Six Ideas for Saving Money
Most of us don’t have the option to suddenly go out and make more money. We're settled into a job and a paycheck. So how do you put more cash in your pocket? Work the other side of the equation and cut expenses. The key is to cut where it doesn’t hurt, where you’re paying out but not getting much back.
Here are six ideas:
1: IT'S TRUE, BANKS ARE OUT TO GET YOU — with check fees, penalty fees, etc. Make sure you have a free checking account, either through your workplace, or by keeping a minimum balance. Take cash out of your own bank to avoid ATM fees. If your bank doesn’t have a lot of branches, open a second account at another bank. The same goes for the other financial institutions. Buy no-load mutual funds, use low-cost brokerage firms like Fidelity or Vanguard.
2: IF YOU GAMBLE … do it with friends, not at the casino, or off-track betting, the lottery, or a bookie. They give you crummy odds, take 5 – 10 percent off the top, and guess what – you’re probably not the best player at the table.
3: BUY MORE THINGS that have gone up less than inflation, and fewer things that have gone up more. You get a better car, for less money, than you could 15 or 20 years ago. So spurge on a car. You get good deals on most manufactured goods, from electronics to furniture to clothes. Spend less on houses, energy, vacations, health care and education. The prices for all these items have skyrocketed. Even with the downturn, over the years the price of a house has gone up a lot faster than inflation. And forget the price-gouging private college. Your state university is a much better bargain, and community college a better bargain still.
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