Financial Survival Tips
- Consider a part-time job or additional hours at full-time job for you, your spouse or teenage children.
- Look for a better paying job, go for career counseling and/or seek additional training in your present job.
- Study payroll deductions, particularly credit union and insurance costs, to see if they can be reduced. Eliminate optional payroll deductions (bonds, charity etc.).
- Be sure to change tax deductions when there is a change in your family situation (marriage, baby, etc.) to ensure that your tax withholdings are correct for your life situation.
- Can government cash benefits be applied for (i.e., Social Security, welfare, food stamps, unemployment benefits)?
- Get paid for a hobby or service such as babysitting, sewing, home repair, car repair and selling craft items. Trading services such as child care can also be beneficial.
- Refinance your home, car, or personal loans to reduce the payments.
- Re-evaluate life insurance and auto insurance and compare premiums & deductibles with other companies. Can some insurance policies be eliminated? Some types of coverage have little or no value (i.e., whole life, credit card, full coverage on an old car). Keeping all policies with one company can sometimes save money.
- Rent out a room and/or find a roommate.
- Have a garage sale.
- Donate unused clothing, furniture and home products for a tax deduction.
- Check to see if your savings invested at the highest possible interest rate.
- Plan a week's menu in advance and make a shopping list based on the menu and coupons that are being offered that week.
- Shop alone. Avoid taking children to prevent impulse shopping.
- Stick to your list: Never shop when hungry.
- Make as few trips as possible to the store. Limit the time for shopping.
- If you have a freezer, use it to stock up on sale items.
- Don't overbuy perishables because of a sale.
- Buy in season. Fruits and vegetables are most expensive at the beginning and end of season.
- Substitute store brands for name brands whenever possible. Use the Sunday paper advertising specials to see weekly sale items.
- Use coupons only if you plan to buy that item.
- Avoid extensive use of frozen "heat & eat" food.
- Take lunches to school and work.
- Give up restaurant eating, if possible. Try alternating meals with a friend or another family.
- Try to avoid eating meat every day - substitute meat with beans or stir fry vegetables.
- Buy day old bread products and freeze them for future use.
- Don't skip regular medical and dental check-ups. Preventative measures are usually less expensive in the long run.
- Ask your doctor to prescribe generic drugs. Also, shop by phone for best price before buying a prescription. Ask your doctor for sample prescriptions.
- Follow directions exactly when taking prescriptions or else your drug may not work. Also store drugs in a dry place, not the bathroom.
- Join an HMO.
- Investigate services offered by the health department or immunization clinics. Sometimes walk-in clinics are less expensive than emergency rooms.
- Read your health insurance policy so that you understand restrictions and cost containment policies.
- Check your insurance and your spouse's plan for duplicate coverage.
- Get a second opinion to prevent unneeded procedures. Send test results from tests already taken to avoid duplicate charges.
- Schedule surgeries early in the week to avoid weekend charges.
- Review your hospital bill for errors. Watch for overcharges, billing fees, duplicate charges, or charges for services you didn't have.
- Carpool or use public transportation.
- Plan your days so fewer car trips are necessary.
- Try to survive on one car.
- Inexpensive car maintenance such as an oil change every 3,000 miles, and regular tune-ups may help avoid costly major repairs.
- Inflate tires to proper level to reduce wear and rotate tires regularly.
- Evaluate and cut auto insurance costs by comparison shopping for higher deductibles, and discounts on automatic seat belts, air bags, and theft devices. Keep one deductible amount in the savings account in case you have an accident.
- Consider less expensive housing. As a rule-of-thumb, do not pay more than 30% of net income for housing.
- Carry replacement value insurance on the house and contents. Increase your deductible to reduce premium costs.
- Learn to do minor home repairs. Keep everything operating well to avoid major repairs. File copies of appliance operating manuals in one central location.
- Set thermostat for 68 degrees in winter, 78 degrees in summer. If you can do without air conditioning, shut it off.
- Have your local utility company conduct an audit to identify areas of waste. Weatherproof windows and doors.
- Go on the budget plan for electric and gas bills.
- Have appliances checked for efficiency (utility companies usually do this for free).
- Keep one phone and give up call waiting, answering service etc. Time long distance calls with an egg timer. Use basic phone service.
- Have the phone company block 986 and 900 numbers.
- Save water by air drying dishes: turn off dishwasher after final rinse and open the door.
- Check your fireplace damper; heat and air conditioning can escape up the chimney. Keep the damper closed except when the fire is burning. Install a glass fireplace door.
- Defrost refrigerator and freezer frequently. An ice build up over an inch will cause the motor to run more.
- Clean dryer lint trap after each use.
- Turn off hot water heater when your house will be empty for a day or two. Keep it set at 120 degrees.
- Choose light colors for roofing and walls, dark curtains to keep sun out in summer.
- Change furnace filter every month.
- Try to use your range rather than your oven. Save even more when you use your microwave, toaster oven or crockpot. Turn range burners off before allotted cooking time; retained heat will cook items.
- Check for water leaks in toilets by putting a few drops of food coloring in the tank. If the color appears in the bowl, you have a leak. Replace worn washers to prevent dripping faucets.
- Shop garage sales and/or consignment shops for children's clothing that is quickly outgrown. Manufacturer's outlets, and thrift stores often offer good quality clothing at bargain prices.
- Buy clothing that is washable, needs no ironing, and is easy to care for. Try not to buy clothes that require dry cleaning and/or purchase your own dry cleaning kit. Remove wrinkles by hanging clothes in the bathroom to steam.
- Shop during seasonal clothing and white sales. Take advantage of off-season sales.
- Color coordinate - buy clothing that can be mixed and matched to extend your wardrobe.
- Change out of work clothes at the end of the day. Use old clothes for cleaning.
- Launder clothes according to instructions. Drying on a line instead of the dryer will extend the life of your clothes.
- Restrict your snacks at work - snacking can be costly. Take snacks with you.
- Shop toiletries carefully - some stores discount these.
- Could someone in the family learn to cut and style hair?
- Stop smoking.
- Trade your old books, records, CDs and tapes at the 1/2 price or discount book store.
- Try to develop interest in activities that don't require spending such as walking. Major newspapers list free or minimal charge entertainment activities each weekend.
- Give a gift of a coupon for services (car wash, repair etc.) instead of purchasing a gift.
- Do your own pet grooming. Use an inexpensive shampoo and add two tablespoons of baking soda to the water for a soft coat.
- Cancel subscriptions to magazines and book clubs. Use the public library instead.
- Sit down with your family to determine as a group a realistic lifestyle for you and your family taking into consideration your values, attitudes and capabilities. Then determine how much money you need to make to achieve that lifestyle.
- With your lifestyle in mind, set long term financial goals and develop specific, measurable achievable objectives to reach those goals. An example of a long term goal is to buy a car within the next five years. An objective to meet this goal is to save $200 a month for the downpayment.
- Keep lists of your goals to remind yourself why you don't want to overspend.
- Develop a monthly spending plan/ budget based on your monthly net income, minus living expenses and debt payments. (Click here for more information) Divide monthly bills.
- Keep savings account deposits slips with bills to be paid, so as you pay your bills, you pay yourself too. Keep all bills to be paid in one location.
- Keep track of spending in a notebook for a month to see where your money goes.
- Schedule regular family meetings to discuss long term financial goals, short term objectives, and successes or set-backs in sticking to your spending plan. When money for any budget category is gone, stop spending in that category.
- Change your spending plan as family circumstances change.
- Keep your checkbook up to date.
- Minimize number and usage of credit cards. Minimizing accounts will also minimize postage. Keep track of credit card purchases so you can pay bills in full before you are charged interest. If you can't pay a credit card bill in full, pay more than the minimum payment.
- Never sign anything you do not understand.
- Never buy any big ticket item the same day you choose it. Consider reconditioned/used items rather than new.
- After paying off a loan, contribute your new excess to savings.
