What are we meant to do with stimulus?

[Evita_W]

I can't speak for everyone but our expenses went down significantly due to the pandemic. An entire summer of no daycare, less gas and tolls, food costs went down as cooking at home is always cheaper than eating out for lunch, we postponed 5 tips we had planned, and we did way less stuff like the theater, concerts, etc.

Ours didn't really go down much as both DH and I continued to work and our gas costs are about $20 every other month anyway; however, we this whole mess did manage to help us reevaluate our priorities and realize we would much rather focus spending on experiences than accumulating a bunch of junk around the house.

Oddly for us, we ended up taking trips that past year that we wouldn't have otherwise taken and have seen more of the country than ever due to two roadtrips, where we were traveling from the comfort of our own vehicle. And we also did a trip to WDW a few weeks ago.

 

[lilmc]

We didn’t need it and I miss eating out, so we are trying to support local restaurants by getting takeout way more than we had since lockdown started.

 

[RamblingMad]

I finally figured it out. We should all buy avocado toast.

 

[Kathryn Merteuil]

It went into DH's account... he wrote me a check for the $1400 and I just deposited it today. I am not sure what I am going to spend it on.

 

[TwoMisfits]

I’m kind of saving at the moment to stimulate at a later date in the near future. We’ve decided once we’re comfortable with someone being up close and personal we’re going to pay cash for the kids braces. Older DD’s former orthodontist gives a discount for repeat business. I’ll be bringing him two more and will have cash so this last round + insurance should hopefully cover it.

I do find that I’m willing to spend more lately for silly little things I wouldn’t have before.



Everyone should have a cushion if they can. I know several people who will burn through any extra money without a thought to the future and then they’re instantly back to where they started so kudos to you for thinking about it.

I'm a little less on spending more for silly, but a little more of "I'm not shopping price - if it's a price I had in the ballpark of fair, I say yes" spending more...I thought my cancer was the mindset change (aka, I don't want to waste the time and stress trying to find or bargain to the last penny), but I'm thinking the year in Covid lockdown, elevating tips for takeout and trying to shop and eat local may have just opened my mental wallet a little, too...

 

[spiders]

I am not opposed to spending money but I am opposed to spending money for the sake of spending money. A healthy balance of liquid cash makes life a lot easier when things don't go as expected. Nobody wants to have an unexpected $2000 repair bill. That's never pleasant but it's not the end of the world if you have some extra money lying around.

 

[indimom]

We didn't need the stimulus as we worked more last year than we have in the last five years. Enough to bump us into a new tax bracket, sigh. Our local economy has stayed strong - sadly because our local industry is medical manufacturing - and they've been working 7 days a week for months.
We helped our adult kids out with a few needs when we received the other stimulus money: first car for one, and relocating/new apartment for the other. We're not traveling until things open up a bit more; but, we'll probably save the latest stimulus for that. I really want a chance to visit our son in Arizona. Maybe in the late fall or winter if things continue as they have.

 

[Dznypal]

We put ours into savings. I can’t see having to spend the money on stuff we don’t need just cause we have extra cash Thst would just be a waste. It really should be used for the basics if you lost your job things like that but just to spend it on stuff is wateful

 

[White Cat]

On this I agree with you wholeheartedly and would expand the thought to include the middle class as well. There is a reason why the majority of the world‘s wealth are in the hands of a minority.

Brains. Talent and luck. Then brains again.

 

[NYCgrrl]

Brains. Talent and luck. Then brains again.

I’m sure @ RamblingMad appreciates the compliment.

 

[aprilgail]

putting mine aside for down payment on a new car- my lease is up the end of the year so will save it till then. I work for a charity and many people are actually sending us all or part of their stimulus saying that they dont really need it and want to donate it so that is great.

 

[TippyThomas]

I’m sure @ RamblingMad appreciates the compliment.

It's almost like throwing a wet dishrag on the conversation. Very artfully done.

 

[DisLiss]

It's meant to stimulate the economy, but there are many ways in which that can happen. If someone has been out of work and they owe $3000 in rent to their landlord, then of course paying that off is the right thing for them to do. And in doing that, the landlord now has $3000 of back rent with which they might very well go out and buy things, right?

Or, if you charged up your credit card over lockdown, (spending more than normal on special supplies, school/work at home items, paying premium amounts for hard to find items, etc.) and have now been on a bit of a "spending freeze" of sorts while you try to slowly pay it off, using this check to pay it off makes sense. Once you're not so concerned about the high balance on your card and once you're not racking up so much interest on the card, you'll likely go back to your normal pre-lockdown spending, which again, will be good for the economy.

People in any degree of financial difficulty will likely spend less than those not in that situation, so even if you spend the entire check shoring up your finances, it may still mean that going forward you may be able to spend more than you have been in last several months.

So, ultimately, if you received a check, do with it whatever works best for you.

 

[tex1989]

What stimulus?

 

[TippyThomas]

What stimulus?

The one that millions of people are getting. It's been in the news. I'm surprised you haven't heard of it.

 

[neverlandsky]

We were eligible for 3rd stimulus until they dropped the requirements. We put stimulus 1&2 into savings. It saved our butts! We used the funds to prepaid our mortgage with being out of work since December. Signed our home listing contact yesterday and our mortgage is paid til July. It stings a bit. Not going to judge anyone on how they personally choose to spend their stimulus. A bit jelly though that some get to spend it for fun. Wish we could of done the same.

 

[NotUrsula]

I can't speak for everyone but our expenses went down significantly due to the pandemic. An entire summer of no daycare, less gas and tolls, food costs went down as cooking at home is always cheaper than eating out for lunch, we postponed 5 tips we had planned, and we did way less stuff like the theater, concerts, etc.

I can't speak for everyone, either, but we were brown baggers before the pandemic, so the only eating out we saved on was from weekends, and the kids are in a school district with free breakfast and lunch for all students, so LOTS more meals being prepared at home, and more was spent on it than we would have spent on restaurant food, because we treated ourselves to a bit more good stuff. The cost of heating and cooling the house went way up as well, since we normally have the timer change it when no one is home during the day. There is also more wear on casual clothing, furniture, and appliances (though I admit that the wear on the suits was reduced.) We have had to repair or replace 4 major appliances in the past year, and are about to replace a couch and 2 chairs that have been worn down to the point where the padding is shot and the fabric is ripping. The house just needs more maintenance, as everything is getting more wear and tear; it's a mess.

 

[RamblingMad]

Brains. Talent and luck. Then brains again.

Lots of dumb rich people. Lots of dumb people in Ivy League schools that get there either via legacy or donations. Best to redistribute the wealth, so that people can wonder what to do with it

 

[White Cat]

Once again, "free" government handouts refer to the near half the working households that don't pay any federal taxes. You and I will have to pay for that eventually. Those that don't pay taxes, won't have to pay. Thus it's a "free" handout to those which I will have to pay more than I got to cover it.

Those are the ones that will be buying beer, smokes and pizzas. Maybe some pot and lotto tickets while they are at it. What do they care. It’s free to them. At least the economy will be stimulated. Some.

 

[Colleen27]

I keep seeing people say "don't save it!" "Don't just pay your cc" like what? People have been hurting for money bills over due yet "experts" say don't pay the bills? Do they really just want us to all go buy new tvs when people are losing there homes?.

Those experts offer advice mainly to see their names in print. Take it for what it is - educated opinion, often with a bias that comes from working in a particular field (say, debt relief or investments). They don't know anyone's specific situation, so they can't speak in more than broad generalities.

Personally, we didn't need the financial relief the checks offered and we don't have much debt. So we are paying the last month and a half of DD19's rent, which was our one big pandemic expense, and the rest is going straight into the vacation fund and will end up stimulating some businesses in Alaska's tourist economy this summer. It doesn't make sense to me to hold onto it when we're coming out of the pandemic in a better overall financial situation than we went into it with, due to factors unrelated to the pandemic plus the forced belt-tightening of having nowhere to spend money in the ways we normally would, so I may as well spend it in ways that we will enjoy and that will support the small and independent businesses that are struggling the most right now.