Comments on: Spend Money Today To Save Money Tomorrow.

By: david

david — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 02:12:59 +0000

No worries MITBeta – but if someone is like my mom who uses over 300 stamps a year, buying enough for a year or two saves the purchaser from the rise in price for at least that long.

By: MITBeta @ Don't Feed the Alligators

MITBeta @ Don't Feed the Alligators — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 00:38:20 +0000

Forever stamps are good to buy just before rates go up, but you should buy only enough to last until just before the next rate increase. I got the impression that you were suggesting stocking up for a lot longer period. This would tie up cash that could probably earn a better return elsewhere.

I apologize if I mischaracterized what you meant.

By: David

David — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 15:00:07 +0000

It’s not about an investment; it’s about saving a few bucks here and there. My mom uses 25 stamps a month, as she doesn’t trust online bill pay – over the course of a year, that’s 300 stamps. That’s quite a bit of savings if you buy forever stamps today.

By: Johan

Johan — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 05:27:22 +0000

Buying forever stamps is not a wise investment. MITBeta said it all, so I will just back up his/her post.

By: MITBeta @ Don't Feed The Alligators

MITBeta @ Don't Feed The Alligators — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 17:32:47 +0000

The price of stamps is tied to the consumer price index, which is approximately tied to the inflation rate. You might want to think twice before tying up your money in something that rises in value at just the rate of inflation. As pointed out in the article I found below, when you buy and use the stamps is important in this consideration, but I personally would not stock up on many of these.

One other point, you might get an initial “return” on your investment, but keep in mind that this investment really doesn’t compound at all the way your cash would if it sat in a high rate CD or in the stock market (as it will eventually…).

On the other hand, I’m writing an article now about how our local grocery store is offering 10% bonuses when you buy gift cards. This is certainly enough of a hedge to purchase at least several thousands of dollars worth of these cards, since there’s no limit.

http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2007/02/27/usps-announces-the-forever-stamp-is-it-worth-your-039/

http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2007/May/03/bz/FP705030317.html

By: Personal Finance Roundup

Personal Finance Roundup — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 03:24:40 +0000

[...] Spend Money Today To Save Money Tomorrow. I like the idea of spending more money for buying quality items that last instead of cheap items that need replaced more often. [...]

By: Trevor @ Financial Nut

Trevor @ Financial Nut — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 02:15:00 +0000

You make some excellent points here. The one I like most is about the reusable water bottles. I am such an advocate of buying a good water bottle and reusing it over and over and over again (and washing it some too!).

Good post.

By: Kate@LivingTheFrugalLife

Kate@LivingTheFrugalLife — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 15:35:20 +0000

I just blogged about this month being a good time to buy long underwear, as all the winter inventory goes on sale. Winter is almost over, so it’s like buying Christmas wrapping paper in January. Long underwear helps us stay comfortable while we keep our thermostat set at just 64 F during the day all through winter. Those longjohns will come in handy in another seven or eight months.

I also recently ordered a solar oven. I look forward to learning to use it.

By: Annie Jones

Annie Jones — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 14:19:19 +0000

In terms of a bigger purchases, we are using part of our tax return to buy a whole-house fan (sometimes called an attic fan) which my husband will install himself. It will help us avoid turning on the A/C in late spring and early fall (and maybe even all but the hottest of summer evenings), thereby saving money on cooling costs. We aren’t sure, but we anticipate it paying for itself in 1-3 years.

By: The Weakonomist

The Weakonomist — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 14:17:58 +0000

Yes, stock up on forever stamps. I did an analysis of them as potential investments. At the rate they keep increasing prices forever stamps offer a 2% return. Not fantastic by long term standards, but it was a fun exercise.