Beating Broke

Personal Finance from the Broke Perspective

Top Money Saving Tips for Home Essentials

By 1 Comment

Furnishing your home is something that can end up costing you a small fortune if you let it. The problem is that we are constantly bombarded with advertising about items that we simply have to have in our homes. The fact is that you do not have to spend a lot of money to make your home look good, and turn it into a comfortable place to live.

There are ways that you can save money on home essentials. Even larger items can be purchased more affordably, if you are prepared to put some time and effort into the process. Let’s take a look at some of the ways in which you can furnish your home more affordably.

Re-using and making yourself

All too often we throw things out, just because they have started to look a little worse for wear. Have you ever thought of simply putting items to a different use? Doing so is good for the environment, and for your bank balance. For instance, creating pillow covers is just one of many uses for old curtains. Upscaling items you already have can be a great way of giving a fresh look to your home.

Buying second hand

You do not always have to buy new items for your home. You can pick up some great bargains in second hand stores, and at auctions and garage sales. Remember that you should always haggle over the cost. You will usually be able to get a reduction on the marked price. You may even want to hold a garage sale yourself, so you can make some extra cash to buy items for your home as well as getting rid of things you no longer need. This means that you end up spending less from your household budget.

Doing your research

There are some things that you would not want to purchase second hand, such as a mattress for your bed. When you are buying a mattress you need to know that it’s going to last and that it’s hygienic; you cannot do this if you buy second hand. This does not mean that you cannot get a good deal when buying a new mattress, or other home essentials. You just need to do your research, using sites such as https://www.thesleepjudge.com/best-memory-foam-mattress-reviews/ so that you ensure you get the best value for your money.

Planning ahead

One thing that we all tend to be guilty of sometimes, is buying at the last minute. This is not a good idea. If you know that you are going to need an item, give yourself plenty of time to make a purchase. This gives you chance to look around and get the best deal, instead of having to pay an inflated price because you are desperate.

It’s also a good idea to think ahead generally. There is nothing wrong in shopping during the sales in January for essential items for the following Christmas. You should spend time looking at sales and offers on a regular basis, although it’s important that you do not buy just for the sake of it. Remember, this article is all about saving money on essential items.

There you have it, several ways that you can save money but still get those home essentials that you are looking for.

Would You Pay $25 a Pound for Vegetables?

By 3 Comments

My husband and I have been trying to garden for a year now.  I say trying because we recently relocated to Tucson, Arizona, and gardening here has a STEEP learning curve.  However, it’s something we both enjoy, so we’ve kept at it, and we’re finally starting to see some rewards. Due to our gardening failures while learning to garden in a new climate, we’re currently paying about $25 a pound for vegetables, but I’m okay with that because I know this hobby will likely pay for itself eventually.

Those Gardening Expenses

Vegetables for $25 a pound?
$25 a pound for Vegetables?

Starting our garden has not been cheap.  We had to create three garden beds, which included the dirt, the pavers for the sides (they’re slightly raised garden beds), and the soil amendment.

We planted in October when the temperatures finally dropped into the 80s, but we planted the wrong vegetables for the season, and we planted in a shady spot when we should have planted in full sun.

All we ended up with last winter was one kale, one Swiss chard, and two lettuce plants.

In the spring, we planted tomatoes that were just starting to blossom when the summer hit with 100+ degree days and scorching sun.  We covered the tomato plants with a homemade sun shade, but we only got 6 cherry tomatoes.  All summer long they didn’t even flower.

Next, we amended the soil further and planted watermelon and cantaloupe starts.  Every time a baby watermelon developed, one of the many birds in our yard ate it.  This continued until September when the birds finally went away.  Since then, we’ve gotten 4 watermelons.

Now, it’s fall, and we are finally getting some produce.  We have baby bok choy that are growing strong, 4 Swiss chard plants, and 8 green pepper plants that have more than 20 peppers on them in various states of growth.

Hopefully our costs will drop or moderate as we learn more about how to garden in the desert.  However, so far, we’ve easily spent $200 for the few veggies we’ve been able to harvest.

Sticking It Out Through the Learning Curve

For someone like me who doesn’t like to spend money frivolously, these gardening expenses bother me.  But there are two reasons we keep trying to garden:

My husband really enjoys it.  I think my husband has discovered his inner farmer.  He loves spending weekends outdoors, puttering in the garden.  Every evening, he comes home from work and waters and takes care of the garden.  It’s a great hobby for him.

The costs should equalize–eventually.  As we learn more about gardening here, we should be able to produce more vegetables.  We won’t have to create the raised beds again.  Our only expenses going forward will be soil amendment each season (so necessary with our desert soil), seeds, and water.  The longer we garden, the lower our costs should be.

Even though it doesn’t feel like it now, gardening will eventually be a hobby that at least costs us only a small amount out of pocket or that pays for itself.

Do you garden?  How steep was your learning curve?  Do you find that the garden pays for itself eventually?

 

Why You May Not Want To Install A Pool This Summer

By Leave a Comment

What better way is there to beat the heat than to take a nice, refreshing dip in a pool.  Ah.  It doesn’t get better than that.  But if you have kids, you may find paying a fee to use the local pool and carting the kids to the pool a bit of a pain, especially when they get back in the car to go home dripping wet.

Perhaps you’ve toyed with the idea of installing a pool at your house.  You may think that the kids would enjoy it, they could have friends over, you could use it for exercise, and it will increase your property value because who doesn’t want a pool at home, right?

Slow down and rethink that decision.

Here’s why you shouldn’t install a pool at home:

install a pool this summer
You may not want to install a pool this summer.

Pools are expensive.  There’s the initial expensive of putting in the pool, which is quite a hefty sum.  “PK Data reports that the average cost of a residential in-ground swimming pool was $39,084. . .” (Money).  Depending on where you live, you’ll also need to pay for a fence around the pool as well as a lock.  There may also be additional home insurance costs since a pool is a liability.  But, of course, the expenses don’t stop there.  There is the cost of maintaining the pool, the chemicals to treat the pool, the expense of opening and closing the pool yearly.  You’ll also likely see a spike in your utilities thanks to the pump and heater.

The neighborhood kids may not hang out at your house.  Many parents of teens want a pool because they think that their child will invite his friends over.  While that may be true, often teens want to hang out at the community pool or the beach where there are more teens.

Your kids may tire of the pool.  While your children may initially enjoy the pool and spend hours swimming and playing in it, like almost everything, their attention may wane.  It’s not unusual for kids to hardly swim in the pool once they’ve had it for several years.

Other neighbors may visit frequently.  You may also find yourself getting unwanted neighborly visits.  My cousin’s friend, Renee, had a pool, and almost every day a neighbor boy and his mom would stop by asking if they could swim.  Never mind that Renee had no children herself.  Every day she was placed in the uncomfortable position of either denying them or playing reluctant host to uninvited guests.

It likely won’t add any value to your home.  One reason some people get a pool is that they figure the investment will pay for itself when they sell the house.  Unfortunately, that’s often not the case.  “Sabine H. Schoenberg, a home improvement expert and founder of SabinesHome.com” states, “It’s not something that’s value-enhancing to a lot of people.  Just as there are people with positive feeling towards pools, there are those with negative feelings” (Money).

It can be expensive to fill in.  If you reach the time where you want to fill in the pool, you could be looking at $8,000 or more!

When we were in the market for a house, we looked at one that had a pool.  However, after researching all of the costs, I’m so glad we decided to get a house without a pool!

Which do you prefer?  A house with or without a pool?  Are you considering adding a pool to your backyard?