Your everyday expenses can spiral out of control if you aren’t tracking every dollar that you spend.
A vast majority of Australians don’t have a monthly budget. They spend as they get paid with no regard to their credit debts that have been piling up since day one. However, such spending habits might land you in big financial trouble, especially if you are a gig worker or someone in a precarious profession.
As a rule of thumb, you shouldn’t spend more than 30% of your income on household expenses. If you have been exceeding this amount continuously despite earning fairly well, you might want to rethink your finances.
Here are five tips that you can follow to reduce your household expenses in 2022 and beyond.
#1 Spend in Cash
When you use your debit or credit card, you don’t feel the pain of parting with your money immediately until you go through your bank statement and run the numbers.
On the other hand, when you spend in hard cash to buy expensive boats or eat junk, you actually see your money changing hands, which makes you even more conscious about your purchase decisions.
#2 Reduce Your Credit Card’s Limit
Credit card debt is the worst kind and can snowball quickly due to the high interest rates. So, if you want to reduce your expenses, re-evaluating your credit card spending is a great place to start. If you are spending too much, reduce your card’s permitted limit or freeze it until you have paid everything that you owe to the bank.
#3 Lower Your Electricity Bills
When it comes to reducing your household electricity consumption, you can only save so much by cutting down on your appliance usage. If you are paying more in electricity bills than your friends and neighbours despite your best efforts, you might want to consider switching to a different energy provider.
You can compare electricity service providers online and choose the cheapest one in your region. That way you can enjoy significant savings without giving up your comfort.
#4 Keep track of your expenses
Your monthly expenses can blow out your budget if you are not keeping track. With multiple payment options available to customers, most people find it difficult to keep track of every expense every day and if you get into building decks or renovating furniture, it gets more difficult. Keeping track of your expenses doesn’t mean changing your spending habits or cutting corners. It simply means getting a grasp of where your money goes so that you can plan better and identify areas where you overspend.
Not only is it important to track your expenses but you must also keep aside a certain amount for a rainy day.
#5 Re-evaluate your insurance premiums
The insurance landscape is highly competitive in favour of customers, and you can use that to your advantage to reduce your annual premiums.
If you are paying premiums on your house and vehicle, you can potentially save hundreds of dollars if you know where to shop. As your house and vehicle depreciate, their insurance premiums reduce too. And if you continue to use your existing insurance company, chances are you will be paying more than you should. So, before your insurance expires, browse through different renewal options and you’ll be amazed at how much you can save by switching over to a different insurance company.
Takeaway
Reducing your household expenses doesn’t always mean cutting corners or stifling your aspirations. It simply means making wise decisions and shopping around to find the best deals, be it your monthly subscriptions, groceries or insurance premiums.
We hope these tips helped.
