You might assume that Amish people, with their horse-drawn buggies, are poor or unsophisticated with money. Not true. In fact, many have weathered the recession far better than most other Americans, experts say.

“They seem to be aware there was a recession, but it wasn’t really changing their

lives,” said Lorilee Craker, author of “Money Secrets of the Amish: Finding True Abundance in Simplicity, Sharing and Saving.” “They have so much money in the bank, it’s staggering.”

During her research for the book, Craker found one Amish man who in 20 years had built a bank account of $400,000 from working on a rented farm. He has 14 children. He used the money as a down payment to buy a $1.3 million farm of his own.

“Culturally, they are so different from us,” she said. “They are always hunkered down.”

Erik Wesner, founder of AmishAmerica.com and author of “Success Made Simple: An Inside Look at Why Amish Businesses Thrive,” agrees that the Amish weren’t hurting financially as much as average Americans.

Straw hats, quilting bees and life without electricity might not fit your style, but you might find some Amish habits and philosophies useful.

•”Use it up, wear it out, make do or do without.” Craker heard this adage repeated among the Amish. It describes their reluctance to replace anything before it’s fully used. And when it seems kaput, they look for ways to fix it or repurpose it. That’s very different than the way many Americans live.

Ways to translate that into practical advice are to take time to “shop” in your own closet and pantry to use clothes and food you already have before buying more, she said. Look for ways to fix rather than replace.

•”Don’t work for a dead horse.” The idea is you don’t want to buy a horse on long-term credit because you could be working to pay it off long after the horse is dead. The Amish are fond of this philosophy, attributed to P.T. Barnum of circus fame.

Some Amish do have credit cards, but cards are mostly used for business expenses, and the majority are paid off in full every month, Wesner said. The only household debt common among the Amish is a mortgage, taken to buy a home or farm, often with a very large down payment, he said.

•”Simpler often translates to cheaper,” Wesner said.

Craker asked several Amish people what they indulge in. Many said ice cream, and one confided she coveted but seldom ate Ritz crackers.