Could you use some help stretching your monthly budget? If so, I wanted to share with you three ways that you can help save money and stretch your budget so that you have more money to do the things you want to do or use the money to play.
Maintaining financial stability and budgeting are concepts most everyone is familiar with. With finances being such an important issue, finding creative ways to save money around the house can significantly help your monthly budget.
Here are three easy ways to get to saving:
1. Utilities
Paying for utilities is a major monthly expense. From electricity to gas, the bills consistently seem exorbitant. Cutting utility costs are not as difficult as you might think, as there are easy ways to cut your bill by 30 percent. First things first, check out other power companies in the area to see if anyone offers more savings than your current company. Check out http://www.choosetexaselectrcity.org for prices.
Next, look into replacing standard incandescent bulbs with LED lights. Although LED lights are initially more expensive, they cost only pennies to run for an entire year, making back the investment tenfold. Additionally, be sure to turn off any lights, fans, or appliances you are not using in order to save nearly 10 percent on your electric bill.
While air-drying your clothes is the best way to save money on your dryer, if you have to dry your clothes, be sure to clean out the lint trap. A full lint trap results in the dryer having to work twice as hard to dry your clothes, which is expending twice as much energy. Don’t forget to clean out the lint from the inside of the dryer and the vent pipe that runs through the wall to the outside of your home. For the most part this is an easy fix and you can do it yourself to save you from paying someone to come out to your house to clean out using my DIY dryer maintenance tips. Maintaining your dryer and cleaning out the vent traps will make your dryer last longer too.