Are you having trouble saving for your next purchase? You aren’t alone. Research shows that the savings rate of Americans is at an all-time low. We aren’t saving money like we used to. But you aren’t helpless in this situation. There are things you can do to save money when you come up with a plan. Below are 7 things you can do today to help you save for expensive products.
1. Negotiate Your Bills
Have you noticed your cable bill going up every few months?
It’s hard to change your TV provider, so companies will try to get away with regular rate increases. But you do have more options now with internet streaming.
Call up your cable provider to see if they can work with you for a lower bill. Many companies will offer you the introductory rate for up to a year if you talk with them about potentially leaving.
You should also shop around for car and home insurance. There are a lot of local companies that can offer more competitive rates than national brands.
2. Look for Coupons
You don’t need to buy everything at full price. Businesses are always competing for your money, so make sure you look for the coupons that they provide.
Check your local newspapers or search online every week to see what’s on sale. You can use this to lower your household budget for the week.
If you shop online, then download a shopping assistant for your browser. An application like Honey will automatically put in every coupon code it knows in online stores. This browser extension will find you deals that you may not have known about.
These applications also sometimes offer cash back. They can do this because of affiliate deals with businesses.
They get a commission for sending business to online stores and give you part of their cut.
3. Switch to a High-Interest Savings Account
Do you still have a regular savings account at your local bank? Or do you only rely on your checking account to keep your money?
If this is you, then you are missing out on making the most of your money.
You may not feel safe about investing your savings in the stock market, but that doesn’t mean you should let it sit and do nothing.
Online banks today provide very competitive interest rates. You can find banks that offer at least a 2% yearly interest rate.
The FDIC insures these banks up to $250,000 like a traditional bank. You won’t lose your money if something goes wrong. Look into opening an account at one and earn a little money from interest.
If you are looking for a bank to get started at, Ally Bank is one of the more popular online banks out there. With the average interest rate at banks being 0.09%, why wouldn’t you switch?
4. Try Buying Used
It may sound like a better deal to get your products new, but ask yourself if it’s necessary.
There are many cases where a used product will work as well as a new one. This is true for things that don’t have a lot of moving parts.
Furniture, clothes, toys, and collectibles are examples of things that aren’t a problem when buying used.
If you are looking for electronics, you need to be more careful. It’s harder to spot problems with these products.
Your used purchases will save you money while you save up for a more expensive product.
5. Make Good Use of Credit
Credit gets a bad rap. It’s thought of as the pathway into debt.
That isn’t without good reason. Over the years, many people have misused credit and gotten themselves into more debt than they can handle.
But that doesn’t mean credit is bad. If you use it right, you can save money.
Credit cards compete for your business. Most credit cards offer rewards for using them. These rewards range from cash back, points, to travel rewards.
If you want to save money, you’re going to look for cash back rewards. You can find cash back offers that range anywhere between 1% and 5%.
The lower percentage offers will be around year round. Higher percentage ones are usually rotated quarterly between different markets.
You can take advantage of cash back offers to reduce the total amount you’re spending. If you make sure to pay off your cards at the end of the month, then you don’t need to worry about any debt.
6. Get a Side Job
It can be hard to find things to cut from your budget. If that’s the case, then try to find something more to do on the side.
There’s a lot of places that are on the lookout for part-time workers. But don’t think that you’re limited to local businesses.
There’s plenty of work you can find online. If you can develop in-demand skills, many companies will hire you as a freelancer.
Some of the most popular skills are programming, web design, graphic design, and content writing.
These online jobs will allow you to work in your free time and stop you from being stuck with a typical work schedule that limits your time.
7. Find a Buy Now Pay Later Deal
Sometimes you need to make your purchase as soon as possible.
Maybe you need a new computer so you can get work done from home. Or perhaps you need to have work done on your car so you can drive?
There are many reasons why you can’t wait for your purchase. A buy now pay later deal can give you what you need immediately, instead of you waiting until you have the money in the future.
These deals usually work as loans. Your loan is the total amount of your purchase and requires you to pay it off over time.
If you go down this route, then make sure you read over the terms of the deal. You might not get a reasonable interest rate, so use the savings tips above to help you pay it off as soon as you can.
With Planning You Can Afford Expensive Products
It may seem like saving for expensive products is out of reach for a lot of people. But it isn’t.
When you come up with a plan to save money and stick to it, you shouldn’t have any problems saving for anything you want to buy.
Are you saving for the newest gadget? Head over to our tech section to learn about all the latest releases.
