What do you mean by 'afford it'? Seriously..

[swabikedude]

We don't use credit cards. We pay with ca$h for everything...if we don't have the ca$h, we don't buy it. Seems like "old times" but I have burned with credit cards and therefore won't do it again!

But - what I did do was something I thought was smart for our situation...I dedicated a specific bank account to our Vacations - and each paycheck a certain amount is deducted and put into that account. We then watch it grow and plan our vacations - this way, we can take regular vacations knowing what our budget is each year.

It has worked for us so far and utilizing almost EVERY discount out there - our vacations can be LONG or SHORT depending on what we do on them!

Thanks for starting this thread - it's been very interesting.

 

[jimpossible87]

This was avery interesting post to read. I think evereyone is different with how they feel about affording things. For me, honestly, I would never be able to go on a trip if I had to rely on what I can "afford" to do. But personally I feel, like a lot of other people, that I only live once and I want to enjoy things while I can. I do everything I can all year to save what I can out of each weeks check. If that means not buying something or getting less groceries to me then I can live with that. Sometimes its a struggle but I wouldnt trade my annual vacation for anything.

 

[minnie_michelle]

We budget for vacations, so whatever we need for a future vacation goes in that box prior to the trip. We were not always so responsible and racked up a decent debt on our honeymoon that we are still paying off, but we are three months from it being gone and I am excited how it will impact our future savings and habits. I don't regret our honeymoon or the debt. It was all we had at the time and the experience was something I would never give up. We probably could have paid off the debt a few months earlier had we not continued to save for vacations, but we have very demanding jobs and I think we would have gone off the deep end if we hadn't gone to Disney last year for our 1 year annivesary. It is a personal preference and it worked for us. I commend those that literally spent nothing on fun stuff to get where you wanted to be.

 

[shan136]

I got to page 11 and then I decided to stop reading. It's amazing how many thrifty Dis'ers there are contributing to this thread.

For the rest of us, life looks different. Can my family afford to go to WDW this year? NO. But then again, can we afford to do anything according to the stringent standards of others? Not really, except maybe sit at home in the dark reading library books by candlelight.

So we are going to WDW, it will be a first trip for DH41's and DD6. We may have tons of debt: car loans, student loans, credit cards etc. and we are so far underwater on our house that every day is a deep-sea diving adventure. But, we work hard, my DH works REALLY hard and my DD will only be able to experience WDW as an innocent child for small window of time so we are going.

My parents both died relatively young. I was only 16 when my dad died. I would have loved to have had spent more time with him and had happy family vacation memories, but it didn't happen. Vacations were not a priority for my parents, my mother didn't camp and vacations were not deemed a worthwhile expense.

My husband and I may never be out of debt or have enough to retire on or even pay for our DH's college tuition. But, I also may drop dead tomorrow. So as long as we are up to date on our payments and have some cash in hand, we can afford go on vacation.

 

[asmit4]

I got to page 11 and then I decided to stop reading. It's amazing how many thrifty Dis'ers there are contributing to this thread.

For the rest of us, life looks different. Can my family afford to go to WDW this year? NO. But then again, can we afford to do anything according to the stringent standards of others? Not really, except maybe sit at home in the dark reading library books by candlelight.

So we are going to WDW, it will be a first trip for DH41's and DD6. We may have tons of debt: car loans, student loans, credit cards etc. and we are so far underwater on our house that every day is a deep-sea diving adventure. But, we work hard, my DH works REALLY hard and my DD will only be able to experience WDW as an innocent child for small window of time so we are going.

My parents both died relatively young. I was only 16 when my dad died. I would have loved to have had spent more time with him and had happy family vacation memories, but it didn't happen. Vacations were not a priority for my parents, my mother didn't camp and vacations were not deemed a worthwhile expense.

My husband and I may never be out of debt or have enough to retire on or even pay for our DH's college tuition. But, I also may drop dead tomorrow. So as long as we are up to date on our payments and have some cash in hand, we can afford go on vacation.

Thanks for 'keepin it real' Those on the budget board are generally here because they are good budgeters, they are not the 'norm of America'. Nothing wrong at all with all of these people doing such a great job at saving and budgeting either but I think what you wrote is about the 'norm' for most Americans. Reading these boards can make 'the rest of us' feel horrid sometimes.

 

[Tinkerbellie16]

I had debt in my 20s - credit cards and student loan. I met my future DH and he is from a farm in Montana where they believe in cash only and no debt. I couldn't grasp it but was so jealous of how he didn't have debt - he even paid for his car in cash! So after years of dating we got engaged and I vowed to pay off my debt before we got married. I paid off everything and we went into our marriage with a mortgage as our only debt.

That was 10 years ago and I will never carry a balance that accrues interest on credit cards but I use credit cards for EVERYTHING. I don't pay any fees to have a credit card and I take advantage of the cash back cards. I use that extra cash for Christmas presents so that doesn't take a toll on us at the holidays. We put 15% of our income into retirement, we have beyond an 8 month emergency fund, and we track every single $1 that leaves our checkbook - every day, in a spreadsheet. That way, we can see how much everything costs and if we spend too much, we know where we need to cut back.

So how do we afford Disney? I scrape every penny I can! We have a monthly budget and I'll forgo my dining out or movie or whatever so I can save that money for a vacation. I do have a vacation budget amount each month too so it is already built in to the budget but we watch our finances like a hawk - and there is nothing wrong with that.

I also lost a parent when I was young (Dad was in an accident when I was 8 then in a coma for 5 years and died when I was 13) and I completely agree with spending time as a family together. Vacations are treasured times for me and my family knowing we are having fun and building memories. But I would never teach my children to go on a vacation and spend money if we didn't have it. They must also earn money to go on vacation and we remind them all the time that we are able to afford it.

If you truly are that far in debt, take your vacation time and have all members of the family find 'free' things to do and stay at home. You are much better off teaching your children that lesson and having them carry on smart money management as they get older.

 

[disneychrista]

If you truly are that far in debt, take your vacation time and have all members of the family find 'free' things to do and stay at home. You are much better off teaching your children that lesson and having them carry on smart money management as they get older.

 

[angierae]

I think it also depends a lot on where you are in your life. I got married and had a baby at 19, and we made a LOT of poor financial decisions - two new cars when we were barely making enough to pay the bills, lots of times we'd let a utility payment ride until the next month because we wanted to buy something "fun", etc. We never racked up credit card debt but we didn't spend wisely, either.

At 31 I married for a 2nd time to a man who was 37 and a LOT more financially responsible than I am. In the five years I've been living with him we have never made a utility payment late, never carried a balance on a credit card, and only financed things we got at 0% interest. It's a whole different world, and while there are times when I'd like to have the "latest and greatest" of something, there's also so much peace in knowing that there's money in savings if the car breaks down, there's money in savings if something happens at the house.

We aren't taking a vacation this year because we're saving up to go next year, and we can't afford to go this year. Could I fall over dead tomorrow? Sure thing - my dad died when I was 11, I know how that is.

But I also know that my dad always made sure I had a roof over my head and food to eat, no matter what, even when he was dying of cancer. And I'll take that kind of stability as a kid over having gone to Disney World before I was 34.

Obviously, that's just me. But I think the older you get the more you start realizing that you have to worry about the future, and things just won't "work out", and while sure, I was irresponsible in my 20's, I'm not willing to do that in my 30's or 40's.

And DD16 has not suffered because she didn't go to Disney til she was 15. We took a lot of weekend trips and daytrips and those are just as special to her.

 

[rnorwo1]

I got to page 11 and then I decided to stop reading. It's amazing how many thrifty Dis'ers there are contributing to this thread.

For the rest of us, life looks different. Can my family afford to go to WDW this year? NO. But then again, can we afford to do anything according to the stringent standards of others? Not really, except maybe sit at home in the dark reading library books by candlelight.

So we are going to WDW, it will be a first trip for DH41's and DD6. We may have tons of debt: car loans, student loans, credit cards etc. and we are so far underwater on our house that every day is a deep-sea diving adventure. But, we work hard, my DH works REALLY hard and my DD will only be able to experience WDW as an innocent child for small window of time so we are going.

My parents both died relatively young. I was only 16 when my dad died. I would have loved to have had spent more time with him and had happy family vacation memories, but it didn't happen. Vacations were not a priority for my parents, my mother didn't camp and vacations were not deemed a worthwhile expense.

My husband and I may never be out of debt or have enough to retire on or even pay for our DH's college tuition. But, I also may drop dead tomorrow. So as long as we are up to date on our payments and have some cash in hand, we can afford go on vacation.

I love your humor! I also could not imagine missing vacations, I live to plan them and look forward to our trips all year. So if I was in similar circumstances, then I may do the same thing.

Fortunately, I heard some fantastic financial advice before we were married that set us on a great path... we're not wealthy, but we're comfortable and debt free, except for the house, which will be paid off very soon, 18 years early.

We have not had horrible things happen to us, but we've certainly had "bumps in the road" and we've been able to weather them well. My Dad died when I was 7 and my mom died when I was in my 20s. I think, like you, that has contributed to my desire to do and see everything possible now, because you never know if you can in the future. But it also makes me need financial security, as I don't know what my mom would have done with 3 very young children if she was left with no savings and lots of debt.

I attribute our financial comfort to alot of things, including blessings, luck, and discipline... whatever the "bumps in the road" life has brought you, I hope you're able to turn the ship around soon. There are lots of great resources like Dave Ramsey or Suze Orman... it's never too late. I hope you can find some relief from your debt and financial stressors (stress will kill you early for sure!) and then vacation carefree... for a very, very long time!

 

[3PrinceMom]

I grew up on Disney. I am grateful that my parents feed the addiction that they created when I ended up a single mom at 21. My oldest is now 15.....and has two other siblings. I'm still a single mom....put myself through college and can afford to do Disney once or twice a year. No credit cards....or paid off in full when the bill comes. Disney is more that a vacation for me...it's an essential of life.

 

[dvcgirl]

Thanks for 'keepin it real' Those on the budget board are generally here because they are good budgeters, they are not the 'norm of America'. Nothing wrong at all with all of these people doing such a great job at saving and budgeting either but I think what you wrote is about the 'norm' for most Americans. Reading these boards can make 'the rest of us' feel horrid sometimes.

This is a really old thread....over six months old.

As for Budget Boarders being unusual...well, maybe a bit.

The original thread asked posters to give their opinion of what it means to "be able to afford things"...

The poster you quoted...in credit card debt, car debt, student loan debt, upside down in her home.....yes, there are an awful lot of Americans in that boat. I'm sorry that reading these boards makes you feel "horrid". I'm sure nobody intends to make anyone feel that way by sharing their stories of frugality or financial success.

I took a few psych classes way back when, and one term stuck with me..."No person can *make* you feel a certain way". *You're* feeling that way for a reason. Probably because you're not happy with where you are financially? I'm just guessing.

 

[mskayjay]

We can afford it if it is paid in full (room, tickets, transportation) before we leave, we have the money to pay off what we will spend on vacation, we are funding our retirement, we have no consumer debt, we have a fully funded emergency fund that will not be used to pay off what we spent and we are not behind on any bill.

Yes, all of this! I will also say that we charge everything we possibly can to our credit card every month and pay it off every month, using the points to help offset the cost of our trips. We even did that with college tuitions and needless to say, that racked up some nice points in a hurry!

 

[Planogirl]

I find that a balanced approach works better for me. We had some accumulated debt and just paid off a major chunk of it. My philosophy has been that budget trips are OK as long as we pay cash and continue lowering our debt. Could we lower it faster? Of course. We could also make home repairs and save. However I'm not willing to give up what I enjoy completely just to follow some guy's steps. At least not at this stage of my life.

Kudos to those who are successful though!

 

[disneychrista]

All I can say is you can NOT afford it if you have to put the trip on credit cards and pay it off over the next 20 years.