Vote: Top 2006 $20 Challenges

[LuxLiving]

Re: Vote: Top 2006 $20 Challenges

I find, scrounge and accept donations. As I already had tightened to the bone, was attempting to show what you can come up with that would normally just slip away - it's goes to our mortgage paydown.

How's that for brief??? hahahaaaaa

[scfr]

Re: Vote: Top 2006 $20 Challenges

Wow - Such an ambitious bunch here!!! Holy cow!

Thanks so much Ima, Miclason, and LuxL for posting the summaries ---It REALLY helps. I see the poll closes on the 22nd so I'll wait a day or two more and see if anyone else posts.

[lrjohnson]

Re: Vote: Top 2006 $20 Challenges

My Challenge was to live on California Minimum Wage for a year. I started March 1, so I'll be continuing until Feb. 28.

By living on CA Minimum Wage, I am limited to $1026 a month, after taxes. My monthly summary recap for December gives figures here.

I had already been frugal, so I had already been saving plenty; I only counted increased savings on My Challenge; I compared spending to 2005.
In 2005, I spent $1592 a month average on all bills/needs/wants. (I have been tracking every penny in Quicken since 1998.) I'm actually living on less than half of my net income. The only exception I made was for world travel; I did go to Croatia and Bosnia and London for 2-1/2 weeks, and posted details of costs here.

My favorite post about My Challenge is here.

As of December 31, I have spent an average of $942 each month; I have spent less than my "allowed" $1026 because I have banked/budgeted for certain categories that aren't routine monthly bills, such as car repair. The $20 portion is that I spent $19.95 to purchase the YouNeedaBudget spreadsheet in order to keep track of My Challenge.

From the above recap post:
I spent $1592 a month last year. My Challenge savings are the difference, $1592-$1026= $566 times 10 months = $5,660.

Add to that $263 in “savings” and $24.48 in my emergency fund, I’ve saved $5,947.48. If I take out what I spend in Europe, $1809.64, which is not part of my Challenge, I’ve saved $4,137.84 living on CA Minimum Wage for 10 months.

(I've saved a lot more than $4,137.84 in terms of how much of my paycheck I'm spending; I consider "only" the $4,137.84 (so far) as Challenge Savings because it only includes increased savings due to My Challenge. )

Didn't know I was nominated; thanks, guys.

[veronak]

Re: Vote: Top 2006 $20 Challenges

I'm wondering if the nominees would be willing to write a brief summary of their $20 challenge for the year (their project or goals, and the results), or if they already did a year-end summary in their blogs, point us to that entry? Perhaps I'm just dense --- I want to vote but I'm having a bit of a tough time backtracking reading all of the entries. I joined the forum in September so didn't follow the challenges throughout the year.

Originally I started off saving for a house and then I decided to use the funds to pay off debt, and pay off debt is what I did. I paid off a total of 9 credit cards close to $6000 so I am happy and one student loan ($300). Some things I did was:

*added a buck for the days i did not spend any money
*If I spent money on things I did not need I matched that amount
*Rounded up all my change
*I pay bills online so what I would have paid in stamps I added to the challenge
* I also matched what I saved in coupons
basically that was it, I am just happy I have no more cc debt
Now for 2007 I will save for my first home and pay off my last student loan

[LuxLiving]

Re: Vote: Top 2006 $20 Challenges

*Bump*, and of course, I'd be 'ahem' honored...

(and nice to note that some of my nominees are front runners!! Way to go ladies!!)

[Koppur]

Re: Vote: Top 2006 $20 Challenges

Wow, I didn't even know I was nominated! Thanks all!

For my $20 chalenge, I do a few things. Any money I make selling books or items on half.com or e-bay goes in here, as well as any money I make freelance writing. I also deposit all my change at the end of every month here, and if I have managed to save any, my $1 bills. If I have any money left from my previous paycheck on the new payday, it gets put in here. Money I get from online surveys go in there. And then there are a few little things I do once in a while. When I worked on the 2nd floor at my last job I paid myself $0.50 everytime I walked up the stairs instead of taking the elevator, as well as $.025 everytime I walked down the stairs instead of taking the elevator. Ummmm, I think for the most part that was it.

I started the challenge on August 23rd and between then and December 31st (about 4 months), I saved $700.

Thanks again all! I feel so flattered!

And, a big happy to everyone involved in the $20 account. We all rock!

[JanH]

Re: Vote: Top 2006 $20 Challenges

Wow, they are all so inspiring that they all deserve to win. This is going to be hard.....

[scfr]

Re: Vote: Top 2006 $20 Challenges

Since the "race" for 3rd is so close and voting ends tomorrow, I'm just bumping this up for anyone who did not yet vote.

[Ima saver]

Re: Vote: Top 2006 $20 Challenges

The voting ends today! Bumping this to the top!!

[scfr]

Re: Vote: Top 2006 $20 Challenges

Oh how exciting ... Looks like we are going to have a tiebreaker!

[jeffrey]

Re: Vote: Top 2006 $20 Challenges

Congratulations to all that participated and were nominated. The voting has ended and the results are in:

1st: LRJohnson - $100
2nd: Imasaver - $75
3rd: Luxliving, MIClason - $25 (each)

Divajen, Flash, Koppur, Laceshawl, Mjrube94 and Veronak - SavingAdvice.com T-Shirt

If you are one of the cash prize winners, let me know your paypal account number and I will send off your winnings. If you don't have paypal, email us ( info@savingadvice.com ) and we'll make other arrangements to get you your money.

If you won a T-shirt, please email us and let us know what size you'd like (sm, med, lg, xl) and the address where you want the T-shirt sent. Thanks for everyone that participated and we hope that the 2007 $20 challenge is just as successful.

[LuxLiving]

Re: Vote: Top 2006 $20 Challenges

Congrats to the front runners!!! Wooo-hooo!!!

To everyone else I feel all Sally Fields - "You like me, you really like me!" Thanks so much everybody!!

I'll be taking my winnings to the challenge!! Thank you Jeffrey and Nate for dreaming this one up!

[Ima saver]

Re: Vote: Top 2006 $20 Challenges

Thank you. This was a lot of fun!!

[Koppur]

Re: Vote: Top 2006 $20 Challenges

Thanks so much!

[vsjhoc]

Re: Vote: Top 2006 $20 Challenges

Congrats to all the winners! Well done!

To the cash prize winners: Tell us what you'll do with the cash. Please have a little splurge for yourself instead of just adding it to your 2007 Challenge!