14 Money Hacks

Everyone wants to save money. They want to have enough left over at the end of the month so that they are able to put a little away. You might want to do it for some security, for your retirement, to put some towards a trip, or for many other reasons. But it can get really easy to spend the money that you have on things that aren’t important or that you just do not need and soon all of your money is gone. Here are some great tips to follow when you are ready to start saving money today.

Spend Less.

The best way to make sure that you are saving money is to spend less of it. This means that you need to find ways to cut out your spending, whether this means shopping less, eating out less, or finding ways to cut down on your bills. To start with are the extra expenses; you do not need to go out and purchase expensive shoes all of the time or go out with your friends several times a week. Stay home, rent a few cheap movies, and make supper most nights and you will be amazed at how much you can save. In addition, look through your bills and see where you might be able to cut corners. Limit the amount of channels that you have (who needs 200?) and call your cable or your phone company and see if they will give you discounts for being a loyal customer. These things may be little but they will save you a lot of money in the long run.

Budget

One thing that most people fail to do is create a budget. They feel that they do not need it or do not want to put in the work that is required for it. But a budget is a great tool if you want to make sure that all of your money is going to the right place. After creating one, you might be surprised at the areas where you are spending a lot of money and can then cut back without feeling the pinch as much. Once you create a budget, make sure that you stick with it for the long term and try not to go for it.

Buy Used

You can save a ton of money if you just learn how to purchase used things instead of new. While buying used has a stigma around it because used means old, it is time to get over that because you can find many great things for a fraction of the cost. Instead of spending $100 on a pair of jeans, you could purchase a whole wardrobe, along with some shoes and matching jewelry for about that much. Check out garage sales, online sites, and your local thrift shops for the best deals.

Get Rid of Debt

The debt that you have is often going to cost you more than it is worth. This is due to the fact that you are going to have to pay interest on it and that can add up quickly. A few dollars on a credit card or a loan is quickly going to add up and cause you a headache. Pay down your debt as quickly as possible and find ways that you will be able to avoid debt in the future. Just losing the interest payments on the money you owe will put so much more back into your pockets.

Shop Smartly

To save money you have to learn how to be a smart shopper. You cannot be taken in by the big sale signs or tricked into purchasing things that are not a good deal. Learn where the best deals are, avoid shopping if it is your weakness, and learn how to not purchase things that you do not need, even if they are on sale.

Eat In

You would be amazed at the amount of money that you might spend on eating out. Even just doing it once or twice a week can quickly add up and cost you a lot. To really save money, cut out the amount of times that you eat out and instead choose to make meals at home. You can easily feed your family several meals or more on the amount you spend at restaurants and you can put this money in savings or to pay off your debts. Of course it is fine to eat out on occasion, just try to save these for when they are special occasions.

In this declining economy, nothing is more important than managing money. Whether you are doing well financially or barely making ends meet, it is important to keep the flow of money in control. The difficult times can knock anyone off their feet, but if you manage your money properly, you won’t have much to worry about. Following are another some life hacks for managing money:

1. Make a box to save your $1 bills. At the end of each day, throw in all the cents, pennies, and $1 bills in it. Even if you throw in $3 each day, by the end of the year you will have $1095 saved.

 2. When you get a discount, buy something for sale, get something from a clearance sale at 50% off, instead of wasting the saved money on something else, put it in your savings to actually save it.

 3. When you go shopping, try to buy items in bulk. You can save more by bulk buying than you can by purchasing each item individually.

 4. When booking tickets online, use ‘private browsing’ or ‘incognito’ mode. Many websites show higher rates to returning customers.

5. Use a money management app to manage and plan your finances, and to keep a record of your expenditures. Such apps are available for smart phones, windows, OS X, etc.

6. When getting change from a shop, go for $50 or $100 bills. Research suggests that we are less likely to break $50 and $100 bills.

 7. Buy gift cards at discounted prices during holiday seasons, and use them later for shopping to save money.

 8. The amenities you use often rack up high bills. Find how much each amenity costs you, and optimize your use to lower the bills.

 9. Sell your used electronics and gadgets on the secondary market when you no longer need them. The better condition they are in, the more you can sell them for.

 10. Save up on the bills by unplugging the electronics that you are not using. For instance, a microwave uses electricity when it flashes the time all the time, even when it is not being used.

 11. You can save a lot on your bills by adjusting the thermostat. Adjust the temperature of the central heating and water heating, so it does the job properly, but do not turn it to very high. Experiment with the temperatures to find the suitable one.

 12. Follow this simple rule: spend less than what you earn.

 13. Invest in renewable energy. Install a solar plant for generating electricity and save money on the electricity bills. If you generate more energy than you need, the power supplying company will buy it from you, and will either give you the money or subtract the extra from your bills.

14. When buying books for a new college or university term, sell the old ones first, and then buy used copies of the books you need. You can save 25% to 50% of the original book cost by buying a used one instead.