5 things you buy but never use, Some purchases don't justify the outlay, particularly those that aren't really needed or won't see any use. Here are some of the worst offenders.
There are a lot of forces that drive us deeper and deeper into debt. The need to flaunt affluence (whether or not you have it) is among them. There is also that green-eyed monster, envy, driving us to up the ante on our homes, clothes and cars to look just that much better than our neighbors do.... More
Impulse buying hurts us when we hit the grocery store hungry or hit the "one-click" purchase button on Amazon.com. But premeditated spending can add up to a whole lot more a whole lot faster. We may set out with good intentions. Dumping thousands into a kitchen remodeling project may be inspired by HGTV and justified in our own minds -- we cook dinner almost every night, so why shouldn't we have the best of everything?
But the "best" comes with a price tag, and one that often doesn't "pay for itself." All too often we load up on purchases big and small to meet a goal we'll never even try to reach. Even the greatest gizmo, hottest piece of electronics, gorgeous antique or extravagant remodeling is useless if it goes unused or underutilized, or blends quickly into the background.
"Since the days of Cain and Abel, we have been bickering and jostling over who has the better lot," writes Shira Boss in "Green With Envy: Why Keeping Up With the Joneses Is Keeping Us in Debt."
"Wealth and well-being are largely a mindset, and how we're doing in relation to the company we keep is key to our contentment," she adds.
It is not the super-rich or celebrities whose lives we covet, Boss says, referring to the work of psychologist Herbert Hyman, who, in 1942, wrote of what he called "the psychology of status."
"He said we compare ourselves within 'reference groups' of those around us and who are similar to us," she writes. "We look to our classmates, our co-workers, our siblings and our neighbors to see how we measure up and, secretly, who we must catch up with."
Shira Boss Green With Envy: Why Keeping Up with the Joneses is Keeping Us in Debt, When looking to impress our peers combines with the impulses that drive us to rationalize major purchases, the result can drain away potential savings on things we never really needed after all.
Following are five ways some of us spend on things we rarely use and will seldom fully appreciate. Whether we intend to get our money's worth or are simply seeking bragging rights, these purchases might have been better left unmade.
The hot days of summer have a way of persuading us that a pool is a must-have item. For most, the beating sun of summer assures that a pool -- and the upkeep it requires -- is an investment that will be well enjoyed.
Some of the most expensive clothes racks ever produced can be found in basements all across suburbia. You'll find winter coats on rowing machines, dry cleaning slung over Soloflex gear and holiday tablecloths folded on the steps of Stairmasters. Last year the Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association estimated that exercise equipment was on track to be a $4.4 billion business, with treadmill sales accounting for nearly 25% of the category. After treadmills, the next two fitness categories by sales were elliptical machines ($913 million in sales) and exercise cycles ($442 million). Consumer/retail spending for exercise equipment accounts for nearly 80% of the entire exercise equipment category. Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association,
Journal of Clinical Psychology. That's an awful lot of money spent on equipment that, for many, will be forgotten with New Year's resolutions. A study some years ago in the Journal of Clinical Psychology showed that 25% of those resolutions -- with better exercise habits being among the most common -- don't make it past the first week, and 54% fail by six months. That sounds like $2.2 billion wasted on exercise equipment each year. How much was yours?
So you fancy yourself something of a wine connoisseur. You are not alone.
The U.S. surpassed France last year as the world's largest wine-consuming nation.
Wine shipments from California, other states and foreign producers to destinations within the U.S. grew 2% from the previous year to nearly 330 million cases -- a record high for the industry -- according to the Wine Institute, an organization that represents the California wine industry. The statistics were determined by wine industry consultants Gomberg, Fredrikson & Associates in Woodside, Calif.
The estimated retail value of these sales was $30 billion, up 4% from 2009. Total French consumption was 320.6 million cases in 2010. California wine accounted for a 61% share of the U.S. wine market by volume, with sales at 199.6 million cases.
You may be able to tell Boones Farm from Beaujolais nouveau, but will you commit to studying grape varietals and dish pairings with enough vigor and longevity for it to be more than just a passing hobby or occasional indulgence?
If plunging into the world of wine proves to be as short-lived as your ill-advised attempt at home brewing -- the buckets and bottles still litter your basement -- perhaps you need to think twice.
A "passive" wine cellar is no biggie -- all you need to do is install shelves in a suitable basement. An "active" cellar will require remodeling and electronics to maintain a temperature of 50 to 60 degrees Fahrenheit and relative humidity of 40% to 70%. Getting fancy with glass and wood cases could set you back thousands (and that doesn't even include plunking down potentially hundreds per bottle of vino).
Even a small-scale electric storage unit will require an outlay.
A Cuisinart electric wine cellar will cost from $150 to $350. The 21-bottle Caso Wine Cellar at Williams-Sonoma has a suggested retail price of $650 (but can be ordered for a bit less, $479.95).
For those serious about wine and prepared to invest in that interest over a lifetime, it may be money well spent. But if, ultimately, that wine cellar finds itself filled with Dr Pepper instead of chablis, it will be money poured away.
Blame it on evolutionary traits that have persisted since the days mammoth meat was seared over a bonfire, but many folks live to grill. The problem, from a financial standpoint, is when that love of outdoor cooking runs amok.
So you love espresso. You really, really love espresso. Do you love it enough to spend nearly $2,000? That's the suggested retail price of the Miele CM5000 Espresso Machine offered at Williams-Sonoma.
To be sure, this is a godlike device among mere mortal coffee makers. "Each cup of coffee or espresso can be customized to your exact preferences for size, strength and temperature," we are told in a marketing pitch. A "powerful 15-bar pump" provides "maximum extraction of flavor."
But that's a whole lot of trips to Starbucks right there.
For java junkies who entertain guests frequently (or, perhaps, run a small coffee shop out of their garage), such an expense may make sense. Miele CM5000 Espresso Machine,
But most espresso makers can be added to that great and growing pile of kitchen accessories that seemed like a good idea at the time -- ice cream makers, electric water kettles, fondue sets, chocolate fountains, the Ronco Showtime Rotisserie and so on.