Road Trip with Honda

How-To Pay for Your Car in CA$H

Several months ago a few of you might remember how Ricky and I saved up our pretty pennies to buy our new Honda CRV (Actually it was just shy of 2 years old with 1 previous owner – but NEW to us!). We took it for a spin up North to Flagstaff last weekend, and we couldn’t have had more fun talking Dave Ramsey with one of our favorite photographers! She captured some really amazing pictures, and brought us to tears as we saw the fruits of our labor in a new light!

We love the pics, and our new Honda so much, we wanted to keep sharing the love and tell you our top 10 tips for saving. Before we get down to it, we just wanted to share that we budget our money every week using Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace. There’s a whole long story of how and why we started using this plan, but without this resource we can honestly tell you we would have been divorced by now without it. Money can do a weird thing to love. Whether you are single, engaged, or already married this tool is priceless! Ok, non-sponsored plug over. *For more on love you can read other saving and marriage articles HERE and HERE. 

THE MAGS’ TOP 10 TIPS for SAVING CASH for a NEW CAR:

1. Get your ass on a budget. Oops, sorry was that too strong? Ok, sorry, not sorry – you are  how old ?! You need to be on a budget. A budget that you create, and check against your spending regularly. No matter what you make.
2. Stop eating out! Eat what’s in the frig. OMG. Shocking, right? But seriously, grocery shop at least 2x a week. Then eat at home. You’d be amazed at how much you save (cough, $400 a month).
3. Cancel your cable. The Kardashians will still be there when you get back… well, probably.
4. Breakup with coffee. Ok fine, not like a real break, like a Ross and Rachel break – make it at home. Cheaper, less fancy, you know.
5. Stop rewarding yourself for XYZ. Anytime Rick and I had a bad work week, we couldn’t wait to give up/reward ourselves for stressful adulting with a night out, a stop at local record shop, or Sephora. We finally had enough of overspending on STUFF. Cut the crap. Once we created the budget, we put cash inside envelops. We marked our envelopes with “Groceries” or “Play Money” and “Gas.” Once the envelop went dry so did our spending.
6. Conserve energy. I mean this goes without saying, but turn the lights off every time you leave a room, and wash your laundry only on off-peak hours to keep that electricity bill low. Turn the water off when you brush your teeth, and don’t over use that toilet paper. I’m serious, that shit adds up. Haha! Ok, I’m done. I’m done. All puns are officially flushed for the rest of the post. Haha! Ok now done.
7. FOMO kills. It kills your bank account and your savings. We had to quit going out with friends, or doing things just because we wanted a “cool” life.  We had cheap dates, and gave homemade gifts.
8. Get a gas buddy. Download an app to find cheap gas for the car you already do have. Plan ahead, and don’t drive needlessly. Run errands all at the same time to avoid trips back and forth from home. If you commute long distances for work, you might want to consider public transportation, like the train or bus or a bike. We saved $100 in gas a month as a result of eating at home and meal planning. No joke.
9. Goodwill, Dollar Tree, Coupons. So serious. Rick and I needed a new kitchen table during our car-saving adventure. Instead of going to West Elm, we opted for half-off Saturday at Goodwill. Our table is ugly, but we survived.
10. Make NO Big Purchases. When you are actively saving for something you really, really want – don’t buy other things you really, really want at the same time. I had to wait a whole other year and half for my blog camera. It hurt. I was frustrated, but I knew I had to keep putting money into our car piggy bank or I would get off track. Keep your eye on the prize.

We saved half-heartedly for about 5 months, then really pushed the petal to the metal for another 4 or 5 months. In total we saved $16,000. If two kids who grew up struggling to buy backpacks each year can do this, you can too!

Let us know if you have any money-saving tips! And as always, feel free to reach out with any questions! We’d be more than happy to help!

Love,

The Mags