While setting aside your previous time for a few penny stocks to watch may not net you too much over time, but it’s the spending behaviors now that you can correct to free up extra money each month so that you can put your hard-earned money to better areas such as building an emergency account, paying off debt, and saving for retirement. Starting with tracking your expenses on last month’s debit or credit card statement you can first get a good look at where each dollar is going to start, then make some tweaks beyond that.
Pack Your Lunch
It’s nice to go out to lunch during the workday, grab carryout on the way home, go to your favorite restaurant, even stop for coffee every morning, but the cost of having someone else prepare your food, serve, not to mention clean up after you, comes at a price. If you can go grocery shopping and prepare all of your meals for the week, even brew your own coffee in the morning, and you can watch hundreds of dollars add up each month pretty quickly, and then you can save going out to eat for special occasions, or at least once a week…
Consolidate Debt
If you are unable to payoff your credit card statement balance by the due date you will begin to be hit with interest, and depending on the balance on your card, that 16% APR can really make those monthly payments be mostly interest with little going towards the balance, making it all the importance of paying off debt quickly. If you are unable to paying off in the short term, then a balance transfer to a card with a promo rate, or a debt consolidation loan may make sense to have a set monthly payment amount with an end in sight.
Save on Service Charges
Let’s face it, it costs so much to go to a sporting event or concert anyways, especially if you throw in food or drinks, and you could be spending a hundred dollars for a night out, so why pay more than you have to? Buying tickets online comes with about 40% service fees, give for take, so why pay that when you can plan in advantage and buy at the box office for no fees when the go on sale, or at least walk up and buy the day of. Secondary markets can also save you money but keep in mind it works on demand so may be higher or lower than face value, not to mention having fees as well.
Don’t Miss Out on Free Money
If you currently do not have a rewards credit card you are missing out. By making the purchases that you were going to make anyways, you can earn points or cashback that could add up to hundreds of dollars a year that would otherwise be left on the table. Just keep in mind what you can afford to pay off because if you start paying interest that will offset any rewards you would be earning.