Comments on: How Have Your Finances Changed Since The Downturn?

By: J. Money

J. Money — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 01:27:29 +0000

@LB – Hell yeah! And if we do one here first, you’ll get a feeling for how it’s like when some eyeballs are staring at it :) Shoot me an email whenev: j (at) Elite Edge Money (dot) com
@Ron Stevens – Woulda been nice! Though there’s a lot of good stuff we could do if we could predict the future ;)

By: Ron Stevens

Ron Stevens — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 22:39:17 +0000

This are the times that people should start looking for better ideas and make the right choice, is not easy to loose your house or your car, those are the things that are very important in our daily life. A few years a go i took a big step in which i decide to invest in gold if i remember correctly gold was around 400 by the year 2004. so i made a few research and look into a few websites in which i got in contact with. http://www.GoldPrice.net/ and now gold is about $1600.00 just think how much i made just by investing 150k on gold when it was $400.00 back then?

By: LB

LB — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 13:46:42 +0000

I would totally do a guest post for you! Maybe if I can ever come up with a concrete idea for my own blog I could start writing more :)

By: J. Money

J. Money — Sun, 09 Oct 2011 15:29:06 +0000

Hah! I’m the master of “working” and “playing” at the same time — isn’t that what we all want in life? ;)

By: Natalie @ Mango

Natalie @ Mango — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 20:13:54 +0000

That is scary. We see these numbers over and over, and yet somehow, until you are in that situation, or know somebody who is, they remain just that: numbers! But even if we haven’t lost a home or a job, cutting back is something that most of us have grown familiar with lately. Especially on vacations! (Except for you, J. Money– we know you’re “working.” :o) At Mango Money we have a great post on how to *save* on vacations, so you won’t have to cut them out altogether. After all, everyone needs a bit of a reward every once and a while! http://www.mangomoney.com/blog/blog/mango’s-top-10-ways-to-save-on-summer-vacations

By: J. Money

J. Money — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 22:20:23 +0000

@Sharon V – Oh yeah, the longer you can stay optimistic the better chance (I feel) you can overcome it and really kill it again. I don’t mind people whining and feeling bad for themselves for a while – we all get to do that in shitty situations – but after a while it starts to take you lower and lower if you don’t OWN it and really fight to get back on top. I was pretty miserable after college (used to be the best years of my life!) and once I snapped out of it and focused on making even BETTER years, I magically started living them ;) Positivity does wonders!
@Elle@Odd Cents – You’re very fortunate! :) And I’m glad you shared your views too – I think it all helps to put thing in pespective no matter where we live, and what our current financial status is. So thanks!
@Edward Antrobus – Oh wow, that’s harsh on so many levels! $50 too much?? Finding a home after bankruptcy?? I’m sorry to hear man :( That’s no fun at all… on the plus side you really carry yourself well online! I always see you as such a positive and smart person, so that’s good! :)

By: Edward Antrobus

Edward Antrobus — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 04:00:11 +0000

Vacation: I took my first vacation of my adult life this past January.
Retirement savings. I haven’t contributed a dime into my IRA since 2009. Yeah, paying the bills today is more important to me than paying the bills tomorrow. But, if social security is still around in 40 years, we actually already have enough without putting in another dime.
Original unemployment was me, moving across country. Took 8 months to find a job. Laid off 4 months later. Took another 8 months.
We borrowed the down payment for my wife’s car. Just finished paying it back in July, a year later. We got a car for my wife so we could look in a larger area for an apartment.
Actually, I didn’t have health insurance UNTIL the recession. Never had it a day in my life until I got married 2 years ago.
I’ve been hungry. The worst part was when the county said we made $50/month too much to qualify for food stamps.
We did loose our place, but not because of inability to pay. The rental company just decided they didn’t want to rent to us any more. Have any idea how hard it is to get a place 6 months after a bankruptcy?
Pay cut, I would totally do, if I had to. Unfortunately, my current employer is probably going to expect me to take a pay cut AND travel further next summer. I don’t think I can manage both.

By: Elle@Odd Cents

Elle@Odd Cents — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 01:22:13 +0000

I’m not even sure I should be posting on this one. I haven’t really been affected by the down turn, but even before there was talk of a recession, I made some serious cutbacks in my spending:

Vacation: I don’t have a choice but to take a couple trips a year, because I’m in a long distance relationship.
College: The majority of Caribbean people benefit from free undergraduate studies at the University of the West Indies campuses. So many of us start jobs virtually debt-free. I’m doing an MBA now and i decided to pay per course which allows me to save money each month.
Unemployed: Thankfully I’ve never experienced this, but I have friends that were unemployed for long periods. Lots of people forget that there is a psychological side to it. Not being able to support your family can take a toll and make you depressed.
Borrowed money: I’ve never done this.
No health insurance: So far, all of my jobs have had health insurance plans.
Hunger: I’ve never experienced this. It’s heartbreaking to know that so many people need food, whilst it’s being wasted in some places.
Lost home: I don’t know what this feels like either. I can see that it’s happening in the USA very frequently and easily. I’ve read lots of stories of financial institutions ripping off people and getting away with it.
Taking a pay cut: Not sure about this one….

By: Sharon V

Sharon V — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 15:54:57 +0000

My BF and I had to borrow, we were temps from 2008 to 2010, so we were often unemployed, but ineligible for gov’t retraining help. We never went hungry, but we weren’t eating high quality either. Through it all, we were aware that we were fortuneate. Other temps we worked with were in much worse situations, but there seemed to be a vast difference in attitudes. Some were scared and despondent, others were optimistic that it was all temporary. The manufacturing sector was starting to imporve by the time we left Ontario, so I know the optimistic ones were able to do better faster.

By: J. Money

J. Money — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 13:26:04 +0000

@Jen @ Master the Art of Saving – Most def. People always have it worse off than us :(
@Jeffrey Trull – Agreed! Really really glad we got to meet in real life my man :) If you ever need anything at all just let me know okay? I’m on a mission this year to help as many people as I can, so you’ll never bother me!
@MD – Haha, dude – my accent is ALL jacked up this week! I think it is from FINCON – we had Canadians there, Australians, even people from Israel! I pick up a little of it every time I travel and love it ;) All these different cultures fascinate me.
@Evan H. – NICE!!! That’s what I like to hear! Even in such mess, it’s still possible to come out and kill it! Way to go both of you. You’re an inspiration :)
@Courtney – Oh cool! Great issue, huh? I agree on outlook — we’re just trying to lower all our expenses no matter what’s going on all around us, so one day we can do whatever we want w/out much worry. We don’t always have control of what’s gonna happen in the markets/politics/etc, but we sure do on our OWN household economy! Gotta rock that until you’re floating along nicely ;)