Thursday, August 20, 2015

Money Saving Hacks

                        Money Saving Hacks - 15 ways to help you save smarter!

This post is a continuation of the " Money Saving Apps" post.
I have stuff here you may already do, but I also have things that you might not have even thought of before. I hope this post inspires you and helps you to be able to save your money easier.
Here is a list of life hacks to save money:

 1. Eat at home: Everyone should know that it's cheaper to eat at home. If you're not convinced take a pad of paper and pen with you throughout the week. Write down every dollar amount you spend eating out, getting a soda, coffee, snack, or anything else you get that isn't prepared at home. At the end of the week add up your total, then go grocery shopping with a list of meals for the week. You'll find that it's cheaper and healthier to eat at home.
   If you're worried about the time it takes to prepare a meal, set one day aside per week and pre cook all of your meals, then freeze them. When its time to eat just heat it up and enjoy.

 2. Couponing & grocery lists: This goes with eating at home. Make yourself a list of meals you plan on shopping for. Save your coupons, some stores will take expired coupons for up to 3 months. (Check with your local grocery store first). Find the coupons you need for the items your getting on your list. You could also plan your meals around the coupons you have and create your list from there. There is a lot to be saved with coupons! If you don't like couponing, you can read the "Money Saving Apps" post. There are apps that have coupons and you can show them at the register.

 3. Eat leftovers: Part of eating at home is eating leftovers. It saves money by not having to get groceries for more meals and eating out.

 4. Farmers Market: Shop at your local farmers market for fresh produce that is cheaper than the stores. Most farmers markets have a huge variety of produce to chose from.

 5. Dollar Store: You can save big at the dollar store. Instead of buying bread at the grocery store, you can save by getting it for $1.00. Same with canned goods, snacks, and a lot of other items. Not only can you save with grocery items but you can also save of toiletries, party and school supplies.

 6. Sams club/Costco: Buying in bulk can usually save you quite a bit of money too. There is an app called "Boxed" that you can buy in bulk from and have it mailed directly to your house.

 7. Loyalty cards: Almost every store has a loyalty card. Each store works differently but they are all made to save you money.

 8. Student ID Discount: Use your student ID card or your child's to get a discount. Some restaurants and stores give discounts for students.

 9. Back to school deals: In July, stores have savings on clothes with up to 50% off. In August, stores have Fall clothes for up to 25% off.

 10. Thrift shop: Thrift stores are one of my favorite places to shop. You can get really good deals on things and their clothes are in great condition. You can find just about anything at a thrift shop.

 11. Energy efficient: Save as much energy as you can. Turn everything off when you leave the room. You'd be surprised how much you could save by doing this.

 12. Save your change: Save all of your change in a jar. Don't touch it for 1 year. At the end of the year, count up all the change you collected.

 13. Library/e-books: You can save money by going to the library and reading free e-books instead of buying books. You will save a lot of space this way too.

 14. Pre-paid phones: Buying a pre-paid phone isn't as bad as you think. The price is cheaper for the same type of service with contract phone. You still get 4G, unlimited talk & text, etc. Why not save a chunk of change by switching to pre-paid?!

 15. Dumpster dive: I don't mean going through trash for food. I mean find great pieces of furniture that someone threw out, bags of clothes someone didn't want anymore that are still in great condition, movies, books, the items are endless.

I hope this list has given you some great ideas for how to save some money. Another great idea is use Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University tool. This is a great way to budget.

Please share with us, what are some ways that you save money?

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