Why I'm So Frugal

I’m about to be 33 years old and I still drive the car my wife got when she graduated highschool… The AC and Heat both work, it gets me where I need to go and the best part, no payment.
Now can I afford a nicer car? Yes, but I don’t really need it.
I choose to live a frugal lifestyle and that is just 1 of the many examples in how I do so.
But today, I want to talk about some of the reasons why I chose to live like this and why I am so frugal.
Some of my favorite things to do in life are spend time with my wife and kids. My favorite part of the day is waking up, having coffee, and talking about what the day has in store for all of us.
I also enjoy working out, going on a run, and enjoying new experiences with my family.
One of the main ways I am able to enjoy all of this is because I choose not to live an expensive lifestyle.
Bc think about it, if I spend more, then I have to earn more, and if I have to earn more then I have to work more… Which in return, takes away my time of doing the things that I truly enjoy.
Ultimately, this comes down to freedom and I can get to freedom much faster living a frugal lifestyle

Now that may mean, I don’t get as much stuff in life, for example, like the fact that I am still driving my wife’s car from high school. But I don’t need new stuff. It doesn’t make me happy. Now it may bring some short-term happiness but it never lasts long.
For example, you know when you go get a new car. It’s exciting, right? But what does it feel like after owning that car for about 1 year? It’s not as exciting anymore. If you have kids, the new car feel and smell is definitely gone haha. It ends up turning into just a regular old car again.
I like to choose to spend my money on things that will bring me happiness on repeat.
One thing my wife and I both agreed on is that we would spend money on experiences over material items.

Did you know that 73% of Americans rank their finances as the No. 1 stress in life. The shocking part is if we break this down to different generations, us younger generations are even more stressed about our finances with around 81% to 82% of Gen Z and millennials stating that finances are their number 1 stress in life.
I absolutely hate seeing this and the problem is, in the current times we are living in, it makes it even harder to get caught up financially.
That statistic is one of the main reasons why I am so frugal.
Stress free finances.
Living a frugal lifestyle means I don’t have many bills.
When I don’t have many bills, I don’t have to earn as much and since I don’t have to earn as much, I don’t have to work as much.

Frugal living helped me get closer to that freedom bc the more money I saved, the more money I could put into investments.
My biggest goal right now is building up my taxable brokerage account to over $1 million as well as adding 3 more rental properties to my portfolio. I can accelerate this by being frugal. With thoughtful spending and tracking where my money goes, that gives me more money to put towards investments which in return will ultimately buy me even more freedom down the road and also help fund what my wife and I enjoy most… travel.

One big tip I have for most of you out there if you are thinking about making a change to a frugal lifestyle is you have to stop worrying about what other people think of you.
Don’t keep up with the jones.
Understand your goal and the reasoning why you are doing what you do.
Don’t get caught in the hamster wheel.

I want to make sure I am prepared incase all goes to crap
If the worst happen and my main source of income dries up, I will be ok.
Bc I saved money, I invested, I have minimal spending I need to keep up with.

It is all about compromise. You don’t always get your cake and get to eat it too. Life is about compromise. I choose to spend money on going out to eat and traveling bc that is what we love to do.

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DISCLOSURE: I am not a finanical advisor. I am sharing my personal opinion on all topics dicussed in my videos. Please seek professional advice when needed.

[CAGChannel]

Just a note from an old lady mom of eight - remembered “ experiences” won’t be what you think. My kid’s precious memories would greatly surprise you - the 3am bowl of cheerios with a sibling, the jumping on the bed dance praying it’s a snow day, on and on with super simple, very precious memories that they return to. Planned experiences rarely come up, mostly they remember the chaos of getting somewhere or the of packing and unpacking and the “ horrors” as one of my kids says of planes.
Oh, and they will laugh and rib you in 30 years for the “ darn it, turn the lights off!.” :)
I once had a super important phone call when they were all semi- little and I went into a closet and still couldn’t get the call done, so I said “ mommy has to do this for five minutes. I don’t want any interruptions unless there is a true problem” my kid said, “ like what, ” and I exasperatedly said “ someone is bleeding or on fire.” I have not heard the end of that for over a 1/4 century. It’s a family joke to this day.
You will be surprised by what becomes precious experiences or memories.

[DaveM-FFB]

This retiree has concluded that virtually all "useful stuff" ultimately becomes obsolete or breaks down, with the remainder being consumed. The more stuff you accumulate, the bigger the liability. Certainly electronics, but also appliances, vehicles, housing, soft goods like clothing and decor, etc. Acquire as little as necessary to live a fulfilling life.

[voodoodrug]

Started living the frugal life style 15 years ago.
My highlights are just as you say. Some times I just stop and relax gratefull Now I don’t have to work.
Yeah must have nice Harley’s .
One of my biggest moves you seemed to miss, real estate hack…. Saved a million. Downsized the house and my wife and I got extremely introverted ladies to live with us and pay every bill including food plus the chores. Wow game changer and it’s easy with the internet. Technically we’re “sharing” expenses . Another ground braking move was having a baby momma, avoided all the bs and raised my awesome kids with pease and max benefits😎
These two maneuvers in life are stupid easy and nothing short of a miracle. As long as you don’t care what others think

[ljrockstar]

At a certain age, material things don't matter. I used to buy a lot of clothes, but now I downsize my closet and dress simple.

[MsHtc]

Hebrews[13:5] Don’t love money; be satisfied with what you have. For God has said: “I will never fail you.
    I will never abandon you.”
[6] So we can say with confidence,
“The LORD is my helper,  so I will have no fear. What can mere people do to me?”

[alanhill]

I'm 69 years old. I have to say first, what happened to us that what was once common understanding now has to be instructed? Consumer culture has turned us into automatons. Growing up, my father incurred zero debt except for a home mortgage, which he paid off in the stipulated 30 years. He used to tell us, " If you don't have the money (and he'd mime cash in his pocket), you can't afford it." Simple. Live within your means. Nowadays, we're conditioned by advertising to never even consider what our means are! I drive a 16 year old Corolla. I've always kept up the routine maintenance and the car runs fine. Doesn't look impressive, but it's paid for. I pay my credit cards off in full every month. I buy used over new when possible. I dine out once in a blue moon. I was blessed to inherit a house that I was able to sell in a seller's market and buy my current home for cash. No mortgage. Am I fortunate? You bet! But I'm also frugal. Bless you, Mr. Buckner for making this channel. And kudos to you for having the sense to get out of Florida and move to a place that's more economical. Home owner's insurance in Florida has become impossible. I left Florida in 2021, and it was one of the smartest decisions of my life.

[HenryKatty]

I would be retiring or working less in 5 years, and I'm curious to know best how people split their pay, how much of it goes into savings, spendings or investments, I earn around $250K per year but nothing to show for it yet.

[jenniferselespara]

Having a coffee at home staying home with my son priceless!!!

[ghgilland]

In far fewer words, we do the exact same thing. Grew up poor and now have an incredible life of enjoyment. At the same time, we can also be generous. Fancy items aren't even real assets in many cases. In general, the more stuff you own, the more you have to maintain.

[MichaelJosephJr]

You're lucky your wife is on board with the plan. I sold my wife so I could spend less.

[JonHill-yjlm]

I dont even buy fast food anymore it was my biggest waste of money

[zyhdlcx]

💯 That is what life is all about. Thinking way ahead financially living on less than half your take home and not having to work to many hours. We started our debt free lifestyle in 2010 and it was a game changer. Nice to see someone so young thinking that far ahead about family and finances. JJ your kids are watching and will follow in your footsteps and pass it on. Generational wealth is being created. Good luck to you and your family. Have a great day 😊

[dixonshaun]

A couple of great aphorisms you pointed out here are "take care of the little things, and the big things will take care of themselves" and of course "penny wise, pound stupid".

[GiveAbundance]

I think you are spot on living in a lower cost area and occasionally taking a cheap flight to Florida when you and the family need a vacation. We take our kids on vacation, and I will cherish those memories forever. I would rather have the memories than a corvette in the garage.

[kzen]

Pretty sure that new car smell is toxic. No joke.

[drewdobbins]

I needed to be reminded of this. Thanks JJ!

[lexide]

Had 2 drop a like after he said he enjoys winning fortnite games with his son. Gaming can be a good way to pass time on a frugal budget. Fortnite is entirely free to play as well.

[BrianK-zzfk]

The last part is key focus on the big items first rather that saving 25 cents a can on food. Be careful on the rental properties though as the amount you can rent them for is not profitable in many areas.

[susanlewis]

Love your mindset - prioritises the right things. Enjoy watching the videos, Sue 😊

[auntiali]

You sound like me 32 years ago. Hubs just retired and we are living our best lives. We have a healthy investments as well as his pension and our social security. I became frugal 32 years ago to stay home with my kids. We were still able to send the two kids to camp for a week in the summer, go on vacations and have fun in our backyard and our free county parks. I took hand me downs for the kids and hand me downs for furniture.