Product Description

It used to be that “stuff” made you cool. That is so twentieth century. Jeff Yeager, the man dubbed The Ultimate Cheapskate by Matt Lauer on Today, offers a completely fresh take on personal finance, teaching us how to enjoy life more by spending less. He will show you how to buy less stuff, retire young, and live financially free, while you make a positive difference in people’s lives and save the planet along the way. The Ultimate Cheapskate’s Road Map to True Riches lays out the practices and principles that have made cheap the new cool.

Live within your means at thirty and stay there. The Ultimate Cheapskate was living well on what he earned at thirty, so when he made more money, he saved every penny. Now he is “selfishly” employed, doing work he loves and helping others.

Do for yourself what you could have others do for you. Cheapskates are die-hard do-it-yourselfers. It’s all about having the right tools, and The Ultimate Cheapskate will get you started.

Pinch the dollars and the pennies will pinch themselves. It’s not the $3 cup of coffee; it’s the big-ticket decisions that determine whether you’ll be financially free. So buy a house, not a castle.

The Ultimate Cheapskate’s Road Map to True Riches promises a quality of life you cannot buy, a sense of satisfaction you cannot fake, and an appreciation for others and for the planet that gives life value. Open your road map and prepare to discover the true joys of financial freedom.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #45943 in Books
• Published on: 2007-12-26
• Released on: 2007-12-26
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 256 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780767926959
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

From Publishers Weekly
Departing from the get rich mantra of many personal finance books, Yeager, once dubbed the Ultimate Cheapskate by NBC's Today Show, instead advises readers to shift their priorities and live well on less in this sensible guide to frugal living. Yeager himself retired from a career as a nonprofit executive at age 46 by saving on expenses large (he and his wife renovated their home themselves and exercise and eat well to cut down on medical costs) and small (he soft-boils his eggs in the dishwasher during the wash cycle). Embedded in the sometimes juvenile humor and aw-shucks prose are some original ideas for conserving cash, such as trying a fiscal fast—going a full week or more without spending any money. Most of all, he urges readers to free themselves from the Money Step, the endless dance of having to earn more in order to spend more. By emphasizing the virtues and satisfactions of living cheaply, Yeager convincingly makes the case that frugality can free more time and cash for life's true pleasures—a passion-filled career, hobbies and giving back to one's loved ones and community. (Jan.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review
"A compelling—and highly entertaining—look at improving both the quality of our lives and the health of our planet by consuming wisely and laughing out loud."

—Carl Pope, Executive Director, Sierra Club

"People today think frugality is no fun. Jeff puts the lie to it. I recognize in him my own delight at concocting high joy, low cost solutions to life's challenges. Less doesn't mean deprivation--it means less stress, commuting, illness, loneliness and the other ills of our 'more is better' and 'it's never enough' culture. Enjoy!"
--Vicki Robin, co-author of the classic betseller,Your Money or Your Life

"Jeff Yeager's Ultimate Cheapskate book will not only save you a bunch of money, it'll put a smile on your face while you're doing it. Finally, there's no need to be afraid to face your finances. Jeff explains things in clear, easy-to-understand language all the while showing you how to get the last laugh on your money."

--Gary Foreman, Publisher, The Dollar Stretcher, www.stretcher.com

"What do we all want out of life? To enjoy it to the fullest! Jeff Yeager does a great job showing the way to enjoyment is to be free from debt and clutter, and to have a great time while getting there!"

--Janet Luhrs, author of The Simple Living Guide and the Simple Living newsletter, www.simpleliving.com

"I've read and reviewed dozens of personal finance books. This is the first one that is truly funny throughout. And Yeager's advice is solid, too!"

--J.D. Roth, GetRichSlowly, www.getrichslowly.org

“Slay your Enoughasaurus and learn to skip the Money Step with help from The Ultimate Cheapskate. Jeff Yeager's edgy humor and surprising insights make this book a very different read than the usual financial tomes. This guy takes thinking outside the box to a new level.”

-Gregory Karp, “Spendin...

Review
"A compelling—and highly entertaining—look at improving both the quality of our lives and the health of our planet by consuming wisely and laughing out loud."

—Carl Pope, Executive Director, Sierra Club

"People today think frugality is no fun. Jeff puts the lie to it. I recognize in him my own delight at concocting high joy, low cost solutions to life's challenges. Less doesn't mean deprivation--it means less stress, commuting, illness, loneliness and the other ills of our 'more is better' and 'it's never enough' culture. Enjoy!"
--Vicki Robin, co-author of the classic betseller,Your Money or Your Life

"Jeff Yeager's Ultimate Cheapskate book will not only save you a bunch of money, it'll put a smile on your face while you're doing it. Finally, there's no need to be afraid to face your finances. Jeff explains things in clear, easy-to-understand language all the while showing you how to get the last laugh on your money."

--Gary Foreman, Publisher, The Dollar Stretcher, www.stretcher.com

"What do we all want out of life? To enjoy it to the fullest! Jeff Yeager does a great job showing the way to enjoyment is to be free from debt and clutter, and to have a great time while getting there!"

--Janet Luhrs, author of The Simple Living Guide and the Simple Living newsletter, www.simpleliving.com

"I've read and reviewed dozens of personal finance books. This is the first one that is truly funny throughout. And Yeager's advice is solid, too!"

--J.D. Roth, GetRichSlowly, www.getrichslowly.org

“Slay your Enoughasaurus and learn to skip the Money Step with help from The Ultimate Cheapskate. Jeff Yeager's edgy humor and surprising insights make this book a very different read than the usual financial tomes. This guy takes thinking outside the box to a new level.”

-Gregory Karp, “Spending Smart” newspaper columnist and author of Living Rich by Spending Smart


"The Ultimate Cheapskate's Road Map to True Riches, by Jeff Yeager, has landed a vaunted place next to my economic bibles, Your Money or Your Life and the Tightwad Gazette trilogy. Yeager -- between jokes -- advises readers to find financial security the old-fashioned way, by spending less than they make."
-Liz Soares, The Morning Sentinel

Customer Reviews

Practical Ideas for Real Savings
I don't usually buy personal finance books since most are unpractical, preachy, or unoriginal. Jeff Yeager's The Ultimate Cheapskate's Road Map to True Riches, I'm happy to say is none of those things. Unlike most financial experts, he lives by his advice. And, although I pride myself on my frugality, his book gave me a ton of ideas to implement, including:

- to live within my means using the salary I make at 30 years of age, and to continue to live by that standard of living even after my salary increases. So, if I make 40,000 when I'm 30 and 45,000 when I'm 35, I should live as I did when I was 30 and save the rest.

- to establish a mandatory waiting period when using my discretionary spending, of a week or so, to determine if I truly want what I think I want.

- to skip the gym and get outside more...also, to do chores (like washing the car) that burn calories.

- to eat according to the food pyramid (more pastas and rice, less sugars). It's actually cheaper to buy healthier foods like pasta than it is to buy processed foods.

If you're interested in not only saving money, but by being satisfied with what you have, this book is for you.

Prepare for Revelations
I thought I was a miser. This book revealed that I wasn't. I've never been extravagant. But I learned that I bought unnecessarily on emotion, bought to compensate for time, bought to rationalize a high paying, unfulfilling job. So I tried Jeff's fast this month. I'm on Day 28 - no problem. Just as buying brings some enjoyment, I learned that not having credit card debt brought huge relief (close kin to enjoyment). In fact, not spending hours shopping and buying brought peace. What was amazing was the number of times I thought I needed something at the store - only to realize I had plenty of it at home. I am thinking about the supermarket fast for next month but am kind of afraid of what I'll find in the freezer.

More than savings tips like Tightwad Gazette, this book put money in perspective relative to my life and loosened its claws. The money and time that I'm saving are being put to much better use these days. Will I stick with it? Yes - I've gained far more than I've sacrificed and with less effort and resistance than I ever expected.

PS Read anything Clark Howard to complement this book.

Seriously silly
This book is funny, but to buy it for that reason alone misses the point. Hiding behind the humor is the wise advice of a personal finance expert who knows there's more to life than just how much debt you can pile up on a credit card. Jeff Yeager's breezy writing is full of great -- and serious -- ideas, yet you never feel that he is preaching at you. As you read you feel inspired, even empowered.

One of his thoughts is to put yourself on a money fast for one week a year. You spend nothing for seven days, which gets you thinking about all the terrific things to do that are free, and makes you realize that you can easily do without many of the items you buy just out of habit.

The book's eye-opening premise is that, contrary to just about every commercial you see, your quality of life increases as your spending decreases. What awful news for MasterCard! And what a refreshing thought!