Saving Money Tips

1. Only buy used cars which are economical on gas. A new car seems like such a great idea until you put the facts down on paper. You lose money rapidly on a new car. If you buy a lower priced used car which is fuel efficient you save on monthly payments and on your fuel bill. You can save hundreds of dollars per month on just this one tip.

2. Take all of your credit cards out of your wallet. Credit cards are one of the largest reasons for over spending and excessive debt. It is easy to buy the new electronics, furniture, or clothes today on credit and then make those small monthly payments, until those monthly payments become large. Then you are struggling on everything. Avoid this trap by not carrying your credit cards with you. You can keep one or two at home for true emergencies, but do not have them with you. The temptation to spend instantly is the trap you need to avoid. Only purchase after you have thought logically about what you need, compared to what you want.

3. Keep a money blog or diary. This is one of the critical saving money tips. This is how you learn where you can save money. Start tracking all the money you spend, all the way down to the soft drinks at the office. You may discover you are spending several hundred dollars every month on things you really do not care about. You could change a few habits and have the money to do the things you really want to enjoy.

4. Pay cash for major purchases. Learn to save for the items you need or want. The interest rates you will pay for buying on a weekly or monthly installment plan could purchase another room full of furniture. If you took the same money you are going to pay on installments and saved it for just a few months, you could buy the item. Many people get caught in the rent to own game and their cash disappears. The weekly payments sound low until you look at the total cost. Suddenly you discover you paid for the washer or dryer three or four times.

5. Learn to look stylish without designer labels. Yes, your children are convinced they are going to be laughed about at school if they do not wear the hottest brands. The reality, they are going to be better dressed if you choose the discount clothes. You will be able to afford more clothes, give them better style options, and will be able to replace clothes as needed. A $100 pair of jeans may look great, but so do the $30 pair.

You can continue to expand your saving money tips on your own. You probably have many ideas rolling through your mind right now. Write them down and then put them into action. It can make the difference between being broke, and having plenty of cash each month.

Save Money Shopping

The most common way people comparison shop is to jump from store to store, or car lot to car lot looking for the best deal. They end up with a decent deal, and a week later discover they overpaid. Does that sound familiar? Here is the way you need to do your comparison to save money on shopping.

For sake of a good example, let us discuss a large LCD television. You may have pulled out this Sunday’s ad for Best Buy, then headed to their store to take a look at the best values. Then you jumped in the car and headed over to the next electronics super store and compared their prices, then the next, and then after a few more stops you headed back to Best Buy. You buy the television confident you found the best price.

Here is what you should have done. Go ahead and pull out the Best Buy ad, there is nothing wrong with that step. Look through the ad and discover a few models which look great. Now you need to change your path. First start looking online and compare the pricing at all the major electronics sites. You may discover the price on Best Buy’s website is lower than the ad. Make sure you read reviews on every site you visit. The TV you think looks great could be garbage. Buying a bad TV is going to lose you money, not save money. Once you have found the correct brand and model start writing down the prices from the different sites. Now you are ready to begin shopping.

Head out to the stores taking along your list. Go ahead and look at the TV you have selected to make sure it is really what you want, now ask to speak to the department manager. Show him the best price you found and ask him if he can beat it. If he answers no, shake his hand, thank him and leave. You will find a manager within your first two stops who is going to accept or beat the lowest price you found. They want the sale, and know what their markup on the item really is. They can negotiate to make the sale, and will. You are not going to offend anyone, you are giving them the opportunity to earn your business. This simple extra step can save you significant amounts of money on major purchases, and save you money on gasoline, since you will not be driving around town.

These techniques work equally well to save money shopping for cars, appliances, and even clothes. Yes, you can decide you want a certain style of Levi jeans, find the best price and often get that price or a lower price from your local retailers. You just need to do your research before you go and take the information along with you. Saving money is not hard, it just takes a little extra commitment on your part. You will save time, and save money.

Save Money on Phone

The first step to save money on phone bills is to actually take the time to read the statement. Are you signed up for services you never use? Many people get the phone call from a phone company offering them a new long distance plan, add-on services, or a special trial offer, and just mumble yes a few times. The next thing they know their phone bill is $20 higher per month. You need to examine the bill closely and question every item on the bill. If it is a service you do not need, cancel it.

When is the last time you let companies compete for your business? You need to find out who offers phone service in your community and contact all of them. Tell them what services are essential for you, what your long distance usage is, and ask them to quote you a package. Do not be surprised if you receive quotes for half the price of your current phone bill. Companies know once they have you signed up you will not change easily. You should get new quotes every couple years to make sure you are always getting the best deal.

For many families the best way to save money on phone expenses is to start eliminating phone services. Do you need all the cell phones in your family? If you do, do you still need the home phone? By picking and choosing and only keeping the minimum requirements you can cut your monthly phone expenses.

There is another way to save money on phone bills. You can check into Voice Over IP services, VOIP. These services include companies like Vonage and MagicJack. They use your internet connection to provide you with a phone connection and are often a fraction of the cost of a traditional phone line. You should include these services in your efforts to reduce your overall phone bill. They include toll free calling to all of the United States, and often selected other countries. Many other countries can be called at very low rates.

There are two disadvantages to discontinuing a traditional phone line. A traditional line works even when the power is off in your home, if you are using a traditional hard wired phone. The traditional phone line is the only phone guaranteed to give the correct address to the 911 dispatcher. Other services rely on you keeping your address up to date.

The only way you are sure to save money on phone bills is to take the time to do your own research. You must evaluate your existing bills, compare costs of other services, and then start eliminating what you do not need. Your family may feel it needs everything you already have, but you will be amazed at how little is really necessary. You will soon cut your phone expenses in half, and have money for the things you are really interested in.

Save Money on Groceries

The first method you must use to save money on groceries is coupon shopping. Some people hate the idea of using coupons, feeling the time clipping out the coupons, searching through newspapers and magazines could be better spent doing other things. Once you start learning to use coupons effectively you will discover you can cut large amounts out of every trip to the grocery store. Some of the most beneficial coupons are on our largest purchases. Laundry soap and other cleaning supplies usually offer high value coupons. Start cutting out those coupons and discover the difference it can make.

The second way to start saving large amounts of money in the grocery store is to ignore brand names. Store brands, generics, and white label products are as high of quality and can cost half the price of the most popular name brands. You may need to try a couple different generics before you find one you like as well as a name brand, but is reducing your bill dramatically worth a little experimentation? This is true for cleaning products, many food items, and personal hygiene items. Often these store brands are less expensive than the name brands with a coupon. You will need to evaluate which if the best value for your family.

The people who save money on groceries consistently buy items on sale. This is one area you must enter with caution. Buying on sale does not mean buying unnecessary items or buying blindly. You must still compare prices between store brands and name brands. If you can combine a sale item with a coupon you get twice the savings. The big trap most people fall into with buying on sale is they buy more. Instead of buying what their family needs they start buying all the extras. You may have not been planning to buy frozen pizza, but since they are on sale you buy 10. Do not expand your buying plan just because something is on sale. Make your list of items you need, then look at the sales ads and find the best bargains for your needs. The store hopes you do the opposite. They want you to look at the ad, and create your list from your desires.

This brings us to the most important aspect to save money on groceries. Always shop with a list, and do not buy items not on the list. Buying items on the spur of the moment in the store is the fastest way to destroy your grocery budget. Make a careful plan of your needs, plan your shopping, find the coupons, and shop with purpose. You will be amazed at the higher quality, lower cost, and the money you can save by learning to shop with a plan, rather than on a whim. You will stretch your grocery budget, and have better selections because you took time to think.

Save Money on Gas

1. Switching to a smaller more fuel efficient car is the easiest way to save money on gas. Your gasoline needs do not just change for a week or two, but change for the life of the car. By going from a car which travels 20 miles per gallon to one which goes 30 miles per gallon gives you an instant 33% improvement in your budget.

2. Buy good quality fuel. You may believe you are saving money by buying higher octane fuels or buying an ethanol blend, but unless you test your gas mileage in your car you really do not know. Many people report a decrease in gas mileage on both ethanol blends and on high octane fuels. You could be throwing money out the window twice. You pay more for your fuel, plus you get lower gas mileage. Make sure to test your car on several types of fuel, determine which is the most efficient, and then stick with it.

3. Keep your engine tuned. An automobile engine decreases in efficiency very rapidly as the spark plugs become fouled, the fuel system gets clogged, and the timing slips off of ideal. Getting your car tuned at least once a year will help maintain your highest efficiency and will save you money.

4. Inflate your tires to the highest recommended inflation level. Most tires and cars have a recommended range for inflating your tires. If the range is 28 to 32 pounds of pressure always inflate to 32 pounds. The harder the tire the easier it rolls. You save money on gas when your car rolls easily down the road.

5. Have your tire alignment checked. Did you believe tire alignment was only for keeping your tires in good shape? If your tires are out of alignment you are pushing against them and decreasing your fuel efficiency. You need your car to roll as easily as possible to save the maximum amount of money.

6. Unload extra weight. Do you carry around a bunch of junk in your trunk, the back seat, or the bed of a pickup? All that extra weight requires extra fuel to push it down the road. If the items are not needed you do not want to pay for the extra fuel to carry them.

Finding ways to save money on gas is actually a matter of common sense. Anything you can do to reduce the resistance and weight of your car will help reduce your gasoline bill. Driving smoothly and easily, using the brakes only as needed, and utilizing your cruise control as often as possible will all help you save money. You may spend a little bit of money to get started, but your fuel savings will far outweigh the cost.

Save Money on Food

How do you shop for your food? Many people go to the grocery store every day and buy just what they need for the day. They have not thought about a menu for the week, examined the sales ads, or considered how expensive this habit is.

Whether you wish to believe it or not, you can cut 30 percent from our grocery bill by sitting down on Sunday and planning a week’s menu. This technique is one of the fastest ways to save money on food. Sit down with a couple sheets of paper and brainstorm the food you would enjoy preparing for your family this week. Keep in mind your schedule and their schedule so you can plan fast items on busy days.

The next step is to grab the latest advertisements from your local grocery stores. Do a quick inventory in your kitchen of what items you need to buy, then sit down with your menu, the ads and plan a shopping list. Make sure to grab your coupons from the Sunday paper, too. Now with all of these items in your hands plan your shopping. Decide what items you will buy at which store. You are ready to head out and do the shopping.

Warning, your grocery bill on this one day is going to be big. It may scare you. You have probably been buying blindly a little at a time and had no idea you were spending this much and more every week. Do not panic, at the end of the week you will have more money left in your wallet.

You may be seeing how this can save a little money, but pondering how it makes a big difference. When you shop daily, how often do you buy extras? How often do you pick up luxury food which is unneeded? How many extra magazines, candy bars, packages of gum, soft drinks, and other extras do you buy while you are in the check out line? How much extra gas do you use to go to the store every day? When you start totaling all of these items together you will be shocked to find out how much the difference really is. You save money on food, and many other ways all at the same time.

Your family is going to face a new challenge with your efforts to save money on food. They will need to learn to place their food requests for the week before you plan the menu. They will grow accustomed to the new plan very quickly. There is one added benefit to this method. You end up with higher quality, more delicious food on the table every day. You will vary your menu more. Instead of dreading dinner every day, you will have a plan, and start saving time. This is not just a budget saver, it is also a time saver for you.

Save Money on Electricity

The best way begin your campaign to save money on electricity is to take a tour of your own home, inspecting every outlet to find out what is plugged in. You might be surprised to find items plugged into outlets which you did not even know existed. Every item using power is potentially going to help you start saving money.

One of the biggest power sucking culprits in most homes is entertainment devices. You may have MP3 players, stereos, iPods, Nintendo systems, Playstations, Televisions, and all kinds of other entertainment systems. They appear to be off when you walk by, but did you know most of them are still sucking down power? Every one of those AC to DC converters keep eating power every moment they are plugged in. They may not draw as much power, but they are taking money right out of your pocket. Instead of plugging them directly into an outlet put them on a power strip which can be switched off. Then the power draw stops.

How many light bulbs do you use in your home? How many have you switched to fluorescent? The answer needs to be all of them are switched. A 100 watt incandescent light bulb, the old standard bulb, draws much more power to produce the same amount of light. You can replace a 100W bulb with a 15W fluorescent and have better lighting. Stop and think very seriously about this. This means 3 incandescent bulbs require as much power as 20 fluorescent bulbs. Would you rather turn on 20 lights in your home or just 3? This is the reason some countries have made regulations to only allow fluorescent style bulbs. You will save money on electricity by making the switch, large amounts of savings.

Your air conditioner may be one of the biggest users of electricity in your home. When was the last time maintenance was done on it? A clean, well maintained, fully charged air conditioner is much more efficient. You can save 20 to 30 percent on your cooling bill by having it properly maintained. Annual maintenance was recommended when it was purchased, but if you are like most owners you have ignored it. It is time to make the call.

Your refrigerator is another major power draw. If your refrigerator is very old it is probably costing you money. Newer refrigerators and freezers are highly efficient and save money on electricity for their owners. You should check the potential savings compared to the cost of continuing to run the old unit. You may be surprised at what you discover.

Finding ways to save money on electricity is never a one item discovery. It requires examining the way your family uses electricity, and what devices are in use. By taking the time to investigate and make some minor changes you can lower your bill easily.

Save Money on Bills

Your electric bill may be the easiest to save money on. By unplugging items not in use, switching to fluorescent bulbs, and remembering to turn off lights when no one is in the room can make huge difference in your monthly bill. Adjusting your air conditioner up a couple degrees can save you a few more dollars every month.

If you use gas to heat or cool your home you need to make sure your systems are kept clean and serviced. By keeping them running efficiently you can trim 10% off of your gas bill. If you want even more savings you may need to adjust the thermostat a little. Keeping the house a little cooler in the winter and a little warmer in the summer can keep your bills inline.

Telephones are one monthly expense which has started to run away on many families. They have a home phone, multiple cell phones, and many extra services. It is time to start making some hard decisions to save money on bills. Do you really need all of those phones? Sure, they are nice to have, but do your really need them? Do you need to have the added features on your home phone? Sometimes by changing plans, eliminating a phone, and dropping unused services you can can cut your phone bill in half. Take a close look at how you use your phones and what is really needed.

Water bills are often very easy to handle in the winter, but summer comes along and we start watering the grass, the flowers, and the garden. Suddenly out water bill is growing out of control. By choosing to plant grass which is more hardy in dry climates, flowers which require less water, and using ground watering rather than sprinklers you can reduce your watering bill. Your wallet will appreciate you efforts. When you are ready to replace you washing machine or dish washer make sure to only consider high efficiency units. They use less water while still getting your clothes clean.

If you really need to save money on bills you may need to eliminate your extra items. Cable television, the highest speed internet options, game subscriptions, and other monthly bills are nice to have, but are extras. Your children may disagree, but if you need to cut expenses those items need to disappear. The best way to save money on bills is to eliminate every extra bill and extra service which is not required. This includes add-ons to your credit cards, phone bills, entertainment services, and any of those other small hidden costs. You need to examine every bill carefully and eliminate what is not needed. Saving 10 to 20 percent is very easy with just a small bit of effort. Your extra cash might even allow for an evening out with the family, instead of worrying about where to get the money to pay the rent.

Open a Bank Account

Before walking into the bank and getting confused by all the accounts and deals they are going to offer you, think about how you need to work with your money. Are you needing your money in an account which allows you instant access at ATM machines? Are you going to be using online bill payment for your monthly bills? Those two services are most often tied to a checking account.

With a checking account you will still have many decisions. Are you depositing enough money and planning to maintain a healthy balance? If yes, then look for a bank account with no service fees and which pays you interest. Your larger deposit and maintaining a balance gives you extra benefits, and you should take advantage of them. If you are only going to be depositing enough to cover your bills and regular expenditures, then look for an account with the lowest service fees which offers online banking, an ATM card, and any other features you need.

When you are depositing your money as an investment you will have even more decisions to make. While a passbook savings account offers you ease of access it pays the lowest interest rates of any kind of savings account. If you have substantial savings you are wanting to invest, you will want to open a bank account which is more profitable. A certificate of deposit is one of the safest accounts with a higher interest rate. They normally have a minimum deposit amount required to open the account. The certificate of deposit requires you to make a commitment to leave the money in the account for a period ranging from six months to five years. At most times the longer the time period the higher the interest rate.

Maybe you are looking to open a bank account for your child’s college fund. This creates a couple additional questions you need to consider. Are you wanting the account in your name or your child’s? Are you willing to commit the money for a longer period of time in a CD? You may want more than one account. You can open a passbook savings account to make regular contributions to, and then when the amount reaches a high enough amount to roll into a CD you can invest it in the higher yield accounts. This will give you both ease of access and the ability to get the higher interest rates.

By preparing yourself and knowing exactly what you want to accomplish before going to the bank, you will open a bank account which serves you, instead of limits you. With answers to these simple questions the bank’s account officer will be able to give you the best advice and assistance.

Online Bank Account

One advantage to the online bank account is the interest rates. Since these banks have lower costs they normally return their higher profits to their clients in the way of higher interest rates on savings accounts. If you are seeking the highest interest rates possible check with some of the online banks to see what they offer in comparison to your current bank.

Another item where online accounts excel is convenience. They are available for you to use 7 days a week 24 hours per day. You do not need to wait for the bank to be open the next business day to transact business. This does not mean someone is available to talk to all of the time, or that your transactions will occur. They are tied to the same banking regulations as every other bank. Their transaction processes usually happen on the same banking days and during the same hours as traditional brick and mortar banks.

The biggest disadvantage to an online bank account is not knowing the employees. Even if you bank with a large bank and only visit a branch, you get to know the tellers, the officers, and they get to know you, also. This is an advantage when you need special services, advice, or assistance with banking issues. They are not going to turn a deaf ear to your needs because they know you will be walking through the door again and again. With an online account they have no idea who you are, and really do not care. You are an impersonal account number and an occasional voice on the phone. You are unlikely to talk to the same person two times in a row. Getting those added services will take more effort on your part.

A home town bank opens their doors, hand counts your money, takes your checks by hand, and deals with you face to face. An online bank requires you mail the checks to them, handling cash is a challenge, and you never see them. If there are technical difficulties at your online bank you are stuck waiting. If there are technical difficulties at your home town bank, they write up hand transactions and keep business moving.

Choosing the proper bank is not really that difficult. For many of us the best answer is to use both services. You can deposit some of your long term savings into an online bank account to receive the highest rates possible. Deposit the money you need to access quickly, and for your highest service levels at your local bank. By splitting your banking between both types of accounts you get all the advantages, and decrease the effects of any shortcomings. Sometimes using the best of both worlds is the wise choice.