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Five easy ways to save money during a recession

03.27.09
By Emily Peters

Most Americans are facing a little "belt-tightening" during this tough economy. From cutting out the regular morning latte to packing a brown bag lunch, there are basic ways that you can save everyday. Here are five less well known ways that you can save big:

1. Insurance – Are you getting the best deal possible on home and auto insurance? You may be able to save a couple hundred dollars a year by spending an afternoon comparing rates. Remember: Your credit score is often used to set your insurance premiums. Check your credit scores online before you start to shop for insurance. The better your score, the better the insurance deal you might be able to negotiate.

2. Phone Plans – Call your cell phone provider to see if there is anything you can do to cut your monthly bill. You might be able to turn off a data plan or texting agreement and save big. If your contract has expired, compare cell phone plans from other providers. A pay-as-you-go cell phone plans may be cheaper if you don’t use your cell phone often. And if you still have an old-fashioned landline telephone at home, this might be the right time to choose just one phone to save on expenses. Many people today only have cell phones, and some people still make due with just a landline!

3. Go Green at Home – Complete a home energy audit online in minutes using the U.S. Department of Energy’s Home Energy Saver tool. You may be able to dramatically cut back on your home energy bills with a few affordable changes. Lowering the thermostat on your water heater by just 10 percent could save you between 3-5 percent in energy costs.

4. Cable TV – Cable TV can cost you between $40 and $100 a month depending on your program. Call your cable TV provider to see if you can negotiate a better deal or downgrade your service. Or, switch to a free antenna that delivers the major network channels in crisp HD in many areas.

5. Credit Cards – You can save thousands of dollars on credit card debt by increasing your monthly payment amount or reducing your balance and interest rate. For example, if you have a $5,000 debt at 16 percent APR, you could save over $4,500 by increasing your payment percentage to 6.5 percent and reducing your interest rate to 12 percent. If your credit card issuer won't agree to lower your interest rate, you might also consider transferring the balance to a lower interest rate credit card. Use this credit card repayment calculator to see how much you could save.

A weekend spent shopping for deals and auditing your energy expenses could result in significant savings. In this economy, every dollar counts.



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In this economy, every dollar counts.
In this economy, every dollar counts.

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