This is part two of a series we are doing on cheap ideas that the average person can use to cut their costs. My husband and I live pretty cheaply but there is always something you can do to improve your bottom line.
Many people with grown children have extra rooms in their house. Consider renting one out. If you have a church family, you can often find someone there who needs affordable housing. You can make the terms as flexible as you wish. Include meals and laundry or not. It’s up to you and can help pay the electric bill.
Let’s continue with part 2 of our series.
6. Take up a real sport or outdoor activity instead of joining a gym for your health. Unless you are so passionate about gym stuff itself, such as bodybuilding as a hobby, it will become both a time and money sink. You can get better health if you take up something like plein air painting, marathon walking, softball or some physical activity that gives great enjoyment but can be organized just by meeting others who are interested in sharing it. Most times the fees for sports clubs and so on are a lot cheaper than gym memberships. If there isn’t a club for what you want to do, put up flyers and online notices in your area’s local website to start one and give your contact information.
7. Cut back or cut out convenience foods in favor of raw ingredients. Baking your own bread is healthier with whole wheat flour. Oatmeal, the normal kind, cooks as fast as instant and costs pennies on the dollar versus instant packets, even if you put in the raisins, brown sugar, apple bits and so on.
Breakfast cereal is a huge offender for not being cost effective, it’s expensive and vanishes fast but hasn’t got nearly the nutrition that hot cereals made at home do. Turkey is a good bargain for cost of meat and quantity of good meat, either ground turkey or just roasting a whole one with all the trimmings and eating on it for a week. By eliminating overpriced processed convenience foods, you can afford to buy at organic food stores and improve quality.
If you don’t have a lot of time for cooking, plan for crock pot meals and choose a weekend day to cook several big dishes at the same time. Save individual servings in Tupperware in the fridge and eat all week without stopping to cook. A benefit is being able to customize that to exactly your own tastes. Even a person living alone can save money cooking in bulk rather than spending hours on just one meal (except special occasions).
8. Shop online. The overhead for almost anything you can buy online is a lot lower than businesses supporting more employees, rent in a good location and utilities for a shop. Retail prices are based on costs of running “brick and mortar” shops — so online businesses routinely sell way below retail. For the patience of waiting a few days for the item to arrive, you may get it at half price or less. I’ve applied this to art supplies and my studio setup is worth about three times as much as I’ve invested in it over the years. I get the best of everything by watching for Clearance sales and email coupons from my favorite suppliers. Windowshopping at physical stores and then buying online can be a way to have fun.
9. Shop at thrift and secondhand shops. If you enjoy the process of shopping as many people do, it’s as much fun going to a thrift shop with a set cash budget in pocket as it would be to cruise through a mall with a credit card. You are still getting personal, respectful attention from salespeople and getting to make choices on the spot. That is the real pleasure of in person shopping.
So take it to a flea market and spend only cash that you really have and already budgeted. You’ll start getting into bargain hunting and improve everything from your wardrobe and furnishings to books, hobbies and tools at a fraction of the cost.
(Glenna’s Comment)
OK, cost saving ideas on cooking and bargain shopping are right up my alley. :0) I have been making large portions and eating several meals off them. I find my husband gets tired of the same thing more than 2 or 3 times but I can freeze part and serve it a week or two later. I often do this with soup or chili. It’s nice to have something to grab when you are too tired to cook or need something in a hurry. I don’t have a big freezer but if you are going to eat something within a month or so, you can still do it with a smaller one.
I’m looking forward to more of Robert Sloan’s cheap ideas to save money in my next post. Meanwhile, if you are curious about him, you can visit his Qondio profile.
Cheap Ideas For Saving Money Part 3
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