Switch to off-brand items
If you are a Clorox-Cleanup user like me (which I have a tendency to over-spray), you may appreciate this idea. In Walmart brand name Clorox Cleanup is $4.88 while the Great Value is just $1.48.
This is $3.40 difference! You could buy 3 of the off brand and still have some change to spare. Now, if you are like my mother-in-law, keep in mind that you may prefer Clorox’s smell vs. the off brand. For me, however, I can deal with the lesser smell with that kind of price difference.
Make the Switch to Laundry Pods
If you are like me(again, I tend to be just a bit too liberal with my cleaning items), I overuse laundry detergent. The container clearly says 150 loads, but I get maybe 25-30 out of the bottle.
So, I now order from Sam’s and get tide pods. This is still not cheap, but it does seem to reduce my costs.
Switch Your Toilet Cleaner to Comet
Comet at Home Depot is $1.00. Plus, it frees up space in your cabinet! If you are like me, you have limited space, so having chemicals that can be used for multiple tasks helps free space up for other necessities.
Cut the Cord
We cut the cord about a year ago and it saves us over $100 a month.
Switch Insurance Companies
My husband and I both have C&C for our 2012 Ram truck and 2016 Ford Edge (crossover). These are not new vehicles by any means, but in March we received a letter from State Farm stating that they were going up from $220 to $283 month. Now, this was a local insurance company, so I felt terrible about leaving a local business in the community. After receiving the news, I got a quote with Progressive (my family had already made the switch) for $157 per month. That price difference was enough for me to switch. With over $100 staying in our pockets per month, the swap came with much less guilt. We also switched our home insurance as well. It was right at $997 a year for roughly a $350,000 house. We were paying roughly $2,600 a year with State Farm before.
Reduce Your Electricity Usage
If it’s summer and the light outside is nice and bright. Instead of using all of the lights in your house, open your curtains or blinds to let natural sunlight in. Furthermore, doing this may decrease your electric bill. Also, if you can stand this, turn up your a/c a couple of notches. I understand this is sacrilegious for some LOL. Then, run the ceiling fans. Just these little tweaks will help lower your electric bill.
Sometimes, my highest electric bills are in the winter. In wintertime, consider lowering your thermostat so your heat won’t come on as often. In Texas, it seems easier for an all electric HVAC system to keep up in the extreme heat with a/c versus extreme cold (for us) using the heater. I usually do this and just put on a light sweater if needed to stay warm. More times than not though, I still stay in a t-shirt and shorts. This should ultimately keep your bill down.
Thrift Shop
Finally, shop as much as possible at thrift stores or hit up the sale/clearance at major retailers. In most large areas, there are at least a few resale or thrift stores available. A major chain that even lets you try on clothes and make returns (within 7 days) is Goodwill. You may have to set out a good chunk of time to go into one of these stores to shop. Many times, there are almost an overwhelming amount of clothes (especially for women size small-large), so it is easy to get overstimulated by the atmosphere. I try to sift or even skim through clothes. After a bit, you learn what catches your eye. I have found shoes, dresses, shorts, jeans, and household items for just a fraction of what I would have to pay new.
Hit the Clearance
Now let’s talk clearance. This is something I was taught from early on as we were lower middle class growing up. The way we got there was for my parents to work as a team. Mom made sure to save as much money as possible on everything the family needed. This could be anything from finding Dad tools to use for work to food for suppers. So, from a young age we learned to spot deals. When I enter Walmart or HEB I always check out the meat section. I check to see if there is anything on sale. I usually snap a picture and send it to my hubby for the “yay” or “nay” on the items as he’s the better cook. Many times, I find almost 1/2 price seafood, chicken, pork, and sometimes beef.
In fact, the only way that I will purchase seafood, rib-eyes, or t bones is if it is on a major sale. Walmart generally has a clearance aisle where there are all kinds of items marked down. Make sure to skim through these aisles as there may be products you use or would like to try there. I can honestly say that if I wouldn’t look for deals, we wouldn’t be where we are today!
I hope you can begin utilizing a few of the money saving tips in this post!