Everyday money tips

This week I asked around the office for everyone’s favourite money tips. Here are six of the best (in no particular order).

• Shop at the supermarket just once a week – and always bring a list (if temptation still gets the better of you, see if you can buy your groceries online).
• Try a $10-a-bottle wine policy (or set a similar price limit for another luxury item you don’t want to give up!)
• If you pay your mortgage monthly, change to fortnightly payments of at least half the amount you were paying each month. This will pay off your mortgage faster and save on interest.
• See if you can change payments for rates, power, phone etc to match your pay periods (this may not save money but it can make the bills easier to budget for).
• Make coffee at work and save the $4 per day in a holiday fund. Adds up to over $1000 per year (hey, there had to be a coffee tip. There’s ALWAYS a coffee tip!).
• When hiring tradespeople, ask if you can do any preparation or clean-up work yourself. The less time they spend, the less money you spend.

Do you have a money tip you’d like to share? It doesn’t have to be penny-pinching, just something that helps you manage your money day-to-day.