Key Post: Money Saving Tips/Advice.

S

Silvera

Guest
I thought it would be a good idea to start a thread where we could share ideas/advice/tips on saving our hard-earned cash.
(Perhaps it could be made a "Sticky" thread).
We all have become complacent over the years about shopping around for the best prices/deals on everyday goods and services, but I believe we are slowly changing our ways and are no longer prepared to be "Ripped-off" day-in day-out.

I'm thinking here along the lines of, say, (these are two that come to mind and which I practice)

Save money by -
A. Change Banks and save on account fees, i.e. pay none !.
B. Shop around for Petrol prices in your area (and ONLY buy from the cheapest outlet !)

I will add more over time.
Feel free to add your own tips/advice.

Cheers,
Silvera.
 
Re: Money Saving Tips/Advice.

shop around for fuel yes good idea,i never bother though .changing bank is a big deal if you're self-employed like me as you build up a relationship and have a flexible overdraft etc. and for the sake of fees it's not worth the bother for me anyway.my fav one is i keep my credit card details written down for phone transactions but i dispose of card that way i have to pay cash for shopping ,saves me running up big cc bill
 
Money Saving advice/tips

Shopping around for pertrol is a good idea - when topping up use the litre dial to buy the same volumne of fuel each time (say 25 litres) instead of using the € dial and always buying €25 of fuel. I'd also suggest investing in a bicycle (typical €150) for anyone that is within 5 miles of work and using it from time to time when the weather is suitable instead of public transport/car.
 
Re: Money Saving advice/tips

A. Change Banks and save on account fees, i.e. pay none !

Yes - but before doing that make sure that you are not losing out on more costly products such as credit cards (outstanding balances!), mortgages, personal/car loans, low/no interest deposits etc. It's amazing how many people get wound up about relatively low bank charges while paying through the nose for their loans etc. Check the for more info.

Review the [broken link removed] and, in particular, their [broken link removed].

Check that you are receiving all Revenue tax credits/allowances and/or Department of Social & Family Affairs payments to which you are entitled. Check for more information on various rights/entitlements.

Read the AAM Guide to Savings & Investments and, in particular, the "financial review" chapter.

Read the Motley Fool Getting Out Of Debt page (even if you're not actually in debt - it contains some generally useful advice on avoiding it in the first place!) and discussion boards, in particular the [broken link removed].

Try or [broken link removed] (German site - doesn't seem to be an English version :| ) for some or all of your groceries.
 
Re: Money Saving Tips/Advice.

I've used irishfuelprices.com to source the cheapest petrol in my area, with some success. It's amazing how rapidly the garages on the list change.
 
Money saving techniques

There was an article about this in the Indo a few weeks ago.
Included
- taking a packed lunch to work
- going to the supermarket less frequently. Apparently it forces us to eat everything in the freezer including those old mince pies. :lol
- leaving the car in the driveway for the Sunday morning paper fetch. The engine is cold etc.
- switching off the TV completetely when not in use. It uses almost as much electricity on stand-by as it does fully on apparently.
etc.
 
Money saving tips

1. Make your kids pay for their own credit for their mobile phones - that soon puts a stop to the unnecessary texts etc.

2. If you use Eircom for your landline print off a free copy of the telephone bill and make everyone in the house take accountability for their calls.

3. As greeting cards are gone to the ridiculous stage - (€4.60 for a standard birthday card in some newsagents)
buy your cards in bulk in Poundworld/Pound City - 80c for a single card or €2.50 for 3. Whatever about a good card for an adult just watch kids at birthday parties and you'll appreciate how little attention is paid to the card!

4. Check out this spot for savings [broken link removed]
:smokin
 
Money saving tips

3. As greeting cards are gone to the ridiculous stage - (€4.60 for a standard birthday card in some newsagents)
buy your cards in bulk in Poundworld/Pound City - 80c for a single card or €2.50 for 3. Whatever about a good card for an adult just watch kids at birthday parties and you'll appreciate how little attention is paid to the card!

Oops, sorry should be €1.00 per card (went up recently) - €2.50 for 3.

:smokin
 
Re: Money Saving Tips/Advice.

If at all possible, some bills should be paid annually:

Car tax
Car insurance

When you pay these in instalments they are more costly.

Marion :hat
 
best

The best way to save money is not to spend it. Every time you are about to buy something, think of somebody of your own in age in, say, Bangladesh, and see if they would have one, need it.

If not, then you can probably do without it in reality.
Put that money aside and you will be very wealthy very soon.

and THEN you can spend it all!
 
Pants to it all !

Cut down on laundry bills by turning your underpants inside out, rather than changing them.

This trick has allowed me to defer changing my undies for two weeks, rather than the once weekly change I used to do on bath night.

:rollin
 
..

I see Bord Gais have posted record profits this year. No wonder when their charges are so high !

Are we ever likely to see the same situation as in the rest of Europe where utility companies fight like cats and dogs to get your business, or will we be stuck with these stolid old, union run, over priced utility companies forever ?

A bit of competition would do the consumer no harm. Just look at how air fares in and out of Ireland plumetted when Ryanair arrived on the scene.
 
Re: ..

fight like cats and dogs to get your business, or will we be stuck with these stolid old, union run, over priced utility companies forever ?

A bit of competition would do the consumer no harm.
Click to expand...

I'd love to see a bit more competition too, but let's not forget that it has it's drawbacks too. The UK has a substantial problem with 'churning' in utilities, i.e. customers being persuaded by heavy-handed sales techniques to switch their business between the many utilities on offer over there.

All those highly-paid sales guys aren't 'adding value' to the customer overall.
 
Re: Money Saving Tips/Advice.

Set the credit limit on the credit card to €100 or €500 or whatever. Big enough to use for internet/telephone purchases, Small enough to fully clear each month.

Not big enough to buy a new Guitar and Amp. Just a typical example from my sordid past. :)

When they try to increase it for you, politely tell them that you'll let them know if you need any more credit. You've got plenty for the moment thanks very much.

On holidays you can load the card with cash and know that you won't spend more than €100 or whatever more than you actually have.

My other tip is stop paying Gym fees. Just jog/walk to the front door of the gym and home again. But not everyone agrees with me on that. :)

-Rd
 
Re: Money Saving Tips/Advice.

daltonr ,now why didn't i think of that ,credit cards with big limits are a
pain as i keep running up big bills,now that i've got mine cleared(last major balances 3800 and 500 each card) i'm gonna set a low limit just for convenience shopping
 
Re: Money Saving Tips/Advice.

I know someone who does this, but I must admit
I've never done it and I probably wouldn't bother but...

If you are buying something expensive, say a TV,
Computer, furniture or whatever. If you pay by credit
card the store will lose a couple of percent I think
it's about 3% to 5% someone might know the correct
% here.

Anyhow on a €1000 purchase the store is losing
€30 to €50 to the Credit Card Company. So
ask the seller if they'll knock off €20 for cash, if
they won't tell them you'll use your Credid Card and
they'll be losing much more.

Apparantly, most stores know the score and will
readily accept the cash. But I have no first hand
experience of this, only what I'm told.

-Rd
 
Re: Money Saving Tips/Advice.

This principle works in most shops in country towns, even for purchases as basic as a shirt or a pair of shoes. You could usually expect a euro or two off a €30 or €50 purchase.
 
Dodger

Yearrah sure with the oul cash payments, we don't have to worry about those nasty beggers up in the Tax Office in Dublin!
 
Re: Dodger

As I have said perhaps dozens of times before on AAM, the fact that a retailer accepts cash payments in consideration for goods provided does not mean that there is any intention on their part to defraud the Revenue.

If you had bothered to read daltonr's posting before adding in your own wisdom, it would have been obvious to you that most retailers prefer to receive cash as it saves them money in credit card charges. This is also the reason why many businesses such as travel agents, Ticket agencies, Ryanair website etc charge extra for credit card bookings, and why Lidl don't accept credit cards at all.

ps Most rural businesses deal with their local tax districts, not the Dublin tax districts.
 
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