have you got a 'cushion' of cash behind you for 'just in case'

mardatha

I think you absolutely must have a cushion of cash at all time. reading the posts above makes me shiver LOL ! If the banks shut for any reason then without cash you're stuffed!

lostinrates

IMO, if we get to the situation where there is a serious run on mulitple banks then the cash cushion most of us would be able to provide would be fairly meaningless tbh.....skills and pocessions would be more important. And, while I'm pessimistic about the economy and think there are plenty of bumps in the road ahead, I thinki its a fairly outside prospect at this stage still.

Until about 18 months ago dh and I was ''very liquid'' having a ''large'' cash deposit for our home and having saved and scrimped and earned. Now its all in our wreck I have to admit there are times I am very jumpy, but if times did go bad....a house is more useful than stacks of devalued paper!

We try and keep some cash reserves. Not much, but some. what we had was to be the new kitchen and a central heating boiler...then the dog broke her leg and now we have less cash! we do have some euro savings, not a comfortable currency to hold atm but...c'est la vie!

what we find odd is how many people have expected us to borrow to ''do'' the wreck into finished condition quickly. I accept, it would be much nicer going into winter to have a working CH boiler, but more important is to stay comfortable with debt levels. Also I'm amazed at how much our mind has changed over the time we've been here, which makes me glad we didn't rush ahead.

DebtFree2012

Well I'm afraid I am one of those who lives week to week, hand to mouth unfortunately. I literally have the money I earn and a load of debt I'm an avid DFW/OS wannabe now I have changed my ways. Constantly learning and making changes for the better. My goal is to have 3 months worth of wages instantly accessible in the bank with a £500 stash in the house.

In the Winter I had to take my DS to the hospital at 3am in the morning on the typically worst night of snow we'd had. I had next to no petrol in the car as I couldn't afford it and I only just managed to scrape together enough for the parking there. This was when my final LBM came and now I have at least enough to cover such an event handy in the house.

I don't know what I would use the £500 for, I am thinking car problems or groceries should something dreadful happen. It will just feel good to have that money should I need it. This has come from years of being scared to check my balance through fear of what it will say.

I only ever use cash now for the same reason - being rejected at the tills, even though I know I have the amount there due to budgetting and so on however it's a feeling I can't shake.

Sorry - I have moved slightly off topic - so in answer, no I don't have a stash anywhere, house or bank. However I plan to I just need to get the balance of having money in my hand that could go to my debts. And I won't rely on CC's, even in an emergency. Once they are gone they will be no more, however my situation's slightly different, being a DFW.

Thanks for the thread - it's food for thought.

xx

splodger_seedswapper

i have no savings whatsoever - so no rainy day fund - but i don't have any debts either - all bills are pre pay or direct debit - so no big bills either and certainly no credit cards - so although i live a very frugal life i live a stress free one - if i ain't got it i can't spend it - simples

i do certain things that can help towards an emergency - my main concern is my dogs - just in case they need vet treatment etc - instead of paying for pet insurance etc - every time i have a spare fiver or something - i pop into my vets and put it on account - so i am well in credit in case of emergency

i save up coppers and small loose change when i can - and generally use that method if i need to save up for something

torbrex

As a younger man, I always kept a minimum of £100 either on my person or available in my moneysafe at home, I also had 5/10 pounds tucked away in my credit card holder as my get out of jail money
Over the years I became a bit more moneywise and realised that cash sitting in my safe was earning nothing but in my account would be earning 2.5% and also as I got older, there were fewer emergencies cropping up that required cash so the amount I kept in my wallet also dropped down.
I still keep about £20 in my safe and my wallet seldom goes below £20 before I make a withdrawal.

DebtFree2012

No stress sounds divine

tessie_bear

we dont keep above a few pounds in the house but have savings for an emergency such as the washing machine breaking down

Alex-Riley.

I have some money in the bank but none at home because i would spend it like that
literally sometimes I have to go down the road and give my nan my debit card
because I don't think before I buy I see something I want I buy it I have about 5 dvds which i haven't even started watching

Cheapskate

I have a £2 savings jar in the house, with about £120 in just now, plus odds and ends of change I save until there's a proper bagful of pennies, five pence pieces, etc., probably £2-3, plus about £70 in my purse (weekend shopping, going out tonight, 2 birthday presents to buy - don't usually have so much in it).

I'd like to have about £200 permanently stashed in the house if the world ended - may not buy a lot, but it's a mental safety net.

Generally speaking, though, we are down to our last £2000 of savings after [STRIKE]bailing out[/STRIKE] lending money to our older kids, car service and plumber's bill for new boiler and radiators! :eek:

We're on a severe economy drive right now, and I'm hoping I can get on top of the savings again - would prefer to get to the point where we have 6 months worth of mortgage/bill/emergency money again.

A xo

hummingbird

Hi, like debtfree2012 I'm another DFW who is coming over to the OS board as well!

Unfortunately at the moment I have no savings and a lot of debt:o
I've only just started to realise that Old Style is a brilliant way to improve my situation. Things are going to improve! I haven't bothered with saving for a while as I've been focusing on paying off the cards. However, the idea of some cash available is great as it helps stop you using the credit card yet again. Now to set some goals...........:j