We've all had frugal accomplishments that we're proud of -- tell us about yours!

Large-scale frugal accomplishment: sitting out the housing bubble while living in Silicon Valley.

Ever dreamed of buying your starter home for the price tag of $1 million or more? That's what it was like in Silicon Valley when I was in my early 30s and looking to buy my first house. And a million bucks was the entry price for a no-frills, 30 year old, unrenovated single family home.

Family, friends - everyone - was screaming at us to buy or be priced out of the market. I resisted and later became very grateful I did.

Small-scale version: buying food in bulk quantities. Invest in some bulk storage jars (for rice, flour, lentils, sugar, etc) and buy at the bullk station when at the market. Most of the time, something is always on sale and that's when to stock up. Not only are you saving $, you're deepening your pantry and eating healthier because you're actually making 'real' meals (vs buying prepackaged, often less-healthy foods)

i have lived in my current mount shasta california home for over 18 years now. it is on 1.5 acres. over that time i have done what i can to make this place as resilient and sustainable as possible. i super insulated the house and with frugality, only used ~7 kWh a day of electricity, which doubled to 14 kWh a day whan i added the electric heat pump. this is zeroed out with a grid-tied 4.5 kW solar electric system... with battery back-up for our severe winter storms when the power goes out. i only heat about 300 sq ft in the winter, so the bedroom runs in the upper 40's to low 50's (austerity). i have a large garden and orchard and grow (with permaculture techniques) around 30% of my food needs. i also wildcraft food and harvest acorns in the fall. i have a solar thermal system for hot water & greenhouse for garden starts and winter veggies. i am also part of a 'lifeboat' group here in the mount shasta comnunity... this is a group of folks who are doing similar things. we realize working together is how we will best move through what is unfolding.

todd

For many years most people have assumed that it is better to buy a house than rent one.  This may be true in some situations, but sometimes you can turn that on its head.

Rule #1 -- Avoid professional rental agents.  They are middle men.  Rental agents make a living by imposing and collecting late fees and other charges.  They also have been known to try to cheat the tenant out of all or part of a security deposit by making unjustifiable claims about the condition of the rental unit.  They will also try to cheat the owner out of income by claiming unreasonable amounts for repairs, using "independent contractors" who are paid a low hourly rate (say for 4 hours work)  to go to an apartment building and fix various problems (broken windows, etc.) in half a dozen or more rental units.  When when the owner gets the monthly summary from the rental agent he sees at least six different bills for as many jobs with a minimum charge or $25. or so.  The repairman got $40 or $50. but the agent deducted $150. from the rent collected.

Rule #2 -- Rent a single-family detached dwelling or both halves of a duplex. This situation is ideal for single people or married people without children.  The amount of rent you should offer must be at least enough to pay the property taxes and the insurance.  You can find out what the property taxes are at the county tax assessor's office.  Hazard insurance quotes can be had from an indepent insurance agent.

If you are self-employed, renting a single-family house or duplex makes it easier to run your own business out of your house or the other half of the duplex.  Why make two landlords rich?

Rule #3 -- Deal only with the owner of the property.  The best owner to rent from is one who owns a house free and clear of any mortgages (such as a house inherited from a parent or grandparent) and wants to hold the property until better times come along so they can eventually sell it at a price they believe is adequate.  They probably have a sentimental attachment to the house which will work in your favor since they will be more reluctant to part with the property.  Perhaps they want to eventually improve the property themselves, but the time is not right due to a poor economy.  This is a win-win situation for both the owner and the tenant.  It is also one of the few times that a rotten economy can be made to work in favor of the tenant and owner.

Rule #4 -- Look for a house with problems that you can fix on your own.  The more problems a house has, the lower the rent can be.  Do not demand repairs from the owner if you can fix them yourself.  Cosmetic repairs do not have to be made at all, while replacing a water heater or fixing a washer or dryer is a one-time expense (and you can take the appliance with you when you move if you get that put in the lease agreement).  If you demand expensive repairs, the rent will increase.  Once the rent increases it stays at the higher rate, whereas a one-time expense is gone forever.

If a problem arises that threatens the structural integrity of the house (such as a severly leaking roof, a foundation that is settling  and causing more cracks in the walls to appear, a tree that is more and more likely to fall on the house or a neighbor's property) report these problems to the owner.  This does not necessarily mean you have to moveif you are willing to put up with the problems.  After all, it costs a lot of time and money to move!

Rule #5 -- Personal contact with the owner means that over time a personal relationship will arise (thus making the owner more likely to value you).  Pay your rent on time and treat the owner well and you will have an ally instead of an adversary.  Owners do not want to increase the rent on a trouble-free tenant unless forced to do so by rising taxes, insurance, repairs, etc.  They also do not want to take a chance on finding a new tenant who might be able to pay increased rent once they have established a good relationship with a current tenant.

There are quite a few ways to save thousands of dollars at home each year without lifting a finger. Among them are these three simple techniques that have worked well for our four-member family in a dry, triple-digit hot California desert and here in cloudy, rainy Northwest Oregon, too.

#1. We never use the air conditioner. It may help sell the house some day, but for now it stays off. In the summer, we open windows as soon as the outside air temperature is less than the inside temperature. This is usually in the evening. In the morning, as soon as the sunlight hits the south windows, we close the blinds. Yes, it gets warm some afternoons but so what? 

#2. In the winter, we set the home gas heater at 60 (on) to 62 (off). To suppement the heat, we open the blinds all the way up allowing sunlight in. It's amazing how much free heating the sun offers. Yes, it gets chilly, but a sweater, stockings and a fuzzy hat will cure that.

#3. We only use cold water for clothes washing and hang all of our clothes to dry inside; yes, even sheets. 

I learned how to work on cars in the Navy, where auto hobby shops were located on the bases. I am in my 40s and have yet to buy a new car. My last several cars have all been Honda Civics, at least 10 years old, with well over 100k miles on them when purchased. The two daily drivers in my family (for the winter) are a '91 Civic with 325k and a '95 Civic with 240k. Besides no car payments, auto insurance is cheaper because I don't have to have full coverage. Oh, and 40 mpg average year round doesn't hurt either! I might splurge on my next purchase and get a 2001 Insight or a 2005 Civic Hybrid. ;)

~Bill Bishop

Amanda, 

I recently came across this blog post about new EPA restrictions on the type of woodstove you and I love to use and I wonder at what point will we all be forced to switch to newer and more costly ways of heating our homes? 

http://offgridsurvival.com/epa-woodburningstoves-illegal/

Will we be forced to upgrade (Cash for Clunker Woodstoves) or be stuck fearing the fines that come with not being able to afford alternatives? 

Something to ponder. 

I imagine it is the same for many raised in consumer societies, insights into the beauty and benefits of frugality came about as a consequence of broader lifestyle choices and directions.
Back in the day of Vietnam, Nixon, Watergate, and “America, love it or leave it”, I built a sailboat and left, spending the better part of the next 15 years living closer to nature in some beautiful tropical places and cultures.
There was a forced frugality in this wandering sea-steading life with few opportunities for renewing the cruising kitty. When you did earn some money you continued to live as if you had little, you didn't know when you'd have the opportunity to earn more.
There was a very real, experiential sense of Chris's thought that “debt is a claim on future labor” or more to the point, it's corollary, “savings are a claim on future free time”.
It was a lesson in 'having money isn't important, but not not having it is'.
Associated with this frugality was the development of skills valuable for tumultuous times.

Later in life I had some clear realizations that living with a compassionate intention toward all beings is wise, and that anything we consume causes harm to other living beings, oftentimes ourselves as well.
Frugality, minimizing consumption, making do with less, not wasting, are natural consequences of trying to live with these realizations.
The financial benefits are significant, but the mental benefits, the stress reduction that comes from the contentment of having enough, of wanting and 'needing' less, and the peace associated with the compassionate intention behind this frugality far outweigh the financial considerations.

Just a little tip

I was at the grocers, buying "family pack" meat for the freezer, on sale. I'd been buying Ziploc freezer bags to break the large packages up into meal-sized packages for the freezer. I realized that I could ask the butcher to cut the large packages of meat up and rewrap them on indivdual cardboard trays. This should save me quite a bit of money since good freezer bags are about a dollar each, and you can only wash and sanitize them so often.

Silly, I know, but every penny helps. (This from someone who just made a substantial cash wedding gft to her son. Where do you think that cash came from?)

Okay, I realize this is always controversial. Plus I know some won't try this because they've read somewhere that it's unhealthy or refuse to consider it due to a host of other reasons ... most of which are nonsense, but we've heard and read them all over and over. But I don't care. This is for anyone, but primarily for the 99.9% of the population who do not buy meat from grass fed dairy farms or who hunt for all of their animal-based diet.

Here it is anyhow. I've saved thousands of dollars, maybe ten thousand, over the past eight years. I'm now starting year nine never (and I do mean, NEVER) eating at fast food outlets and continuing my 100% vegetarian diet. No, I did not say "vegan," I said, "vegetarian." I do consume dairy products (not milk) such as egg whites, cheese and occasional whey protein.

I'm 58 and considered fit. I run, bike, lift weights and have suffered no ill effects whatsoever. Happliy my health has improved considerably, particularly cardiovascular. One of my one/oz gold coins roughly represents the annual savings, or it did prior to the recent run-up. Give it a try for one year. Bag an oz of gold as your reward. If you're still young enough, bag a pile of 'em as your personal payoff for a decade of this fantastic, healthy diet.  

I grow the bulk of my own herbs that I use daily, and now leeks, garlic and tea.   I would be spending $500+ annually to purchase these fresh.

I grow some of our veggies, though not enough,

I buy bulk and split cases with neighbors... we get mushrooms for $1 a pound!  Quality fresh apples for $0.50 cents a pound, saving usually half of store costs.

Cook from scratch - eat game we catch, buy reduced price meat and eat more beans!

BIGGEST SAVINGS ALERT;  BUY ALMOST EVERYTHING SECOND HAND.. and buy items to resell..

I have held my own yard sales/tag sales  for decades, been doing ebay  for 15 years .. it is good ( although a bit complicated initially) for selling my better items..  especially smaller pieces ,   i also use reliable auctions for moving excess stuff.   I swap with others for things i want and have a little rented "Booth" at a local resale market.  

for decades I have enjoyed buying something I wanted or needed for pennies on the dollar.  

NOW, we live in a time  of 'stealth inflation", ie.. price of stuff stays relativly  low at the sacrifice of quality/services/replacement parts availability, etc.  Notice how thin denim is now, how sweaters "pill"  towels fray or don't absorbe water, shoes wear out faster,  small appliances break... just after the one year warantee! This translates to most anything purchased new today, is not the quality of a similar model made by the same company even 10 years ago.    I generally notice things made at least 25 years ago are superior to things made 10 years ago.., 35 years old product, superior to 25..

so I buy vintage to get higher quality at pennies on the dollar!

I would love to know if any of you are procuring second hand goods, what are they?

I am collecting high quality household items for me, and for my young adult children and friends..  my favorite items:  Vintage Corningware - My vote for the Most durable bakeware ever designed,  cast iron cookware, vintage kitchen hand tools, glass food storage jars, rope, cordage, hardware, office supplies,  quality clothing, shoes, sheets, blankets, furnishings etc..   I now have the skills to "scout" for good resale items that actually give me a small but steady income. 

It is the life of a modern day hunter -gatherer , I highly recommend it!

A repair man can to our house and told us our 25 year old maytag washer had finallly bit the dust because the timer had gone bad and replacement timers were not available.  We hunted on line and found that replacements were readily available. The machine is still running strong.

I love to bake bread too, never did the math to see what the savings are.  I love Laurels Bread Book, her original ccok book Laurel's Kitchen is one of the best vegetarian cook books I have ever seen.  The bread book goes into enormous detail on the art of bread baking, I would highly recommend it to new and experienced bakers.