Avoiding Unnecessary Purchases

Mail Order Catalog Tip

I love looking through mail order catalogs. In the past I ended up with many items I didn't need because I would fill out that order form and send it in. Now, I fill out the order form with anything that takes my fancy.

Then I throw out the catalog and put the order form away for several days to a week. When I look it over again, I can't even remember why I wanted the items and the order form follows the catalog into the trash (or recycle bin) On the rare occasion that I still want one of the items I order only that.

By irisbird from Lillington, NC

Things To Consider When You Buy Something

At least it is for me! When I am thinking of buying something, I make myself stop long enough to consider the following questions:

1. Is this a planned expenditure or an impulse buy?
2. Am I able to put it to good use right now?
3. How often per year will I be able to use it?
4. Do I have the cash to pay for it right now without impacting anything else?
5. Where am I going to put it or store it at home?

Most of the time, I decide against the purchase after the first couple of questions but if I make it through all of them, I ask myself do I really need this and what else will I be giving up if I do purchase it?

I have found during the past couple of years that I am able to avoid almost all impulse spending in this manner and even most of the planned purchasing.

The only thing that is multiplying and expanding is my savings account, and the elimination of any debt, which makes me very happy. This is the 8th month in a row where I had more money left at the end of the month than I had planned on at the beginning.

By Ronsan

Is It Really Priceless?

No matter what MasterCard executives want you to believe, those scenarios presented in their television advertisements are not priceless; in fact, they're quite expensive. The ads ask an array of appraisal questions all ending with the same answer - priceless. A dozen roses? Priceless. A seven course meal in a fine restaurant? Priceless. A night out with spouse? Priceless. I have a better question: who's believing that an $11 dessert of chocolate covered jalapenos is priceless? The person who isn't opening the bill at the end of the month, that's who.

Everything Has It's Price

The goal of these advertisements is to convince viewers that price is not a question. If you really want something, if it brings you great joy, then it's priceless. The problem is that this type of thinking causes many people to smother in a mountain of debt. Paying your mortgage on time? Priceless.

While that moment is worth treasuring, the bill for it is not. Imagine having a dozen "priceless" moments in one month. Can you afford a few extra hundred dollars a month?

Find What's Really Priceless

There has to be a limit to your "priceless moments." Yes, it's a precious moment to watch your child run across the calm waves on a Caribbean beach, but it's equally as precious to listen to his laughter as you play a board game together at the kitchen table. Yesterday at a Halloween parade, a piece of candy thrown from a float bonked me on the head and fell directly into my son's goody bag. Now that was priceless - literally.

There are many truly priceless moments that can be found. Visa isn't accepted at any of them.

• Watching the sun set - priceless.
• Dancing to those old records - priceless.
• Building a snowman - priceless.
• Looking at family photos together - priceless.
• Decorating for a holiday celebration - priceless.
• Helping others - priceless.
• Eating a simple meal at the table - priceless.
• Sleeping in on a weekend - priceless.
• Realizing your retirement dream because you saved your money wisely and avoided debt - priceless.

By Kelly Ann Butterbaugh

Catalog Purchases

When I receive catalogs or those thick fliers in the mail, I go through them and turn down the page for anything I "think" I want. Then I put it aside for about 1 week. At that point, I look at those items again. Most of the time, it all gets pitched in the recyclables. It gives you a chance to rethink those items and not "impulse buy."

By Barbara from Jacksonville, FL

Learn to Say "No"

When neighbors and friends come around trying to sell items, if it's not something that you're going to be able to use or give as a gift, don't feel like you have to buy from them. Learn to say "no" to frivolous spending.

By Terri

Only Buy Things That You Need On Sale

Don't buy things just because they are on sale! Only buy things you use and then wait until they are on sale, and use coupons!

By Joanne A.

Daily Spending Allowance

Set a daily allowance on spending, once it's gone don't go to the ATM or bank for more money. Keep track of your expenditures. Weigh them to see if you want to keep on the way you are or if there's something that you'd like to quit buying to either put that money towards another purchase or even, in a savings account.

By Terri

Avoiding the Temptation to Spend

If I watch, really, really watch, I'll be able to pay off my credit card bills within a year. Sound familiar? It's a promise many of us make but few keep. No matter how much we try, we can't stop spending. It's a cycle that catches the best of us. In trying to save we end up spending. How can we stop it? By eliminating the temptations.

Beware of Coupons

Just this week I received a coupon from my favorite catalog offering $10 off my purchase, no minimum required. I could order something for $10 and get it for free! What is the reality of that? Most likely I'll spend more than $10, and the catalog knows that. It pained me, but I threw the coupon away.

Mail Sorting

Speaking of that catalog; I threw it away too without even opening it. Too many times I have paged through a catalog with the intention of "just looking." That ends up being a costly perusal. Inevitably, there is something on sale that I can't refuse in those pages.

The best money saving action I've taken is to sort the mail on my way in the house. Anything that is a temptation to spend goes in the trash can and never sees the inside of my house. I might have missed some sales, but when I don't even know what it is, I won't want it to begin with.

Stay Home

Catalogs aren't the only place that tempt me with sales. A Saturday trip with my mother is often costly. I go with her to the stores for "something to do" or just to spend time with her, intending on purchasing nothing. Yet, the two for the price of one sales catch me every time. Again, it's a great deal to buy two Yankee candles for the price of one, but if I hadn't gone shopping in the first place I would be $22 richer and I doubt I'd feel lacking for a candle.

Make a Game of It

Since I'm not opening my mail or going to stores, I had some free time to invent a money saving game. I bet myself how long I could go without buying anything. Gas and basic groceries were my only exceptions. I lasted ten days which was impressive. I buckled when I needed to buy a tube of glue.

For that week and a half my bankbook was much easier to balance (no withdrawals or purchases to record), and it was happily full. I really noticed a difference without that here and there spending. Besides that, it made me think a bit more before buying something, and often after some thought I realized that I could do without it. Best of all, I had more time in my week without the many trips to one store or another.

By Kelly Ann Butterbaugh