The only things I buy in bulk are things that I'll use every week like laundry detergent, paper towels and toilet paper. I'll sometimes buy meat in bulk if I can freeze it. That way I'm not left with a lot of bulk items going bad quickly
We buy household prouducts like toilet paper & paper towels. The only food items we buy in bulk are dry goods and some canned goods. Produce definitely not in bulk!
We buy dried beans & grains, chia seeds, salsa, canned tomatoes, and tea in bulk regularly. We buy other items we use regularly if they are on sale and the price is good. Our Co-op offers a 10% case discount so that makes sales even better. We also shop at Amazon for harder to find items. We have lots of pantry space and a chest freezer, so room for bulk items.
We don't buy things that need to be refrigerated in bulk. Also no cat food because they are too finicky.
I use the bulk section at our food co-op to buy spices in bulk. That way I can buy the teaspoon of tumeric I need instead of the $5.00 jar. We buy 25 lb bags of whole wheat flour and bake our own bread. I buy the tea we like on amazon.com in a larger package size than I can get at the grocery store and cut the cost per teabag down by 40 percent. I use an annual case-lot sale in our community to buy canned tomatoes, chickpeas, peanut butter and Cheerios for the year. I also buy baking soda, cider vinegar and coconut oil in bulk because I use those things to make household cleaner and diy beauty products.
My family (me + hub) have a small space and feel transient until the regional job search is complete, so we do not purchase large bulk packages as the question prompt seems to be referring. However, we buy lots of bulk (in the traditional sense of by-the-pound) in the way of grains, produce, nuts/seeds, tea, et cetera. We keep our dry goods in canisters.
I mostly bulk buy things that don't expire or go bad. Garbage bags, dishwasher tabs, batteries, boxed mac and cheese, canned soup, etc.
Buying fresh or perishable foods in bulk is just way too much for a 2 person household!
I most commonly buy my art/wood products in bulk for my shop. I wish I could afford even more, because it would certainly increase my profits! For our household, I try to buy the largest boxes of diapers, wipes, toilet paper, etc, that we can afford (and have space for).
We don't buy huge containers of mayo, though -- my whole life, my mom told a story of my grandma dropping one of those on the floor (back when the containers were glass), and it was everywhere. Guess it has just stuck with me. :)
I don't buy much is bulk anymore. I shared a warehouse membership with a friend for a year and found that I ended up spending more on the paper goods I purchased in bulk. Since I am not loyal to many specific brands, I find that shopping at drug stores, Target, and Walmart, using stacked coupons and store discounts, saves me more money on these same items.
I buy packaged items that don't spoil in large quantities. Toilet paper for fifty cents a roll, shampoo for eighty cents a bottle, beans for sixty cents a can.
But the "bulk" section of my local coop is where I get very small quantities of things I only need a little of before it spoils: spices, tea, pasta.
Spices bought in bulk from the 'natural foods' store are usually much less expensive than buying bottled spices. As a bonus, you can buy a smaller amount than in bottles so it is easier to try new recipes.
The cost figures you cited relate to survey data on annual household incomes between $59,410 and $102,870. With the average US household income running $50,502 pretax per year for the same time period, the amounts you listed have nothing to do with the average family. According to your numbers, if you had two children, nearly half your income would be spoken for. The USDA figures for “under $59,410" incomes actually run between $8760 and $9960 per child.
If the USDA were to survey actual average income households ($50,502 year), instead of sampling above average households and extrapolating data, I suspect the differences would be even more pronounced. As noted in the survey, public policy is based on these unrealistic USDA figures.
The college costs you cited don't include common offsets either - scholarships, AP class credits, transferred credits from community colleges, work study, etc. What graduate do you know from average means actually paid sticker price for their degree?
I'd be curious to see what other Wisebreaders think.
We a small household of three adults, with extended family, including children, who dine with us weekly. I always buy the following food items in bulk:
Rice, Pinto beans, Sugar, Oatmeal, Coffee, Popcorn. I also buy cases of canned tomatoes, coconut milk, evaporated milk, peaches, chicken broth, and tuna. I buy multiples of butter in 4-lb packages at Costco and freeze them. I grind my own ground beef, so I buy quantities of meat and poultry on sale and divide into smaller packages for freezing. For example, I grind my own ground beef, so I buy chuck roasts and cut them up for smaller packages to freeze for grinding later. I also buy whole pork loin roasts on sale and slice for pork chops or smaller roasts and freeze. I also buy frequently used non-perishables in bulk from Costco: toilet paper, facial tissues, bath soap, and toothpaste.
I never had children. While I can't comment from personal experience, I can comment based on years of observation. Here are three things that come to mind immediately:
- Investing in raising a family isn't so much a matter of to have or not to have...people who want to have a child should. Hopefully they'll figure out how to manage the cost and sites like this help a lot.
- Don't get caught up in throwing extravagant birthday parties because you'll feel compelled to out do yourself every year. This post on ManVsDebt.com has some great ideas: http://buff.ly/18SDIll
- Put yourself first when it comes to saving. Save early for their education if you can. But don't put your retirement funds or home at risk to finance your child's education. If you do, you are walking a dangerous road. You may even be putting pressure on your children later in life to take care of you. Best to let your child carry the financial burden of their education and help them as you can. Don't take on their debt, hock your home or cash in retirement savings. Please.
We are a family of two, so the only things that we buy in bulk are non-perishables. We buy beans, rice and seeds in bulk. It doesn't make sense to buy cosmetics or toothpaste in bulk so we don't.
I sometimes make fun of my husband for buying a whole gallon of milk. I'm from Europe and we would consider that to be bulk (milk only comes in cartons of 1 liter there).
I buy yeast, flour and meat in bulk. I do not buy cereal or condiments in bulk. Sometimes I split the meat with my parents but I have a large family so we usually use it all ourselves.
I buy toilet paper, paper towels, cleaning supplies, and our pet food in bulk. The cost per item is much cheaper this way. Occasionally, I will split the cost of the paper products with my parents, but they don't use the amounts that we do, so they don't restock as often as I do.
The only things I buy in bulk are things that I'll use every week like laundry detergent, paper towels and toilet paper. I'll sometimes buy meat in bulk if I can freeze it. That way I'm not left with a lot of bulk items going bad quickly
I love buying condiments & pasta in bulk-- they last forever and if you get them on sale it's a great deal!!
We buy household prouducts like toilet paper & paper towels. The only food items we buy in bulk are dry goods and some canned goods. Produce definitely not in bulk!
I make my bread from scratch... I grind the wheat berries... SO I but wheat in bulk>>>
We buy dried beans & grains, chia seeds, salsa, canned tomatoes, and tea in bulk regularly. We buy other items we use regularly if they are on sale and the price is good. Our Co-op offers a 10% case discount so that makes sales even better. We also shop at Amazon for harder to find items. We have lots of pantry space and a chest freezer, so room for bulk items.
We don't buy things that need to be refrigerated in bulk. Also no cat food because they are too finicky.
this recipe works beautifully if you add in some dried blueberries and use strawberry flavored applesauce! so fruity and delicious. :)
I use the bulk section at our food co-op to buy spices in bulk. That way I can buy the teaspoon of tumeric I need instead of the $5.00 jar. We buy 25 lb bags of whole wheat flour and bake our own bread. I buy the tea we like on amazon.com in a larger package size than I can get at the grocery store and cut the cost per teabag down by 40 percent. I use an annual case-lot sale in our community to buy canned tomatoes, chickpeas, peanut butter and Cheerios for the year. I also buy baking soda, cider vinegar and coconut oil in bulk because I use those things to make household cleaner and diy beauty products.
I buy large containers of NUTS from Costco and put them in cute jars on my counter for snacking. I store the large containers in my pantry.
My family (me + hub) have a small space and feel transient until the regional job search is complete, so we do not purchase large bulk packages as the question prompt seems to be referring. However, we buy lots of bulk (in the traditional sense of by-the-pound) in the way of grains, produce, nuts/seeds, tea, et cetera. We keep our dry goods in canisters.
Spices I can not grow, that I use a lot of. Toilet Paper.
I always buy coffee and tea in bulk! We go through it so fast, we have to.
I mostly bulk buy things that don't expire or go bad. Garbage bags, dishwasher tabs, batteries, boxed mac and cheese, canned soup, etc.
Buying fresh or perishable foods in bulk is just way too much for a 2 person household!
I buy toilet paper. It's so convenient to have a lot on hand
I most commonly buy my art/wood products in bulk for my shop. I wish I could afford even more, because it would certainly increase my profits! For our household, I try to buy the largest boxes of diapers, wipes, toilet paper, etc, that we can afford (and have space for).
We don't buy huge containers of mayo, though -- my whole life, my mom told a story of my grandma dropping one of those on the floor (back when the containers were glass), and it was everywhere. Guess it has just stuck with me. :)
Toilet paper! Gotta love Costco!
I don't buy much is bulk anymore. I shared a warehouse membership with a friend for a year and found that I ended up spending more on the paper goods I purchased in bulk. Since I am not loyal to many specific brands, I find that shopping at drug stores, Target, and Walmart, using stacked coupons and store discounts, saves me more money on these same items.
I buy packaged items that don't spoil in large quantities. Toilet paper for fifty cents a roll, shampoo for eighty cents a bottle, beans for sixty cents a can.
But the "bulk" section of my local coop is where I get very small quantities of things I only need a little of before it spoils: spices, tea, pasta.
Spices bought in bulk from the 'natural foods' store are usually much less expensive than buying bottled spices. As a bonus, you can buy a smaller amount than in bottles so it is easier to try new recipes.
The cost figures you cited relate to survey data on annual household incomes between $59,410 and $102,870. With the average US household income running $50,502 pretax per year for the same time period, the amounts you listed have nothing to do with the average family. According to your numbers, if you had two children, nearly half your income would be spoken for. The USDA figures for “under $59,410" incomes actually run between $8760 and $9960 per child.
If the USDA were to survey actual average income households ($50,502 year), instead of sampling above average households and extrapolating data, I suspect the differences would be even more pronounced. As noted in the survey, public policy is based on these unrealistic USDA figures.
The college costs you cited don't include common offsets either - scholarships, AP class credits, transferred credits from community colleges, work study, etc. What graduate do you know from average means actually paid sticker price for their degree?
I'd be curious to see what other Wisebreaders think.
We a small household of three adults, with extended family, including children, who dine with us weekly. I always buy the following food items in bulk:
Rice, Pinto beans, Sugar, Oatmeal, Coffee, Popcorn. I also buy cases of canned tomatoes, coconut milk, evaporated milk, peaches, chicken broth, and tuna. I buy multiples of butter in 4-lb packages at Costco and freeze them. I grind my own ground beef, so I buy quantities of meat and poultry on sale and divide into smaller packages for freezing. For example, I grind my own ground beef, so I buy chuck roasts and cut them up for smaller packages to freeze for grinding later. I also buy whole pork loin roasts on sale and slice for pork chops or smaller roasts and freeze. I also buy frequently used non-perishables in bulk from Costco: toilet paper, facial tissues, bath soap, and toothpaste.
I never had children. While I can't comment from personal experience, I can comment based on years of observation. Here are three things that come to mind immediately:
- Investing in raising a family isn't so much a matter of to have or not to have...people who want to have a child should. Hopefully they'll figure out how to manage the cost and sites like this help a lot.
- Don't get caught up in throwing extravagant birthday parties because you'll feel compelled to out do yourself every year. This post on ManVsDebt.com has some great ideas: http://buff.ly/18SDIll
- Put yourself first when it comes to saving. Save early for their education if you can. But don't put your retirement funds or home at risk to finance your child's education. If you do, you are walking a dangerous road. You may even be putting pressure on your children later in life to take care of you. Best to let your child carry the financial burden of their education and help them as you can. Don't take on their debt, hock your home or cash in retirement savings. Please.
Ree ~ I blog at EscapingDodge.com
We are a family of two, so the only things that we buy in bulk are non-perishables. We buy beans, rice and seeds in bulk. It doesn't make sense to buy cosmetics or toothpaste in bulk so we don't.
I sometimes make fun of my husband for buying a whole gallon of milk. I'm from Europe and we would consider that to be bulk (milk only comes in cartons of 1 liter there).
I buy yeast, flour and meat in bulk. I do not buy cereal or condiments in bulk. Sometimes I split the meat with my parents but I have a large family so we usually use it all ourselves.
I buy rice, beans and flour in bulk
I buy toilet paper, paper towels, cleaning supplies, and our pet food in bulk. The cost per item is much cheaper this way. Occasionally, I will split the cost of the paper products with my parents, but they don't use the amounts that we do, so they don't restock as often as I do.