Jan 05 2009
Eight easy Ways to Save Money and Cut Costs in 2009
Everyone wants to cut costs and save some money in the climate of fear over Wall Street. I threw together eight easy ways to cut back and save in the New Year.
1, Changing Internet providers. It seems that the market changes and prices go up and down, make the most of the deals out there. Some require that you have a land line, and if that is one of the things you wanna cut out in the New Year, something to consider.
2. Cut out the land line if you only use the cell phone. There are a lot of us out there that only use our cell phones. If you are one of them, get rid of it. I have found that even if you are on a Do Not Call List, you STILL get calls from the FOP and other organizations that seem to be exempt from the DNC list. I find it nothing but a hassle personally. I say CUT IT!.
3. Do you have a yard that you hardly use except to let the dog poop in? Why not grow your own food in it. Talk about a SAVINGS bonanza!!!! My in-laws made up three small areas in their large yard, that they built up and squared with wood, so it wouldn’t over grow and into the yard. it also protected it from the dog. They grew so much in those small spaces they were literally giving it away. They canned food, froze food, and mad up enough to keep them through the winter with sweet Jersey corn and all kinds of good stuff. THEY know how to save and have taught me a few things about saving.
4. My In laws buy EVERYTHING they can in BULK. They also utilize freezers for maximum storage capabilities...2 of them. I have freezer envy personally. I want several so I can store up more. However…that’s where they put an entire garden’s worth of food that they grew this summer. We were lucky enough to feed off of them for FREE a lot this year. I do not have a yard, but I do get as many free veggies as I can from THEM. I want to learn how to do Box gardening on my deck. That’s for another discussion.
5. Take your lunch at least a few days a week and save the money you usually use for that lunch out and put it in a jar…watch the savings go up. We all know that we can drop a fair amount out at lunch. I used to work in Center City, Philadelphia and I had to pay at least $7- $10 a day for lunch and sometimes breakfast out. Okay… say you take you lunch three days ad week and save that money, and just for arguments sake, sometimes you buy a muffin for breakfast too, so $10 a day. That’s $30 a week for a year, which adds up to a grand total of $1,560 a year saved for whatever you want….how about THAT???
6. Oil prices are lower right now, but the price of Heat is always of concern in the winter. If you live alone, one of the best things you can do is to put your heater on a timer that lowers it while you are out and brings it up just before you get home so that you can save on it during the day It makes perfect fiscal common sense. You can save 5%- 10% just by lowering your thermostat 5 Degrees a day during the day. If you have animals at home be kind to them and don’t lower it too far.
7. Printing Coupons from online and actually working your meals around them would save untold amounts on your food budget. Some women report saving up to 50% on their food bill by only using coupons, and being organized. How’s that for amazing savings on your bills? Give it a try for the New Year!
8. We are considering cutting back to basic cable services to save money as well. My husband admitted we didn’t really get to watch all the games he’s paying for on that $50 a year package for more football or more hockey. He had barely the time to keep up on the regularly scheduled games. As for Movies, we can always get “Net Flicks”, which for $15 a month for unlimited movies is a deal. No late fees either. “Cable Premium Packages” aren’t what they are cracked up to be really, and certainly not worth pay for monthly for us.
