First of all, I want thank you all for your answers to my previous posts. You all had a lot of good ideas and insights. As far as the "short on cash" issues, several people suggested we sell our house and move somewhere cheaper but I just want to point out that this would not work for us. Our home is very modest and our payment isn't much more than what we would pay for an apartment so it would be a pointless move and wouldn't save enough money to be worth it. My husband and I sat down today and did some brainstorming and I am really excited about the plans and ideas we have come up with. Firstly, we do have a payment for one of our cars - the payment is lower than most people's car payments because we borrowed the money from my mother and there is no interest. I have spoken with her and she has agreed to let us stop the payments for a SHORT time while we figure some things out. So, with that extra money we plan to try to pay off as many smaller things as we can. We have a couple of credit cards and some furniture we are paying off. These payments are low seperately but they add up. There isn't much left owed on these so we are hoping to get them paid off as soon as possible so that we won't have those payments anymore. We never use the credit cards unless it's an emergency. Next, we have come up with an idea to bring in some extra income that works for both of us and we can get the whole family involved with it. I made and sold jewelry before my 2 year old was born. I quit after he was born just because of lack of time to work on it, which I am sure all you moms understand. So, we are going to open an Ebay store and sell the jewelry. I am very crafy - I also paint and do several different types of crafts. My daughter is a great artist as well. We are going to sell several different types of homemade items on Ebay and I really hope people will want to buy them. I a lot of ideas for items that I think will sell very well. So I will do the artsy parts and my husband will do the computer parts. I figure on weekends we all gather around the dining table and work on our crafts, etc. I can get some things the 2 year old can do also (although we won't sell those things. LOL) So, family time plus making a little extra cash - I am very excited.
By the way, we are still planning on looking into the real estate idea, but I think that might have to wait until the youngest is in Kindergarten.
I guess I need to ask a question too - What has your family done in the past to make a little extra cash?
bake, yard sales, babysit, house sit, stop going out to eat, sell the extra car, get rid of extra cell phone and house phone. Cut back and live like we did 10 years past.
I met a woman who made a business buying things at garage sales or thrift shops and then selling them on e-Bay for a profit. I guess if you know what things sell, this can work.
My sister makes about $12K per year in her Etsy store. She does make a lot more but she buys a lot of fabric and supplies for rehabbing the denim skirts and jackets.
So I know a person can do well if they apply themselves. She works well over 40 hours per week and she is always making more stuff. She put a lot of hard work into her business. She has several rooms of her house in use as sewing/shipping rooms.
Craiglist. Sometimes I am shocked what people are willing to pay for our "junk". And my husband's grandmother had a very large, carefully planned garage sale. She made over 2 grand in one three day weekend.
You may look into an Etsy store for your jewelry. It's turned into everyone's "go to" place for crafty items. And if I remember correctly, they don't take as big of a percentage as Ebay takes.
Sounds like a great way to start making some extra money that the family can participate in. Again, when you think you're ready for real estate, PM me and I'll answer any questions you have.
I worked on weekends in a store when the kids were little. I made some cash and I got first dibs on the clearance rack. When the got a little older, I worked two nights a week at our local library. I loved it!
Now I substitute in the schools. I work when I want to and can say no if I already have plans.
LBC
Here are some different series on saving money ideas. Hope they help.
http://moneysavingmom.com/2009/02/100-different-ways-to-s...
http://moneysavingmom.com/2013/01/52-ways-to-save-at-leas...
