Before you go getting into a cpxx, it might be time to take a look at your whole financial picture in order to look at every dollar coming in and out, and then finding ways you can cut expenses in order to put your hard-earned dollars to good use, from building an emergency fund, increasing retirement contributions, and even saving for a much needed vacation.  There are plenty of ways you can save money, but some might take some sacrifices, but will be well worth it in the long run.

Get Rid of the Gym Membership

When the end of the year comes it’s typically a time when you reflect on the previous year and start to think about what you can do to improve yourself in the next year.  That’s probably why you see the gyms packed starting in January, where it’s hard to even get on a machine, but by the time April goes the crowds start to thin out.  The visits become less-frequent and pretty soon you are paying every month but not going to the gym.  Save yourself the trouble and just cancel the gym membership now.  It’s finally starting to warm up, take the dog for a walk every day, and get some exercise outside, for free.

Cut the Cable Cord

The popular trend you hear about now is cutting the cable cord, and that may come as a shock, but think about how many of the available channels that you actually watch, let alone live TV and not your DVR.  If you can actually get rid of cable, get an HD antenna for around $20 to still get the local channels, pay $10 a month for a streaming service, you can probably still save a hundred dollars a month by getting rid of cable.  It may be easier than you think.

Use a Rewards Credit Card

While I understand it may be tough for some to stay within a spending budget, I mean after all, you can charge up what you want and don’t have to pay back until the next month.  Credit cards may scare some, but it actually can make good financial sense others, especially when it comes to the credit card rewards.  By making the purchases you were going to make anyways, you can earn points or cashback dollars that you wouldn’t otherwise see by using your debit card, leaving free money on the table essentially.

Avoid Going Out to Eat

In order to free up extra money sometimes you have to make the tough choices, and while it’s great to order what you want, be served, not to mention cleaned up afterwards while you get to go home, it comes at a premium price.  If you can skip going out to eat and go for grocery shopping instead and actually prepare your meals at home, you can watch the savings happen virtually right away, probably saving hundreds of dollars a month, which may make a little easier to cook a little more instead of taking the easy route and going out.

Living the frugal lifestyle is a great way to free up extra money each month.  After all, it’s important to build an emergency fund of a few months’ worth of expenses to give yourself a cushion if any large unexpected charges come in, a lowes build and grow, or being able to float yourself for a few months in case of a sudden job loss, not to mention save for retirement, which will come quickly and you don’t want to be unprepared.  There is a line to cross though from being frugal, to well, just being cheap.

Have Proper Tipping Etiquette

If you have been out with a group for dinner and drinks and you just decide to split up the bill evenly, there always comes to a point where you are still short when factoring in a tip, where one or two always short money for a tip and others have to throw in a few extra dollars to make up for it.  Unless service was just terrible I can see dropping down what you were going to leave, but otherwise it should be standard to leave at least 20%, otherwise maybe you shouldn’t be going out.

Keep the Free Samples to a Minimum

Going to places like Costco where they have free samples available in virtually every aisle on the weekends takes the burden away of going shopping and fighting crowds a little, but there those that crowd around the toaster oven waiting for the fresh batch to come out, and when they do, basically take the whole tray back for them and their mooching family members as well.  Be cautious, grab one and keep shopping, they are samples for you to try, not providing a substitute for buying lunch.  After all, it is to entice you to buy the product.

Cutting the Cord but “Borrowing” Passwords

With the price of cable continuing to go up every year, not to mention if you really sit back and think about the number of channels you actually do watch in a given day, probably doesn’t add up for the need to continue to pay a couple hundred dollars a month so you may decide to cut the cord.  While that is all good, you should still buy an HD antenna to get local channels and then subscribe to the many $10 a month streaming services, but it is those that cancel cable and borrow your Netflix password that it crosses from being frugal to being very cheap.

Regifting

As you get older it really does provide more satisfaction to give someone a gift instead of receiving one, and I’m finding myself putting more thought into gifts each year and gone are the days of gift cards.  What is annoying those are the clear regifted items that just make you cheap.  I think of the movie Old School where Frank keeps trying to give away his bread maker that he got as a wedding gift.  It’s probably better to not give a gift at all instead of one day being caught for regifting.

As we wind down 2017 it can be a great time to reflect back on what we accomplish this year, and what we did not.  Like most of us who create a resolution probably stuck with it for a while, only to give up and go back to living normal life.  While most strive to lose weight, others can focus on getting finances in order.  There is still time to make good on your resolution and set yourself up for success in 2018.

Finalize Tax Write-Offs

Whether you are not sure if you are going to owe and want to make the most of your return, are feeling charitable, or it’s ok to admit a combination of both, now is the time to finalize tax write-offs before the year ends, so there are still a couple weeks.  Take a look in your closet for clothes you no longer wear, check the basement storage for items that may have collected dust, or kitchen items that you are needing to replace soon, all can be great items to donate to the less-fortunate and get a tax write off in return.

Create a Budget

It’s no surprise the most American’s do not use a budget, two-thirds in fact, so if you are in a place where you find yourself living paycheck to paycheck, it may be time to look to free up extra money and keep a clamp on spending, where you may have not in the past.  Who knows, you may be finding out that more money is going out than coming in, and find yourself getting further into debt.  By creating a budget, you can work on allocating funds to monthly bills, food, gas, and spending, and continuing to tweak to make sure there isn’t too much/too little.

Look to Reduce Expenses

If you are looking to free up extra money each month, if you can reduce the amount you’re spending, both in monthly bills and spending money, you’ll be on the right track to see the savings adding up.  Whether it’s going grocery shopping instead of eating out, checking is lyft cheaper than uber, or cutting your cable bill altogether, you may have to think outside the box, while making sacrifices along the way in order to reach the final goal, which is having no debt and having enough saved up for in the future during retirement.

Increase Savings Contributions

While retirement may be decades away still, that is all the more reason to start saving now, the earlier the better, so that it can continue to grow over time.  Whether you are not contributing anything, to having a large percent of your pay going, now that the new year is coming soon, it’s time to increase contributions even further, even by a percent, so you don’t feel the burden as much, as your money is leaving your check and going into your retirement account.  I know you’d rather spend it now, but you will need it to live off when you are finally ready to walk away from work.

Handling the household finances can, I mean, is a tough job and is not to be taken lightly.  The wrong money moves and you could be set back years in debt, while risking saving for the future.  Whether it’s a family or friend that you can trust, or the opinion of a professional, it’s always a good idea to make sure that you are maximizing the potential of the finances, to make sure you are in good shape going forward, on the path to becoming financially successful.

Preparing for the Unexpected

You never know what life will throw at you, so it’s always a good idea to be as prepared as you can, so you don’t have to throw money on a credit card that you not only can’t afford right now, but will most likely not be able to pay back right away anyways, even years of debt.  If you are able to stash away a few months’ worth of expenses, you can be prepared in the even of an auto repair, vet bill, or even be able to cover you if you were to suffer an unfortunate job loss.

Living Within Your Means

While it may be common sense that you need to make sure that your income coming in is more than the amount going out, so that means making sure the expenses are within what you are able to comfortably afford, and not racking up a credit card bill that you are not able to afford, just to keep up with those around you.  We all make different salaries and can afford more or less than our peers, so instead of it being a competition, do what is best for you, as you will not regret it in the future when you don’t have mounds of debt to deal with.

Saving for the Future

Speaking of the future, there is not much more important than making sure you are able to not only keep up the lifestyle that you have right now, but that you have enough to survive on.  We cannot be sure that Social Security will be there, and even that it’s not going to make you wealthy, so it’s best to save for retirement, and the early you can save, the more it has to make money over time.  If you can take advantage of employer-matching contributions, you can avoid leaving free money on the table and earn even more.

Adjusting Over Time

Expenses change along with life, such as getting married, having kids, buying a new house, in that you need to be able to be flexible and adjust your budget and spending to ensure that it’s not only up to date, but still a working model and efficient for what you are actually needing in allotting of funds.  It’s no secret that most either don’t have a budget or had one but it failed, so if you can keep it going and updating as you go, you could be in even better shape financially for the present and future.

Although it may be decades until you retire, it may sound cliché to start the earlier the better, but it is 100% true.  The longer you wait, the less you will have in your account to compound over the next few decades.  By missing out on contributing a couple hundred dollars a month could be missing out on a few hundred thousand over time.  If you can make the sacrifices early on to free up extra money, the money you are contributing will feel like less of a burden so you can invest in your future.

Build an Emergency Fund

You never know what life will throw at you, so it’s always good to be prepared for the unexpected.  Instead of throwing an unexpected charge on a credit card when you don’t have the money, you risk going into debt, possibly taking years to pay off with interest accruing every month.  If you can put a few months’ worth of expenses in an account for an auto repair, home appliance upgrade, or even medical bills, you can have money available if you ever need it.

Compare Roth vs. Traditional 401(k)

Now while your emergency fund is important, you want to make sure that you are not leaving too much in there, otherwise it will not earn anything with the very low interest rates of a savings account.  From there you should be saving for retirement, whether that is a Roth IRA or employer 401(k) account.  With a Roth IRA you can contribute after taxes so that you can withdraw tax-free in retirement, while 401(k) will be taxed later, but reduces your taxable income to save on your income tax now.  That will depend on your situation whether it is better to worry about taxes now or later.

Don’t Leave Free Money on the Table

Speaking of employer based 401(k) accounts, you could be able to take part in company matching contributions, some even match up to 6% of contributions.  If you make $50,000 a year, that would be $3,000 that you and your employer would both contribute, for a total of $6,000.  By contributing less than 6% you are leaving free money on the table that not only are you investing, but missing out on the company match investments would could be a huge hit if you figure missing that amount compounding over the next few decades.

Leave it Alone

When you see the amount of money piling up in your retirement account you may be tempted to use that money to pay off debt, use for a down payment for a house, or even take out for a vacation, but you could seriously be jeopardizing your future by taking this money out.  By removing this money if will not be earning compound interest over time, so figure if you wipe out your account, there will be nothing there to grow.  Instead, it’s better to do the old-fashioned way and save up for big purchases, not to mention continuing to contribute to retirement accounts even if you are paying down credit card balances, as it will help you over time.

It’s hard enough to make sure that the amount of money coming in exceeds what’s going out.  By the time you pay your monthly bills, not to mention food, gas, spending, plus hopefully creating an emergency fund and saving for the future, the money is spread pretty thin.  While, sure, you could get a second job to make a little more money, but who has time for that, so the next step is to try and free up money on monthly expenses wherever you can find a spot.

Try a Spending Budget

While clearly not for everyone since experts have said that two-thirds of the population doesn’t follow a budget, but that is probably not a good thing.  If you are having trouble freeing up extra money you can try allocating where funds are going in the month, and once the money is gone, it’s gone until next paycheck.  Sure, you will probably have to tweak how much you are allotting for, but that is part of the process in having a successful budget.  Maybe it will at least curb spending a bit and you can open up extra money each month.

Make the Tough Cuts

No one ever said saving money is easy, probably the reason why lots of people don’t.  If you are really having trouble freeing up extra money and you have exhausted all attempts, then it is time to make the tough cuts.  For starters, look to cutting the cable cord.  You probably don’t watch enough TV to necessitate spending a couple hundred dollars a month.  With the best shows on streaming services these days anyways, you can get an HD antenna for $20 to get local channels, and then get a streaming service or two like Netflix and HBO, and you’re probably good to go, without paying to flip around with nothing on.

Compare Prices

It used to be that comparing prices would mean you would see the product and then go store to store to find the lowest.  While it may have made sense before, with online shopping now there really is no need to waste gas and time on driving around town when you can click from website to website in a matter of seconds to see what the best price is.  The best part too is the free shipping, so you can shop for the best price and then have it shipped for free, arriving a couple days later.

Discounts are Key

Whether it is clipping coupons to go growing shopping, using Groupon, or mail ads that you receive probably daily, there is still no reason to pay full price on anything that you can help.  Sure, it takes a little legwork, but saving money is the goal in the end.  In addition to coupons, if you can get a good rewards credit card you can money back on the purchases that you were going to make anyways, whether it’s in the form of miles, points, or even rewards dollars.  There are plenty of discounts out there, if you are willing to put in the time to save money.

Sure, maybe money isn’t the most important thing to everyone, certainly you have always heard that money doesn’t equal happiness, but there is a fine line on needed enough money to live off, especially during the retirement years when you should be able to leave the workforce behind and enjoy out your remaining years stress-free.  Soon enough you’ll be of retirement age, so it’s best to focus on your personal wealth sooner than later, otherwise you will either be playing catch up, or have little to live off.

Putting Off Saving

A 401(k) account is a great way to save now that can grow over time, but the longer you put off, the less you’ll have to live off during retirement years.  The longer you put off, the more you will have to contribute to catch up to the years where you should have contributed more.  Some employers match contributions, so you should at least be contributing that much, otherwise that would be leaving free money on the table that could be growing over time.  If you are not able to use a 401(k), there are IRA options as well.

Spending is Out of Control

In order to free up extra money every month then you really need to reduce unnecessary spending.  Unless you curb spending, you really could be putting yourself at risk financially.  If you’re not sure where exactly the money is going, a good idea is to take a look at last month’s credit or debit card statement and look line by line to see what was a needed expense and what probably could have been avoided.  Add up all of those charges that could have been avoided and you could be shocked at what could be in your bank account instead.

Not Managing Risk

If you’re getting by with your finances on a month to month basis now that is great, but what is something unexpected happens and you have a huge charge come in such as a needed auto repair or home appliance, how would you pay for?  Probably on a credit card, at which you are then in debt, trying to pay back over time, at which you could be struggling to pay.  If you can create an emergency fund of a few months’ worth of expenses, you could give yourself a pretty good cushion to cover yourself if any unexpected charges come in.

Looking for the Next Get Rich Quick

If you are thinking of playing the lottery next, take a look at the odds of winning and hopefully that will change your mind on playing every week.  The get rich quick scheme are just that, too good to be true, so also avoid any of the Tupperware or candle parties, trying to make a living, other than enjoying some discounts for your friends.  If you are looking for extra income, try getting a second job in your free time, or even look to selling items that are otherwise sitting around the house collecting dust.

Handing the household finances is a tough job, in fact it is one that should not be tackled alone.  If you have a significant other, should work together as a team, after all it’s both of your money, or if you are living alone, it’s always a good idea to bring in a family member or friend that you can trust, or even better, a financial advisor.  If you are looking to give your personal finance a boost, try starting a few behaviors that may help.

Build Up an Emergency Fund

You never know what life is going to throw at you, so it’s always a good idea to be as best prepared as you can.  If you had a sudden auto repair that was more than you expected, a home appliance replacement that would cost thousands, or even worse, if you lost your job and it took months to find a new one, how would you handle these costs?  The simple answer is that the expenses would go on a credit card and worry about them later.  If you can put a few months’ worth of expenses in an account, you can have available cash if any large sudden expenses come up.

Reduce Unnecessary Expenses

Not only do you need more money coming in every month instead of going out, you need to reduce the money going out as best as you can so you free up more money for either paying off debt, saving for a rainy day, or more importantly, saving for the future.  If you can start paying attention to what you’re spending money on, you can then try and fix your spending behaviors.  Try looking at last month’s debit or credit card statement and go line by line.  Add up what should have been avoided, and you will probably be shocked.

Save for the Future

As you are continuing to free up money every month, more and more priority should be on saving for the future.  Retirement may be the last thing on your mind right now, but if you can start stashing away money now, it will have more time to grow over time.  A 401(k) is a great way to start saving, not only does it help relieve some tax burden, but your company may match contributions up to a certain point, so that is free money!

Take Advantage of Credit Card Rewards

I’ve gotten so used to the credit card rewards now that I put every single charge on a credit card so I can earn 1-4% cashback every year.  Now I’m talking the expenses that I would have spent anyways.  If you start charging just go earn rewards you will be in for trouble, so it’s always a good idea to set a spending budget so you can make sure you don’t go overboard and you’re not able to pay the statement balance by the due date, otherwise you start paying interest and that is just asking for financial trouble that could take years to dig yourself out.

First impressions are lasting, and there is nothing more important to the eyes of the lender than your credit score to see if you are worthy as a borrower.  The higher the score, the better, in order to take advantage of the most favorable rates on the market.  Your score can affect your loan approval or denial, so whether you have had credit troubles in the past or are looking for ways to give it a boost, there are important behaviors to continue to possess in order to continue to see your credit score rise.  You can now see your credit score included on credit card monthly statements, so each more you can see your score rise or fall.

Every Payment On-Time

Lenders want to see that you repay your debts on time if they are going to continue to lend to you, so it’s important not only to avoid late fees and possible interest rate increases, but if thirty days late, it will be marked on your credit report that could take up to seven years to come off, so one mistake, and it could take the better part of a decade to come off, so make sure that payments are made on or before the due date each month.  A good way to make sure all payments are made is to split between paychecks, so that way you can even out payments made, and leftover cash.

Pay Down Debt

Just as important as payment history is the amount of debt you carry compared to the credit line.  The closer you are to reaching your credit ceiling, the more you will significantly reduce your credit score.  Start paying down debt and you will start to see your score rise each month.  Just keep in mind that reports are typically a month or two behind, so if you have made a large payment recently, it may take a little while to catch up until you see the score boost.

Leave Accounts Open

It’s a huge weight off your shoulders to finally payoff debt, especially if it has taken years to overcome a credit card problem.  The first instinct you may have when you finally have that zero balance would be to close the account so you never have to risk charging it up again, but in fact, it will help your credit score to leave the account open, and if you don’t want to use the card just simply cut it up, that way you will have the available credit and length of the account will continue.

Limit Credit Applications

Every time you fill out an application and credit is pulled, there is an inquiry on your credit report that will stay on there for up to two years.  Since it will remain on there for a while, it’s best to limit your credit applications to only necessary decisions such as a lower interest credit card or mortgage, and avoid submitting to shop around, at which the more applications that you submit it could give the impression that you are looking to go on a shopping spree.