Additional Saving Tips 4:

Ok, here is something to get into the habit of. Back in my bad days of spending I would always purchase something for myself when I paid for fuel. It might have been a drink, a bag of chips, a packet of lifesavers or any other small impulse buy. Just something small - around $1 to $3 dollars.

When I started cutting back and saving my money I came up with a trick. Well it was more like a rule. If I wanted one of these small things I was not allowed to get it at the service station. I would only be allowed to get it from a secondary place, such as a deli or milk bar.

What this did was force me to make two stops instead of one, making getting this small snack more inconvenient for me.

And guess what? By making this small rule change all of a sudden I started not wanting a snack. Or I waited to get to where I was going to eat/drink something. It’s much cheaper to wait and get a drink from your fridge than pay $2.00 for a can of Coke on the way home from work. Or to go to work and get a free drink than getting one when you fuel up.

Sure, sometimes we all need snacks and I would make that second stop from time to time. However, I cut back from getting snacks 100% of the time when I fuelled up to around 10% that I had to find that second location to purchase the snack or drink from.

Start implementing this rule when you are fuelling up and you will see an instant rise in your bank balance.

This rule could also be implemented to help cut back on smoking!

Additional Saving Tips 2
Same product but a different price.

It still amazes me how many people don’t get quotes on products they are purchasing. For example, Renee and I just got some new curtains installed in our house. We called three companies to do a quote and then went with the cheapest.

The prices between companies went from $1800 to $4000. These were, from what I could tell, the same type of curtains.

When the installer came to the house, I got to talking to him about the other companies. He told me that he had been in the industry for 20 years. He was not actually an employee of the company that we brought the curtains from but a subcontractor.

He also subcontracted for the other two companies we received quotes from.  He said that they all purchase the parts and materials from the same factories. In fact, he said that he had only just installed the same exact curtains as ours earlier that day but charged the other people nearly double what we paid.

This is a huge difference in price. You need to shop around to get the right price on such a big item. I would be kicking myself if I paid $4000 or $2200 for the same item/product.

Imagine if you could save the $1800 and put it towards your next project! Please, please, please shop around. It doesn’t pay to go with the first people you see.

Additional Saving Tips 3
Refinance your mortgage? Have you ever checked into refinancing your mortgage? The internet is full of sites that can show you the best mortgage interest rates from different companies.

Aussie Home Loans offer a One-Minute Mortgage Explorer to see if there is a better deal out there for you.
Please note that refinanceing your mortgage should not be taken lightly. You should do your homework and see if you will save money.

Remember, just because you find a better interest rate you will still need to pay cancellation fees to your current bank. These fees may cancel out any benefit you get from getting a lower interest rate.

Also don’t get into the trap of paying less per month because you get a lower interest rate. You must continue to pay the same amount to save on interest over the life of the loan.

Last but not least, call your bank before you change loans. You never know if they will offer you the same rate to keep you as their customer.

Additional Saving Tips 4
Get practical gifts for birthdays and Christmas. Each year Renee and I have a set spending amount for our birthday and Christmas presents. However, we also get each other what we call “one practical gift”.

Birthdays and Christmas can be great times to get all those things you want during the year. You know, fun things like iPods, CDs, DVDs and fancy clothes. But we do is ask each other to substitute one of the gifts for something that the house needs. Something that we would buy during the year anyway because we need it.

For example, last year Renee got me a toaster because our old one was on the way out. And I got her an iron for the same reason.

Sure, a toaster and an iron are not the best gifts to get, but it was still fun to wrap them up and give them to each other. Plus, due to the fact we know that we are spending less on luxury items over Christmas, and more on practical items, we feel good about saving money.

Last year I even asked my parents to get me a new home phone. Sure it’s not the most fun gift, but it’s one less thing I had to worry about paying for.

The question you need to ask yourself is: Can you just substitute a small percentage of luxury Christmas gifts for practical ones?