Want to save? Join the 'Dollar Bill Challenge'
Posted
Sep 22 2008, 12:04 PM
by
Donna Freedman
Rating:
Starting in January, Smart Spending message board reader "Pepperdoo" vowed to save all her singles. Thus far, her "Dollar Bill Challenge" has netted her $615. The money will probably pay for vehicle insurance or a new front door, but she might also just bank it for any unforeseen expense.
Pepperdoo isn't alone. Some readers have been doing this for months, some just started, and all have progress to report. "Shadow2103" has almost $800, even after buying her daughter's college textbooks, and is dreaming of a cash-only Christmas. "Yoopergramma," age 67, is $161 closer to a trip to next year's motorcycle rally in Sturgis, S.D.
"Always..proud" saved $202, which translated into two days' worth of family fun at theme parks. "Cpstl" is up to $542, and plans to give the money to a nonprofit choral group.
One plastic-using reader didn't think the challenge was a good fit -- but after just one month, "moehenry" has $30 in hand. "For someone who uses their debit/credit card for everything, I am shocked at the amount of money that crosses my palms," the reader says. "I can't wait to see how much I have at the end of September."
More than one way to save
The challenge is simple: Set aside every dollar bill that comes your way. But it isn't necessarily limited to singles. Some readers also toss in loose change or the occasional $5, $10 or $20 bill. Most of the money comes from wallets and pockets at the end of the day, but a few folks are throwing in money made from bottle or can returns, manufacturer rebates, online auctions or yard sales.
They're stashing cash in envelopes, jars, coffee cans, change purses, 5-gallon water jugs and a giant plastic replica of a Coca-Cola bottle. Every so often, they take the money to the bank. A couple of readers reminded change-savers to roll and deposit their own coins rather than pay a premium to commercial counting machines.
Reader "Librian" recently started using the challenge to help herself kick a soda habit. "Every time I really want a soft drink at work and do not get it, I put the $1.25 in an envelope. I now have about $12," she says.
"N-Girl," who's up to $200, has vowed to put in a dollar a day until her husband returns from Iraq. Before he left, he'd been looking at fishing gear. N-Girl may buy it for him when he gets home, or she may use the money for a weekend getaway since they didn't get to go on a honeymoon.
I might try it myself
Every night I empty my wallet of change. Quarters get set aside for laundry day. The other coins go into a piggy bank, to be wrapped and deposited every so often. Now and then I also put a few dollars into my emergency cash cache. Instead of saving paper money, I rely on automatic withdrawals from checking into an online bank each month.
However, I'm tempted to start a dollar-bill challenge of my own, if only to see how quickly I could improve that cash cache. Right now it's at $300; it would be great to have $500 on hand, in case of some kind of emergency.
One thing I'd recommend to all you dollar-bill savers is not to keep the money in the bureau. Burglars are usually only in a home for a few minutes, but one of the first things they're likely to do is empty the dresser drawers.
So make your hiding place so obscure that burglars either won't think of it or won't have time to find it. For example, it's unlikely they'll pull every item from your pantry to find the cake-mix box that holds your stash. (Especially if you, like me, have nine cake mixes.)
On the other hand, make sure your hidey-hole is not so crafty that you can't find it, either.
Addicted to ones?
The point of the challenge is that you don't miss a dollar here and a dollar there. Unless you track your spending, you're probably "losing" dollars every day. How many times have you left your house with a $20 bill and come home with $14, but couldn't quite remember how you spent the six bucks? A pack of gum, a sports drink, a magazine -- these all add up pretty quickly.
Taking the ones out of your wallet every night could make you more careful about impulse purchases. If you've got a wallet full of singles, it's easy to take one out and buy that pack of gum. But you might hesitate to break a $20 bill, or even a fiver.
Consider joining the Dollar Bill Challenge, just for a month. You might be surprised how much accumulates in that time. Beware, though: Saving ones can become "an addiction," according to Yoopergramma.
"I love the nice green feel of them, and I like the nice green smell of them. At one time I would have loved the nice green way they spend. Now I love the nice green way they save," she writes.
Incidentally, the challenge may end on Dec. 31 but it ain't over. Not for Pepperdoo, anyway.
"After that, I'll start the Five Dollar Bill Challenge," she writes. "I may just turn all my ones into fives and keep on going."
