Moneysavers June 2024

We all have unique circumstances, but there is always scope for saving our hard gained cash. Take a look through these ideas and see what you can save.

Surplus Cash

Don’t leave your surplus money in a current account where it is going to earn little or no interest. Transfer it to your bank’s best deposit account, where it will earn at least a little more interest.

Check Your Banking Charges

Sometimes people are overcharged. Sometimes charges can be waived. Look out for the things that result in charges (e.g. an unauthorized overdraft) and do your best to minimize these from happening.

Check Your Loan Interest Rates

Usually we go to great efforts to make sure that we get a loan at the best rate. But how often, during then period of the loan, do we take a look at the interest rate to see if it is competitive. There may be a way of negotiating a better rate during the loan period by demonstrating that the current loan rate is extremely uncompetitive.

Be Careful With The Credit Card

Rates for credit cards vary but almost always, they are an expensive form of credit. If you have the self discipline to pay off the balance 100% at the end of the month, credit cards are a useful tool. IN addition, they offer you some additional consumer protection. By switching to a Charge Card, you MUST pay off the entire balance when you receive your statement. Pre-paid cards like Revolut and N26 are good in that you can only spend what you lodge into the card. An Post Money Credit Card offers you 0% interest on balance transfers for a year.

Create a ‘Rainy Day Fund’

This is for three main eventualities:

1. Emergencies (e.g. car breaks down)

2. Sudden loss of income (e.g. losing job)

3. Investment opportunity (e.g. getting an opportunity to invest in a good sensible enterprise)

Rent A Room

This is tax free up to a limit of E14,000 per year.

Maintain a Shopping List

Before you shop, come up with a list of what you need and stick to it. Minimise the impulse spends. Minimise buying items that you already have. Update the list (maybe stuck to the fridge or a cupboard door, as you start to run out of items.

Become A Sales Geek

I can think of one store close to me that has great stock but it is just too out of my price league. They have a massive 50% Summer Sale every year. Gift cards and the like get used at that point. Hold out to the sales if you can – you’ll save a ton of money.

Keep Receipts

Firstly, they are a reminder of your spending. They reinforce the gap that they create in your finances. They familiarize you with prices and what is and is not competitive. They also help you to have a better understanding of your spending.

Shop For Non Perishables Monthly

This means that you have to plan for the whole month and should not overspend by additional visits to the local convenience store (where prices are significantly higher).

Stocard

Input all your loyalty cards into the one app. For example, Stocard. This way, you maximise your loyalty.

Buy In Bulk

Bulk buys often come with good discounts. Just make sure that you don’t end up with a supply that would last a nuclear winter. A good Spending Diary and regular analysis of budget and spending will let you see what is sensible for your situation. Remember, bulk buying perishables can lead to a lot of food (and money) waste. Even the so called ‘non-perishables’ go off eventually.

Become a Coupon Boss

You’ll be amazed at how all those little discounts add up to big savings. Sometimes there is a coupon on the back of a receipt. Some Loyalty Cards can also offer Loyalty Card discounts. The Tesco Clubcard springs to mind.

Become An Online Shopper

This reduces the impulse buy likelihood. Usually there is a ‘click and collect’ option or a delivery option. Even with delivery charges, they are usually modest and could be cheaper than the cost of travelling to the store and associated expenses like parking.

Check The Websites

Sites like Amazon, Facebook Marketplace, Groupon and DoneDeal can help you get a good idea of what the market price is. They might be the cheapest option and if nothing else, they could be used as a Haggling Tool. For example, a salesperson comes to visit selling an item. Invariably, you’ll find the item on Amazon and you’ll be able to see if the salesperson is pulling a dodge.

Check Best Before Dates

This enables you to see if you can get value out of that discount deal. There’s no point in buying five of an item that must be consumed within the next two days.

Meal Planning

Cooking from fresh ingredients can usually mean that you can prepare for two meals – this batch cooking approach can save you lots of money.

Avoid The Coffee Trips

You’re out shopping and the easiest thing would be a nice latte and a choccy cake. It’s a lovely wee treat but it can add a lot of expense to the grocery shop. By all means, don’t cut this out completely but restrict it to the odd occasion. Rather than spend E10 on something like this, get yourself home, make yourself a nice coffee and treat yourself to a slice of the cake you bought at the store (for half the price of the coffee shop cake).

Don’t Shop When You Are Hungry

If you are hungry, you will be inclined to buy more – more than you need in your grocery shop.

Use Packed Lunches

Prepare your own roll/baguette; use your own water bottle and some fruit from your weekly shop – it will cost you a fraction of what they charge in the local convenience store/café. This involves a bit more effort but in the long run, it will become a habit and you will save a ton of money.

Review Your Spending And Consider Longer Term Investments

For example, your car might be giving you 35mpg. You might find an alternative offering 60mpg+. For someone driving a lot, they can save a lot in fuel from a change like this.

Fuel Shopping

This could be heating fuel or fuel for vehicles. Prices can vary dramatically. There are lots of good price comparison sites out there and you could save a lot of money by looking at your options.

Walk or Bike

Good for the body, the pocket and the mind.

Turn The Thermostat Down 1% To Reduce Fuel Costs By Up To 10%

Experts in the field say that even the smallest of reductions can make massive savings. Switch off the heating when away and avoid heating rooms that you are not using at the time.

Consider A Condenser Boiler

It’s a big up-front cost , but the newer condenser boilers are much more efficient and the experts in the area say that they will pay for themselves within two years.

Insulate

Insulate your house and your pipes and you will save hundreds of Euro through minimizing your heat loss.

Improve Your Energy Efficiency With SEAI

Check our seai.ie as there are a lot of good grants and low interest loans available – also, energy suppliers are getting in on the act, providing assistance with a range of energy efficiency measures. This might be for PR reasons or for regulatory reasons. Regardless, these incentives exist and if you can afford them, they are worth pursuing.

Become A Charity Shopper

There’s lots of great deals out there and you have great scope to live well on a low budget. On top of that, you’re helping the community, some very worthwhile causes and with sustainability. Give yourself a great big pat on the back.

Use The Resell Sites

There are a lot of great platforms out there that charge little or nothing in commission and you might be surprised how much money can come from all them items that have been stored away and forgotten about … until now.

Generic Medication/Drugs Payment Scheme/Discretionary Medical Card

It’s the same medication as the branded medication – minus the premium for the brand name. If you have a lot of repeat prescriptions, you should register for the Drugs Payment Scheme, which limits prescription charges to E80/month per household. It is also worth considering making an application for a Discretionary Medical Card.

Use The Library

It’s a great resource and its free. For those who like ebooks, there is a great selection of ebooks so you don’t even need to make the trek to the library for your books.

Review Your Subscriptions

This is where you can make a lot of savings. Its easy to take out a subscription. Its only E5/month. That’s E60/year. So take a look at your online banking and list out the subscriptions and ask yourself if you are getting value from them. Then cut out the subscriptions that fail this test.

This is particularly true for TV, phone and internet. Its not unusual for a Sky subscription to exceed E100/month. Ask yourself if its worth it. Could you get better value for yourself with something else? Could you use the savings for a big treat that you will really value?

Do A Jig On Your Rubbish

Some refuse companies charge by the weight of your rubbish but not all of them do. Also, a massive portion of rubbish can be recycled and recycling charges are much less than regular rubbish disposal charges. If you make sure that you are only putting out full bins, by squeezing the rubbish into the bin, you are minimizing your charges. Anecdotal evidence suggests that a family of four people could reduce their annual spend on rubbish disposal by hundreds of Euro.

Enter Competitions

Everyone thinks they wont win so they don’t bother to enter the competitions. The more people who have that attitude, the better your chances, if you enter the competition. AA wee bit of reverse psychology.

Review Utility Provider

Competition between the main players is intense and many people don’t realize that they are out of their contract period and can make a switch without penalty. Its worth taking a look at what’s on offer. Sites such as Switcher and One Big Switch do a lot of the work for you. You could save hundreds of Euro at the click of a mouse.

Go LED

LED’s can reduce the electric bill by 20% so they’re definitely worth the investment … even if they are not as aesthetically pleasing as the conventional bulb.

Optimise With Full Dishwasher and Washing Machine Load

Like the refuse collections, it pays to be fully loaded as the cost is the same. Optimise the load and save money.

Use The Immersion Sparingly

Central heating heats the water, so the immersion heater shouldn’t be needed if the central heating is on.

Try To Avoid Peak Times

Peak times are between 5pm and 7pm. Try as much as you can to minimize energy use at these times – sometimes there are energy plans that reward for minimizing energy use at these peak times.

Boil Water For Immediate Needs

There is no point in boiling a litre of water for making a cup of tea. The rest cools … along with your disappearing funds.

Get Rid Of ‘Stand-By’ Mode

This uses 20% of normal output, so minimize use of Stand-By Mode.