Best Way to Save Money

Recession and job losses, coupled with high prices, have made all of us realize that it is very important to save money. But most of us being used to spending money and shopping on credit cards, may find it very difficult to change our spending habits. Also, many of us do not even know where to start from in order to save money. If you find yourself in a similar situation, then here are some useful money saving tips for you.

Tips on Saving Money

For a House
If you are planning to buy a house and want to save money for the same, you need to start with cutting down on your expenditure. For this, at the beginning of the month, make a budget and stick to it while spending. A few other ways to save money is by making sure that you spend much less than you actually earn.

To save money you need to eliminate unwanted expenditure, so trim it down by making certain lifestyle changes such as renting a smaller place, saving on your utility bills, keeping just one credit card, cutting down on your telephone bill, giving up a gym membership (if you are not regular at it), cooking at home instead of eating out, etc.

If you have a credit card debt, make a plan to repay it as soon as you can. And once it is repaid, use cash instead of credit cards for making payments wherever possible. This will help in keeping you from buying things you do not have the money for.

For Retirement
To save money for retirement, you will need to inculcate a lot of discipline in your saving and spending habits. Ideally, around ten to fifteen percent of your income should be saved and kept aside, as soon as you get your salary, for your retirement. This way you will know that every month you have only a certain amount of money to spend. Another thing that you can do while retirement planning, is to contribute as much as you can (of course it should be within the permissible limits set by law) to the retirement plan which your employer has. To make sure that this happens, you can ask your employer or bank to deduct a certain amount from your paycheck even before it is handed over to you.

On Groceries
Everybody knows that these days the prices of groceries, gas and other kitchen items are touching the roof. In such a scenario, it becomes imperative that you try your best to save as much as you can on your kitchen bill. Wanna know a little secret to do the same? It's very simple. For saving money on groceries, every week, before you set out shopping for groceries, make a menu for the coming week. Once you have decided on the menu, make a shopping list according to it. Also, while making the menu, check the weekly sales flyers and include as many meals in you menu as you can from the discounted items. For example if there is a sale on bananas, then include banana custard as dessert twice a week. Believe me, it will save you a lot of money. Any impulse or unnecessary shopping that you might be indulging in will automatically get eliminated by making a list and sticking to it. Moreover you will end up buying only those things that you need and thus there will be no wastage or occupation of your kitchen space with unnecessary clutter.

For College
Getting a loan for your college education is easy as when it comes to an education loan, most of the banks have very liberal policies. For example, even if a person has defaulted on his credit card payments, there still wouldn't be any problem for him to get a loan. Also, there are many federal and state grants which you can avail of to pay some percentage of your tuition fees. Another good news is that when you are paying your tuition fees, you will be eligible for tax breaks such as the "Lifetime Learning Credit" and "American Opportunity Tax Credit", which will help you in saving a lot of money.

Only saving is not enough, it has to be coupled with wise investment decisions so that the saved money can be multiplied. So, put some percentage of your money in a savings account and invest the rest wisely in financial instruments such as stocks, mutual finds and bonds.