Living Rich for Less: Create the Lifestyle You Want by Giving, Saving, and Spending Smart

by Ellie Kay

Book Overview

You really can be rich in every way, every day. So you want to own the home you love, make memories on wonderful vacations with family or friends, finance college educations, and help others too? You can starting here and now. With lively humor, proven know-how, and practical principles for financial health, Living Rich for Less helps you stretch your dollars to realize the lifestyle of your dreams. Ellie Kay s entertaining and enlightening examples...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0307446018
• ISBN13: 9780307446015
• Release Date: December 2008
• Publisher: Waterbrook Press
• Length: 219 Pages
• Weight: 1.00 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 6.3" x 9.2"

Customer Reviews

A common-sense book

In a common-sense book, Ellie Kay provides many tips on saving money, investing money, paying for college, and more. Kay is a popular columnist and speaker about family financial matters and has written several other books on the subject as well. Living Rich for Less is timely, easy to read, or browse. The book is organized into three sections--Giving 10%, Saving 10%, and Spending Smart the other 80% (her 10/10/80 Rule). There are several trademarked slogans (which gets annoying after a while) to keep you paying attention (the Cha Ching Factor (tm) for example.) While some of the advice may just not be useful (or obtainable-- refinancing your house, for example) for everyone, you would be hard-pressed not find at least several hundred dollars in annual savings from your current budget. And that isn't a bad return on a $16.99 investment.

A Spoonful of Sugar with this Medicine. Can Money be Funny?

I'm not going to lie. I hate financial stuff. Not that I don't have reason. On paper I've BEEN worth a million...unfortunately, paper doesn't actually mean much, especially in light of our economy. Foreclosure of rental properties and the crashing and burning of the asset of equity have been companions over the past couple of years. Money savvy and natural money sense are terms that don't define me. Another reason to be queasy when dealing with finances... I have a "legal" first name that is used to bind me to contracts. When I sign it, hear it or see it, well, let's just say that life often feels like a trip to the principal's office. That said, Ellie Kay made financial details amusing and almost painless. She shares stories and experiences from her financial growth curve that are down to earth and full of humor. Living Rich for Less is geared more for folks who haven't made many financial or budgeting changes or haven't considered how they can cut back on expenses over those who've already begun the basic process of scaling back. However, Kay offers a great overview of insurance needs, different savings options, and the value of giving, saving and smart spending.

Upbeat Financial Planning For Families

Ellie Kay's "Living Rich For Less: Create the Lifestyle You Want by Giving, Saving and Spending Smart" offers useful tips written in a friendly style. You can pick up this book, skim the chapter titles, and skip to any topic that most interests you. Her book is in no way a dry, scientific tome, but is full of lively ideas, with chapters like "Shopping to save: shop till you drop savings in groceries, on clothing and online" and chapter 8 "The new cool: slashing insurance costs and room-by-room cash savings." "Living Rich for Less" is also peppered with Ellie Kay's Cha Ching money saving tips, like how to dramatically increase miles per gallon for your vehicles, with big cash savings on what you spend on gasoline. She includes a chapter on "Giving green: eco-friendly savings for energy, the environment and eggplant." Yes, eggplant. This book is a useful tool for all who need help with financial planning at the beginning and intermediate levels.

Practical yet enjoyable guide to managing your money

Living Rich for Less by Ellie Kay is the rare completely enjoyable self-help book. Kay, who is well known for her financial know-how and down to earth ideas, writes like your best friend would talk to you. She shares funny anecdotes and stories about how she has overcome financial trouble, giving solid advice on how you can do it too. Kay bases all of her info on the 10/10/80 system. 10% to charity, 10% savings, and 80% spent wisely. I've read quite a few of these type of books before, and they are often full of unrealistic advice about reusing your coffee filters on one of the of the spectrum and mutual funds and capital gains taxes on the other. Neither one works for me, but Kay's ideas hit home and are absolutely doable. From saving money on college (which we really need to learn about right now) to terrific ideas about donating your time, money, and talents, as well as specific information like using Dawn dish detergent because it has the highest concentration of detergent making you have to use less and therefore saving you money. She tells how to maintain your home to save money as well as how to shop for groceries. There are ideas I will implement this month, and many more I will start in the new year. As soon as I finished reading the book, I passed it to my husband. He started reading it last night, and he thoroughly enjoyed Kay's writing voice as well. It's a self help book with humor, heart, and solid truths.

Manage Your Finances with Advice from Someone Who Has "Been There"

Money is always tight during the holidays, but never more so than now with the economy spiraling downward so rapidly and no upswing in sight. So I can't think of a more timely book than Living Rich for Less by Ellie Kay. Ellie has "been there, done that." She is a saver; her husband is a spender. Early in their marriage, she quit working outside the home because they moved 11 times in 13 years. She and her husband had to live on 23% of her husband's income since the rest went to pay taxes, child support, and their tithe. From the remaining 23%, they had to support 7 kids (2 from her husband's previous marriage and 5 kids they had in 7 years) and pay off $40,000 in consumer debt. Not only did they survive, they thrived. They paid off the debt and eventually were able to pay cash for big ticket items such as vehicles and their kids' college educations. In Living Rich for Less, Ellie will explain in easy-to-understand and funny terms how to do the same thing with your own finances. She will show you how to GIVE 10%, SAVE 10% and WISELY SPEND the remaining 80% (the key word here is wisely). She discusses the ins and outs of mortgages, a step-by-step process for paying off consumer debt, how to finance your children's college education, and how to take a vacation for less. Her tips are practical and not overly burdensome -- she will not tell you add water to the milk jug to stretch it longer or give you 10 money-saving uses for lint from the clothes dryer. Living Rich for Less is a painless way to learn the money lessons we all need to understand and fully embrace if we are to weather today's (and tomorrow's) financial storms.