13. Save $600+ per month – Get other people live in with you (like parents, grandparents), rent out spare rooms, live together, get sunny retirement retreat for (grand)parents
You could get other people live in with you or rent out spare rooms, convert free spaces into bedrooms and rent out to family, friends or strangers. You could also buy a foreclosed (cheap) property, like in a sunny state (like Florida), and convince (grand)parents to retire there while you occupy one bedroom. You could also move to the house of your (grand)parents or family and pay no or little amount of rent, or convince other family members or friends to rent a place together, rather than renting on your own.
Create extra rooms, rent out a room – If you have an extra room in your house, consider renting it out to a friend, relative, or to a random person you find (like at $300-500 per month), you can use Craigslist.org or place an ad. Rent out more places of the house (convert 3-bedroom house into 5-bedroom house) and rent out to other people $300-500 per room extra.
Rent out unused space in your home. Do you have an extra bedroom that’s not being used? Rent it out. In our home, we could, if times were tough, rent out our entire basement – it has a “living room,” a bedroom, and a bathroom and has a stairwell right by the kitchen. If we found the right person, this would bring in a lot of extra money.
Look for a cheaper place to live. For example, the cost of living in Iowa is surprisingly low, enough so that I’m quite happy to give up the cultural opportunities of other places to enjoy Iowa all year around. When I want to enjoy the cultural opportunities of another place, I’ll travel there – after all, I can afford it. Take a serious look about moving to a less expensive area – if you can find work there, then a move can definitely put you in better financial shape.
Buy a smaller house. I currently live in a 2,000 square foot house with my wife and two kids. Frankly, it’s just the right size for us – if anything, it’s a little big. We often find ourselves in the same room in the house, just surrounded by empty space. You don’t need a giant place to live. Instead, buy something more modest and you’ll find yourself with plenty of room – and still plenty of cash in your pocket.
Rent a place that will have all appliances provided. Bringing in your own or having to buy is a hassle. Think you can live without the microwave? You will likely wish you had one.
Since the start of the 20th century, there has been a trend that less generations have lived together under one roof and families have lived further away from each other. In the 1800's and early 1900's, it was common for multiple generations to live under the same roof or at least on the same property. Now, it’s less acceptable to let your parents move in with you when they’re older. Siblings as roommates in their twenties or thirties, yeah right! Not only do we not like living with our families, but we don’t like living near them either. Maybe the families in the USA Today article have the right idea; whether it’s for economic reasons or not, there are definite financial benefits to at least living near your family:
1. You can get free or reduced fee child care. You probably shouldn’t assume that your mom and dad will become your full-time nannies for free, but if they have a nice nest egg, they might watch your kid for free. That could save you anywhere from $600 to $1,200 a month!
2. You’ll spend less on entertainment. I’ve noticed that when I am closer to good friends and family, we tend to spend less money on entertainment. Instead, we have people over for dinner, we spend holidays together, and we do more outdoor activities with loved ones.
3. You’ll spend less on transportation and parking. Think about all of the times you spend money to get to and from an airport or think about all of the tasks that an extended family member could do for you if you were all working together.
I’ll be honest, moving my parents into my house doesn’t seem like something I could do, but my wife and I have already talked to my mother about moving to our city when the baby is born so she can help out with child care a few days a week and so we can help her out with whatever she needs. What are your thoughts on this? Is anyone currently rooming with a best friend or a family member to save money? Do you feel like you save money by sticking close to family?
