You follow your budget to the last penny, you pay all your bills. You do everything right, but still find it difficult to stretch your budget enough to make everything beat.
Why are you so flat all the time?
Even if you follow your budget plan closely, chances are good that you have not yet tried certain money saving tips.
Even if you follow your budget plan closely, chances are good that you have not yet tried certain money saving tips.
Savings Tips: Home
If you own your own home, this may be one of the reasons. You can (maybe) refinance, but it’s a big business, especially if you’re a new homeowner.
There are a few ways you can still save.
- Continue with preventative maintenance.
If you own your own home, preventative maintenance is a pain, but it also saves you in the long run. Regularly plan care of large appliances and expensive items in and around the home, such as air conditioning. Repair leaks, cracks or damage you notice in your home as soon as possible. Keep up with small repairs to increase the value of your home and ward off large expenses down the road.
- Pay (even slightly) extra.
To save money on interest, lower the repayment period on your home loan and stay ahead, paying extra off against the capital each month. Every little bit hopes to make a big difference afterwards. On top of that, it feels good when you finally move forward.
- Rent out your space.
Do you have extra space or unused room that you can rent out? You might want to consider renting out the extra room or even the house over a vacation. Just make sure you follow the correct hiring process.
Savings wish: Consumption
Review all your consumer accounts, such as insurance, phone internet and other monthly services. You may think of these expenses as fixed expenses, but there are many ways to adjust and save. Also take a good look at these bills – do you pay for something you do not use?
- Energy saving
Next time, consider replacing a stove or geyser with energy-saving appliances. A gas stove or solar energy for the geyser are both very good ideas!
- Pay on time
If you pay your bills on time, you can avoid extra fees. Set up automatic payments through your bank so that bills are paid and do not fall into arrears.
Savings tips: Food
Food is one of the most expensive items on most budgets. Plus, we can almost always spend money on food, right? There are many ways to reduce your food budget. Here are some money saving tips that are completely painless.
- Eat at home.
If you want to save money, it is the best option to eat at home. Even the cheapest fast food ultimately costs you more than food you buy and prepare.
- Plan your meals.
When it comes to expanding your budget, meal planning is important. Plan meals in advance for the coming week. By doing this you can prepare ingredients and buy only what is needed.
- Multiply meals with beans, rice and vegetables.
If you add rice, beans or even extra vegetables to your favorite dishes, it helps to give extra portions. A mixing bowl of vegetables to put in the oven with the meat is a double winner!
- Use less meat.
Use meat as a garnish, rather than the whole meal. Adding a little sausage or bacon to the dish is much cheaper than cooking a whole steak. Give meatless Monday a try and try vegetarian dishes.
- Buy only what you eat.
How many times has food spoiled in your fridge? Instead of buying all kinds of new foods you want to taste, just buy one or two new or complicated items. Always plan what ingredients you want to buy and do not go shopping on an empty stomach!
- Stick to a shopping list.
When you go to the store, your list is your best friend. If you go with a list, you will save a ton, because you will not buy unnecessary things.
- Stick to a routine.
It may sound boring, but Monday mince and Friday fish can save you money. You know what your family likes, and by sticking to it, you will never throw out new food that no one has eaten.
- Bykosse
Sometimes you want to go out to dinner with friends, we all need it every now and then. But we suggest you just order the main course and just cut out that extra sauce that costs R30 or dessert that costs R100. Your wallet and scale will appreciate it.
- Buy only what you really need.
If you want to buy good food, ask yourself “is this a special treat?” If you are preparing for a celebration, or a special day, then it makes sense to buy the expensive product. If it’s just a normal Tuesday, and you do not feel like cooking, rethink your plans.
Savings wish: Transport
We like our vehicles a lot, but between payment, repairs and fuel it becomes very expensive to own a car. Try these money saving tips
- Use a cart.
It is not always easy for every household to get by with just one car, BUT two car payments, two insurance payments and two sets of maintenance payments can get very expensive. Think about what you can pay off by selling a vehicle. Can your household manage with one car? Or sell that old vehicle that sits in the car house and is not used.
- Consolidate ryery.
Try to make all your shopping and outings all in one ride, consider in which mall you can stop and get most of your stuff done and buy.
Savings Tips: Household Needs
Taking care of our home becomes expensive. Detergents, sponges and rags, light bulbs, batteries and lawn mowers. These are just some of the things that are needed in and around the house. Save on your household needs with these money saving tips.
- Buy in bulk.
If you can find a good deal on paper towels, shampoo, toothpaste or body cream, buy it! Buy items in bulk, especially dry items. Toilet paper and paper towels last a long time (basically forever), so if you find a sale, you can literally buy as much as you can save.
- DIY, if possible.
Around the house we all pay for work we could probably do ourselves. Decide what is more important to you: your time or your money, and then decide what you can sacrifice and what you can save. Paint your own nails, cut your child’s hair, make items right around the house rather than buying new. Repair clothes.
- Use less discarded items.
We know that paper towels, plastic bags and even paper plates are comfortable, but the items are also very expensive.
- Buy generics.
Some of us are brand snobs, but you can still find a good quality store product that does the same. So give the generic, cheaper products a chance.
If you are looking at your budget and wondering where to save, there are many ways to make these money saving tips work for your pocket.
Many of these adjustments are really painless and simple, and some become habits that contribute to huge savings in the long run! Go back from your “regular spending” to see if there are areas where you can cut back and save.
