Unless you are a far better financial person then the rest of us, you have acquired some debt.   Whether it is just usual debt like mortgages and student loans or more drastic like several lines of credit expended and you are on the edge of foreclosure and bankruptcy, you need to find a way to minimize that debt.

Even though you may have your bills planned out.   Try to cut out of a little extra money and put that into your debt as well.   I am a believer in getting free of debt instead of stretching out the debt and having fun along the way.  If you forgo the fun for just a little while, you can be free of it and also have extra money if anything comes that is a game changer.

Now, that is an investment, that I can trust in.  Also, it is FDIC insured so you will at least have some kind of safety net if we have a second recession.   It is true that this isn’t the next genius plan to make boat loads of money… but every little bit helps.

If you haven’t discovered how much money you can save on Ebay, then you have missed out.   The chances to get a amazing deal off of this site is good if you know how to play the bidding game and not getting sucked into a bidding war.

Tactics that usually work for me is either waiting into the end of an auction to bid or at least just setting a limit to how much I am willing to bid.  Having the self control to stop is the hardest part but trust me when I say, you will pay a third of the price that you would anywhere else.

Sometimes you have to spend money to save money.   Though this is hard to shallow at the beginning, you will see how big the difference when you see your heating bill the next month.  I couldn’t believe how much heat loss was happening.

Double pane windows are the way to go also, getting insulation around your doors will cut down a great deal on your heat loss.   It honestly has cut down my heating cost to a quarter of the cost that I had been paying.

As the Federal government tries to rein that in, there is something that you can do that will help you out in the short term.   Credit Card Consolidation companies can help bring down your interest rates and work with the Credit card companies that you won’t be dealing with the constant fear of extra fees because of poor money management or outstanding financial reasons.

1. I am going to Iron and Starch my own shirts.  I know that they never look as good but that is a good amount of money that I could be saving.

2. Rent movies instead of seeing them in the theaters.  Hey, if I can rent a movie from Redbox for a dollar, there is no reason for me to spend a small fortune at the cinema.

3.  Make a grocery list and stick to it!   I am going to stop the impulse buy!

4. Going to the library instead of going to the bookstore.  Hey, why buy a book if I can read it for free.

5. Bring my own wine to restaurants.  If you can get pasted the shame that you are cheap… do it, restaurants always double charge for booze.

First of all, this year we are going to cut down our own tree.   This is a nice way to spend some time with the family and really does cut out the middle man costs.   I got a tree permit for $20 from my local B.L.M. office and a map of where I could take my tree from.

This year I have also decided to cut down on my Christmas parties and gifts to the people that just obligated to give to.   I know it is nice to have a little trinket to everyone in the office and anyone who has given you a present in the past, but not this year.   I am not saying ignore them, just make them cookies or something similar that is way more cost effective.

I am also going to take advantage of a store offer to wrap my gifts for me.  I usually ignore them because it takes time out of my day but this year, I am willing to stand in line and get my gifts wrapped for free.   Most likely, it will also look much prettier then I would do anyways.

There are other ideas of saving money but most of them just involve budgeting my time and gifts.   I am hoping with using this to nickel and dime myself into a better financial season as well as a nice holiday season.

Waking up early is worth the deals you can get on this blessed day.  I have even figured out a way to even get more off on my Black Friday sales.  My master plan this year is to get gift certificates that at a discount on sites like citydeals or others and then use them for payment on my items.  This is what I call a double bonus, a genius move on my part!

Save Money In These Difficult Times

by: mparsona

Most of us trust to luck and hope that things will turn out right. You lose your job and for a while pretend that nothing has happened. You need to keep up appearances. You need to persuade yourself that this is only a temporary glitch and you will soon have another better job soon and that everything will be OK. After all, the credit cards will pay the bills until the new pay checks arrive. It is really important to remain confident, self assured and in control by maintaining your lifestyle and status while looking for that new job.

Yes right!

It doesn’t take too long to realise that the credit cards will not last that long. The debts are growing at such a rate that you will need an amazing job to pay them off. It’s then that you start to panic and take drastic action. The holidays are cancelled. Restaurants become a luxury that you can’t afford. Life becomes stressed and miserable.

It doesn’t have to be that way.

Take a careful look at your family budget and honestly analyse where the money is going. I like to split the areas into categories such as loans, insurance, household bills, clothing, food, cleaning products, entertainment, holidays etc. You can then divide these further so household bills could include gas bill, electricity bill, water bill, telephone bill, cell phone bill, etc. Be careful to look at a pattern of spending over several months to get a more realistic picture. Any one month may have more of less bills etc and give misleading results.

Then you can decide which of these are essential, which are important to you as a family, and which are really luxuries. This helps you to plan your budget and take control of your expenses.

Now that you understand where the money is going you may be surprised. When my wife and I did this exercise we found that a huge proportion was food and general household products. We looked at this and the wastage involved and have managed to cut the costs down to 30 – 50% of what they used to be and we are eating and living better into the bargain. There are so many ways to save money without compromising your lifestyle once you understand what is happening.

Examples of savings that you can make are:

(1) Power shopping techniques and grocery coupons to help you get the most from your dollar. It is very easy to pop into the local convenience store to buy odd products as you need it but this is very expensive. Learn how to plan your shopping needs and buy economically. It is possible to make huge savings.

(2) Making your own home brew. This is both a fascinating hobby and a great method of saving money for keen beer drinkers. These days the hobby has gone well beyond the basic kits and mediocre products of a few years ago. With the right experience it is possible to brew excellent beers that you would be proud to share with your neighbours.

(3) Look at planning big events like a family wedding by yourself. There is a lot of guidance available and with careful planning and preparation you can produce an event that will be talked about for years to come … and for a fraction of the cost.

(4) Learn about the potential to save money on travel fares and hotel bookings. It is possible to save heaps and still have the holiday of your choice. Invest a little time to learn how the booking systems work and plan carefully.

(5) You can also get many great things for free such as play golf for free, cruise ship travel for free, concerts for free etc. Why pay top dollar, when with some insider knowledge you can enjoy life without the expense.

Article Source: http://www.ArticleStreet.com/profile/mparsona-14445.html

About the Author

Mike Parsonage has written several books and created many very successful small businesses based on a simple ideas. His website has many ideas to help families save money. http://AvroBooks.com