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Time and Money savings Calculator

Time and Money savings Calculator

A YouTube subscriber recently reminded me I’d made this Time and Money savings Calculator

Here’s the video showing how to use the Time and Money savings Calculator

66 simple tips how anyone can build wealth

Video walk through on 66 simple tips how anyone can build wealth

https://youtu.be/I7bay9sX9Ag

66 simple tips how anyone can build wealth

Overall Goals / Strategies

  • Aim for zero debt (even counting home loans)
  • Be proud of saving money (not embarrassed). Brag about it!
    • Hangout more with people that also are proud of saving $
  • When purchasing, try and negotiate. Don’t be afraid to ask for a lower price / conditions.  The answer is always no unless you ask
  • Make a budget and stick to it!
  • Follow and learn about money from people like: Beth Kobliner, Dave Ramsey, and Suze Orman
  • Teach your kids about saving money. Quantify how much each thing costs.  THEY will forgo things…
  • Round-up everything you buy to even $5. All extra money you don’t spend goes into savings
  • Pay very close attention to recurring costs and large 1-time costs!
  • Choose your college & degree wisely. Well-known names don’t offer as much as you might think.  There’s a huge variance in the cost to getting each type of degrees which has NOTHING to do with how much you can earn for each degree
    • Also consider trade schools. Often they are a better fit with far less debt
  • Believe in yourself! Take responsibility for EVERYTHING!  Don’t buy into the “blame game”

Saving Money

  • Buy generics instead of name-brand on drugs, clothes, cars, vitamins, etc.
  • Skip lavish vacations. Have “staycations” or “code-cations”
  • Cook meals (especially with planned left-overs)– Eat-out less frequently. You’ll save $16 per meal
  • Don’t have a car payment! If you have a car payment, sell it and buy something that allows you to not have a payment
  • Keep your car for longer
  • Do repairs / maintenance on your vehicle (Tune-ups, oil change, brake job, etc.)
  • Cut ties to Cable / entertainment. Find other sources like Netflix, Hulu, etc.
  • Skip the coffee shop
  • Review your cell-phone plans
  • Review all subscriptions! Are you really going to the gym?
  • Bring your own bottled water / drinks. (stop buying drinks when you dine-out)
  • Talk to your family & friends and agree $ limit for gifts
  • Use coupons- Examine and save your Valpak and local papers
  • Use Flexible Spending account and/or Health savings account
  • Price check everything.
  • Research everything! Consumer reports is accessible via local library
  • Freeze your credit
  • Freeze your credit card
  • When you feel like spending money, buy things you’ll need anyway (like food)

Buying vs Renting/Borrowing

  • Buy clothes, kitchen gadgets, & furniture from 2nd-hand stores (Goodwill)
  • Go to the library for books & movies
  • Trade movies, books, etc. with friends & family
  • Trade clothes with friends. Find a family that has kids 2-sizes above your kids
  • Borrow tools / items from a friend/neighbor / family member
  • Appliances are great things to buy 2nd hand (even HVAC units)
  • Look on Amazon Warehouse for many things you buy

Regarding your home

  • Do repairs / maintenance on your home (Clean AC, drain hot water heater, clean refrigerator coils)
  • Cut your own grass / lawn maintenance
  • Ditch the maid or reduce the frequency of visits
  • Refinance your home. Make extra payments / don’t just pay the minimum and pay it down early
  • Try and time major purchases around big sales events (Fourth of July, President’s day, Christmas, Labor day, etc.)

Reduce energy consumption in your home

  • Get a Smart thermostat (Honeywell, Nest, etc.)
  • Lower temperature on hot water heater
  • Raise Temperature AC / Lower temp on heat (every degree Hotter / Colder you’ll save ~3% on your energy bill)
  • Add ceiling fans in every room (I put up 5 in my house alone)
  • Run your AC during non-peak hours
  • Put in a “whole house fan” or some of these window fans (I own two of these AirKing and they really move the air!
  • Add plastic insulation to windows or drapes (The drapes can do more than you’d think)
  • Sun / Solar screens
  • Silicone all doors & windows (the older your windows & doors are, the more important this is)
  • Foam insulation pieces around outlets / switches on external walls
  • Change your HVAC air filters (Note, the cheapest ones are probably fine)  I use Amazon’s subscribe & save
  • Add insulation to your attic
  • Buy a KilAWatt meter to see how much energy your devices are using
  • Look for “vampire” devices that always draw electricity
  • Change out incandescent bulbs with LED bulbs. (If you have CFLs, I’d wait for them to die)
  • Purchase low-energy consumption appliances (Consumer reports has good metrics & access from your library)
  • Purchase higher SEER rated AC units (SEER 16 will save you ~ 70%)

Earning Money

  • Invest in yourself! Spend time/money on things that allow you to make more money / increase what you can charge.
  • Always have multiple jobs. (Gig economy)  Put all your “extra” money towards your debt
  • Create sources of revenue that are scalable and perpetual. Udemy courseAffiliate links, etc.
  • There’s “riches in niches.” In nearly every industry, Generalists make much less than Specialists
  • Find additional streams of income for your properties (rent shed, carport, parking, etc.)
  • Trade work / Barter with friends / neighbors
  • Monetize your hobby / passion. My Udemy courses / YouTube.  Wife making wreaths
  • Pet-sit, Housesit, babysit, elder-sit / safety check
  • Start a business that has very low start-up costs and little risk. Especially awesome if it can scale without large costs