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How to beat the higher cost of living
In January, you paid an average 3.9% more for basics -- the roof over your head, the food in your fridge, the visits to your doctor -- than you did 12 months earlier in Southern California.
A government forecast says that food in general will set you back 3.5% more this year.
People are coping in many ways -- patronizing the public library instead of the bookstore, kicking the brand loyalty habit, arguing (often successfully) with credit card companies, finally taking their fathers' advice to check the tire pressure, mowing their own lawns.
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Tweaking your household finances to save hundreds of dollars a year doesn’t have to hurt — too much.
Create your own budget |
Savvy shoppers can find name-brand and organic products at discounters like 99 Cents Only.
Shopping tips |
Contrary to how it feels, stuff is cheap. Really. So why do we feel so squeezed?
Quick econ lesson |
A family watches pennies to get by: 'Educate yourself about the economy'
Turning over a new financial leaf: 'When I got my gas bill, I couldn't believe my eyes'
Parking the Porsche and walking to Il Fornaio, he tries to 'stretch everything'
After food, rent and transportation, 'basically nothing left for splurging'
Deanna Corbin, 46, would live in Los Angeles if she could. But she can't, at least not with a modicum of space and safety, not on her $38,000 salary as an administrative secretary.
A street-level look at how Southern Californians stretch their dollars in a sputtering economy
Some L.A. residents are relying more on bicycles, trains, buses, scooters and carpooling - or just walking.
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Discussion What are you doing to beat the high cost of living today?
1. Bonz - I was in a similar boat - no health insurance because I am self employed; then I got Blue Cross; guess what? Now I have $50K in medical bills - blue cross denied most of the bills - said they weren't covered in my policy; I had gotton the blue cross because my son had to have an apendectomy & we had no insurance -medical denied us. So I am hoping U don't get ill or have an accident; as far as the high cost of living; I know people losing everything right now - their homes, everything. Because our work was related to the mortgage industry.
Submitted by: JaneBryant 5:39 PM PDT, Mar 11, 2008 Submitted by: Maggie 8:27 AM PDT, Mar 11, 2008 Submitted by: Bryan Bates 2:38 AM PDT, Mar 11, 2008 |