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Tuesday, January 29, 2008

10 Easy Ways to Save Money


Lets face it, just about everyone would like to save money, but do you really try?

You probably think you already do try your best to save but I'll give you some great tips to help you save even more money.

Tip #1: Use coupons.
If you don't use coupons, your missing out on saving money each time you go to the store.

Tip #2:Make a grocery list and stick to it.
You'd be amazed how much less you'll spend if you buy only the things on your list, instead of buying freely as you shop. I know myself if I go food shopping without a list I can easily spend $200, but with my shopping list of what we actually need I'll spend between $75 - $120.
That's a HUGE savings right there. If you save just $40 a week using a list, in 4 weeks that's $200! Imagine if you save $100 or more a week, how much that savings will add up too!

Tip #3: Save your change.
This can add up to thousands a year! I know a friend who saved change each year for a family vacation. All from saving her change!

Tip #4: Use rebates.
Most grocery stores have rebate centers. Rebates are a great way to save money. In fact, you can often save more with rebates than with coupons.

Tip #5: Watch for online sales and/or coupons.
You can find many money saving websites that offer or show you where to get coupons on a regular basis. When you find a good site, sign up for their feed, or newsletter so you don't miss out on any great deals if you forget to visit their site.

Tip #6: Rent movies instead of going to the movies.
Going to the movies can get expensive, especially if you're a family.
Rent a movie and stay home,and make your own popcorn and drinks.
Just to buy 4 people popcorn and drinks costs at least $20, maybe more. Stay home and buy 1 bottle of soda for 99 cents and a box of microwave popcorn for around $3. Just for the popcorn and drinks alone you'd be saving $16, and you still have to pay for the movie tickets of about $7 each, plus maybe candy. As you can see you can easily save $50 or more by staying home to watch movies!

Tip #7: Cancel your long-distance service.
Buy a prepaid phone card instead from one of the wholesale price clubs, or from many places online. You'll save on fees, cap how much you spend on long-distance calls and get some of the lowest per-minute rates, often with fewer restrictions than those imposed by calling plans.
Do a search online to find the best rates. You can buy a 500-minute calling card for $17.35, some even less. You'd be paying about 3.5 cents per minute.
Heres a list to find the best rates on calling cards.

Tip #8: Turn your old clothes in for cash.
I'm sure you have clothes you don't like or no longer wear, or furniture and appliances you no longer use or Star Wars memorabilia that you've grown tired of. They all have cash potential.
Donate them and get a tax deduction, or sell them on ebay, sell them to consignment shops, or have a yard sale.

Tip #9: Pay your entire credit card bill each month.
You can avoid interest charges, which may be considerable. If you are unable to pay off a large balance, pay as much as you can. Try to shift the remaining balance to a credit card with a lower annual percentage rate. You can find listings of credit card plans, rates, and terms on the Internet, in personal finance magazines, and in newspapers.

Tip #10: Put the amount you saved from coupons, rebates, change, etc. into a drawer every time you save. At the end of the month, tally the proceeds and deposit them into an interest-bearing savings account, or into your regular account if you want.

As you can see from just these tips you can save hundreds, if not thousands each month by just making small changes to how you shop and live.

Watch how good you feel as your money starts to grow, and at the end of the year you can buy a new car, or go on a cruise, or a family shopping spree, or better yet keep on saving.

Saving is easy & fun if you try.
The more you save, the more you are going to want to save.