Great Depression Cooking & Living on a Dime

SUB HER: www.youtube.com How a Michigan Family of Six Saves Money, Reduces Debt, Balances Its Budget news.yahoo.com We pay as we go. From wedding and honeymoon, home furnishings, vehicles, clothing, medical care, appliances and luxuries, we only buy what we can pay for. Our wedding and honeymoon, both simple but nice, were paid off before we got married so we didn't start off in debt. Besides our mortgage, we have only taken out two person loans: both for family emergencies. We didn't try to have in five years what it took our parents a lifetime to earn. One of the biggest mistakes newlyweds make is plunge themselves into debt to have it all. Neither of our families could afford to give us much financially. We have adjusted our expectations to reflect our circumstances. We accepted "less than perfect" housing. When we were married, the interest rates for homes were 10.5 percent. We purchased a mobile home and lived in it for 10 years. We paid it off in five years. Lot rent cost about $250 on average. We had a huge yard for our children and many of the amenities of renters. When interest rates dropped, we purchased a home. It needed a great deal of repair. We fixed up the important things first (windows, insulation, heating, electrical). Our home still needs a great deal of "prettying up". We've been remodeling as we are able, but we focus on health and safety maintenance first. We share a used vehicle. We have never paid more than $1500 for a vehicle. My husband is a whiz ...