What to do with a windfall
By kattghoti
@kattghoti (106)
United States
March 24, 2007 8:43pm CST
What do you do when you get extra money you weren't expecting? Be it birthday or Christmas money, gift cards, a tax refund, an inheritance, or whatever... Do you buy the big things you couldn't buy before, or do you just use it to get more of the sensible things you buy regularly? Do you try to make your windfall last as long as possible?
I do a little bit of both. If there is something I have been saving for, I will sometimes put the windfall toward that. Otherwise I usually just stick to my thrifty principles and do whatever it takes to stretch that extra dollar.
4 people like this
7 responses
@cutepenguin (6431)
• Canada
26 Mar 07
If it's money, it gets used to pay down the debt - I really want the debt gone.
If it's a gift card, it gets used to stretch our money further, or as a treat when we feel we have outfrugaled ourselves.
1 person likes this
@kattghoti (106)
• United States
27 Mar 07
Agreed. When I found out about my (way bigger than it should be) tax return, I decided immediately that 2/3 was going toward my debt. 1/3 is almost three months worth of student loan payments! That's pretty significant.
1 person likes this
@wifeofharvey (1156)
• United States
25 Mar 07
I like to use it to buy something I wouldn't normally. But I do try to wait until whatever it is on sale. While I truely enjoy saving money, I also feel that occassional treats are in order. That after all is a large part of why I am thrifty--------so I can enjoy a few things without feeling guilty about spending a bit of money on them.
@kattghoti (106)
• United States
26 Mar 07
That's a good point--save on the stuff that doesn't mean as much, then you'll have money left over for the really great stuff.
1 person likes this
@redyellowblackdog (10629)
• United States
25 Mar 07
Hmmm... if I ever get an unexpected large amount of money, I'll let you know what I do with it. So, far, it has never happened.
1 person likes this
@kattghoti (106)
• United States
25 Mar 07
It doesn't necessarily have to be large... Just anything out of the ordinary, like the stuff I listed.
1 person likes this
@wmg2006 (5381)
• United States
25 Mar 07
I say I am going to save it, but I never do. I usually spend it on a lot different things that I have not bought because I did not have the money. I actually saved my Christmas bonus and still have it, but I am spenind it to go to Holland in May to see my son. This is the first time I have been able to save it this long.
1 person likes this
@kattghoti (106)
• United States
25 Mar 07
That's definitely a good reason to save! It's easier to save when you have some sort of incentive.
Like they say, you can't take it with you, so it makes just as much sense to spend it!
1 person likes this
@cjthedog64 (1552)
• United States
25 Mar 07
Ideally it'd be nice to save it for something we really need, or to pay things off. But we usually end up wasting most of it on junk or eating out and the like. It's too tempting to have the money and not just go spend it.
1 person likes this
@kattghoti (106)
• United States
25 Mar 07
I wonder what it is that makes people NEED to spend money as soon as they have it. It's really hard for most people to save and be conservative.
1 person likes this
@sunshinelady (7609)
• United States
18 Apr 07
About four years ago I come into a sum of money that I wasn't even expecting. It was a pleasant surprise. I paid off a couple of my bills and gave a little to my son. He has a family of three kids and a wife. Put some in savings and then me and my husband went on a vacation which we had not had for a very long time. We went for a week down to a place that my son had told us about. We drove there and when we got back we were very relaxed. We didn't have a lot left only what was put in the savings account but I think the money was put to good use.
