How to do my husband and I stop spending money on stupid stuff and start putting money in the bank?
477948
Everyone has to be part of the solution - kids included.\nPost your budget on the fridge to remind everyone they have a stake in this. Pain that it is, writing down EVERYTHING for a couple of months will cure the problem.\n\nFirst, add up all your income per pay period - month, week, biweekly, whatever.\n\nThen add up all your "fixed" expenses to match the pay period (multiply rent x 12 then divide by 52 to get weekly, etc.)(estimate using highest electricity bill, telephone bill, etc.) and ADD A NEW ITEM CALLED "BANK" THAT IS 10% OF YOUR INCOME.\n\nSubtract the expenses from your income. Now you know what you have to spend on groceries, gas, clothes, etc. etc.\n\nWhen your paycheck comes in, put it directly into your bank, and put 10% directly into your savings account - this matches your budget. Some banks will automatically do this for you if you ask them to.\n\nWhenever anyone spends anything, have them subtract it from the remaining money and WRITE DOWN WHAT IT IS FOR. Everyone can see where the $$ are going, and you'll see exactly what is happening and so will everyone else. Having the whole family seeing and supporting a reasonable budget is the best way to go - and a great lesson for your children.
544208
Ditch the vacation.  You got into financial trouble by living beyond your means.  Don't make things worse by taking a vacation with money that you can use to pay down your debt.\n\nIt doesn't matter whether you pay off the cards in your name first or the ones that are jointly in your names.  You are husband and wife.  You're both in this together.\n\nPay off the cards with the highest interest rate first.  This will give you some measure of relief.  Then with the money that would have gone to making the minimum payments on those cards, apply all that extra money to paying off the card with the next highest interest rate.  While you're doing all this, make sure that you keep up the minimum payments on all the other cards.\n\nKeep repeating the process until all the cards are paid off.  And don't use *any* of the credit cards until the last one is paid off.  You don't need to be paying any new interest costs while you're trying to eliminate the old ones.
741786
Get a bank or any jar. Every time you catch yourself swearing fine yourself a quarter and put it in the bank. When your first child is born use the money to start a savings account.
193873
Start by making a budget and stick to it you can not save money by accident you must do it on purpose. I think the best way to start is in a book written by Dave Ramsey called Financial Peace. He has written several books but that is the first and very good "More than enough" is his second book and very good also if you like the first. His books are available in any book store and many library's. Good luck to you.
224405
Get another job, or stop spending more than you earn.
44940
create a new budget that is smaller.  This may mean having only one car, or less extras like eating out and fast food.  There are many areas that you can cut the corners.  I have been staying at home for 9 years now and it is only the last 4 years that I have been working at home with my own business.  I do it for fun not because our budget demands it.  \n\nGood luck with it.  If you can't do it in the situation you are in.. either you have to change the budget or your husband needs to get a better paying job.  If both of those are maxed to as good as you both can do - then you may have to work.
837203
spending money i dont have.
64775
First you need to write everything you pay for in a month in a notebook. This will tell you where some of your spending problems are. After this create a  budget. Leave your self spending money so you don't feel like your depriving yourself. Many people will not leave anything for themselves , feel bad, and blow their budget. If you have credit cards put them in a metal coffee can and freeze them. This will take some of the impulse out of your spending because while you are taking the time to thaw them out you are really thinking whether or not the item is worth it. Thats why you put it in a metal can so you can't use the microwave. Lastly remember to pay yourself first. Always make sure to put something away in savings. If you can do this with direct deposit, I would recommend this highly so that after a couple of weeks you won't even remember that you had it. Good Luck:)
1028443
first off, be honest with him. the more you keep trying to hide this from your husband, the more excuses and trails you'll have to cover. however you paid for the bills they will leave a paper trail somewhere and if this keeps up, eventually your husband will follow that trail and then you'll have to answer for the shady activity. Since you only used it to pay for essentials like food and gas, then it shouldn't be that big a concern. whatever the outstanding bills were then that might produce a problem. Trust me, just suck it up and let him know about the bills and such and just deal with it then. Better now than several months down the road and you slip up on how you spent x amount of dollars on something. Just suck it up and ride it out. the longer the paper trail you leave the hotter the flame will be when it catches up to you.
541284
You need someone to take your check from you and give you allowance for you to spend on whatever. Yes a shrink could help but you get pleasure out of getting new things and that might not go away. I think you need to tell yourself if you spend alot of money on whatever do you ever actually use, wear, or need those items you bought?
978603
First of all get a long term retirement fund and contribute to it regularly... even just $20 a week. Don't touch that money under any circumstances. Now at the same time start to put money away for short term goals. Don't get into the credit card trap of paying 10-25% interest on things you really don't want or need. Spend less than you earn. Consider the value of your purchases not the wants... concentrate on needs. You have alot of choices as a consumer. Will you be happy driving a 2007 Hyundai for $15,000 or must you have that $34,000 Chrysler??? Do you need a cell phone and a home phone? You can save $30+ by going with one or the other. Do you frequently buy books and magazines that you can get from your local library for free? Are you paying bank fees for checking??? Do you shop around for pricing on purchases before you buy? Do you go out to eat every day at lunch??? It's all about value. The more you spend, the less you'll have. Common sense isn't always common. Read books about millionaires from your library and you'll find ways that you can join those ranks. I am not suggesting you go without treats. Hey, you work hard for your money. What I am saying is not to forget the future because it'll be here before you know it. You don't need a $1,000,000 home. Live within your means and you'll have a much happier life and lifestyle without the worry.
566194
Could you provide a little more detail please? The approximate amount that you are short by?\n\n\n\nOne good way to start is to start saving. That sounds very obvious, but please hold on. In the US there is not much emphasis placed on saving, no one teaches you how to save. Small things go a long way, for example a coffee everyday costs you $100 a month depending on where you live: so dropping that habit saves $100! And its good for your health and heart. Smoking is another example, but unfortunately its harder to let go. \n\nSaving on fuel: try using the bus for medium distance commutes. Its not bad, trust me! I take the bus to work everyday. I get my commute done in $40 per month.\n\nYou pitched in to help your family, so its time for them to help you back. Don't hesitate to ask them to babysit your kid once in a while. That I believe saves a lot. If they don't, or if you think they are neglecting your kid, its time to break that parasitic relationship.\n\nTry looking for a job that permit you to work from home, so that you don't need a babysitter. Anything that involves typing for example. But beware of internet job sites, a majority of them are hoaxes. For example, the secret-shopping thing is a hoax 99% of the time. If an offer sounds too good to be true, it is probably not true. \n\nIf you have a kid old enough to do math, it is good idea for you and him/her to let him/her calculate your credit vs. debit everyday. Initially it may be cumbersome and more tiring than doing the darn thing yourself, but it pays off in the long run. Maybe you can ask him/her to sit down while you are cooking, and you recall today's expenses and earnings. He can enter them in two columns, add entries in each column and subtract to give nett daily savings. My mom did that to me :-)\n\nhttp://answers.yahoo.com/question/;_ylt=AtScV0GM2DTZVRGW1tmxxuYezKIX?qid=1006050319925\nlooks to be a professional answer.
66786
stop buying things you do not need
270337
Yes and yes. Get a part time job.Limit your spending.
788214
Use the envelope system.  Make a realistic budget for each category and when you get paid put that much money into each envelope.  When the money in the envelope is gone you don't buy anything else in that category.
930458
The first step is to stop using the cards!  I keep my credit cards at home in a safe place so that I do not get tempted to use them while I am out and about.  Once you have done that, the next step it to look at your budget.  You can easliy make a spreedsheet  in excel to keep track of what you pay each month.  When you know how much you HAVE to spend (like rent, food, gas, etc) then the money left over goes to things such as credit card bills and extra spending money.  What works for me is to start paying off the smaller bill first...I like to see that I have completed something.  That way, you also have more money to pay on the larger bills.  Only in extreme cases: try to tranfer the larger balances to another card that has a smaller interest rate.  If you do that, CANCEL the cards that you just zeroed out.  That way, you will be paying less....but you should CANCEL the zero balance card.  It would be good to just have one credit card for emergencies.
227189
The Key is NECESSITY. If you have trouble with spending money, then try to stick with only buying items that YOU NEED and  you know what you really need or not and what you can do without.  Also try to limit the amount you spend each week and try to maintain a certain amount for each week and that will limit your use.\n\nOh and most importantly, PUT MONEY ASIDE FOR  YOUR BILLS FIRST BEFORE ANYTHING ELSE, then things might go a little smoother for you. But dont forget the key, Think: NECESSITY AND BILLS.