Making Resolution To Save Money Stick

Ray Martin's Tips On Best Ways To Hold Onto Your Money Once You Ring In New Year

(CBS) 

Here is a list of more penny pinching moves and their estimated monthly or annual savings. You might be surprised see how the savings can really add up:

Avoid ATM and transaction fees by using only in-network ATMs and avoiding PIN-based debit cards. Keep your bank balance above the minimum to avoid additional account fees. This can save you $150 to $250 per year in ATM and bank fees.

Use a no annual fee credit card if you don't carry a balance. If you carry a balance each month, use a low-rate card. This can save you $75 per year in fees and over $150 a year in interest charges, even if your average balance is as low as $1,000. Log on to www.bankrate.com for a list of no-fee and low-rate credit cards.

Use your bank's on-line bill payment service -- it writes and sends your checks according to your online direction. This can save you the cost of checks and $80 to $150 in postage per year.

Raise your deductible on your auto and homeowners insurance to $500 or $1000. Buy these policies through the same insurance company. This can save you 10-to-15 percent, or $200 to $350 a year on these costs.

Compare costs at the gas pump and use regular-grade gas. This can save $4 to $6 per fill-up, or $200 to $300 per year. Also, keeping the engine tuned, your tire pressure up and your speed down can save an additional $100 a year.

Turning the thermostat down five degrees for four hours a day can save ten percent on your heating bill. In the northern part of the country, that can save $150 to $300 this winter. You can do this yourself, our buy a programmable thermostat to do it for you.

Wrapping your hot water heater with insulation can save an additional $50 to $100 a year.

Using lower watt light bulbs can add to the savings.

Whoever said talk is cheap never looked at a phone bill. Drop optional services such as answering services (buy a $25 answering machine instead) and don't use directory assistance. This can save you $75 to $100 per year. Also, cancel that extra cell phone, reevaluate your calling plan, or call only at night and on weekends, when costs are lower -- this can save you $250 to $500 a year.

While you're at it, dropping that extra phone line can save $35 a month. You won't need it for Internet access if you upgrade to cable, DSL or other high-speed Internet connections. Pay for the high-speed link by dropping premium cable programming channels if you use cable and dropping your dial-up Web service subscription - how much TV are you watching when you are at work, anyway?

You can save a bundle when you buy food in bulk, avoid prepackaged items such as deli meats and cheese, and stop being brand-loyal. Also, fill a water bottle and bring that to work instead of buying bottled water and soda. These tips can save $30 to $50 a month, or $360 to $600 a year.

Cancel unnecessary magazine subscriptions. Instead, ask friends which magazines they subscribe to and drop the ones you both buy. Then swap magazines with each other every month. This will save you $15 to $30 per cancelled subscription per year.

When clothes shopping, check the care instructions and try to avoid “dry clean only” items. If conditions permit, hang work clothes up at the end of the day and wear them again before taking them to the dry cleaners. At home, wash your clothes in cold water and only do full loads. This extra attention can reduce your cleaning and laundry costs by $20 to $50 a month.

If you plan a trip this winter, make sure to book it in advance and plan the return on a weekend. This can save over 60 percent on the cost of roundtrip airfare. Also, if you will need to rent a car, shop around; prices can vary as much as 20 to 50 percent among the car rental companies for the same car. Also, fill the tank yourself and avoid the insurance add-ons to save even more.

How does this penny-pinching add up? Let's see: Assuming a family of four, in a typical house, in the Northeast, the total savings could be over $8,200 a year. Even if you don't smoke, already limit dining out and bring your lunch to work, the rest of the tips add up to $3,785 a year. That's not chump change.

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Add a Comment

by babalooga December 21, 2007 5:11 PM EST

Ray Martin,
Bravo- here''s my watch band tip for you:
My son recently had his braces removed and no longer needs the little bag of 200 tiny elastics- these are the perfect size for watch bands- no twisting and layering for size adjustment, no wad of elastic! They also come in cool colors. I use two at a time on my favorite Iron-woman watch band and they last for quite a while before I need to change them. What?! buy a new watch because of the band?! Pure consumerism I say!
May your elastics last long and your holidays be bright,
Judy

Reply to this comment

by fuerst12 December 21, 2007 1:26 PM EST

Ray Martin,
Just had to write after seeing your watch rubber-banded together on The Early Show this morning. My husband of 34 years would be proud. I have a washer and dryer in the same shape. My husband says, much as you said this morning about your watch, they still work...no need to get new ones until the old ones quit. My husband has always had the saying...It''s not how much money you earn, but how much you save. We are simple folks and have lived by that motto. It was hard for me to account for every nickel I spent in those early years. However, it has paid off. We paid off our house in seven years and have been debt free ever since. We have never made a lot money, we live simply, and we only buy something when we have the money to pay for it...including our vehicles. As it happens, we do many of the things you recommend. We have always followed a budget and have seldom had to worry about how we were going to pay for something we needed. It isn''t always easy to go without all the bells and whistles everyone else has, but then we also don''t have the financial worries they have. We have lived so frugally that our friends always laugh when my husband says we will have to cut back even more when we retire. When I see the struggles so many younger people (and even older people) have these days, I can only say thanks that my husband had the foresight that he did. Always look forward to seeing you on The Early Show. Thanks.
Debbie

Reply to this comment

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[babalooga]

Ray Martin,
Bravo- here''s my watch band tip for you:
My son recently had his braces removed and no longer needs the little bag of 200 tiny elastics- these are the perfect size for watch bands- no twisting and layering for size adjustment, no wad of elastic! They also come in cool colors. I use two at a time on my favorite Iron-woman watch band and they last for quite a while before I need to change them. What?! buy a new watch because of the band?! Pure consumerism I say!
May your elastics last long and your holidays be bright,
Judy

[fuerst12]

Ray Martin,
Just had to write after seeing your watch rubber-banded together on The Early Show this morning. My husband of 34 years would be proud. I have a washer and dryer in the same shape. My husband says, much as you said this morning about your watch, they still work...no need to get new ones until the old ones quit. My husband has always had the saying...It''s not how much money you earn, but how much you save. We are simple folks and have lived by that motto. It was hard for me to account for every nickel I spent in those early years. However, it has paid off. We paid off our house in seven years and have been debt free ever since. We have never made a lot money, we live simply, and we only buy something when we have the money to pay for it...including our vehicles. As it happens, we do many of the things you recommend. We have always followed a budget and have seldom had to worry about how we were going to pay for something we needed. It isn''t always easy to go without all the bells and whistles everyone else has, but then we also don''t have the financial worries they have. We have lived so frugally that our friends always laugh when my husband says we will have to cut back even more when we retire. When I see the struggles so many younger people (and even older people) have these days, I can only say thanks that my husband had the foresight that he did. Always look forward to seeing you on The Early Show. Thanks.
Debbie