Gas Prices – The Real Numbers

I used to subscribe to Mad Magazine with Alfred E. Neuman on the cover who would always say the same thing, "What, me worry?" Well, that's the word I have for you today friends. I don't worry about gas prices and neither should you. Don't believe me? Keep reading…

If the average American drives 12,000 miles a year and their car gets an average of 25 miles a gallon (click for story) then they're using around 480 gallons of gasoline a year. So let's do some math to see what that really costs in today's market.

12,000 miles driven in a car that gets 25 miles a gallon means that car uses 480 gallons of gas a year.
480 gallons at $3.50 a gallon = $1,680 a year in gasoline
480 gallons at $4.00 a gallon = $1,920 a year in gasoline

$240 bucks! This debate is all about a few hundred dollars? Even if a family may has three drivers that's an increase of $720 a year for that family. Reality Check!!! That's still a measly increase of $60 a month for the year! Is the price of gas going up by 50 cents worth buying a different car with a payment of $350 a month? No way!

Mass transit might be a good idea if you live in a community where it's a long enough commute but I did the math in my town in South Dakota and it costs me less to drive my car to work than to take the bus!

The best gas mileage is shared gas mileage. If you really want to save money on gas and you HAVE to drive to work, to school, to the grocery store, then call your coworker, friend or neighbor and go together. Car pooling is coming back in style! (Click for story)

We panic about gas prices because every time we drive down the street in Your Town, USA we see the price. Gas prices are just like the weather, people talk about it because it's an obvious topic. If the price of coconuts was on every corner in your town every day then it would be a topic of conversation. So resist the whining about gas prices and instead look for ways to save money in your house so gas prices don't take such a bite out of your budget. You don't have a budget!? Contact me to find out more about getting financially healthy and someday wealthy! There's not trick, just good ol' fashion intelligence.

Check back soon for other gas saving tips.

Why Gas Prices Aren't That Bad

I'm just like you, I need gasoline for my car to go anywhere. I feel like I should be in a state of panic every time my car gets low on fuel. The media and everyone I talk to says that the cost of gas is such a huge problem (click for story) for them and the rest of America. They make it sound like people are going to actually start using public transportation!! Don't worry, that won't actually happen in my town anytime soon. I'm supposed to be worried, but I'm not worried at all. You shouldn't be either...let me explain.

I'm not worried about the cost of gas because I have already done the math and my family can easily afford gas at $6 a gallon. Gas is projected to be an average of $4.15 a gallon by the end of summer and that doesn't scare me in the least. Don't get me wrong, I wish gas was about $.08 a gallon, but I can afford to pay for higher gas prices and truthfully so can you. If a latte' costs almost $30 a gallon and we can get two a week from our local coffee stop then we can afford the liquid that helps us run our automobiles...even if it costs $5 a gallon.

Rising fuel costs are exposing America's addiction. Americans spend every penny they have, and then some. In fact Americans have a negative savings rate,(click for story). A negative savings rate simply means spending more money then you actually have. That reminds me of our government. We don't know how to stop buying stuff we don't need in order to afford the stuff we actually do need.

I need gasoline and you probably do too. What I don't need is a cell phone, high speed internet, 412 cable channels or even two cars for our family. I need is a roof over my head, food in my stomach and my wife by my side. If we only bought what we needed then the stuff we needed wouldn't seem so expensive.

TFC TIP:

If you're struggling with gas prices buy a gas gift card every time you get a paycheck for however much gas you think you'll need until your next paycheck. By using the card you'll learn how much gas you're using which means you'll watch your driving more closely and you'll be able to better budget (click for story) for your future gas usage.

Don't be dumb like this guy

CNN video of the dumb criminal - here.

Who you know saves you money!!

Good Riddance Starbucks

Perhaps the greatest key to wealth is...

Your spouse!

• 95% of millionaires in America are married
  

Remember the old saying "T.E.A.M. - Together Everyone Achieves More" ? That is never more true than in a marriage situation. The truly wealthy in this country most often have a partner in their success and perhaps they have success because of their partner! The other important factor is that the partner is a permanent one. The 95% of millionaires that are married suggest that staying married is better for your finances than getting divorced is.

• Millionaires usually have a spouse more frugal than the breadwinner.

Having a great defense is the key to victory in sports and in finances. People who are frugal are the defense. They keep their team from losing because the opposition can't get ahead of them. A great offense is accumulating money, and that's important if you want wealth. More important those is that you keep that money, and the only way to do that is to defend it through being frugal. A frugal spouse is key to accumulating wealth!

• In 70% of millionaire households the husband contributes at least 80% of the income.
  

The traditional model of the husband bringing home most of the money apparently isn't dead in households of great wealth. Those who build their wealth do so in a mostly traditional model where the male brings home much of the money. Remember the key to great wealth though, frugality. The key to wealth is that the money is handled well once it gets back home and that is often the job of the spouse who isn't working, which in this case is usually the wife. That means the wife is just as, and perhaps more responsible for the accumulation of wealth as the husband who brings home the paycheck is.

Who's REALLY wealthy and who's a fake?