Tips on how to cope with the economic crisis

[HB13DISH]

2009 is going to be a bad year for almost everyone, with rising unemployment figures, less income, etc.
Just thought it might be an idea that members would like to contribute tips to help us all go through the crisis, and give us all the feeling that you are not alone.
Here is a list of "where the money goes" and I am sure that I have missed few more things, so please add them.
Can't decide how to classify "Wife", but I am sure that "Girl Friend" can go under "Entertainment"

- Food
- Transportation
- Electricity
- Gas
- Municipality
- Water
- Bank Account
- Credit Card
- Clothes
- Entertainment
- Household Appliances and Maintenance
- Education
- Telephone and Mobile
- Building Committee
- Medical Care
- Drinking and Smoking
- PC and Peripherals, including internet
- Miscellaneous (TV License, donations, etc.)
- Insurance
- Holidays

I find that food puts a high drainage on the pocket, so here are few tips that I have adapted over the past year and has helped me to spend less money on food:
1 - DON'T use a credit card to buy food. Only with cash.
You will value your hard earned money a lot more when you count it in your own hand than if you let the supermarket or the local food shop type the amount with a keyboard after you hand him your credit card.
I think that these plastic cards are a menace to society. They were created so that you would spend more. So by not using them, you will most certainly spend less.
2 - Use a local shop and not a supermarket if you can, and beware of the trolleys. Use a shopping basket or your two hands to carry the most needed food products.
3 - Try to buy fresh food and vegetables instead of loading up your fridge, even if it would mean going food shopping few times a week instead of once a week over the weekend. If you are not working, then you have plenty of time on your hands.
You will enjoy the food better and you will throw away a lot less.
4 - Cut down on going frequently to restaurants and coffee shops and learn how to cook at home if you are single or your wife doesn't want to bother with cooking.
5 - Keep an eye on the prices. There is always another shop round the corner that would sell the same thing cheaper.

Well, that's it for now.
Hope that there will be more posts with useful tips soon.

 

[compufunk]

5 - Keep an eye on the prices. There is always another shop round the corner that would sell the same thing cheaper.

The missus is great at that, You can save a packet by watching the prices.

Here is as far as my skills go in that department.
24 330cl bottles of Stella in one of the local supermarkets €18
10 330cl bottles of Stella in the one next door €13

 

[Yorks]

Can't decide how to classify "Wife", but I am sure that "Girl Friend" can go under "Entertainment"

- Food
- Transportation
- Electricity
- Gas
- Municipality
- Water
- Bank Account
- Credit Card
- Clothes
- Entertainment
- Household Appliances and Maintenance
- Education
- Telephone and Mobile
- Building Committee
- Medical Care
- Drinking and Smoking
- PC and Peripherals, including internet
- Miscellaneous (TV License, donations, etc.)

Depends on the model but most fall into the category 'Household Appliances and Maintenance'

 

[guest]

Depends on the model but most fall into the category 'Household Appliances and Maintenance'

I put mine down under "Drainage" ...............

 

[Yorks]

. Along with the kids, dog, cat, gerbils, goldfish........

 

[Turok]

Hello Hotbird HB 13,and all others,in this topic
here all the supermarkets has nearly the same price,there is not much difrent,within the same products,when quality is lower,then price is also lower for sure!
i stop calculating prices,on food,because i have no effect on it!
,nearly all stores,buy here from the same source ,big supermarkets,with over 100000 products,and,we have also a big winestore here,with 3500 bottels from all over the world

_http://weinwelt.at[/url]

i dont dont know the prices in whiskey or what ever,but often i heard,and get this confirmed from friends in italy,that the wine here from italy,is cheaper,then in the homecountry it self!

,here the supermarktet give bonus points,when you pay with card,you get from mastercard for e.g 1% back,of the total,what you bought in one year,and the customors card,give you also some % rabatt!
credit card companys,give you one,or 2 month,the money,of credit you need for free,you pay now,the bill comes 1 or 2 month,later depend on the card !
in the 80`s we have a lot of small super marketets,the all disapears,since the big super market chains are coming up!
in other words,we have no fruit market seller,where you can talk personaly,like in the old days,in other country,the situation is complete difrent!
what i dont understand,is the price ricing of food,when all the food companys,now produce,in much higher quantenties,then before eu,normaly then the produced product should be cheaper!
in the 80`S food was real cheap,and all technical thinks are real expensice,now it is via versa!
they "push "the market,that the people,spend there last money,in the next ,uresistible,in the next electronic store,what the customors,only "needs"while the advertising "told" you this!
you need this product,for e.g iphone or what ever,or you outdated!
the old,days,was better,i would say,we dont have so much prodcuts,then today,but we,also find this wat we need!

everytime,i try to calculate prices,in the old schilling days here,i got angry that is everything in food 30-40% more expensice!

 

[Channel Hopper]

Here is a list of "where the money goes" and I am sure that I have missed few more things, so please add them.

The various taxes (in the UK at least) , including compulsory Council Tax, due to rise dramatically this year.

Can't decide how to classify "Wife",

That has always been the $64k question. ;)

 

[HB13DISH]

The various taxes (in the UK at least) , including compulsory Council Tax, due to rise dramatically this year.

We pay the Municipality for clearing the rubbish and other services.
Is the Council Tax an additional payment to Municipality?

 

[Turok]

in some uk online shops,i read that last year,the uk taxes are lowered from 17,5 % vat to only 15%!
we have here 20% italy 23% scandinavian countrys also,germany 19%
switzerland 7%,and lichtenstein 0% Tax
the eu plans,in the future,that every member state,has the same tax level,based on a medium value!
lets hope the best,that this day,will coming soon!

 

[pgh13]

We pay the Municipality for clearing the rubbish and other services.
Is the Council Tax an additional payment to Municipality?

Same here, although in UK they always seem to be looking for ways to charge extra.....there's a suggestion that you will have to pay according to how much rubbish you throw away

 

[pgh13]

in some uk online shops,i read that last year,the uk taxes are lowered from 17,5 % vat to only 15%!
we have here 20% italy 23% scandinavian countrys also,germany 19%
switzerland 7%,and lichtenstein 0% Tax
the eu plans,in the future,that every member state,has the same tax level,based on a medium value!
lets hope the best,that this day,will coming soon!

If the EU has a hand in it, it will cost more however much they reduce it :mad:

 

[Channel Hopper]

We pay the Municipality for clearing the rubbish and other services.
Is the Council Tax an additional payment to Municipality?

Council tax ( the UK version) includes citizen paying for sevices such as the local police force, cctv installation, issuing taxi licences and - near here anyway - flood defences. As far as I am aware most municipality tax charges would not include these.

The idea behind the 'ability to pay' thought up within the Poll Tax has conveniently been forgotten when drafting up the Council Tax, the basis of charging is down to the approximate house value only.

 

[Turok]

Hello!
when the normal tax now,has been lowered to 2,5% how gets this money,when the customors has the same prices then before!

most european goverments,dont show there citizen,what the have do,with there taxes in details!

Obama,goes now the other way,yesterday,i read,that he wants to make a website,that every american see,for what,the taxes,has been used,in a detailed list!
the problem,of high foot prices,are mostly here,the very high rent coasts,of the strores,and buildings!
around 10000€,here a spar shop owner told me,for a small store,in israel,in other country,is much diffrent,normal market man,dont pay high coasts,for bulidung etc,he comes in the morning,and goes,and on the next day,he apeard on a otherplace,with his fruit,without only paying low coasts,this is the mainreason,when you go shopping,and buy food 100€ is away,in a metter of secounds,and you have eaten then all in 3 days!

pure countrys,in the world.are unable,in a couple of years,to buy there daily foot,because its to expensice!
last year i was in cambodia,to visit angor watt temple,the people told me,that the normal meat from pig and pork,now the expensice,for the most,and now the poorest people of all,must begining to eat rat meat..

when,the recurces,of reach countrys ,besser spread in the world,we would have a also a better economy balance,but the globalisation destroy this system forever!
its only a dream,that never would be releized!

when,big global companys,here would stop to spend millions in advertising,of procucts,that no one need!
or reduce,advertising on food,and spend there money to poor country,then the sytem would work,a little bit better!


daily hight quality printed catalouges,of 10 difrent super market chains,no one needs realy,in his daily post,when,i want somethink,i know what i like,not depend,on that ,what the advertising told me you must buy,and mast have,to be a part of the system..!

 

[HB13DISH]

@Turok,
There is always a way to buy food cheaper than in a supermarket, by buying wholesale instead of retail directly from the food manufacturer.
There is a price difference between 10%-30%, but it would mean to buy in a bigger quantity than normal.
If you are willing to organize a big purchase between your friends, relatives, neighbors, colleagues at work, then you can pay a lot less. But this would mean more efforts on your part and time which might not be cost effective.
For example, a box of 24 cans of coffee would cost/can about 20% less than when you buy it from the supermarket.
If you have enough participants to buy a whole box, then you would pay at appreciable discount.

 

[compufunk]

@Turok,
There is always a way to buy food cheaper than in a supermarket, by buying wholesale instead of retail directly from the food manufacturer.
..................

It would be nice to do that, but in this part of the world we cant. Retailers here a issued with some kind of card that identifies them as traders. The wholesalers will only allow you to purchase if you have one of these cards.

 

[HB13DISH]

It would be nice to do that, but in this part of the world we cant. Retailers here a issued with some kind of card that identifies them as traders. The wholesalers will only allow you to purchase if you have one of these cards.

OK. But there is always something in between, where you can buy a whole box with discount instead of in small units at the supermarket.
Have you tried to check prices in the internet?
I always get a discount from my mini store when I buy a whole box, as it would save him the trouble of sticking the price tag on every can and then waiting for several customers to buy the whole box.

 

[xanadu]

I am still waiting for this alleged economic downturn recession thingy to hit.
Keep hearing about it on the news, but it's all hype I believe.

[fieldset=Admin]Political comments removed[/fieldset]

 

[compufunk]

I am still waiting for this alleged economic downturn recession thingy to hit.................

It will hit all of us in time, it takes a while for the full effects to filter through to the whole economy. Its not hype when people are loosing their jobs. There are more job losses every day!

The doom merchants in the media have probably made things worse by discouraging people from spending on property, cars etc magnifying the problem.

I think that Brown/Darling did the right thing by reducing VAT to try to encourage some spending. They did the opposite here in Ireland, so people have tightened up the purse strings even more. That doesn't help struggling businesses, who in turn provide employment.

 

[Topper]

I am still waiting for this alleged economic downturn recession thingy to hit.
Keep hearing about it on the news, but it's all hype I believe.

Well all I can say is consider yourself very fortunate that you have not felt the impact of this recession yet.......I have felt it.

Regarding your other comment I would remind you of the rules

* We do not permit discussion of the North American Providers and encryptions, cable or cable hacks, Religion or Politics, this include promotion of the same, this is a satellite and general hobby forum

 

[geordiejohn]

My tips.

1.pay off as much debt as you can, it is poison.Current artificial low interest rates are unsustainable.

2.Try to get another income, pref. something the govt can't get its sticky fingers on.

3.ged rid of excess, do you really need a car(or second car)?sit down and work out it's real cost,include everything,most of us have no idea how much they really cost.

4.turn the heating down.I know people who spend £300 a month on electicity and gas, i spend a fraction of that.