Comments on: Tip #9: Only buy new things when replacing something old

By: 30 Tips That Can Save Your Money This Month

30 Tips That Can Save Your Money This Month — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 16:23:21 +0000

[...] Tip #7: Create a “No Spending” day once a week Tip #8: Implement the A La Carte Method Tip #9: Only buy new things when replacing something old Tip #10: Use the free rewards from your credit card, car insurance, and workplace Tip #11: Never [...]

By: Caro, master of the run-on-sentence

Caro, master of the run-on-sentence — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 15:57:00 +0000

What I took away from the title of this one, which is a little different than giving up one you’ve already got in order to get a brand new one of the same, is this: If there is a new want in your life – “as in, wow, I didn’t know that they actually had a robot that washes your floors for you – I’d love to have one of those . . .(what will they come up with next?)” you don’t run out and buy a new one – you shop around until you find a used one. Then if you love it and use it all the time, when it’s kaput you can legitimately get yourself a new one. Sure cuts down the cost of all that “what was I thinking?” junk (and maybe even the amount if there’s extra effort to procure it, in which case is it worth it?) . . . So you don’t miss out on the MP3 revolution because you never buy anything new, but you ease into it because you started out with a used MP3 player from someone’s garage sale and test drove it long enough to know it was a really good fit for you before upgrading to the latest IPod, which you selected with a working knowledge of how the technology fit into your life and which features really were important to you when buying new . . . And it doesn’t hurt to add a spacewise-equivalent of the new object to the out-of-the-house box in your trunk when you are creating storage space for your new thingamajig.]

By: TC

TC — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 19:55:01 +0000

We did this during the summer. We’re video game junkies, so for every new game we bought, we would turn in 2 or 3 old ones for store credit. I’m not going to count that for this month, though, because none of our new games will be out until mid-December. It is a good barrier, though, and an even better way to clear out clutter in a painless manner.

This tip: $0
Current total: $225

By: ngk

ngk — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 14:11:28 +0000

BajaGramma – I’ve done a similar thing! At school, I stored my things over the summer in a friend’s attic, so during the year whenever I thought of buying something, I would ask, “would I carry you four flights of stairs up & down?” It definitely cut down on the impulse buys.

By: Amy

Amy — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 08:34:56 +0000

Andrew, that is true, you could wear the same shirts in the same week and no one would know the difference. However, if the shirts are washable, this is also a way of wearing out your clothes faster and then you would have to buy more clothes. If the shirts are dry cleanable, then you would have to make more trips to the dry cleaners. All I am saying is in the long run, it is probably better to have at least 8 good shirts that you can wear to work. It will save wear and tear on your clothes. We found out when my husband had fewer clothes, we were not saving any money because we had to buy more clothes more often.

By: BajaGramma

BajaGramma — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 01:36:27 +0000

Hahahaha! My personal rule, after moving 10 times in 4 years, is:
When I want to buy something (especially on impulse), I ask it would I move you 1500 miles, or will I eat you within a week?! Works every time!

By: Nick

Nick — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 01:02:27 +0000

Used is definitely the way to go, in regards to many things. Books are a big one (if you can’t find them at a library). Also, getting clothes from a thrift shop can save you big time. Usually the only difference between them and new clothes, is that they are missing the tag.

By: aaron

aaron — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 20:14:02 +0000

i got a new computer with Vista (barf) and need to rid myself of the old one.

anybody up for an old comp (5 years now) contains something like 10000 music files. 75% of all south park episodes and plenty of other stuff.

By: Reusing & Reducing Saved Us Money on Living Room Redesign — Green Panda Treehouse

Tue, 18 Nov 2008 01:15:38 +0000

[...] The big concern was budget. We wanted to spruce up the place without spending a ton of money. Fortunately, our friend brought over some stuff she had in her basement and storage and gave us some ideas on how to use what we already have and change it up. Sometimes you don’t have to buy stuff new, you can just reuse items that you have or reuse other people’s ‘treasures’. [...]

By: Besh

Besh — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 23:08:10 +0000

One thing to do with the clothes you would otherwise donate to goodwill – clothing swap! I do this with a group of girlfriends several times a year. We all drag our goodwill bags to one location and “shop” each others clothes. Something that you may be done with can be just what someone else is looking for! All the leftovers go to Goodwill or get sold on Ebay.