hickey Posted August 21, 2007 Share Posted August 21, 2007 My wife and I had the "vinyl chat" last night and we (and by "we," I mean "she") decided it would be best for me to set a strict monthly vinyl budget (Sorry Virgil!!!). I have been going particularly crazy with vinyl purchases lately, so I can totally understand where she is coming from. Plus, we're trying to buy a house and need to stash away more money. So, I wanted to pick some brains around here. Do any of you set a vinyl budget? What's a reasonable amount (I make fairly good money, but spend a lot more than I should on records)? If you don't use it all in one month, does the remainder carry over to the next month (or, if you know a ton of good stuff is coming out in one month can you go over your limit and sacrifice the following month)? Just want to see how realistic this idea is. Personally, I don't think it will work, because you can never predict how many releases will hit in one month. But I'm willing to give it a try. I'd love some honest feedback. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Admin Posted August 21, 2007 Share Posted August 21, 2007 wives are good at setting budgets, I don't think I ever even used the B word until I got married. Buying a house is a good goal to have and can be one of the best financial decisions a family can make. I think a budget can be a good idea, but it seems as though the vinyl flood gates (sorry for all of the flood/rain analogies) are opening and more and more and more record are coming out. I wish you good luck figuring it out and remember Oakland mentioning that he keeps a budget; he may be able to shed some light on the topic. Just be careful what you agree to with your wife as wives are really good at sticking you to it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
altarsofradness Posted August 21, 2007 Share Posted August 21, 2007 i attempt to do this. every month i set aside X amount of money that will be spent on records/music, and every month i exceed it. i could probably get by if every record i wanted wasnt pressed on 5 different colors. that's what throws a wrench in the whole plan. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xlovecolouredx Posted August 21, 2007 Share Posted August 21, 2007 i agree with your wife,hickey. i'm single but i ever doubt if i always invest 150-200 usd per month for vinyl every month....when i will have my own house ? i try to limit my money for purchase vinyl too but it doesn't work enough because i must pay high shipping price for ask the seller ship my order to Bangkok,Thailand. anyway,i plan to order vinyl at the right moments....someday Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hickey Posted August 21, 2007 Author Share Posted August 21, 2007 Thanks everyone. Keep the advice coming! I am thinking setting $100 as my monthly limit (so, Virgil, keep the presses to two colors, maximum! HA!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benchwarmer Posted August 21, 2007 Share Posted August 21, 2007 I need one of these. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
destroyingthescene Posted August 21, 2007 Share Posted August 21, 2007 I need one of these. A wife or a budget? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrc Posted August 21, 2007 Share Posted August 21, 2007 i have been trying lately to not go crazy, because looking back over the last 2 months (since i joined this board) i have been a little excesive with my purchases. i know i have had a big No idea order, 2x VC orders, and a Revhq order plus mulitple items on ebay... As of last week i wont purchase any records for the rest of august and then keep it under control from then on out... Maybe like 100-150.00 but it would be nice to spend less. we will see what happens trading has kept me happy when i dont have any cash to blow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hickey Posted August 21, 2007 Author Share Posted August 21, 2007 Here's how I'm going to TRY to do it...I'm going to put $120 (the extra $20 is to cover shipping costs) into my PayPal account the first of every month. I have a PayPal debit card, so I can use that in stores and for online credit card purchases if the store/seller doesn't do straight PayPal. The PayPal thing will keep me honest and also keep track for me. It will also ensure the money I don't spend in a month gets carried over. There is one caveat to my budget: If my white whale (Screeching Weasel - BoogadaBoogadaBoogada German pressing) pops up anywhere I can buy it no questions asked and it won't count against my budget... I think this sounds fair...how about all of you? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest conoley Posted August 21, 2007 Share Posted August 21, 2007 Very fair. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
altarsofradness Posted August 21, 2007 Share Posted August 21, 2007 only $100? well, good luck with that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xlovecolouredx Posted August 21, 2007 Share Posted August 21, 2007 i think it's a good choice,hickey. but so deplore that paypal debit only available for americans.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benchwarmer Posted August 21, 2007 Share Posted August 21, 2007 I need one of these. A wife or a budget? budget, my girlfriend would love the first one though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hickey Posted August 21, 2007 Author Share Posted August 21, 2007 only $100?well, good luck with that. I know, it doesn't sound like much, but it just means I have to get releases I really want and probably only get one color of each release. Like I said, I'm going to TRY. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
faith Posted August 21, 2007 Share Posted August 21, 2007 Sounds fair and all. I wish I had enough cash to actually MAKE a budget.. but going to school I'm pretty much broke all the time and i buy only the very important stuff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adambomb Posted August 21, 2007 Share Posted August 21, 2007 I tried to do the whole budget thing, but it didn't work out. Some months I won't buy anything new, but I'm usually doing a lot of trading . Other months I go nuts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robotnerd Posted August 21, 2007 Share Posted August 21, 2007 i do my best to stick within a budget. i haven't been doing very good lately though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jhulud Posted August 21, 2007 Share Posted August 21, 2007 Budget?...what is that?!?!?! LOL! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kirbypuckett Posted August 21, 2007 Share Posted August 21, 2007 I have more money than I know what to do w/ at the moment and since no one will go to Europe w/ me my budget is non-existent. Once I move out I'll be singing a different tune. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hickey Posted August 21, 2007 Author Share Posted August 21, 2007 When I lived alone, a budget was the last thing from my mind. It was "buy now, worry later." And I'm still like that in some ways. But if my wife and I want to start a real family, we need to buy a house and real estate in Massachusetts is EXPENSIVE! Our rent now is equal to what a mortgage would be, it's just getting the down payment together and knocking out the wedding-related debt we're still dealing with almost a year later. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tim Posted August 21, 2007 Share Posted August 21, 2007 I can kinda relate. I've decided I'm going to go to Brazil in May, so I have to start saving for that. Since I live by myself and Vancouver is pretty expensive, I'll have to limit myself to 1-2 records a month now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sgoodcore Posted August 21, 2007 Share Posted August 21, 2007 I stick to a budget but its not overly strict. I have a general budget for money I want to spend on whatever. I allocate a certain amount to vinyl, both new and via eBay. If I want to spend more, I usually can but that means less eating out or something like that. I do mine via a credit card so there's no real carrying over. I make small purchases outside of the budget structure but those are limited to $25-40 a month. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattisr1984 Posted August 21, 2007 Share Posted August 21, 2007 no vinyl budget here... maybe down the road if a time calls for one. i do find though that my spending fluctuates based on whatevers coming out. ive spent a looot this month, last month not so much which sadly feels weird... it was like "wait, what... ? i dont have any records coming to me." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Admin Posted August 21, 2007 Share Posted August 21, 2007 I have heard of some people buying multiple copies of certain records they think will go out of print and then trading them/selling them to help with their record spending. Just an idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xfedaykinx Posted August 21, 2007 Share Posted August 21, 2007 i really should have a budget of $0 a month since i dont really have a job right now. my vinyl collection exists off of imaginary money called credit. i will suffer the consequences one day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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