money saving ideas you wished you started earlier.

GetRealBabe

Like the other posters just discovered cashback sites.

Just changed my gas and elec from a standard to an dual fuel online tariff. should save about £20 a month.

Also going to bank my saved coins (1ps and 2ps): total £5.77.

Plus more money aware since joining this site.

GRB.

Newbie2saving

Changed my bills to online billing from e-on. Now I get Tesco clubcard points plus a 10.5% discount and can enter the actual meter readings to have accuarate bills rather than estimates which helps me know where I am up to.

anna42hmr

come across a few more so thought i would share, has any one else got any new ones?

1. firstly wish i opened the halifax vantage account sooner lol!

2. i wish i realised that airmiles could be used for things other than air travel sooner - great offers for days out/hotels etc!

3. wish i heard about travel west midlands friends and family offer for pass holders sooner ( £1 day return off peak any where in the network west midlands train area for companions as long as your pass covers those zones)#

4. wish i bought an oyster pass for london travel for when i visit london sooner, saves me fortunes now i dont have to buy day travel cards etc (as are capped by price and also as only payg only use what needed)

anna42hmr

anyone got any new ideas/wishes to share,

just worked out that so far this year have had £186.47 paid into my account from quidco (and due another £30+ payment in the december pay run) so really wish i started this soooner!!!

Newbie2saving

I joined Topcashback and nearing £200 pay outs for this year. Yes you have to spend to accumulate the cash, but they were all purchases I needed such as car ins, breakdown cover, online shopping etc.

Other saving tips (not going to make me a millionaire, but save a few quid here and there);

1. Follow the Grabbit board on MSE. I've saved about 50% on my Christmas shopping this year with the deals posters have shared.
2. Check before any purchases the voucher and codes board on MSE - sound as though I am doing a sales pitch for them, but seriously it has saved me quite a bit on purchases I was making.
3. Ensure I use Nectar card when shopping on Amazon etc, joined co-op members club etc.
4. Uses the tesco clubcard site to search for unused vouchers, found ~£25 worth which was a lovely surprise and x4 to get the most from them, nice treats for me!
5. Using my credit card now to do all my shopping with to build up points rather than just using debit card, ensure it's paid off fully every month.

For my mum and Dad I got them to change tarriff, broadband and have a water meter fitted, they are saving about £500 a year now!

Jake'sGran

sagalout1954 wrote: »

Getting a cashback credit card. I pay balance off in full every month so makes no difference what the interest rate is - have 'earnt' £110 so far this year with a 1% cashback card. The rates used to be better than that a couple of years ago and I wish I'd had one for longer than I have.

I use one too. It's the Nationwide one and I
noticed recently they are increasing the payback from .5p to .75p - great:j

Seriously though, they are good, and apart from the cash back they will add one years' extra insurance to warrantees on electricalgoods. Also, their credit card is considered the best to take abroad.

geoffky

i wish i had bought a lot more gold than i did..in 2007 i bottled it..

smeagold

If you buy a thick sliced loaf and get a really sharp knife you can split the slices down the middle and get alot more toast out of your loaf.

does that help?

Wobblydeb

For me opening regular savings account. They are the thing that got me into a good savings habit - take it straight out on payday, don't touch it for a year. The high interest rate is nice too

edinburgher

If you buy a thick sliced loaf and get a really sharp knife you can split the slices down the middle and get alot more toast out of your loaf.

does that help?

Cheeky beggar :rotfl:

I think points 1 and 4 from the original list were good examples of the fact that a 'saving' isn't a saving until you actually save it! I used to pat myself on the back for cutting back the expenses in various areas and could never quite figure out why I was always skint and my savings were at a standstill.

Now that I've automated things like payments from cashback sites etc., my house deposit fund is ticking up nicely. On a related note, Amazon Marketplace payments and eBay monies can be paid into a savings account, which avoids the temptation of spending them on more crap

Other points:

Write a budget (and stick to it, might help to keep a spending diary for a couple of months beforehand to make sure it's realistic). Also, set up DD payments into your savings accounts for the day after you're paid - that way the money goes before you have a chance to spend it and you won't miss it. I don't even list savings on my budget spreadsheet anymore, I just treat my salary - any savings as my actual salary. It's working well, comfortably saving £300/mth or so without missing it.

*One more - assuming your employer offers some sort of payment into it, start a pension as soon as you possibly can. No doubt some smart Alec will come along to tell you pensions are all a big scam and to be avoided, but for a lot of people willing to keep track of what they're investing in, they're the best bet for a comfortable retirement. Don't be one of the poor sods in the Post Office queue on 'pension day' because you never took personal responsibility for your future!*