Trying to cut cost

I have checked the following websites to help look for an apartment that takes dogs but it has been difficult.

www.craigslist.org
www.apartments.com
www.apartmentguide.com
www.forrent.com
www.apartmentfinder.com
www.move.com
www.mercurynews.com
www.sfgate.com

Most of the emails I have gotten from Craigslist are a hoax. Then the apartment complex's that do except pets either do not take dogs over 35lbs or do not except my dogs breed. There are a couple that do take the kind of dog we have but they are out of our budget. We are trying to save as much money as possible. A lot of things like grocery's, restaurant menus and etc. have been increasing.

We have been cooking at home instead of going out. We are watching movies at home instead of the theatre sine it is over $40 for two people.

Then we thought about trading in the car because the payments are a little high but we have already paid for a year of financing and registration so I think we are keeping the car.

Since I am working temp and could be let go at any point it is scary to be here on one salary. We have tought about leaving CA but one of would need to get a job first.

Are there any openings at Bascom Holiday Apartments at 1260 N Bascom? Last I knew they accept pets of any size for a small monthly fee. Low cost apartments, almost everyone living there has a big dog. Apartments have balcony or small yard.

I can't remember where I heard about this service, but it sounds interesting. There's a site called the Grocery Game and it's a grocery store shopping guide put together by pro discount shoppers. You pay a small fee and they have info to help you find the best specials in your area:
http://www.thegrocerygame.com/con__CustomerService.cfm

There's also a service run by "The Cheapest Family in America":
http://www.homeeconomiser.com/

QUOTE (Sheldon @ Aug 26 2008, 07:56 PM)

I can't remember where I heard about this service, but it sounds interesting. There's a site called the Grocery Game and it's a grocery store shopping guide put together by pro discount shoppers. You pay a small fee and they have info to help you find the best specials in your area:http://www.thegrocerygame.com/con__CustomerService.cfm There's also a service run by "The Cheapest Family in America":http://www.homeeconomiser.com/

Piglet, I'm sorry to hear about your troubles. I hope things improve for you. I know Americans are hurting. As far as groceries, I think planning purchases around sales and stocking up is a good strategy. Everything goes on sale in cycles (it is something like every 6 or 8 weeks, a certain item goes on sale.) You can research this on Google as no doubt many bloggers have tips. There are even several good blogs about saving money -- I didn't save the URLs though and can't remember what they are called.

I LOVE the Sunday paper because I get all the ads. I know it wastes paper but I find them invaluable as it's very difficult to look at just one, let alone several, circulars online. Plus I also circle what I want and write on the ads and bring them to the store. It is extremely helpful. Unfortunately, you have to get the Tuesday (?) paper to get the ads for the grocery stores. Most retailers have weekly specials that run from Sunday morning to Saturday night. Grocery store sales run from Tuesday morning to Monday night.

Cooking at home will definitely save you money. It can get boring though. Why not try doing a weekly potluck with friends?

Soup Swap
http://www.usaweekend.com/07_issues/071202...soup-swap-.html

Soup Swap is just but one idea. You could also do other themes, and definitely set a budget and some dietary rules so people can be creative AND healthy on the cheap.

Mobyfan,

Thank you for the tips and the suggestions on when sales ads are usually out. I have been trying to use those as well as the value pak coupons for things like oil change or car wash or even restaurants. When we shop for food, we get enough for about two weeks which is not bad. Yes cooking at home is cheaper but it can get boring but sometimes in this hard environment you gotta do whatcha gotta do.

We have decided to keep looking for cheaper housing. Worst case is to move into a 1bd apartment in San Jose.

I am crossing my fingers that the job market gets better and that sometime soon I will be employed permanently. They are saying it is taking people 6 months to a year to find a job. It has been about 7 months for me. However, I have been temping for about 6 months. Maybe my luck will change and something good will come along.

MarieC,

I checked into the complex you suggested, Unfortunately they do not any vacancies. Thanks for the information though.

Best of luck, Piglet! I was a contractor for several months, and they kept promising to hire me permanently. It took them awhile. So I know how you feel. I have also been underemployed and worked in jobs I hated for several years. These are hard economic times and I don't see them getting much better for the majority. It seems like the chasm between rich and poor gets bigger everyday. My suggestion is to watch Suze Orman every week and live below your means.

We really have to be careful with our money. Eating out, and many other things, are now luxuries. I have been on disability for the majority of the year due to a chronic illness. I am very thankful to have disability insurance and a decent health care plan. It has been a struggle dealing with the disability company and getting them to understand that I am truly disabled. I would love to go back to work but I feel awful. I am only drawing a percentage of my regular pay so I have had to scale back on many things. It is difficult and stressful.

I highly recommend All Your Worth for anyone who feels they need help with personal finance.
http://www.amazon.com/All-Your-Worth-Ultim...20395267&sr=1-1

BTW, the Mercury News costs less if you buy it at Walgreens. You can get both the daily papers and the Sunday paper. They usually have extras for a few days. You don't have to subscribe but I do for the convenient home delivery.

I am going to start a new post with cheap meal ideas. I'll post the link ASAP.

This post has been edited by mobyfan on Sep 2 2008, 08:05 PM

Mobyfan,

I hope you feel better soon. It must suck not being able to work because you are ill. It has been a tough market but I think after the election in November or after the new year things might turn around but slowly. I think company's are looking at temporary positions versus perm to save money and to watch what the market does in the next couple of months.

I think you do have to make whatever sacrifice you have in the this terrible economy. We have cut back on going out for dinner, the movies, sporting events, music concerts, and so on. We have also tried to hang out locally to save on gas. For example, we will take the dog for a long walk around the area or something like that..

The renters market has been tough, we have looked at several places and it seems like either the place is too small or it does not exactly fit the budget. I think more people are selling their homes and going back to renting so now the price of rent has gone up. It maybe a great time to buy but if you are living in the Bay Area on one stable salary, it is tough to take the risk, unless you buy somewhere that is far that is affordale. But then you have to think about traffic, gas, and just your time...

I look forward to your cheap meal suggestions. I have some too.

It's also a renter's market because of all the foreclosures. Piglet, I am sorry it took me so long to finally post this, but here are my Cheap Meal Ideas.

This post has been edited by mobyfan on Oct 14 2008, 12:01 AM