Reducing your Expenses

An important aspect of managing your money is that of reducing your expenses.  You can achieve this in various ways, as shown below.

• Resist impulse buying.  Ask yourself these questions: Do I really need it? Do I need it today? What if I do not buy it now? Can I purchase it at a lower cost?
• Limit the cash you carry.
• Shop with your spending plan in mind. What do I actually need?
• Avoid ATM fees by using your bank’s ATMs.
• Watch out for sales.
• Wait for the right price.
• Look for coupons and rebates.
• Subscribe to membership cards to benefit from discounts.
• Shop for value!

• Save money by eating at home. Make cooking time family time.
• Make a shopping list for the grocery store.
• Watch for sales and coupons.
• Shop for value.
• Subscribe to membership cards to benefit from discounts.
• Buy products you use frequently in large sizes or bulk quantities. **
• With perishables buy in small quantities to meet your needs.

** Buying in bulk – buying a large quantity of a particular product at one go at lower prices. Although purchasing large quantities of the same product might save you money, it might actually divert you from your needy list. Furthermore, such a purchase might reveal to be costly as unneeded goods would have been bought and left on the shelf. Disadvantages include rushing to use them before they expire, continuous use of the same product until they finish and actually not consumed and gone to waste. Consider also the fact that at times, for particular products, the more you have, the many you and your family members would use. Is this saving? Also, check out the price per unit for the price might reveal a few cents less than the actual price of the product and the price might still be higher than in other stores. If you are buying in bulk, always go for products you actually need / use and check if it is still worth it.

• Use your credit card to purchase larger, lasting items – otherwise shop using cash as with a credit card you are likely to spend more than you can afford.
• Limit the number of credit cards you have.
• Do not use a credit card if you cannot afford the price.
• Avoid having a monthly credit card balance greater than 10% of your net income. Calculate.

• Shop for a package deal.
• Watch out for high text messaging and web access charges.
• Purchase a package deal that gives you unlimited calls and texts when communicating with persons on the same mobile operator that you are with.
• Read the contract before you sign.
• Ask questions; make sure you understand all features and fees.
• Keep track of your usage.
• Pay your bill on time and in full.

It is important that you keep your emergency fund for those expenses you really need to pay now and in case of unplanned events. If you want to use your savings for something else, then set up a separate savings goal and a separate savings account.

Follow this link to read more about your rainy day fund.