Tips for living on the cheap (just moved out :3)

sailorchrono

sailorchrono

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Well... I don't know if I really want to get into the story unless you people really want to know, but suffice to say I've been abruptly kicked out of my household on Thursday night and since then have been bouncing from a friend's house to another's. I've finally settled on living with one friend and things look good so far. I'm going to get a job soon enough (any tips on looking? I'm trying Craigslist and even hitting the typical standard retail jobs: Target, Best Buy, and etc. I really need a job to pay rent ASAP!).

Anyways, yeah.. I really need tips to maximize whatever wages I'll earn in my eventual minimum wage job :( My rent is going to be 300, which I know is pretty good here in Southren California. I don't know what else to put here, so until then...TIPS PLEASE!
 
First off - Fast food adds UP. Imagine you eat twice a day, five dollars a meal. That's 10 bucks a day, 7 days a week. 70 dollars a week, 140 every two weeks, 280 a month on food.

Let's say you buy groceries- Sandwich meat, bread, milk, water, vegetables, microwavable food, canned fruit, chips and cookies won't add up to more than 30 dollars and will feed you for nearly two weeks depending on how much you're willing to cook.

Second - Wait until AFTER your bills are paid and what money is left over from THAT month's income to spend money on expenses. If you have a checking/savings account, call your savings account your "bill money". transfer the money over from each check to a % amount that adds up to your monthly bills.

Give up unnecessary extras - Game fly subscriptions, high speed internet. Try to be green-friendly. Don't leave your shit on all day, like your lights, PC, TV.

Recreational events - BE CREATIVE. Don't go out all the time. If you meet a girl and need to take her out, invite her over to watch some DVD's and cook for her. It's romantic, it's sentimental, creative, will get you laid, is conveniently near the bed and it's CHEAP.

Manage your money - Don't get credit cards, don't get desperate. Most of all, just try to stay calm and collected. I'm here in So-cal too. I was on my own. You can find a good job if you look for it. Best Buy = above minimum wage. I currently make 12 an hour at BB and i haven't worked here a year. It's a good college job.

Also, depending on how old you are, you might be able to survive on your own off of financial aid from school. They also have work study so you can work. And because you're working at school and studying, you'll have saturday/sundays off.
 
[quote name='NamelessMC']
Recreational events - BE CREATIVE. Don't go out all the time. If you meet a girl and need to take her out, invite her over to watch some DVD's and cook for her. It's romantic, it's sentimental, creative, will get you laid, is conveniently near the bed and it's CHEAP.
[/quote]
I like that. "Recreation events" eh?
 
Get a job as a waiter somewhere. I make enough money on a double (10-12 hour shift) to pay your rent in one days work sometimes. I definitely can make that during a slow weekend just working Friday and Saturday night.
 
[quote name='NamelessMC']

Recreational events - BE CREATIVE. Don't go out all the time. If you meet a girl and need to take her out, invite her over to watch some DVD's and cook for her. It's romantic, it's sentimental, creative, will get you laid, is conveniently near the bed and it's CHEAP.[/quote]

Also she is a girl, unless she is trying to bag a chick, this might be difficult. Otherwise your suggestions are good.

Also try to avoid looking at CAGs deals, they don't help any :wall:.
 
[quote name='Fuzi0n']Also she is a girl, unless she is trying to bag a chick, this might be difficult. Otherwise your suggestions are good.

Also try to avoid looking at CAGs deals, they don't help any :wall:.[/quote]

My mistake-
Let me rephrase-
When you wanna have fun, try to do things that don't involve going out and spending money. Try to stay home and have fun with your friend at home.

In high school, there had to be plenty of times your parents let you have a friend over, you watched movies, looked at stars, I have no idea.

The point is, DONT go out and DONT eat fast food.

Follow those two tips to a T, and be a waitress and you'll be fine. Let me know if you need advice on getting into a place like Best Buy. I might be able to pull some strings for you.
 
Use your feminine wiles to get free food (as guys usually pay) and free rides (because gas is expensive). Just string guys along for attention and free goods like all other girls do and you can easily live on the cheap.
 
[quote name='JJSP']$300/mo in Orange County is awesome.[/QUOTE]

I was gonna say the same thing.

And not to get you down or anything, but I've been trying to find a job for the past month (albeit I'm in no real need to get one, so I haven't actually tried applying at each and every store near me) and it's been tough. Out of probably 7 or 8 places I applied at, only 1 of those I've gotten an interview for (and no call back). So my advice would to be not so stingy if you get a job offer, because from my experience they're pretty hard to come by nowadays in Southern California.

Also, try to make friends at your workplace and carpool, gas is a killer.
 
Don't buy your porn, just search on the internet for porn..... it saves a ton of money......... also, try to find a suggah daddy, once you find one, you'll never have to worry about money again
 
Just remember, if you run out of money, you just don't get to do anything fun until your next paycheck. It's no big deal. Don't be too cheap with your money, you'll get more.
 
Buy everything at the grocery store on sale. When something you like is on sale STOCK UP. It may seem ridiculous to buy like only chicken one week, but throw it in the freezer and buy Pork/Steak/etc the next week when it's on sale, same with sides like Rice, Vegetables, etc. On top of that, whenever possible buy store-brand or discount brand food and other stuff. Nearly all of the time it's the same exact stuff but cheaper without the brand name.
 
Having a roommate vs. living alone saves you the largest chunk of change so you already have that covered. Next biggest expense is probably going to be your car so either get a cheap car or get by without one if you can and need to cut your budget to the bone.

You can reduce your car insurance bill (a lot) be carrying a high deductible. ($500+)

I like many that have already been mentioned like cutting any extras, especially recurring subscription charges.

If you have trouble sticking to a budget look at trying the envelope method. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Personal_budget#Envelopes I've never used it but I've known a few people who like it.
 
read the newspaper tons of great deals on alot of stuff youll need. especially grocery store adds. dont get hung up on name brands like someone mentioned before fast food does add. what you pay for a pizza you could use for food for a week. if they have a sale on things that can be frozen stock up bread some vegetables or canned food can be stocked up on for cheap and used when necesary. being in cali im sure theres alot of fresh markets where you can get fresh veggies and fruit on the cheap or a farmers market. find them. if you cant cook learn to.

with gas so high you should probably use the bus for work if you arent already. its all about needs and wants. do what you ned to do and when you can afford to get something you want. good luck because now is going to be a hard time to survive with prices goin up on so many things.
 
Actually, AMAZINGLY, my roomie situation is beyond awesome. Let me explain our dynamic:

It's 4 people living in the 2 room apartment. 3 guys and me, the girl :3 2 people to a room. I don't know the other 2 too well, but I'm rooming with my good friend. One guy is a our apartment cook and he does awesome food. The other guy works at a supermarket and gets groceries at a 90% discount (!). We're splitting the food bill 3 ways because the cook shouldn't have to pay :p So yeah, I think the food thing is going to work out pretty well.

And of course, you're right, I really should be thankful that I have such a low rent @_@; I think that's probably going to be my biggest expense other than gas. However, I'm getting a bike ASAP and I'm going to be biking around as much as possible. And to all those who suggested that I string along a guy... lol.. I already have a boyfriend, if anyone remembers my other thread, heh. So that's not an option, nor do I think I'd ever get that deseperate.. it seems just a step above, if not as low as prostitution :/

Also, as for subscriptions, I'm also good on that. I actually didn't subscribe to anything or really have much out of pocket expenses while living at home (other than cell phone and gas and insurance) so that was pretty good. Also, Wubb... you mentioned taking a high deductable on insurance.. what does that mean? I have Progressive and I took out the minimum on EVERYTHING so I could get my insurance as low as possible. It's about 400 for 6 months.. :x

As for recreational events.. yeah, I don't think I'm going to be going out too much if at all. Fortunately, all my roomies are huge geeks/nerds like me. It's really sweet ^_^ We have tons of games, anime, comic books everywhere. It's like.. nirvana for me
 
[quote name='naes']Ramen noodles[/quote]

Ahhh Good times. You mix that stuff with Veggies, chicken or meat and do the sauce right, you can make some really good home made Chinese food.

[quote name='NamelessMC']First off - Fast food adds UP. Imagine you eat twice a day, five dollars a meal. That's 10 bucks a day, 7 days a week. 70 dollars a week, 140 every two weeks, 280 a month on food.

Let's say you buy groceries- Sandwich meat, bread, milk, water, vegetables, microwavable food, canned fruit, chips and cookies won't add up to more than 30 dollars and will feed you for nearly two weeks depending on how much you're willing to cook.

Second - Wait until AFTER your bills are paid and what money is left over from THAT month's income to spend money on expenses. If you have a checking/savings account, call your savings account your "bill money". transfer the money over from each check to a % amount that adds up to your monthly bills.

Give up unnecessary extras - Game fly subscriptions, high speed internet. Try to be green-friendly. Don't leave your shit on all day, like your lights, PC, TV.

Recreational events - BE CREATIVE. Don't go out all the time. If you meet a girl and need to take her out, invite her over to watch some DVD's and cook for her. It's romantic, it's sentimental, creative, will get you laid, is conveniently near the bed and it's CHEAP.

Manage your money - Don't get credit cards, don't get desperate. Most of all, just try to stay calm and collected. I'm here in So-cal too. I was on my own. You can find a good job if you look for it. Best Buy = above minimum wage. I currently make 12 an hour at BB and i haven't worked here a year. It's a good college job.

Also, depending on how old you are, you might be able to survive on your own off of financial aid from school. They also have work study so you can work. And because you're working at school and studying, you'll have saturday/sundays off.[/quote]

Good idea

[quote name='wubb']Having a roommate vs. living alone saves you the largest chunk of change so you already have that covered. Next biggest expense is probably going to be your car so either get a cheap car or get by without one if you can and need to cut your budget to the bone.

You can reduce your car insurance bill (a lot) be carrying a high deductible. ($500+)

I like many that have already been mentioned like cutting any extras, especially recurring subscription charges.

If you have trouble sticking to a budget look at trying the envelope method. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Personal_budget#Envelopes I've never used it but I've known a few people who like it.[/quote]

Never knew Wiki would be a good source for Budgeting :whistle2:k
 
You can go to school for free. Talk to a counselour and start filing all the forms for next semester. I knew a chick who didn't even buy books and went to the library to do all her homework and studying.
 
I know a kid whos aunt co-signed on a $30,000 college loan in San Diego so it is a loan, but low interest and delayed financial responsibility. Also just a thought, but you could join the army/marine reserves. One weekend a month gets you around $300 and partial G.I. Bill for College money. Also if you don't already, running is free, good for you and gets you out of the apartment. If there is a way you can plan your purchases for the week, using the atm once and keeping the rest in an envelope until you need to draw from it could save you a few bucks.
 
The best way to learn how to save more, is to fuck up. Really.
Not fucking up completely and ruining everything..but when you realize "Oh SHIT I can't pay for ____".. come NEXT month you'll learn how to use your money better..until you realize you have the money for ___ now, but NOW you don't have it for ____ :lol:

It's why we are pushed out early. My parents never threw me out, but they suggested it very much and how it would be good for me since I was a lazy spoiled brat living at home.
 
[quote name='naes']Ramen noodles[/quote]

It isn't worth the money you save once you have 5 heart attacks by age 25.

But pasta, that's cheap, filling and won't kill you.

And $300 rent is amazing even with (one?) roommate. I know hate you. :)
 
Well... I don't know if I really want to get into the story unless you people really want to know, but suffice to say I've been abruptly kicked out of my household on Thursday night and since then have been bouncing from a friend's house to another's. I've finally settled on living with one friend and things look good so far. I'm going to get a job soon enough (any tips on looking? I'm trying Craigslist and even hitting the typical standard retail jobs: Target, Best Buy, and etc. I really need a job to pay rent ASAP!).

Anyways, yeah.. I really need tips to maximize whatever wages I'll earn in my eventual minimum wage job :( My rent is going to be 300, which I know is pretty good here in Southren California. I don't know what else to put here, so until then...TIPS PLEASE!
 
First off - Fast food adds UP. Imagine you eat twice a day, five dollars a meal. That's 10 bucks a day, 7 days a week. 70 dollars a week, 140 every two weeks, 280 a month on food.

Let's say you buy groceries- Sandwich meat, bread, milk, water, vegetables, microwavable food, canned fruit, chips and cookies won't add up to more than 30 dollars and will feed you for nearly two weeks depending on how much you're willing to cook.

Second - Wait until AFTER your bills are paid and what money is left over from THAT month's income to spend money on expenses. If you have a checking/savings account, call your savings account your "bill money". transfer the money over from each check to a % amount that adds up to your monthly bills.

Give up unnecessary extras - Game fly subscriptions, high speed internet. Try to be green-friendly. Don't leave your shit on all day, like your lights, PC, TV.

Recreational events - BE CREATIVE. Don't go out all the time. If you meet a girl and need to take her out, invite her over to watch some DVD's and cook for her. It's romantic, it's sentimental, creative, will get you laid, is conveniently near the bed and it's CHEAP.

Manage your money - Don't get credit cards, don't get desperate. Most of all, just try to stay calm and collected. I'm here in So-cal too. I was on my own. You can find a good job if you look for it. Best Buy = above minimum wage. I currently make 12 an hour at BB and i haven't worked here a year. It's a good college job.

Also, depending on how old you are, you might be able to survive on your own off of financial aid from school. They also have work study so you can work. And because you're working at school and studying, you'll have saturday/sundays off.
 
[quote name='NamelessMC']
Recreational events - BE CREATIVE. Don't go out all the time. If you meet a girl and need to take her out, invite her over to watch some DVD's and cook for her. It's romantic, it's sentimental, creative, will get you laid, is conveniently near the bed and it's CHEAP.
[/quote]
I like that. "Recreation events" eh?
 
Get a job as a waiter somewhere. I make enough money on a double (10-12 hour shift) to pay your rent in one days work sometimes. I definitely can make that during a slow weekend just working Friday and Saturday night.
 
[quote name='NamelessMC']

Recreational events - BE CREATIVE. Don't go out all the time. If you meet a girl and need to take her out, invite her over to watch some DVD's and cook for her. It's romantic, it's sentimental, creative, will get you laid, is conveniently near the bed and it's CHEAP.[/quote]

Also she is a girl, unless she is trying to bag a chick, this might be difficult. Otherwise your suggestions are good.

Also try to avoid looking at CAGs deals, they don't help any :wall:.
 
[quote name='Fuzi0n']Also she is a girl, unless she is trying to bag a chick, this might be difficult. Otherwise your suggestions are good.

Also try to avoid looking at CAGs deals, they don't help any :wall:.[/quote]

My mistake-
Let me rephrase-
When you wanna have fun, try to do things that don't involve going out and spending money. Try to stay home and have fun with your friend at home.

In high school, there had to be plenty of times your parents let you have a friend over, you watched movies, looked at stars, I have no idea.

The point is, DONT go out and DONT eat fast food.

Follow those two tips to a T, and be a waitress and you'll be fine. Let me know if you need advice on getting into a place like Best Buy. I might be able to pull some strings for you.
 
Use your feminine wiles to get free food (as guys usually pay) and free rides (because gas is expensive). Just string guys along for attention and free goods like all other girls do and you can easily live on the cheap.
 
[quote name='JJSP']$300/mo in Orange County is awesome.[/QUOTE]

I was gonna say the same thing.

And not to get you down or anything, but I've been trying to find a job for the past month (albeit I'm in no real need to get one, so I haven't actually tried applying at each and every store near me) and it's been tough. Out of probably 7 or 8 places I applied at, only 1 of those I've gotten an interview for (and no call back). So my advice would to be not so stingy if you get a job offer, because from my experience they're pretty hard to come by nowadays in Southern California.

Also, try to make friends at your workplace and carpool, gas is a killer.
 
Don't buy your porn, just search on the internet for porn..... it saves a ton of money......... also, try to find a suggah daddy, once you find one, you'll never have to worry about money again
 
Just remember, if you run out of money, you just don't get to do anything fun until your next paycheck. It's no big deal. Don't be too cheap with your money, you'll get more.
 
Buy everything at the grocery store on sale. When something you like is on sale STOCK UP. It may seem ridiculous to buy like only chicken one week, but throw it in the freezer and buy Pork/Steak/etc the next week when it's on sale, same with sides like Rice, Vegetables, etc. On top of that, whenever possible buy store-brand or discount brand food and other stuff. Nearly all of the time it's the same exact stuff but cheaper without the brand name.
 
Having a roommate vs. living alone saves you the largest chunk of change so you already have that covered. Next biggest expense is probably going to be your car so either get a cheap car or get by without one if you can and need to cut your budget to the bone.

You can reduce your car insurance bill (a lot) be carrying a high deductible. ($500+)

I like many that have already been mentioned like cutting any extras, especially recurring subscription charges.

If you have trouble sticking to a budget look at trying the envelope method. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Personal_budget#Envelopes I've never used it but I've known a few people who like it.
 
read the newspaper tons of great deals on alot of stuff youll need. especially grocery store adds. dont get hung up on name brands like someone mentioned before fast food does add. what you pay for a pizza you could use for food for a week. if they have a sale on things that can be frozen stock up bread some vegetables or canned food can be stocked up on for cheap and used when necesary. being in cali im sure theres alot of fresh markets where you can get fresh veggies and fruit on the cheap or a farmers market. find them. if you cant cook learn to.

with gas so high you should probably use the bus for work if you arent already. its all about needs and wants. do what you ned to do and when you can afford to get something you want. good luck because now is going to be a hard time to survive with prices goin up on so many things.
 
Actually, AMAZINGLY, my roomie situation is beyond awesome. Let me explain our dynamic:

It's 4 people living in the 2 room apartment. 3 guys and me, the girl :3 2 people to a room. I don't know the other 2 too well, but I'm rooming with my good friend. One guy is a our apartment cook and he does awesome food. The other guy works at a supermarket and gets groceries at a 90% discount (!). We're splitting the food bill 3 ways because the cook shouldn't have to pay :p So yeah, I think the food thing is going to work out pretty well.

And of course, you're right, I really should be thankful that I have such a low rent @_@; I think that's probably going to be my biggest expense other than gas. However, I'm getting a bike ASAP and I'm going to be biking around as much as possible. And to all those who suggested that I string along a guy... lol.. I already have a boyfriend, if anyone remembers my other thread, heh. So that's not an option, nor do I think I'd ever get that deseperate.. it seems just a step above, if not as low as prostitution :/

Also, as for subscriptions, I'm also good on that. I actually didn't subscribe to anything or really have much out of pocket expenses while living at home (other than cell phone and gas and insurance) so that was pretty good. Also, Wubb... you mentioned taking a high deductable on insurance.. what does that mean? I have Progressive and I took out the minimum on EVERYTHING so I could get my insurance as low as possible. It's about 400 for 6 months.. :x

As for recreational events.. yeah, I don't think I'm going to be going out too much if at all. Fortunately, all my roomies are huge geeks/nerds like me. It's really sweet ^_^ We have tons of games, anime, comic books everywhere. It's like.. nirvana for me
 
[quote name='naes']Ramen noodles[/quote]

Ahhh Good times. You mix that stuff with Veggies, chicken or meat and do the sauce right, you can make some really good home made Chinese food.

[quote name='NamelessMC']First off - Fast food adds UP. Imagine you eat twice a day, five dollars a meal. That's 10 bucks a day, 7 days a week. 70 dollars a week, 140 every two weeks, 280 a month on food.

Let's say you buy groceries- Sandwich meat, bread, milk, water, vegetables, microwavable food, canned fruit, chips and cookies won't add up to more than 30 dollars and will feed you for nearly two weeks depending on how much you're willing to cook.

Second - Wait until AFTER your bills are paid and what money is left over from THAT month's income to spend money on expenses. If you have a checking/savings account, call your savings account your "bill money". transfer the money over from each check to a % amount that adds up to your monthly bills.

Give up unnecessary extras - Game fly subscriptions, high speed internet. Try to be green-friendly. Don't leave your shit on all day, like your lights, PC, TV.

Recreational events - BE CREATIVE. Don't go out all the time. If you meet a girl and need to take her out, invite her over to watch some DVD's and cook for her. It's romantic, it's sentimental, creative, will get you laid, is conveniently near the bed and it's CHEAP.

Manage your money - Don't get credit cards, don't get desperate. Most of all, just try to stay calm and collected. I'm here in So-cal too. I was on my own. You can find a good job if you look for it. Best Buy = above minimum wage. I currently make 12 an hour at BB and i haven't worked here a year. It's a good college job.

Also, depending on how old you are, you might be able to survive on your own off of financial aid from school. They also have work study so you can work. And because you're working at school and studying, you'll have saturday/sundays off.[/quote]

Good idea

[quote name='wubb']Having a roommate vs. living alone saves you the largest chunk of change so you already have that covered. Next biggest expense is probably going to be your car so either get a cheap car or get by without one if you can and need to cut your budget to the bone.

You can reduce your car insurance bill (a lot) be carrying a high deductible. ($500+)

I like many that have already been mentioned like cutting any extras, especially recurring subscription charges.

If you have trouble sticking to a budget look at trying the envelope method. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Personal_budget#Envelopes I've never used it but I've known a few people who like it.[/quote]

Never knew Wiki would be a good source for Budgeting :whistle2:k
 
You can go to school for free. Talk to a counselour and start filing all the forms for next semester. I knew a chick who didn't even buy books and went to the library to do all her homework and studying.
 
I know a kid whos aunt co-signed on a $30,000 college loan in San Diego so it is a loan, but low interest and delayed financial responsibility. Also just a thought, but you could join the army/marine reserves. One weekend a month gets you around $300 and partial G.I. Bill for College money. Also if you don't already, running is free, good for you and gets you out of the apartment. If there is a way you can plan your purchases for the week, using the atm once and keeping the rest in an envelope until you need to draw from it could save you a few bucks.
 
The best way to learn how to save more, is to fuck up. Really.
Not fucking up completely and ruining everything..but when you realize "Oh SHIT I can't pay for ____".. come NEXT month you'll learn how to use your money better..until you realize you have the money for ___ now, but NOW you don't have it for ____ :lol:

It's why we are pushed out early. My parents never threw me out, but they suggested it very much and how it would be good for me since I was a lazy spoiled brat living at home.
 
[quote name='naes']Ramen noodles[/quote]

It isn't worth the money you save once you have 5 heart attacks by age 25.

But pasta, that's cheap, filling and won't kill you.

And $300 rent is amazing even with (one?) roommate. I know hate you. :)
 
If you have lot of junk you just don't need just sell it. Ebay, half.com or amazon... I really don't have any more advice for you since you have a good arrangement food and rent wise.
 
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