|
|
10 easy ways to save $1,000+ in 2018
We’d all like to finish next year with a bit extra in our pockets. The good news is, your goal is within arms reach and there are plenty of ways to get there.
1. Skip the gym
The average membership costs $50 a month, which accumulates over a year span to be $600. To keep up with your fitness, YouTube provides thousands of videos for Beginners, Intermediate and Advance gym rats. Whether you want to learn yoga, or do a HIIT workout Youtube never fails. Another free way to be active is a new app called 8Fit, this is 100% free if you decide not to do the meal plan. This app reminds you to workout daily and switches it up on the daily and it modifies it based on your weight, age, and activeness, I highly recommend! If all else fails, there is always the outdoors for a nice jog.
2. Drop Cable
Over recent years millions of Americans have ditched cable. Netflix, Hulu, and Youtube Red, totals around $37 a month, when cable is about $105 average – for a savings of almost $800. Streaming is the way to go!
3. Eat at home
Prepping, cooking, and having to do the dishes afterwards aside – making your own filet mignon at home is half the price it would be at a restaurant. Skip the parking wars, slow servers, sales tax, and tips. Making your own cooked meals is the way to go when saving money.
4. Raise your credit score
Paying your bills on time is the first step. Also focus on keeping your “credit utilization ratio”—the amount of your credit limit you use—below 10%. Your new, higher credit score could shave off hundreds of dollars off your credit cards, loans, and mortage.
5. Download money tracking apps
Mint, Level Money, Penny, You Need a Budget (YNAB), are a few of the top money tracking apps. They (safely) link to your checking account and see what you’re spending too much on and give advice on how to save on those specific areas. This is good to have if you aren’t a ‘writing down’ kind of person.
6. Do a ‘No-Spend’ month
Obviously, you can’t avoid spending entirely but basic necessities aside, this is a really good exercise to do. Aside from groceries and gas to get to work (or ride a bike to work!) try not spending a dime on ANYTHING else. Not only will you save a lot of money during this one month period, you may find yourself re-evaluating old spending habits altogether.
7. Hold a garage sale
We all have things lying around the house that we don’t need. Holding a garage sale can not only be beneficial to your wallet, but also to your home. Getting rid of clutter can be cleansing!
8. Get a gig with Uber/Lyft
Uber drivers make an average of $15.68 an hour, according to the popular RideShareGuy blog, though that varies by city and doesn’t include the cost of maintenance or gas (Lyft drivers make even more, $17.50). Still, a few hours each week will easily net you $1,000 by year end.
9. Quit drinking/smoking
You don’t have to be a heavy smoker or drinker to spend big bucks on the habit. In most major cities the cigarette minimum is $10.50 a pack , which at two packs a week carries an annual cost of $1,000. Drinking is just as damaging, a night out with friends can burn a hole in your wallet with 5 beers averaging at $8 per beer, in total being $40 a night + tipping your bartender. Not only will you save money by avoiding both, but you’ll feel better too!
10. Go for store brands
On average, store brands are 30% to 40% cheaper than famous name ones. That means, over the course of a year, shaving $1,000 from your grocery bill should be well within reach. Store brands are usually the same as famous name ones, they just don’t come with the hype. Go for the underdog!