8 Easy Ways to Save Money at Home
I have yet to meet a single person who wishes he had less money, except The Notorious B.I.G who rapped about it in “Mo Money Mo Problems” In all fairness, my statement still holds true as I never met Biggie Smalls, and this song was released posthumously in his “Life After Death” album (If you’re in the mood to get up and dance, click here for the video).
Since almost all of us wish we had a little more of the green stuff, how can we squeeze more money out of our budget? The answer lies at home. There are many expenses we can negotiate, cut, or adjust, and it only requires a little effort and the right mindset.
8 Simple Ways to Save at Home
- Reduce dining out and getting carryout. For my family, this easily becomes a budget buster if we don’t watch it. It’s so easy to grab something on the way home or to treat ourselves to a night off from cooking, but it costs SO MUCH MORE (exponentially more) than making food at home. Cooking at home allows us to eat healthier because we control what goes in to our meals as well as the portion size. Spending a little time planning meals before grocery shopping and coordinating recipes to use leftovers in a new way will save time and money. If you are looking for some meal planning tips, quick and easy recipes, and ways to stretch your grocery budget, visit Creative Contessa Design’s Recipe page.
- Use coupons. Digital coupons that you download to your shopping rewards card make saving money at the store easier. Subscribe to email lists for stores you frequent. I love getting an email with a coupon for 40% off of my purchase. Look for coupons to restaurants so that you can save a little money when you dine out. Avoid the pitfall of using a coupon on things that you don’t need just because it’s a good deal. That is wasting money! A learned a great lesson from a coworker at my very first high school job as a cashier. She was an avid coupon user, and she calculated what she saved each month with coupons. She put the amount saved into her kids’ college funds. This could be done with your retirement account, Christmas savings, vacation fund, etc. Nora’s CouponContessa.com site has a lot of money-saving tips. We have also partnered with Coupon Surfer, a service that allows you to Print Free Grocery Coupons For Top Brands You Know and Love with CouponSurfer. Start Saving Today! If you become a member through one of our affiliate links, we get a little something back that helps us continue to bring helpful articles to you.
- Plant a garden. Get the whole family involved in growing some of your own food. You don’t need 40 acres to do it! If you have a small space, use pots on the patio. There are even vertical gardens for very limited space (Check these out on Pinterest.). We have a garden in a corner of the backyard and do some container gardening on the back patio too. Nothing tastes better than a home-grown tomato! Surprisingly, your picky eaters may become more adventurous in trying something they’ve grown themselves.
- Negotiate services like cable, phone, utilities, pest control, satellite radio etc. My friend Laura always reminds me to ask for a discount or upgrade for anything. The worst thing they can do is say no. (I always ask if there is an upgrade when checking into hotels now, and we are usually able to get a better room.) When my oldest was going off to college, we really had to crunch the numbers, and I realized how the cost for many services had inched up through the years. I started calling service providers and politely telling them that I needed to reduce my rates or cancel my service. Guess what?! Companies want to keep their customers and are more than willing to negotiate. I was able to bundle cable, internet, and home phone for less money per month than I was paying for a fewer cable channels and slower internet. I even got all new equipment. I shopped electric providers and was able to lock in a rate that was half of what I was paying! Spending a little time on the computer and phone saved me a lot of money!
- Shop around for home, auto, and life insurance. I have been guilty of staying with the same company because of convenience (and lack of attention to the rates), but my home insurance rates have skyrocketed. I spoke to my agent and was able to adjust some things to lower my rate. I will definitely compare prices and services when it is time to renew. Please make sure to do your homework. The cheapest premiums don’t usually translate to the best coverage. Purchasing cheaper term life insurance is usually recommended over more expensive whole life policies. Nerdwallet.com has a great article on the difference here. Using an insurance broker or independent agent is recommended to compare multiple companies. This can be especially helpful when shopping for car and home insurance. Moneytips.com shares the pros and cons of using an agent here.
- Eliminate or reduce excess spending. If you smoke, quit. It will save your health and your money. My mom is saving over $100 a month from quitting, and she feels 20 years younger. If you like wine, the cost of bottles can really add up. Try cutting back, finding cheaper wine, and stock up when you can get a multi-bottle discount. Do you have a latte addiction? Make your coffee at home and save. I have the Ninja Coffee Bar and can froth milk and create Starbucks barista-worthy drinks for a fraction of the cost.
- Challenge yourself to save. Make saving money fun! See if you can avoid restaurants for 2 weeks. Find fun entertainment at home on weekends to keep money in your bank account. Play cards; do a jigsaw puzzle; have a movie marathon complete with popcorn and pjs! Have a “Chopped” cooking challenge creating a meal with items you have on hand. One of you can pick the items, and the rest have to create something edible out of it. My daughter loves to do this with friends.
- Give yourself permission for the occasional splurge. It’s ok to treat ourselves occasionally; just not all the time. We may feel we deserve that new car or designer pair of shoes, but if we can’t afford it, skip it or make a savings plan of how to get it without going into debt.
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