're not.  If you are
                 then someone else calling you that is just the truth.  Deal.
                 If you're not, then who gives a shit what they say?
        \_ Maxing out my 401(k) and ESPP.  Making extra payments to my mortgage
           principal when my bank account has a high balance.
           \_ don't make extra mortgage payments if your interest rate is
              low.  You could make more income with your extra money.
              \_ yea, after tax deductions a 30-year 6% interest becomes
                 like 4%.  Not that hard to beat it by investing.
        \_ Just play the stock market and earn big bucks like me.
        \_ Get married.  It worked for me.
           \- you know i think prior to everything else is to "profile"
              your spending. if you spend $50/week on drinks in bars, that's
              better place to optimize than "dont buy the da vinci code,
              get it at the library" if you amazon budget is $300/yr --psb