Cutting Expenses

Food

• Shop alone.
• Stick to your list: Never shop when hungry because impulse purchases destroy budgets.
• Make as few trips as possible to the store. Limit the time for shopping; browsing the shelves tempts us to make expensive impulse purchases.
• If you have a freezer, use it to stock up.
• Don't overbuy perishables because of a sale. Spoiled food is expensive.
• Buy in season. Fruits and vegetables are most expensive at the beginning and end of production.
• Learn unit pricing and buy items based on their cost per ounce (price/weight).
• Substitute store brands for name brands whenever possible.
• Substitute products can save 50-60% (i.e., powdered milk for whole milk, cheese food for cheese, etc.).
• Avoid extensive use of frozen "heat and eat" foods.
• Carry lunches for school and work.
• Give up restaurant eating, if possible.

Clothing

• Shop garage sales for children's clothing which is easily outgrown.
• Stop wearing clothes that require dry cleaning.
• Shop during seasonal clothing and white sales.

Insurance

• Can some insurance policies be eliminated? Some types of coverage have little or no value (i.e., whole life, credit card, full coverage on an old car, etc.).
• Shop for insurance. Door-to-door policies cost more.

Personal

• Could someone in the family learn to cut and style hair?
• Restrict your snacks at work--snacking can be costly.
• Shop toiletries carefully--some stores discount these.
• Stop smoking.
• Trade your old books, records, CDs and tapes at the 1/2 price or discount book store.

Medical

• Don't skip regular medical and dental check-ups. Preventative measures are usually less expensive in the long run.
• Ask your doctor to prescribe generic drugs. Also, shop by phone for best price before buying a prescription.

Auto

• Plan your days so fewer car trips are necessary.
• Do you really need more than one car?
• Consider and check into car pools.
• Self-service gas pumping will save dollars.

Entertainment

• Home entertainment costs less.
• Eliminate some or all leisure activities that cost money. Major newspapers list free or minimal charge entertainment activities each weekend.
• Could a relative or friend do your baby-sitting to reduce costs?

Miscellaneous

• Consider less expensive housing. As a rule-of-thumb, do not pay more than 30% of net income for housing.
• If you can do without air conditioning, shut it off. Watch your bill and have appliances checked for efficiency (utility companies usually do this free).
• Put your phone bill on a diet - keep just one plain phone.
• Have the phone company block 986 and 900 numbers.