With the new year fast approaching there is a definite urge to figure out how to save some money. I’ve come up with a few ideas for saving that are easy to do and don’t include digging down the back of the sofa for any loose change. I already do a couple of these and others are ones that I want to try to be able to fund my trip to London next August.
PUT SPARE CHANGE IN A BOTTLE
I have a large vodka bottle that I acquired when I worked in a pub that I put all my spare change into. Every so often I count it all up and take it to the bank. When I was waitressing it was much easier to add to the bottle as I had all my tips which meant the money amounted to more in a shorter length of time. It’s a slower saving option but does mean that if you find yourself short one day it’s easy to dip into for your bus fare.
EXCHANGE LEFTOVER HOLIDAY MONEY
This is a great way of adding a little more to your savings pot. If you go away regularly then granted hanging onto that spare 20 euros may come in handy but with the way exchange rates are going at the moment, you might be better off changing that leftover currency from the country you’ve been to once but will never visit again. Instead of hanging onto it, you’re better off getting those notes back into circulation just in case they go out of date (trust me it happens more often than you think it would).
Equally, if you find you have old Scottish/English banknotes that are no longer in circulation then take them to your bank and they’ll be happy to change them over to new ones. You may need some ID or to pay them into your bank account but they’ll get it all sorted out for you.
SHORT TERM LOAN
I know, it’s not always the best way of saving but hear me out. We once lived in a flat where the upstairs neighbour decided to run the bath and then go out. This meant that we ended up with our bedroom ceiling on our bed – thankfully we weren’t in it at the time – and needed to buy new bedding and covers which quite frankly we couldn’t quite afford at the time. Sometimes a short-term loan, such as the one offered by Cash Lady, can get you out of a sticky situation and back to normal meaning that you can get back to worrying about other things.
DITCH THOSE SUBSCRIPTIONS YOU DON’T USE
How many streaming services or subscription boxes does one person need? Over the course of this year, I’ve whittled down the number of subscription services I use and ditched the rest. Some are things that are indispensable like Netflix, web hosting and Microsoft Office but the subscription boxes that I no longer get excited about have been cancelled and I don’t even miss them. By cancelling these I can pop some extra into my savings each month and maybe treat myself occasionally too.
