Frugality

Refill Your Printer Ink Cartridge

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New ink cartridges for your computer printer can be very expensive.  The cartridge for my printer costs about $35.  Refilling your printer ink cartridge rather than buying a new cartridge saves you quite a bit of money.  You can buy a refill kit for about $10 depending on what type of printer you have.  I haven’t used a refill kit but I’ve had friends that have used them successfully.

The other option is to have a store refill the cartridge for you.  I recently had my printer ink cartridge refilled at Walgreens and was pleased with the process.  The cost is $10 for black ink and $15 for black ink.  I had a coupon for $3 off ink refills plus a $5 off $20 purchase coupon so I effectively had the cartridge refilled for $2.  A $33 savings over buying a new one.  It took a half hour for the cartridge to be refilled.  When I got home I just popped it back in the printer and it printed great with no problems.

I’m sure there are other stores that refill ink cartridges but you probably can’t get a better deal than at Walgreens.   They frequently have coupons, register rewards, and free after rebate items that can allow you to buy stuff for free or even make a little money.  Check out Money Saving Mom for details on how to get the best deals.  I’m too lazy to come up with my own scenarios but picking the best ones off her site works well for me.  Even if you don’t want to bother with the deals you can save a lot of money by having your printer ink cartridge refilled.

Gas is Back Under $3 a Gallon

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At least here in KC it is.  I’ve seen it as low as $2.91 a gallon and most places have it under $3 a gallon.  I’m wondering if now people will go back to their old habits and not worry about conserving gas.  That is probably what most people will do.  I plan to continue keeping my gas usage to a minimum.  I never thought gas would go back under $3 a gallon but if everyone starts using lots of gas the price will go back up quicker.  It will eventually go up regardless of how people drive but if people conserve gas now it will help slow the eventual gas price increase and make them better able to deal with the higher price of gas.  I’m seriously thinking of getting rid of my car next year.  It will depend on my ability to use public transportation to get to school and any job I might have.

Save Money by Living in a Small Town

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We visited my mother this weekend.  My sister, who is in the Navy and stationed in California, was also there visiting.  My sister plans to retire from the Navy in three years after twenty years of service.  When she retires she will move to the small town where my mother lives.  There are several advantages of retiring to a small town and I might do the same myself.

The biggest advantage is that real estate is cheap.  My mom bought a brand new 3 bedroom, 2 bath house a few years ago for only $70,000.  Houses are still cheap there and rent is very low as well.  You also save money on transportation because everything is within a ten minute drive.  If something you want to do isn’t within a ten minute drive you’ll be saving money by doing that activity less often.  Car insurance is generally cheaper than in the city too.  That is just a few of the ways you can save money by living in a small town.

The biggest drawback to living in a small town is that most local jobs don’t pay very well.  If you’re retired then that isn’t a big deal.  Another drawback is the lack of diversity and exposure to other cultures.  I plan to travel often when I retire so I’ll get my culture and diversity during my travels.

Even with the financial advantages of living in a small town I probably wouldn’t live in one if I didn’t have family there.  If I do end up retiring to a small town it will probably be more of a pit stop between hiking and travels than  a permanent residence.

Getting Cash Back On My Tuition

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For reasons that are still unbeknownst to me not all of my tuition was automatically paid out of my financial aid. This created an inconvenience for me since I now had to pay the remaining balance by cash or check. Since I have several checking accounts but no checks this left me with the option of paying by cash.

I decided to get a little cash back for my inconvenience. I ordered $500 in dollar coins from the U.S. Mint. These coins sell at face value with free shipping. I used my credit card to pay for them earning myself $15 cash back.

The university cashier didn’t seem real pleased to be paid with dollar coins but he accepted them without complaint. The few minutes I spent ordering the coins were well worth the $15 return to me. I’m not sure how long the U.S. Mint is going to be offering this free shipping deal but I’ll probably take advantage of it again.

Living on $700 a Month

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Back in January I posted my sample $1000 a month budget.  I don’t stay strictly on this budget but it is a fairly accurate representation of my monthly expenses.  Frugal Freedom lives on even less and posted her $700 a month budget.  Below is her monthly budget.  I combined some expenses into categories to make it easier to compare to my monthly budget.

  • Food $150
  • Transportation $256
  • Utilities $149  (electric,internet, and phone)
  • Life Insurance $47
  • Everything Else $98 (trash,Christmas, property tax)

The main difference in our budgets is that she doesn’t have a rent or mortgage payment in her budget because she lives in an RV.  She does have a house with a mortgage but I’m guessing she doesn’t include it here because her renters cover the mortgage payments(?).  Other than that our budgets are pretty similar.  One difference is that she doesn’t have any money budgeted for entertainment or health insurance.  She also spends money on life insurance which I don’t have because I have no need for it.

This does show that you can live on very little money if you plan for it.  If anyone else has a low monthly budget they’d like to share I’d like to see it.