Saving money is always at the forefront of people’s minds, no matter the individual’s financial status. Some homeowners will claim that there is no money to save- as the cost of living continuously rises. There are various aspects of our life in which it seems money is a constant hemorrhage, and costs relating to your home make it seem like there is a bottomless pit of never-ending expenses. However, ensuring that you have good money management when it comes to home living doesn’t mean that you have to cut corners. Instead, spending time finding ways to save money around the house means that you can still live comfortably with all the luxuries you have, while managing to save money. Here at We Buy Any House we have come up with a few tips that will help you save money around the house.
Keep an Active Shopping List:
All homeowners will admit that the biggest waste of money when it comes to the home is the food shop. How often do you go shopping and end up buying things that will inevitably get thrown away? Or buying duplicates of food that are unnecessary costs? An easy way to avoid this (and stop spending unnecessary money) is to keep an active shopping list in your home. This way you can keep on top of what items need replacing, and what ingredients/items you need to get. There are also apps you can use to monitor your shopping list. Apps such as Wunderlist allow you to share your shopping list with other people, so there is never any confusion as to what is and isn’t in the home.
Cancel Unnecessary Direct Debits:
If you don’t regularly check your bank statements, it’s easy to miss direct debits that you may have forgotten to cancel. Regularly checking over your bank statements will ensure that any unnecessary payments you are making will be stopped and prevent you unknowingly paying things for months if not years. In addition to this, you should think about the subscriptions you are paying for. Things such as Netflix, Disney+ or Spotify are all great things to have, however they are costly. If you can’t live without- perhaps consider sharing accounts or using the family plan to reduce costs.
Collect Spare Change:
Loose change can add up to quite a significant amount of money. It’s a good idea to have a large jar lying around in which you can collect change, exchange it for bank notes at a supermarkets Coinstar machine- and use the money to either buy food or use it elsewhere. Alternatively, you can convert the cash into a variety of gift cards- which will allow you to take advantage of your monthly subscriptions.
Get to Know Your Local Saver Stores:
More often than not, something with a brand on it means that the price of the item is significantly higher. There are plenty of shops which supply the exact same quality of product, but the price is significantly cheaper due to the branding. If you’re looking to save money, then it’s important to let go of the notion of buying branded products and start shopping at stores which sell unbranded items. Additionally, going to the equivalent of a dollar store for things such as toiletries.
Make a Household Budget:
Better budgeting will enable you to have tighter control of how you spend money around your house. A good idea is to sit down with the people who financially provide for the household and work out how much you can spend on various things around the household. Sticking to this budget will mean there is no anxiety or fear, and you know exactly where all your budgeting is going.
Try to Become Energy Efficient:
The biggest offender of home expenses is bills. A way to not only keep on top of home trends, but to also reduce the amount of money you’re spending on bills is to use CFL and LED bulb options. The notion and popularity of incandescent bulbs is phasing out, so opting to use CFL and LED bulbs is a great energy efficient way to reduce the cost of living. Additionally, although investing in things such as a smart meter is initially a costly way of monitoring your home expenses, further down the line it can help to reduce the amount of money being spent on home costs.
Perhaps another way to save money around the house is to think about the property itself. A lot of the time the size of our house means we are spending an excessive amount of money just to keep it running. We Buy Any House have compiled a few helpful ways to save money around the house- but perhaps downsizing or relocating could help with home finance issues. If you’re wondering “how can I sell my house fast?” or are looking into selling or buying a property, check out their website for more information.
