Ways to pinch pennies

[5MilesBack]

Don't pump money into things that depreciate in value.......i.e. vehicles, high registration fees, higher insurance costs because of expensive vehicles etc. Same for toys.

 

[Crusader]

Be generous and giving, include in your monthly expenditures funds for others. Ministries, charitable organizations, etc. Sounds counterintuitive to give money away but I believe in the principle of you reap what you sow and that you'll get back more than you give (though the motivation/reason to give is to bless others, not to expect a "return")

 

[Trial153]

Focus on your cash flow. So make more money. Have money coming in regularly from several different venues and just allocate some steams just for saving and reinvestment.

 

[Joebe]

Pay off entire balance of all credit cards every month. Before buying anything on line save it to account wait 2 days and go back to see if you still want it.

 

[Xprmntl]

Figure out what your time is worth.

Depending on your hourly worth, you will probably be better off putting in more hours working and cutting back on luxuries.

Some of the suggestions like gardening, changing your oil, etc. are great skills to develop, but may not be worth the time it would take you to do them vs pay for it.

I have a huge vegetable garden. We get a good amount of produce from it. I know financially, we would be ahead if I took the time spent gardening and put it in working. But I enjoy growing food for my family and having the kids out there helping. I like the security of having that skill.

I can change my own oil, but it's not worth my time. After figuring in the costs of all the materials and the time for me to do the work, I'm better off paying a quick change place to do it while I make phone calls, work on estimates, or send emails. Once my kids are old enough to take an interest in cars, that might change the equation enough for me to do it with them.

We rarely eat out. We don't drink much. Ditched cable a long time ago. We plan our meals weekly.

We try to shop by unit cost. That's the small number on the shelf price tag that tells you $/amount. Bulk is usually cheaper, but not always (especially if using coupons).

Drive like a granny. Go easy on the gas, leave room in front of you, and coast up to stops. Fewer tickets, fewer accidents, fewer repairs.

Good tip is to put a value on your time. I like to use $25/hr, but since minimum wage is being upped to ~$15/hr everywhere due to Covid, I'm thinking of upping it to $35.

 

[Sadler]

I always meal prep the days food the night prior so I don't have to eat out for lunch/dinner.
I eat all of my elk/deer/bear meat before I buy meat from the store...except bacon
I don't waste money on beer and chew anymore. The chew alone saved me at least $40 a week.
Put big ticket items on my credit card, collect the cash back, then pay it off with no interest. I used all that cash last year to help pay for a swaro 95mm objective.
Buy all my hunting gear at a discount. Never pay full retail on gear. You can always save at least 10%
I don't buy new vehicles.
I try to work holidays for the extra pay whenever possible
Start up a side hustle, mine is building wooden flags and the national guard.

 

[risinghunter]

Make budget and follow it!

 

[Opah]

First make sure Penny is not Married to a LEO or pro wrestler.

 

[Gooseslayer]

Don’t have kids.

 

[Magnus777]

Don't get married, and don't have kids. You'll be AMAZED at how much more money and free time you have to spend on yourself compared to your friends! If you already did one, or both... there's always clipping coupons...

 

[bojangles808]

-meal prep for lunches eat lots of leftovers (not eating out/fast food)
-beer alcohol add up/ especially bars
-make your own coffee
-get rid of any credit card debt
-refinance any vehicles/home rn with low interest rates
-I have my savings account with a seperate credit union and direct deposit into there so it's easy to save and difficult to access
-can also look to increase income in addition to decrease expenditures and get an extra side job but depends on your skillset and normal job. can find stuff on craigslist gigs. I live in a vacation destination and i've worked sunday brunch and now work banquets at a local resort. 4hr shifts and easy $.

 

[Opah]

One more push of the handle and Bidden and the dems will flush this country. so I say
get stocked up, armed and loaded while I can.

 

[DenverCountryBoy]

Don't get married, and don't have kids. You'll be AMAZED at how much more money and free time you have to spend on yourself compared to your friends!

You may save money, but have a life that is all the poorer for it.

 

[IDLassie]

Live below your means.
We don't eat out. Don't drink booze.
Don't have a land line and our cell phones are basic and flip types.
We grow our own food and hunt for all of our meat a large part of the time.
Don't have cable or satellite tv just plain ol' over the air. Do have a Fire stick but only subscribe to one channel at a time.
Only go to town every 3 months or so and then stock up on groceries. Buy in bulk.
Living in towns do cause you to spend more because you're bored with life.
Not much to do here other than go hiking or riding UTV's. Or hike into your fishing or hunting.
Don't have kids just one dog that got hurt and cost us a leg surgery at $2800 plus all the other stuff before the surgery. Which probably all adds up to $4000 this past summer. Ouch!
But Kids, wife/husband do cost money to live and not be too bored.

 

[Okhotnik]

stopped hunting,Went vegan. Sold truck bought a Mini Cooper, (dont need it
), hunting dogs, boat, hunting gear, rifles, shotguns, fishing, fly fishing gear, Invested in a low interest CD

Bought a home with savings after 5 years.

 

[22lr]

Depending on your cellphone company there can be some pretty lucrative perks. I have Verizon we upped our plan to a premium plan and ended up saving $25 a month over the individual subscriptions on stuff like Disney+ and discovery+. Also, I have never damaged a phone or cracked a screen (always lives in a life proof or Otterbox case) so I never buy the phone insurance anymore, that saves a ton.

 

[def90]

Stay away from Whole Foods for one.. save a ton of money doing that alone.

 

[small bucks]

Setting a limit on eating out, groceries every week. Seems small but adds up in the long run