Lifestyle Maintenance on a Budgetby Mary Ann Romans | More from this Blogger 17 Sep 2009 05:57 AM For many people the financial crisis hit home. Soon, things that we were able to afford before without a blink could get us into financial harm now. Still, we get used to living the way we normally live, and it can get tough trying to get used to living differently. As a result, we can get into real trouble when we continue to maintain that level of lifestyle, even if it means a ton of debt or even bankruptcy. So the trick here, is to find ways to maintain your lifestyle without spending the same amount of money that you did before. It sounds simple, does it? Of course, we know that it isn't quite so simple. If it were, there wouldn't be so many people in financial trouble. But, the strategy itself is pretty simple. There are two main things to do to maintain your current lifestyle with less cash output (and assuming that additional income is not available). The first thing to do is to find expenses that don't matter to you. These expenses can be cut without you feeling a loss from them. An example of the this might be a gym membership that you never use. Take a look at everything that requires money, from that coffee in the morning to your mortgage. What can be eliminated without greatly changing your quality of life or the appearance of your lifestyle? The second thing to do is to find ways of getting the items and services that you need for less than you were getting them before. An example of this might be using the library for those best selling novels instead of buying them at $25 a pop. (Another idea, if you want to own those books is to get them used or through Paperbackswap at a cost of $1-$3.) Seek out frugal advice (such as this blog) to find new ways of obtaining the things you want at a fraction of the cost. I recently saw someone selling all of her Prada and Jimmy Choo shoes on the Philadelphia Craigslist at $40 a pair, for example. You can read more blog posts by Mary Ann Romans here! Related Articles: Practical Gifts for a Frugal Family Part 2 Money Saving Steps to Take When You Are Laid Off Learn more about Mary Ann Romans  Mary Ann Romans is a freelance writer, wife and mother of three children. She lives in Pennsylvania with her husband, the kids and a 16-pound cat. Relevantfrugal tags User Comments No comments on this article yet. Be the first to comment! Community Tags budget, frugal living, saving money Discuss this article
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