Money Saving Secrets by Nitinkumar Chauhan - HTML preview

12.  Household

Money is like an arm or leg. Use it or lose it. -Henry Ford

1)  Maximize yard sales: I like to stop by yard sales if I see them, but I recognize that often the stuff there is junk. Thus, I’m careful about what I buy and I use clever tactics to find it – and lower the prices. That way, I wind up with a really big bargain – or else I can just walk away with the money in my pocket, having been entertained for a bit.

2)  Give a gift of a service instead of an item: For new parents, give an evening of babysitting as a gift. If you know pet owners, offer to take care of their pets when they travel. Offer up some lawn care as a gift to a new homeowner. These are always spectacular gifts for anyone.

3)  Reevaluate the stuff in the rooms in your house: Go into a room and go through every single item in it. Do you really need that item? Are you happy that it’s there, or would you be just fine if it were not? If you can find stuff to get rid of, get rid of it – it just creates clutter and it might have some value to others. You also improve the perceived value of your house – and you’re likely to get a lot of cleaning done in the process. It’s a frugal win-win- win.

4)  Rent out unused  space in  your  home: Do you  have an  extra bedroom that’s not being used? Rent it out to the right person, this would bring in a lot of extra money.

5)   Swap babysitting: Find another set of parents or two that you trust, and swap nights of babysitting with them. That way, you’ll get occasional evenings free without the cost of a babysitter, saving you some scratch.

6)  Brown bag your lunch: Instead of going out to eat at work, take your own lunch. Lots of people think that this means “nasty lunch,” but it doesn’t. With some thoughtful preparation and just a few minutes of time, you can create something quite enjoyable for your brown bag lunch – and save a fistful of cash each day, too.

7)  Learn how to dress minimally: Buy clothes that mix and match well and you’ll not need nearly as many clothes. If you have five pants, seven shirts, and seven ties that all go togeth<