Photo by Katie Harp
Are you trying to save up for a big purchase? Maybe it’s another vacation (me!), or a down payment for a house (Michael!), a new car? Maybe you’re just wanting to pay down some debt (also me!).
Here’s the thing. It’s tough right now. Everything just seems to be so crazy expensive. Housing prices have skyrocketed, groceries are crazy expensive, eating out costs an extra arm or leg… How do you manage to save money when the world seems to get more expensive on a daily basis?
Here are a few tips I’m trying to implement right now.
Cutting Costs
- Eat out less. I work very close to home so most days I bring my breakfast to work and go home for lunch. We’ve also done much better about eating at home since Michael moved back home. Eating breakfast out on the weekends is my usual routine. I’ve decided to cut that back to either Saturday or Sunday and not both.
- Meal plan. I’ve learned this is pretty important to the budget also. I’m doing my best to plot out the week based on our schedules so that I always know what the dinner plans are. This helps to avoid making a hangry decision to eat out impulsively and it also helps to be sure I have all the ingredients ahead of time for whatever recipe we’re making. Watching the sale ads also helps to save money because we can plan meals around what’s on sale that week.
- Check your Subscriptions. Do you need every streaming subscription? Maybe you could keep Netflix for a month or two and then switch to Hulu for a few months. I know I tend to watch a complete season of my shows on each service so alternating between services could definitely save me some money.
Do you have some recurring subscriptions that you could at least temporarily stop so you can funnel that monthly cost into your savings? Maybe it’s that gym membership that you’re not using, Spotify, Amazon, or Hello Fresh. I upgraded my Spotify to the paid subscription and I’m tempted to go back to the free version and deal with a few commercials.
Remember, this doesn’t have to be a forever thing. Once you’ve saved up for your big purchase, you can always add the item back in your budget if you really missed it. On the other hand, you might decide you no longer care and would like to keep saving on the cost of that item. - Reduce your Variable Expenses. Obviously there are bills you can’t reduce, such as your rent, car payment, student loans, etc. Other expenses you have a little more control over though, such as your groceries, fuel (to an extent), eating out, entertainment expenses, etc. Obviously, you need groceries and you have to have some fun in life so you can’t cut these expenses out totally but can you cut back on them for this lofty goal you’re saving for?
If you budget $500 a month in groceries, then try to cut that back by 10% and spend $450 this month instead and put that $50 into your savings account. Normally spend $100 a weekend going out to the bars or restaurants or whatever? What if you went to happy hour, or the matinee, or had friends over to watch a movie instead. If you save $20 a weekend then you’d have $80 at the end of the month to put towards your goal.
Bring in Extra Funds
5. Sell some things. Take a look around your house. I bet you have some things you can sell. I know my son has a Samsung Galaxy watch he could sell and make a little money. I’ve got some books and an extra TV set I don’t need.
6. Get a Part-time Job. I had multiple jobs for years. I am past that stage in my life, even for a fun vacation or to upgrade my condo but it’s an option for many. Retailers like Target are always looking for extra employees. Both my boys made deliveries for Door Dash in past years. There are so many opportunities out there with flexible hours and again, this doesn’t have to be permanent.
7. Surveys/Apps. This is definitely not a get-rich type of activity but I answer surveys on various sites and earn gift cards or PayPal payments this way. I also use Receipt Hog and Shopkick to earn a little money and/or gift cards. You can read more about these things here. Again, you’re not going to earn a fortune this way but they are super simple things you can do while watching TV or when you’re browsing your favorite store anyway.
What to do With This Extra Money
So I’ve given you a few tips to save a little extra money towards your big goal. Here is the most important thing to remember: It doesn’t do any good to earn some extra money or save some extra money if you’re going to fritter it away. Set up a dedicated savings account that is easy to deposit into but not as easy to get the money out. I have an Ally Savings account that I really like. It’s currently paying 4.25% APR and it allows me to separate the money into different buckets. I currently have a bucket for Christmas money, Travel, and my Emergency Fund.
I also throw any surprise money directly into my savings account. Found money is anything you weren’t expecting. It might be a tax refund. I recently got $20 back from an overpayment at my doctor’s office. My credit card credited my account $20 recently because I’d made three gas purchases with it during a specific time period. Getting a pay raise this year? Lucky you! You’re not used to this money anyway, can you take at least half of the increase and direct it to your savings?
Any other tips you want to share?
