Fast Track Saving Challenge
It’s the end of the month and the end of our saving challenge. How did you do?
This past week we were able to return an item we didn’t need for $30; I found $15 when I cleaned off a bookshelf and we were able to save $80 from my husband’s paycheck. That brings our total savings for the week to $125 and our total for the month to $634, or $134 over our goal of $500 – woohoo!
Leave a comment below with the amount you were able to save this month. I will be randomly selecting a winner for the $50 Paypal cash from the comments on this post on Wednesday and I will announce it on the blog once the winner responds.
To finish off the challenge I am sharing money saving tips that readers have shared to encourage you to keep going!
Laura sent an email to let me know all that she has been doing to save money this month:
“Since I am facing the reality of living life on a drastically reduced income (shifting from regular pay to severance and unemployment), I have committed to the following (and successfully accomplished two weeks):
1) Getting up early enough to cook breakfast since convenience breakfast items are gone (Pop-tarts to feed four hungry children is no longer a convenience I can afford). We have had French toast sticks and eggs, and muffins.2) Since I am serious about coupons, I have dedicated that those funds not spent will live in my Christmas piggy bank. I looked at my receipt from spending this week. ($3.75) Also buy paying cash – I am dedicating all change to same Christmas pig.
3) I am making an effort to find free money. JCPenney sent me an email coupon for $10 off of $10. I am only buying items from the “needed” list (and incidentally the needed items are socks for my girls).
4) We’ve introduced “double-feature” movie night with kids picking DVDs from the library. I also pick up snacks from the Dollar Tree (probably not most cost effective, but element of “fun”).
5) I have started a list of books that my daughters will read in High School English Lit and have already found two reasonably clean copies at a local resale store.
6) I have automated my tithe to my parish (I will admit that it is not 10% given our drastic reduction) but at this point it is still non-negotiable.
7) AND BIGGEST TIME AND MONEY SAVER: I am an introvert by nature and don’t tend to easily go out of my way to make contact with folks, but my younger daughter transferred to a new high school and I reached out to a family from Church about carpooling. It was very well received and now we have cut our time and gas expense in half, driving there one week, picking up the other.”
Sarah has discovered inexpensive ways to have fun:
“These are some free or inexpensive activities I do with my daughter –
-free day at the museum
-$1 movie theatre night
-library/bookstore (read to her, look at art books together)
-wildlife sanctuary
-free mommy & me classes
-free yoga
-farmers market
-hiking/biking nature trails
-craft store classes $1-$5
-kids eat free with purchase at some chain restaurants
-advance purchase hotel deals (I paid $89) & bring my daughter & 2 of her friends for a one night stay in a nice hotel, including 2 days at a huge resort of roller coasters, waterpark rides etc.Other ideas to save money:
-shop at the dollar store, make your own laundry detergents etc.
-research & make your own skin care instead of buying the expensive stuff that rarely works anyway
-be crafty at home. if you see something you love, try to think up how you could make it yourself.
-work part time where you will benefit as an employee (for me it’s the salon) I get free waxing, hair services, massages, mani/pedi etc. which saves me hundreds a month.”
Jess writes:
“My husband and I have been aggressively paying on student loans. Over the past year, we have:
1. Worked for a local food delivery company (these seem to be common in college areas too);
2. Cut up all old credit cards;
3. Sold items on craigslist;
4. Rented a room in our house to temporary roommates found through a friend who hires for temp professional positions in our area;
5. Set up a “summer fund” through our bank (I’m a teacher) 6.Consigned clothing;
7. Set up a “lump sum” account for annual/semi annual bills, etc.;
8. Use cash envelope system to stay in budget;
9. used free trial to BJs to buy bulk items like deodorant and cleaning supplies;
10. My husband uses the gas buddy app to find the cheapest gas around;
11. We TRIED couponing, I have a lot to learn :);
12. I’ve done promotions (like at sporting events or trade shows, product demos, giving out samples);
13. We called the cable company to cancel, and they lowered our bill by $15 a month. This is what we were hoping because it would have costed us more for hubby to go out and watch the game. :);
14. We pack our lunch every day for work.
Also, when I was in college I sold books on Amazon to make extra money. I am thinking of trying this again soon.”
Rose had some tips for saving on Entertainment:
“In the past we ditched tv programming for Netflix (which we still have, since it’s much cheaper than our previous 3 movies per week at Redbox habit). now we have a bundle (saving $60 a month). We see movies on discount Tuesdays every few months when you can see 3d movies for $6. We get “museum passes” at our local library (which you can also check out any in your “network” for museums, zoos, parks etc. I’m a college student/mom so we use student discounts when we can also. We only eat out when it’s kids eat free or .99 cent or off the 2 for $20 meals (unless there is extra “fun money”).”
Be sure to leave a comment with the amount you were able to save and any money saving tips you have!
If you need a little help to get your finances back on track my 5 Days to Budget Breakthrough ebook is a great resource. Follow the steps day by day to change your money and your life in just 5 days.
Click here to read more.
More posts in this series:
Fast Track Saving Challenge: Boost Your Savings Now!
Fast Track Saving Assignment #1
Top 10 Budget Leaks (& how to fix them!) pt. 1
Fast Track Saving Challenge Assignment 2
10 Easy Ways to Find Free Money + Week 2 Update
8 Ways to Earn Money Fast + My Week 3 Update
Good for you Mary! That’s awesome to save so much on groceries.
My savings goal for this past month was $250 and we were able to save $202 just on groceries. I also put up 14 quarts of applesauce with my mom- we are splitting it. I earned $108 from selling my craft product. I’m hoping to continue the trend- my goal is to make as many Christmas gifts as I can this year, with craft supplies that I already have on hand.
Well, first we just bought our home after renting for over 7 years after losing our home. We paid cash!!! I closed one credit card, it was secured to help build my credit, but I felt it tempted me to make impulse purchases, so I called the company had them pay it off with my savings account and got the rest in my checking, about 92.00. We only have two very small house accounts which will be paid off by next month. So our only payment is our vehicle payment. I have started back hot and heavy with my couponing and rebates, saving money on our food bill monthly. We currently have $2500.00 I put away last month in savings, we are currently using our extra income to do the remodeling and repairs needed at the new place, it is so worth it. Gardens and laying hens are next! We are on our way!
You are awesome Celeste! That is amazing and wonderful that you were able to pay for a home with cash!!!!!!!!!!
I was saving to pay off the tires we purchased on our CC, was able to save $560 to pay it off:)
Yay! That’s terrific Marison!
I was able to fully fund our baby emergency fund, top out our holiday club (Christmas account) an additional $300 from the normal projected amount and buy my daughter a new baby crib/mattress. I did it though immediately moving my raise and add’l money saved from a change to my FSA and by not shopping. I’ve also cut back on our grocery budget and I’ve been using up what we have and cooking a lot from scratch. I’ve resisted browsing online too. It’s amazing how quickly that this month alone I was able to save $500.
You did a great job Laurie! Thanks for joining us.
I have $5 in savings. It’s a vast improvement over the last year since our move. We are also returning a purchase of $230 to have taken off our credit card debt that we now are using for extreme emergencies only. This month I’ve done much better on leaks like drinks and snacks when out and about.
It’s a start! Good for you for lowering your credit card debt and committing to use it only for extreme emergencies.
We saved $419! I said I was going to save $400 without my husband’s help, but he ended up doing a coaching gig and was very well paid, so I took $200 of that and put it away in savings. The first $219 were my moonlighting earnings. We also received a $200 Visa card from the cable company (incentive for signing up a couple of months ago) so I am hoping to start October with on a good savings track too.
The part that isn’t showing up in the numbers is that I was laying the groundwork for future savings. I used my budget software more to look ahead than to just record expenditures after they were gone, I balanced the checkbook, I taught my husband how to use the budget app, just generally stayed more on top of things. That is why I’m hopeful that future savings will come from better management instead of just extra work.
That’s awesome Emily! Way to go!
That is awesome Gina!
I love it Sarah! Do good for someone else and be blessed in the process.
My husband and I saved $434 this past month! We usually have a monthly date night in which we go out to eat, but we saved ourselves $30+ by opting to just go apple picking, a long walk, have a picnic down by the river, and play a card game- all while enjoying the beautiful fall weather! We both agreed that it was the most fun we’d had on a date in a while.
That’s awesome Clare! Way to go! My husband and I enjoy those kinds of dates more as well. 🙂
That’s awesome Clare! Way to go! My husband and I enjoy those kinds of dates more as well. 🙂
I was able to save and additional 200 and received a raise that added an extra 250 (should have been there on the 30th…) Not a bad challenge at all. Looking forward to continuing to try and save at least $150 to $200 each month until April 2015.
Great job! I like the idea of continuing. 🙂
I sold an item on ebay. I also listed items on Tradesy as well. I sold a set of dishes and a microwave for $15.00; and am in the process of selling 2 floor rockers for younger kids for $30.00 So the income I earned as extra (other than my normal savings such as bringing lunch to work daily, cooking from scratch at home) was $50.00
Great job Debra!
Great job Debra!
I didnt do too bad this month. I’ve been trying to save for a new mattress (ours is 14 years old) as well as pad my Christmas fund. I took advantage of several apps to save a few dollars on grocery items. I also saved money by taking advantage of a friends generous offer to let me pick apples. I added 8 pies to the freezer, as well as a shelf full of applesauce and applebutter.
Yum! I love homemade applesauce. 🙂
We were able to do several volunteer projects where we were given free meals while there. A few of the projects our daughter was able to attend and also got to eat too.
I will be putting $850 towards our savings, and my husband will have roughly $1.200. Gazelle intense! As Dave Ramsey likes to call it 🙂
I am so sorry to hear about your friend’s tragedy and I think you were wise to donate to her. I am also super proud of your cash flowing a crazy month. Good for you for not adding to your debt in the midst of all that happened!
Some of the saving we WERE able to do (even if it didn’t go into an actual account):
– We received FREE tickets to the circus from a friend…yay!
– Our garden took off this year. We have canned over 70 pints of applesauce, salsa, tomato soup, peaches, grape juice, and more. It will be SO nice to have throughout the year.
Thanks so much for this awesome challenge! My numbers are ugly…I didn’t come CLOSE to saving up the amount of money I wanted to…but I DID avoid gaining any debt, which is a HUGE win, considering the month we had:
– $482 in unexpected medical bills
– $825 in unexpected car repairs (brakes went out)
– our laptop hard drive died
– our printer broke
– our dishwasher handle broke, so it won’t turn on unless we duck tape it in place each time.
– the speakers on my cell phone blew (didn’t even know that was possible!)
My goal was to save $300 total in our emergency fund. We weren’t able to do that. We were, however, able to use what we had in our emergency fund and to cut out spending on other things to completely pay for all of the unexpected mess we had. With $1300 of unexpected bills, and a monthly income of $2600, I’m pretty proud of how we were able to do!
I promised I wouldn’t donate to charities outside my tithes this month, and I failed at that. A friend of mine was in a car accident and her only child, a 1-year old sweetheart, and her husband died. She was the lone survivor. I decided it was okay to break my promise and donate there.
Love all my justifying? 🙂
Thank you again!
I am so thankful that you came to my inbox today as I have been feeling a little disheartened, as I started my challenge so well saving $100 NZ dollars in my first week. But then things fell to pieces (personal stuff 🙁 ) and I quite simply gave up, the usual “whats the point” kept creeping into my head. But now after reading your post I’m going to pick myself up and start again for October, and this time I will battle those negative thoughts, and focus on the positives. Thank you so so much once again 🙂
I’m sorry you had a rough month Elaine but good for you for picking yourself up and trying again. You can do it!
Hi Kimberlee! My goal for the month was $100. I ended up saving $38. It was a very challenging month for us. I also gave an additional $110 to missions this month, which is our self-denial month at church. So, truth be told, the challenge was a success since this is the first time we have ever been able to give that amount to missions above our tithe in one month. Thank you for the nudge! I hope to keep on being more diligent to save as the days go on.
You did an awesome job Aija! Way to go!!!!
First, Kimberlee, thank you for this blog and for this challenge! Greetings from North Europe 🙂
As I wrote, I have saved 250 USD = 200 EUR, plus I got 35 USD when I sold my guittar, and found in one old wallet 1200 Swedish kronas (it is 170 USD). I remember that some year ago I put that money in that wallet but I have forgotten it. And now I found it 🙂 So total for this month it is 455 USD = 350 Euros, more than was my goal this month. My plan was to save 300 euros this month. Also I have some orders in my Etsy shop for approx 100 USD.
In next weeks I have to sale some hosehold items that I don’t use anymore.
The best way not to spend all money away for me is: take almost all money out of my debit card and leave it at home. Now for 2 months I have budget tracking file, and now I can see what goes for groceries, for gas and what for home and cat. I hope that from January 2015 I will be able to set a perfect amount of money for each category (zero budget).
We got some food from our parents (cabbage, beets, potatoes) and I do not have to spend money for personal care products because of my specific job, but still I know that we can save more. We have to learn a lot..
Thanks again 🙂 🙂