It’s tough balancing your family’s budget nowadays, isn’t it? Inflation’s nudging the cost of living up every month, but you aren’t getting a raise that often.
The result? Your dollar isn’t stretching as far as it used to.
You wouldn’t be alone. Plenty of families are searching for ways to live with this new normal.
Table of Contents
Why You Should Start Saving NOW
When you’re struggling with rising prices, it’s all about prioritizing the essentials, like keeping the lights on and putting food on the table.
For most people, this means they aren’t saving, but you can’t live like that for very long. Otherwise, you might be vulnerable to any unexpected expense that arrives outside your usual budget.
You know the ones — things like your kids getting sick and needing prescription medicine or your car refusing to turn over one morning before work.
In times like these, there are installment loans available from a financial institution like MoneyKey, even if you don’t have the best of credit. You can research installment loans through MoneyKey to make sure it’s something that works for your family.
This step is important. While installment loans for bad credit are convenient in an emergency, they aren’t for everyone.
All legitimate installment loans come with rates and fees that you have to pay back on top of your installment loan amount, so you should always check it fits your budget.
3 Easy Savings Tips to Help Your Family
Before things get so tough you need to look into installment loans for bad credit, try these tips to save more.
1. Grocery Shop with Intention
Let’s start with the biggest concern: groceries.
While prices are higher than ever, you can still bring down your bill at the register. Savings rely on organization. By meal planning thoroughly, you can choose simple recipes that rely on cheap ingredients featured on your store’s flyer for the week.
To double down on savings, shop with coupon and rebate apps to earn cashback on each item you place in your cart. Batch cook your recipes in advance so fast food doesn’t tempt you when you’re too tired to cook.
2. Negotiate with Your Utilities
Utility bills like gas, water, and even your Internet and cell phone bill can seem like untouchable expenses. You pay what you have to pay. But wouldn’t it be great if you could find a deal?
With some research and negotiation, you might just find a better option. Go online to see what utility providers and insurance companies are charging for the same services, then contact your provider to see if they’re willing to budge on their price. Use what you learned to leverage a lower price or more coverage.
3. Pair Down Your Streaming Experience
The kids have Disney+, you have Netflix and Prime, your partner has HBO Max and Hulu, plus the whole family uses Spotify, AppleTV, and DirectTV streaming. While most of these subscriptions cost less than $15 each, they add up when you put them all together.
That translates into a $273 bill every monthfor the average consumer! Cancelling just half of this could free up considerable cash. For the greatest savings, see how you can live with just two or three accounts.
Bottom Line
You don’t have to make drastic changes to find savings. Subtle changes to the way you stream TV or cook meals can help you save more in an emergency fund and handle the unexpected without borrowing installment loans online.
