Ways to Save Money

These were borrowed from a blog entry and I don't take cradie for them.

1. Shop end of season clearance for next year’s clothes. Why pay $35 for a nice outfit when you can get it for $6?

2. Shop yard sales and consignment stores. Buy in the next size or two if it’s available, it’s in good condition, and it’s good deal. I hit a few nice yard sales this summer for my son’s winter stuff. The stuff was in like new condition and in the right sizes. As I look over his closet full of fall and winter clothing, I’m pretty sure I have less than $30 in it all.

3. Cook meals at home.

4. Cook extra servings and freeze for lunches.

5. Shop the grocery store sale ads. I try to shop the sales, buy more than I need at the time, and then supplement with other items.

6. Plan meals according to the sales. Why pay $4.99/lb for meat when you can get it for $2.25/lb? Shop for meats on sale, then freeze them for later.

7. Order water when eating out. This really adds up over time.

8. Use a coupon book when eating out. Many schools sell these coupon books at the beginning of the school year. Most of the coupons are for buy 1 get 1 free meals.

9. Raise the thermostat 2 degrees while you’re not at home. I do this everyday before I leave for work. Don’t turn the thermostat completely off because it will only cost more to completely cool your house again.

10. Buy a used car instead of a new one. We learned this mistake early on in our marriage. The depreciation is awful! Unfortunately, we have made the mistake one more time and have paid dearly for it.

11. Comparison shop online. The internet is an awesome resource for comparing name brands and getting consumer ratings on products.

12. Try to buy open box appliances and technology items whenever possible. My husband and I try to buy our cameras and computers this way. The savings are amazing and you still get the regular full price warranty!

13. Shop year round for birthday and Christmas gifts. Tonight I was shopping the end of season clearance at JCPenney and picked up a pair of $22 shorts for my nephew for $2.50. That’s almost 90% off!

14. Check ebay for deals. Recently, we needed a dehumidifier for our basement. My husband purchased a brand new, in the box dehumidifier on ebay. The dehumidifier retails for $250 and we got it for less than $100 (including shipping).

15. Buy used toys. I learned my lesson quickly on this one. I remember when my daughter was just 7 months old I went to the store and spent $20 on a toy I really thought she could use for walking. She spent less than 30 minutes playing with it. I was not happy. I began shopping yard sales and thrift stores for used toys. I could get the same toys for $2-$3. I just sanitize them when I bring them home.

16. Buy generic over name brand. I know that there are a few name brands that are better than generic, but for the most part they taste the same.

17. Use less dishwasher and laundry detergent than the package says to use. The soap really does go a long way.

18. Dilute your hand soap. I have found hand soap to be really rough on my hands. I dilute it with water because the squirt you get it usually way too much anyway.

19. Pack snacks for work and refrain from using vending machines. Pack some granola bars, bananas, yogurt, and other supplies. You can probably pack a day’s work of snacks for the price of 1 item from the machine.

20. Buy in bulk whenever possible. This is great for chicken nuggets, storage bags, snacks, etc. that you know you will use. Don’t do this with items that you know will go bad before you can use them.

21. Find uses for foods before they go bad. Dehydrate fruits and vegetables for snacks or soups. Make old bread into croutons. I feed my old bananas, apples, and cereal to our rabbit. He definitely is rotten!

22. Brew your own coffee. I’m not a big coffee drinker, but I can imagine how much money you would save if you took a travel mug of coffee with you to work everyday rather than buying some from the machine or coffee shop on the way. (Time saver too.) This tip goes for soda also.

23. Make a list of errands for the week. Try to plan out your route to keep you from backtracking.

24. Switch to a credit union. I can’t believe the money I am saving in fees every month since I am using my credit union again.

25. Switch your existing credit card balances to a card with a 0% interest. Make your payments on time to avoid fees. Don’t be afraid to haggle with the credit card companies. If you have super credit, then you really have more room to shop around.

26. Shop close out stores. Many times you can get the same name brands, just at close out prices. I’m thinking “Big Lots!”.

27. Get magazines second-hand from friends and relatives. I don’t have much time for leisure reading, but I do enjoy looking at magazines when I have the time. My mom passes down her old Better Homes & Gardens magazines to me.

28. Borrow books from the library or trade books with a friend.

29. Send pictures, notes, and letters through email rather than mailing them. I love emailing pictures of the kids to relatives and friends. Everyone gets an update about the kids and it doesn’t cost me anything.

30. Save on stamps and pay your bills online. This is free service through most credit unions and some banks and also saves time.

31. Subscribe to The Grocery Game. Terri’s list can help you coordinate coupons with the sales. Many times you will come home with free or almost free products.

32. Don’t smoke. Smoking increases costs of health and life insurance. Plus, we all know how expensive cigarettes are!

33. Check your receipts. I can’t tell you the amount of times I have been overcharged at the grocery store. Better yet, watch the prices as they ring up your stuff so that you can avoid wasting time going to the customer service desk.

34. Pay attention to the front page of a sales paper. That is usually where they list their best deals to lure you in.

35. Keep your coupons and coupon books in the car. If you don’t have it with you, what good is it going to do? I usually keep my coupons and coupon books in the car. There have been a few instances where my family was out and about and I needed a coupon. I was really upset when I remembered that the book got taken inside the house. Errr!

36. Shop at stores where everything is a dollar; stores such as The Dollar Tree, Everything’s a Dollar, Dollar Duz It, etc. Sometimes you can find some really great deals in there. I was at The Dollar Tree recently and found a 12 oz bottle of hand sanitizer for only $1.00! I also found some name brand hair mousse, nice coloring books, and other good deals. You just never know what you will find.

37. Check your toilet for leaks. Sometimes you can have a leak and not even know it. In one particular house we lived in, our water bill kept going up every month. Finally, when it was ridiculously high, I called the water department. They told me to put a colored kool-aid packet or some food coloring drops in the tank of my toilet. If the color ran down to the bowl with a few minutes, then I had a leak. It only took a few seconds for my water to get into the bowl. Problem solved, but with an outrageous water bill!

38. Plan your meals at least 1-2 days in advance and put your meat in the refrigerator to thaw. When you don’t have something in mind for dinner, then you will be more likely to get take out or go out to eat. Also, if hubby suggests going out, you can tell him that you can’t because the meat will go bad.

39. Open blinds during the winter to use the light to warm and give light to your house. I try to keep mine closed during the summer as much as possible. The heat is horrible!

40. Be on the look out for inexpensive entertainment options. Take your family to the park, to a school or church fall festival, drive around looking at Christmas lights. Take your wife or husband on a date to a coffee shop, $2 theater, the waterfront.

41. Don’t buy something just because it’s cheap. I have done this in the past and regretted it later. I found my house to be full of crap. Just because something is 75% off doesn’t mean I need it!

42. Raise your deductibles on your home owner’s insurance to $1000 or $2500. You wouldn’t want to claim anything under that amount anyway or you run the risk of being dropped by your carrier.

43. Treat clothing stains as soon as possible. Avoid the aggravation of wasting time and money trying to get stains out. Also, make sure the stain is out before putting it in the dryer. What a horrible way to ruin an outfit.

44. Buy crackers, snacks, yogurt, and other food items in containers or large bags, rather than in snack size packages. I was appalled when I saw that snack size Ritz crackers averaged to be 50 cents a package. I can buy a whole box for just a few dollars. Buy the box and separate the snacks into containers or ziploc bags for easy use.

45. Avoid buying extended warranties on inexpensive items such as car seats, cordless phones, and cameras. More than likely, you will never use the warranty. (You may want to consider buying a warranty on computer purchases though. We always get our money’s worth on those.)

46. Sign up for rewards programs whenever possible. I signed up for the Food Lion Extra MVP card. Periodically I receive checks from Food Lion good for future visits. CVS also offers Reward Bucks.

47. Use a Brita filter or other such type filter instead of buying bottled water. We have been using a Brita filter for years now. We actually have people come over and complement us on how good our water tastes.

48. Don’t make impulse purchases. Have a rule that you will wait at least 24 hours before buying. Another good rule is to keep your credit cards at home. Sometimes if you see something and don’t have the money to get it, you’ll simply use your credit card. That instant gratification will get you! Keeping your credit cards at home gives you time to think about the purchase and decide if you really need the item. More than likely you don’t need it or you’ll realize it’s not worth driving back out to the store to get the item. I think this tip would keep a lot of people out of debt.

49. Call your cable company. Find out exactly what is covered on your cable/satellite package. See if you can’t cut out some channels. Sometimes you can cut out $10-25 a month on this one.

50. Watch movies at home. Rent movies or subscribe to a service like Netflix.

If you use liquid hand soap you can water it down and it still works well.

Actually you can spend about $10 at Pampered Chef buying a Suds PUmp, wher eyou put like 2 oz. of soap into 6-8oz. of water and it suds it up and saves you soap while still letting the soap do it's job.