LateFrugal

Two weeks ago I went down to a capsule wardrobe.  Six short sleeve polo, six long sleeve polo, three pairs of dress pants, a tweed sports jacket, one dress white shirt and the suit I was married in.  I also have six tee shirts, three pairs of shorts, and four sweats bottoms for around the house.  The rest went to a local thrift store.   It was the hardest thing to part with the extra clothes.  I wear the polo and dress pants to work as an engineer.  Anyone else struggle with minimalism?  To me it is also part of my faith to not waste God's resources.

How to inspect a used car.  A used car that is 3-4 years old is a great way to reduce expenses. Note this list is not a substitute for having the car checked out by a professional mechanic. Questions for Owner: -Why are you selling car? -What is wrong with car? -Maintenance records or logs? . -Get carfax -Look at the title is it clean, no salvage?  -Is the title in the owner's name? -Original owner? -Was car ever in a car wreck? Before Drive: -Look in the tail pipe to see if there are huge oil deposits indicating the vechile has been burning oil. -Check the tires for even wear. -Look for uneven or misaligned body panels indicating body work after an accident -Put your body weight on each corner of car then release it.  Does car bounce excessively indicating shocks or suspension problems? -Pull top and sides of tires out with your hands.  If it moves then you may have tie rod or suspension issues. -Use a magnet to look for bondo indicating prior accidents Inside Car: ...

Being frugal means making good choices with clothes.  I have opted for a capsule wardrobe.  I have six short sleeve microfiber polo shirts, six long sleeve polo shirts, three pairs of dress black pants, two pairs of jeans, and six Hanes tee shirts.  I also have a dress jacket to wear with black slacks at formal occasions. I tried lower quality polo shirts, but have opted for the champion brand because their superior construction.  I also wear sweats around the house and running errands.  I keep one dress shirt and tie also. A capsule wardrobe saves me a lot of money.  I also buy dark colors such as maroon, dark blue, and charcoal for stain resistance.  I like microfiber because when I am out of town on business I can wash it in the sink for extended stays. Have you considered a capsule wardrobe?  It is a great way to save money and look great. theLateFrugal

So your car has broke down many times and the cost to fix it is more than the vehicle is worth.  Time to go to the new car dealership and buy a new car with six to seven years of payments.  Wrong move. This is a critical point in time.  You are fustrated and sick of bumming rides or waiting at the bus stop.  You have had enough.  You have paid your dues and it is high time for a new car.  The problem is the next 72 hours will determine your finances for the next 72 months.  Choose wisely. You are not the only person who views the new car as symbol of your arrival.  It is just that a status symbol.  This is the reason why new cars depreciate so fast.  A three year old car typically has depreciated 50 percent, yet has 80 percent life left.  Driving a car off the new car lot causes the car to depreciate 10-15 percent.  Worse yet, financing the car for seven years means you will never build any equity in the car.  Your only re...

You have heard the saying "the car is nickel and diming me to death".  This gives the impression that you should have bought a new car many months ago.  That you are a fool for keeping that old rust bucket going.  That your job is in danger due to your unreliable car.  You must act and buy a new car.  It is the only responsible thing to do. It is all a lie.  You are talking yourself into a new car, because you WANT a new car.  Be honest. Besides food and eating out, the transportation budget needs to become firmly under your control.  A new car is a luxury item, not a need, be honest. 90 percent of the time the cost of a new car payment is much more than repair.  Secondly, you normally have options in the absence of a car. (Bus, carpool, coworkers).  Conventional wisdom is when a repair cost more than the car is worth it is time to buy a car.  Some like Clark Howard use 50 percent for a higher level of reliability. To take control o...

I found we were spending about $1,200 a month on food.  Eating out two to three times as week.  To pay off debt required this to change.  We did a few things. Chops.  A nice cut of meat on low in a frying pan (marinated in lemon pepper).  I leaned that I could flip it every five minutes and it would be done in exactly 20 minutes, or three flips.  This was about the same time the rice cooker needed to cook a half cup of rice.  Frozen veggies in steamer packs require 7 minutes in microwave. The result was a great meal in 20 minutes that tasted great.  This became chops Tuesday.  The same was done with Friday but with frozen salmon from Aldi.  Monday was normally some sort of pasta dish.  A can of tomato paste, a tablespoon of sugar, garlic powder, basil and oregano.  Ground turkey fried up in a pan.  A great meal for cheap. This became the fire wood for our debt snowball because we stopped going out to eat but once a week. (...

Beans and Rice can be lonely. Dave Ramsey talks about eating beans and rice when getting out of debt. (Which I really don't follow anymore because he has made a business from it.)  However this really doesn't address the problem.  Did you ever go to church then asked if you wanted to go out afterwards?  Starving for fellowship the automatic answer is yes.  You then pull out the credit card. Beans and rice can be lonely.  Yet you know the path to a brighter future isn't at Outback or the local diner.  You may need new friends and to do a "cook in" where you take turns cooking in rather than out. The checking account and credit cardment tells the truth about your need to socialize.  Look at how many times you went out.  Does this alarm you?  Have you been told it is cheaper to eat out?  Do you actually believe that? Perhaps the greatest thing about going to a Dave Ramsey seminar (or similar) is the fact you are in good company.  To be...

Are you desperate and your bank account is overdrawn?  Did an unexpected bill or repair put you behind?  Do you pay your credit card and then look to see how much you paid down your credit line so you can buy some groceries? If these things sound familiar then you need to reconsider where you are.  Step number one is stop digging your hole.  Before you learn all the best tricks to personal finance the best thing to do is stop digging. One thing to consider is your perspective may be wrong.  My car was damaged in a car accident after my divorce and remarriage.  The temptation was to whip out the plastic and get a rental car because I had to get to work.  The solution?  Freezing my behind off at the bus stop and learning the bus schedule. To stop digging a hole you have to pretend you are poor, because you are poor.  Say it slowly so your brain gets it.  You are poor.  Now that this is established what do poor people do?  Well in...

Bankruptcy is a good time to access what needs to change in your life.  I got to deal with a divorce, and poor health also.  Often times we like to blame others for such things, it is so easy to fall in that trap. The point is, you have to make painful emotional decisions to resolve to make a better life.  Sometimes spouses are part of that process.  Bankruptcy is a time to examine everything and to make sure you are on solid ground.  I don't really blame my former spouse although it is easy to fall in that trap. Perhaps you and your spouse are more compatible.  Your number one goal is to make sure you are aligned with your financial goals.  Often times leadership is by example.  Do you complain about your spouse's spending when you're much worse?  I was the big spender, I knew I had to change. The point is you need to have a good talk with the man in the mirror.  What gives you joy?  For me today joy is having thousands in savings....

The year was 2008.  I was sitting in front of a credit committee who laid all my poor financial sins in front of me.  A small credit union in the Waterford MI that I owed $3000 was passionately going through my bank records.  Meanwhile the Countryside lawyer who I owed $160,000 was silent. What wasn't silent was the guilt and shame in my heart from seeking bankruptcy from my creditors due to my poor financial decisions.  I felt like a failure.  I was determined to never let my family and myself down again.  The bankruptcy magistrate ordered financial counseling.  I thought to myself "bring it on, I never want to be here again...." This started the late frugal. Was determined to never again sit in front of a creditor committee ever again.  Call me cheap, call me a skin flint, I don't care - this will never ever happen again.  In my late fourties I became the late frugal.  The rest of my life I would aim to own no one, and to save for reti...