Trying to save money

[Dead Clown]

I am 21 studying getting payed about 500 a week part time jobs and have a girlfriend I can hardly save at all I still live at home, have a phone and car loan.. Anyone else in my boat?? I kinds feel depressed

[qdave]

its much better than being 25 and not having a job at all :p and as any person i also have debts to pay :p

there is nothning to be depressed about really...once you will finish education you should get a decent job. and then the savings will start.

[Matrix XII]

Oh believe me man, I feel it too :(

[funkymunky]

What you're earning for part time work seems very good :)

I'm in the same boat, I'm at Uni and have two jobs :(

[bolix]

I'm not exactly there, but im struggling with having extra money. With my girlfriend and all expenses i never get to have extra money for savings.

[TheKindred]

Refinance the car loan. Should free up money as long as your credit report looks shiny and you don't have any other serious debts.

Remember that saving something, no matter how much, is better than nothing at all. Even if all you can do is part with 20 dollars a month then do it. Financial freedom is alot easier than people think.

[_bobcat_ Veteran]

If you are working part time and studying then it's common to have zero spare cash. Most of us end up in debt. I don't beat myself up about my lack of savings because in a year or two I will be in a position to (hopefully) get a job that pays enough to save. I plan to save LOTS to make up for these "lost years" on pensions and house deposit etc. If I hadn't gone to uni, I'd never earn enough to save all that much anyway.

You could consider selling the car for a cheaper model (or selling it completely) ... but do *something* to make the payments lower. The thing is, any loan is likely to have higher interest rates than your average bank/building society savings account. You might as well put all your spare cash into getting rid of debts first.

Other than that, try and live as cheaply as possible. Go for every freebie you can get and every time you find yourself taking out your wallet to buy something, question yourself if you really need it, and can you wait a week? If it can wait a week then wait, you'll probably forget what you wanted it :p

I started doing this with food as well by the way. I'm not starving lol, but I just don't buy those extra snacks that I don't really need, or I go for a cheaper method of doing things i.e. taking my own lunch every day, refilling drinks bottles. I buy cheaper *everything* and just live with the slightly lower quality. I also buy less of everything and use things frugally. It's annoying, but it's not forever.

[Bloodwork]

$500 a week is pretty good IMO for a 21 year old in school. Maybe you need to reevaluate your spending.

[colealtdelete]

$500 a week is pretty good IMO for a 21 year old in school. Maybe you need to reevaluate your spending.

I wish I could work PT for $500! I work full-time and make around $700/wk.

I understand the car loan, gas, insurance, etc.

But write down everything you spend. My fiancee and I just started to do that. We see how much we spend on take-out/going out to eat/spending money on things we don't need.

[gnuman]

You could hire me as your financial advisor! Or you could use a site like Mint.com to track your spending.

If you need more cash, pimp out the GF. :D

[mtrftw]

You make 24,000 a year, live at home and can't save any?

[gnuman]

You make 24,000 a year, live at home and can't save any?

Quite sad isn't it. No one knows how to save anymore. They want everything now now now.

[HTF]

wow, 500 a week part time thats pretty good, considering i make not even $500 in 2 weeks working 40 hours a week.

lol now i'm depressed.

[patconn87]

I work about 25 hrs a week and take home about $425 every other week after taxes and everything, but I still somehow have money to spend (even though I have a car and everything...) Yes, I live at home, but I pay for pretty much everything but room, board, base cell bill and half of the insurance costs for my car.

I'd just say cut back on the excess and live on the cheap, as some people have already said. I usually only buy things like extra food when it goes on sale, other than that I just get what I need.

It's hard to save nowadays with all of the retailers rubbing their products in your face... it's the instant gratification getting to people, that "gotta have it NOW" mentality.

If you need more cash, pimp out the GF. :D

Lol...

[roadgeek9]

Just don't invest in the stock market. I'm watching MSNBC right now, and things aren't looking too good.

[MrChainsaw]

Just don't invest in the stock market. I'm watching MSNBC right now, and things aren't looking too good.

Invest in Gold or other precious metals.

[mtrftw]

I work about 25 hrs a week and take home about $425 every other week after taxes and everything, but I still somehow have money to spend (even though I have a car and everything...) Yes, I live at home, but I pay for pretty much everything but room, board, base cell bill and half of the insurance costs for my car.

I'd just say cut back on the excess and live on the cheap, as some people have already said. I usually only buy things like extra food when it goes on sale, other than that I just get what I need.

It's hard to save nowadays with all of the retailers rubbing their products in your face... it's the instant gratification getting to people, that "gotta have it NOW" mentality.

Lol...

How much left do you have to pay for if your room, board, cell phone and 1/2 of your car insurance is paid for?

Just don't invest in the stock market. I'm watching MSNBC right now, and things aren't looking too good.

Now *IS* the time to invest.

[KeeperOfThePizza]

I am 21 studying getting payed about 500 a week part time jobs and have a girlfriend I can hardly save at all I still live at home, have a phone and car loan.. Anyone else in my boat?? I kinds feel depressed

I'm 23, I work at a dead end job and make almost nothing.. I still live at home also.. trust me your situation could be worse.

[HTF]

i hear ya johnny, my job, aswell as being very low pay, is a dead end job, and i still live with my parents, and have child support to pay and i gotta pay to live here with my parents.

one good thing is my gf is just about to graduate from nursing school. so at least ill have a sugar momma lol :laugh:

[Frank]

If you are truly making $500.00 a week and you live at home you should be saving (IMO) about $1000 a month with no issues. You need to start tracking what you are spending your money on and cutting back on stuff that isn't needed to be spent.

Just don't invest in the stock market if you are looking for a quick buck. I'm watching MSNBC right now, and things aren't looking too good.

I fixed that for you. For people who are young and don't need their savings for retirement anytime soon, SMART investing is exactly what they should be doing right now.

[sanctified Veteran]

http://www.thesimpledollar.com/

[Dave Diller]

http://www.thesimpledollar.com/

Awesome site, Trent rules.

Also, $500 every week is a bit of money - what part of what country do you live in? Around here, $500 take-home every week would go pretty far even if you have all your expenses to take care of besides a place to live. Figure out exactly how much you spend, and wha tyou spend it on. Not to make an assumption, but is most of it on your gf? I make about $300 every 2 weeks working part time and still have some wiggle room....you need to evaluate how you are spending your money.

[sanctified Veteran]

Awesome site, Trent rules.

Also, $500 every week is a bit of money - what part of what country do you live in? Around here, $500 take-home every week would go pretty far even if you have all your expenses to take care of besides a place to live. Figure out exactly how much you spend, and wha tyou spend it on. Not to make an assumption, but is most of it on your gf? I make about $300 every 2 weeks working part time and still have some wiggle room....you need to evaluate how you are spending your money.

Thanks to that blog I have learned to live in a mininalist way very happily :yes: