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Old 10-10-2019, 12:21 PM   #38 (permalink)
redpoint5
Human Environmentalist
 
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Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: Oregon
Posts: 12,467

Acura TSX - '06 Acura TSX
90 day: 24.19 mpg (US)

Lafawnda - CBR600 - '01 Honda CBR600 F4i
90 day: 47.32 mpg (US)

Big Yeller - Dodge/Cummins - '98 Dodge Ram 2500 base
90 day: 21.82 mpg (US)

Chevy ZR-2 - '03 Chevrolet S10 ZR2
90 day: 17.14 mpg (US)

Model Y - '24 Tesla Y LR AWD
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Feeling secure costs money, or you could just accept less security and save money. Things like paying for a "premium" cell carrier, or life insurance (should be called death insurance). You're young enough that you should be paying that $22/mo for you to live.

Auto insurance is something that should be shopped for periodically since companies have rate creep (what they call customer loyalty "discounts"). By shop, I mean spend 30 minutes to get a rate quote from 3 different companies online. Go with legal minimum liability coverage and pay the 6th months primum rather than their financing scheme (monthly).

MVNOs are the way to go for cell phone service. Sure, your data might not be prioritized as high as someone else's, but voice always has priority, and texts will go through since they consume essentially no data. Paying more for cell service just to have higher priority is silly unless you're POTUS or or something. At least take an old phone and try a month on an MVNO to see how well it performs while retaining your current plan. Month to month pricing makes it low commitment.

EDIT:

Found this list of Verizon MVNOs:


CREDO Mobile
GreatCall
Net10
Pix Wireless
Page Plus
Red Pocket
Straight Talk
Total
TracFone
Twigby
US Mobile

Looking at coverage maps, Verizon really owns it in Show Low. That said, Google Fi utilizes both Sprint and T-mobile networks. Would the combination of both approach the coverage of Verizon? Google Fi is $20/mo unlimited talk/text, and $1 per 100MB of data.

$40k is a good annual income, especially if rent is ~$350. That's what I was making when I had $400 all-inclusive rent, and that income allowed me to save enough to purchase a house with 20% down, pay for a wedding in cash, pay off the wife's CC and student loans in cash, pay for her $10k quarterly tuition in cash, and put a downpayment on another house.

Paying cheap rent allowed me to save for a home purchase, and renting out rooms allowed me to own the house for almost free (and now it turns a modest profit).

I ate out for every workday lunch, but limited myself to $2-$3. That was about $40/mo.
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Last edited by redpoint5; 10-10-2019 at 02:06 PM..
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