Whether you’re looking to buy a house and need to save for a deposit, or whether you're just looking for ideas to start saving more money in general, here are some top tips to think about when it comes to putting some extra cash away.
Clear that existing debt
There are no two ways about it, debt is one of the biggest hindrances when it comes to saving money. One of the best ways to start tackling your existing debt is by using the debt snowball method. The idea here is that you use any spare money at the end of the month to chip away at your smallest debt first until that is cleared. You then continue to work from the smallest debt to your largest debt using the money saved from the payments on the previous debt to add to the next smallest. Once you have cleared all of your debts off you can start to make bigger progress towards your savings goals.
Cut down on food shopping
Now, we’re not saying you need to stop buying food here but there are ways and means of reducing your monthly food bill when visiting the supermarket. Firstly, it's always worth trying to plan out your meals for the weeks and work out what you need for each meal. If you can stick to a plan, you can cut down on waste food that you might not be using because you’re overbuying to make things each night as they come to mind. Secondly when you’re at the supermarket don’t shop by the overall price of items, start looking at the price per gram or per liter. Supermarkets can sometimes try and make something look attractive with new offers or can try and make it look like you’re getting a better price by buying bigger versions of the item you’re after. If you look closely at the price per gram you can sometimes find the smaller version of the product is actually cheaper than the bulkier version which makes it more cost-effective to purchase more of the smaller item.
Subscriptions
Found a subscription in your bank statements you’re not using? Cancel it. A habit I have gotten into with the likes of Netflix or Disney+ is setting up a subscription and once the first payment has gone out, I cancel it. This means I still get the full month's usage with what I want but if I don’t use it the next month and forget about the subscription I won’t get charged. Then when I’m ready to watch something again I can just re-subscribe and repeat the same process. As there are no joining fees with services like this it always ensures I am not wasting money on something I’m not using.
Standing Order
This is short and sweet but effective. Set a standing order up from one of your bank accounts to another savings account on the day of, or the day after your pay is due to go in. It can become quite easy over time to get used to not having that 10% of your pay in the bank that’s automatically been set aside in a savings account.
E-mail marketing
Start to unsubscribe from all the e-mail marketing you receive on a daily basis. It’s the easiest way to stop the temptation to spend on things you probably don’t need but just decided you wanted because of e-mail marketing.
Check your insurance rates
Insurance companies can be hard to deal with but I am starting to see more and more loyalty is starting to mean something again. Don’t get me wrong, you should always shop around, however, this year when I spoke to my car and home insurance provider at renewal I managed to barter them down from £1100 a year to £720. That’s a huge saving for just 20-30 minutes of work. Think of this conversation with your insurance providers at renewal as an hourly rate for working. If only we could earn £380 for each half an hour we worked in the day!
Energy Bills
Make sure each year or two, depending on your contract, you are reviewing your energy suppliers to see if you can save money by switching suppliers. It’s quick, easy and can save you hundreds.
Packed Lunches
Probably a no brainer but if you add up the amount you spend on coffees and take out lunches it quickly adds up when compared to taking a flask from home and packing your own lunch. Don’t be surprised if you start saving £5-10 a day on lunches at work. That’s just over £2,000 a year!
Lower your phone bill
Out of contract but still paying the same price? Get a SIM only deal. This can save you roughly £20 a month.
Have a clear out and sell what you no longer need
A quick route through the attic alone will probably result in plenty of things you either forgot you had or didn’t even know you owned. Don’t want or need it anymore? Sell it. With the number of free apps available now to sell things it’s never been easier. Even if things take time to sell it’s not costing you anything and when they do its money you didn’t even know you already had.