It’s fair to say that just about everybody wants to save some cash. This is especially true with the UK now in recession and many of us wondering just how secure our finances are.
As a result, here are five simple ways you can save for a rainy day. Far from just ‘budget better’, these are actionable tips which could leave you much better off.
Cancel your unnecessary direct debits
If you don’t check your bank balance frequently, you might not be completely well-versed in just where your money goes. However, it’s worth identifying if there’s anything which you don’t use – or haven’t used for years.
We’re talking about subscription services, forgotten memberships, unnecessary insurance, and a range of other expenses you’ve just forgotten about. There are tales of people who pay for international travel insurance – despite never leaving the country for years – or who have cover for electrical items which long ago went to the scrapheap.
It’s time for a review of your direct debits. Potentially, you could save hundreds just by switching off the services you no longer use.
Give yourself a three-day grace period
We all want to treat ourselves every so often but, especially with large purchases, it’s important we do what we can to avoid buyer’s remorse. It’s the feeling you get – perhaps even a few minutes after making a purchase – which signifies perhaps spending that money wasn’t such a great idea.
Therefore, instead of not treating yourself, we recommend enforcing a three-day grace period. This means, upon seeing something expensive you want, wait three days before deciding to buy. By doing this, the initial excitement upon seeing the item will have faded and you can make an informed decision as to whether this is something you actually want.
Remove credit card numbers from your devices
We live in an age where you can buy something from the comfort of your home and have it delivered to your address the next day. It’s quick and simple, but does open you up to temptation.
To remove the risks of making any unnecessary purchases, we recommend making sure your credit and debit cards aren’t saved on any of your devices. That way, when you want to buy something, you’ll need to actually find where the card is located.
While undergoing this search, you can determine whether this purchase is something you really want.
Invest in freezer space
Get an additional freezer and a whole new world of batch cooking and bulk buying becomes open to you. Buying fresh is – of course – perfectly fine but you can save a lot of money by freezing items and eating them later.
It’s always worth considering if you can be more economical with your food.
Take the one-penny challenge
There are lots of money-saving challenges out there but our favourite is perhaps the one penny challenge. On the first day, you take one penny and save it. On the second day, you take two pennies. This pattern continues until day 365 – where you put £3.65 into your savings.
This is one of those challenges which is actually affordable and can yield some great results. Do it for a year, and you will have saved almost £670.
What other options are available?
If you can’t bring extra cash in, maybe you can see what you can do with your outgoings. One option which could be open to you could be debt consolidation. It can make your finances much easier to manage and could result in more money at the end of each month so it’s definitely worth seeing if you qualify.
Otherwise, there are a range of debt solutions – and professional debt advice – available which can help grant some much-needed breathing room.