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The world is going through some rough times, and we are paying the price. Does it seem like everything is becoming exorbitantly pricey, but your monthly earnings are remaining pretty stagnant? With world economies plummeting, the gap between the rich and the poor increasing, your monthly budget might start to seem inadequate to cover the ever-increasing household expenses.
How can we get our hands on more money? Jobs are getting more competitive, and salaries are getting lower. While securing a mortgage may be easy with a few tips, it isn’t a permanent solution to your financial woes. No, the best solution is a long term one, which is, learning to cut down radically on your expenses, especially your everyday home expenses. Here are a few simple ways to cut down on household expenses:
1) Lowering Housing Expenses:
It has been seen that most people spend a significant amount of their salary on housing expenses. Most financial experts recommend you to not spend more than 30% of your monthly income on housing; yes there are people who continue to pay over 50% a month for housing.
There are several ways to lower your housing costs, without having to upend your entire life and move elsewhere. You can always find a roommate to share the rent, you can give up amenities like paid parking spaces, and even start doing several repairs around the house yourself.
If you are a homeowner, on the other hand, a great way to start reducing expenses, you can consider refinancing, which helps you reduce your mortgage interest rates, and monthly mortgage payments. You can also consider renting out a portion of your house!
Houses are expensive to maintain, and the weather is not kind. Every year, there are numerous damages that our homes undergo, and repairing them is a massive financial burden. Investing in good insurance, like the HO3 insurance policy, helps you get compensated whenever there is damage to your property, and reduces the stress and hassle that comes with home maintenance.
2) Save Energy:
Most houses usually use up way more electricity than required, racking up a massive electricity bill by the end of the month that empties your wallets. Ideally, your electricity cost should account for less than 12% of the energy bill. There are several, extremely simple ways to save energy.
Minor actions, like turning off lights while leaving the room, switching off electrical appliances after they are done being used, drying out clothes instead of using the dryer, are all small ways one can save a substantial amount of electricity.
You can even purchase energy saving light bulbs, and a programmable thermostat. Cable and phones also add to energy expenditure and can be reduced by opting for plans that save money and stopping yourself from loading up on various subscriptions.
3) Sales and Coupons:
The next big thing that eats away at your monthly budget is groceries. Groceries are essential, and it’s pretty difficult to cut down on the quantity and quality of something that’s as important as food and other essentials. This is where sales and coupons come in.
With the help of sales and coupons, you can easily save nearly 20% of your budget, and can even get up to 50% if you’re clever about it. Remember, the trick is to use coupons for things you need, not to get free things you don’t need, a common mistake many amateurs make.
Keep track of sales. Sales are very predictable and go by season. Summer clothes tend to go on sale by August, winter clothes by February. Black Friday is great for buying electronics. Keep a lookout for pre-holiday sales.
4) Reduce Insurance Premiums:
While home and car insurances are often lifesavers, they often eat up a huge chunk of your budget. First of all, look for companies that offer cheaper rates, with the same coverage.
Sometimes companies provide reduced rates to certain customers, who meet certain criteria. For example, sometimes car insurance companies provide slashed rates to those who have good driving records, and cars with various features that accentuate safety. Keep an eye out for these.
Similarly, certain homeowners’ insurance companies provide benefits and discounts to those who add certain upgrades to their homes, like alarm systems, smoke detectors, air purifiers and similar other features. In fact, upgrading electrical systems and heating systems can also make you eligible to avail deals and discounts.
Put a lot of thought into your insurance when the time for renewal comes up. Do some research, and look up better deals.
Conclusion
Thus, by doing a couple of really simple things, our home budget gets slashed by a substantial amount. Self-control, discipline, and research are the keys and can help you reduce costs even further. While it is true, maintaining a house can be cost-intensive, a couple of hacks can help you both manage and reduce your home budget.
