So who isn’t constantly looking for better ways to save a bit of money with the everyday things that we do in our lives and around the home? Personal Finance is applying the finances, as well as the monetary decisions which we as individuals or family units make. It directly addresses the ways on how we earn, budget, save and spend our personal money.
Trying to save a bit of money is a task which is much more easier said than done. How much money that you’re able to save, where you happen to put it, and what steps you’re taking to make sure that it stays there are all important. So it’s vital that you set yourself and your family sound realistic goals by keeping your spending in check, and getting the most bang for your buck.
Listed are some tips that you can follow to have a bit more cash when the end of the month rolls around.
How To Save More Money Every Month
Saving Money On Home Insurance
The average home insurance policy will usually offer a $500 deductible, which is pretty much standard across the board, that’s the amount which you pay if you need to make a claim.
But if you change it by raising your deductible up to $1,000, you will be able to save anywhere up to $300 or so a year on your premium. Also, the rate will most likely remain the same. The reason being that if you happen to have a higher deductible, your insurance company thinks that you’re less likely to make any frivolous claims.
Be Careful Who You Decide To Marry
This when you think that you’ve found your perfect ultimate eternal soul mate, but the hard truth can really be pretty cold and calculating. You really should give a lot of thought to who you decide to marry. Absolutely nothing will drain your retirement funds quicker than a nasty badass divorce, and it really is a lot more common than you may think. The latest stat is that there are now close to 39% percent of those who are married, now divorce for one reason or another before they ever reach their 30th wedding anniversary.
Getting married to someone who happens to be financially incompatible with you, or vise versa, can potentially lead to a bucketful of problems. Just ask Ralph, a classic penny pinching money saver who happened to marry an unapologetic spender. It seemed like a good idea at the time, says Ralph, slowly shaking his head. “I had a gut feeling that this was possibly going to end as a complete disaster, but heck, I loved that gal, so I did it anyways.”
Just a little over five years later, his soon to be ex-wife backed her truck up to the house and absolutely cleaned him out one morning while he was at work. It took another five years as well as close to $75,000 for Ralph to sort out the alimony.
Where You Live Affects Your Spending Habits
According to a consumer research study, our consumption habits are dictated strictly from our direct social group of friends, our families, as well as our neighbors. So say that you happen to live in a trendy area of town where every second house drives a BMW, then just to keep up with the Jone’s, you’ll most likely drive a BMW as well. So if you’re not careful, your spending habits as a result may be pulled out of whack just to match your “peer” group and go over your consumptive norm. This can have an impact on your bank account if you can’t afford it.
So make sure that you keep this in mind the next time that you’re choosing a new neighborhood to live in, or finding the friends that you decide to hang around with. If everyone around you happens to have a significantly higher disposable income, you may be struggling to keep up with them. If you also happen to be a chronic over spender, you may eventually have to resort to taking drastic measures, such as moving or finding new friends.
Dump That Second Car
If you’re looking to save a bit of cash every month, consider ditching that second car parked in your driveway. According to the AAA, a car can cost you an additional $850 per month, which includes car payments, insurance, repairs and maintenance costs.
How To Instantly Save Money
One rule of thumb when shopping, especially for higher priced ticket items is to always negotiate the price. If you feel uncomfortable haggling when in person, you can also do it online from the comfort of your laptop.
So after you find that perfect Italian Dining Room set on the manufacturer’s site, you can then do a bit of comparison shopping at a few local furniture stores to find the best lowest price. Then email each of the stores asking for a discount of say 15 to 20% percent.
You may be pleasantly surprised by the results. If a store agrees, then print out the email and then drive down to the store, it’s just like a custom personalized coupon. Any high cost big-ticket item, such as furniture, you should always be negotiating a better price according to consumer shopping experts. There are reports that over 87% percent of those who “haggle” the price will end up with some type of a discount.
Saving Money On Your Daycare Costs
According to a recent Child Care survey, the majority of parents can pay anywhere from $30 to $35 dollars per day for toddler daycare. So here is an excellent way for you to spend a bit less, try sending your kids to a national “Montessori education” school instead.
They are nationally known and administered professional child care programs which can provide up to six hours of toddler care for a few dollars less per day. You will also get the benefits of a structured learning program as well, and you’ll save around $100 a month to boot.
Buy Groceries Get A Free Camera
Smart shoppers are able to rack up massive points on store run loyalty card programs. You can purchase everyday grocery items such as milk from say a drugstore running these types of “points” programs. Some sales days or events can also earn you additional points for every $1 that you spend. Within a year, prudent shoppers are able to redeem their points for a camera or a MP3 player, or get discounts on items by using the accumulated points.
Are You Really Saving
Does it really pay to be a member of say Costco, where you have to pay a regular annual membership fee. Are the prices really that much significantly lower to make up and cover the fee? It can be, if you have a habit of purchasing big ticket items such as appliances or big screen TVs.
A recent consumer group recently concluded that you will need to purchase at least $5,000 per year of merchandise, just to break even. So if you’re not careful, you may just start purchasing items which you don’t even need, just so you can justify the membership fee.
Renting Equipment For One-time Jobs
So you’re building a shed, a deck or or a brand new fence? You could easily spend more than $500 just for the tools alone, if you haven’t got any. So it’s a better idea to just rent the tools instead, especially if it’s a one time project. It could potentially save you hundreds, just on that one job alone.
Unplug Your Electronics
All of your big screen TVs, your computers which are in ‘sleep’ mode, can easily suck up over $25 per month in wasted electricity. So instead, you should be plugging them into a power bar and then turn it off completely at night for additional savings.