Simplify your life with a stuff-replacement fund
Posted
Oct 20 2008, 09:01 AM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
This post comes from J.D. Roth at partner blog Get Rich Slowly.
One thing that prevents me from getting rid of more clutter in my life is the worry that someday, for some reason, I'll want it again. Maybe I don't use the rice cooker now, but what if I need it in the future? It's thinking like this that keeps me from achieving the simple life I long for.
After writing about the idea of having recently, I decided to reread "Your Money or Your Life," one of the best books about personal finance, frugality and conquering consumerism. In it, authors Joe Dominguez and Vicki Robin share an answer to this problem:
(One) individual realized that he had many possessions that he wasn't using and no longer wanted, but had been hanging on to because he "just might need them someday." His creative solution was to sell these belongings and set aside the proceeds to be used to replace any of them he might find himself in need of in the future. Meanwhile, his money was earning interest, his life became simpler, and someone who might really need these items was getting use out of them.
This is a fantastic idea. Rather than keep the stuff you aren't using, you sell it to somebody who will use it, and then stash the proceeds for future use. It's sort of like "stuff insurance."
Last September, my wife and I purged hundreds of books from our shelves. We loaded them into her car and spent a Saturday morning driving around Portland from used bookstore to used bookstore. We sold nearly all of the books, picking up $358 for a couple hours' work.
Last year, the money went to retiring my debt, but if I were to do something similar today, I could use the cash to start a new savings account, a dedicated stuff-replacement fund. As I sell my comic books, my compact discs, my DVDs and so on, I can take the proceeds and place them all in the same account, a safeguard against the things I might really need someday.
Of course, there's little chance I'll need any of this stuff ever again. I have two friends who have been ruthlessly purging clutter for the past couple years, and they say they never long for the things they got rid of. After a few years of having a stuff-replacement fund, I could simply fold all the money into my normal savings and go on with life.
Other articles of interest at Get Rich Slowly:
Purge clutter with a de-accumulation bag
Which online high-yield savings account is best?
How to create ING Direct subaccounts
