10 Budget-Friendly Tips You’ll Wish You Knew Sooner | Global News Avenue

You’re probably familiar with the common money-saving tricks: cutting cable, clipping coupons, splitting the rent, or starting a side hustle, but if you still want to find creative ways to save more, there are more options to consider.

If you’re already working hard and balancing a busy schedule, adding more to your plate isn’t as appealing. You still want to save more money, whether it’s to pay down debt, build an emergency fund, contribute to your IRA, or achieve another important goal. So let’s skip the basics and explore some creative, unexpected ways to keep more cash in your pocket without overcomplicating things.

1. Monitor and adjust your electricity usage

Your electric company may offer free tools to assess your home energy usage and suggest ways to reduce consumption or bills. For example, if you are not using a timeshare plan and that is an option where you live, switching to a timeshare plan could save you money. If this is you, changing the hours you use energy-intensive appliances like dryers, washers, and dishwashers may lower your bills.

2. Investigate your eligibility for low-income utility programs

The federal Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program works with states to help people stay warm in the winter and cool in the summer. Eligibility and levels of assistance for assistance with heating and cooling costs vary by state. Some plans can even replace a damaged furnace or boiler, or help weatherproof your home to reduce energy bills.

3. Try doing it yourself before paying a professional

Some tasks are too dangerous for DIY. Other times, if you try to do the job yourself, you may make the problem worse and cost more to fix. But there are some tasks we might hire someone to do that, after we’ve seen others do them, are surprisingly cheap and easy to handle ourselves. From changing your car’s air filter to replacing your oven’s heating element, the next time you have a problem you’d normally pay a professional to fix, do some video research first.

4. Consider a prepaid cell phone plan

When we think of it, most of us think of the big three—T-Mobile, Verizon, and AT&T. cell phone provider. But their regular monthly plans are expensive and may offer more data, faster speeds and newer phone technology than you need.

If you switch to one of their prepaid plans, your monthly bill could be cut in half. Switching to a smaller provider such as Republic Wireless, Ting or Mint Mobile can also lower your bills. So pay for at least three months of service up front. If you ditch cellular data entirely and stick to talk, text, and WiFi, plans get super cheap.

5. Reduce subscriptions

newspaper. television. Movie. music. Cloud storage. Photo editing. word processing. Exercise classes. Sometimes it seems like every company uses Subscription business model these days. Getting someone to sign up for a service and pay for it permanently is a great way to make money. This means that if you want to save money, you need to do the opposite.

Of all your subscriptions, which one do you use most? Allow yourself to indulge a little and then cut back on the rest. Many people have free alternatives. Plus, you don’t have to pick a subscription and stick with it for an entire year. For any content each month, you can switch: Hulu this month, Netflix next month, Spotify the next.

6. Start using a bidet

If the pandemic-induced toilet paper shortage hasn’t convinced you to give a bidet a try in 2020, now is the time to think about it. It doesn’t sound like a budget idea, but an entry-level model that mounts to the side of the toilet seat is only $30 to $40 on Amazon, quickly recouping the cost of toilet paper and wipes. Bidets are very efficient so they won’t increase your water bill. Low-end models use no electricity. Reducing the use of single-use products is also good for the environment.

7. Try a free challenge

You might think that forcing yourself not to spend money for a week or a month would just create a lot of pent-up demand. If you don’t buy groceries now, won’t you buy more later? perhaps. But you may also find yourself reevaluating those postponed purchases.

If you’ve been drinking ice water with dinner for a week because you ran out of Coke Zero, maybe you can break the one-a-day habit, or at least cut it in half. You won’t impulse buy unnecessary items. You might find a free way to hang out with friends. Whether you try it for a day, a week, or a month, a no-spend challenge can take your account balance to the next level.

8. Accept help when you can

America has so much wealth and generosity that we should all feel comfortable accepting help when we need it. We’re talking about food banks, pet food pantries, free farmers markets, community gardens, school supply giveaways, medical clinics, sliding scale mental health services, Medicaidhospital charity programs and more.

It is true that these resources are more abundant in some areas than others. But whatever you get, make the most of it. As your situation improves, you can always repay the generosity of the organizations that serve you by donating time or money.

9. Use insurance to save money

It can be tempting to increase your deductible or reduce coverage to lower your insurance premium. But remember why there is insurance. If your car is totaledFor example, if a pipe bursts in the apartment above you and floods you, or a storm knocks the roof off your house, good insurance will get your life back to normal faster without disrupting your finances.

If you’re a pet parent, spend $20 to $50 per month pet insurance For your furry best friend. You’ll thank yourself when they need emergency surgery.

10. Give yourself some pocket money

It’s painful to spend every penny of your income on necessities and savings. You’ll use up your willpower and risk getting yourself into trouble by splurging. Instead, make a conscious choice at the beginning of each week, month, or pay period how much you allow yourself to spend on fun things—within your overall budget, of course.

Then, enjoy these treats guilt-free. If you want to save for something bigger, roll your allowance from one period to the next. A cash envelope or dedicated savings account can help you manage your spare money and keep it separate from your essential expenses.

bottom line

Some expenses are nearly impossible to eliminate. But that doesn’t mean you can’t reduce them. In particular, lowering your recurring expenses can be a big help because it saves you money every month, not just once.

Also, don’t forget that saving money is a long-term goal. Don’t make short-sighted decisions like cutting back or dropping coverage, which could cost you dearly in the long run and undo all the progress you’ve made. At the same time, there are many small savings options that can pay huge dividends in the long run.