Two Simple Money Habits Everyone Should Be Using Right Now
Using simple financial practices now can mean big savings down the road. Usually, that little movement only lasts a few minutes.
While these steps won’t help you build long-term wealth as effectively as other methods — like investing in the stock market — they may be able to help you build an emergency fund or use a few dollars to pay bills each month. Here are two money habits you can use to get extra cash to put toward both long-term and short-term goals, from vacations to buying a home to retirement.
1. Buy discounted gift cards
If you’re going to eat out, buy new shoes or watch a movie, you’ll probably want to pay less than the advertised price. With discounted gift cards, you can.
Sites like CardCash, big retailers like Costco and Sam’s Club also often sell gift cards for less than the gift card itself. For example, at Costco at the time of writing, members can buy a pack of four $25 Domino’s gift cards (total $100) for $69.99, a $50 gift card to Cinemark Theaters for $39.99 and two $50 gift cards to Dave & Busters (total $100) for $79.99.
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You can also sort gift cards by category to ensure the right ones appear on your next purchase. Some discount gift card sites also have a section where you can see gift cards discounted by a certain amount, such as 10% to 20% of their value.
You won’t save a life-changing amount of money with a single discounted gift card, but the savings can add up over time, especially if you use it for purchases you might not otherwise have to make.
The key is to only buy a discounted gift card if you do regular business with the company. Buying a discounted gift card for a restaurant you’ve never visited won’t help much. Make sure you really need what the card has to offer instead of buying it just for the sake of getting a deal.
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2. Conduct monthly subscription surveys
Another way to save money that should take just a few minutes is to do some research to make sure you’re not wasting money on unnecessary subscriptions, like a streaming service you never watch.
Make it a habit once a month to check your credit card statement for forgotten subscriptions. Reviewing your credit card statements can also make you question the value of subscriptions you use periodically and look for an affordable alternative.
For example, maybe you pay for a premium subscription to a food delivery app when you can downgrade to the free version and get more of the features you need.
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