Five Tips To Save Money At Home
Whether you’re getting by comfortably, or starting to feel the pinch in your wallet, you should take the time to look through your finances and see if you’re needlessly spending money where you could be saving. The more money you save per week, the more you have set aside for luxuries or unexpected costs.
Go Paperless
If you’ve ever groaned at the thought of having to buy more ink cartridges, then you are aware that printing costs money. Imagine running a utility company and having to pay to print out several thousand energy bills per month. Going paperless is not only good for the environment, it saves the company from having to pay for the printing process so they like to encourage their customers to cancel their paper bills. If you opt to receive your bills by email, you could save yourself a few extra dollars a month on your energy bills, which will add up to a few hundred dollars at the end of the year.
Reduce Your Energy Bills
You can also save money on your energy bills altogether by making your home more energy efficient. Unplugging all your unused electrical devices, air sealing your home, or switching to LED lightbulbs can reduce your energy consumption, saving you money on your bills and helping the environment.
Transportation
With the price of gas constantly changing, your car is an unpredictable money pit, before you even factor in the monthly payments, parking spaces, and unexpected repairs. You can save money and still keep your car by only using it for long trips, such as family vacations. In the meantime, there are plenty of public transport options to suit your lifestyle. Monthly bus passes are more than worth their value if you take the bus to work every day. Carpooling with a colleague splits the cost of gas, and can reduce traffic if enough people get in on the scheme. Finally, if you’re going out for the night and don’t have a volunteer for designated driver, Uber can save you the trouble of standing out in the cold to call a cab.
Shop smarter
Buying food on a budget is a struggle for a lot of people for various reasons. Fortunately, there are several ways to cut your food bill in half, including shopping for cheaper store brands, buying non-perishables items in bulk, or sticking to a shopping list. Check out Fix Your Grocery List: 10 Ways You’re Wasting Money on Food for more money-saving tips.
Check your luxuries
Some luxuries are essential, because they are small rewards to keep you motivated throughout the year. However, you should make sure they’re worth the money you pay for them. If you only go to the gym every once in a while, then paying monthly for a membership is a waste of money. Subscriptions to magazines you no longer read is money down the drain. If you’re convinced that you need a certain membership or subscription, cancel it and see if you really miss it.
