Saving Money

Beware of little Expences; a small Leak will sink a great Ship.
   -- Ben Franklin

Money saving tips are worth their weight in gold, as pennies add up to dollars over time. It used to be that a penny saved was a penny earned, but now saving a penny is worth quite a bit more than earning a penny. Let me explain: Today, taxes eat up a full 1/3 of people's incomes. The graph to the right illustrates the relationship between what we pay in taxes and what's left. Assuming a 36.1% combined federal, state and local tax rate, for every $100 we earn we have only $64 left with which to buy goods and services. So if earning $100 means we have $64 to spend, then saving $64 is equal to earning $100, so for every $20 we save it's just as if we'd earned $30!

Every knows the famous Ben Franklin quote:

A penny saved is a penny earned. -- Ben Franklin

First of all, please be more practical than this particular money saver and when you save money, put it where it can earn you some interest.

Unfortunately, Americans aren't saving money these days. In 2005, for the first time since the Great Depression, the average American savings rate was negative--Americans spent more than they earned for the first time in multiple generations. This recent trend is disturbing, and even more so given that American baby boomers are now in their peak earning years and are becoming empty nesters. By all right, their expenses should be declining and not increasing! Regardless of whether or not you're a baby-boomer, take stock of your current financial situation. Are you saving enough today? If not, when are you going to fix that? What's your plan? Take action today to make sure you don't end up like the majority of retirees today living just above the poverty line. Reduce or eliminate unnecessary expenses, save money on things you buy, and invest the savings in a high yield account. Reverse this disturbing trend and provide a more secure financial future for yourself and those you love!

Here are some money saving tips you can implement today regardless of your income level:

Money Saving Tip #1

Save money on restaurant bills by eating out less. Cook enough food at dinner each evening to have leftovers for lunch at work the next day. When cooking meals that freeze well like chili, make a large batch and freeze some for easy meals later. Save money on restaurant expenses by using the coupons found in the Entertainment Book to save money. Make your own gourmet coffee at home.

Money Saving Tip #2

Avoid ATM fees. Grocery shop with a debit card and get cash back, or go to your bank to get cash. Remember that a $1.50 ATM fee really costs you $2.25 in income. Financial institutions are making money hand over fist on fees like this--literally millions of dollars every year. Pay someone two dollars to access my own money? I don't think so!

Money Saving Tip #3

Eat more fruits and vegetables and less meat. Meat generally costs more, and eating more fruits and vegetables and less meat is healthier, so over the long run you'll save money on medical care.

Money Saving Tip #4

Don't pay full price for anything. Negotiate (haggle) anything you possibly can. Examples include credit card fees, retail prices at independent retail stores, etc. Once my wife and I were shopping for a gift for a relative, and went into a boutique in a mall that had a nice little handbag priced at $30. A saleswoman stopped by and asked if we liked the item, and I said we really liked it but unfortunately we only had $20 to spend. She said that would be OK, and in about 5 minutes we were out the door with the gift! I don't always get this kind of result, but it makes the whole process more fun, and this money saving tip alone has saved us hundreds of dollars. For more on this topic, check out the Reader's Digest article on How To Haggle Like a Pro.

Money Saving Tip #5

Save money by shopping online. Use free online coupons and use online comparison shopping engines to put stores in competition for your business.

Money Saving Tip #6

If you haven't been to the health club in quite a while and it's not because you're in a body cast, cancel your membership.

Money Saving Tip #7

Likewise for subscriptions to magazines you haven't read in a while, and any other subscription or services you're paying for regularly and not really using.

Money Saving Tip #8

Cancel your cable TV, or reduce your service level to a basic package and invest in knowledge instead - read more books!

Money Saving Tip #9

Share a ride to work. Take turns driving and save money on gas, maintenance and repairs.

Money Saving Tip #10

Go to your local library and rent DVD and CDs for free--your tax dollars at work! If they don't have the title you want, be sure to let them know and they might be able to order it. Sometimes librarians aren't sure which books, DVDs, and CDs people will be interested in, so help them out!

Money Saving Tip #11

Locate printable retail coupons online that you can print out and use at your local grocery store. Check manufacturer web sites directly for coupons, like www.aquafresh.com.

Money Saving Tip #12

For products that you like and use all the time, write to the manufacturer and tell them how much you love their product. Ask if they can send you some coupons. More often than not they will, and you'll get back much more than the cost of your stamp!

Money Saving Tip #13

At local stores ask about free samples. For starters, try Wal-Mart.

Money Saving Tip #14

Replace standard light bulbs in your home with energy efficient Compact Fluorescent Lightbulbs (CFL) to save money on your electric bill and help reduce greenhouse gases as well. They cost more to buy, but are less expensive over the long run because they use less energy. Check out the EnergyStar article Here.

Money Saving Tip #15

Keep your tires properly inflated (check the pressure each time you fill up for gas). Doing so is safer and gives you better control of your vehicle, saves wear and tear on your tires so they last longer, and saves you about 3% on gas. Not a lot of savings, but for every $100 you spend on gas you'll saved enough for a gallon of milk!

Money Saving Tip #16

Use a slow cooker like a Crock-Pot to make meals. It takes less electricity than an electric oven and cooks hot enough to kill any bacteria. Inexpensive cuts of meat work great and the meat shrinks less because it's covered while it cooks. Cooking like this also makes the whole house smell wonderful, especially in the winter when you come in from the cold after shoveling snow! Some great recipes can be found online, like these Crockpot and Slow Cooker Recipes.

Adding It All Up With Interest

Take the money saved from implementing the money saving tips above and put it into a high yield savings account. One quick and easy way to do this is to open an online savings account and use an automatic savings program to enforce savings discipline and have money transferred to your high yield account each month. After performing some online research, we opened an Orange Savings Account from ING DIRECT. We've implemented some of the money saving tips above and have been making money ever since! ING DIRECT makes $aving money simple! Open your account online today and start earning variable APY. No Fees and No Minimums!

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