How many of you "live below your means"? (bankruptcy, loans)

[LittleDolphin]

Yep, living below our means--and changed our definition of success, too.

I had a wake-up call mid-life that made me realize I wanted to be rich in experience, friends, mental stimulation, creativity, books and laughter. Ever since then, our lives have turned much more simple and we moved away from big, expensive city to small town life. Luckily DH was on the same page and eager to escape the rat-race, too.

We're enjoying our down-sized life tremendously. I have time to cook from scratch, we got rid of one car and share one, ride our bikes a lot around town on errands. Everything we need is within one mile from our house.

Though we have friends from all income stratas, there's very little Keeping Up with the Jones's here. And the erosion of so many people's income streams and retirement funds has been kind of the great leveler--now everyone's poor!!

I think you're only poor if you feel poor. And I feel rich most of the time...my wonderful writer's group, getting together with pals for tea, finding a treasure for pennies at a thrift store, walking the pooch and chatting with neighbors--dreaming up some yummy frugal gourmet meal--priceless!!

[Thatguywho]

Originally Posted by juggler

I think a substantial chunk of the financial crisis the nation is now in is due to people not living below their means - they buy more house and car than they can afford, take extravagant vacations, upgrade their TV to the newest 107" plasma model, etc.

I'm curious to know how many people consider themselves to "live below their means", and exactly what does that entail for you. For those that do live below their means, IYHO, to what extent have you been affected by the uber-crisis?

I live below my means and only have a small car loan. The rest is just monthly bill slike elec and water and stuff.

No matter how I live, it does not affect how much money I make when the business I am in slows down to 60% of what I was making.

Add into that the extra costs to live that crazy half of 2008 and unbelievably some things still costing a lot now and my means is getting closer to even than below.

Add into that emergencies like cats or kids or personal ones...and whammo.

Economy coming down hurts everyone.
If the large companies that run the country had lived within their means, most of us would not be in trouble right now.
But, they had to go and make 100s of billions of dollars for 8 years. And now we pay the price.

It is a recession now because there are lots of layoffs and a lot of low income people are hurting.

It will be called a depression when a large portion of the middle class is in financial panic and trouble.

It will be a great depression in the press when the well off see their profit margins really shrink.

[juggler]

Originally Posted by Thatguywho

It is a recession now because there are lots of layoffs and a lot of low income people are hurting.

It will be called a depression when a large portion of the middle class is in financial panic and trouble.

It will be a great depression in the press when the well off see their profit margins really shrink.

Let's hope it doesn't come to that.

I've lived well within my means my entire life, primarily because that's the way I was raised by my parents. It's not something I like to brag about on a message board, it's just the way I operate, and it's nice to hear other people's take on it. It's paying off for me now, since I am relatively immune to this recession/maybe depression. I haven't really changed my spending habits one bit; in fact I may be spending a bit more because various places seem to be less crowded now that most other people are having to cut back.

[HappyTexan]

I live on 50% of my pay. Two paychecks per month and one goes right into savings.
In 2008 I paid close attention to my budget to get to that point.
I treated my savings account like a loan..I did have to borrow to repair the A/C but I paid myself back. That middle of the month paycheck goes right into savings. My savings account is like the black hole..what goes in doesn't come out
This year I'm lowering the bar even further and trying for even less for living expenses.
It can be done but you have to redefine what is important and how to make due or even more with less.

[Visvaldis]

No TV, therefore no cable or dish (TV sucks!)
Still have a dial-up internet connection. I'm patient.
No movies, rent DVDs at store or library.
No cell phone even though the bills may be "only" $70 monthly.
Shopping at ALDI. Eat out maybe 4 times per year. Hit bars twice per month, drink no more than 2 beers each time.
Use oven for cooking which also heats. Keep indoor heat set at 68. Open curtains when sun shines on cold days.
Bought, with cash, used 4 cylinder, 5 speed car. 4 years ago, no problems yet. Organize all local driving trips to accomplish most needs quickly and efficiently.
Buy cheap stuff, but take good care of it so most things will last a long time.
I'm not keeping up with the Joneses, but, for all I care, the Joneses can run over the edge of their cliff.

[banger]

I would not say that I live "below my means", but I certainly live "within" them.

Since the economic crisis began, I have brought my spending more into line and in fact have increased my savings.

Further, I have delayed making large purchases and doing a house remodel.

I guess that I am preparing to "bunker down" until things come back to a more normal level.

BTW, I have zero confidence that the "Merry bunch of Retards" in Washington will effect any positive change on this condition. I actually fear that with the plan now proposed, things will get worse.

I think I will try to get my pay checks issued in Mexican Peso's, at least there will be one place that my money will be worth something.

[Huckleberry3911948]

way below.
but women like a man that throws it around.
i tell you it means being home alone alot.

[forest beekeeper]

Originally Posted by juggler

I think a substantial chunk of the financial crisis the nation is now in is due to people not living below their means - they buy more house and car than they can afford, take extravagant vacations, upgrade their TV to the newest 107" plasma model, etc.

I'm curious to know how many people consider themselves to "live below their means", and exactly what does that entail for you. For those that do live below their means, IYHO, to what extent have you been affected by the uber-crisis?

I would say that we are living well below our means.

My pension covers our living expenses, my DW's part-time income is going to building up our farm. but we really could still survive okay if we stopped building.

I do not see this minor hiccup effecting us at all yet.

It is certainly not an 'uber-crisis'.

We have a long way to go before that.

[mjohnson4381]

I'm feeling kind of guilty for having credit card debt...I should have paid them off a long time ago. It's almost $8,000. I've put off trying to pay them off completely until I'm finished with school...tuition is really draining my income, so I don't have a lot of money to throw at them right now. My main focus is to get finished with school, and then I'll worry about them. I'm confident that I'll be able to pay a lot more once I don't have to spend thousands every year for tuition and books.

[Nepenthe]

I've lived WAY below my means for four and a half months and before that at least well below my means for a year and a half.

Now I'm single after the end of an amazing 39 month relationship and I'll be spending some cash this month. I'm buying: a new dresser/TV stand for the bedroom, a second TV (36" LCD, nothing real fancy), a second couch and slip cover for the first, new window treatments, a first bed/mattress (been sleeping on the first couch), a washer and dryer, a DVR (so I can be free every single night), paid haircuts for the first time in over a decade, gym membership, laptop (to replace the Windows 98SE machine I'm typing this on), GPS (lost in the break up, need it to find rendezvous spots), a vacuum, a crockpot, Match.com subscription, a bunch of new clothes, kickboxing, cooking classes, swing dancing lessons, stuff for camping, and possibly a new (*used) motorcycle. And I'll be paying 100% for dates for a while too. Also considering moving to a different, younger town in the area.

Sometimes it's easier than other times to be ultra frugal and thrifty. I'm not going to be dumb about my spending. But right now I value the things I can buy and do with a portion of my savings higher than the savings itself.