Saving Tips: Work Related

Savings Tips: Work Related
Tip #1  If you work outside your home, buying a latte’ at the local
espresso bar each morning can easily cost you $30-$40 per month. Cut it down to three mornings per week and save money.

Tip #2  If you have a home business, get a cell phone and make all your long distance calls to clients with the cell. Most plans have free long distance calling to anywhere within the USA from your home area.

Tip #3  A simple and inexpensive home office workspace with
lots of storage space for files and papers is to put an uncut flat
door on two small filing cabinets. Place one cabinet to the far right
and the other to the far left. You then sit in the middle where you
can reach the drawers.

Tip #4  If you eat lunch out every day – cut back to only 2
days per week and brownbag it on the other days.

Tip #5  If your job dictates you should “dress to
impress”, buy coordinating separates so you can mix and match.
With a few accessories added, you can change the look completely and
make everyone think you have a closet full of clothes.

Saving Tips: Weddings

Savings Tips: Weddings
Tip #1  Instead of a restaurant, hold the rehearsal dinner at your home at a community center or in the church’s hall. Recruit volunteers from the family to each make a food dish contribution and cater it yourselves.

Tip #2  Have your wedding in the months of November through April. These months are less busy for most wedding related services and locations. Again, ask for a discount for being off-season.

Tip #3  Find alternatives to shopping retail. Locate outlet stores that sell wedding and bridesmaid dresses. You’ll save money by not buying name brand merchandise.

Tip #4  Enlistsome crafty and creative friends and make the favors yourself. Buy supplies when on sale.

Tip #5  Visit your local community college and ask if they can place you in contact with soon-to-graduate photography students. Save money by not hiring a professional photographer.

Tip #6  Have your honeymoon in Las Vegas. Rooms, entertainment and meals are very inexpensive. Your money will go farther and you can stay longer.

Saving Tips: Travel

Savings Tips:  Travel
Tip #1 
Always book your travel arrangements through the same agent. They’ll
let you know about discounts & specials.

tip #2 
When planning a cruise, book your reservation one year in advance. Cruise
agencies offer deep discounts for advance bookings. Shave off even
more of the cost by referring other people and have them book in
advance. You’ll get an additional price cut.

Tip #3 
When traveling to a foreign country, wait until you reach your
destination before converting your money into foreign currency. If you
do it before you leave, you won’t get the best rate of exchange.

Saving Tips: Shopping in General

Savings Tips: Shopping in General
Tip #1 
Select a stand-alone microwave unit rather
than a built-in if possible. It will be cheaper to buy, cheaper and
easier to service, and possibly more reliable since ventilation and
adjacent heat producing appliances will not be as much of a factor.

Tip #2  Beware of compulsive buying especially via the
internet. Compulsion is the driving force of these medias and often
just knowing this, can arm you with power. If there is an item you
know you want to buy, find who offers the lowest price. We like the comparison shopping tool at HerMarketPlace
– it’s on their main page.

Tip #3  Shop for apparel at season changes to capture maximum close out sales (sometimes 70-80%). However, you won’t be saving anything if you
buy simply because it’s on sale. For children, buy things one size
larger.

Tip #4  Buy your holiday wrapping paper and ribbon AFTER
the holiday. You’ll need it for next year, so why pay full price.

Tip #5  Buy paper greeting cards and themed party supplies
the day after the holiday or season is over. Stock pile them and use
when needed. Save 50% to 70% in most cases.

Saving Tips: Kids and Babies

SavingsTips:  Kids and BabiesTip #1 
Start your "child savings plan" when they are born, or at
least by the time they are age five. Each month buy a $25 or $50 savings
bond for them. Use for college or a major
purchase once they have graduated high school. Don’t ever let on to
your child that you have this nestegg for them because they will constantly
want to dip into it. The day will come when they will thank you
for doing this.

Tip #2 
Don’t buy ice packs, make your own. Buy a bulk pack of inexpensive 3×5
inch sponges. Soak several in water and wring out slightly. Place
individually into plastic sandwich ziplock bags. Place in freezer.
They’re ready to use for those unexpected boo-boo’s and just the right
size.

Tip #3 
Instead of paying $20 for a bike helmet at a local retailer, watch
your newspaper. Most communities have programs set up where you can
take your child in for a helmet fitting (usually at the Fire
Department) and they only cost $5.

Tip #4 
Children out grow their clothes too fast and sometimes they have
their favorites and don’t want to part with them. Take off all the
buttons (use those for other projects) and cut the clothes into 6×6
inch squares. Sew together, add batting and make your child a warm quilt
for their bed.

Saving Tips: Pass These On To Your Children

Savings Tips: Pass These On To Your Children
Tip #1  Instill in them the old saying ‘a dollar saved is a dollar earned’.
Buy them a piggy bank and let them see how fast their money
accumulates when saved.

Tip #2  Help them set goals. Say they want an $80 pair of
shoes. Let them save $5 or $10 a week until they have the purchase
price. Have them put a reminder of their goal in strategic places.
They’ll learn patience and persistence. And by the time they save the
money, they might also learn that they really don’t want the shoes any
more.

Saving Tips: Home and Related Expenses

Saving Tips: Household Expenses
Tip #1  Change your furnace filter every
month. A dirty filter reduces airflow, lowering the performance and
efficiency of your system.

Tip #2  Replace your old air conditioner or
cooling system with a new high-efficiency model. If your current unit
is more than 10 years old, installing a 16 SEER Ultra High Efficient
unit could reduce your air conditioning operating cost as much as 65
percent.

Tip #3  Do your laundry efficiently by using the warm or
cold water setting for washing your clothes and always use cold water
to rinse clothes. (Save: 4 percent if you have an electric water
heater.)

Tip #4 & Invest in a water heater timer if you have
an electric water heater. Even better, if your electric box is conveniently
located, just flip the breaker switch off after showers, etc in the
morning, and flip it back on in the evening.

Tip #5  When buying a home, save tens of thousands of dollars in interest by
shopping for the shortest-term mortgage you can afford. On a $100,000
fixed-rate loan at 8% annual percentage rate (APR), for example, you
will pay $90,000 less in interest on a 15-year mortgage than on a
30-year mortgage.

Tip #6  Winterizing your home translates to lower utility
bills and repairs. Put a lighted candle at doors and windows to
determine air holes. Clear debris from rain gutters. Place insulation
around water heaters. Wrap outside pipes in tape or rubber. Trim
branches and remove rotting trees close to your house which may cause
damage.

Tip #7  At the beginning of each month, make two lists:
one for food staples you need and one for household items such as
small appliances, cleaning supplies, etc – and post your lists on the
refrigerator. Watch out for sales that month and only buy your list
things when they come on sale.

Tip #8  The same nut, bolt, or fastener can sell for more
than twice as much at the same hardware store, even on the same aisle.
If you are looking for a common size, get your bolt from an open bin
rather than a "system" drawer. These drawers are stocked
with a complete array of sizes and are hugely more expensive.

Tip #9  Plant perennial flowers instead of annuals. You
incur a one time cost and enjoy the flowers for years, with no
additional effort or money. Annuals, on the other hand, require an
outlay of cash and effort every year.

Tip #10  Cut back on paper products.
Paying almost a dollar a roll for
paper towels can really add up. Use cloth towels whenever possible and
break out the dishes. It may require a little more on the cleaning
end, but it is cheaper in the long run.

Tip #11  Freshen the air in your house without paying a
fortune for canned spray. Just squeeze a few drops of a fresh lemon or
a fresh orange into the dust bag of your vacuum.

Tip #11  Don’t pay lots of money for Windex. Wait until
the gallon size windshield washer fluid for cars goes on sale, and
stock up. Refill the Windex bottles you have, and save.

Saving Tips: Everyday Things

saving tips ...
Tip #1 When you receive money as a gift, deposit half of what you received in your savings bank account and spend the rest on yourself.

Tip #2  Encourage relatives and friends to get online so
you can cut down on long distance charges and postage by exchanging email,
chatting, and sending virtual birthday cards.

tip #3  Get a big jar or box and at the end of each day,
remove all the coins from your pockets and purse. (an empty three
pound coffee can works good for this)  Get in the habit of only
carrying paper money. You’ll be surprised how fast your change adds
up. Wrap your coins and deposit each month into your savings account.

Tip #4  If you have a cell phone, make all your long
distance calls from the cell and not your home phone. Most cell plans
have free long distance to anywhere within the USA from your home
calling area.

tip #5  Liquid dish soap dribbles down the side of the
bottle and leaves soap scum on the counter. Put the liquid soap in a
trigger spray bottle. The soap is so thick it will just squirt and not
spray out. This is easier to handle, lasts longer and saves you money
because you’ll be buying the soap less often.

tip #6  Buy the best clothes you can afford. Sometimes, that
name brand isn’t the best quality. But, if you buy clothes that will
last you a few years, it’s called "investment dressing."

Saving Tips: Events and Entertaining

Savings Tips:  Events and Entertaining
tip #1  Creating and making – instead of buying a gift says "I
think enough of you to give of myself" and isn’t that the reason
for the gift in the first place? You’ll also save a bunch and have
some fun at the same time.

tip #2  You can stock pile casual gifts by taking
advantage of company give-aways you receive (toaster for opening a
bank account, etc). They save time and money when your boss invites
you (at the last minute, of course) to his cousin’s wedding.

tip #3  Ship gifts using the most inexpensive method. Give
yourself enough time to compare shipping and mailing rates to avoid
having to send gifts at the last minute at higher next-day and two-day
rates. Some stores provide free shipping.

Saving Tips: Credit and Building Credit

Savings Tips: Credit and Building Credit
tip #1  To improve your credit report appearance and before
applying for a loan, close accounts you don’t use, like old credit
cards, and make sure they are listed on your credit report as closed
at your request.

tip #2  It’s good to have at least three credit cards at all
times. Use one for clothing only, one for household expenses and keep one for
emergencies only. By keeping purchases separate, you can easily see
where your money.

tip #3  Pay off your credit card balance every month. This saves
you tons of money in interest charges.

tip #4  Pay attention to the interest rates. If you are
re-building your credit you can easily get a high interest rate card
from a variety of lenders. Pay your bill on time for one year. Then
apply for and get a new card with a lower rate. Then cancel your
high-rate card.