No spend 2020

neatokimmo

DIS Veteran
Joined
Jul 1, 2006
I feel like we own too much stuff. Some things I do need to sell or donate, but there are lots of things I just need to use up.

Is anyone interested in a no buy or low buy 2020? We could support each other and post our successes and failures. Since each of us needs different stuff to function, we would make our own criteria.
 
We used to do "no buy" months all the time when our kids were younger and we were planning Disney trips. Mainly with groceries. I have always had a super stocked freezer and pantry so sometimes we could go multiple months in a row only spending less than $20 or so on food. I would keep all receipts in an envelope and then we would calculate the savings from our monthly budget for that category. It was actually fun for our family to go through and see how much we could add to our vacation fund. I would transfer that exact amount from our checking to our vacation savings account.

We are not super stocked on food anymore since I have been very busy with a new job and we recently moved so we ate up and gave away a lot of our food just so we didn't have to move it. But we could definitely save in some other areas. I realized when moving that we had boxes of various toiletries and cleaning supplies. I would just randomly buy things that we "might" need when I was out or saw a good deal. Or we would have multiple types of the same item open at once. So we really just need to have one bottle of each item, use it all up, and throw it away rather than having 20 things of lotion that no one ever gets through.

Another thing I found that we tend to not "use up" is clothing. We have some clothing that's 20+ years old. That's not a bad thing when you're talking about nice quality items, but I keep buying more cheap things like tshirts when we are already overflowing with them. For the last many months we have been renovating our house before moving in (and still working on a few projects). We decided rather than rotating through 20 "work" shirts, we only wear one or two until they are ruined and then can be thrown out (plus this keeps the other shirts nicer for longer so I don't feel the need to buy newer tshirts).
 
I'm in. I budget monthly and I have a good handle on what is coming in and out. But I find having a thread like this helps with accountability and making sure I'm not impulse buying anything or nickle and diming away money that could be better used elsewhere.
 


Another thing I found that we tend to not "use up" is clothing. We have some clothing that's 20+ years old. That's not a bad thing when you're talking about nice quality items, but I keep buying more cheap things like tshirts when we are already overflowing with them. For the last many months we have been renovating our house before moving in (and still working on a few projects). We decided rather than rotating through 20 "work" shirts, we only wear one or two until they are ruined and then can be thrown out (plus this keeps the other shirts nicer for longer so I don't feel the need to buy newer tshirts).
I can relate to what you're saying. Several comments:

- YEARS ago I bought my husband an LL Bean dress shirt, and he loved it like he'd never loved a shirt. So I fell into the habit of buying him 2 similar shirts every year -- and rotating OUT an old shirt. Now that he has all LL Beans, which last, I only get him one per year -- but it's still one in /one out. His dress shirts are one of the things in this house that "works".

- Similarly, a couple years ago I bought all new hangers (in a pretty color), and our rule is that we can only have as many clothes as fit on those hangers. We don't NEED loads and loads of clothes, and this is a simple, visual way to keep ourselves in check.

- I'm in a no-clothings-buying phase, but my reasoning is different: I'm retiring in two years. I have a decent work wardrobe, and I'm purposefully not adding to it. If I buy something new, it's something more suited to retirement life. Exception: shoes. I stand up all day at work, so I'm rough on my shoes, and I have to have quality shoes (or I pay for it in fatigue).
 
I am 62 1/2 and I have never had a budget. If there wasn't money there, we didn't buy stuff. We have always lived within our means, and I am cheap by nature. 3 weeks ago I had to go back a year and figure out exactly what we spent on everything. We hope to retire in 2020 and our Financial Planner wanted to see what we spent each year. It was interesting to see the numbers. Our biggest out lay is cash. I still do a lot of things paying cash (eating out, gas for the cars, etc).
 


I am frugal by nature, I tend to stay content with what I have. Now, where I do have trouble with over-spending is on experiences and vacations! But, it balances out! I'd love to help support each other in this endeavor!

Cooking at home and not needing the latest fashions helps a lot! We eat out once a week and tend to wear clothes and shoes until they can't be worn anymore.
:)
 
I am frugal by nature, I tend to stay content with what I have. Now, where I do have trouble with over-spending is on experiences and vacations! But, it balances out! I'd love to help support each other in this endeavor!

Cooking at home and not needing the latest fashions helps a lot! We eat out once a week and tend to wear clothes and shoes until they can't be worn anymore.
:)
I agree with you. I am totally content eating out only once a month if that, and i shop thrift stores for clothing. DH on the other hand likes to frequently eat out fast food several times a week which makes budgeting very difficult and frustrating. We will talk about it and he will say he isn't going to eat out. Then bam! two weeks later he is eating out almost every day because he forgot to "pack his lunch"
 
Ok, let's get this party started for Pigletto. Happy New Year everyone!! I am aiming to cut down on "extra" spending. For me that is extra trips to the grocery or pharmacy type stores. I shouldn't need to pop into either outside of regular grocery/household shopping days. It's also any restaurants/drive through coffees or take out. I'm not against having a meal out or grabbing a pizza now and then but it needs to be planned. Basically I'm aiming to cut down on impulse spending.

1/1 $11 for a movie ticket. I am going to see Little Women with my mom and sister. No snacks for me. They are so overpriced anyway.
1/2 no spend (calling it now)
1/3 no spend
 
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I'm going to try one month a a time. Low buy for January 2020. I'll call today a win because I love to hit Dillards New Years Day sale. I've picked up lots of great buys over the years but I need nothing so I will not set foot in the store. Planning no buys for 1/1-1/3. I return to work tomorrow so will need to pack lunches as I am bad about that.

1/1- no buy
1/2- no buy
1/3- no buy
1/4 Saturday- reg grocery shop- should be able to keep low as we are pretty well stocked
 
I'm going to try one month a a time. Low buy for January 2020. I'll call today a win because I love to hit Dillards New Years Day sale. I've picked up lots of great buys over the years but I need nothing so I will not set foot in the store. Planning no buys for 1/1-1/3. I return to work tomorrow so will need to pack lunches as I am bad about that.

1/1- no buy
1/2- no buy
1/3- no buy
1/4 Saturday- reg grocery shop- should be able to keep low as we are pretty well stocked

I also skipped Dillard’s sale today. I feel like that is an auspicious start to 2020. I don’t need anything so...
 
I’m joining - We retired in 2019 and are working on living with less. Monthly income dropped by about 1/3. We have good savings for emergencies so I want to live on our pension for day to day AND a few extras.
3rd Daughter out of 4 just got engaged and wants to wed THIS MAY! ( I call that an emergency!😂. )
1/1 - no spending so far. Amazon is tempting me!
 
I'm in. This is the year we want to pay off all our credit card debt, so that next year we can start paying double on our house. We are in the middle of a bathroom remodel and I swear everyday my husband needs to run to Lowe's for something. I can do my part though. Trying to just do my weekly grocery shopping and nothing else. We have a quick two night WDW in February, everything is paid for and I have gift cards from Christmas (thanks mom) to pay for food.

1/1 grocery shopping, ignored all the christmas clearance
 
I’m in. I haven’t been on the Dis in awhile but I’m planning a girls trip for March 2021 & need to save every penny I can

Ive been using YNAB for years, so im pretty good at sticking to a budget, but I've had some recent issues with impulse spending - I'm always wanting to spend money in the house or kitchen. I'm glad this didn't start the 31st :p

I also know I could do better with our grocery budget. Anything leftover goes to pay off our car, and the sooner I can do that the sooner I free up that payment for things like a long over-due Disney trip

1/1 - no buy
1/2 -- placed grocery order for pick up tomorrow (no extra fee). I did end up spending $10 unplanned $$ on label maker tape -- my local library lets you check out items and I was notified the label maker ive been waiting to borrow is ready. Time to organize the pantry!! Im considering this a win since I only spent money on the label tape, instead of the machine itself
 
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