Early Retirement Extreme Forums

Congrats!

I thought I had a lot, but now I don't feel so bad.
1 checking account

1 savings account

1 401k

1 Roth

1 IRA

2 HSAs

1 credit card
Thank goodness for Mint.

<r>I posted about the wwoofing I did last fall: <URL url="http://forum.earlyretirementextreme.com/viewtopic.php?t=1549"><LINK_TEXT text="viewtopic.php?t=1549">http://forum.earlyretirementextreme.com/viewtopic.php?t=1549</LINK_TEXT></URL> The experience will vary a lot based on who you stay with.<br/...

@dragoncar Of course if you're looking for someone into traditional gender roles, then you ought to pay. I've seen plenty of frugal tips on conservative Christian ladies' blogs too.

<t>I'd say the typical man is at least as materialistic as the typical woman, though they're expected to show it differently. Are sports cars and tech gadgets really cheaper than shoes and jewelry? Fortunately, there are enough frugal people of both genders out there that it should be possible to fi...

<t>I'd strongly consider moving in with your parents. The numbers are attractive. It really depends on your relationship with them though. I know living with my mom would drive me nuts, but moving in with my dad would be fine, for example. You could always try it and if things aren't working out go ...

<t>Ski share update: We finally got a check from the last guy we expected to pay yesterday. We also took on a live-in roommate for a month at $400, so our monthly rent cost is now down to $677. I expect this is the last income we'll get from this deal. It would have been better if that one guy hadn'...

<t>I recently made the move to stop using chemical hygiene products (except sunscreen which I haven't figured out yet). Basically, I'm using baking soda for hair, teeth, and armpits with some other things like coconut oil mixed in. I do use castille soap to wash my skin. I've been shocked how much c...

<t>@chenda We don't have any sort of contract and it's only $800. I did get a $400 deposit from him. If it was more money I'd look into doing this more officially. We're planning on getting a smaller place and just inviting the dependable payers back for next year. It's annoying, but at least I made...

<t>Feb 2012<br/> This was a really good month for most expenses. Groceries are finally around $150/person which is as low as I'd care to go. Tracking everything I buy individually at the grocery store is paying off. We also ate out very little this month. Unfortunately, I broke the screen on my husb...

I used to read several, but now I'm only subscribed to MMM and these forums. I've saving way more than 10-15% and I'm not in debt, so the more conventional blogs don't have much I'm interested in.

<t>Machine washable slip covers for furniture.<br/> <br/> Hard surface floors I 100% agree on. If you do get a few area rugs, make sure those are also machine washable.<br/> <br/> Also trade anything else not washable for hard surfaces like blinds instead of curtains.<br/> <br/> Squeege for the show...

<t>As a homeowner who is currently renting elsewhere, I can see both perspectives. I haven't been limited in mobility by owning a house (just rent it out while you're gone) nor have I been stuck with bad neighbors while renting. If you want to live somewhere that the houses are much more expensive t...

<t>I made yogurt every week this summer when I had access to high quality milk with good success. By high quality milk, I mean raw milk from Jersey cows with higher milk fat. The raw part isn't important since you have to pastuerize it anyway, but non-homogenized milk makes a much nicer textured yog...

<t>I also have a variation on #2. My high school had a complicated class time rotation schedule. I still have nightmares that I'm back in high school on that schedule and can't figure out what class I'm supposed to be in. I used to frequently have dreams about my teeth falling out and filling up my ...

<t>Before discovering ERE I was pretty much in the same camp as @sky. I was spending less than I earned, saving money in retirement account index funds, and paying my house off early with the vague idea that someday doing all this would make me free. Reading Jacob's blog and seeing the math behind h...

<t>I've had good luck with craigslist for both selling and buying used stuff that has value. I think it's best for things that have a broad appeal or things that are too big to ship (furniture, home maintenance equipment, sports stuff). Smaller or specialty items may be better sold through ebay (col...

<t>@4hrwweek I've traveled a lot and can definitely say it just doesn't "do it" for me. In the past 2 years I've been to almost every US state plus some of Canada and Mexico. I've also been to India and Europe in the past. Honestly, I'm happier when I have a place to call home and work on all the li...

<t>I don't feel any happier making $100k now vs a few years ago when I made $60k. Both numbers cover all my needs and many of my wants. Even when I made $24k just starting out on my own I was still able to provide for all my needs, though very few of my wants. I remember being pretty happy then too....

<t>I've been inspired by this thread to actually work on learning to hunt. I'm signed up for a hunter safety course next month so I can get my license when I come back here next fall. In the meantime I plan on getting a gun and working on my shooting. I met some folks who hunt ducks and said they'll...