Money saving tips for families

Try some of the following money-saving tips and use them to take charge of your budget.

The more organized you are when you go grocery shopping, the more money you can save. Have a list of items you need to buy, and a maximum budget you’re prepared to spend on the trip (this alone can keep you from overspending).

Also, try to shop early in the week when stores are the least crowded. Crowds mean added stress, and that’s never good for a budget-conscious shopper.

Check what services you hardly use or don’t ever use at all. It could be canceling a hardly used gym membership for one year, a landline telephone service the next, and cable TV the year after that. It may only be $50 to $100 per month, but over the years it does add up. The easiest way to do this is to have a constant budget that you stick to.

Any time you plan to buy something, especially something fairly costly, you should always do your homework first. Try the following:

• Surf the web to see who has the item at the lowest price, or if any sales are coming up.

• Check the website of the manufacturer and retailer to see if any coupons are available.

• See if you can buy the same item second-hand (more on that later).

By adding research to significant purchases, you can save hundreds of dollars each year. You don’t want to do this for small purchases otherwise you‘ll burn a lot of time on in significant savings, but you might set a threshold of say, $50 and above.

Instead of throwing away items you no longer use, try selling them first to make some additional money. By doing this, you can often raise several hundred dollars per year.

You can buy a shirt or blouse that sells in a retail store for $30, for just $4 in a thrift store, or a $40 pair of pants for $5. Thrift stores don’t have the selection that retail stores have, but you can come across the perfect item from time to time, sometimes barely used.

At a minimum, you can use thrift store shopping to supplement your regular retail shopping and save a small fortune in the process.

This can be an especially good strategy for buying children’s clothingSince kids outgrow clothes so quickly, thrift stores offer an opportunity to buy good-quality clothes at low prices. And then you won’t mind when they come home with ripped pant knees or shirts stained with red Kool-Aid.

Just as you should sell whatever you no longer use, others are doing the same all the time. Before you make a major purchase, first look into garage sales and estate sales in your area – you’ll be surprised at the stuff people are looking to unload.

Best of all, all prices are fully negotiable! Take advantage wherever and whenever you can. You’ll begin to realize that there’s practically nothing you need to buy new again.

People often get on the new car treadmill early in life, then park there forever. But that’s an expensive way to live. New cars' values drop like a rock right after you drive them off the dealer lot, and keep dropping steadily for the first few years. Their taxes and insurance cost more, too.

Buy when everyone else is selling is a universal concept that can apply to investing – ie, buying after a market sell-off, so you can pick up investment bargains. But it can also apply to just about anything you might buy.

For example, since retail sales typically fall off in January, nearly everything goes on sale. Plan beforehand and do the bulk of your buying in January rather than November and December.

This also has a strong seasonal application. For example, buy your winter clothing in late winter or early spring, when winter items go on clearance.

We all understand the importance of taking better care of your health as it relates to overall health and longevity, but it also has important financial considerations. By taking better care of yourself, you’ll spend less on dealing with the fallout of common illnesses like cold and flu.

You can save even more by avoiding controllable health conditions related to inactivity, obesity, smoking, and other dangerous behaviors.

Another health-related factor is energy level. The better you feel, the more productive you’ll be, and that usually translates to more productivity on the job or in your business. Health and energy level are often closely correlated to income.