Author Topic: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?  (Read 68103 times)

TOgirl

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #50 on: January 19, 2017, 06:39:52 AM »
Well, I've been on the mustachian path for a while, but I joined in on the uber-frugal January for an extra challenge, and had been tracking all of my expenses and not spending on anything that wasn't absolutely necessary.

Then I was walking around the hardware store with a friend (we both love DIY) and spotted some cordless shades/blinds that were on sale for my kitchen windows. Kitchen had been renovated (inexpensively, by me) 2 years ago - and has sat without any window coverings since then, while I tried to decide how to cover them in a nice-looking/energy efficient/budget friendly way. Soooo...on a whim, I bought 2 sets of blinds for $200 total (windows are large). Started face-punching myself immediately, with some negative "I've failed uber-frugal month" talk.

And then I realized...I waited almost 2 years to make a good purchase of quality blinds, they were on sale, fit the space perfectly, will last a long time, and were paid for in cash. I've resigned myself to say - I no longer see the purchase as face-punch worthy, but as a direct result of practicing mustachian ways in other areas.

talltexan

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #51 on: January 30, 2017, 07:00:18 AM »
Alright, so I'm back from a week at Walt Disney World. Ghadghd! I cannot believe all the ways they find to suck extra money out of you...and my kids are being trained to be little mini-consumers, too!

Prodigal Daughter

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #52 on: January 30, 2017, 09:55:47 AM »
I spent $8.20 on breakfast for myself and my kids this morning because my entire weekend was taken up with volunteer projects, spending time with my parents who were visiting from out of town, my kids tournament, and swimming in the hotel pool where my parents were staying. I had zero time to buy groceries or cook ahead this weekend. (Although my parents paid my $5 admission fee to the tournament and took us out to dinner twice this weekend, so I'm not all that off budget.) After work plans tonight include a trip to the grocery store and cooking all night! Oh, and finishing the laundry. I only got one of three loads done this weekend.

mozar

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #53 on: January 30, 2017, 10:05:40 AM »
I've got a good one. I was frontloading my 401k last year and then my company started matching in April but now I couldn't frontload anymore. I did the math wrong and didn't check and just realized I was 2k short of maxing my 401k. That's 500 bucks in taxes I didn't need to pay. Ouch!

Poundwise

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #54 on: January 30, 2017, 10:13:14 AM »
I made lots of mistakes in the last couple of weeks...

-I ordered birthday gifts too late in the week and I expect they'll arrive today, after the parties are over. So I ended up running around to stores at the last minute and paying about $20 more than I should for gifts that weren't so great. To stop this from happening, I have to restock my gift bin, and also put an alarm on my calendar a week before events to make sure I have enough lead time to make orders. 

- Let a lot of food go bad in the fridge again because it was too full and I didn't notice the old stuff under or behind the new stuff.  Tomorrow I'm going to cook a lot of freeze-ahead dinners, so hopefully this will empty the fridge out a little.

- Made what I would consider a dubious choice, not sure if it is a mistake yet.  I have wanted interior shutters for my windows for over a year, but they are very expensive so I have been watching out for some on Craigslist.  Ended up buying several pairs of used plantation shutters in great shape for $100/pair, but although they would have cost over $400/pair new and installed in my windows, I still question whether I shouldn't just have sucked it up by making curtains.  This is one of these cases where I know there is a cheaper way to do what I need (get privacy and insulate windows) but I make a design choice that makes things more expensive.  Maybe the better interior decoration will help us sell the house, or at least that what I keep telling myself. 

So you're not alone in window covering foolishness, TOgirl!

« Last Edit: January 30, 2017, 10:35:05 AM by Poundwise »

Serve&Volley88

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #55 on: January 30, 2017, 11:23:45 AM »
I recently had a tootache that began with slight discomfort and ended in sheer agony. I saw my dentist four times in about 10 days and each time he said, "The filling in that tooth is very shallow, no need for a root canal. Must just be contact pain." Well, I finally went to a new dentist and she immediately sent me to an endodontist for a root canal. Sure enough, the nerve was almost dead and my now-former dentist was dead wrong. And also sure enough, the endodontist and my new dentist are not in-network. That resulted in a pile of bills totaling nearly $3,000, which all had to be paid out of pocket (I'm hoping insurance will reimburse at least 50%). This drained my emergency fund, already suffering due to some emergency HVAC work in October, to $1,000.

Maybe this isn't a money mistake, as I had funds set aside to cover the unanticipated expenses. But I now have very little left over which is solely my fault. I should have been working to get that e-fund back into healthy territory but I had sort of forgotten about it during the holidays. This was a very sobering reminder that I need to prioritize restoring the fund and for that I am kind of thankful!

Landlady

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #56 on: January 30, 2017, 11:28:15 AM »
I bought a bike on Craigslist for my husband for $50, then proceeded to spend another $200 to fix all it's problems as they arose. I wish I had just bought him a quality bike to begin with. I can't stand being penny wise and pound foolish. I probably could have avoided this one if I had taken time to educate myself on bikes. Oh well.


acroy

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #57 on: January 30, 2017, 11:39:11 AM »
Read on MMM about good cheap coffee makers.
Already own 2 perfectly functioning coffee makers.
Went to amazon and bought a $30 percolater.... because I wanted it.

talltexan

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #58 on: January 31, 2017, 01:06:37 PM »
It seems like I have a lot of little things lately that are hitting my credit card with automatic renewals...it's frustrating to have these things just appear, and they're all over the place!!!

Bracken_Joy

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #59 on: January 31, 2017, 02:55:08 PM »
It seems like I have a lot of little things lately that are hitting my credit card with automatic renewals...it's frustrating to have these things just appear, and they're all over the place!!!

Use a service like Mint, and categorize your past transactions, so you can see all these ahead of time! =)

Also, if you have a Citi card, they have a spot to see all recurring charges.

nexus

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #60 on: January 31, 2017, 05:22:19 PM »
I went to the Nike Factory Outlet Store over the weekend and spent $257 for the first time ever. I'm a particular fan of a certain sport and fans like me like to throw money at player merchandise. I'm a medium. I bought the same shirt in M and XL, and another in XL. I found hats with a player's logo on them. Snagged two. Wristbands for $2.99 and $4.99, regularly $10-$12, heck yes! A pair of shoes for $55, score! A sports bra for the lady friend for $15? Sold!

Why? Well, I have an eBay account and know my market. Those $55 shoes will sell for $110, less shipping and fees leaves me a nice profit between $30-$35 (sports bra gift paid for!). Those shirts I bought for $12.99? $25 bucks a pop. Sell two, and it covers the price of the one that fits me. Wristbands? The $2.99 ones will sell for $10. The $4.99 ones for $12.50.

So ultimately I really only wanted four items, but walked out with closer to fourteen. If/when the other 10 items sell, the net proceeds will cover the cost of the four items I want (and then some most likely). For a little extra work I get a higher seller rating on eBay, make some cash (or at least break even/'free' clothes), and earned some travel hacking CC rewards points. Worst case the stuff doesn't sell and I return it for a refund.

The move that warrants face punches? I went shopping for nonessential items because I was bored, but let's pretend I was being ambitious and entrepreneurial. (I think I'll make a post about this in my Journal tomorrow to help track whether I come out ahead, behind, or even).

Retire-Canada

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #61 on: January 31, 2017, 05:27:21 PM »
I went to the Nike Factory Outlet Store over the weekend and spent $257 for the first time ever. I'm a particular fan of a certain sport and fans like me like to throw money at player merchandise. I'm a medium. I bought the same shirt in M and XL, and another in XL. I found hats with a player's logo on them. Snagged two. Wristbands for $2.99 and $4.99, regularly $10-$12, heck yes! A pair of shoes for $55, score! A sports bra for the lady friend for $15? Sold!

Why? Well, I have an eBay account and know my market. Those $55 shoes will sell for $110, less shipping and fees leaves me a nice profit between $30-$35 (sports bra gift paid for!). Those shirts I bought for $12.99? $25 bucks a pop. Sell two, and it covers the price of the one that fits me. Wristbands? The $2.99 ones will sell for $10. The $4.99 ones for $12.50.

So ultimately I really only wanted four items, but walked out with closer to fourteen. If/when the other 10 items sell, the net proceeds will cover the cost of the four items I want (and then some most likely). For a little extra work I get a higher seller rating on eBay, make some cash (or at least break even/'free' clothes), and earned some travel hacking CC rewards points. Worst case the stuff doesn't sell and I return it for a refund.

The move that warrants face punches? I went shopping for nonessential items because I was bored, but let's pretend I was being ambitious and entrepreneurial. (I think I'll make a post about this in my Journal tomorrow to help track whether I come out ahead, behind, or even).

Factoring all your time & fees what would you say is your profit/hour for the stuff you sold?

Yonco

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #62 on: January 31, 2017, 05:37:09 PM »
Last week i had a 23$ bar tab, now this week i had to cut a $2000 check to an attorney.  I AM NEVER DRINKING AND EVEN GETTING CLOSE TO A CAR WITH KEYS IN MY HAND AGAIN.
« Last Edit: January 31, 2017, 05:48:30 PM by Yonco »

mustachepungoeshere

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #63 on: January 31, 2017, 06:58:07 PM »
Took two separate trips to the hardware store, spending $20 and then $10. Didn't remember the $5 off $20 coupon either time!

Hah!  We had a typical Friday-OMG-I-don't-wanna-cook-waaaah evening, and I remembered someone had given us a $100 gift card to a local restaurant.  So I gave DH the gift card, we bundled the whole family over, enjoyed a lovely meal, with fancy entrees and everything. 

So, yeah, when the bill came, DH forgot about the gift card (and I was doing something else and so didn't notice -- found out about it the next day, when he said, "would you believe I forgot the gift card?").

Next time we went, we put the damn card on the table the minute we sat down.

This is my in-laws on repeat.

They have an Entertainment Book full of coupons and vouchers, and pick where to eat based on the coupons.

MiL doesn't like to pay (joint accounts but she says it ruins the meal if she knows what she paid for it) so FiL pays but forgets the coupon. Every. Single. Time.

MiL gets cranky, then it's:

Oh well, we'll just have to come back here.

With This Herring

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #64 on: January 31, 2017, 07:58:45 PM »
Took two separate trips to the hardware store, spending $20 and then $10. Didn't remember the $5 off $20 coupon either time!

Hah!  We had a typical Friday-OMG-I-don't-wanna-cook-waaaah evening, and I remembered someone had given us a $100 gift card to a local restaurant.  So I gave DH the gift card, we bundled the whole family over, enjoyed a lovely meal, with fancy entrees and everything. 

So, yeah, when the bill came, DH forgot about the gift card (and I was doing something else and so didn't notice -- found out about it the next day, when he said, "would you believe I forgot the gift card?").

Next time we went, we put the damn card on the table the minute we sat down.

This is my in-laws on repeat.

They have an Entertainment Book full of coupons and vouchers, and pick where to eat based on the coupons.

MiL doesn't like to pay (joint accounts but she says it ruins the meal if she knows what she paid for it) so FiL pays but forgets the coupon. Every. Single. Time.

MiL gets cranky, then it's:

Oh well, we'll just have to come back here.

Eesh...  I put my coupons in my wallet in front of any cards or cash, and that does help me remember.

talltexan

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #65 on: February 01, 2017, 02:24:20 PM »
I've never been a winner with coupons. I remember my shock when one of my colleages--who out earned me by double--admitted to being an extreme couponer.

acroy

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #66 on: February 01, 2017, 02:29:14 PM »
Last week i had a 23$ bar tab, now this week i had to cut a $2000 check to an attorney.  I AM NEVER DRINKING AND EVEN GETTING CLOSE TO A CAR WITH KEYS IN MY HAND AGAIN.
d'oh! expensive lesson - hope the rest of the process is painless.

Iplawyer

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #67 on: February 01, 2017, 02:50:27 PM »
Last week i had a 23$ bar tab, now this week i had to cut a $2000 check to an attorney.  I AM NEVER DRINKING AND EVEN GETTING CLOSE TO A CAR WITH KEYS IN MY HAND AGAIN.

Uber, my friend, Uber. 

Fishindude

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #68 on: February 01, 2017, 02:57:09 PM »
Just replaced a cheap 12" chain saw with a good Stihl saw.  Needed one on a weekend and got in a hurry and bought an off brand saw at the farm store.  It lasted about a year, is now in a box in pieces and I'm using the new saw, so bought two saws to get one.  Probably $250 for the first one, then $350 for the second one.

Heck ... I pull boners like this all the time.

lizzzi

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #69 on: February 08, 2017, 03:35:30 PM »
Errrrrg---needed to pick up a quick Valentine's card for my daughter and the grandkids--they are out-of-state, and I just wanted something cute but not too stupid for them to open and set on the table with their other cards. So I grabbed one at the closest pharmacy while I was out getting a $20 at the ATM...I figured maybe $3 or $4 for a nice card...it would be too expensive...but what the hey. So I get up to the register --and that card...kind of a medium-large, nice but not fancy...was $7.01. OMG. Face punch, face punch. For a CARD!!!

And there I was watching the ads on TV for four-foot teddy bears for $99.99 and pink plush hooded onesies for your girlfriend...kind of laughing...like who in their right mind would over-spend for dumb stuff on Valentine's Day. Oops...me, I guess.

talltexan

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #70 on: February 13, 2017, 12:40:13 PM »
I cannot believe how expensive greeting cards are getting. Absolutely disgusting!

honeybbq

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #71 on: February 13, 2017, 12:46:09 PM »
Last week i had a 23$ bar tab, now this week i had to cut a $2000 check to an attorney.  I AM NEVER DRINKING AND EVEN GETTING CLOSE TO A CAR WITH KEYS IN MY HAND AGAIN.

Wow. I am glad you are alive to make this post. Sincerely.

Poundwise

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #72 on: February 13, 2017, 01:31:27 PM »
Me too!  Yonco, what happened??

My latest mistake was yesterday... ordered party favors (mystery Lego minifigures) for a kid birthday party before looking in our big box with leftovers from previous parties. Turns out I already had 15 packets of Lego men  that would have done just as well, but it's too late to cancel my order. 

caffeine

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #73 on: February 13, 2017, 01:43:36 PM »
I fueled up for about a 60 mile trip. I was sleepy and groggy. Before I got on the highway, the check engine light came on. I panicked as I'm driving a 16 year old car. I pulled into a mechanic that has a $50 diagnostic charge. I knew I could have drove to AutoZone where they did it for free, but I was a little scared to drive on it.

I paid $50 for them to tell me the gas cap is having issue. They suggested I buy a new gas cap. I declined the service, tightened the gas cap, and went on my way. The check engine light went away.

In many matters of life, knee-jerk reactions tend to waste money. By panicking, I wasted my weekend budget. Always tighten the gas cap completely.


Helvegen

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #74 on: February 13, 2017, 01:47:39 PM »
IKEA used to have a decent chocolate cake. I went there yesterday and got a slice and noped right out of that. I don't know how they ruined it, but they ruined it.

We left the cake and got Daim bar for dessert instead from the food market. It was better.

We are going later this week on a short visit to see my family. I didn't want to have to rent a car for the whole time, but I underestimated how batshit insane my mother can be some times (she basically wants to monopolize our time the whole trip and is throwing huge fits around any deviation in that plan), so had to pony up $198 for a rental car for the whole period instead of the one day I planned. Otherwise, I don't think she would take us back to the airport to pick up the car...honestly, she's lost her mind about us coming and I am not looking forward to this as far as it involves her one bit.

I'm a red panda

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #75 on: February 13, 2017, 02:08:02 PM »
Got milk at the grocery store yesterday (2/12).  Not only does it expire TOMORROW (2/14; I checked they had no other dates out) it was freaking $2.99 for store brand.

Target has milk for $1 this week!

stoaX

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #76 on: February 13, 2017, 05:18:07 PM »
I cannot believe how expensive greeting cards are getting. Absolutely disgusting!

2 words:  Trader Joe's and the dollar store.  Ok, that was 6 words but nonetheless their cards are a buck or less.


Bracken_Joy

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #77 on: February 13, 2017, 05:25:24 PM »
I cannot believe how expensive greeting cards are getting. Absolutely disgusting!

2 words:  Trader Joe's and the dollar store.  Ok, that was 6 words but nonetheless their cards are a buck or less.

+1. Trader Joe's is my saving grace. They don't have much selection at any given time, but rotate through them fairly often. I buy a few any time I find a design I like, and just keep them on hand. That way I'm never caught and have to spend too much!

mustachepungoeshere

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #78 on: February 13, 2017, 05:28:00 PM »
I cannot believe how expensive greeting cards are getting. Absolutely disgusting!

2 words:  Trader Joe's and the dollar store.  Ok, that was 6 words but nonetheless their cards are a buck or less.

+1. Trader Joe's is my saving grace. They don't have much selection at any given time, but rotate through them fairly often. I buy a few any time I find a design I like, and just keep them on hand. That way I'm never caught and have to spend too much!

+1 for a card box.

I stock up on the 75c-dollar cards when I find them.

Lots of people comment on how organised I am when it comes to sending cards, but doing it this way is less work.

I'm a red panda

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #79 on: February 13, 2017, 05:55:17 PM »
I get greeting cards on amazon.

I've also taken to postcards for Thank You notes. Cheaper than cards and the stamp is cheaper :)

Tyson

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #80 on: February 13, 2017, 07:44:40 PM »
I put a hold on my Hulu account 4 months ago thinking I'd see what life was like without it.  Turns out life was pretty good.  Didn't miss it at all and intended to cancel it before it "unfroze".  Well I missed the unfreeze window and got charged for a month.  $11.  Not a huge amount but irritating none the less.  To make up for it, I am blasting through 12 Monkeys Season 1 before March 7th when my month expires.

Poundwise

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #81 on: February 16, 2017, 10:22:28 AM »
Wow, I am on a roll this month!  I tripped over the power cord of my Macbook, knocking it to the ground, and now a 4 inch area is black and there are little lines running up and down across the display.  It would cost almost $500 to get it fixed locally, and even if I fix it myself it will cost at least $250 for the part (somewhat less if I opt for a used, less severely damaged display.)

I guess the mistake was switching over to Macs a few years ago. I can't imagine that it would cost so much to fix a PC laptop.

I know that there are workarounds, such as using an external monitor, but I know it will bug me daily so I might as well take care of it. Grrr.

Retire-Canada

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #82 on: February 16, 2017, 10:27:23 AM »
I guess the mistake was switching over to Macs a few years ago. I can't imagine that it would cost so much to fix a PC laptop.

I use PC and Mac a lot. The Macs are nicer to use and last longer before I run into problems vs. PC. Given how much time I spend using my computer [far and away from than anything else in my life] it's worth it to me to pay more initially for a more enjoyable experience.

I managed to get water into my Mac laptop's track pad and needed $200+ repair. While picking up the laptop my truck got hit and run to the tune of $900. It was an expensive mistake. But I don't look at buying the Mac as a mistake. Being careless with a drink around my laptop was the problem.
« Last Edit: February 16, 2017, 10:30:21 AM by Retire-Canada »

Cowardly Toaster

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #83 on: February 16, 2017, 11:32:50 AM »
all the humblebrags on here be like "OMG I have like a 3m$ net worth but I accidentally wasted $5.99. I am soo bad with money lol"

Poundwise

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #84 on: February 16, 2017, 11:53:38 AM »
Maybe there are a couple like that, but this is a thread where usually-frugal people can "confess" mistakes they have made, learn from them, and let them go.  I personally find that venting helps me keep from obsessing about a loss.

And though some may have a net worth in the millions, if they are trying to live on $30K a year, small sums are still disappointing to lose. 

I'm a red panda

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #85 on: February 16, 2017, 12:11:29 PM »
all the humblebrags on here be like "OMG I have like a 3m$ net worth but I accidentally wasted $5.99. I am soo bad with money lol"

It says "money mistakes lately"- not "biggest money mistake ever".

Cowardly Toaster

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #86 on: February 16, 2017, 12:55:36 PM »
Maybe there are a couple like that, but this is a thread where usually-frugal people can "confess" mistakes they have made, learn from them, and let them go.  I personally find that venting helps me keep from obsessing about a loss.

And though some may have a net worth in the millions, if they are trying to live on $30K a year, small sums are still disappointing to lose.

I'm just ribbing everyone :)

Tyson

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #87 on: February 16, 2017, 07:35:26 PM »
all the humblebrags on here be like "OMG I have like a 3m$ net worth but I accidentally wasted $5.99. I am soo bad with money lol"

You have to understand that I spend decades being bad with money and at 44 years old I had no savings and only $144k in retirement.  And it was mostly from eating out, spontaneous 'treats' and 'rewards' for myself and my wife, and letting a ton of little shit add up that robbed us of years of our lives.  So nowadays $11 wasted is a big deal to me.  Mostly because it was nickel and dime stuff that screwed me over for so long...

aspiringnomad

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #88 on: February 16, 2017, 09:25:26 PM »
A year ago I tossed my iPhone on the concrete. Didn't drop it, just tossed it. Was drunk, needed it out of my hand for some stupid reason, and I guess I thought the case would save it. Predictably, it landed face down and the screen cracked completely. Cost $150 to repair.

Monocle Money Mouth

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #89 on: February 17, 2017, 04:47:31 AM »
all the humblebrags on here be like "OMG I have like a 3m$ net worth but I accidentally wasted $5.99. I am soo bad with money lol"

You have to understand that I spend decades being bad with money and at 44 years old I had no savings and only $144k in retirement.  And it was mostly from eating out, spontaneous 'treats' and 'rewards' for myself and my wife, and letting a ton of little shit add up that robbed us of years of our lives.  So nowadays $11 wasted is a big deal to me.  Mostly because it was nickel and dime stuff that screwed me over for so long...

I'm totally feeling tyort1 here. I pissed a lot of good money away in my youth. If I had save and invested the money I pissed away on frivolous crap, my net worth would probably be double what it is now.

Monocle Money Mouth

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #90 on: February 17, 2017, 05:00:26 AM »
A money mistake I just made was not reading the instructions for a weatherproof electrical box cover. I figured, who needs to read instruction for a something like a cover? After 2 stripped threads in the electrical box, 4 trips to the hardware store, and a thread tapping kit, I can say that the weatherproof cover is firmly attached to my house. What should have just been $15 bucks for the cover, turned in to $50. If I had read the instructions, and cut down the screws that came with the cover instead of continuing to tighten down screws that were half an inch too long, I could have saved myself a lot of grief and money. Next time, I'll spend a few minutes on the instructions even if it seems obvious what I'm supposed to do.

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #91 on: February 17, 2017, 05:48:49 AM »
I haven't been able to find my running watch for a week, instead of just looking harder I just ordered a new one.  In my defense 3 weeks after I bought my last one the company came out with the one I just purchased which had all the features I wanted instead of most of them.

BrickByBrick

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #92 on: February 17, 2017, 10:23:46 AM »
So chalk this up to not reading the fine print I guess.

Last year I changed employers.  Signed up for an HDHP with an HSA (because I had recently learned about the magic that is an HSA) under my new employer provided healthcare.  With my previous employer I had an FSA with about $1000 left in it.  Well, I was approaching the end of the calendar year (after switching employers) and figured - hey, I might as well spend that $1000 on something (a planned expense earlier in the year ended up not happening) - so I went out and bought new eyeglasses and custom orthopedics for right about that amount.

I imagine at least a few of you know the result.  I logged into my account to file my claims and reimburse myself and received error messages instead.  After calling the account provider they told me I couldn't file claims after officially leaving my employer!  Even though the money was right there in the account!  I was beyond angry for a few minutes, it felt like theft (personally - I still view it that way, let me take it and pay taxes on it instead).  I had now paid $1000 on items I didn't really need.

But a simple check of the account or google search would've told me that $1000 was sunk before I spent another $1000. 

Oh well! At least I do use the eyeglasses and insoles.

aspiringnomad

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #93 on: February 17, 2017, 04:39:00 PM »
For my latest hobby, amateure astronomy, I bought a small "starter" telescope. Of course new, because I didn't know how to judge the quality of a second hand. I bought a separate mount, but bought the cheapest one I could afford. Half a year later I already wanted a bigger telescope that shows more deep sky. I put it on the existing mount, but it is way too light for the new tube. I should so much have invested into a heavier mount to start with. And maybe into a bigger telescope to start with. The one that I have now is a nice compromise. I could have bought that from the beginning. It would have been cheaper than buying two.

I have a buddy who has gotten into this, even building his own massive and impractical telescope almost from scratch (he has no car and can't carry it so he can't get it out of the city) and wow is it an expensive hobby. I have no idea what he spent in total but know he spent $800+ on just on particular components of the telescope, not to mention the cost of membership to the workshop he built it in. He learned a ton of cool stuff in the process, and it piqued my interest, but I had no idea that it would compare to something like kitesurfing in terms of expense.

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #94 on: February 17, 2017, 05:00:03 PM »
...it piqued my interest, but I had no idea that it would compare to something like kitesurfing in terms of expense.

If you kitesurf on used gear it's not so bad. Having new stuff is where the $$$ get sucked out of you.

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #95 on: February 17, 2017, 07:32:41 PM »
So chalk this up to not reading the fine print I guess.

Last year I changed employers.  Signed up for an HDHP with an HSA (because I had recently learned about the magic that is an HSA) under my new employer provided healthcare.  With my previous employer I had an FSA with about $1000 left in it.  Well, I was approaching the end of the calendar year (after switching employers) and figured - hey, I might as well spend that $1000 on something (a planned expense earlier in the year ended up not happening) - so I went out and bought new eyeglasses and custom orthopedics for right about that amount.

I imagine at least a few of you know the result.  I logged into my account to file my claims and reimburse myself and received error messages instead.  After calling the account provider they told me I couldn't file claims after officially leaving my employer!  Even though the money was right there in the account!  I was beyond angry for a few minutes, it felt like theft (personally - I still view it that way, let me take it and pay taxes on it instead).  I had now paid $1000 on items I didn't really need.

But a simple check of the account or google search would've told me that $1000 was sunk before I spent another $1000. 

Oh well! At least I do use the eyeglasses and insoles.

The more I hear about FSAs, the worse they sound.  Wow.  I know that the old rule for them was "use it or lose it" on an annual basis, though now you can roll some tiny amount from one year to the next.  I did not know you would lose access to the funds upon leaving your employer, though.  I guess it is balanced, as I've heard on the other side that someone who states Jan. 1 that they will contribute $200/monthly paycheck, spends $2400 from the FSA on medical stuff Jan. 31, and quits Feb. 1 is not required to repay the $2200 difference.

Erma

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #96 on: February 17, 2017, 11:54:06 PM »
I unplugged our freezer by mistake. We built a shelf, which  I nrmally do with a normal screw driver, but my boyfriend wanted to use the electric one and plugged it in and the freezer was plugged in a power strip. One evening I was thinking about how the drill was still plugged in, but forgot completely about the freezer, so I unplugged it.

Forward about 1.5 weeks and we had an extra garbage bag to throw away. The only good thing is that four months after our move the freezer wasn't filled up yet.

Dicey

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #97 on: February 18, 2017, 12:58:07 AM »
I committed the mortal anti Mustachian sin of buying a spanking new car!  With payments!  It was a discounted 2015 model with 0% interest, but I do regret not buying a slightly used 2013 that was available  for $5k less (probably more after negotiations).  26 payments left, then drive it into the ground.

Count me as another 'ultimate mustachian sin'. We bought new, AND with payment. We could have paid cash, but we got $$ off for financing, and it's at 1.9%. So IMO the "new car" is the only sin there. My excuse for that part is that DH drives a LOT for work. Like, 27k miles last year. Still, we should have done what we did last time- buy a slightly used car, our last one was 2 model years "behind" and had like 30k miles on it.
Ha! I guess I have to fess up to an automotive sin that's somewhere between venial and mortal. Last year, DH insisted it was time for a new car for me. He does the repairs, so...okay. I was perfectly happy with buying a used car, but I was adamant about not wanting a "13" model year. I just didn't want a "13". So we looked around and found a "14" that someone was breaking their lease on. It was a private party sale. She was so pissed at Toyota that she ate the loss rather than pay it to them. Bad for her, good for us. We paid cash, so there's that. But if we had purchased a "13", it would have been cheaper. Since I intend to drive it for the next decade, I'm sure it will all be fine in the end. So venial, maybe?

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #98 on: February 18, 2017, 04:34:10 AM »
I got a speeding ticket recently that will cost me $1-2k by the time all is said and done.......ugh.

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Re: Nobody's perfect... what money mistakes have you made lately?
« Reply #99 on: February 18, 2017, 05:58:42 AM »
1.  Somehow I managed to double-pay two different credit card balances in two different ways.  First one I apparently logged on and did a manual payment request on two successive days for the full amount.  Second one was a card I had on autopay and I manually scheduled a full amount payment for the day before the due date.  Found this out about a week before leaving on an out-of-town trip for two weeks.  Not the most convenient time to have the credit card companies holding on to my money.  Called and requested refund checks, which will have arrived after I had left.

2.  Lost my camera battery charger somehow.  It's just not where it should be (the definition of "lost", I guess :-) ).  Paid $42.39 to get a new one at Best Buy because I was leaving the next day for a long trip that I wanted to take lots of pictures on.

3.  Was planning on buying some souvenirs for my kids on the trip to celebrate them getting good grades.  Spent $$$ on a watch for my son, then as an afterthought realized I wanted to get something for my daughter.  Spent $$$$ on a necklace for her.  Even if it was a nice piece of jewelry, I really shouldn't spend $$$$ impulsively like that.