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Feature: 15 Money Saving Tips

At this time of global financial meltdown it is worth considering ways to reduce your monthly expenses, so we thought we would put together 15 simple things you can do easily to cut down on costs:

1. Make your own lunch & take a drink with you (in a cooler bag if you like it cold!) This saves a lot of money, assuming you pay $8 for a sandwich and $2 for a drink 5 days a week, that is a whopping $200 a month! Making a picnic and doing this at the weekend too will save you even more.
2. Cut out your daily coffee fix from the local cafe. Assuming $3.50 a day for 5 days, that is $70 a month saved. You could always take a plunger & ground coffee to work - they even sell cheap little milk "frother" gadgets so you can mimic the real thing !
3. Make dinners from leftovers - try this website for some ideas: www.lovefoodhatewaste.com/recipes and you will save both time and money. They have a great area where you can click on the left over food you have to take you straight to receipe ideas to use it in!
4. Give up your gym membership and exercise in the fresh air (careful with the sun though!) - and you could save around $40-$80 per month.
5. Take the bus instead of the car to save paying for petrol & parking costs
6. Get off the bus a stop or two early and walk - this might save you an extra zone cost on your ticket and getsyou healthy too.
7. Only buy fruits and vegetables which are in season so that the costs are low and the food tastes great.
8. Buy home brand goods or shop at places like Aldi. Many staple things like pasta, bread, tinned items are good quality and much less expensive. For example, Aldi nappies are only $16.99 for 44 and are great!
9. Try to organise your shopping list each week to include everything you need so that you don't buy things at expensive convenience stores where the prices are high.
10. Cut out the take aways. If you know you are going to be busy one night, try to pre-plan and cook extra food earlier in the week so you have food on hand and don't get tempted with ringing for a pizza delivery! Or just keep a pizza/burgers etc in the freezer for fast food. One less $30 take away a week will save you $120 a month.
11. Only go to BYO cafes & restaurants - If you fancy a meal out as a treat, pick a BYO restaurant to keep the drinks bill down.
12. Fill up your petrol tank early in the week, especially on Tuesdays to take advantage of much cheaper petrol costs.
13. Host a Swap party with your friends where you all swap adult or kids clothes , toys, unused beauty products etc., to save money and the environment.
14. Hold a 'Bring a Plate' party - where everyone brings a contribution to the food for the event - to keep entertaining costs down
15. Use Freecycle (items are offered free of charge) or EBay (new or second hand goods sold on-line) to look for things you need and save money.