by Willow Jackson

Created on: December 27, 2008

Pinch Those Pennies

There are several ways to cut back on everyday spending and household expenses. With our busy schedules and household chores, it becomes easy to not take the time out to see where you can cut out unnecessary expenses. Try setting aside just one day every couple of weeks to go through what you're spending and where you're spending at.

The monthly bills:

Home Phone: make sure you are getting the best deal possible for local and long distance in your area. If you have a higher rate for your long distance, try looking into buying phone cards for those hour long conversations.

Cell: Prepaid is a good way to go if you don't talk on phones that much. You can buy minutes as you need them and only buy how much you think you will use. This saves you from having to sign a contract with a service provider. This way also makes it easy to keep track of how many minutes you're using and how much you are spending on them. The downside to this is when you're out of minutes you can't make a call.

When you get a monthly plan from a service provider, go for the lowest minute plan available that you think will cover how much you talk within a month. When your first bill comes in go over it and check to see if you have gone over or under the minutes. If you have gone just under or barely over, stick with that plan that way you only have a minimal cost for a few minutes over. Although, if you have gone a good deal over, move up to the next lowest plan available that will cover your usage. You will also want to get extra minutes during the holiday season for all those extra call from friends and family. A one time cost of a few extra minutes is cheaper that a large amount for going over your minutes. However, if you have used less than what you originally got then lower your plan a little bit. You don't want to pay for minutes that you'll never use.

Electric Bill: Electricity is the most abused energy source in a home. During daylight hour open your window and use the sunlight instead of electricity. Replace hundred watt bulbs with sixty watt bulbs. Replace your sixty watt lamp bulbs with the smallest wattage that you can still see with. Instead of using three and four lights on the ceiling fans, use two.

Weather proofing all your doors, windows and other areas that can let air into or out of your house helps. By making sure that all of these areas are properly sealed, you will use less energy to heat and cool your home. Turn off all lights and electronics that are not

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