[Win $250 giftcard] Are you cutting your budget?

[DenverGirlie]

I already cut back a few years ago, there is no more fat to trim, so my answer is no. I almost wish I could as I would love to be able to save more but short of moving to a tiny studio I really can't cut anymore.

[charlesp]

We're certainly cutting back at our house. More scratch soups for food, more carpooling to work and teleworking (which was finally an option when gas got so high around here), fewer books purchased, more coupons clipped and used.

[surban]

At my house, we have cut back by not using paper towels. For cleaning, we use old t-shirts that have been cut up. I keep then in a empty tissue box on the counter so they are always available.
We have also started using cheaper shampoo and conditioner, we used to splurge on high end salon brands, now we get whatever is on sale.

[beccabeez]

YES! I am on a very strict budget for AT LEAST the next 6 weeks! I'm a community college student who overspent for the last few months, and I need to get myself back on track. I am trying to save for my transfer to University, and I definitely need to save, so I don't have to bury myself in debt for the rest of my life.

[karahepp]

My husband and I aren't changing a lot these days, but we were already making a conscious effort to spend less money that we had in the past. We may be cutting back even further soon, since my husband may soon be taking a significant pay cut to change jobs. I finish school in May though, so I'll actually start making money after that and it will make up for his cut in pay.

We're generally just trying to avoid eating out much, constantly saving money on groceries, and after our recent move to a new apartment, we have not added cable or tivo back to our monthly bills. We're surviving with streaming tv online and taking advantage of the great cable at our gym (the gym membership is cheaper than cable would be, and it encourages us to actually make it to the gym often).

None of these changes are related to the recent economy troubles. So far they have not affected our day-to-day life. Our IRAs have lost money, but that has just encouraged us to max out our contributions for the year a little early while the market is so low. We don't intend to retire for 40+ years, so we have no worries about the stock market recovering by then.

[Plewis]

With all the uncertainty of today's world, I feel the need to conserve as much as possible. You just never know what could happen...medical expense, job loss, accidents.

[bugsy7of9]

Yep, we're cutting back. We're putting off home repairs and improvements to save on household money. We're eating less meat and making much more from scratch to reduce our food expenses. We're driving less to reduce the gas bill. We've put off a lot of stuff we had planned to do. It's tough, it hurts, but it's necessary. Sometimes it's not much fun being an adult! ;-)

[leighbra]

I think it would be hard for me to cut back spending anymore than we already have lol

We are a family of 4 living off of one income, and so we're a bit creative.

The areas we don't spend at all in are alcohol/tobacco, and we keep our entertain close to home, using the internet to our highest advantage.

Our grocery budget for the month is from $100-150. And we eat mostly organic, fair-trade foods. Joining our local food co-op really was a blessing for us.

[MissPiggy]

There are definitely ways to cut back. I've started shopping according to the Shop Rite circulars instead of according to what I want. It works out, there's always great stuff on sale.

[jamesonv]

I have been living very frugally anyway, but I have cut back on frivolous trips to stores to just "look around". Also I try to keep my grocery shopping limited to a list and once per week. Each additional trip to the store for just one or two items really adds up (because it's difficult not to buy other things) in addition to using gas and wasting time.