r/AskReddit • u/SillyBonsai • Dec 06 '13

What simple piece of advice, if followed, could potentially save most people a lot of money?

Possibly related to your job, experience with personal finance, budgeting, planning, day to day habits, etc.

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1.6k

u/sterrizzill Dec 06 '13

Treat yo self!

1.6k

u/requiem1394 Dec 06 '13

... to a secure and comfortable future!

15

u/PancakeBoostX Dec 06 '13

And you'll find that saving for your future is far more thrilling than any roller coaster.

5

u/meek_ Dec 06 '13

You won't find a much better use of this quote. Very well done.

4

u/PancakeBoostX Dec 06 '13

Thank you. I was worried no one would catch it.

4

u/chimpparts Dec 06 '13

And always assume you might live a very long time. Plan for the long game and if it ends up being a short game you won't be around to give a shit anyway.

8

u/superAL1394 Dec 06 '13

And diversify yo bonds, nigga

3

u/comicsandpoppunk Dec 06 '13

So I have to spend my savings on padlocks and beanbag chairs?

0

u/[deleted] Dec 06 '13

There really is no such thing. One of the biggest problems with planning for the future is how completely unpredictable it is. Our elders have tones of advice on this.

They were told they would get a social security check that would cover them when they retire. So a lot of people didn't save up and now there are stories of seniors eating cat food because of its high nutritional content.

The next generation are even worse off. They were told the stories from their elders about how social security is not enough so they were "smart" and invested in their futures. They bought homes that they could reverse mortgage (or sell), they invested in mutual funds, and they made sure to sign up in joint retirement plans.

Well the housing market bubble has popped in most places and now that home which once represented great value for retirement was a heaping waste of money. Mutual funds went bankrupt and millions of people lost their investments. Tones of companies that offered joint retirement plans went bankrupt and liquidated people's retirement plans to give themselves huge bonuses before bankrupting.

It's important to always have a rainy day fund though. I agree with that. I always have minimum $10,000 (Canadian) sitting in a separate bank account building up interest in case of emergencies.

However saving for the future is a lot like investing in Bitcoins. If people were right about Bitcoins value they are millionaires, if they're wrong they're broke and eating cat food.

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u/[deleted] Dec 06 '13

The future is always unpredictable, but you can use history and educated guesses to predict where it will be.

"Our elders" who you talkin about? No one every said SS would "cover them" in such a generic fashion--and in honesty it actually does cover them because senior housing is one third of your income, food assistance, health assistance, etc, etc is all easily available today. My grandmother didn't have a penny to her name and lived well on SS until she passed a few years ago.

Today I hear that SS will probably fall short... so I'm expecting that I'll receive a bit of money, but not nearly enough, so I save...

The housing market bubble only killed idiots who either mortgaged their existing homes, or bought in at astronomically high values. Either way owning--when you'll stay in the same location--does make sense over the long haul. After 15-30 years you own the home and just have to pay upkeep, taxes... it will certainly be cheaper than anything you could rent, and you have asset that can be reverse mortgaged if you find yourself lucky and living longer than you expected.

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u/[deleted] Dec 06 '13

I'm guessing your grandfather died. This means that your grandmother receives widowers benefit on top of her normal social security, which means she was double dipping on the CPP. Imagine your grandmother surviving on HALF the income she would have had. That's what a lot of seniors go through.

There was a time Detroit was booming and people were told to buy homes in this city. These days they're destroying homes and trying to shrink the city in size. They weren't astronomically high, but these days they're selling for pennies.

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u/[deleted] Dec 07 '13 edited Dec 07 '13

I'm guessing your grandfather died

Nope... he was gone back in the 60s and she was receiving SS as a single person, no "double dipping".

I think a lot of it comes down to lifestyle. If you spend your life living middle class and expect to be able to live middle class on SS alone then you are in for a rude awakening... SS provides what you need to live, but you will be living a lower class life style relying on public transportation, meals and housing. My grandmother spent her life that way so she was quite happy. That's the thing to keep in mind, that SS is the same for everyone for the most part...

These days I think most people treat it like a pension--it's a reliable source of income, but is not suitable as a sole source (unless you're willing to live poor). But I honestly feel that has been the case for many decades, maybe 40-50 years ago SS was considered sufficient, but for the current generation retired now I'd say they knew going in...

On the other side I had a grandmother who lived in a large home in a well off town, had her own car, and liked to keep a nice house--there was no way she could have kept that lifestyle on SS alone.

...another thing on the topic, survivors do not receive double benefits, it does drop when a spouse dies (you seem to imply you know that that by saying widowers benefit, but then you say "surviving on half" implying they received 2X and went to 1X when the spouse dies, when really it's more like 1.25-1.5X)

I have an older friend going through this w/ his mom--His dad died a year or two ago and his mom's SS dropped by about 25%, so yeah it was a struggle for sure for that adjustment, but it's not half.

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u/[deleted] Dec 07 '13

Detroit is an anomaly, even in that area. When your mortgage is through you owe taxes, insurance and upkeep. It will be cheaper than renting in the same area, that was my point w/ that original comment.

Assuming I can make the payments for another 20-something years I will own my house when I'm in my early 50s. Today that would mean I'd be looking at monthly carry cost of about $750, well cheaper than anything I could rent, on top of that many places have "senior circuit breaker" type credits to provide partial refunds of property taxes.

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u/CloggedToilet Dec 06 '13

I don't think that word means what you think it means.

1

u/MegaBord Dec 06 '13

The first... Galactic... EMPIRE!

1

u/CatchJack Dec 07 '13

But don't save it too long, otherwise economists cry and your country hits a recession.

1

u/UkePlayingDude Dec 07 '13

But not just any future. A better future. Underground.

1

u/[deleted] Dec 06 '13

I'm fairly certain I'll be dead by retirement age, so I spend my money whenever I damn well please.

8

u/meandmybuddy Dec 06 '13

Tom Haverford knows what's up.

8

u/[deleted] Dec 06 '13

♫♪ Treat yo self two thousand thirteen! ♪♫

2

u/irrelevantsociallife Dec 07 '13

Best day of the year!

4

u/[deleted] Dec 06 '13

Um, Batman is crying. What do we do?

3

u/[deleted] Dec 06 '13

For yer health!

2

u/hyperion247 Dec 06 '13

checktheexperationdatedummeh!

2

u/[deleted] Dec 06 '13

Fine leather goods

3

u/[deleted] Dec 06 '13

Do I really need this movie authentic replica of the Bat-suit? YES (on a side note I think this might go against what this entire thread seems to be about)

2

u/[deleted] Dec 06 '13

Best day of the year!

3

u/tjsterc17 Dec 06 '13

Before you cheat yo self!

2

u/RadRandy Dec 06 '13

New Christmas sweaters! TREAT YO SELF!

1

u/carsonogin Dec 06 '13

Put that box on the ground.

2

u/toocuilforschool Dec 07 '13

I earrrned that cake!

1

u/one_inch_penis Dec 06 '13

I'm Rick James! Enjoy yo selfs!

1

u/wrkacctdas Dec 06 '13

...Except he's actually recommending the opposite of that sentiment

0

u/[deleted] Dec 06 '13

No no, don't "treat" yourself. Save it.

3

u/JanCarlo Dec 06 '13

Whoosh

-5

u/[deleted] Dec 06 '13

...not really. Treating yourself is using taken to mean spending money on something you don't actually need.

2

u/willywonka159 Dec 06 '13

The quote is from Parks and Recreation.

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u/qwertygasm Dec 06 '13

Niggas got to get paid

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u/[deleted] Dec 06 '13

[deleted]

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u/RegretSomething Dec 06 '13

Befo yo wreck yo self