Cee Mo Money

Back to my old spending habits!

You know you’re back to your old spending habits when you realize you’re scourging Internet deal sites like:

slickdeals.net
bensbargains.net
fatwallet.com

and buying random unnecessary crap. After purchasing  a whole bunch of things which will lose its novelty by the time it reaches me, I’m certainly going to have buyers remorse after this.

Discount products online are discounted for their apparent reasons [going out of style, low demand and overstocked items, etc.].  These sites are evil, especially after depending on them for so long as a college student.  You still go with the flow.  Albeit there are some hidden gems at these sites, the rest are crap items.  So the next time you end up on one of these sites, you need to ask yourself…

“Do I really need this?” or “What am I going to use this for?” or even “If I buy this am I going to use it more than once?”

The cool thing about these sites is you’ll come across a lot of stuff that you passed up as you were window shopping through the mall since they were too pricey.  I’ll admit some of the items may be a bit dated, but in some people’s eyes they are steals!  For example, Newegg.com is selling Soul Calibur IV for Xbox 360, brand new, for $17!  To think I was going to plop down $40 for this game used only a couple of months later to find the game cheaper, brand new.  If you throw in NBA2K9 for about $20 in there too, I bought 2 games for the price of the used game I was going to buy. Note: This only works if you’re willing to wait out on it, you won’t find a deal on popular games yet.

I would only recommend visiting these kind of sites when looking for a deal on a TV, Monitor, Laptop, PC, Cameras, Hard Drives [Ok tons of Computer accessories], and cables [Why cables? Who in their right mind would spend $100 for a 6 foot HDMI cable? When you can get it for only $15].

Although I may have gone back to my old spending habits, I’ve managed to catch myself before I piled up my apartment with worthless crap. Then again, I can always use them for Christmas presents.

Impulse Purchases!

I’ll admit it.  I am (or was) an impulse buyer.  I’ve learned to control my urges since.

What is an Impulse Buyer and why do they make Impulse Purchases?

According to Wikipedia:

An impulse purchase or impulse buy is an unplanned or otherwise spontaneous purchase. One who tends to make such purchases is referred to as an impulse purchaser or impulse buyer.

So now you know what that means, how many of you guys are impulse buyers?  I’m pretty sure a majority of you are.  It’s human nature and a lot of marketing!

I used to be so bad, I’d go into Fry’s Electronics and leave with some random electronic device or goto Foot Locker and pick up the latest Jordans. I racked up a ton of debt in impulse purchases when I was in college it was nuts now that I look back on it! I can now go out, have my wallet filled with cash and credit cards, go walk through the mall and not buy a thing.

Let’s do some quick math with my previous spending binges so you have a better understanding:
Monthly Jordan Purchases: $120-$180
Electronic Purchases: $100-$200

Let’s say we go with the averages:
@ $300/mo for Shoes/Electronics Yearly Cost: $3600

Minimum:
@ $220/mo for Shoes/Electronics Yearly Cost: $2640

Maximum:
@ $380/mo for Shoes/Electronics Yearly Cost: $4560

Let that sink into your head for a bit….

Are you ready to listen now?

There are TONS of ways to approach this.

The way I personally do it is by asking myself “Do I really need this?” and “Will I be still be using it in the next 6 months?”.  If they meet the criteria, then I’ll go through with the purchase. Telling yourself “I deserve it” or “I can’t live without it” are the worst excuses you can give yourself.  I have a collection of electronics I no longer use and my Jordan collection still stands, at the same time I don’t have to buy shoes for a long time.

You can try using a list.  Before you go out for the day, write down a list of things you NEED to buy and go do your errands.  I live and die by my list.

I also keep a budget aside for “toys” and “entertainment” so if I feel like spending, I’ll go buy it guilt free. If you don’t have any kind of budgeting setup, better get started!

Or another way of looking at it is, add up all of those purchases you made in the past year and see how much value it’s worth to you now. Not worth much when it’s piled up in your closet or garage is it?

If you’re the worst of the worst… take your Credit Cards, chop em’ up, or freeze them in a block of ice!

It’s all about discipline.  Make the changes you need. If you want out of debt, you’re going to have to make a ton of sacrifices.  Sell all the old crap you’re no longer using! If you have a goal to buy a house, a car, or go on a lavish vacation, make that your motivation to save up.

ps. I would’ve used a picture of a woman, but then I would’ve gotten a lot of heat from women out there. Enjoy!

Saving Wisely and Still Have Fun!

It’s currently tax season and all and I was just reviewing my expenditures from 2008 and found that in 3 months into 2008 I had spent about $9k from Jan-Mar. OUCH.

I look at the same time frame now and I’ve spent $1k less!

Now this includes a raise in salary and putting more money into savings too, so I’ve probably saved a lot more than that.

Don’t you find it interesting when you go over your expenses and see how your spending habits are? It’s puzzling to see where you spend your money and ask yourself why and how did it end up there. Despite of being in a recession/depression (whatever you want to call it nowadays) you can still spend for the luxuries you enjoy! You just have to know how to save and spend wisely.

Well what do you mean spend for luxuries and still save?

I like to do a lot of things, which means I have to spend money to enjoy them. If you really want to do something, you do it.  So I wanted to save more money.  Sacrifices had to be made, but I can still have fun!

I’ve cut back on my “entertainment” and “hobby” expenses, which include going out to the club/bar ($40 a night) and snowboarding ($150 a trip). Since I’ve been cutting back on that, I’ve actually reallocated the money spent on those activities to either travel, put more into savings, or put it into my business.

I’ve also scaled back on eating out as well. I love to dine at fancy restaurants; can’t help it, it’s just something I like to do. Who wouldn’t love to dine on a steak and lobster meal every now and then or maybe have a fancy salad for lunch.  Yea.. I was feelin’ the pinch on this too. So I had to make some sacrifices on it as well..  make your own meals and eat in!  On the plus side, it teaches you how to be a better cook too!

Money saved from cutting back can go to doing more fun things or getting that “toy” you’ve sought after for sometime.

Now what do I do with all this extra money and maintain it?

This is where it gets fun… get an Online Savings account (or a regular one). Doesn’t matter with who you sign up with. Just find one you like, especially one with a good interest rate (it’s really low right now.. I know it sucks).  ING Direct gives you $25 if you sign up with them and if I refer you I get like $5 bucks, so if you’re interested just drop me your email address.

So what the heck do I with this thing after I sign up?

Put money into it of course!  I have mine setup to take $25 out of my checking account on a weekly basis.  I call this account my “fun” account; i’m putting $100 a month into savings. Big deal it’s just $100! Look at this way, $100/month equates to $1200/year! Of course it’s a big deal, when you’re going to splurge on a cool toy or do something “fun” just pull it out of this account.  This is so you’re not spending it once your paycheck comes in.  Pay yourself first!

Be realistic when setting up financial goals for yourself. I was pretty optimistic myself, but when you look at how the money grows it becomes substantial. Maybe I’ll try saving up for that trip to Australia or London next year…

Cheers!

Really Cheap: 7-Eleven Iced Coffee

7-Eleven Iced Coffee

Originally uploaded by cmorales06

I’m in search this morning for a different kind of coffee. Unfortunately, not a lot of places that have coffee are open at 5:30am. Starbucks is open at 5:30, but their coffee is pricey and I’m already getting tired of the same thing.

I drive around the area and scout for a coffee shop or anything open in that matter and I come across 7-Eleven. I know 7-Eleven has coffee and noticed that they have Iced Coffee now as well. I thought to myself, “Hell, why not give it a shot”. It’s about a little over 2 bucks for a 20 oz cup.

Very disappointed in the taste.. very nasty on initial taste and the after taste is horrible. Then again, this is what I expected from a 7-Eleven. Hopefully, they’ll find some way to improve the taste. It’s terrible! Who does the taste test on these things anyway?

Next up, McDonald’s Iced Coffee. Rumor has it that their Iced Coffee is pretty good and is in the same price range as well.

NO DEAL: $1.50 Cheesecake @ The Cheesecake Factory

But there’s a catch….

THERE’S ALWAYS A CATCH.

As quoted on The Cheesecake Factory’s site:

…featuring all cheesecakes at $1.50 per slice, limit ONE per guest, dine in only…

Bummer.  They could’ve at least gone with a 2-5 slice limit. Geez.  I feel ripped off for wasting my breath and time reading about this.  I can’t help it, I like to eat!  A 2 slice limit @ $1.50 would’ve been better.

Gotta love the fine print!