5 Extreme Things Only People Who’ve Truly Been Poor Have Done to Save Money

save money while broke

What’s the wildest thing you’ve done to save money while broke? After reading through some of the responses to this question, my heart hurt a little. My mind went to top ramen for lunch and dinner, but I was wrong.

Someone admitted to mixing ketchup packets with boiling water to make soup. Here are what others said. 

One man explained that he discovered how to make bacon grease candles for light after having his electricity turned off. He elaborated that while they burned longer than real candles, they, unfortunately, did not make the house smell like bacon.

Bacon Grease Candles

Living In Car for Savings

An unfortunate number of people admitted to saving money for housing by living in their vehicles. Many noted time frames of a month, four months, six months, and eight months.

Many users in the thread confessed to dumpster diving, and one clarified they weren’t homeless. They expressed that restaurants and bakeries have to throw out perfectly edible food and how much money they saved on groceries by eating out of dumpsters.

Dumpster Diving

Racing to the ATM at midnight to withdraw all of your paychecks before creditors can access the funds was the story for many. It involved only paying the bills to keep water and lights while dealing with an overdrafted account in a vicious cycle of doing this for seven months.

Withdrawing Paychecks Immediately

Finally, someone advised that to save money and not starve to death; he would go to the buffet right before four for late lunch/early dinner. Then, they would eat as much as possible over a couple of hours to remain full until the same time the following day.

All You Can Eat Buffet

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