Cheap Living Tips

You have to pick and choose your spots, but there’s an insider art to truly wringing out every last dime — haggling.

Such an ugly name. But “situational negotiation,” let’s call it, can save savvy consumers a bundle in some retail spaces.

It’s not something that’s often encouraged anymore, but haggling can make a world of difference. Figuring out what expenses are worth quibbling over may not be an easy task, however. Some of the costs below do not need to be accepted at face value. (See Also: How I Got Over My Haggling Hatred)

by Miles Walker

Photographer: Salvatore Vuono

In a tight economy, everyone is looking for new ways to tighten their budget. One area nearly everyone could spend a little less on is their vehicles. Here are ten tips to follow to save money on your car.

1. Use Your Car for Longer

This is perhaps the piece of advice most likely to save you money in the long run. If you use your car for five to six years instead of just three to four, the yearly average cost of your vehicle could drop significantly.

2. Alter Your Car Insurance

There are many ways to create savings through adjusting the kind of car insurance you own. For example, if you have a $200 deductible on your comprehensive car insurance, you may be able to save as much as 40 percent on your insurance by raising that deductible to $1,000.

3. Forget Accessories

Going for optional accessories with your vehicle can quickly drive up the cost of your car significantly. These accessories always come with a significant mark-up. Instead, go for much cheaper after-market add-ons.

4. Consider Pre-Owned

One of the biggest expenses of owning a car is depreciation. With a pre-owned car, though, someone else pays the majority of that expense. However, always make sure to get a decent warranty on a pre-owned car to cover repair costs.

5. Avoid Conspicuous Consumption

If you don’t need that sports car, luxury model, or big SUV, don’t purchase one. Only purchase the vehicle that you actually need. If that is a much smaller model with fewer bells and whistles, so be it.

6. Perform Your Own Maintenance

You may never have the skill to rebuild an engine. However, learning how to do an oil change yourself is one way to certainly save some needed cash.

7. Shop Around

The internet has become a great tool for those looking to buy a car. Use internet price comparisons to make your self educated. This way, you will actually have an advantage when you try to haggle with a salesperson.

8. Increase Fuel Efficiency

This can be done by simply purchasing a more fuel efficient car. However, your driving habits can also be altered to save on fuel. For example, driving less aggressively and avoiding sudden accelerations and decelerations can save plenty of gas.

9. Find Cheaper Insurance Rates

Competition in the auto insurance industry is extremely high. In fact, over 200 different companies operate in many states. Use the internet to help you find the most reasonable rates possible.

10. Don’t Be Fooled by Dealership Gimmicks

Promotions, such as offering free gas for a year or even a cruise with a new car, are often used by dealerships to lure in unsuspecting customers. You should always mathematically assess whether or not these gimmicks will actually save you any money on the purchase of your car.

Miles Walker is a freelance writer and blogger who usually compares car insurance deals over at CarinsuranceComparison.Org.

A recent headline caught my attention and inspired this train of thought.  It read something like Toilet Paper Drives the Economy.  The gist of the article was

A shift from one-ply to two-ply (and now three-ply) may not seem significant. But to ignore it is to miss an important point: Because people are literally flushing the money they spend on these products down the toilet, spending habits in this very personal area can reveal important clues about the financial health of shoppers. And that reflects on the growth potential for the economy and the stock market as a whole. It all depends on how the roll turns, and it’s definitely turning.

I had to stop and think about that one because just that morning we had picked up a giant package of Cottonelle Ultra.    So does my purchase indicate that I have faith in the upturn of the economy or that I just want to spoil myself with softness in private while preaching penny pinching in public? Guilty as charged!

One of the sad commentaries of our society is our lack of gratitude and the growing emphasis on the cost of gifts.  However, this lack of gratitude apparently isn’t a new phenomenom for the use of the phrase, look in a horse’s mouth, can be traced back the 16th century.

Is it the cost or thought behind the gift that counts?

The answer to that question depends totally on who is the recipient of the gift, doesn’t it? Or does it?  If we continue to buy expensive gifts for our family and friends because we think they will not appreciate a less costly gift that comes with more thought behind it, aren’t we just reinforcing the idea that high dollar value is what makes a gift significant?

Are hand-made gifts tacky?

We all have that treasured stash of special gifts that our children created when they were small.  Their first hand-print candy dish or wall plaque, their first painting or ceramic vase but what about those crocheted pot-holders we get every year from Aunt Nelly or the “hand made” card our thirteen year old hastily scribbled when he realized he had blown all his allowance on video games and it was your birthday?  It is evident that the thought behind the gift is what gives it value, not the monetary cost.

Nothing can replace the look of love and excitement that graces a small child’s face when they present their parent with something they made themselves.  It is obvious they are giving a piece of themselves, a little bit of their heart.  The gift contains all the joy they experienced as they made something for mom.

The Real Value of a Gift

I personally think that is the key to the value of a gift: what were you thinking when you bought or made it?  If it was a hurry to store and grab the first likely thing because you needed a gift,  it won’t matter whether you spend $1 or $100.  If you delight in selecting just the right flower arrangement for finding her/his favorite author or singer, then the gift will reflect that.  A critical element is not the dollar value but does the gift reflect your feelings for that person?

A Gift That Last

Whether you spend $10 or $200, the quality of a gift reflects the value you place on your relationship with the recipient.  A limited budget doesn’t limit a serious shopper.  You can find beautiful and exquisite jewelry to fit any budget.

So it may be too late to plan ahead for Mother’s Day but Father’s Day is just around the corner.  Dad’s appreciate thoughtfulness too.  This year, surprise dad with something other than the traditional socks or tie.  Is Dad traditional or conservative?  Maybe this year he would be delighted to show off a custom hand turned pen?

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As a new grandparent (for the 2nd time), I was thinking this morning about how things have changed since I raised my daughter.  When my daughter was young the new innovations available were microwave ovens and VHS players.  My grandson turned eighteen on his last birthday.  I remember watching in wonderment as he whizzed around my Window 3.2 and found his kids programs at the age of four.

Now days we can do more on our phones than was possible on the mammoth main frames I started my computer career on.  So the question is, how does this change the challenges faced by new parents?

Some things change very little, unlike a newborn’s diapers, which seem to need changing several times an hour.  Many new parents still face the same questions we did.  Is it better to breast-feed or bottle feed?  Are cloth diapers better than disposable?  What kind of food should I start my child on and when should they start solids?

Admittedly, having only raised one child, I am no expert on the subject but I will gladly share what I learned or believe to be true.

Breast or Bottle?

I am big fan of breast-feeding children for as long as possible (within reason).  I know this is a tough one as most mothers these days have to go back to work and pumping and storing breast milk it a real pain.  Yet, I think it is worth the hassle to keep the child on breast milk for at least the first 6 months.  My opinion, take or leave it.  Not only does it provide the best nutrition possible for the baby but it is also a budget bonus as breast milk does not cost you a cent!

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Cloth or Disposable?

Disposable versus cloth diapers… is this question even raised these days?  Maybe not.  I found a somewhat recent study that proposes that there is no significant difference in the environmental impact when you take into consideration the cost of laundering and water usage etc.

A new study released in England by a quasi-government environmental organization may dampen the debate even further. After a three-year, 200,000-pound (about $360,000) study, the London-based Environmental Agency concluded that disposable diapers have the same environmental impact as reusable diapers when the effect of laundering cloth diapers is taken into account.  ABC News May 2005

Other writers however point out that over a ton of soiled disposal diapers will go into the land fill over the course of one child’s life.  Cloth diapers have come a long way since my day too.   They now come in colorful designs and adjustable sizes that grow with your child.  One source (see video below) says that these grow-with diapers could bring the cost of your child’s diapers down to about $500, where as the buying different size diapers could cost over $1000.  Yet when you compare that to $3500 for the disposable kind, it is still a significant savings.

Baby Food or Not?

Another area where new parents can save money is by making their own baby food instead of buying pre-made bottled foods.  This practice has become even easier with the advent of convenient mini-blenders like the Magic Bullet.  I guess this is an area where mom and dad’s schedules have to be taken into consideration.  It is one thing to prepare fresh meals when you are at home but the jars are convenient when you have to pack the baby’s food to go to the sitter.    Then again, they also make convenient plastic storage containers that you can puree up last night’s veggies (before seasoning) to send off with baby the next day.  I haven’t shopped for baby food recently but I’m betting the cost has skyrocketed like every thing else.

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