How to save money on everyday items
From time to time "MoneySense" magazine makes suggestions on how to save money on items or services we purchase on a daily basis. Most of us need to watch our spending and it's quite surprising how much money we waste. Here are a few ways they suggest that we can save some money:
1. House brand drugstore items are often the exact same product as national brands. "Moneysense" added up the cost of 10 house brand items and compared them to equivalent national brands and came up with a savings of $50.00.
2. According to "Today's Paren't" Canadians pay an average of $33.80 per day for daycare. To save money send your child to a private nursery school such as Montessori. They provide six hours of toddler care for only $28.14 per day and your child will receive structured learning. That's a savings of $110 per month.
3. Fruits and vegetables can now be found in pre-sliced packages. This is a very expensive way to get your daily vitamin intake. A container of cut-up one-serving container of cantaloupe costs approximately $2.99 while buying a whole cantaloupe provides three times the amount for the same price. A bag of ready-to-eat salad greens costs around $3.99 while a head of lettuce costs roughly $2.49 and provides more lettuce.
4. If you like living in the city consider moving closer to work and taking public transit so you don't have to commute. "MoneySense" calculated that a couple could save $570 every month by taking public transit, or almost $140,000 over 10 years! And remember that you get a tax credit of 15% for a weekly, monthly or annual transit passes. That's even more money to add to your savings.
5. If you make one annual extra mortgage payment of $1,500 on a 25-year $300,000 fixed-rate loan at 5%, you'll save $32,489 in mortgage interest in that 25 year period!
6. If you carry a balance on your credit card and consistently pay the minimum balance, call your credit card company and ask if you can lower your interest rate. On a $5,000 balance you could save $35 in interest per month which you can use to further reduce your balance.
Take a look at these books for more tips on how to save money:
3 thoughts on “How to save money on everyday items”
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We can’t escape the lifestyle that comes with living in the city. It seems that every move that we do, we have to spend money. Perhaps the best way is to survive without making things complicated, especially in the financial department. In addition, we should make it a habit to purchase used items, but those that are still in good quality. This is especially applicable on cars; going to used car dealers is the more practical thing to do these days. To avoid any hassle, seek advice from car experts and look for good reads online.
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