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Old 04-22-2018, 12:55 PM   #21
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Recently my monthly expenses have been about 50% of my net income stream from SS and pensions. I stash the rest in PMMF (currently 1.79%) to squander at a later date.


So far my plan is working.
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Old 04-22-2018, 01:37 PM   #22
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Originally Posted by Just_Steve View Post
I just finished a kitchen gut remodel, saved close to 10k doing my own electrical and another 3k on plumbing. So it does pay to learn something sometimes.
+1

I am past remodeling age now, just too lazy. But I have always viewed a problem to be solved as an opportunity to learn something and maybe to buy a new tool or two. It has always puzzled me a little when people decide instead to remain helpless.

Re licensing of trades, there are projects and situations I won't do for myself, like tying in a new electrical service entrance. But I easily split my service, added a box, and moved a number of circuits to a generator transfer switch as insurance against losing heat and refrigeration during outages. For electrical, there is a very famous book "Wiring Simplified" (https://www.amazon.com/Wiring-Simpli.../dp/099790531X) that covers more than a homeowner will ever need to know. Ten bucks on Amazon and IIRC Home Depot carries it as well.

The thing, too, is that when you have the capability to do something you find uses for it fairly often. If you have to hire someone, the small changes and optimizations just don't get done. DS and I just changed the motion light system on the side of the garage; added a light and switched to LEDs. No way would I have called someone to do that and paid the multi-hundred dollar bill.

Much of the trades licensing is to create barriers to entry so the incumbents benefit by being able to charge higher prices. Usually the licensing boards are 100% packed with people who don't want new entrants. So needing a license doesn't really imply that the work being done is too complex or intimidating for ordinary mortals with good judgment.
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Old 04-22-2018, 02:00 PM   #23
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While the little monthly expenses add up it's the big things that really hurt. Property taxes are beginning to take their toll after a period of relative calm. Over the last year we had a big millage for road improvements and now a school millage is on the ballot. Not for new text books or education but new welcome centers for school security (28 million). In addition the sewer system down at the lake is now 50 years old and needs a major upgrade. Yet another millage. A couple years ago they stuck the out of towners with a new high school millage. ( The local homesteaders don't pay).

In total this will be an additional $2k+ per year forever. ( At least for me). The bright side is that currently taxes have surpassed healthcare as our #1 expense. As long as healthcare stays at #2 I'm happy.
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Old 04-23-2018, 06:58 AM   #24
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When we moved 10 years ago, we dropped our satellite TV service. Started using an antenna and a home-built PVR. Monthly cost: $0.

About 4 years ago, we switched our home phone service to google voice. Monthly cost: $0.

I'm not gonna calculate the savings, but it's nothing to sneeze at.
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Old 04-23-2018, 07:32 AM   #25
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No landline, using Sling for Cable TV at $45 monthly and Cricket for cell phone at an avg of $25 per line for 4 lines.
So we had Sling too and just switched to Hulu...highly recommended much happier with Hulu..it's 40 bucks before tax has all the sports channel of sling orange and blue. DVR space of 50 hours and such a huge streaming demand platform that we canceled Netflix ....and streams local network TV as well.
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Old 04-23-2018, 07:34 AM   #26
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Use the dryer sheets new at a TP substitute - brings an incredible amount of softness to the tenders..... then rinse well and toss in the dryer. Like they say, re-use and renew.
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Old 04-23-2018, 07:07 PM   #27
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The same trick can be used for future expenses.

When someone says "only $xx per month" or (worse yet) "only $xx per week," convert that to annual cost.

When someone tries to sell you something on a longer-term payment plan, calculate the total you'll pay by the end of the term.

Only when you know the REAL cost can you set your priorities and spend your money on the products or services you want the most.
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Old 04-23-2018, 07:44 PM   #28
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So we had Sling too and just switched to Hulu...highly recommended much happier with Hulu..it's 40 bucks before tax has all the sports channel of sling orange and blue. DVR space of 50 hours and such a huge streaming demand platform that we canceled Netflix ....and streams local network TV as well.
Will look into it. Offhand, do you know of any major channels that Hulu doesn't have vs. Sling. For example we do watch quite a bit of MSNBC.
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Old 04-23-2018, 08:06 PM   #29
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Will look into it. Offhand, do you know of any major channels that Hulu doesn't have vs. Sling. For example we do watch quite a bit of MSNBC.
lots of news on hulu... One missing channel would be AMC...
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Old 04-23-2018, 08:22 PM   #30
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lots of news on hulu... One missing channel would be AMC...
One of the few series we watch is "Walking Dead" on AMC, but will still check out Hulu.
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Old 04-23-2018, 09:01 PM   #31
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Good idea! I was able to sign up for Sprint unlimited for "free" last July (although there is a $3.89 month tax fee) that is pretty sweet (only for a year). Saves a chunk of money even over Republic or Ting.

...
I tried to sign up for that too, but when they started asking the addresses of where I lived 20 and 30 years ago, they got me and told me my credit was not any good. I lived in many apartments along the way for short periods while working. I got the impression they were looking for much younger clients than me. I told them they could keep their silly games and their service.
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Old 04-25-2018, 08:11 AM   #32
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One of the few series we watch is "Walking Dead" on AMC, but will still check out Hulu.
We did watch but 2 seasons of nothing happening made realize we won't miss it...our rural UHF transmitter seems to have failed for lack of funding and we needed an option for the major networks.. for NFL and other big sporting events as well as local news and weather. the DVR feature is handier then we expected.
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Saving my life beats saving money
Old 04-25-2018, 09:22 AM   #33
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Saving my life beats saving money

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...there are projects and situations I won't do for myself
...even if I have done similar projects before. But those were under less daunting circumstances.

I painted the exterior of our previous homes, but they were low split-levels. We've been in our current 4-story house for 22 years and always hired out the painting. The 40 foot ladder required to reach the peak height is too heavy for me to lift. It took three guys to set it up.

Ditto for replacing the roof. The pitch is so steep I'd have slid off and died a painful, twitching death. The guys who installed it stuck on up there like Spiderman; I would not have.

Home maintenance presents significant recurring cost, and DIY offers a lot of saving opportunities. But, as Harry Callahan reminds us, a man's gotta know his limitations.
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Old 04-25-2018, 06:52 PM   #34
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Who even has a landline anymore? Look, you could have saved even more..
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Old 04-25-2018, 07:01 PM   #35
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I have a landline because I like it.
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Old 04-25-2018, 09:15 PM   #36
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I like using the math showing how much cash you would need to pay a recurring expense. If I had a $150 cable bill and my SWR was 3.5%, then I would have to save "only" $51,000. When I share that example with folks that aren't very conscious about the real cost of stuff, they look at me like I am crazy.
Thank you for letting me know that I'm NOT crazy for doing exactly the same thing !!!
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Old 04-25-2018, 11:25 PM   #37
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I've had Google voice for many years now, which is completely free. Maybe they should show me a reminder of how much I saved by cancelling Ooma and replacing it with their service.
+1

I use Google Voice with an OBi200 VoIP adapter for totally free landline phone service. Ooma is like a Sunday in TJ. It's cheap but it's not free.
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Old 04-26-2018, 07:10 AM   #38
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...even if I have done similar projects before. But those were under less daunting circumstances.

I painted the exterior of our previous homes, but they were low split-levels. We've been in our current 4-story house for 22 years and always hired out the painting. The 40 foot ladder required to reach the peak height is too heavy for me to lift. It took three guys to set it up.

Ditto for replacing the roof. The pitch is so steep I'd have slid off and died a painful, twitching death. The guys who installed it stuck on up there like Spiderman; I would not have.

Home maintenance presents significant recurring cost, and DIY offers a lot of saving opportunities. But, as Harry Callahan reminds us, a man's gotta know his limitations.
Have an older relative who before they turned 70 made sure to replace the wood windows on their brick rancher with vinyl, so no more need to paint the exterior window trim.

Along with having a top-of-the-line shingle roof installed they've minimized exterior maintenance on that house for their lifetime.

EDIT: land-lines.

when I sold mom's house (over a decade ago) I found she had been leasing two phones from AT&T (around $20/month) for at least 20 years...
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Old 04-26-2018, 12:32 PM   #39
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The same trick can be used for future expenses.

When someone says "only $xx per month" or (worse yet) "only $xx per week," convert that to annual cost.

When someone tries to sell you something on a longer-term payment plan, calculate the total you'll pay by the end of the term.

Only when you know the REAL cost can you set your priorities and spend your money on the products or services you want the most.
You see this with charities sometimes. All of those tear-jerking "Feed the starving children" and "Save the abused animals" TV ads always try to minimize the monthly $20 cost by saying it is "only 63 cents per day....." Well, that is $240 per year, not a trivial amount.
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Old 04-26-2018, 12:40 PM   #40
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You have a driveway? You spendthrift.
hahaha
This makes me laugh. My 90 something year old neighbor and a few of his buddies do not have driveways. I suppose the extra maintenance cost. Heck you probably dont even need to mow it, but I'd recommend moving the car once in a while.
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