That moving out thing

[NiX]

It's that horribly fun time where I venture off into the world known as not living at home. I know this will only end in alcohol induced asshattery and shenanigans so outrageous it would give any person over 60 an aneurism. I've come to you people, a wealth of knowledge of use and non-use, to see if there were any tips for cutting corners and saving money. My budget is tight and I'd like to keep as much in my bank as I can. Rainy day business and all of that.

Oh yeah, I already know to abuse coupons and sales like there's no tomorrow. I think that's a given.

Shockeye can I live in your basement?

[Paelos]

-Check the grocery store circular before you go shopping. Select meals based on ingredients that are on sale.
-If you drink coffee, stay the hell away from Starbucks. If not, good on you.
-If you drink liquor, remember to buy a really nice bottle of whatever type you like for your first two drinks, then a really shitty bottle for the rest. You should go through about 1 good bottle to 4 shitty bottles that way.
-If you drink beer, the same method applies with good beer to shitty beer.
-Have a roommate. Living alone is pricey. However, make sure you have your own bathroom. This is key.
-When drinking in bars, always pay cash. NEVER put a card down. This only leads to shots.
-Stealing is wrong. "Liberating" is the correct term.

[Toast]

1. Don't have a girlfriend
2. Cook a lot of inexpensive foods and try not to get fat. Peanut butter sandwiches are pretty good.
3. Enjoy the taste of tap water. I think brita filters might help.
4. Cancel all MMORPG subscriptions
5. Sign up for medical experiments. They have companies here in Austin that will pay you for testing surgeries/drugs

[Arnold]

It's that horribly fun time where I venture off into the world known as not living at home. I know this will only end in alcohol induced asshattery and shenanigans so outrageous it would give any person over 60 an aneurism. I've come to you people, a wealth of knowledge of use and non-use, to see if there were any tips for cutting corners and saving money. My budget is tight and I'd like to keep as much in my bank as I can. Rainy day business and all of that.

Oh yeah, I already know to abuse coupons and sales like there's no tomorrow. I think that's a given.

Shockeye can I live in your basement?

Convince your parents you need a gas card "for emergencies".  Then proceed to buy booze and food from the closest Shell(or whatever card you have) gas station/convenience store.

[Strazos]

Is this for college, or just to move out?

[Murgos]

Top Ramen and Old English 800, you can live on like $40 bucks a week.

[NiX]

A little bit of both, Straz. I doubt I could get fat if I wanted. I'm 5'6" and I've been 115lbs for the past 3 years. I really don't see that changing either despite my best efforts to get some god damn meat on my body.

I'm definitely looking for more of a roomie type thing to cut down on rent costs. I'd rather pay $300 a month for a room with internet, phone and all that other jazz. Opposed to $500 + hydro and nothing else for a bachelor apartment to myself. So far some damned good advice. Especially the Good -> Bad booze trick.

[UD_Delt]

You don't need both cell phone and land line. Choose one or the other and that'll save you at least $30-$40 per month.

Check your neighborhood for a wireless internet signal. One of your neighbors may have a network set up already that you can leach off of (moreso if you live in an apartment). Less secure and less reliable but free.

Get a credit card with some sort of reward program (if you're responsible). The trick is you have to ALWAYS pay it off in full each and every month. Use it for all your normal expenses and everything else you can provided you ALWAYS pay it off in full on time. I sacrifice interest rate for the reward on my card but since I always pay it off it doesn't matter. My interest rate is 19% but I get back about the equivalent of my minimum payment in a reward program. Avoid this suggestion at all costs if you are not totally anal about money management.

Get a high interest savings account and use it as a sweep account. ING Direct has a good interest rate. The goal here is to keep any money you are not going to need for the next week in a higher interest generating account. Sweep the money in when you get paid and sweep it back out when you need the cash. Again you have to be on the ball as the EFT's usually take about 5 days. I probably only make about $100/year right now doing this but every little bit helps and it's good practice to get you paying close attention to your finances.

Sounds like you're probably too young for the next suggestion but check your housing market for the cost of 2 or 3-unit houses and run the numbers to compare that with average rental rates. Buying a duplex was probably my best investment. For the last 3 years my share of the mortgage on a $160,000 duplex has been about $600/month including property taxes. Probably similar to what you'd pay for rent but I'm building equity at the same time. Even better if you rent out one unit and share another with a friend. I won't even get into the tax benefits...

And finally... Work your ass off. Now's the time to start building up some finances so no more sitting on the couch. You're young, you have free time, and you probably have enough energy. I typically worked 30-40 hours/week while taking a full course load and held 2 jobs when I was on a co-op or off semester. The ideal is to find a nice campus job where you can study at the same time you're getting paid (I was a lab monitor). Alternately job as a barback or bartender as those types of jobs pay dividends when you show back up as a "paying" customer to get drunk.

[Roac]

Regarding food:  learn to cook.  You can go very, very cheap if you're willing to take meat, fresh veggies, and make something, as opposed to boxed or frozen meals.  You're also better off if you don't mind eating leftovers, since it's not always easy to make enough for just one night, for one person.  Whatever I made, it was enough to cover me for 2 nights, and happily lived off $30 a week in college. 

[HaemishM]

Top Ramen and Old English 800, you can live on like $40 bucks a week.

Goddamn right.

[tazelbain]

Move to Qeynos.  A house only costs 5 silver a week to rent and the neighborhood isn't run-down like Freeport.

[Signe]

Marry well!  That's what I did!

[El Gallo]

A little bit of both, Straz. I doubt I could get fat if I wanted. I'm 5'6" and I've been 115lbs for the past 3 years. I really don't see that changing either despite my best efforts to get some god damn meat on my body.

Wait 'til you're 30.

[Furiously]

You want some meat on those bones?

A layer of potato chips with a layer of cheese, another layer of potato chips, more cheese, repeat for 7 layers. Top with more cheese.

Warning: I understand this can lead to a 1200 count on your cholesterol.

[SuperPopTart]

You know in the south they have this weird dish I tried making when I first got here. I never got it right nor will I EVER try it again but it goes something like this:


Layer of hash browns mixed in butter and cream cheese
Layer of sour cream and cream cheese mixed together
Layer of hash browns mixed in butter and cream cheese
Layer of corn flakes mixed in butter.

Bake until golden and bubbly.

Eat.

Call 911.

[Lantyssa]

3. Enjoy the taste of tap water. I think brita filters might help.

Brita filters also work wonders on cheap vodka or other clear alcohol.  Four passes through it and you can buypass the expensive stuff altogether.

Regarding food: learn to cook. You can go very, very cheap if you're willing to take meat, fresh veggies, and make something, as opposed to boxed or frozen meals. You're also better off if you don't mind eating leftovers, since it's not always easy to make enough for just one night, for one person.

This is worth emphasizing.  You can save a lot of money on food by taking the time to make it yourself.  A lot.

It may vary by store, but around here if you shop in the evening you often find meat that has been put on discount.  You will have to use it within a few days or freeze it, but you can save a few dollars more.

Depending on how well you watch your finances, set an entertainment budget and draw from that for movies, books, games, Friday dinner with friends, etc.  Most people cannot completely deprive themselves of some form of entertainment that costs money, so if you plan for it you will prevent a lot of "where did my money go" problems.

[Merusk]

Learn to micromanage your money.  Cash in hand is bad for folks who can't control spending, but credit/ debit cards are worse because of the 'oh shit where'd all my cash go?' factor.   If you don't already know what turns money into a liquid that runs through your fingers, learn fast or else you'll send yourself spiraling into a large amount of debit like my wife did.

Keep track of your finances however works for you.  Money management software is a good investment, so long as you are good about keeping up with it.  Some folks just use an excel spreadsheet, others can just control themselves.  Try the first two before you try the last, though.  Thinking you can control yourself and finding out you can't later is a bad thing.

Never trust the bank.  They're a big corporate business these days, not someplace that holds money.  Deposits/ withdrawls are done in an order beneficial to the bank, not yourself. (1)  Fees are also going through the roof (2), as are funny 'delayed transactions' (3) where things just get lost for a few days.   Keep a cushion to cover this BS. 

1) Say you have $800 in your account, and a check for $20 and one for $850 come through. The $850 will go through first, overdrawing your account and charging you a fee.  Then they'll put the $20 one through and charge you a second fee.  Usually double the first fee. 

2) Overdrafts cost you $33 on the first, then double every one thereafter with the banks I've been with.  (US Bank, 5/3 Bank.)  ATM fees outside of the network are now $2.50 from the ATM itself and usually another $2 -$2.50 from your bank.  If you HAVE to use an out-of network bank, take cash for the week not just the transaction  you're trying to cover.  Some folks do multiple transactions of $10-$20 instead of just taking all $50 or so out at once and cost themselves a lot of money.

3) This is really bad with Debit card transactions.  You'd think they'd be instant being electronic, but they aren't.  I've had charges show up 5-7 days after I had used my card.  Not a problem if you keep track of what you spend and know your Actual Balance.  However, a LOT of people don't keep track and think the number they see on the ATM slip/ Internet Banking is their balance, without looking for what has and has not gone through. 

Some banks are good about this and show a "pending transactions" list on internet banking, but some don't.  Again, it's your money so it's your responsibility, don't trust banks to do it for you.

[MrHat]

/agree with merusk.

Best thing you can do is leave yourself a $500 cushion in your checking.

[Rasix]

1. Get a credit card(s).
2. Go nuts. 
3. In four years, look at your card balance.
4. Weep.
5. Pay off all CC debt now that you have a real job.
6. Profit.

Worked for me.

[UD_Delt]

Never trust the bank.  They're a big corporate business these days, not someplace that holds money.  Deposits/ withdrawls are done in an order beneficial to the bank, not yourself. (1)  Fees are also going through the roof (2), as are funny 'delayed transactions' (3) where things just get lost for a few days.   Keep a cushion to cover this BS. 

1) Say you have $800 in your account, and a check for $20 and one for $850 come through. The $850 will go through first, overdrawing your account and charging you a fee.  Then they'll put the $20 one through and charge you a second fee.  Usually double the first fee. 

I helped develop that system =)

Keep in mind that the people that fuck up their finances and pay overdraft fees are the one's that are allowing the rest of us to have free checking accounts.

[MisterNoisy]

Learn to micromanage your money.  Cash in hand is bad for folks who can't control spending, but credit/ debit cards are worse because of the 'oh shit where'd all my cash go?' factor.   If you don't already know what turns money into a liquid that runs through your fingers, learn fast or else you'll send yourself spiraling into a large amount of debit like my wife did.

Keep track of your finances however works for you.  Money management software is a good investment, so long as you are good about keeping up with it.  Some folks just use an excel spreadsheet, others can just control themselves.  Try the first two before you try the last, though.  Thinking you can control yourself and finding out you can't later is a bad thing.

Never trust the bank.  They're a big corporate business these days, not someplace that holds money.  Deposits/ withdrawls are done in an order beneficial to the bank, not yourself. (1)  Fees are also going through the roof (2), as are funny 'delayed transactions' (3) where things just get lost for a few days.   Keep a cushion to cover this BS. 

1) Say you have $800 in your account, and a check for $20 and one for $850 come through. The $850 will go through first, overdrawing your account and charging you a fee.  Then they'll put the $20 one through and charge you a second fee.  Usually double the first fee. 

Related to this, I highly recommend starting a savings account and splitting your deposits between this and your checking account.  It doesn't even have to be a whole lot -- even $25-50 a check will help out later in the form of overdraft protection from your bank, where any overdrafts draw from your linked savings account with no penalties, and further down in the form of interest.  If you never have to use that protection, all the better.  Any money you didn't spend after each month or two (as long as you keep your checking account cushion) goes into this account as well.

Others here have said it, but it bears repetition - budget.  Take the time to sit down and find out exactly how much you spend and earn in a month.  Allow yourself some 'fuck-around' cash each month, or you'll start spending willy-nilly out of boredom/frustration.

Re:  Cooking - HELL yes.  Even if it's just quicky cooking, you'll save money (I literally spend half as much as my brother on food each month by doing this) and you'll eat a hell of a lot better than you would from boxes/cans/whatever.  Always try to have heavy-duty aluminum foil (for meats) and Ziploc bags (for almost everything else) on hand so that you can take meat/vegetables and disassemble them into 'single guy' portions and freeze/refrigerate them when you get back from the grocery store. 

On a related note, when you get a chance, get some decent cookware, cutlery, etc.  Don't spend a shitton of cash, but avoid the super cheap shit too.  Target, Linens and Things, etc. have a number of nice low to middle-range cookware/cutlery/utensil sets.  Restaurant supply shops (either online or locally if you have one) are even better.  Decent tools help make cooking more fun than a chore.  I find the 15-30 minutes I spend cooking dinner after work (and the accompanying glass of wine) to be easily the most relaxing part of a day during the work week.  Also - chicks dig cooking skills.

As for the MMOG thing -- $15/month isn't much for a reliable 2 hrs entertainment every night.  :)

[HaemishM]

Never trust the bank.  They're a big corporate business these days, not someplace that holds money.  Deposits/ withdrawls are done in an order beneficial to the bank, not yourself. (1)  Fees are also going through the roof (2), as are funny 'delayed transactions' (3) where things just get lost for a few days.   Keep a cushion to cover this BS. 

1) Say you have $800 in your account, and a check for $20 and one for $850 come through. The $850 will go through first, overdrawing your account and charging you a fee.  Then they'll put the $20 one through and charge you a second fee.  Usually double the first fee. 

I helped develop that system =)

Keep in mind that the people that fuck up their finances and pay overdraft fees are the one's that are allowing the rest of us to have free checking accounts.

You're welcome. Bitch. 

Some banks are better about this than others. Do NOT be afraid to change banks if one charges less of an overdraft fee than the other, because even though you never want to take advantage of it, life happens. Changing banks is a hassle, but can save you lots of money.

Also, credit cards are the devil. Really. They are the candy of weak-willed fuckers like me. Get one, never use it. Pay the balance as regularly as possible, because if you don't, you WILL have to get another one. And you don't want that.

[MisterNoisy]

Also, credit cards are the devil. Really. They are the candy of weak-willed fuckers like me. Get one, never use it. Pay the balance as regularly as possible, because if you don't, you WILL have to get another one. And you don't want that.

Well...  I'd say get one for emergencies, because sometimes shit happens (exploding transmissions and the like), but leave it alone otherwise.

[Furiously]

Or find one that pays you back in some way you like. (Cash on mine), and use it for everything and pay off the balance religiously.

[UD_Delt]

Or find one that pays you back in some way you like. (Cash on mine), and use it for everything and pay off the balance religiously.

Exactly. I pay for EVERYTHING with my credit card (bills, entertainment, food, gas, etc...) then pay it off in full. Earned about $900 this year in Vehicle rewards toward the purchase of any car used or new. Once the wife gets her car this year I'll probably switch to a card that gives Air Miles.

[Strazos]

Don't do a semester abroad unless you A) Have lots of cash to burn, or B) Don't mind going into debt.

My CC balence was very low before I went abroad last summer. After I came back, my balence was "Where the fuck did this all come from" high. This is even after I had taken out a fat school loan for the whole thing, which gave me some extra money after paying tuition.

Also, campus jobs can suck because they can lay you off between semesters, and depending on the job, over the summer. Last year, between not working intersession or the summer, I only worked about 8 months out of the year. As an aside, in the US, what is the minimum you have to make in a year to Have to file taxes?

Sorry, I can't really tell you anything about living outside your home since I won't be doing that until probably this fall. I can't tell you anything about cooking because I refuse to do it - it infuriates me. I can sit an dwait in a restaraunt for a long time for my food, but I can't sit and prepare a meal for 10 minutes. Looking at my food, and not being able to just eat it, grates on my nerves.

[Jimbo]

I used to save every extra penny I could in another saving account, then buy a CD for a decent 6, 12, 18, or 24 month rate.  Doesn't look as viable now, but ING does have some nice things I have been checking into.

If you can hack the military, join the Guard or Reserve.  The money from a drill weekend as a low level E-1 isn't much, but the money for college isn't anything to sneeze at, just be sure to get a "C" in every class or you have to pay your college money for that semester back (well sort of, they would take whatever percentage for the classes that got below a C of the money paid).  Of course you have to work out, stay in shape, and might get sent to fight bad guys, but as a bonus you also get to get drunk and chase hookers in all kinds of exotic places  :-D

[Sky]

Yeah, Joining the Guard or Reserve is a GREAT idea as they call everyone and their sick uncle the euphonium player for active duty. He'd be out of boot camp and into the sand before he could get his helmet on straight. If getting drunk and chasing hookers in exotic locales is your thing, take up the guitar ;)

I'll just echo what's already been said: learn to cook, budget your money (and time!), be wary of credit cards if you can't use them responsibly, be choosy in your banking.

My bank is extremely good, I had a couple unfortunate overdrafts due to timing issues, never had to pay any of them. But I've been banking in the same place for 10 years now and I've built up a relationship wth the employees - a very good idea. Credit cards are a decent tool if you don't get stupid buying things you can't afford (a good general rule to keep). I pay most of my bills on my cc to build up rewards and credit (I'm about to set out mortgage hunting and need to have better credit than my previous 'does not exist' record). I've also been doing short-term CDs and other little money projects to maximize my dough.

Learning to cook...well, like Mr. N says, it can become a joy to carry you through the years. And girls really do dig it. My girl went from eating cold cereal or cheese and crackers for dinner (or *shudder* microwave dinners) to a home-cooked meal every night. Last night we had one of our staples, chicken with a white wine and shallot sauce with a side of green beans fried with shallots and garlic. Took about 15 minutes to make and cost $6 for two people. I'm sometimes known as the 'baggy king', because I keep almost every variety of baggy around for freezing, leftovers, gifts, etc. A good selection of bags will save you a lot of food dollars down the road. And heavy-duty aluminum foil is key, not that flimsy shit most people seem to use. Then again, I tend to use more foil because I don't have a microwave, I use a conventional oven for everything.

Wow, I rambled.

[Merusk]

Oh, yeah, I forgot to mention one thing Sky did.  Make friends at the bank.  Been with the same bank for almost 15 years now on my personal account.  I had one oopsie a month back due to timing of funds that would have cost me $66 if I hadden't known the folks at the branch.

Also, on cooking.  Even if you don't want to learn to truly cook, a crock pot is an invaluable tool.  Toss in stuff, let it sit and you get stew, soup, chili and the like for very little effort and it tastes WORLDS better than shit out of a can.

[Yegolev]

Easy.  Ramen and Mad Dog.  I hear it's now called MD.  Try not to pay more than $1.50 per gallon for liquor, or you're being shafted.

An alternative that may still exist are boxes of frozen burritos.  You'll know them when you see them.

Be social.  Make friends.  Mooch.  Go to parties with less than $4 cover and eat/drink everything not nailed down.  It will be blamed on roommates, just don't let them see you.  Also a great way to nab detergent and other staples.

Convince everyone that you have never smoked pot before.  You'll be the king of the circle.

You may or may not get a job.  If so, an option is to get one at, say, Taco Bell where you get a discount.  I had a 50% discount on food and free drinks, which made the job tolerable when I could buy a taco for $.16 and guzzle all the Mountain Dew I wanted.

[Cheddar]

Yeah, Joining the Guard or Reserve is a GREAT idea as they call everyone and their sick uncle the euphonium player for active duty. He'd be out of boot camp and into the sand before he could get his helmet on straight. If getting drunk and chasing hookers in exotic locales is your thing, take up the guitar ;)

You are full of shit.  I highly recommend joining the Armed services.  If you need some questions answered about this feel free to PM me.

[Samwise]

You may or may not get a job.  If so, an option is to get one at, say, Taco Bell where you get a discount.  I had a 50% discount on food and free drinks, which made the job tolerable when I could buy a taco for $.16 and guzzle all the Mountain Dew I wanted.

The downside is that after a semester worth of that, you'll have trouble passing by a Taco Bell without feeling queasy.  I had a big stack of coupons that got me a lot of very cheap lunches at Taco Bell in college... until one day I just couldn't look at the damn things any more.  That was something like four years ago and my stomach still holds a grudge.

[tazelbain]

You are full of shit.  I highly recommend joining the Armed services.  If you need some questions answered about this feel free to PM me.

Nix is Canadian.

[Viin]

Ahaha haha Canadian! Ahaha! Oh boy!

[schild]

It seems he wants to spend $300-500 CAD. Soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo. It's time for a very nice cardboard box. What's that, like $180-350 USD?