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Twisted Avatar | 08-07-2009 11:21 AM
Preparedness on a Very Tight Budget Preparedness on a Very Tight Budget, by Shane M. I see it several times a week: What gun should I get? How much ammo should I have? How big should my garden be? Should I get gold or silver? And on and on it goes, week after week. More and more people are becoming �aware,� and are seeking the advice of those of us who have �been there, done that.� There is so much great information out there to answer the plethora of those types of questions. Invariably, someone eventually asks, �how do I afford that?� There are other variations of this question as well, but it all boils down to the same thing in the end. Many of us, including myself, are not monetarily wealthy. Considering that most of the country is in debt, that means that many survivalists, especially those new to the subject, are in debt. With the sudden realizations smacking them about the head and chest, combined with the required urgency of the situation, people want to get the necessary preparations in short order, but are not sure how to do it with limited funds. It can be done. Just like your 401(k) investments, it happens a little bit at a time. I do not know a single survivalist that just bought into the life with just one check from the checkbook. This is not a life you just buy into in a day. So rest assured that those of us who are well prepared did so over time, with trail and error, money, sweat, and bruised egos. You have an advantage that we did not have � the internet. You can learn from us, from our mistakes and our wisdom through the internet and gain valuable insight, hopefully without many monetary mistakes. Absorbing this knowledge is your first key to being able to �afford� preparations. Beans, bullets, Band-Aids has been articulated many times and in many ways. Now, how do I afford it all? A budget and prioritizing are the answers. Did I just hear you moan? I am sorry, but you cannot do it without a budget and setting your priorities to pay down debt and acquire preparations. All other things go to the bottom of the list. I have never in my life made more than $40,000 in a year. Looking at my last 22 years of taxable income statements, it shows that my average yearly pay is just over $18,000 per year. This is not because I do not have the ability to earn much more, it is because I choose to live life and not be a slave to societal pressures to have a career. I have still managed to prepare with miniscule funds, debt, and a family by setting my priorities and keeping a strict budget. So, how do I get started? Stop using credit cards and credit � forever! Stop frivolous spending immediately � no eating out, no movies, no cable, no manicures, no vacations, no guys� night out, etc. Either you are serious about preparing, or you are a party-goer. Which is it? Establish an emergency fund, in cash of at least $1,000. This is not spending money. This is to cover an inevitable visit from Murphy, Sod, or Finagle. Document every dollar you spend to find out where your money is going. Create a budget that outlines your debts and expenses. This should be prioritized with Food, Water, Shelter, and Transportation at the top. These are the bills that get paid first. Other bills, debts, and expenses get laid out in order of importance. When you add up your bills and expenses, if the number is larger than your bring home paycheck, you need to get another job. If the number is smaller, this money is used for getting your preparations. If your total is equal to you take home pay, tighten you belt. Tighten you belt � go over your expenses and see where you can cut. Everyone has things they can cut. Eliminate anything that is not necessary. Shop for better deals on phone services, electricity, etc. Change the thermostat a few degrees, unplug appliances when not in use, shop at different stores, use coupons, purchase used, etc. Now that you are started with properly managing your money, it is time to make lists for preparations. Food should be the first thing on the list, followed closely by defense (guns, ammo, and training) and medical supplies and training. Clothes, shoes, coats, etc. should also be on the list along with communications gear. There are plenty of other things to put on your lists, and much of it has been discussed on this blog. Now that you have your lists of things to get, research real costs of these items and document your findings. What do I mean by real costs? In the business world, this is called total cost and is the actual cost of an item, shipping, storage, and upkeep of the item. You need to know all costs involved for every item on your lists. Fifty pounds of triple cleaned oats may cost you $12.50 from you local supplier, but to put it up long-term, you will need a bucket, mylar bag, and oxygen absorbers. You also need to know where you are going to store it, and any associated costs to keep it stored. Some items may require a climate-controlled environment for long-term sustainability and this cost may be separate from your home costs depending on your situation. You can severely cut into the total cost of preparations by researching, pooling resources with other preppers, and working as a team to put up those preparations. You can get bulk discounts by purchasing case lots, pallet lots, and purchasing seconds. This goes not just for food, but also for guns, ammo, clothes, seeds, construction materials, etc. Write down the price quotes you get, the name of the business, the phone number, and with whom you spoke. After the first few calls, it will get easier and become enjoyable. If you have friends, break up the lists and put others in charge of researching a subject. A big thing to remember when researching your future purchases: businesses must sell products to stay in business, but you are not required to buy � most things are negotiable. So, how did I do it? Using all of the above, I started by allotting $10 per weekly trip to the grocery store to get canned goods. These were put away for emergencies. Other money was saved until I had enough to purchase an item at the top of my list (i.e. a rifle), and then the process started over. Later, I learned that I needed to set a budget for my weekly grocery trip and make a list for that as well. Since I was keeping track of every dollar I spent, I noticed that my weekly shopping trip expenditures were erratic, fluctuating between $90 and $190 per week plus my $10 preps. So, I made a list for the week�s groceries and set a [weekly] budget of $125. The first few months of this were hard. I had to make concessions, purchase lesser cuts of meat, off-brands, or simply cut certain things altogether. After a year of doing it this way, we were spending less than $75 per week to feed a family of four. What do you think we do with the extra money we were spending at the grocery store? That�s right, it buys more preps every week. I sold my full sized four-door truck with payments, which freed up $430 per month, and paid cash for an early 1990s model beater S-10 Blazer. Is it as nice as my truck was? Not even close. Does it get me where I need to go? Absolutely. What do you think I did with the extra $430 per month? Right again, I bought more preps. Every time we pay off a debt, the money we were paying towards it gets put towards another debt, until it is paid off. Then all of that money goes to the next debt and so on, until suddenly, no more debt. Every extra dollar we got, paid for a prep or went to a debt. I also save the required money and purchase exactly what I want, not something to get me by. Always buy what you want. Never purchase something that you think you want or something inferior. I see others do this all the time. This is the best way to waste your money. I see others with slim budgets purchase a Mosin Nagant and a tin of ammo, simply because they wanted to have something, when they really wanted a M1A or an AR-15. If I want an expensive rifle, or high quality tent, I stay patient and save the required amount of money and get exactly what I want. I learned this lesson the hard way, so you shouldn�t have to. If you were as prepared as you thought you could be, and TEOTWAWKI came to pass, you would do everything in your power to properly manage your resources and hopefully ride out the storm. You would document all of you food, guns, ammo, and supplies. You would make plans on how best to utilize what you had, disseminate those plans to your family (and friends) and make certain that those plans were followed. Well, TEOTWAWKI has not come to pass, but all of the ingredients required to survive are the same ingredients needed to prepare to survive. Document what you have in monetary means, make plans to best utilize those means, disseminate those plans to your family, and make sure everyone sticks to the plan. Before you know it, you will be well stocked and supplied. http://www.survivalblog.com/

Saoirse | 08-07-2009 08:18 PM
Re: Preparedness on a Very Tight Budget Some good advice. A bit strict, and leaves little room for "culture" and "civilization," but I especially appreciate his point about buying what you really want.

Silver Belle | 08-07-2009 08:42 PM
Re: Preparedness on a Very Tight Budget Excellent post...thank you!

Merlin | 08-07-2009 10:22 PM
Re: Preparedness on a Very Tight Budget Speaking of budgets, I'm a great fan of buying things at the right price. For instance, while I don't think that Chef Boyardee is the greatest canned food in the world, I was raised on it. It's familiar. I don't want it every day; but I like having it around. Additionally, in an emergency you could eat it straight out of the can; it's already cooked after all. A local store offered Chef Boyardee varieties this week at $0.83 a can. When I buy a six cans, I get a $1 off coupon for my next shopping trip. So, I'm making multiple trips on my bicycle over to the store and stocking up at an effective price of $0.67 a can. When things you might eat anyway come on sale, buy. Go shopping on your bicycle while you're at it. Save money on gas. You need the exercise anyway. So, over the next few days, I'm going to stock 36 cans of something I'd eat anyway for $24, when the usual price is much more. Food reserves grow at the right price. That's how to do it if you're on a tight budget. We've been doing the same thing recently buying Kleenex brand facial tissues (the brand I prefer.) The store has them on sale at 3 200-count boxes for $5.00. But when I buy 4, they give me a $1.00 off coupon for my next purchase of 4 and a coupon good for $1.00 off on my next shopping tour. That gives me an effective price of $1.17 for the 200-count package of Kleenex brand tissues. I know, of course, that there are probably cheaper brands. But, the OP's point about buying the quality that you really want resonates with me. To get what you like at a cheap price is a special treat.

dupontcobb | 08-07-2009 10:45 PM
Re: Preparedness on a Very Tight Budget Good point Merlin. I suggested this to a friend who is on a tight budget. Make a list of items, then buy the items on the list each time they went shopping. Look for items on sale first and cross them out when bought. Spend an extra $xx on can goods one trip, then spend $xx on beans in the next trip...etc. It makes it easier versus of going one trip and having a huge up front cost. However, they havent taken the advice....you can only do so much.

Merlin | 08-07-2009 10:56 PM
Re: Preparedness on a Very Tight Budget Quote:
Originally Posted by dupontcobb (Post 1857875) Good point Merlin. I suggested this to a friend who is on a tight budget. Make a list of items, then buy the items on the list each time they went shopping. Look for items on sale first and cross them out when bought. Spend an extra $xx on can goods one trip, then spend $xx on beans in the next trip...etc. It makes it easier versus of going one trip and having a huge up front cost. However, they havent taken the advice....you can only do so much.
Well, I understand the problem. To buy the 36 cans of Chef Boyardee that you don't need today, you have to part with $24. Lot's of people can't afford to do that. But even if you don't have $24, you might have the $5 that I spent today on 6 cans; that gave me a $1-off coupon that I could spend on things I do need. So you can scale back the project to meet your capabilities. But you're right. People are either on board with the project or they are not. I can't save the world, though I wish that I could, and neither can you.

thrifty_bob | 08-08-2009 01:08 PM
Re: Preparedness on a Very Tight Budget If things get really bad, ie empty store shelves or no stores open, I think you'd just be happy to have staples, especially if you are so tight on money that $24 is worth worrying about. For example, $24 would buy you 60 lbs of rice at $8 at 20 lb bag. I dont need a calculator to figure out that is way, way, more than 36 cans (Im guessing the 15 oz cans) of Chef Boy Ar Dee worth. Add some bullion, some noodles or dried beans. dried onions, salt and pepper, etc and you have food to last a long time for peanuts. Same with buying say a 50 lb bag of 7 grain cereal to eat for breakfasts that costs under $50 and would last a year anyway. Just need some sugar and some dried fruits and you'd be eating pretty good, IMO. Just thinking aloud... Hoard what you'll eat, LOL

j-son | 08-08-2009 01:14 PM
Re: Preparedness on a Very Tight Budget mre heaters might be a good prep item too. i found them at cheaperthandirt for about $4 for a dozen

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