Stimulus Checks: Spend or Save

[Heather07438]

$1200 in my account today. It's not burning a hole in my pocket because I don't know how bad things will get for us thru 2020.

But no $500 for DS17 HS senior; he's beat. Like he hasn't been kicked enough this year

 

[mi*vida*loca]

We’re saving it for now. My job has us using PTO right now so I don’t know if a furlough is coming and I work for a hospital.

Once this is “over” and my hospital is back to doing elective procedures and we haven’t needed to touch the money it is going towards updating our garage into a proper man cave (I say we cave, he says man cave). Lol.

We want to get a bar, epoxy the floor, etc. We don’t want anyone working in the house right now so we’re fine waiting.

 

[apirateslifeforme]

We're going to put the majority aside with our tax refund to replace our basement hatchway and have the hatchway stairs rebuilt. The hatchway itself is leaking and the stairs are rotting; the top step has already broken away.

Some of the money will also be used to pay off a little bit of debt (about $500). It isn't a lot, but it would be nice to have a clean slate on those credit cards.

The $500 that we got for our son, we're splitting - $250 into his savings account and $250 into his 529 college plan.

 

[SaintsManiac]

We’re saving it for now. My job has us using PTO right now so I don’t know if a furlough is coming and I work for a hospital.

Once this is “over” and my hospital is back to doing elective procedures and we haven’t needed to touch the money it is going towards updating our garage into a proper man cave (I say we cave, he says man cave). Lol.

We want to get a bar, epoxy the floor, etc. We don’t want anyone working in the house right now so we’re fine waiting.

We put off our bathroom remodel because of this insanity, so some of ours will go toward that.

 

[BrianL]

I already spent a third of mine on termite treatment and I have some other home projects in store for it I think.

 

[mrsheppo]

I put quite a bit of it in savings. The rest I'm using to pay our dental and vision insurance and a visit to the vet for our cat.

 

[DLgal]

It's a stimulus payment, you should spend it in your local economy with local businesses if possible. This isn't free money to put in a savings account. The stimulus only works if you go out and spend it. The best way to spend it is to spend it with locally owned businesses. A single dollar can change hands many times in a local economy when spent with local businesses.

Treat yourself to some takeout from a locally owned restaurant, maybe get some car maintenance done at a locally owned repair shop. Donate a bit to the local food bank. Spend the money locally and stimulate the economy.

Some people will need to save this money if their job situation is shaky, or they have other bills to pay, but stashing it away if you don't need to completely negates the purpose of a stimulus payment. You should be spending this money, not saving it, if at all possible.

Who says people that receive this money aren't already spending money locally?

We don't need this money, as our income is stable and guaranteed. I am still spending money locally like I did before all this happened. We are getting takeout from local restaurants and tipping excessively. We are buying groceries, ordering goods online for pickup from stores, etc.

I am not going to go out and blow an ADDITIONAL $3400 just because. That would be completely irresponsible.

My entire stimulus payment went into savings. I am still spending more that that every month on purchases of various things.

 

[I loveStitchnippyjon]

DH and I just received our $2400 today. We'll wait and see if either of our grown kids will need financial assistance tbeforec his is all over. Remainder will go to replace patio.

 

[chicagodisneyfan]

We are not getting a check and I actually "gave" the government money today via the IRS.
That's me, I'm a giver.
(not upset about not getting a check - just a tad annoyed that I continue to owe money when each year I take out extra to account for owing - yet its never enough)

 

[b2k1121]

To pay for a portion of the furnace we had to replace

 

[JaxDad]

We are not getting a check and I actually "gave" the government money today via the IRS.
That's me, I'm a giver.
(not upset about not getting a check - just a tad annoyed that I continue to owe money when each year I take out extra to account for owing - yet its never enough)

Just think of it as an interest-free loan, as long as you're not having to pay a penalty.

 

[easyas123]

Im not getting a stimulus check. But Im happy to hop on a plane to Florida and spend my own money on various vices to help the Florida economy and get those WDW workers back to work. Just let me know when Florida opens for business.

Not gonna lie, I just priced out a trip to Orlando in October. n/s flights were a STEAL!

 

[mefordis]

We didn't get one, but if I did I'd probably hold onto it.

I.M.F. Predicts Worst Downturn Since the Great Depression
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/14/us/politics/coronavirus-economy-recession-depression.html
WASHINGTON — The International Monetary Fund issued a stark warning on Tuesday about the coronavirus’s economic toll, saying that the world is facing its worst downturn since the Great Depression as shuttered factories, quarantines and national lockdowns cause economic output to collapse.

The grim forecast underscored the magnitude of the shock that the pandemic has inflicted on both advanced and developing economies and the daunting task that policymakers face in containing the fallout. With countries already hoarding medical supplies and international travel curtailed, the I.M.F warned that the crisis threatened to reverse decades of gains from globalization.....

 

[niclodn]

I'll be turning around and giving mine right back. I owe almost exactly what I'll be getting so....

 

[Searc]

It's a stimulus payment, you should spend it in your local economy with local businesses if possible. This isn't free money to put in a savings account. The stimulus only works if you go out and spend it. The best way to spend it is to spend it with locally owned businesses. A single dollar can change hands many times in a local economy when spent with local businesses.

Treat yourself to some takeout from a locally owned restaurant, maybe get some car maintenance done at a locally owned repair shop. Donate a bit to the local food bank. Spend the money locally and stimulate the economy.

Some people will need to save this money if their job situation is shaky, or they have other bills to pay, but stashing it away if you don't need to completely negates the purpose of a stimulus payment. You should be spending this money, not saving it, if at all possible.

That's the wonderful thing about the US ~ no one gets to decide how that money is spent other than each recipient. People can choose to do whatever they want to do with it. If we were eligible, it would go straight to savings.

 

[FergieTCat]

I'm saving mine -- I am still not convinced I won't be furloughed. Unless I need to do something outrageous like buy masks or toilet paper.

 

[Farro]

Save and then spend!

 

[amcnj]

If I am understanding the whole process correctly, in my case I won’t actually receive any stimulus money until I file my 2020 tax return.

 

[DLgal]

If I am understanding the whole process correctly, in my case I won’t actually receive any stimulus money until I file my 2020 tax return.

Why? Did you not file in 2018?

 

[Luv Bunnies]

I just transferred ours to the savings account. It’s replacing some of the money we pulled out last month for property taxes. We literally have nothing to spend it on right now. I’m not going to go looking for a way to spend it. I’m sure we’ll need it eventually for something like plumbing repairs, car repairs, a new appliance, etc. When the need arises, the money will be there.