What are some general good ideas for saving money?
I want to save more money. How can I save money, for example, on lunch costs at work? How much is reasonable to spend every day on lunch and snacks?
Also, what are some good ideas on saving money when purchasing goods and services? For example, buying generic or store brands, etc. Buying in bulk…and so forth. Thank you.
First you have to do a budget. Find out what you're spending money on. Once you have everything listed, cut out what you really don't need. Save what's left over.
Try and get your cash flow (what's left over) positive and as high as possible then save it all. Working overtime or taking odd jobs can add to your cash flow.
Make the money work for you. Make sure you at least put the money in a high APY savings account. There are several out there and they are easy to set up. Links to them are below.
Specific Money Saving Tips
1. Gas – Don't drive aggressively. Keep your tires properly inflated and your car in tune.
2. Home energy – In winter put on a sweatshirt and put your thermostat on 68. In summer, dress like your outside and put your A/C on 72 or higher and use ceiling fans if you have them. Use florescent bulbs wherever possible and always turn off lights when not in immediate use.
3. Shopping – Price compare online whenever possible. At the grocery store, use generic brands. Most of them contain the same ingredients. Use coupons.
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You could put aside like 1/2 of your money every week (month,year…whatever…) and put it in a safe place where nobody can find it except you. Or if you trust banks with your money you can open up a savings account.
References :
Something that's easy is just staying alert to your usage of a product and the prices at different places. We have a membership at cost-co, and do save money buying a lot of things in bulk (paper towels, frozen chicken, milk, snack items for lunches).
But not everything you buy in bulk will save you money – for example, we don't buy our fresh fruits and veggies there because our family isn't big enough to eat them all before they go bad, so it's cheaper for us to buy smaller quantities at a normal grocery store.
With generic vs name brands you have to go through some trail and error. We we're buying a name brand body-wash, and then one day though we could save money by using a cheaper brand (we got more oz of soap per dollar) but that soap didn't lather as well, and we ended up going through it much faster, and not saving money.
All in all, just start paying attention, through some trial and error, you'll start figuring things out.
References :
First you have to do a budget. Find out what you're spending money on. Once you have everything listed, cut out what you really don't need. Save what's left over.
Try and get your cash flow (what's left over) positive and as high as possible then save it all. Working overtime or taking odd jobs can add to your cash flow.
Make the money work for you. Make sure you at least put the money in a high APY savings account. There are several out there and they are easy to set up. Links to them are below.
Specific Money Saving Tips
1. Gas – Don't drive aggressively. Keep your tires properly inflated and your car in tune.
2. Home energy – In winter put on a sweatshirt and put your thermostat on 68. In summer, dress like your outside and put your A/C on 72 or higher and use ceiling fans if you have them. Use florescent bulbs wherever possible and always turn off lights when not in immediate use.
3. Shopping – Price compare online whenever possible. At the grocery store, use generic brands. Most of them contain the same ingredients. Use coupons.
References :
http://www.hsbcdirect.com/1/2/1/offer?code=PPYE470000&WT.srch=1
https://us.etrade.com/e/t/welcome/completesavings
https://savings.eloan.com/savings/process?context=deposits&&sid=w8dPQxVFC0gc_TMSmPYL-xxFVfo&user=ysc&mcode=ysckw1brco
http://direct.citibank.com/CBOL/07/UMA/v2/default.htm?Promo_ID=CS88&BT_X=1&BTData=402107B746B617F545C424AB7A6AEABAD959D9B86F0F9F4E3FACBCCD0B2C41&BT_AS=8&BT_CON=1&ProspectID=712A5A8465FA4B5F9F01204087ED50BA
Here an idea, make a sack lunch, you don't need to go out to lunch all the time and eat a bunch of junk food, I mean yes it's alright to go out every so often, but not every day. But if you insist on going out I suggest you should go to grocery stores for lunch, I know weird, but you can save a lot of money because you buy small items that are cheap and filling, but you should spend probably the maximum is five dollars, I'm sure you can find something, like lunchables those are healthy cheese and crackers are a good source of energy. Another way to save money is really look for cheap prices for good food, like you may just have a grocery store that’s cheaper than the rest, so you should go to that one for your shopping. You should also look for sales, like in the newspaper there will be coupons that you can cut out and get a discount, and you should save your money, put it in savings so you won’t spend it on something stupid. I hope this was helpful for you.
BD
References :
Generically:
Looking for bargains can help but all in all you need to spend less than you are now. Budgeting and tracking. Use Quicken. Look for things that are realistic to cut out of your budget (do without) such as bring lunch instead of buying at the cafe. Also, consider trade offs such as buying lunch only once a week.
Consider delaying buying 1 big thing until next year or even next quarter (like that new TV or whatever).
Buying in bulk might save or might not depending on your discipline. If you buy 2 years worth of something and it spoils, you just end up wasting money.
Discipline is key — don't get sucked in to things that look good in ads.
Do the work yourself — avoid things like lawn services and the like until it fits in your budget.
Don't go shopping just to shop. Shop only for what you need.
Specifically: try reducing expenses like car insurance or other insurance that you are not REALLY using. Give up cable TV. Try making a list of fun things that you have done that are cheap or free and then go do them. If you are spending your time, you can avoid spending your money. Avoid eating out too much.
References :