This series consists of the 4 posts below:

Part I- Save Money on Electronic Bills
Part II – Save Money on General Utilities
Part III- Save Money on Groceries
Part IV- Save Money on Clothes

Save Money on Clothes

I have made a habit of beginning these articles with the amount the average household spends on the topic being discussed and this article will be no exception. The average family of four spends $187 a month on clothing – a significant investment for items that could last many years.

Looking good does not mean you have to leave a hole in your wallet. There are many things you can do to dress like a million, but for only a fraction of what you spend. Follow me on these guaranteed to work (and already experimented) tips to save you money.

1) Try surplus outlets for amazing prices, especially during holidays.

You won’t believe the kind of discounts you can find at outlets, for example… Kenneth Cole outlet or Nordstrom Rack. Last week, I stopped by the Tangier outlets on my way back from Vegas (many of you might be familiar with this one – its always full of people).

I’m into dress shoes, so I decided to stop by Aldo to buy myself a new pair. I know that a decent set at regular Aldo can cost around $85 to $110. I got a very slick black pair for only $38.99. A savings of $50 for one pair of shoes is almost unimaginable, especially when its not on sale.

Outlets are great because they have all your favorite brands side by side. I recommend them for sunglasses, purses, and designer watches the most.

2) Buy versatile clothing that can be worn in more than one place.

A website I read cleverly said, “People wear 20% of their clothing 80% of the time.” I couldn’t agree with this more. Why not buy clothing that can be worn at work and while your out? Men- some of the nicest dress shirts you can buy are perfect for this. Women- black shirts and sweaters are great for you because they can be formal and also casual.

3) Buy in the off season.

Buying in the off season for any kind of clothing is a great way to save money. Buy your winter clothes in the summer and your summer clothes in the winter. This will save you a lot of money because most clearances in department stores are because of seasonal issues. Last year, I bought a leather jacket valued at $350 for only $75. This winter, I bought 5 short sleeve shirts from Macy’s for only $60. The possibilities are endless- explore them.

4) Shop at Ross.

I don’t want to seem like I have a hidden agenda because I don’t. Ask any of my friends and they will tell you how much I love shopping at Ross because they have great products for a fraction of the cost. Sometimes the quality of the product is lower, but its not like your buying packed meat, you can always check for flaws. You can find great casual shoes with brand names for only $20!

5) Shop Online.

Stores love putting their older stuff online because their selling space is limited. Go to any department store site and click through straight to the Sale and Clearance section. You will be positively surprised at what you find. It’s also faster because the price is right under the product image- so you can just browse for prices that fit your budget.

Many bloggers write about more radical methods of saving money – such as visiting charity stores, buying used, and wearing clothes double sided. I am more conservative in my approach and I feel like you don’t have to sacrifice yourself to look good.

I highly recommend reading one of my older articles – 15 Secrets to Department Store Shopping for more tips.

I want to know what you do to find great clothes for cheap- any particular stores or websites you visit? How do you feel about buying from garage sales or charities?

Where are some places you like to shop?

This series consists of the 4 posts below:

Part I- Save Money on Electronic Bills
Part II – Save Money on General Utilities
Part III- Save Money on Groceries
Part IV- Save Money on Clothes

Save Money On Groceries

The average family of four spends $244 a week on groceries. This translates to over $1,000 a month – a large expense for Americans that can become a very heavy burden if the times are tight. However, the good news is that wherever the spending is high, the saving potential is high too.

Everyone tries their best to save on food purchases, but making a significant difference on your budget is not easy. It takes skill and consistency to turn around years of habits. Personally, I feel like it takes real determination to avoid binge spending.

1) Buy The Groceries You Generally Use Ahead of Time, On Sale.
I learned this tip from a woman in a supermarket who practically bought two full carts of groceries for about ten dollars. Using coupons, promotions, and everything you could think of, she got so much savings that the clerk complimented her skill. I had to ask her what the secret to saving was and she told me she always bought things on sale and arranged her meal plans around what she had. She told me never to wait until you needed something to buy it, but buy it when its cheap. This tip has saved me a lot of money. Once a week, I check the fliers I receive in the mail, and do the shopping accordingly. My weekly spending dropped from $150 to $105.

2) Try the small ethnic stores for cheap groceries
You might know that Indian stores have great spices for a lower cost and that Latino ‘carnicerias’ have the best ranchera meat, for a fraction of the cost. Not only will you be delighted at the beautiful cultures in your neighborhood, you will save a bunch of money on groceries.

Inside an Indian Store

3) Avoid buying items placed next to the checkout.

If you want to waste money, buying these items is the way to do it. If you have any idea about marketing, you should know that most people spend a lot of their time waiting in the line, where they are incited to buy items from around the checkout. Single packed gums that cost 25 cents in a multi pack sell for three times as much compared to those placed individually.

4) Look Below Eye Level for Cheaper Goods
Usually the cheaper brands are on the lower shelves, away from the point of view. Next time, when you go to to a large grocery chain, look at your eye level and compare the prices to the ones below the line of sight. You will notice that the clearance and sales items below.

5) Buy Store Brands
Store brands are always cheaper and are usually the same quality as brand products. The difference in prices comes from the money that the brand names have to spend on promotions and marketing. This can translate to a huge price difference, helping you tack on more savings.

6) Eat before you go grocery shopping.
Studies have shown that people spend 10 – 15% more on groceries if they go to the store hungry. I know I spend more when I am hungry, binging on junk food, convenience foods, and other things I would usually not buy.

Check out the quality fruit and vegetables at a farmer market.

7) Check out the local farmer market.

The farmer market is a win-win for both parties. Not only will you get quality foods for a much lower price than the supermarket, you will also benefit local farmers who work hard to earn money. As a Pharmacy student, I have done lots of reading on the quality of the foods at farmers markets and regular chains and let me tell you, the food you will buy from a farmer is very healthy compared to anywhere else. Your local newspaper should have a farmer market. They are set up daily in larger cities and weekly in smaller ones.

Conclusion

If you follow a few of these tips, you will have much more money to save. I predict that following the best mix of these guidelines can save you $250 a month, for a total of $500 a month savings for a family of four a month.

These are some ways I save money when buying groceries, but I want to know what others do to save money. Are there some good tips I missed?

Part I- Save Money on Electronic Bills
Part II – Save Money on General Utilities
Part III- Save Money on Groceries
Part IV- Save Money on Clothes

Save Money on General Utilities

In our previous post, we highlighted 5 ways you could save on your electronic bills and came up with an average savings of almost $150 a month. In this article, I will show you how to save money on your general utility bills.

I am going to highlight a few ideas from each utility because there are hundreds of ways to save, but only the best ways save the most money.

Save on Your Electric Bill

1) Turn off your electronics when you are not using them. Off means completely unplugged not the “standby” mode. Guess what? Turning your appliances and electronics completely off will reduce energy consumption by 65%. That’s a whopping figure for such a simple task.

I, personally, leave all my stuff on standby and will have to follow this rule more diligently. 2 computers, DVD, Wii, and microwave are on standby at all times.

2) If you’re in the market for a thermostat or if you’re thinking of the long term, a programmable thermostat is can do the trick. About 44% of every household’s electricity bill is from heating and cooling the house and a programmable thermostat can monitor temperature and reduce the cost of maintaining your favorite temperature by 20-30%.

3) My local newspaper always has advertisements about government giveaways for energy efficient light bulbs or lamps. All the light bulbs I have are energy efficient and cut light bulb consumption by 60- 80%.

4) Shop around for another energy provider. You’re not stuck with Edison. Sometimes, another provider in your area can give you a cheaper deal, sometimes for a saving of 15%.

Save on Your Gas Bill

1) Reduce the temperature on your water heater or insulate it to keep the temperature warm. Lowering the temperature to 120 degrees,For every 10 degrees you lower the temperature setting, you can reduce your bill 3% to 5%.

2) Most energy used for doing your laundry is for heating up the water. In order to reduce the amount of energy used for washing clothes, there are two alternatives: using less water (if you took chemistry, you should know that water has a very high heat capacity, so it takes a lot of energy to raise the temperature) or setting the temperature low.

3) Insulate efficiently and avoid drafts. Drafts are usually caused by unsealed ventilation ducts, so make sure you insulate them. Also, check for air leaks. I urge this step because stopping drafts can lower your energy bill drastically.

Save on Your Water Bill

The average American family of four uses over 250 gallons of water a day. Besides racking up costs on your water bill, its also good for the environment to save water. LA is actually doing a lot to save water and consumption has dipped 18% since last year to near 1980 levels.

1) Some people tell you to only wet your body in the shower and not to keep the water running all the time. I find this a little extreme. A better way is to use a low-flow shower head which can reduce water use during showers by 40%.

2) Turn off the faucet when brushing your teeth or shaving. This can save up to 5 gallons of water each 2 minute cycle. For a family of four, this can save as much 20 gallons a day, or about an 8% reduction.

3) Install an aerator in kitchen water faucets to reduce flow of water through the faucets.

4) If you need to water your lawn, make sure you are not wasting water. If you need to water the lawn, use just a little water (grass doesn’t need buckets and buckets). For trees, use a bucket to water, not a hose.

5) When doing laundry, reduce the water level to the amount that is just right. No need to go large load every time. A regular laundry uses 40- 50 gallons a wash. Following this method can save you 10 – 15 gallons each time you do laundry.

6) Do you let the water run out until it becomes warm enough for use? If you are only going to need a little warm water, why not heat it in a kettle? It won’t take more than a few minutes and can save you a lot of money.

Conclusion

There are more ways to save money on all your utility ways, but just following these few tips will decrease your usage on all three utilities by at least 50% (and up to 80%)  - translating to a 50% reduction on your overall bills. Nationally, the average monthly cost for gas, water, and electricity is about $220. Cutting this cost by 50% will add another $110 bucks in your pocket a month.

My last article showed you how to save a total of $140 a month. Our current total savings is $250 a month.

Check back in soon for the next article in the series “Saving Money on Groceries.” I have a lot to say in the upcoming article and will show you how to save a few hundred more by shopping smart.

After several investing topics, I have decided to return to writing about saving money with a series about “Saving Money at Home.” As many of you know, I have been writing about saving money for over a year now, and believe this would be a great way to give great tips on building smarter spending habits where the most money is spent- at home.

The series will consist of 4 posts:

Part I- Save Money on Electronic Bills
Part II – Save Money on General Utilities
Part III- Save Money on Groceries
Part IV- Save Money on Clothes

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Part 1 – Save Money on Electronic Bills

With the first decade of the 21st century officially over, most households have subscriptions to technology that they mostly didn’t have twenty years ago- cell phones, Internet (DSL or Cable), and Cable TV. Nowadays, every kid that can walk has their own cell phone line with text messaging bundles.

Slashing bills on Internet, cell phones, and television can add a lot of money to your budget. I have compiled a list of the best ways to save money in this area.

1) Find the ideal cell phone Family Plan:
What do I mean by ideal? This: You can have 1,400 anytime minutes or 2,300 minutes for a family of four and still never talk more than 1,000. Find the lowest minutes your provider offers that is suffice for your family. Check your old phone bill statements – what’s the most you’ve talked in the last year? A little more than this should be your plan’s allowance of minutes.

Compare providers: Verizon offers Unlimited Talk & Text for 2 people at $150 and another $50 for each extra line ($250 for a family of four) while T-Mobile offers the same thing for only $140 for two and $35 for each additional ($210 for a family of four).

Total Savings: $40

2) Do you really need a home phone?
Paying for cell phones for a family of four makes land-lines obsolete, since everyone has their own phone. AT & T”s second most basic home phone service costs $23.99. If you don’t drop them now, they will drop you later. AT&T has already contacted the FCC about discontinuing the service.

Total Savings: $24

3) Cable TV – A relic of the past.
Unless your a true sports fan who has to watch all sports games on a Plasma TV, Cable and Satellite TV are relics of the past. Check out my article on great websites where you can find streaming television, news, and sports for free.

With prices for such services ranging from $40- $60, why not pay $10 to get real streams online?

Total Savings: ~$40

4) Take advantage of competition between Internet providers

That’s right- The Government passed the Sherman Anti-Trust Law for a reason: To increase competition between large companies. In the 1910s and 1920s it was sugar, steel and petroleum. Now, its communications and media. Use this to your advantage… call your Internet provider and tell them about other offers from rival companies (e.g. Call to At & T: “Your 29.99 is too high for basic Internet, Verizon is offering the same service for 19.99, can you lower the price for me?”)… tell them you like them, but want to quit. They will give you a special promotion- I do this every six months and save about 15 bucks a month on my Internet.

Total Savings: $15

5) Inquire about Corporate, Government, and Student Volume Discounts

Another path I have taken using my T-mobile Service. UCLA offered a volume discount for T-mobile. Even the workers there didn’t know about it, but it saves me 15% or roughly $10 off my phone bill. There are larger discounts for larger corporations and groups and you can save a wad of cash if you apply it to a family plan for a cell phone bill.

Total Savings: $10- $25

The Big Picture

Overall Savings: $120- $160 a month.

Add it up and we save… $140 a Month just cutting bills on three popular subscriptions. Most of the money was saved by reducing waste. Even if you follow only a few of these tips, you can still save $100 bucks a month.. or $1,200 a year.  Think what you can do with that much money- a 7 day Cruise on Carnival lines is about $800 for two.

I hope you come back for the second part of my series – saving money on general utilities to add to your savings.

In this article, I highlighted some of my personal steps, but I know there are things out there that I’m not aware of. What do you guys do to save money on these bills? Do you think this article was useful? Let’s talk!

Many people do not know that the base plans cell phone companies offer are just enough to cover their costs.  The multibillion dollar conglomerates such as Verizon and Sprint make their money by selling you the add-ons. Those extras each month can easily double your bill and over the course of a year cost you hundreds of dollars. That is why it makes sense to pay attention to this as a cost cutting exercise. Here are some cell phone bill charges that you can and should look at in order to see if you can cut and save money.

I. Cut Your Insurance Payments: This monthly fee may be less than $10 per month per phone, but keep in mind that over the course of a year, that is between $50 and $100 dollars. Keep your old cell phones if they were with the same carrier so that if you lose your phone or it is stolen or broken, you will have something to go to in order to keep from having to buy a phone until your contract is up and you can get a new phone by signing up for another two years of service.

II. Usage reports: Contact your carrier and have them run a complete account analysis of your usage to make sure that you are not overpaying because of two conditions. Either you have a plan that provides you with too many minutes and you are paying a high monthly charge for , or your plan does not allow enough minutes and you are paying a lot of overage fees. You want to find a plan that will put you in a ‘sweet spot’ so that you are not overpaying for either above scenarios. You will have to be in your current plan for several months before these reports will yield good information.

III. Plan for extra charges: If you are going to be using your cell phone for a business trip for several weeks or longer, contact your provider and change plans for a month or so. Then, change back when you arrive back home.

IV. Discounts for employees: Many carriers offer discounts for the employees who purchase a cell phone because they work at a company that is a customer. They might even offer special plans as well. You can save about 20% or so, on a given plan. Also involved are government discounts and volume based institutions, such as local universities.

V. Only buy what you use: If you text a lot, then purchase an unlimited text plan. The same goes for other services.

VI. Cut unnecessary services: This is the inverse of the above. Do not continue to pay for extra services that you do not need or want. In fact, if you are looking for ways to cut your budget on items that will have a big impact on your money expenses, this should be on the list. Your children might think that they need music and video downloads, but they probably can live without them.

Get a Pre-paid phone: Even though the per-minute charges are higher, the draw of a pre-paid cell phone is that it allows you to control your costs by only buying what you need. You also do not need a contract.

If you use these tips, you can easily save $1,000 per year on cell phone charges. And that rivals the best balance transfer credit card deals you might be able to find.

I. Analyze your Spending Pattern, Calculate your Needs

1.Calculate your monthly expenses that are mostly static- insurance premiums, mortgage payments, tax payments, household purchases etc.

2. Allow some extra money for uncertain expenses.

3. Allocate at least 10% more than the amount that was calculated from point 1, to arrive at the total expenses amount. This is in case another recurring cost presents itself.

Analyze your ‘Probable’ Emergency Needs

1.With two people earning – Save up to 3 months salary as emergency fund

2.When only one person is earning – Save up to 6 months salary as emergency fund.

3.When one or both are earning – If you have a large family – up to 3 children – Save up to a year’s salary as emergency fund. Since the probability of emergencies is high in a family with kids, you need to allocate more funds.

Lock Up the Amount

1.Comparing your monthly expenses and emergency-needs, allocate a suitable amount that would go in as emergency funds.

2.Push your funds into a savings account that is made accessible by either of the partners in case of emergency.

3.Alternately, you can choose between a bank money market account or money-market mutual fund.

4.If you’re starting from scratch, remember to push in a bulk amount for the first time and subsequently allocate smaller portions from the next month.

5. And finally, never ever touch your emergency funds for any other expenditure.

Remember, that you’re saving for your loved ones. Regularly use expense tracking software to track your spending patterns and to keep a tab on your money. Let us know how this works or give us some feedback if you already try it!

With that in mind, I have come up with several important tidbits of advice:

• Start investing once you get your first job. You don’t have to invest a majority of your income and 10-20% every paycheck should be just fine. Getting into the habit of saving money early on can guarantee you peace of mind just in case you are laid off in the future.
• If you get a credit card, make sure you make your payments on time and don’t fall  behind. Don’t spend money you don’t have. Building credit early in your career can be a very powerful resource if correctly employed.
• Open a savings account and save money. Don’t touch this money unless it is an absolute emergency.
• Cut back on unnecessary costs. Read articles on this website to understand how to save money in the most important areas of your life.
• The most important investment you can make at a young age is in yourself. Education is the most important of these investments.
• If you are going to invest in the stock market, some companies can provide a safe long term investment. This includes: Big retail chains, food companies, shipping companies.
• Live at home as long as possible to save money.

Here are some things you should not do:

• Take out loans or money from your credit card and keep accruing balance.
• Spend tons of money on things that will depreciate such as cars and electronics.
• Try to open a business without having some experience in the field beforehand. Always know what you are going to be selling or the services you will be offering better than your customer.

1) Increase the flexibility of your budget by bartering
Does your business offer a unique type of service or product? If so, you might be able to barter for other professional services by offering your expertise or your goods in exchange for someone else’s. This is a great way to keep your inventory flowing and let others knows about your business while at the same time benefiting by cutting costs.

2) Buying something for your business? Get a few qualified quotes.
If you’re going to make larger purchases for your business, you might be seen as a valuable potential customer for other businesses. Use this to your advantage and always get a few qualified quotes before making a purchase. This can save you tons of money as competitors try to outbid each other!

3) Avoid lawsuits and professional arbitration
Many companies have gone bankrupt in the face of lawsuits and lawyer costs. If you get a customer complaint, do not act as if nothing happened. Look into it, find a solution, and you might turn an angry customer into a returning client. It’s a win-win.

4) Learn how to do what you pay others to do
If you’re paying someone on an hourly or “per-diem” basis to do something that you do occasionally, you might as well pay them one time to teach you or one of your workers. This will save you tons of money if you do it for a few job skills. For example, if you need a staffing company to hire a worker, you can hire a professional staffer to teach you where to find potential candidates.

5) Pick up things yourself, don’t pay extra for shipping.
If you are constantly ordering things online, you will see that the money spent on shipping can add up. Imagine buying things online every other day, at an average cost of say, 25 dollars shipping each time. That’s about 400 dollars a month. You can spend that 400 in marketing or promotions.

6) Join other similar businesses to get bulk discounts
Bulk discounts can save you big! Imagine saving 25% and forming a good friendship with another business.

7) Save on Credit Cards by comparing providers
If you tend to have built up balances on your business credit cards, call up your credit provider and tell them that you have had better rates offered to you from other companies and that you will switch if they don’t lower their interests. Play the game right and you will see a great reduction in your credit bills!

8 ) Lower your taxes by taking heed of good deductions
Keep your receipts! At the end of the year, a great tax accountant will save you tons of money by finding deductions, like mileage, lunches, cell phone bills, and more. Let’s say you pay for entertainment costs for a future clients… use that as a tax deductible!

9) Keep track of the smaller expenses
Just like those junk food binges cut a big hole in your allowance, those petty expenses can dent your business budget. Make sure you keep track of smaller expenses to avoid wasteful practice. You might save hundreds or thousands a month by switching to a better lunch location, cutting transportation costs, reducing electric bills and more.

10) Handle surges in business with temporary workers
If you have increases in sales at specific months or seasons, hire temporary workers to help you with business. You won’t have to pay for benefits and you can let them go after the season ends.