Genius Money-Saving Hacks Perfect for Anyone on a Tight Budget
By The Money Manual There are so many strategies we could implement that would help us all save more money, and putting them together can add up to big savings fast. That’s why we’ve rounded up our favorite money-saving hacks.
We could all do better by implementing just a few of these into our daily lives. Some require a bit of a lifestyle change, and some are so easy you’ll wonder why you haven’t been doing them all along!
Save On Household Bills
Source: Envato
Negotiate Your Biggest Monthly Bills
You’re probably wasting money on bills like cable, cell phone, and insurance. Yes, your bills need to be paid. But what you may not know is that many of them are negotiable!
[offer_link]Rocket Money[/offer_link] is the ultimate hack for getting those bills to take a smaller chunk out of your budget every month. Connect your bills to your Rocket Money account or upload them. Then, Rocket Money’s expert negotiators will go to work trying to lower your bills while ensuring you maintain the same level of service. There’s a good chance they’ll find you some serious savings.
Never Pay a Late Fee Again
Paying your bills late costs you money, and often in more ways than one. Depending on the bill, late payments could mean late fees, overdraft charges, and even dings on your credit report. Do whatever you can to pay your bills on time and avoid these costs. The payoff will be huge.
If this an area where you’re struggling to stay organized, Rocket Money can help! The “recurring view” in the Rocket Money app shows you when all your bills are coming up so you’ll never be caught by surprise. And setting up and following a budget with Rocket Money can help you ensure that you’ll have the funds available when you need them.
Save On Paying Off Debt
The Easiest Way to Save on Credit Card Debt
If you’re saddled with credit card debt, consolidation may be the key to getting out. Credible is an online marketplace that provides borrowers with competitive, personalized loan offers from multiple, vetted lenders in real time.
Using Credible, you can compare rates in just two minutes. Then, you’ll know whether it will be possible to reduce the amount of interest you’re paying on your credit card debt.
Credible is so confident in its rates that they’ll give you $200 if you find and close a loan with a better rate elsewhere!
Save on Credit Card Debt With Credible
Read Your Statements Thoroughly Every Month
Putting bills on autopay can make our lives easier, but it can also make us more complacent. That’s why many people don’t read their credit card or bank statements thoroughly every month.
But scams are a sad reality we need to stay vigilent against. And even if nothing dishonest is going on, mistakes happen. If a scam or mistake is costing you money, the faster you catch it, the easier it will be to resolve the issue and protect your accounts.
Get Cash for Your Home Without Taking on Debt
If you need cash — and maybe you need a lot of cash — the prospect of taking out a traditional loan with a high interest rate can seem really daunting and really expensive.
If you own a home, there’s another option you probably don’t know about for getting cash — a home equity investment with Hometap.
Not to be confused with a home equity loan — which you have to make monthly payments on — with a home equity agreement, Hometap will invest in your home giving you a lump sum of money in exchange for a share of its future value.
Again, this isn’t a loan. When you sell your home down the line, Hometap takes a share of the proceeds.
Here’s exactly how it works:
-
- Request an investment via Hometap (up to 25% of your home’s value, or $600,000 max).
-
- If Hometap agrees to take a stake in your home, it will send you the money (deducting 3.5% in closing fees).
-
- Once you have the money, do whatever you need to with it! That might mean paying off credit card debt or finally tackling that kitchen renovation.
When you ultimately sell your home, Hometap gets a previously agreed-up percentage of your home’s value. (So if the value of your home goes down, Hometap will share in the depreciation.)
If you need cash and own your home, this option is worth considering because you won’t be taking on debt.
Save Big On Student Loan Repayments
If you have private student loans (the key here is private), you may be able to shave thousands off of what you ultimately pay on them. Because private student loan borrowers usually first take out these loans when they have a limited credit profile (as young adults, starting college), they’re treated as high-risk borrowers by lenders initially.
But your situation might have changed dramatically since graduating and entering the workforce.
If you have good credit, a decent-paying job, and have graduated, you’re likely a prime candidate to refinance. Stop paying the high interest rates you had no choice but to agree to back in the day.
Credible can be a great ally in your refinancing search. Their online marketplace allows you to easily compare and contrast rates and options from multiple borrowers at once. You’ll also get actual rates in just two minutes.
Save on Credit Card Debt
We mentioned earlier how you can save money on your everyday bills. You may not have thought the same could be possible with credit card debt, but you do have options!
- Call and negotiate with the credit card companies yourself. This could include requesting a reduced payoff amount, late payment forgiveness, or a reduced interest rate while you attempt to pay off your debt.
- Get a balance transfer card with a 0% introductory period of 18 months or more.
- Work with a debt settlement company to reduce the amount you owe.
Be aware that any negotiations with creditors could negatively impact your credit, at least temporarily, or may have tax implications. You’ll want to do your research and consider consulting with a financial advisor.
Save On Groceries and Shopping
Source: Envato
Earn Cash Back for Your Purchases
You have to buy groceries, but they can take a big chunk out of your budget. That’s why earning cash back on your grocery trips can be a great way to save!
With InboxDollars, you can find special offers in the app that you can add to your shopping list. Then, you’ll earn the amount of cash back displayed for that offer when you purchase it.
Other ways to earn cash or gift cards with InboxDollars include playing games, reading emails, and taking surveys.
Cut Your Own Carrots
And pineapple. And mango. And watermelon. You get the point — it’s more expensive to buy precut fruit and vegetables. Likewise, making your own salad, guacamole, hummus, etc., is generally much cheaper than buying it premade. So put on some tunes or a show, cut your own fruit and vegetables, whip up your own salads and dips, and save some cash!
Swapping Clothing > Buying Clothing
Rather than heading to the mall and spending a ton on new clothes, host a clothing swap with your friends and family. Go through your closet and dresser and find some clothes that are in good shape but that you never wear, and exchange them for some new threads without spending a penny. You’ll also win some brownie points with your friends for organizing.
If the swap doesn’t go as well as you’d hoped, you can go thrift shopping together. Make a list of what you need so you won’t buy whatever catches your eye and wind up with things you’ll never have an occasion to wear. Bonus points for thrifting in wealthy areas, where you could find high-end pieces at bargain prices.
Buy in Bulk
It may not seem intuitive, but the more of an item that you buy, the less you end up paying in the long run. There are a few caveats, of course.
- Be mindful of expiration dates, and don’t buy a giant container of anything you aren’t confident you’ll use up in time.
- Avoid trying out something new in bulk just because you usually like the brand or because you like the ingredients. Always test small before going big.
- Compare the per-ounce price to the per-ounce price of the standard size to make sure you are, in fact, coming out ahead. Sales on standard-sized items may shift the pricing in their favor.
With all this in mind, get yourself a Costco membership, or a membership to another wholesaler, and take advantage of buying in bulk! Live in a small space? Partner up with a few friends to go in on buying bulk toilet paper, chips, and more to reap those savings without giving up all your storage space.
Buy Generic Whenever Possible
The generic brands of products are always cheaper, sometimes even by a few dollars. And many of these items are indistinguishable from the name brands, especially when it comes to foods and beverages. That said, there are a few items where it can be worth spending more to avoid frustration and disappointment, including:
- Batteries
- Toilet paper and paper towels
- nutritional supplements
But of course, if you’ve found generics of even these products that are working for you, fantastic!
Wait for Sales
This may seem obvious, but for impulse shoppers, it’s important to remember – there’s always another sale coming up! You can find lists online of which holiday sales tend to be the best times to buy which items. It’s especially worth waiting for sales on high-dollar items if you don’t need them immediately, like mattresses, appliances, and electronics.
Save On Transportation
Walk, Bike, Carpool
Choose the transportation method that’s going to cost you the least amount of money. If you live close to work, opt to walk or bike rather than taking your car and spending gas money. If that’s not an option, why not carpool with some co-workers? The savings will add up fast.
Want to go for extreme savings? Consider whether you even need a car if you find yourself able to walk or bike comfortably most of the time. If that describes your situation, add up the cost of taking a ride-sharing service on the occasions when you do need your car and compare that to your monthly payment plus gas. You could save hundreds a month!
Curb Spending and Save More for Your Goals
Source: Envato
Manage Your Money And Look For Jobs In One Place
Making money isn’t easy, and saving it can be just as hard. Wouldn’t it be nice to do all of that in one place? Any advantage here is going to be a good thing.
Acorns is that one-stop-shop allowing you to:
- Save
- Invest
- Start preparing for retirement
- Round up your change on purchases and invest it
They also have a new really cool feature within the app that’s all about growing your income: You can search for jobs within the app.
Within the Acorns jobs feature, you’ll be able to explore millions of full-time, part-time and remote jobs to earn money and potentially boost your income.
It goes without saying that boosting your income is a key to being able to save more and grow your wealth.
And when you use Acorns to boost your income with a better job, you can then turn around and make sure that that money is working for you within the Acorns app by investing. There’s really no other app like it.
Try Going Cash-Only to Keep On Track
Are impulse buys throwing your budget off track? With credit cards, it can be easy to shop without thinking about the price. To help put each purchase in perspective, try only carrying and using cash for a month. You may find yourself spending more mindfully when you can see the money disappearing before your eyes!
Learn how to use cash envelope categories to stay within your budget and grow your wealth.
Resist the Lure of Emotional Shopping
Breakups are tough… and so is the bill at the end of an emotional shopping day. Instead of grabbing your wallet at the end of a rough day where you got bad news or something upsetting happened, find a different coping mechanism. It might be binging your favorite show, taking a relaxing bath, going for a run, or treating yourself to one of your favorite foods. Your bank account will thank you.
Stop Saving Your Payment Information On E-Commerce Sites
There’s a reason e-commerce sites allow customers to save their payment information: It makes checking out easier, and people may part with their money more quickly. Make parting with your money harder as a rule. By not saving your payment information on e-commerce sites, and making it harder to check out, you’ll be less likely to impulse shop and more likely to save money.
Actually Sit Down And Make A Budget (Like, Now)
It’s a classic piece of advice for a reason – it’s one of the most effective ways for you to keep your savings account from springing a leak. Take an afternoon to yourself and really work on making a budget that works with your lifestyle. Then do whatever you have to do to stick with it.
Feel overwhelmed at the thought of gathering all your financial info in one place and setting a budget? Then you may want to check out a budgeting app like Rocket Money. Rocket Money makes it easy to consolidate your financial life and set and stick to a budget, and the basic plan is free.
Ask Your Landlord for a Discount
In trying times, it never hurts to ask for discounts. Given rent is likely your biggest expense, even a small percentage change can add up to big saving in the long run.
Incentives you can provide include offering to extend your lease term or offering to take over a responsiblity that currently falls to the landlord in your contract. That could be anything from lawn maintenance to pressure washing the home’s exterior.
If the task you would take over will cost you in any way, just do the math first and make sure the discount would be worthwhile.
Take Free Fitness Classes
Whether it’s spin, pilates, or yoga, fitness classes are an excellent, but often expensive, method for getting fit. Thankfully, most fitness studios offer discounted or free classes for first-time visitors. If you take the time to source them out, you’ll have a robust list of free fitness classes to take advantage of. And once you’ve gone through them all, you’ll know which, if any, could be worth paying for once you have more money. And of course, you can find any kind of fitness classes you can think of for free on YouTube.
Stop Buying Gifts
Birthdays and holidays may be fun, but they often come with the expectation that you spend a lot of money buying gifts for people. Cut down on those gift prices by DIYing your presents. Knit a scarf, mason jar some granola, bake cupcakes. Just make something that shows you made an effort while also saving money. Over time, that adds up to more money in your high-yield savings account!
Leave Your Wallet at Home
If you’re taking a walk, picking up a delivery, or just stopping by a friend’s house to say hi, try and leave your wallet at home so you won’t be tempted to part with your hard-earned cash somewhere along the way. If you don’t have any money on you, how can you possibly spend it? Just tuck your license into your pocket if you’ll be driving, and put it back in your wallet as soon as you get home so you don’t forget.
Look Forward to Happy Hour
There’s a reason it’s called Happy Hour: because people are happy to be having their favorite cocktail for half-price! Try and always take advantage of happy hour so you aren’t spending a fortune on overpriced cocktails. Hunt down the happy hours with free and discounted food to double up the savings.
