"83 Little Known Secrets To Saving Money |
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Welcome To Day 4
31.
Unsecured
Creditors
Make
a list of all your unsecured debts along with creditor contact
information and payoff amount so you can have an accurate record of how
much you owe. Choose one creditor, possibly a credit card, and focus on
paying off that bill. Once
you have achieved that goal, choose another.
Start with the debt that has the highest interest rate since it
is the one costing you the most money. 32.
Off-Season
The
next time you plan a vacation, consider off-season.
Generally, the prices for airfare, hotel, and cars are
substantially lower than traveling during peak time.
If you look at all your options, you will find that in many
cases, you can come close to the date you would like to travel. As an example, flying to Hawaii through June 8 is considered
off-season while June 9 is peak. One
day makes a huge difference in price. 33.
Buy
versus Rent or Lease
When
looking at homes or automobiles check the rent and lease options.
Depending on your particular situation, renting or leasing may be
a better financial decision. Weigh
all your options and see which choice makes the best sense from a
financial standpoint. 34.
Buffet
Meals
When
taking the family out to dinner, consider restaurants that have buffets.
In many cases, the prices are outstanding and a parent can share
with a small child. In
addition, many buffets are “all you can eat” and of course, there is
something for everyone. 35.
Cable
Networking
If
you have a computer upstairs and another downstairs and you use
high-speed data, have one of the computers be the primary computer and
the other be the backup. This
way, you are only charged once for Internet access and a small fee of
$10 to $15 a month for the second computer.
This is a great bargain! 36.
Proper
Maintenance
Purchase
an annual home warranty policy. These
policies can run from $350 to $500 a year and offer extremely valuable
options. The way most of
these policies work is that if you have something break, such as your
garage door, dishwasher, air conditioner, etc., for a minimal fee,
usually $50 to $100, a serviceperson will come to your home to fix the
item. Best of all, if you
have five things broken and the same serviceperson is qualified to fix
all of them, you are still charged the $50 to $100 fee once, not five
times. For your automobile,
you might look into purchasing an extended warranty.
If you ever need either one of these policies, they will save you
tremendous value. 37.
Company
Stock / 401K
Contributing
to employee stock options or a 401K plan is a wonderful opportunity to
save. Most companies will
match your contribution, sometimes dollar for dollar, up to a maximum,
generally 6%. From each
paycheck, you can have a small amount of money deducted (1%) and up.
Over time, that money grows and since the business is providing a
match, you get free money. 38.
Family
Haircuts
Look
for hair styling shops that offer family deals or learn how to cut hair
yourself. Many families
take care of their own haircuts and put the money they would have spent
aside as a vacation fund. This
system works out perfectly. 39.
Wants
versus Needs
Make
sure the thing you want to spend your money on is a “need” and not a
“want.” Sometimes this
can seem like a fine gray line but if you stick to the need list, you
will spend less. |