I know how you feel! Been working since before i graduated high school, now being out of work is driving me up a wall. The worst part of being broke and into model trains is all these new, great products that seem to have limited production runs. By the time i save up any money, either they are impossible to find or people are selling them for insane prices! Rather than spend money on train stuff, i'm stuck spending it on more essential stuff. Just hope things pick up soon. Otherwise look for me flipping burgers at mcdonalds!
Is the economy hurting your hobby?
- Thread starter West Virginia Midland Man
- Start date
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I know how you feel! Been working since before i graduated high school, now being out of work is driving me up a wall. The worst part of being broke and into model trains is all these new, great products that seem to have limited production runs. By the time i save up any money, either they are impossible to find or people are selling them for insane prices! Rather than spend money on train stuff, i'm stuck spending it on more essential stuff. Just hope things pick up soon. Otherwise look for me flipping burgers at mcdonalds!
You and me both! I got my lawn business but due to the weather and every Tom Dick and Herry are doing it, I'm at a stand still.........Thank God for unemployment
But I found working around the house is harder than a real job
!
As for Florida Employment is at 1.5 million and growing. I also heard the county government will be tighting their belts again.........= more government employees layed off!
Sam's Club is shutting the doors on 11,000 employees this year! I have a feeling it's going to get much worst before it gets better!
But The O-Man is comming to town today! and our governor want money for a high speed rail line alone the I-4 coridor! Who the heck is got the money for a train ticket if'n everyone is unemployeed?
The only way to build good credit is to show consistent debt on credit cards, not the revolving door of paying off at the end of the month. It really is a crap shoot to show the big three credit companies you can hold down some debt and pay some (not all) off, I forget the actual ratio but it's around 30%
I've known several people try to jump start their credit by paying off the their cards every month and all they get is 'insufficient credit' slapped back in their face, and in this day of age you need credit to buy a cellphone plan from say verizon or att, it even reflects on your job outcome
I'm not happy about all of it but we all turned it into a essential part of our life
Exactly. You have to remember credit cards are a business and you need to show interaction of interest payments, not just a good balance. Showing no late payments is good, but it's only one part of the equation. It all adds up, every little thing you do on your card/credit. But you need to show interest charges in order to gain more ability for future loans/cards. You need to give a little to get a lot. Debt to limit ratio is just as important as a few late payments, maybe it's even as far as ranks.
Rap Music is an oxymoron and those two words should never be used together like that! ; )
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I know how you feel! Been working since before i graduated high school, now being out of work is driving me up a wall. The worst part of being broke and into model trains is all these new, great products that seem to have limited production runs. By the time i save up any money, either they are impossible to find or people are selling them for insane prices! Rather than spend money on train stuff, i'm stuck spending it on more essential stuff. Just hope things pick up soon. Otherwise look for me flipping burgers at mcdonalds!
Selector
Well-Known Member
I have a feeling my comment won't be favourably regarded by some of you, probably because it will sound like moralizing or lecturing. Yet, I find that what I say applies to me, and I have to face the reality. It may or may not apply to any of you, but this is where I find myself:
I overspent on things when times were good that don't seem like good uses of my money today. If I had not purchased those things over the past several years, but had saved some of that money and invested the rest, say in rental homes or stocks that were less risky and not promising more than they could deliver over the long term, I would be in better shape than I am today.
Therefore, I can't say that the 'economy has hurt my hobby'. Instead, the economy would have affected my current circumstances much less than they do had I in place a contingency for what has happened cyclicly time and time again....things go boom, things go bust. When the boom is on, that's when we should stuff the hay into the barn. You can't use hay that's not in the barn when you need it...during the bust.
-Crandell
I overspent on things when times were good that don't seem like good uses of my money today. If I had not purchased those things over the past several years, but had saved some of that money and invested the rest, say in rental homes or stocks that were less risky and not promising more than they could deliver over the long term, I would be in better shape than I am today.
Therefore, I can't say that the 'economy has hurt my hobby'. Instead, the economy would have affected my current circumstances much less than they do had I in place a contingency for what has happened cyclicly time and time again....things go boom, things go bust. When the boom is on, that's when we should stuff the hay into the barn. You can't use hay that's not in the barn when you need it...during the bust.
-Crandell
Good philosophy Crandell. Rules like yours are usually written in blood 
We learn them after getting the crap kicked out of us a few times. Lots of folks got caught this time around, many smarter than us.
As for me, I've been fortunate. This bust cycle has left me alone so far, but then, I got thrown under the bus back in 1982 and spent about 3-4 rough years.
We learn them after getting the crap kicked out of us a few times. Lots of folks got caught this time around, many smarter than us. As for me, I've been fortunate. This bust cycle has left me alone so far, but then, I got thrown under the bus back in 1982 and spent about 3-4 rough years.
vato loco
Just a Foolish Saint!
You and me both! I got my lawn business but due to the weather and every Tom Dick and Herry are doing it, I'm at a stand still.........Thank God for unemployment
But I found working around the house is harder than a real job!As for Florida Employment is at 1.5 million and growing. I also heard the county government will be tighting their belts again.........= more government employees layed off!
Sam's Club is shutting the doors on 11,000 employees this year! I have a feeling it's going to get much worst before it gets better! But The O-Man is comming to town today! and our governor want money for a high speed rail line alone the I-4 coridor! Who the heck is got the money for a train ticket if'n everyone is unemployeed?
Gary B
The Fox Valley Railroad
Well guys so far I've been lucky but I guess in many ways I've always have. Like most, I forget how lucky I really am and complian when I should be thankful. Then I step back and take another look. That's human nature I guess. So far the job is here and both my boys are doing all right. My bills are paid and the morgage up to date. The wife still drives me crazy but I expect that. I never dropped big bucks on hobbies, just a little at a time. I don't have a loco I spent over $100 for. Maybe someday. I've been fortunate to find some nice items really cheap and other things I improvise or do without.
So no, the economy is not affecting my hobby. I'm being just as frugal as always and kind of enjoy seeing what I can accomplish on a low budget. After all, we can do anything with enough money, it's doing it without that's the challenge.
So no, the economy is not affecting my hobby. I'm being just as frugal as always and kind of enjoy seeing what I can accomplish on a low budget. After all, we can do anything with enough money, it's doing it without that's the challenge.
tankist
Well-Known Member
i don't think it did. no matter the state of economy i never really could splurge on any of my hobbies. both of us thankfully employed, both work quite long hours. with that we bough our house on the peak and probably overpaid even at that time , so mortgage is quite substantial. well, as young couple buying their first house, we overlooked many things we should have paid attention to. the only reason we have new kitchen, bathrooms and flooring is that we did it all with our own hands. with that its far from lavish, pretty standard 3 bedroom house with no basement, not in most expensive neighborhood.
we are thinking about second child but it is just doesn't end up. can someone explain how average income family with 2 working parents, average mortgage, average bills and average spending can afford good daycare for 2nd child? as it is the first one already takes a good chunk of wife's paycheck.
with that, what really hurting the hobby is lack of time
we are thinking about second child but it is just doesn't end up. can someone explain how average income family with 2 working parents, average mortgage, average bills and average spending can afford good daycare for 2nd child? as it is the first one already takes a good chunk of wife's paycheck.
with that, what really hurting the hobby is lack of time
A railroad forum is a bad place to give (or get) investment advice but I will make one plea to our younger members. Learn to live debt free. You don't need that 65" big screen TV. Really, you don't. Don't use credit cards unless you know you can pay them off every month. Allocate at least 20% of your paycheck to some savings programs, especially IRA's, 401k's, and SEP's. It's the best way to build wealth and I fear that they won't be around much longer. You'll never miss 20% of your income if it leaves before you see it. As Crandell said, you've got to have some hay in the barn for the lean years...and the lean years always come. For those of you out of work and struggling, I'll just keep praying that things get better.
For those of you out of work and struggling, I'll just keep praying that things get better.
tomustang
I'm Blunt..
A railroad forum is a bad place to give (or get) investment advice but I will make one plea to our younger members. Learn to live debt free. You don't need that 65" big screen TV. Really, you don't. Don't use credit cards unless you know you can pay them off every month. Allocate at least 20% of your paycheck to some savings programs, especially IRA's, 401k's, and SEP's. It's the best way to build wealth and I fear that they won't be around much longer. You'll never miss 20% of your income if it leaves before you see it. As Crandell said, you've got to have some hay in the barn for the lean years...and the lean years always come.
The only way to build good credit is to show consistent debt on credit cards, not the revolving door of paying off at the end of the month. It really is a crap shoot to show the big three credit companies you can hold down some debt and pay some (not all) off, I forget the actual ratio but it's around 30%
I've known several people try to jump start their credit by paying off the their cards every month and all they get is 'insufficient credit' slapped back in their face, and in this day of age you need credit to buy a cellphone plan from say verizon or att, it even reflects on your job outcome
I'm not happy about all of it but we all turned it into a essential part of our life
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Selector
Well-Known Member
The credit thing has two faces. On the renter/tenant's side, yeah, if you don't have a record of paying regularly and otherwise using your cards, you can be denied. But for those who own most of a decent home, that is what gets you the credit. It is the balance sheet, what you owe versus what you own. If you have a mortgage of $100K on a property worth $350K, you are getting tight, but your net worth is pretty decent, and you should have no trouble getting credit.
On the other hand, if you carry $2500 in balances on your cards, have $12K owing on your 2006 truck (still...), and are renting, with no savings or investments, then, yup, getting credit is either going to be very difficult or it's going to cost you a ton in interest rates. The best thing you could do over the past 15 months of tough times would be to eat lots of KD, darn socks, sell some assets, and pay down the principle like your future depended on it...'cuz it does.
Living paycheck to paycheck is hardly living...it's existing.
Of course, if you don't have a paycheck, that's as bad as it can get.
-Crandell
On the other hand, if you carry $2500 in balances on your cards, have $12K owing on your 2006 truck (still...), and are renting, with no savings or investments, then, yup, getting credit is either going to be very difficult or it's going to cost you a ton in interest rates. The best thing you could do over the past 15 months of tough times would be to eat lots of KD, darn socks, sell some assets, and pay down the principle like your future depended on it...'cuz it does.
Living paycheck to paycheck is hardly living...it's existing.
Of course, if you don't have a paycheck, that's as bad as it can get.
-Crandell
Tom, I'm sorry, but the idea that carrying a balance on your credit card and paying it regularly to show you have good credit is pure poppycock. There's only one thing credit rating agencies care about - were you ever late in paying? Whether you're paying off the entire balance or making the minimum payment is irrelevant, as long as it's not late. The only thing carrying a balance does is increase your debt, lower your net worth, and make it less likely you'll get any new credit.
I have two credit cards I use regularly because I get a good deal on airline miles. I've had each of them for more than 20 years. It's not unusual for me to have a $9,000 payment due at the end of the month, since we use the credit cards for everything. I have never paid a dime in interest in all that time, but have taken about 10 free airplane flights. I must drive both companies nuts, since they keep raising my limit, hoping, I guess, I'll go crazy and use it all. I think one is up to $36,000 now. My credit rating is about as good as you can get. If you have credit card debt, pay it off ASAP. You'll never have wealth owing credit card companies more than your monthly paycheck.
I have two credit cards I use regularly because I get a good deal on airline miles. I've had each of them for more than 20 years. It's not unusual for me to have a $9,000 payment due at the end of the month, since we use the credit cards for everything. I have never paid a dime in interest in all that time, but have taken about 10 free airplane flights. I must drive both companies nuts, since they keep raising my limit, hoping, I guess, I'll go crazy and use it all. I think one is up to $36,000 now.
My credit rating is about as good as you can get. If you have credit card debt, pay it off ASAP. You'll never have wealth owing credit card companies more than your monthly paycheck.
Beachbum
Member
Oddly enough, UP, you are what the credit card companies call a deadbeat - somebody they can't suck interest off of. So, in this case being a deadbeat is a very good thing! LOL!
As far as spending goes, I was laid off last July but I have enough reserves so I can consider myself semi-retired until the economy turns. I was laid off in 2001 when the dot com bubble burst so I was ready when this layoff hit.
Model railroading is not my primary hobby so my spending on it has always been low to moderate. I do look for bargains and try not to go berserk when I go to the LHS. I have cut back on local railfanning to save on gas.
As far as spending goes, I was laid off last July but I have enough reserves so I can consider myself semi-retired until the economy turns. I was laid off in 2001 when the dot com bubble burst so I was ready when this layoff hit.
Model railroading is not my primary hobby so my spending on it has always been low to moderate. I do look for bargains and try not to go berserk when I go to the LHS. I have cut back on local railfanning to save on gas.
FictionalCharacter
New Member
oddly enough, i've taken up most of my hobbies since the recession began. i've started playing ice hockey again. i started playing tabletop wargames again, and i started running model trains again. none of those pastimes are particularly inexpensive, but they're manageable in moderation and because i tend not to spend tons of money on a regular basis on things like going out to eat, movies, video games and random electronics, etc.
i think part of it was just timing. i graduated in 2007 and quit my retail job in mid-2008. fortunately i somehow found a career-ish job a month later. i lost my second job a year ago, but i've still had the stability to do more with my free time. i've ensured that i contribute to my 401k, that i spend a few hundred dollars less than what's in my paychecks every month, and that i'm debt-free. oddly, almost all of my friends make more money than i do, but i'm in better financial shape than all of them.
my only slip up was buying a way-too-big 42" tv (currently up on craigslist... it's just too big for my apartment) and a playstation 3 around the holidays in 2008 when i decided i wasn't going to upgrade my motorcycle and had some money to burn. both were deeply discounted, but i realize now that they were also both incredibly unnecessary, and i've learned from the experience. these days i promptly put money in the bank before it can burn a hole in my pocket, or i at least spend it on something more rewarding than whatever will bathe my entire home in the glow of call of duty and vh1...
it was weird when everybody was looking back on 2009 as a horrible year, because in my personal experience it was probably the most fruitful year of my life so far. i guess it's easy to be able to afford to do what you want when you have stable work and the things you want to do are pretty reasonable.
i think part of it was just timing. i graduated in 2007 and quit my retail job in mid-2008. fortunately i somehow found a career-ish job a month later. i lost my second job a year ago, but i've still had the stability to do more with my free time. i've ensured that i contribute to my 401k, that i spend a few hundred dollars less than what's in my paychecks every month, and that i'm debt-free. oddly, almost all of my friends make more money than i do, but i'm in better financial shape than all of them.
my only slip up was buying a way-too-big 42" tv (currently up on craigslist... it's just too big for my apartment) and a playstation 3 around the holidays in 2008 when i decided i wasn't going to upgrade my motorcycle and had some money to burn. both were deeply discounted, but i realize now that they were also both incredibly unnecessary, and i've learned from the experience. these days i promptly put money in the bank before it can burn a hole in my pocket, or i at least spend it on something more rewarding than whatever will bathe my entire home in the glow of call of duty and vh1...
it was weird when everybody was looking back on 2009 as a horrible year, because in my personal experience it was probably the most fruitful year of my life so far. i guess it's easy to be able to afford to do what you want when you have stable work and the things you want to do are pretty reasonable.
tomustang
I'm Blunt..
Exactly. You have to remember credit cards are a business and you need to show interaction of interest payments, not just a good balance. Showing no late payments is good, but it's only one part of the equation. It all adds up, every little thing you do on your card/credit. But you need to show interest charges in order to gain more ability for future loans/cards. You need to give a little to get a lot. Debt to limit ratio is just as important as a few late payments, maybe it's even as far as ranks.
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vato loco
Just a Foolish Saint!
What did we do before credit cards, Health insurence, and Rap music?
We bought only what we can afford to buy, We took better care of our selves and we listen to music that WASN'T HATEFUL!
Thats what we have to get back too!I through in Rap music cause I can't stand it..;-)
We bought only what we can afford to buy, We took better care of our selves and we listen to music that WASN'T HATEFUL!
Thats what we have to get back too!I through in Rap music cause I can't stand it..;-)
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tankist
Well-Known Member
tom,
no matter how you look at it paying interest is just giving money away. your money. yes i must admit credit rating is important today but it is only so much important. it did take me longer to accumulate my good record, i don't mind that. but at least i did not pay once cent of CC interest . rating will eventually get there, if not today then in a year. are you in a hurry somewhere?
i can only justify taking loan on items requiring years and years of saving , such as a house. but for things such as car taking loan is just dumb (well, take a loan to get better price and pay it off next week in case of card).
big or small,
if you can't afford it - you can't afford it.
if you want it but can't afford it - again, you can't afford it.
if CC company say "sure! go ahead!" - you still can't afford it!
"ohhh, economy hurting" . its not economy, its common sense. when one punches a wall, that hand hurts. but its not the wall that is the problem. pay off your card or suffer, there is no third option.
no matter how you look at it paying interest is just giving money away. your money. yes i must admit credit rating is important today but it is only so much important. it did take me longer to accumulate my good record, i don't mind that. but at least i did not pay once cent of CC interest . rating will eventually get there, if not today then in a year. are you in a hurry somewhere?
i can only justify taking loan on items requiring years and years of saving , such as a house. but for things such as car taking loan is just dumb (well, take a loan to get better price and pay it off next week in case of card).
big or small,
if you can't afford it - you can't afford it.
if you want it but can't afford it - again, you can't afford it.
if CC company say "sure! go ahead!" - you still can't afford it!
"ohhh, economy hurting" . its not economy, its common sense. when one punches a wall, that hand hurts. but its not the wall that is the problem. pay off your card or suffer, there is no third option.
LOL, Beachbum, you're right, I am a deadbeat...sort of. Since I always run at least 4 figures and sometimes five figures a month through my credit crds, they are making a lot of money off merchant's fees, so they don't seem too downcast about not getting my interest. In fact, they keep raising my limits and giving me more perks.
We lived the fisrt 10 years of our marriage without any credit cards. We saved money to buy a house. That is your best single way to become creditworthy. I was lucky enough to live in an insane state, so I made money of every house I sold. Unfortunately, people thought that would never end. It has, and a lot of people who are in trouble could make it if they lived in a house they could actually afford, rather than buying one they hoped would go up and they could sell or refi in 5 years to pay the bills. The biggest mistake of the past 10 years is looking at a house as an investment. It's to keep the rain off your head and have a place for a layout. If it happens to go up in value, fine, but don't slug all your money into any one basket, including a house.
So, I made $274 in the market yesterday. Now I only need to recoup the $7,000 in losses from last week and I can afford to by a boxcar again.
We lived the fisrt 10 years of our marriage without any credit cards. We saved money to buy a house. That is your best single way to become creditworthy. I was lucky enough to live in an insane state, so I made money of every house I sold. Unfortunately, people thought that would never end. It has, and a lot of people who are in trouble could make it if they lived in a house they could actually afford, rather than buying one they hoped would go up and they could sell or refi in 5 years to pay the bills. The biggest mistake of the past 10 years is looking at a house as an investment. It's to keep the rain off your head and have a place for a layout.
If it happens to go up in value, fine, but don't slug all your money into any one basket, including a house. So, I made $274 in the market yesterday. Now I only need to recoup the $7,000 in losses from last week and I can afford to by a boxcar again.
Littlefoot14
Active Member
Well i guess you could say it affected my hobbies. Im 14 so im blessed with not having to pay mortgage and put food on the table, amazingly enough my dad was promoted to GM at his contracting franchises, and my mom met some condo builders and "house flippers" in the real estate market who use her for the buying and selling of the "flipped" homes, so im very happy theyre in those positions. On a more personal level however, it stopped me dead in my tracks. I couldve made almost 1000 dollars last summer working for the local theme park, but because of the economy i sat down with my parents and told them i wasnt going to even apply for a summer job because i didnt feel it was right for a 14 yr old to take a job simply to earn his own money, and possibly take it from someone who actually needed the job. Granted i had planned on about 85% of that to go into savings for the truck i plan to buy in a few years for my first car and use the rest as fun money, but stuff happens, ill find a way to get that extra grand and i feel better about giving up a potential job to someone who may have needed it to feed there family.
Rap Music is an oxymoron and those two words should never be used together like that! ; )
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