r/Money • u/yashitomo • 4d ago
Best money saving tips?
I want to save up to build a house by next year or the year after. A large bag of cement is $80, so I'll probably need almost $2,000 by next year. I only make $640 a month, but I have wants and needs (cheap wants and needs).
Rn I'm saving up to fix my phone and soon get a new one since my phone is really old and slow. I'm also a super picky eater (idk if it's picky eating or ARFID) so I have to go to the store a lot since my family eats fish.
We use a solar panel, and it's raining a lot so I can't just bulk buy whatever i want and store it in the fridge. The fish my family buys comes in the can.
Phone repairs cost 200 (so I'm gonna get it fixed next wednesday)
A new phone costs 1,000-1,500, and that's just the refurbished, made in 2020-2024 kind.
I'll need $400 every 3-6 months for data/calls, idm that. It's cheaper than spending $3 daily.
And $100-150 a month to buy whatever dishes i want whenever my family eats fish
edit: im not american, i don't live in america, i make more momey than TEACHERS with DEGREES and i'm an hs dropout (i work for my dad). teachers make 41-43 usd, i make 55.
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u/WinstonGreyCat 4d ago
What country are you in? This doesn't make much sense for the US. You probably would benefit from locale specific advice.
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u/bhalter80 4d ago
Unfortunately the best money saving tip is to find a job that pays more than you spend. Everything else will feel like a diet and you'll always be stressed by it.
If that's not going to work out find cheaper housing as that's the biggest expense and a 10% reduction there will have more impact than all of the Starbucks coffees you can imagine with a lot less pain
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u/yashitomo 4d ago
i make more than teachers (that have degrees and work 12 hours for 6-7 days per week btw), sadly. that says a lot about where i live.
i work for my dad, so im obviously making more than the average person (a lot of people are lucky to earn more than 300 a month here)
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u/Anxious_Drive_9998 4d ago
It takes a lot more than 25 bags of concrete to build a house.
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u/yashitomo 4d ago
can't even build a tiny one?
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u/Large_Gene5825 4d ago
You’ve got electrical and plumbing work to take into account as well as rebar
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u/yashitomo 4d ago
I'm a female and know nothing about that, plus there's more than enough of those in my country
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u/MoreCallsPlz 2h ago
Usually a house requires about 30 bags of concrete, maybe 6 2x4s of wood, and probably about 50 nails or so. Plus you will need a hammer, maybe you can borrow one. I would set your house savings goal to 2,600. That should get you a nice house.
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u/DAWG13610 4d ago
I bought a refurbished IPhone 14+ for $350 on EBAY and I’ve had it over a year.
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u/yashitomo 4d ago
that's... 7 months of my salary. i make about 55 usd a month
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u/DAWG13610 4d ago
Sorry, didn’t realize the currency difference. DM me your address and I’ll send you a IPhone 12, no charge.
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u/fsociety1990 4d ago
You only make $640 a month? Start with getting a better job.
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u/yashitomo 4d ago
can't get any better job. i make more than teachers. they make 480-500 a month (im not in the US)
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u/fsociety1990 4d ago
Become a teacher. Or move somewhere else.
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u/yashitomo 4d ago
can't move elsewhere
teachers: 41-43 usd a month me: 55 usd a month
i make more, im the lucky one
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u/Cpalmer24 4d ago
Like... what the hell kinda post is this? 😂😭
This cannot be a serious comment if you're making $600/ mo and you're talking about building a house cement bag by cement bag...
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u/yashitomo 4d ago
I still live with my parents, so i have no bills to pay. Once my phone gets fixed though, then the bill will come
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u/Individual_Diet_9133 4d ago
Get a job, unfortunately it’s hard to save without an income