money problem

[travel_bug87]

i recently went out and bought myself a new car, setting me back $16000, australian. at the time i didnt have any desire to travel but as of the past two-three weeks i cant get travelling out of mind. i just want to pack n leave tomorrow! but car payments are $100 a week, rent $100 a week (to mum), n then ive petrol, phone expense n car insurance to think about. im only 19 n waitressing so money aint to good. any tips on staying motivated 2 save n how long do other travellers save for b4 heading out??

[bluepea]

Some people have taken on extra jobs/hours to help save up. Take on a part time job and put all of that money in savings -- could be another waitressing/bartending gig, babysitting, petsitting, etc... Set aside a savings account that you are forbidden from entering! Don't even think about that money. Round your paychecks down (say they average 325, put in 300) and start a budget operating off the rounded down paycheck, putting the rest in savings.

You may want to see if you can negotiage a lower rent with your parents... maybe 75-80 a week. Perhaps you could take on extra household tasks like caring for a younger sibling, doing the laundry (all), keeping the bathroom clean, etc in exchange.

You may also want to consider selling your car (if you could sell it for what you owe) or trading it for something with lower payments. Car pool as often as you can to save on gas/petrol.

Also, try to cut down on eating out and costly activities. If you go out Fri/Sat try to only head out to something that costs money on one of those days and find a free activity the other.

Those are just a few ideas!

[Canadian Dude]

I feel ya on the bills business, its hard sometime sespecially when you want so bad to get out of dodge. The thing I did when I first started to travel was just save every extra penny, I stopped drinking and partying, stopped eating out all the time, car pooled when I could to save on gas, everthing I could do i did. And at the end of 11 months I had saved enough to take off on my first Euro trip. I was so amature at the time that my over seas budgeting skills were horrible, so when I got there the money went pretty fast, but had I researched properly I could have been gone much much longer. I think the car is your biggest issue, can you find someone to take thee lease or maybe even buy it from you??? Just a thought. Hope you saving goes well...it'll be worth it...

[LiveFreeorDie]

Cars are money pits with almost no redeeming characteristics from a purely financial point of view. Sure, they look cool, and everyone wants a nice car, but if you have other, more important priorities, find an old piece of shit that still runs but that can save you some cash. You should be able to find something for half what you paid, don't you think? That's $200 a month you will save right off the bat (plus cheaper insurance on an older car). Look for a reliable make, like a Toyota or Honda. They are less likely to break down even with a ton of miles on them. Like others have also stated, work an extra 5 or 10 hours a week or get another part time job. The hours won't kill you (unless your already working 70 hours a week) and will add to your savings. Cut back on little things that add up, coffee/tea that you buy out, dinners/drinks with friends, etc. You still want to have a life, but there are ways to cut back and still have fun. Good luck!!

[c0urt]

move into a storage unti and just hang out at your friends houses

[iomaggio]

I've always found that credit card debt is lots of fun. So are student loans. You never have to pay these things back.



"sarcasm is just one of my specialties"