How to find spare change

In a previous post I gave the example of a 30 year old who needed about $500,000 for retirement assuming she did not have any company pension. So the question that comes up is how do you find $400 a month to save?

Here are some ideas that should not hurt a young family's quality of life and by following some of these steps extra money can be found

Do you drink coffee or tea daily? Do you buy it from a place like Starbucks or a boutique coffee shop? It is easy to spend $5 a day on coffee or tea when making it at home would cost more than 80% less. Saving $4 a day is $120 per month.

Land Line Phone: If everyone in your family has a cell phone, you may not have a need for a land line anymore. That could be a nice savings each month.

You can look into reducing premiums on your insurance policies by increasing your deductibles. Warning: Only consider this if both: 

You think the premium savings will be greater than the added risk of a higher deductible
You have the financial wherewithal to cover a higher deductible if you need to take a claim

Free Checking: Have a checking account that either is Free Checking or has no minimum balance requirement to eliminate potential fee

Books: I used to not be a big reader but in the past two years have started reading at least one book per month. Not to stereotype but I know many people who are avid readers as well. It wasn’t until I had spent a couple hundred dollars on books over the course of a few months that I realized there are things called libraries that have books for free.


Phone & Text Bills: Google Voice is free and allows you to make calls as well as send text messages for free. Simply search YouTube "how to use Google Voice" and there will be short, under 5 minute videos showing you exactly what to do 

Cooking at home vs. eating out at a restaurant. Eating out at a restaurant just once or twice less each month can be a big money saver.

ATM Fees: This is not a big expense but I hate ATM fees. I’ve paid as much as $3.50 just to get access to my money. Most banks have a smartphone app that will tell you where the closest no-fee ATM is to you.