What Are Some Small Everyday Tips to Save Money?

[MaynardJamesKeenan]

It seems like we waste money every day and not even realize it. If anyone has any tips or ideas try to share them here.

The only one I have right now is always eating home made food. I work with a few other guys, for 10 hours a day, and they end up hitting a gas station/restaurant about twice a day. On average, for 5 days a week, their spending 70 dollars on food. I always pack my lunch and throw it in a cooler. I end up spending around 40 bucks and eating much healthier.

[Dan.Linehan]

I would track every dollar you spend for two weeks.

The answers will become apparent.

[Jim11]

Do what the previous poster said. You really have to figure it out for yourself.
You spend money on a lot of different things. You just need to ask yourself this with everything you buy:
did I need to buy this?
was there a cheaper way?

gas, bottled water, food, rent, utilities, recreation, etc... analyze all expenditures and it will become clear quickly.

"500 rent, $200 on groceries, etc" may not be specific enough to analyze properly if you are already living fairly economically.

[Gene]

Use the telephone to gather information on purchases rather than driving around town "looking" the internet can serve the same function.

[Jennihul]

Yipes, after another $123 at Whole Paycheck (Whole Foods, for 2 and 1/2 bags of items, mind you!) I have decided to stop buying organic pre-made foods like salsas and black bean dips, soups, sauces and cook and create my own damn stuff! Grrrrr!

Oh, when I got to the car I peeped my receipt...get this: My jar of organic almond butter was frackin $13.00!!! I walked back in and got my money back and gave the girl a tsk tsk.

I have diet issues and some sensitivities/allergies but I'm through being robbed for it.

They have these fantastic chocolate and cocoa powder covered walnuts that are probably $7.00 for what amounts to 20 of them. I am working on doing the home version. We'll see how much less it costs.

Instead of renting movies, swap with friends. Use the library. Mine has a great DVD selection.

Don't buy bottled water. The bottles are a massive source of non-biodegradeable landfill filling waste. Tap water is more stringently regulated anyway. Bottled water is unregulated.

Women you can get the same look from non-top shelf makeup products. Less looks classier anyway.

My fave gas mileage strategy is a headband. A simple piece of $1.00 plastic. I wear that and put down the windows and smell beautiful nature here and leave my AC off. My hair doesn't blow in my face. You can lose up to 30% of your fuel efficiency with the AC and or defroster on. Right now, the scent selection here is honeysuckle, jasmine and privet. Divine!

I buy less food but more often. That way spoilage is reduced.

Grow your own veggies. I find that peppers and tomatoes are the most painful things, price-wise. They just cost too damn much. They are also easy to grow. Try the topsy-turvy if you only have a balcony or patio. I also have an indoor herb grower. I save a buttload of money on fresh herbs all winter. Grow them outdoors all summer.

Also google something like "Local farms Wake County." (That would be my area) and you can find farms that will coop with you and for a yearly or seasonal fee, they deliver whatever produce they have right to your door sometimes.

Have magazine/book swaps with your friends. Set a day maybe once or twice a month and get together at someone's house for drinks and trade.

Use VOIP. I have Vonage and it totally rocks. I referred so many people the first year, I didn't pay a dime for my phone service for a year! I pay $17 for 500 minutes which I have never gone over.

Brown bagging. My cafeteria prices have been increased because their suppliers have increased their prices due to gas costs. Forget that. I bring much more healthful choices anway.

Quit watering your lawn. If you have to water or it will die, fescue is not a natural plant for your zone. Replant something suitable for your area.

Shop online more. Saves gas.

Jennifer

[Ree]

Originally Posted by Jennihul

Yipes, after another $123 at Whole Paycheck (Whole Foods, for 2 and 1/2 bags of items, mind you!) I have decided to stop buying organic pre-made foods like salsas and black bean dips, soups, sauces and cook and create my own damn stuff! Grrrrr!

Oh, when I got to the car I peeped my receipt...get this: My jar of organic almond butter was frackin $13.00!!! I walked back in and got my money back and gave the girl a tsk tsk.



Jennifer

Jennifer, if you find out how to make almond butter at home let me know. I LOVE the stuff!! My Cuisinart won't even grind the almonds fine enough to make almond flour

Mix it up with a little Polaners Seedless Raspberry All Fruit and spread on 100% whole grain bread and it's like being a kiddo eating PB&J all over again but it's healthy!

[Peek]

There are several saving boxes that I use, one is in my office. Every morning I put some thing out of my purse and put it in. I have no goal for it, but it will come to me.
Every amount I receive on my bank account, 10% goes on a savings account, nothing much and again, I have no clue why, I just do it.

One day I will open the box and the account and do what I think comes in handy. Although I do want it to be an investment for something else, so than again I can put the money that is made by the money in a savings box.

It is not a big thing, actually it is not on my mind as a serious goal, just a fun thing to do.

[Gene]

I have an amount of money sent to my Ameritrade account every month. I always contribute this amount to myself. When I have a good month or unexpected income I give my self an extra amount above that of the scheduled monthly contribution.

[ConquerSelf]

Mow the lawn yourself

Buy coffee by the pound, not by the cup

Carpool

Hold off on luxury items

Brand names aren't the only option

Rent, don't buy movies

Don't carry a credit card balance

[hotwired]

I own 2 small businesses so I am always digging for ways to save money. Here's a few. I like simple and automatic pilot. So rather than track spending, I budget or "allot" so it's like automatic pilot.

1. every 6 months, call cable and phone and make sure you're getting the best deal you can. We regularly bump ourselves down to $18 a month cable until we can snag a deal or promo. It's just in our heads .... $100 a month to watch television? Not on your @#$%&*! life! I had 2 verizon business lines and a cell phone. I discovered that now you can port your land line over to your cellphone (meaning you can drop your land line, and replace your cellphone number with the land line number) - so now one of my businesses comes thru the cell and the other the landline. I've toyed with idea of VOIP for the other business but we're a little superstitious and want to keep at least one land line.

2. shop for insurance, or at very least keep ALL insurance with same company. Meet annually with your agent and see if you can save money anywhere. We just moved into a gorgeous colonial and our home owners shot from $400 a year to $975 a year, so we opted for a special deductible that is a percentage of the home value to bring it down to $600 per year (wiht like a $5,000 deductible). Just make sure you can "self insure" the deductible ... in other words "eat it".

3. The obvious, keep a list of errands and do them all at once so you don't have to go into town EVERY day.

4. Movies: I use coupons all I can. I buy a discount card AND buy the MovieGallery calendar that has one free coupons for every month.

5. Use all compact flourescent bulbs.

6. Get a woodstove! If you're the type. We went from 900 gallons of oil per year to 225 per year and I own a landscape company PLUS have a lot of my own wood, so wood cost is negligable. We ONLY use th furnace to heat hot water now. Wood stove will be "paid off" by fuel savings in 2 years instead of the 5 we estimated.

[Gene]

Originally Posted by hotwired

6. Get a woodstove! If you're the type. We went from 900 gallons of oil per year to 225 per year and I own a landscape company PLUS have a lot of my own wood, so wood cost is negligable. We ONLY use th furnace to heat hot water now. Wood stove will be "paid off" by fuel savings in 2 years instead of the 5 we estimated.

If you have a wood stove it is possible to shred all of your paper including newspapers and use a mechanical device to form moistened paper into "bricks" which dry into very usable fuel for a wood stove. The fuel is essentially free and the paper products do not go to a land fill.

[jimbos123456]

If you have good credit like me you can just apply for a 0 apr creditcard and make minimum payments only on it for a year. 1 month before the 0 apr expires just pay off the whole credit card what you received was basically an interest free hedge against food inflation. With inflation raging you can just stock up on all food essentials you need before the price increases. Take that wallstreet and your usury ways! Heck you could even use that 0 apr card in investments like bullion.

[Jennihul]

Wow, all great stuff, you guys....

If you have to see first-run movies, pick matinees. It's fun getting out and still having some daytime to do other things and they are less expensive and less crowded.

I bought a card from Smart Circle for discounted movie tickets and snacks and I could kick myself for not using it all up. I barely paid a dime for the movies I did see in that six month period though. I swear the theatres were giving me more discount than the coupon even called for. They have discounts for more than just movies.

Smart Circle


Jennifer

[Kanger]

I love the website Money Saving Expert: Consumer Revenge - Credit Cards, Shopping, Bank Charges, Cheap Flights and more

It has a great daily thread in the debt-free wannabee forum called 'What small DFW thing will/have you done today', it's really inspiring to see all the little ways people save money....hang washing on line (instead of dryer), charging phone at work instead of at home, using left overs for meals...etcetc