I have a general philosophy to take on new recurring expenses extremely reluctantly and to make sure I am getting the best deal on those by comparison shopping regularly.
In practice, this means that I comparison shop my auto/home/umbrella insurance every year, my cable/internet every year or two, my mobile phone every year or two. I also try to minimize my electric, gas & water bills via my programmable thermostat & irrigation system. Instead of cable boxes, I use Tivo minis - no monthly fee, so they pay for themselves after a year or so.
I used to have a landscaping & snow removal service, but it’s really expensive around here and I saved thousands of dollars a year by doing it myself. Also, get a little exercise and get to spend time outside. I do pay for a cleaning service a couple times a month as I get a lot of value out of that.
Instead of paying a monthly fee for home security, I have a smart home system that alerts me when any doors/windows/garage doors are opened or when the motion detectors are activated. Also, have cameras hooked up so I can see what’s going on. Not an exact substitute for a monitored security system, but not bad for no monthly fee.
As far as cars go, we generally have bought used and kept our cars for 10+ years. Helps to minimize depreciation, insurance and excise taxes.
I have bought a lot of gently used electronics and other things from Craigslist. Fitbit, GPS watch, camera lenses, etc. Generally have gotten them for 20-50% of retail in excellent condition.
I’ve become a big fan of Amazon Warehouse Deals. I generally look for Like New condition. This generally saves me 10-20% off the price of new items, and in new conditions except for maybe a dinged box.
Likewise, I recommend setting alerts at CamelCamelCamel for price drops. Bought a new tech item that $100+, for example? Set a price drop for $10-$20 less than you paid, and you get an email immediately once the price drops which you can then utilize to file a price protection claim with your credit card. Generally takes ~5-10 minutes total effort, which is >$60/hour after taxes.
Also a huge fan of using the Lowe’s coupons plus discounted gift cards. This generally results in at least 30% savings off list price. Buy tons of nice tools and equip there with major discounts. Use the following:
We are not much out-on-the-town kind of people, but a few years back we won a trip to NYC that included a WNBA awards lunch. My DW did not have anything she felt was worthy to wear. So we used renttherunway. We were able to have the dress delivered to and picked up from our hotel, which also meant she did not have to worry about transporting a nice dress across the country. As I recall, they sent two sizes of the dress to help ensure one of them would fit. It was especially helpful as, at the time, they had something like $25 off your first rental, so the cost was very low. We’d definitely consider using them for a similar local event, rather than purchasing something for a one time use, then have it hang in the closet.
Sometimes, you can ask to be kept on promo rates. It works especially well if there is competitor you could switch to.
We were on $30/month internet connection for 2 years with one provider and reaching in August the end of our promo period. I researched prices for competitors for similar speeds and saw they were offering $30/month elsewhere and with my provider but only for new customers. I just called them saying I’d like to stay with them but not for $55/month which was our new rate. At first, they could not lower it to more than $45/month. Best rate they could do. Since I owned my modem and router, it told the rep it’d be no trouble switching to another provider if it’d save me $15/month and potentially get me on higher speed package. Then somehow they managed to find a way to keep me on my $30/month deal for another 2 years…
Just be a squeaky wheel and be ready to switch if they don’t budge.
As far as suggestions to leave frugally, one that consistently save us thousands per year is to cook food yourself.
I’m lucky that my husband cooks well so burden is not all on me. But the savings are significant when you know that the restaurant industry markup is usually 300%. Packing lunch (it’s healthier too) for 5 means spending about $10-15 vs $25-30. And time to cook/shop is not all that bad vs. driving to dinner, waiting to order/be served, driving back. Especially if you could larger quantities during the weekend and freeze portions. And you can do some fancy stuff too. You just end up splurging on ingredients vs. on labor.
Tmobile Prepaid Phone plan $30 grandfathered in, new users pay $35. 5GB of data, 100 voice minutes, unlimited texting. Set up a VOIP line on it for use over WiFi and only use the limited number of voice minutes when no WiFi is available. Or use VOIP over Cellular Internet at a reduced call quality.
iPhone SE paid for in cash. Remarkably good value for the price compared to other Apple products and gives access to the Apple appstore ecosystem
Reduce the number of consumables you buy, and buy them in bulk. e.g. Use liquid dish soap to replace hand soap in bathrooms and to clean countertops instead of a simple green type cleaner. Between glass cleaner, dish soap, and bleach, you can clean your whole house. Add in leather cleaner and carpet cleaner as needed.
If you’re a guy, cut your own hair. Get a set of hair clippers and pick a length to buzz around your whole head. Quick and simple. Saves time and money on both barber trips and hair products like gel.
Buy high quality “buy it for life” goods for durable products when possible. e.g. Oster 76 hair clippers cost around $100 plus $25 per metal comb attachment. Compared to $30 Chinese-made crap from Wal Mart with plastic combs that break after 6 to 12 months. Also take pride in ownership of owning quality products.
Buy meat in bulk and only buy when on sale. Supermarkets are cyclical when putting items on sale. Chicken may be $5 per pound at regular price and $2 per pound on sale. If you notice your local supermarket puts Chicken on sale every 6 weeks, then buy 6 weeks worth when on sale, freeze the rest and use until the next sale.
Another way to save is to kill your landline. We were paying $40/month for landline. Kept our number since many people (schools, work, family) relied on that and switched to cell phone unlimited talk for $15/month. We like having several handsets through the house so paired the cell phone with a Panasonic system ($75 on amazon) and back to the functionality of your previous landline but saving $25/month. As a bonus, cell phone can also receive sms and record conversations automatically (one party state here in OH).
And as was proved by hurricane Sandy, cell phone network is more resilient now that the non-buried landline we have in our neighborhood so assuming you have good cell phone quality around your home, this was a no brainer.
Only caveat may be if you have an alarm system that relies on a landline connection to alert dispatch but for safety reasons we have switched to cellular service a while back.
Great tip. Once I started really working, years ago, I asked myself why I was paying $25 for a simple cut. I bought a pair of clippers with all of the attachments for $24 at Walmart, and still have it and use it to this day. I think they’re Wahl.
I was in the market myself a couple years ago, but for an entire dining room set. New sets in the style we liked would have been closer to the $8000 range. Yikes. Furniture is a real racket, let me tell you…
So, I decided to go the CL route. Looked at about four or so, found one that was pretty decent, and almost pulled the trigger, but decided to check one more. This thing was immaculate, full set, traditional style, good construction. Got the whole set for $1200, chairs, table, large hutch, etc.
I guess my lesson is that CL can be a really good way to obtain furniture, if you spend time looking for quality items, stick to safe areas, and follow safety guidelines. I probably wouldn’t get an upholstered sofa, but wooden stuff, sure!
Not sure who that’s to, I must have missed it, but we’ve been using Yi cams for a while throughout the house. They are “ok” but a friend with all Nest stuff around his home says they’re basically the same quality, video wise. Mine were $35 per unit, his were $150?
I have a handful of Foscam C1 cameras that I picked up for about $30 each. They can be used as cameras (duh!) but also as motion sensors within my smart home system (SmartThings).
Several savings tips we use were already mentioned. The wife is an awesome thrift store/craigslist shopper and this alone has saved us thousands of dollars per year. She knows which thrift stores have color tag sales on which days and can maximize, getting 75% off thrift store prices. She could literally replace her entire wardrobe for under $200.
If we do want to buy something retail price from a major store, purchasing discount gift cards for the expected purchase price often saves us 10%-15% and can also be great with store sales. We recently replaced all of our towels with new ones (hadn’t done this in over 10 years) and found a 60% of JC Penny deal with free shipping. Stacked this with ~12% off e-gift cards for over 70% of savings.
We never buy new furniture. CL may have lightly used or worse condition items but wife likes to occasionally cycle our furniture items out every couple years so we have saved a ton of money picking up discounted furniture on CL. Just about everything fits in our van and if it’s particularly large, a U-Haul rental to pick up a $100 item is still huge savings over the $1,000 plus it would have cost new retail. A permanent black marker hides most all dings in wood furniture that we would have eventually created ourselves anyway and if we’re really motivated, re-finishing fabric or a clean coat of stain does wonders.
We are also huge beneficiaries of buying in bulk. When you see a discount or deal (or comparison shop to find the lowest price), we often buy 6 to 12 months worth of that item that we know we’ll eventually use. This especially works well for non-perishable items. For example, I bought 3 years’ worth of deodorant at 90% off at liquidation store. A second freezer/refrigerator in the garage holds a lot of bulk food and drinks. While costly in materials and some labor (I built most of it myself but hired out the last half of the job), I recently built out my attic and added a drop down ladder for an additional ~1,000 square feet of storage space. This also pairs well with the wife’s bulk craigslist pick ups. We have enough free/cheap clothes and school supplies to last our kids until they they turn 18!
This will be limited to people in specific situations, but don’t pay for parking at work/school. Parking is currently ~$40/month where I work. Instead, I park on street and walk. There is some sacrifice of time, and some of safety (but it helps that I drive old crappy-looking cars). The benefit is both in money savings and health (because of the extra walking; I actually park a little farther away from where I work both so I don’t have to hunt for parking and for a little extra exercise).
This is an excellent strategy for electronic goods, IMO. Not only does one pay a fraction of the cost of the “latest and greatest”, but often the bugs affecting initial release have been worked out. Deeper and more balanced reviews of the products are available, making it easier to select the best–fitting product.
I use this strategy regularly with cel phones and laptop computers.
First, if a bank or credit card ever charges you a fee, just call them and request they waive it.
(I’ve never paid a fee in my life).
Also, if you live or work in Manhattan, check out JACKS (32nd & 6th is the best). It’s a grim experience (not really that bad) but they have the best bargains! Most items are 99 cents and i’ve found everything from really well made Nike tees for .99 cents each to boxes of 12 Larabars for $4. Christmas time they have $27 panetone for $3.50.
It’s hit or miss, but if its on your way home, it’s definitely worth checking out…and Trader Joes is not far (on 21st Street).
When a doctor orders a test, ask for the CPT code & diagnosis code. Then send a secure message to your insurance company asking if the test is fully covered (or what the copay will be).
If your claim is denied, you’ll have their statement in writing, which will help get them to pay.
