4 Big Places to Save Big Money
Are you focusing too much on the little things in your budget?
Yes, of course, the little things add up. But when you’re first starting to get in control of your budget, focusing too much on the little things might not be the way to start.
Who doesn’t love instant gratification? I know I do! What’s more inspiring than seeing your first month on a budget really have a difference? So, focusing on the fact that you buy Q-tips once a month then to stop buying Q-tips isn’t really going to make a big difference in your numbers at the end of the month.
Budgeting is a lot like a diet.
Yes, the little things matter, but it’s the big things that will make the biggest difference. And let’s not forget, if you’ve starved yourself for a month and only lost 1 pound, are you going to stay on your diet? Nope! You’re going to inhale and entire cheesecake on your own in a day!
The same things can be said for budgeting. What happens when you feel like you’ve done all of this work to cut out spending only turn around and have the end result be just $2 less than the month before? You’re going to say “screw this” and go on a shopping spree at the mall.
When you’re just about to start on your budgeting and frugal journey, think big!
4 Big Places to Save Big Money
1. A new-to-you car.
Are you drowning in your car payments? Does your car cost $80 for an oil change ever 3 months? It might be time to think about getting a new car. Trade in that BMW for a Honda and you won’t need to buy a new car for years and years.
There are great resources out there to help you pick the right car and will help you to make sure that you’re getting a great deal.
Savings:
$500/month for the BMW
$150/ month for the Honda
Monthly savings: $350
2. Rent/ mortgage.
What better big place to save big money is there than in the place you live. Are you living in a house that’s too big for you with a sky-high monthly payment? It might be time to move. If you have 2 spare bedrooms and 3 dining rooms for a family of 2, downsizing could save you thousands or hundreds of thousands of dollars! Not to mention, when you sell your house and then move into a smaller place, you’ll make money at the end.
Savings:
$2,500/month for the extra space
$1,250/ month for the downsized
Monthly savings: $1,250
The same thing can be said for a rental. Can you manage to move into a less-upgraded place to save money each month? Are the granite countertops worth the extra expense?
And when you move out, you’ll get your security deposit back (hopefully!) which will be another nice boost into the good ol’ savings account!
Savings:
$2,000/month for the granite countertops
$1,200/ month for the downgrade
Monthly savings: $800
3. Stop getting take-out.
Yes, cooking is hard sometimes. I know! But it needs to be done if you want to save money. I love $5 Dinners because I don’t have to go crazy meal planning of finding recipes, I have everything right there for me. Plus, they really teach you how to cook. (That’s something I desperately needed!)
My favorite appliance in the kitchen is my crockpot. You just throw everything in there in the morning and you have an amazing dinner ready when you need it.
Even if you really want to have a pizza night, try frozen pizzas or pizzas from the grocery store. Costco’s pizzas are amazing and gigantic! And for $9 will feed the whole family with leftovers for the next day And you can get them without a membership, too.
Savings
$500/ month for take-out (for a family of 4, 3 times each week)
$5/ month for $5 Dinners meal plan and recipes
Monthly savings: $495
4. Buying new-to-you clothes.
Do your clothes really need to come directly from boutiques or can it come from a consignment store? The same items at a consignment store or a thrift shop will save you 50-80% or more. Especially at consignment shops, the quality of the clothes, shoes, purses and more are all fantastic. They will all be clean, stain-free, brand name clothes that have likely only been worn a handful of times.
You don’t need to stop buying clothing right away, but by changing the way that you shop, you can save some serious cash and still bring home the same amount of loot.
I recently discovered ThredUp and it’s probably the most excited I’ve been about clothes in a long time. ThredUp is an online consignment store and they specialize in designer and immaculately maintained clothes. These clothes will basically be perfect when you get them. I got a (much needed!) $298 Banana Republic wool peacoat for $10! (Plus you can get a free $10 credit when you sign up through my link.)
Savings:
$500/month for shopping at the mall
$150/ month for consignment shopping
Monthly savings: $350
All in all, you could save more than $2,000 each month just by changing these 4 big places to save big money. And these are very conservative numbers, too. You could save a lot more than that!
Now, this is not an excuse to spend money on little things while you’re working on the big things! If  you focus on all of the spending that you do, both big and small, you’ll be amazed at how much you can save.
What big expense can you change to save a lot of money?
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Laurie says
I think it is important to look for ways to save wherever you can. Great tips, thanks for sharing!