The whole process of saving money is usually associated with pinching pennies until they scream for mercy, living on food from dented cans and basically giving up everything for a future goal. While this will indeed help you put more money away, saving does not need to mean hardship. We rounded up some of the easiest and painless ways that you can start saving money right now, without feeling the pinch.
1. Transfer high interest balances.
One of the easiest ways to save a lot of money over time is to transfer any high interest credit card debt that you may have to a card with a better rate. Watch out for introductory rate changes, and remember that in some cases, this technique may hurt your overall credit rating until you get the balance paid down. This is best for those that have the ability to make payments on time and have credit card debt that is less than $7500.
2. Create an emergency fund in your own checking account.
Write yourself a check for a few hundred dollars, deduct it, but don’t cash it. Do this every month and you’ll be shocked at how much you’ve managed to sock away. This works on the basic principle of out of sight, out of mind, and can be very effective. However, you’ve got to be disciplined enough not to cash that check or add the money back in. Keep doing this for a few months and you’ll have saved up quite a lot.
3. Don’t forget your rebates.
A rebate usually pulls us in and convinces us to buy a product, but thousands fail to actually go through the process of getting that rebate. Take a little time to send that in and put the money aside. With a little smart shopping, this can add up into a nice little savings account and you’re not out anything but a stamp and a few minutes of time.
4. Start out small.
One really great trick to try for those that don’t have a lot of wiggle room in their accounts is to put aside the equivalent of one hour of pay each week. It may not sound like a lot, but over time this will add up. It’s also small enough that you’re really not going to miss that money much. If possible, have your bank do this automatically so there is less temptation to blow your entire paycheck.
5. Save your change.
Waitresses fund vacations every year on pennies, so why can’t you. Every time you get home, immediately empty your pockets and put the change in a jar. You will be absolutely amazed at how much you can save without even thinking about it using this method. It is common to find a few thousand in there at the end of the year.
These five easy methods will help you form good savings habits now, which can lead to saving even more money ten years from now.
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2 comments ↓
These are truely great tips. We can’t all save 50% of our income… start small. I like that tip. As long as your doing something you’ll be moving forward.
I like the idea of starting small. But usually, I plan ahead of time and have a budget. Also, it might be helpful to have your savings directly deposited into your savings account. That way, it’s already out of your reach in the first place and you won’t miss it at all.
After starting small, build up till you save 10% of your salary every month. This is the first thing that my parents taught me about savings. Nowadays, I go up to 12-15% in one paycheck.
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