Money Saving Tips

Money Saving Tips

May 23rd, 2007

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Whether you need more money just to make ends meet, are working towards getting out of debt, paying for college or buying a home, or looking for ways to increase your giving – here’s a helpful list of cash generating ideas. And a word of encouragement for those who need more cash to make ends meet. As the saying goes… “When times get tough, the tough get going.” No matter what your situation is, there are many ways to create some extra cash. You just have to pick yourself up and get to it.

• Get a second job - There are companies looking for part-time help all the time and this can be a great way to earn more cash. Just remember to consider the extra expenses you might incur while working a second job; If you’re eating out every night because you’re working 14 hours a day and no longer have time to cook for yourself, or incurring additional expenses for clothing, or transportation because the new job is across town, or the extra income has bumped you up into a much higher tax bracket… you get the point.
• Check last year’s tax instruction booklet to get a general idea of how much additional tax you may owe (it may be very little), or more importantly, for any credits or exemptions you may no longer qualify for with the higher income. Getting a second job can be a great idea; it just needs to bring in enough money to surpass those additional expenses. And in most cases, it will.
• Cut back on spending - This is usually the easiest and quickest way to create more cash, and it’s something everyone can do. If you’ve already sized down and cut back as far as you can, I challenge you to look further. Write down all of your spending for a few weeks and undoubtedly you’ll find something else that can be cut. No matter how small the savings may be, every penny counts.
• Cancel subscriptions - If you have several magazines you’re subscribed to, keep your favorite one and cancel the rest. Daily newspaper subscriptions can be very costly, consider going to a weekend only delivery (to get the coupons of course!), or cancel your subscription altogether and pick up the Sunday paper at a local store each week as needed. And if any of your subscriptions have time left, you should be able to get a refund for the difference.
• Stop buying new books - Find something good to read at the library instead, for free! Many libraries will even order new books for you to read if it’s in their budget, all you have to do is ask. Depending on how serious your bookstore habit is you could save a lot of money here.
• Use those coupons! - When you toss those weekly coupons out with the trash it’s almost like throwing away CASH. Take a few moments each week to cut out just the coupons you can really use, then look through the grocery store advertisements and match your coupons to the sales, saving double! And if your grocery store doesn’t offer a double coupon deal, try to find one that does.
• Forget your loyalty to name brands - You can save a fortune buying store brand foods, which are almost always just as good. Especially when using the item in a recipe with other ingredients – no one will notice the difference. You don’t have to commit to buying them for the rest of your life, just try them!
• Stop buying expensive gifts - When you need to create more cash, spending money on expensive store-bought gifts for your family and friends, or even yourself, doesn’t make much sense. My husband and I went through many years where we were unable to buy each other birthday, Christmas or even anniversary presents.

When giving, do not give to make money or earn favor… “Give and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap.

And that could be more important than anything else you do, not just for creating more cash, but also for living a better life!

Tags:  financial planning Making Money saving money smart shopping

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Entry Filed under: Making Money