How to Save Money Tips
Where is my money going? Save Money Tips
If you are like many people living in the current economy, you have seen your expenses go up and often your income come down.
Over time I slowly watched my weekly grocery bill creep up from around $150 a week for a family of five to well over $200 a month. And that is with buying store brands and doing without some of the more expensive products. Our utilities are about 20% higher as is our health insurance. It seems that everything has gone up.
Yet, my income hasn't grown. I haven't had a raise in over 2 years (because of the economy - my company was unable to give out cost of living raises). My husband works in sales and has seen his check go down by 20% over last year.
We are being optimistic that things will turn around, but in the mean time there are things we can do to save a few bucks here and there and maybe even make a few bucks.
Tips for saving Money
- Conserve Energy - Keep your thermostat on 65 during the day and 60 at night. Just wear a sweater during the day and throw on an extra blanket at night.
- Cut Coupons - You could cut about 10% of your grocery bill by using coupons on items that you would be buying anyway. It takes a little time, but it is worth it.
- Never Shop when you are hungry or you will overspend.
- See if your bank offers Keep the Change. I am with Bank of America and they offer Keep the Change. Every time I use my bank card my bank deposits the change in my savings account. (This is my favorite.)
- Throw away your credit cards. Stop paying interest on your purchases. Only spend cash.
- Eat out less and brown bag your lunch. I know it isn't as much fun but it sure will make your wallet smile.
- Make your coffee at home rather than going to Starbucks or Dunkin Donuts. If you buy coffee daily on your way to work, this could save you over $720 a year!
- Buy used or non-brand name products. I promise you, most often you can't even tell the difference.
- Shop that the Good Will. I find lots of bargains here. Often cloths have never been warn and still have labels.
- Eliminate unnecessary expenses that you can live without.
- Rent movies for free from your public library.
