The surprising financial advantages of DIY
I think the financial advantages of DIY
are not always immediately obvious hence the following break down.
The money you spend to employ someone to do
some work for you or to buy something comes from money that has been
taxed (assuming you are paying tax!) so if the money you spent is M
then the money you would have to earn would be M times 4/3.
In addition the cash you have available to spend comes from your surplus
or the part of you income left over after paying for your essential
living expenses. The proportion this is of your total income will
vary from person to person but lets assume it is 1/10.
This gives the time you would have to work to pay the bill as M times 13
(i.e. if you earn the same hourly rate as the tradesman is charging
you would have to work and earn 13 hours for every hour he works!).
It doesn't stop there, the business doing your work will be charging
you much more than they are paying the worker doing the job
(check out the hourly rate at your garage) so for every hour
you are paying someone to do a job for you or to buy something you
might of fixed or made yourself you are working probably 20 to 30
hours to earn that money.
So as well as being satisfying and fun -
DIY / self
sufficiency pays
Keeping income low
In the 1960s when I was in my twenties, I made the
(admittedly unusual) step of deciding that as consumerism was the
root of most of the evils I could see in our culture I would limit
my income. This I have done for most of my life since (to
about one quarter to one third third of the average wage).
I allow myself technical and consumer goodies if I can rescue them
from disposal and fix them as I recon they have already done their
damage (Is this a 'getout' - I don't know!). I have had a good
life at this level of income, living in community allowed me
to enjoy large gardens to grow organic vegetables to eat as well as
space for workshops etc. I worked to pay my way on the (UK) camps as
holidays and enjoyed them all the more for that. You can do a
lot without money if you are prepared to be creative.