Home Phone Bill – Look for ways to reduce the monthly fee. Call less and remove added services you don’t need. You could also try to use one of these services instead.
__Vonage___
__magicJack_
__Skype_____
Cell Phone Bill - Your bill can be reduced by changing to a lower priced plan and using less minutes. If you are out of contract and don’t mind going back to the Stone Age you could cancel the bill out all together.
Credit Cards – Call them up and ask for a
reduction in your interest rate. They usually take the time to work
with you on this and in many cases reduce the APR. If they don’t, see
if you can qualify for a card with no fees and a lower rate. If you
do qualify then transfer your balance to that card. Try to get a card
that gives you 0% interest for the first year on any balance transfers,
but also be careful that the rate won’t shoot up too high after the
first year. The savings here could be huge depending on your balance.
Cable & Satellite Bills – Well if you
have the fully loaded package and you are strapped for cash this could
be a good place to reduce monthly expenses. Switch to the basic
programming packages and remove sports packages. If you can live
without this item then cancel it and enjoy the extra dollars or use
them on necessities. Substitutions for this entertainment include
going to the library and checking movies out for free. The library
could also have music CDs and other fun entertainment for free. Maybe
use some of these free online entertainment sources.
__Invision_____TV & Video
__Hulu________TV & Video__Pandora_____Radio
__Music_______ Music Videos
Gym Membership – You may be paying this every month and not even notice it’s still happening. Many of us sign-up and continue paying this monthly bill thinking that one day we may actually go workout. If you can go without this one and you are not stuck in a contract then it might be a great bill to drop. As a general rule most people can exercise just fine using their own body weight. Look around your town for free options and outdoor activities as a substitute for the gym. You can also find yoga or aerobic classes that are done on a donation basis if you want a substitute for the classes. And if you still want the counter weights then consider making a onetime purchase for a home gym.
__Bowflex_Catalog____
__American_Fitness___
Car Wash - Wash
your own car. If you get your car washed once a week for $25, then
there goes $1200 for the year. That’s on the low end of the costs.
After the tip and extra details the numbers get pretty high. Get fit
and enjoy your savings by washing and waxing your own car.
Dry Cleaners - Skip the dry cleaners
unless your clothing requires it. The savings can get pretty high in
this area. Wash, dry and press your own clothes to savings.
Memberships - Cancel monthly online
memberships to things you may not need. Like a dating site. If you
are strapped for cash then going out on dates probably isn’t a good
idea anyways. See if you have any automatic monthly charges happening
that you may have forgotten about.
Transportation - Use public transportation when it’s safe and worth the effort.
Groceries - Buy store brand, private label or generic groceries. These are getting better in quality and are worth trying most of times. They don’t always match the quality of the brand name item, but if they get close and times are tough saving 20% or more could be worth it.
Water - Don’t buy bottled water. Get one of the above or below kitchen counter type water filter systems. Then get a glass or metal container to haul around with you for drinking. The savings here are obvious. The better water filtration systems will cost about 9cents per gallon after the cost of the system. After you get a system you can drop another $500 or so dollars a year from your expenses. You might even drink more water after knowing it won’t cost you as much.
Beverages - Skip the $5.00 coffee, latte and teas. Easier said than done right? Add up the savings and you might change your mind fast. If you buy these three times a week then you can kiss around $1000 a year away. All that said, it’s still a pretty tasty way to blow a grand.
Smoking - Quit smoking. Another easier
said than done candidate. If you smoke one pack a day then you could
easily be kissing your health and $2000 a year away. To help quantify
the financial loss here we can pretend to invest this $2000 in a
retirement IRA yielding 9% over 40 years to give you a final total of
around $250,000. Now let’s add in the increased health & home
insurance costs. Car depreciation when you try and sell your smoked up
car and money spent trying to clean and hide the smell. Washing clothe
and furniture more often. Cost of chewing gum, and tooth whitening per
year. Consider all this, include lost time and other expenses often
associated with smoking and one may consider trying to kick the habit
for good this time.
Loans Credit & Insurance
General Insurance - Consider going with the higher deductible on some of your insurance plans. The savings over a certain period of time could possibly cover the deductible going forward. Instead put the extra money in an interest bearing account and reserve it for deductible payments. Be realistic on what you could afford to pay should an emergency require you to cover that higher deductible.
Auto Insurance - Shop around to find better rates on your auto insurance or if you really like your company talk to them about reducing your rate and maybe unlocking some extra savings. You could get breaks on premiums for having your car parked in a garage, being married, having certain security features, driving less miles to work, if you moved recently you could be in a zip code they consider to be safer and may give you more saving because of that. Taking driver safety courses could also help ease the cost of auto insurance. The point is to call them and ask lots of question about discounts and changes that could reduce your price.
__Insure_Lane____________
__Secure_Insurance_Quotes_
Loans - Refinance school, car, home, appliance and other loans if the new rate and fees are beneficial to you.
Home Mortgage - Check if refinancing
your home mortgage is a good move for you. You have to be very
careful that the fees involved with doing this don’t wipe out the saving
you realize from the rate reduction. Also make sure that the terms
of the loan are to your benefit and fair to you. Watch out for
adjustable rates and other complicated lending products. Adjustable
rate products are good for some people and problematic for others.
Always pay attention to what the current cost of borrowing is because
it can save you lots of money. I have met some people that are still
paying 12%+ interest on their mortgage, when they could have been
paying 5% or 7%. It’s always worth a look. This could save you
thousands when it is done correctly.
__Lending_Tree__
__Quicken_Loans_
Homeowners Insurance - See in you can get a lower rate on your homeowner & flood insurance.
Home Energy Cuts
Use alternative energy sources to power your life. Solar, Hydrogen, and Wind are offering some huge future savings to those willing to change methods. Also, look for tax breaks that could be available to you for buying or using alternative or cost efficient items, like hybrid cars, or solar panels on your home.
__TheHydrogenCompany__
__NorthernTool__________
__SolarHome____________
__GreenAndMore_________
Keep the cold and heat out of your home
by, sealing windows, weatherstripping, caulking doors. When
weatherstripping pay attention to the type of windows you have.
Double-hung requires two forms of weatherstripping and casement windows
only need one. These fast changes should help you lower your heating
and cooling bills.
__ConstructionComplete___
__AceHardware__________
Use a programmable thermostat to regulate your homes temperature. You set them to heat or cool your home before you get there. If you get one you won’t have to worry about not turning off the heat before you go to bed or leave for work. Buy them for around $100 and potentially save $200or more dollars for the year. These are especially helpful for elderly folks who may need some extra care and attention.
Use energy-efficient light bulbs and devises. They could potentially save you 30% on lighting costs. Also, the bulbs usually last many years longer than regular bulbs.
Improve the efficiency of your water heater, furnace, air and heating systems. Change and clean all air filters when needed. Wrap your water heater in approved materials and get a timer. Also, seal all of the ducts and channels that your air heating and cooling system flow. These light changes and maintenance could save you around 25%.
Wash your dishes by hand in minimal, but safe and comfortable amount of water. The dishwasher uses electricity, gas and water to get the job done. Save the dollars and get some light exercise while you’re at it.
Hang washed clothes out to dry. Get some rope, clothes pins and you are good to go. If you can wash your clothes the old fashion way then more power to you. If not, then one more light change would be washing all clothes on the cold water setting to save on heating bills.
Instead of turning up the heat in your home, consider wearing more clothing layers to offset the cold indoor temperatures.
Learn how to read and understand the meters around your home. You can see how much water, gas, and electricity you are using. You may even discover that you have a energy leak somewhere that could have been costing you for some time.
Gas & Fuel Cuts
Avoid driving like a wild man. Aggressive driving habits can consume more fuel than safe rational driving. Increase your savings and the safety of others by avoiding racing styles of driving.
Try to limit the time your car spends idling. Turn it off
when you know you will be idling for more than a minute and it’s safe
to do so. This might save you 15-19%
Remove any excess weight you may be carrying around in
your car. The trunk of your car is a good place to start looking for
weight reducing items. 100 extra pounds in your car could mean the
difference between saving 2% on gas or losing 2%.
Many vehicles will start to consume more fuel when driving
over 60 mph. Increase fuel economy by observing the speed limit.
Word on the street is that using your vehicles cruise
control system could save you some gas. Highway driving is the best
time to use the cruise control function for savings.
Using overdrive gears is said to save some gas and reduce engine wear.
Make sure your car is properly tuned. A faulty oxygen
sensor is known to be a major gas waster. Fixing this item when broken
could possibly save you 40% in fuel costs.
Look into Eco Tuning your car. It helps you tune your cars electrical system for fuel efficiency.
Checking and replacing clogged air filters could possibly help you save around 10%.
There are conflicting reports about proper tire inflation
helping gas mileage. Either way it’s a safe thing to do and if it
does help with fuel economy then great. Also, under or over inflated
tires usually wear down faster and need replacement earlier than
properly inflated tires.
Using the manufacturer’s recommended motor oil grade is
said to increase fuel economy. And look for oil that is energy
conserving with friction-reducing additives.
Roll up those windows to reduce air drag in your car and potentially save 5-10% when driving on the highways.
If you are using the A/C then turn it off 5-10 minutes before you reach your destination.
Make sure the gas station is not charging you a fee to
use credit. Some gas stations will sneak in .25+ cents per transaction
to your gas purchase. Double check this is not happening to you.
That maybe the only reason the price per gallon is less at that gas
station. They just charge you a fee and get back the supposed savings
they showed on the price per gallon. If you are the type that only puts
in two or three survival gallons each time you fill up, then this
affects you the most.
Don’t drive. Instead walk or use some other mode of transportation. Get in shape and save some dollars.
Buy food less frequently by getting all your groceries
for the week and making a list so you don’t drive to the store more
often than you need.
Use a gas card that gives you rewards and has no fees.
You may get a few free gallons and 5% back on you purchases.
__Credit-Land__
__Credit_______
When you fuel up at the station, don’t fill up the tank.
If you drive with less gas weight then that’s less fuel burned hauling
around the extra gas weight.
Try to buy your fuel when the trading price of oil is
down. This one is more complicated because you need to watch the
financial markets. But, if you can buy your gas a day or two before
political turmoil starts in a oil producing country then you could save
a few dollars if you buy before the price spike. Or if you figure
that there will be a glut of oil reported that will reduce demand and
lower costs.
Avoid fueling up at the first gas station after a long
stretch. This gas station will likely have a much higher price per
gallon vs. the next stop. If you have to fill up then do it, but if
you can hold out for a better less desperate stop then it could help
save a few bucks.
Hang out for awhile after a major sporting event or
concert. Don’t get stuck for half an hour trying to get out with the
rest of the herd. Hang-back, maybe meet the stars and athletes or relax
somewhere in the building. When you leave it should only take a few
minutes saving you from stress and gas waste.
Change your big snow tires for your all-weather tires as
soon as it’s safe to do so. They are usually heavier and the deep
rough tread could reduce your fuel economy.
Get that cold weather ice buildup off your car before
driving. The weight of all those icicles and increased wind resistance
may cost you some mileage.
Take removable roof racks and roof storage cases off when
you aren’t using them. Reduce the weight and resistance these items
can put on your vehicle.
Avoid accelerating up to red lights and stopped traffic.
It’s not always a hit the gas or slam the breaks situation. Sometimes
it’s good to let the car use its current momentum to get you where you
need to go while keeping to the speed limits.
Accelerating before a hill without speeding might be better on fuel economy than doing it while climbing.
Parking your car to avoid leaving a space in reverse might help some with fuel economy.
Travel the shortest route from point A to B. Avoid hills, and rough terrain when possible.
Get your errands done in one well planned trip. Less back
and forth means more savings. And less wear on your engine.
Spend less time in traffic. Leave for work before the rush
and leave work after rush hour. You may even get a promotion for
being first in the office and last to leave.
Get involved with carpools and ride-sharing programs. Save the gas and strengthen your work relationships.
Work from home whenever possible.
Use public transportation when it’s safe and worth the effort.
Buy a vehicle that gets you around for less.