Kristen Swensson, the writer in charge of the Cheap Healthy Good blog, recently got through a week in which she cooked all of her fiance’s meals with a total budget of $24.99. The hardest parts for the 205-pound man at the center of the experiment: no beer (!), and no bacon (!#@!). He also had to do the dishes.
Budgeting
You’d Be 14% Richer If You Didn’t Have Kids
A couple with children spends about $60 more a month in groceries than a couple with no kids.
Cut Your Grocery Bill Right Now
A little effort and planning can yield a bigger-than-expected payoff when you’re trying to trim your food budget.
Savings Tip Mania
One list is never enough. So here are 13 money-saving lists: 178 tips in total.
3 Flukey Ways to Make or Save a Little Cash
Without minimal effort, these quirky strategies can net you a little bit of money in your pocket.
Caught Between a Late Fee and a Payday Loan
Payday loans are bashed by consumer watchdogs because of the loan shark-like interest rates involved, which can exceed 450% when annualized. Nonetheless, the payday loan business is thriving, especially as consumers realize that an actual job is not required. The day your unemployment check arrives also counts as a payday, so if you’re …
Warren Buffett’s Boring, Brilliant Wisdom
Warren Buffett is old. He can’t keep up with the times. He’s famously cheap, and wears dorky grandpa glasses and bad suits. Even his seemingly cool nickname, “The Oracle of Omaha,” sort of sounds like a hokey phrase coined in the Roaring ’20s, or perhaps in ancient Greece. But as he’s proved time and again—like last year, when net …
A Bad Credit Score Can Cost You Over $200K
Two friends go about their lives, taking out student loans, buying cars and homes, and taking on a bit of credit card debt. While their expenses are identical, their credit scores—and corresponding monthly payments and interest charges—are not. Over a lifetime, the person with credit rated “fair to poor” can expect to pay over …
Lent as Money Saver
What are you giving up for Lent? Even if you’re not Christian, there are benefits to giving up something for 40 days—or for whatever period of time you please. Giving up meat and eating out for 40 days can save you $800. Giving up lattes might save you nearly $200.
Do You Spend Less than $2,000 Annually on Internet, TV, Cell Phone Service, and Video Games?
If so, you’re in the minority. All of these expenses traditionally fall into the entertainment category, as “discretionary” spending. But more and more, they’re viewed as indispensable, right up there with electricity, water, and food.
Q&A: Bad with Money? It’s Not Your Fault
Even before you got your first piggie bank, you may have been witness to events that permanently affected your relationship with money—including, obviously, how you spend it. These events might be quite dramatic, like your father losing his business, or more mundane, such as being teased at school for wearing ragged hand-me-down …
A Week of Haggling Saves $730
As one writer recently found out firsthand, once you succeed in bargaining and realize how easy it is and how much you can save, it’s hard to go back to paying retail.