Image by Kiki99Welcome to Part 5 in my series of Top Personal Finance Tips!
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21. Work Out at Home
There are so many ways to work out at home and cancel your gym membership. One of my favorites is the deck of cards method. I shuffle a deck of cards and draw as many as I have time for, which is usually 10 or 15 cards. For me, red cards are squats and black cards are sit ups. You can pick any, and do suits instead of just colors if you want to add more in. Then I draw a card and whatever number value that card is, thats how many of that exercise I do. I was so happy to hear that other people use the same method as me!
I play Wii Fit as well when I can, but I have attention span issues with it.
22. Take Advantage of 0% Balance Transfer Offers
Many credit card companies offer limited time 0% balance transfers. If you are carrying credit card debt of more than $1000, these are fantastic opportunities to save money on interest.
When you use one of these offers, be sure to make a note of when it expires and make sure you make your payments on time or you can invalidate the offer. There is a great list of cards with these transfers available here. The reason I advise moving $1000 of debt or more is that there are usually transfer fees associated with moving the money and often if you move a really small amount it isn't as worth it.
23. Start an Emergency Fund
I can't stress the importance of creating an emergency fund enough. I put 5-6% of my income into a high yield savings account. I am saving for three months worth of living expenses. The benefit of this is that if something happens, I can pay for it in cash and don't have to charge money to my credit cards. Also, if something happens and I couldn't work, I would not only have breathing room for a couple of months, but I would also be able to make payments on my credit cards and I wouldn't have late payments on penalties.
24. Switch to Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs
A little change can go a long way. Switching all of your lights to CFL's can save 4-10% on your energy bill. My husband claims that he doesn't like the way the light looks, and I can understand that but I can't honestly tell much of a difference and I think it is worth it. The price of CFL's is going down, and they last longer than regular lights. I highly recommend the change if you can!
25. Get Rid of Your Paper Towel Habit
I'm working on a project here. I knit, and I'm trying to make enough cotton dishcloths to stop using paper towels altogether. I hate buying them, they aren't good for the environment in that they contribute to the cutting down of trees and the encouragement of landfills. Dishcloths are incredibly inexpensive to purchase and tend to last a long time. I would recommend hand knit absorbent cotton ones if you can get them.
There is a great Etsy store here that is selling them very cheaply and even offers free shipping through December 15th if you don't feel like making your own.
Check out the other posts in this series:
5 comments:
Nice blog. Keep up the good work!
my credit card blog
Great Tips, thanks for sharing
These are very interesting tips indeed. I am trying to locate part 1 to 4 in your blog because I am sure they are worth reading too.
Great Tips. Follow the steps you will save some money.
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