Money Saving Tips

One of those headlines that is realy effective in getting me to click is anything to do with saving money. Since I don't have a whole lot of it I like to save as much as I can. Many posts say the same things like cut up your credit cards, negotiate a lower rate, grow a vegetable garden, use the newer lightbulbs, etc. I already do all that so I've decided to share my tips. Now I *am* cheap but not crazy cheap like washing dental floss to reuse. But I do think I have some good habits to share.

So here are "Andy's Top Ten Tips for Saving Money" a.k.a. "Pennies Make Dollars"...

1. Save money - simple really. Get a piggy bank. No need to buy an expensive piggy bank - an old soda bottle or shoebox works - but make sure you cannot open it without actually breaking it. Put your change in it. Everytime you want to go out to a bar or out to a nice place to eat, don't. Then put a $20 in the piggy bank and warm up last night's left overs. No more mysterious credit card receipts time-stamped 1:50AM from Big Shotz tavern the next morning. Bottom line: $200 every 6 months.
2. Thrift - shop at consignment and thrift stores. You will be surprised at the amount of gently worn and brand new (tag still on) items there. I buy just about all my wardrobe at thrift stores (except my underwear of course). I love finding a pair of Express or Banana Republic dress pants for $3.50 that were hardly worn by the sucker who paid $100 for them at the mall. Bottom line: $1000 savings per year.
3. Get rid of your "stuff" - take those hardly used items (sports equipment, camping crap, suits, jackets, etc) out of your closests and storage and take them to the consignment shop to sell. Don't get greedy by putting a high price on them cause they won't sell. Price them to move and put the proceeds in the aforementioned piggy bank. Donate stuff they won't take to the Salvation Army or DAV. Bottom line: $100 cash every 6 months; $100 in charitable tax deductions every year.
4. Shop ethnically - buy your ethnic foods at the ethnic stores. Those expensive yet healthy soba noodles at the regular american grocery are 4 times cheaper at the asian grocery. Get your tortillas at the hispanic grocery. And you would not believe the price difference on things like tofu, spices, and sauces! Bottom line: $200 per year savings.
5. Buy cheaper alternatives - you have to be creative on this one. But my big example is coffee filters. If you don't make the investment of a gold-plated permanent filter that lets all the oily goodness from the beans pass through, buy the cheapo paper filters (99 cents for 100 count) and fold them to fit your cone-shaped maker (the cone-shaped one are like $2.29 for 50 count). Yearly savings: $10. If you are really cheap you can wash the same filter and use it about 3 or 4 times before you throw it out. I do this when I'm on my last one and can't find time to go to the store for another pack.
6. Cut (or not) your own hair - I used to go to the "stylist" about every 2 months for about $30 a pop including tip. For the most part I got good results. Since that added up to some serious scratch, I downgraded to the "barber" for about $14 a pop, but results were not always acceptable and I usually found myself hacking away in the mirror when I got home. Eventually I got real good at shaping things up. For a while I just let it grow into a pony tail and forgot about cutting other than the periodic sideburn trim up. Now I just keep things trimmed up and my wife helps out a bit in the back. I'm happy with the results most of the time, and if I really mess it up I break out the Whal Homecut and sport the self-inflicted GI look for a few months. Yearly savings: $180.
7. Don't use the clothes dryer - all summer we hang our wash out on the line to dry. This year has been especially easy since there has been a long drought here in the south. The dryer eats a LOT of current so we're saving on the power bill. Clothes last much longer (that lint in the dryer trap is part of your clothes you know), and there is a certain Zen about hanging your wash on the line (time to clear your mind and all). Kinda looks like those Tibetan prayer flags too sometimes if you line up things by size and mix colors. Yearly savings: $240.
8. Iron your own clothes - forget the dry cleaners for your shirts and pants. MOst of the labels say dry clean only so you won't ruin the clothes in the wash and blame the makers for making cheap clothing. So while you are watching TV, break out the ironing board and the spray starch and get to ironing you lazy bitch! Yearly savings: $200.
9. Haggle - this is an art form and some just do not have the personality for it. But the more you negotiate prices, the better you get. And you'd be surprised how many places actually come off marked prices. When you buy a house, you generally make an offer lower than this asking price (unless you live in the San Fran Bay area), so why shouldn't you do the same for smaller things? I seek out businesses that are locally owned where the owner or manager is hands on and can make those selling decisions. Plus it is fun making deals. Results may vary as far as savings but you will save. Don't be too cheap though or you run the risk of insulting the seller.
10. Round up your mortgage payment - if you are buying your house, a great way to earn a return on your dollar is to add an extra $20 or so each month to your mortgage payment indicating that the overage should be applied to the principal. Each dollar you apply is one less dollar you pay interest on and gives you more equity in the house. After a few years the lender will re-amortize the payment schedule and reduce your monthly payment since the principal is lower than expected. Nice, safe investment assuming your house is not next to a nuclear waste site or outside the Green Zone in Iraq.