How You Can Save $500 A Month in the Next Five Minutes

The economy stinks. We know this. People are losing their jobs every day. People are struggling financially every day. It’s almost the norm right now. Fact is, most people don’t want to resort to drastic money saving measures until they absolutely have to. And unfortunately in most cases it’s nearly too late when these cost cutting measures are implemented.

When you’re put into a money squeeze it’s surprising how quickly you figure out what you find as truly essential and what you can live without. But if you truly want to save at least 500 dollars a month (which could mean a ton) then these 5 steps that can be accomplished in the next five minutes might be useful to you.

Start Saving money…..

Stop Getting Premium Cable Channels or Cut Cable Entirely

This is by far the easiest cut of the entire bunch. Typically, depending on where you live, people spend at least 100 bucks on the “triple play” package. So you’re talking phone, internet, and cable all wrapped into one. However, most people have premium channels attached to this plan so that the average cable bill is probably running people around 150 dollars. With the advent of Netflix and internet television you can still watch all your shows but for a fraction of the cost. Or just cancel your premium channels. I mean how many movies are you really watching a day anyway? At a minimum you’re probably saving 50 bucks a month here, and in many cases 75 dollars.

You Don’t Need Such a Fancy Phone

I love hearing people tell their sob stories about money and here they are carrying a damned smart phone! Really? Do you really need that when money is so tight? There are set minutes plans now for literally $19.99 a month with just a basic phone. Yes, that cheap. In most cases having a smart phone means that you HAVE to have an internet plan. So right there you’re already out 30 bucks. Do you really need to check the internet on your phone? Do you HAVE to check your email? What happened to just using your computer for that stuff? Average cell phone bills these days run well into the hundreds. Assuming the average bill is just 100 dollars, switching to 20 a month is 80 dollars in savings right there.

One Less Night Out a Month

Just one, only one less night out a month will save you whatever you normally spend. For me? A night out could be as casual as a dinner or something as major as a sporting event. I’d say a dinner with just me and my wife averages about 80 bucks whereas a sporting event can run at least 300 bucks with only two people. Not to mention gas, commuting, all that fun stuff. At a minimum by going out one less night a month you’re looking at 50-100 bucks minimum and probably over 300 bucks on the higher side.

Get a Used Car or No Car

Why Get a brand new car and finance it when you can have a preowned car that’s just as good? Did you know a car’s value drops nearly 40% just by driving it off the lot? If you insist on having a car get a preowned car. And if you don’t really need a car, then don’t drive one at all. Savings here is in the hundreds.

Is That Really Necessary???

This is a list you can draw up in about 5 seconds. Look at every single expense you paid last month. I’m talking everything. From the groceries you buy to the clothes you wear. Wait till you see how much dumb stuffyou have on there. Trust me, you didn’t need that neon basketball lamp that you never put up in the basement. Make a category called “dumb transactions” and don’t make them anymore. I’m pretty confident you can save at least 200 a month that way.

There, we’re talking at least 500-1000 a month in savings all within five minutes.