How I Saved Money on Some Normally Big Ticket Items
September 14, 2012I was looking at Facebook a few days ago because I got a notification that my daughter had posted a few hundred pictures and I wanted to see what they were. She’s a pretty talented photographer already at age 16 and some of her photos make me see something I’ve seen a million times in a completely different light. As a guy with absolutely ZERO artistic talent, I am amazed by those who do have talent in that area. It makes me wonder if I’m really her father, because I can’t even draw a recognizable stick figure, but I guess that’s a topic better suited for Jerry Springer than for a financial blog, huh?
As I was checking out the photos she posted, I saw a few from her prom last spring and there were a lot of comments about how beautiful her dress looked. The part that made me laugh is that I know how much (or little…) she paid for that dress. I would be willing to wager that she paid less for her dress than any other girl at her prom.
Because I know none of her friends read this, I can let you know that her prom dress cost $8. Yes, that’s an eight with no other digits. She bought it at a used clothing store and we had it dry cleaned so the total cost was about $12. I spent more than that buying coffee for her and a few of her friends (I was their chauffeur that night) in between prom and the after-party. The dress made me think about what other “expensive” items I’ve purchased before that can be bought at a significant discount if you’re willing to put in a little bit of effort.
Cars – I wrote a blog post long ago about my car buying philosophy and how it has saved me thousands of dollars, probably tens of thousands of dollars, over my lifetime. In a few words (not my specialty), the philosophy is to buy a great, high quality car at a relatively low price point by buying it as it comes off its first lease and drive it until it dies. Usually a 3-5 year old car with 40,000-60,000 miles costs less than half of what it costs new and it still looks new when I buy it.
If it’s been serviced by a dealership, they know the flaws and what’s been replaced and updated. Let the first buyer find all the little nagging rattles and warning lights that go off unexpectedly & get them fixed, drive it like it’s a new car and treat it very well and move on to his next car while I get a great, well maintained car that someone else has driven during the rapid price depreciation time. The old saying that a car loses 25% of its value the second it leaves the dealer’s lot may be a bit overstated, but cars are simply depreciating assets and I tend to try to avoid spending a lot of money on depreciating assets so that I have money left over for appreciating assets! Now all I need to do is find assets that will appreciate…
Furniture – I went through a 5 year long divorce process and in that process my net worth decreased as did my cash flow. And, I needed to furnish another residence with a much smaller budget than I had with my ex’s house when we furnished it together. That was certainly a task that I wasn’t quite ready for, but it had to be done.
My first stop was the furniture store where we bought most of the stuff in our house and when I went through the list of things I wanted for my new place, the cost was way over my limited budget. So, I needed to get creative. They had an irregular or outlet shop in their basement and I picked up a few things at a fraction of their retail cost. I also picked up a few odd and ends at yard sales in really nice neighborhoods. My coffee table and end tables were probably more expensive new than my entire living room set at my old house, but at a yard sale, I got the whole set for $20 from a couple who were moving out of their house because of their divorce. I also got a lot of stuff, primarily for my kids’ rooms, from Craigslist. It’s nice to have a friend with a pickup truck and a strong back! It took time and effort, and I let the kids participate & “go shopping online” so that they felt connected to the process. And, for less than I furnished one room in my old house, I furnished an entire new place for myself and my kids.
Exercise equipment – Because I travel for work a lot, maintaining a gym membership really isn’t all that cost effective for me. But, I do want to stay in shape. And although round IS a shape, that’s not what I’m talking about.
So, for me the answer was to have some exercise equipment in my home. I know that there are exercise machines that I can’t stand (elliptical, I always feel like I’m falling down for some reason) and others that I like (treadmills, rowing machine). But, what made me really feel like falling down was the price of these machines when I went into my local exercise equipment dealer.
I wanted to buy a rowing machine because it’s different than running. I can run outside so a treadmill is duplication. But the price was more than I wanted to pay. So, again I looked for a way to save on a big ticket item. I figured that local rowing clubs would know more than I would so I called my local one. As it turns out, a local rower was moving and wanted to sell his rowing machine rather than moving it. So….now it’s in my bedroom and I saved hundreds of dollars. How often do people buy great exercise equipment only to use it as a place to hang clothing? A lot. When they tire of the clutter, you could pick up an awesome piece of equipment for pennies on the dollar.
If you are considering a big ticket purchase, ask yourself if there is a way to save a lot of money. Every dollar counts in this economy. For me, every dollar that I didn’t spend on a car, on furniture and on exercise equipment is a dollar that can be put away for my kids’ education or my retirement.
Think creatively. Involve others if needed. Ask a friend if they have any suggestions. The bottom line for me with these purchases is that I view it as a competition to see how little I can spend on a high quality item. Do I miss out on good deals? Sure! But when my price point meets an opportunity, I enjoy the victory!