Reason for your frugality (national, sale, old, price)

[silverkris]

A. Just brought up to have common sense with money - need to save for the future - such as retirement, kid's education fund.

B. Don't have any real fancy or expensive hobbies. We like to travel overseas so we budget for that

C. - Paid off Mortgage early after was laid off a couple of times - to be safe. A good way to be able to stay in a very high COL region.

D. Paid cash for our cars, no car notes. Keep cars at least 10 years.

E. No student loans. We send our daughter to public school and use what we save to fund her future college education

So we have a nest egg but are wondering if we can invest into something else to grow the funds a bit more.

[nmnita]

There is no one reason but several:
We don't have a decent retirement and SS goes just so far: thank God for investments
My dad was frugal and I picked up some of his habits
We enjoy a nice vacation once or twice a year
and it just makes me feel good to know I saved this much or that much.

No, I am anything but cheap, but yes, I a frugal when it comes to most things.

[mysticaltyger]

My biggest reason is that I don't want to be dependent on paid employment.

I also find that spending more doesn't necessarily equal more happiness.

[CSD610]

No specific reason but a combination of reasons.

[LittleDolphin]

I once read a book called Your Money or Your Life. The book really changed my outlook on money and how to use it. Each dollar represents the time I spent to earn it. (there's a lot more to the book).

Ever since reading this book, I think very carefully about what I buy. Do I truly need it to live a full life? Or do I just want it? (needs versus desires).

Being frugal, for me, means getting the best value for my money. For instance, buying a lot of cheap shoes that don't last can save money per pair, but one pair of well-made costlier shoes can last for years--and be more comfortable. So frugal doesn't necessarily mean being cheap.

We actually need very little to live a full, happy life. But being unhappy often means buying things for the transient feeling of fulfillment -- until the next desire comes along and we go through the cycle again. Impossible to fill a void of unhappiness with things (or food).

A rich person is one who appreciates that which he has -- and doesn't long for that which he doesn't have. (even if his friends/family/neighbors has it)

It's a nice feeling, being frugal/mindful of money -- it feels powerful.
Not being in debt is the best feeling in the world, I think.

And I once owed a pile of money to a credit card company -- until I read Your Money or Your Life and changed my relationship with money and things.

[duster1979]

None of the above.

A few years ago I made a conscious choice to suspend my career, primarily so that my daughter could live closer to her aging grandparents and partly to be more available for family events and school activities while she's growing up. That meant cutting my income by more than half. I'm still making a better than average salary for this low COL area, but in order to splurge in a few areas such as taking a vacation and several weekend trips a year I have to cut costs in other areas of my life.

[mysticaltyger]

Originally Posted by ncole1

Also, the frugal people can afford to be decent human beings, while the hyper-consumerists often (not always) end up being greedy and only giving a rat's posterior about how much they make. This is why CEO's are IIRC about 4 times as likely to be sociopaths as the rest of us.

Actually, I think the sociopathy comes first. Otherwise, good points.

[LoriNJ]

Was raised to be frugal, a bargain-hunter, etc. Frugality has taken on more urgency as my husband and I get closer to retirement age. Due to some circumstances beyond our control, we are behind on the savings curve. But we are socking money away as fast as we can and I feel good about the rate of our savings right now.

[Atlguy39]

I was always pretty frugal due to a rocky career, but even as a kid. The Great Recession made me more frugal and put me in panic mode for playing catch up on retirement after going nearly broke. So yeah, I will be frugal for the rest of my life at this point, and probably work til 75.

[elhelmete]

To the extent I would call myself frugal I'd say the primary reason is I hate waste.