Last weekend we went and bought "rail rover" tickets for a 3 week vacation in England at the end of April. The pound is down to $1.45 compared to $1.99 exactly a year ago.
Spending more now? Interesting Asset Allocation Parallel
- Thread starter FUEGO
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Last weekend we went and bought "rail rover" tickets for a 3 week vacation in England at the end of April. The pound is down to $1.45 compared to $1.99 exactly a year ago.
Good article; something to keep in mind. Doesn't change my basic premise, though, that when prices are down (rather than up) it's time for folks like me to be on the lookout for bargains.
RonBoyd
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You'll get no argument from me on that... folks like me, also.
shiny
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I hope this isn't too off-topic... this is a reason DH is so torn about staying in his job or quitting. As soon as he quits we want to travel and now there are lots of travel deals. So, does he stay to save more money or quit to take advantage of a time when there are deals (then stop traveling in time to catch the very bottom of the housing market?)
Its a conundrum.
Its a conundrum.
Some of our spending has been constrained by supply & demand. If we'd tried to get contractors into a home in 2006-7 we would've been waiting weeks for them to return our phone calls. So the money doesn't get spent.
Now, however, everybody's happy to see us! The recent "home show" was full of eager vendors and sparse crowds. We're getting our FuturaStone driveway/lanai replaced with stamped concrete and repairing some deteriorating lava rock steps. Home Depot is thrilled to refurbish a master bathroom counter/cabinets. A local cabinet-refacing store is happy to work on the other bathroom, as long as it doesn't conflict with the guy resurfacing the 30-year-old bathtub. The rental home's solar-powered attic exhaust fans went in yesterday and next month we're resurfacing a lanai roof and installing new skylights. I ask an acquaintance at the solar supply store to let me know when he's selling a cheap 5-7 KW inverter at a deep clearance discount.
We're also seeing great bargains on Craigslist-- lots of high-end furniture, appliances, & store gift cards. We're always looking because we never know what we'll [-]lust[/-] want, but now the shopping is a lot easier/cheaper. And if another kilowatt of photovoltaic panels is selling for under $4/watt... well... I can always store them until I get around to installing them.
I haven't priced Norwegian Cruise Lines, but in the last year they've gone from three interisland ships to one. Now I'm seeing ads for onboard credits and other freebies. My impression is that a last-minute passenger could drive down to Aloha Tower Pier 10 on a Friday afternoon and score a great deal on an interisland cruise leaving a few days later.
You mean, other than Warren Buffett?
Spouse has talked about "taking some off the table" during the next big market runup. We're still discussing exactly what that means.
Cheap travel deals should not be the key decision in your decision to retire. If you are FI and just marking time, then may be this could be the trigger but you need to be sure of your finances.
shiny
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Ding, ding, ding!
Our situation is complicated by being on a lucrative international assignment and having an older dog. But that is really OT, so I'm just focused here on the fact that we'd like to be out there taking advantage of the deals, but we aren't for now.
Ronstar
Moderator Emeritus
I've reduced spending 38%, but I'll probably use the savings to rebuild my deck this summer.
Good point. With snow on the ground here and the supply-demand situation you describe, it's probably time for me to make a list of things I can't/don't want to do myself and get some estimates.
Moemg
Gone but not forgotten
I'm with Nords on the finally being able to get more reasonable things done on my house . So I'm definetely going to do over one bathroom ,add some landscaping near the pool and recarpet and paint two rooms . My travel plans are pretty much family oriented this year but I'll probably also grab a bargain cruise .
freebird5825
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Is anyone spending more money now during the current economic downturn than previously?
I've been cutting food bills drastically, and gasoline costs for myself by staying home more during the day, but that has nothing to do with the economy.
It has more to do with the 12 day Mediterranean cruise we've been saving up for well over a year. Balance is due in April, and then we need to keep saving up for shore excursions. After July 09, we will be back to our normal "mad money budget". But I believe we will continue to live more cheaply. Why not?
I've been cutting food bills drastically, and gasoline costs for myself by staying home more during the day, but that has nothing to do with the economy.
It has more to do with the 12 day Mediterranean cruise we've been saving up for well over a year. Balance is due in April, and then we need to keep saving up for shore excursions. After July 09, we will be back to our normal "mad money budget". But I believe we will continue to live more cheaply. Why not?
audreyh1
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I'm not spending more now. I'm just glad we were spending well and gifting money back in late 2007 when things were flush. I'm really glad we withdrew from the retirement fund to buy our motorhome in 2005 when things were flush - otherwise the money would just have gone "poof" in 2008. Now we'll just keep out spending steady and not go hog wild. Not reigning in spending either. Staying invested for sure.
Audrey
P.S. We did some of regular annual maintenance/service on our motorhome last week. Both facilities we visited were not nearly as busy as a year ago. Never seen the service departments so empty! Usually they are overflowing. Now they look like 75% of capacity. Nice for us!
Audrey
P.S. We did some of regular annual maintenance/service on our motorhome last week. Both facilities we visited were not nearly as busy as a year ago. Never seen the service departments so empty! Usually they are overflowing. Now they look like 75% of capacity. Nice for us!
pie2008
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Actually, we are spending more
Yes, we are spending more. However, we have always lived way beneath our means and even with the extra spending, we are still socking away quite a bit of money.
We tried and failed to sell our house last year -- then the economy tanked even further. Almost nothing is selling in our area, so we haven't decided whether or not to try sell this year. My husband thinks maybe he will work another year or two, or until his company eliminates his job (haha or not so funny). To make ourselves more comfortable, we are buying a few items that we were putting off till we retired and relocated.
Yes, we are spending more. However, we have always lived way beneath our means and even with the extra spending, we are still socking away quite a bit of money.
We tried and failed to sell our house last year -- then the economy tanked even further. Almost nothing is selling in our area, so we haven't decided whether or not to try sell this year. My husband thinks maybe he will work another year or two, or until his company eliminates his job (haha or not so funny). To make ourselves more comfortable, we are buying a few items that we were putting off till we retired and relocated.
FUEGO
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To revive the thread, anyone spending more now? Things are starting to look positive for the economy. Has anyone that had increased their savings over the last year decided that their emergency fund was large enough and now is the time to splurge and take advantage of some cheap prices on things?
ziggy29
Moderator Emeritus
Yes -- we've started doing this in the last week (or at least planning some upcoming spending). But it's not so much because of the market or macroeconomic factors as it is that my wife has secured a job and my paycheck and health benefits aren't a single point of catastrophic financial failure any more.
I'm comfortable with taking the 1.5+ years of expenses we had down to about 9-12 months now. We've been deferring several household projects we had the cash to cover, but until now I've been [-]paranoid[/-] cautious enough to want to keep it liquid in case I got laid off. Now we plan to get rolling on some of them -- and it's a good time to do it because a lot of contractors are desperate for work.
CuppaJoe
Moderator Emeritus
In a fit of frivolity, I'm spending 2/3 of my economic stimulus payout on inexpensive new retiree costumes: Tee and polo shirts, jeans and the all important PJs. Otherwise, my expenses in retirement are less than anticipated.
LOL!
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You just bought my work clothes wardrobe for the last 30 years. I am going to the thrift shop in retirement. My spouse volunteers at one, so I hope I will be able to get the good stuff.
CuppaJoe
Moderator Emeritus
LOL!
It'll be some time before I learn enough to get a promotion from Rookie to Amateur Retiree. Okay, here's the plan: I know where the thrift stores are, I'll hang out in nearby coffee shops....
Leonidas
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
In general I have not been spending any less since I retired. But this past 12 months or so I've held off on a few big purchases.
It's time to get rid of the wife's gas guzzling SUV mom-taxi and buy something easier on fuel. And while I will keep my old big truck, I want to buy something small and super fuel efficient for my use in around town driving. It's the right thing to do in our situation, but I'm just not overcome with blatant consumerism for cars nowadays. If the kids were out of school (and off my insurance) I could find myself in a new, or gently used Mustang/Camaro/Hemi-Challenger or a Boxster or Cayman. I think I could trust the 20-year-old, but his younger brother thinks and acts way too much like I did when I was that age and no way in hell is he getting behind the wheel of anything more powerful than a four-cylinder.
The local economy finally seems to be slowing down, so I think if I can get one more cooling season out of my two central AC units that this fall might be a good time to spend the dough to replace them and get a good price. Looked into it last year but my AC guy said the commodities prices had really driven up the prices on new units so I held off.
I boosted cash last year by selling some stocks that were timed to take profits and stuck away enough cash for several years of regular expenses, plus 7 years of tuition bills, and some extra that I had left over after buying bargains in the market. That boosted my comfort levels and I was confident enough that we really didn't need to cut spending too much. We skipped a spring break vacation because I just couldn't face spending a lot of money when the market was dropping like a drunk falling down some stairs. So the next 12-15 months will see more traveling/vacations than usual (a winter and spring ski trip instead of just one, etc.). Maybe Europe this year or next spring, but with the dollar getting its teeth kicked in recently I may hold off and wait to see if that situation improves before we venture off shore.
Edit to add: I did some retiree wardrobe shopping as well. T-shirts and shorts were on sale at Academy, and my local Wally World finally got some of these in (much to my wife's distress):
Moemg
Gone but not forgotten
We went to new York for a wedding and a vacation . New York hotels are a real bargain now and a lot of the restaurants are offering specials so what is usually an expensive trip was reasonable . We also got Blue Man Group tickets in orlando for half price that combined with a $31.00 rate at a Hyatt in Orlando made for another thrifty getaway . So we are planning a few more of those while the prices are rock bottom . I've also started to car shop . Beware they are so desperate they attack you as you near the parking lot .
freebird5825
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
I'm shopping for a smoker.
Actually, my purse strings have loosened up. "Our" bill paying account is finally in the black after last summer's $4/gal gas drain.
dh2b treated himself to some specialty tools to fix the cars. I got new shiny metal license plate holders for my 'Stang.
I've done some "girlie girl" clothing shopping for upcoming vacation. I keep catching some good deals at online retailers. Free shipping, costs slashed for real not the usual sale hype, etc. I figure out what I want ahead of time, check back every few weeks, then POUNCE.
Notmuchlonger
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We are on schedule to spend less this year. Excluding the one time major expense categories. I would have to say I am really tempted to buy another house just for shits and giggles.
youbet
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Good question. Here in Chicagoland, housing, cars and travel seem to be available at good prices. My food, medical, utility and tax bills are steady to increasing.
pie2008
Dryer sheet aficionado
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We're still spending more. This past weekend we replaced our 31-year old clothes dryer and 24-year old refrigerator. Test driving cars now to replace my 23-year old vehicle. Sales are plentiful and prices are nice and low.
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