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And to put the cost of the truck into perspective, my income is about $700. My rent is $223 (subsidized), renters insurance $10, internet $10, and on average I spend about $200/month on non-food items and entertainment. I get about $170 in food stamp money I can only spend on food.
I actually took the light rail and then caught a bus to come home from my friends' Christmas party tonight. It took about an hour longer than it would have taken me to drive, but it was fine. I don't think I'd want to make that same transfer in the dark again, as the area was a little sketchy. Turns out I could have gotten off at the next stop and been in a busier area and would have felt safer. But, I can learn these things.
You should be the inspiration to many, being able to live on $700 per month. Of course, rent of only $223 makes that possible. That means it is possible, with some financial genius of course, to live on $477 plus rent. That means that on the average SS pension, it is possible to make it in some place where a studio apartment rents for $923. Possible new source of income: teach a course in financial management!
I have never owned a car (never cared for the expensive, messy, stressful concept of owning a car), and I recently moved to Chicago. I was lucky enough to get a good job that is 7 minutes away from where I live (walking). I literally have everything I need within walking distance from my place (my job, my bank, my gym, several supermarkets, a post office, a pharmacy, Lake Michigan and the wonderful lakefront biking/running/walking trail, etc.
etc. I even live minutes away from bars, clubs, and a great nightlife (although that is not my thing, so I don't really take advantage of that). I wish everyone could experience the awesomeness of not even having to take public transport to go to work. It's just the best.
And it's priceless not having to worry about car insurance, car notes, car maintenance, gas, repairs, finding parking spots, traffic jams, road rage, not to mention the stressful fear of carjackings, car being towed, car being stolen, broken in, vandalized, etc.
This is so ideal! I used to love living in the country. Now, I just want convenience.
You should be the inspiration to many, being able to live on $700 per month. Of course, rent of only $223 makes that possible. That means it is possible, with some financial genius of course, to live on $477 plus rent. That means that on the average SS pension, it is possible to make it in some place where a studio apartment rents for $923. Possible new source of income: teach a course in financial management!
LOL, thanks! I've lived having to be frugal most of my life. I do okay. It's the emergencies that have always gotten me in trouble - when I had credit. Hence, bankdruptcy because the budget didn't allow for emergencies.
I have no credit now, so that's not a back-up option. I never intended to not pay anyone back, but the lenders are predatory. The interest rates are so insanely high, with fees that mount like mad if you start missing a payment, that they really just push you into it. I really think it's their business model. They keep extending your credit limit until the day you have an emergency and need to use it, and they know you'll never be able to pay it back, but that you'll probably kill yourself trying to. And they profit they make during that time frame more than makes up for what they have to write off - or sell at a discount to the predatory debt buyers.
And my emergencies were real emergencies - had to survive on my credit until my SS disability was approved, which took about 3 years after my accident. And I would have been able to pay back the debt, if I had gotten all of the back pay I should have gotten. But, that's another story.
So, no credit now and no emergency fund. Scary place to be.
Right. I'm disabled, too, and working a job outside my apartment isn't feasible. I'm looking at options of things to do to make money at home, but I can't depend on that. I remember learning somewhere that the easiest way to make more money is to spend less - so I'm starting there.
Then I'd definitely say you will likely benefit from being carless. Groceries and many services can be delivered for far, far less than the total cost of owning and operating a personal vehicle.
You should be the inspiration to many, being able to live on $700 per month. Of course, rent of only $223 makes that possible. That means it is possible, with some financial genius of course, to live on $477 plus rent. That means that on the average SS pension, it is possible to make it in some place where a studio apartment rents for $923. Possible new source of income: teach a course in financial management!
A lot of people who claim that they are almost always broke and that their jobs are not enough to make a decent living simply have been adhering to many socially constructed narratives that encourage them to throw away money on stuff that they don't need. I guarantee you that most people have iPhones simply because it's the trendy thing to have (when a much cheaper smartphone would be useful enough). I guarantee you that a lot of people have mortgages for homes that are too big for what they really need, when smaller homes would suffice. I bet you that many people spend ridiculous amounts of money on eating out almost every day when they could easily cook at home and save tons of cash. I bet you that most people have absurd amount of clothes because they love buying new clothes every month despite the fact that they have perfectly fine clothes in their closets. It's all about social constructs and narratives that most people follow blindly.
Get organized, get minimal, stop buying new clothes every month, get a 30-buck-a-month smartphone instead of a 100-buck-a-month iPhone. Stop getting in debt every Xmas buying all kinds of gifts to tons of people just because "tradition" tells you that in Xmas you HAVE to buy presents.
Get stuff you need, instead of stuff you want.
Think with your brain, not with the financially-irresponsible part of your heart.
Re-learn and reframe the societal paradigms about spending that you learned and you too will be able to lead a great, happy, stress-free life on very little money.
You should be the inspiration to many, being able to live on $700 per month. Of course, rent of only $223 makes that possible. That means it is possible, with some financial genius of course, to live on $477 plus rent. That means that on the average SS pension, it is possible to make it in some place where a studio apartment rents for $923. Possible new source of income: teach a course in financial management!
The inspiration should be to motivate others to better plan for their future and eventual retirement so they don't have to survive on $700 a month.
Alaskaeric, We've all heard about how well you are doing & how the rest of us should have followed your example throughout the years.
This is not what the subject is about.
It's about whether it would be best to have or not have a vehicle.
There are many of us who have hit on hard times and not survived as well as you have. Lecturing on what a person should have done helps no one. Those times are past and ,I can't imagine anyone thinking they would become disabled and unable to work as retirement age approached and thus lose many earning years.
Or use their savings to try save their house when laid off during the recession. Too bad we couldn't foresee these things as you did.
Alaskaeric, We've all heard about how well you are doing & how the rest of us should have followed your example throughout the years.
This is not what the subject is about.
It's about whether it would be best to have or not have a vehicle.
There are many of us who have hit on hard times and not survived as well as you have. Lecturing on what a person should have done helps no one. Those times are past and ,I can't imagine anyone thinking they would become disabled and unable to work as retirement age approached and thus lose many earning years.
Or use their savings to try save their house when laid off during the recession. Too bad we couldn't foresee these things as you did.
Let me reiterate my earlier posting. It's better to have your own transportation than to rely on public transportation.
Let me reiterate my earlier posting. It's better to have your own transportation than to rely on public transportation.
It may surprise you to find out there are places where public transportation is reliable, and often faster than driving. New York City, of course. San Francisco, parts of Chicago. True, they are rare gems in the US. I imagine that in Alaska there is only the railroad with weekly service, mostly for off-gridders.
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