One task quickly learned helps too.  

I guess it's not for everyone.  I bought a "fixer upper."  I've learned to paint, drywall, install flooring, toilets, sinks, faucets, electrical outlets.

Perhaps the first time there was more investment in tools.  An example is my wet tile saw.  For the first project, I probably only saved $600 instead of hiring help.  I'm on my third tiling project, and have saved myself over $3000.  

Hired help will never have the same labor of love you will either.  I've had to correct mistakes from contractors.  

I learned to change my own brakes too.  The $1200 quote to change my front and rear brakes.  I've done it for around $300 in parts.

Go for it - change the battery or lock or whatever. Im 72, and I have saved thousands by doing repairs and making things instead of buying them. By doing it myself for years, I have learned enough that I can fix anything but a horse-race, and I just never tried to do that.

You should only fix thing you know you can with out getting hurt or making worse

This article doesn't make any sense. How often do you change car batteries? Once in 6 years!! How much are you really saving here? Not to mention all the technical nitty gritty stuff you must follow or your car warranty will no longer hold!

I'd rather pay $50 and get the job done right.

This article lacked sophistication that one expects from MSN.

Good for u Donna....first a battery, then maybe oil changes or a starter.

There are quite a few clowns around here trying to act like mechanics (they're a dime a dozen)....one in particular put brakes on the back of my truck, (a Dodge with dual rear wheels) & handed me a bill for $300.  When I questioned him about the fluid in the rear end, his reply was "we checked it".

One week later....it went out....ANOTHER $1000...(to another mechanic that did the job right).

As far as the $50 being tax free....I dont think so. You've payed payroll or similar tax on it already...you've just avoided paying taxes on it a second time. That's why we work until August just to pay taxes. It's time America had another "Tea Party".

I always did my own work, and when younger ruined a lot of things until I learned to get it right!  I studied mechanical engineering in college and am stilll working at age 72 and still do all my own plumbing, electrical, and automobile maintenance work.  Over a lifetime, I estimate I have saved tens of thousands of dollars, not to mention the satisfaction of doing it right, and in a better way than these yo-yo's that come out to fix things, and don't have a clue as to how it works.  There are some good ones out there, but few and far between.  If you don't enjoy getting your hands dirty, don't do it; let someone else do it and figure on having the job done over until its really right!

Don't forget to factor in the cost of tools and materials when deciding whether to do it yourself or hire out. A lot of times it's cheaper to hire someone to do a job, since they already have the tools and materials. Not to mention the knowledge on how to use those tools and materials.

For example, I recently needed my powder room walls retexurized and painted. I didn't have a compressor to blow the texture/compound, I didn't have a ladder that was small enough to fit the space, I didn't have the drop cloths, I didn't have a sander, paint brushes, and so on. My cost to purchase the tools and materials would have been more than what a painter charged me to complete the job. And that didn't even factor in my time learn how to use everything (I've never retexturized drywall before) and complete the job. Also, the powder room is the smallest room in the house and not the best room to learn how to use all the equipment. So, I hired out. Sure, you could argue that I would have the equipment and materials on hand if I ever needed to retexturize another wall in the house, but who knows if and when that would happen? In the meantime all that stuff sits in the garage or utility room taking up space.

It doesn't matter if it is the car battery, the lock, the house painting, or the gardening.... those are just examples.  The point is that you try to do as much as possible on your own instead of PAYING others to do what you know or can easily learn how to do because that is the way you were raised--to watch your every penny so that you pay your bills in full and don't rely on credit cards and home equity loans...  and maybe even pay off your mortgage--but beware!  The neighbor's are watching you and your just not keeping up with the Jonses....

While there are many things that I will do myself if I have the opportunity, there are factors in the DIY equation here that appear to be left out. The cost of purchasing or renting the right tools for the job. In addition to the expertise required. One that I have around my house right now is that I need to string wiring for my phone and home network through the existing walls of my home without tearing them up so much that I need to redo the Drywall. It is really a seemingly simple task on the face of it run a coat hanger wire through the existing hole in the basementa nd pull the cable right? Wrong the insulation is in the way the hanger wire isn't long enough Long story short two trips to Bestbuy (one to purchase and one to return items needed) and two hours of frustration later the job still isn't done because I have niether the expertise or the tools for the job. That is why we have trades and Tradesmne have jobs that sometimes seem to pay too well. They can do it better and faster and I don't say bad words while my kids are watching.

Speaking of DYI battery replacement... I recently received a notice from Honda that the "engine" indicator light was faulty and to bring the car in for warranty covered replacemnet. I left the car for a day; got the call to come pick it up and drove off... only to find the "engine" light was still lit up! So I call 'em back, "Sure- just come on by- we'll fix it in a few minutes" ... only at that time, I had to be somewhere else! One thing led to another and it was a couple of months before I reminded myself to go by and get the "idiot light" turned off. Had to leave it another day. But this time, when I cam back to get my car, I was told it was the battery, "It wouldn't hold a charge". Well, Ok... if I need a new battery, guess it can't be avoided. Then, I got the bill: $215.00!! That was $89.00 for the battery and the rest was "labor"!! It takes me less than five minutes to unbolt the battery clamp, lift the old one out and place a new one in... which means the mechanic is charging over $1,500.00/ hr! Now, of course, I would have done this myself but I thought I was getting a pretty good deal because I drive a Honda Civic Hybrid... and I thought they meant the BIG BATTERY!! Oh well... be careful out there, it's a dangerous world.