Money-Wasting Habits: Stop the Leak in Your Financial Ship

It’s very easy to waste money without even knowing about it.
Think about the number of coffee dates that you go to every year. What about the Uber Select rides that you use or the hundreds of subscriptions that you have.

If you are like most people, every New Year forms a good opportunity to reset. It provides an ideal opportunity to forget about the past year and start fresh.

So, in this article, I compiled a list of 10 simple habits you can stop easily to improve your financial well-being.

ATM Fees

ATMs charge us pennies to withdraw money. However, if you regularly use an out-of-network ATM, you are losing money that you shouldn’t. A recent study found that these ATMs charge as high as $4.50 to withdraw money.

Unless it is very urgent, I recommend that you stick to using your bank’s ATMs, which charge less than a dollar for a withdrawal.

Make your own Coffee

We all love hanging out in a coffee bar especially when we are with dear friends. In the office, we love ordering coffee from the nearest coffee bar. Doing all this is good.

This year, purpose to prepare your own coffee. In fact, the average Starbucks glass of coffee sells for about $2.50. If you order ten cups every week, that comes to about $25.

What does that cup of coffee cost to make? 20 cents.

In fact, you will not be alone in this. Recently, Shark Tank’s star, Kevin O’Leary who is worth millions of dollars advised people against spending money on expensive cups of coffee.

Late Fees

This year, try to make all your payments on time. Making late rent payments, credit card debt, and even mortgages usually attract unnecessary fees. For example, most credit card companies charge you $40 for any late payment you make.

According to CFPB, every year, credit card companies make more than $10 billion from late payment penalties.

All this can be avoided by compiling all your bills and the dates you are required to pay and then paying on time. You can also automate the process of paying bills and loans so that every month, the funds can be deducted from your account.

Remember, late payment of credit card debt and other debts can affect your credit rating.

Using Uber Premium Packages

Uber is an exciting platform that has simplified how we commute. Uber’s app offers several packages that are targeted to different people.

In New York, the company’s packages include UberPool, UberX VIP, UberXL, Uber Black, and Uber SUV.

While we would all love using the best Uber, when you have to, use the cheapest Uber package. For example, a trip from Trump Tower to United Nations costs a maximum of $10 when using Uber Pool, UberX VIP, and UberX. A similar trip using the other three packages will cost you between $15 and $31.

Unless it is very necessary, I recommend that you stick with the basic packages. Better still, I suggest that you compare the prices of Uber and Lyft. In the above trip, using Lyft will cost you a maximum of $9.

Underused Subscriptions

How many times have you subscribed for a free trial and forgotten to unsubscribe? Several times?

Online companies love it when people start their free trials. Research shows that many people who try a new subscription service forget to press the unsubscribe button. They are then charged a monthly fee for a product or service they rarely use.
These bills can run up to hundreds of dollars every year.

This year, I recommend that you take time and audit all your subscriptions. Then, downgrade or cancel all subscriptions you rarely use.

Not Comparing Prices

Before the likes of Amazon and eBay, comparing prices was tough. You had to move from one store to another which was mostly not worth it.

Today, with Amazon and other e-commerce websites, you can easily compare prices before you buy anything. Better still, you can use several apps like Price.com and PriceBlink, to compare prices.

Remember, it has been documented well that companies like Wayfair, which owns many brands often price their merchandise differently. Slight research can help you get the better deal.

Excess Groceries

Do you know that most of groceries and vegetables in the country are thrown out as waste? Surprisingly, this happens in a country where millions of people are on food stamps.

You should avoid wasting your money on excess groceries. Instead, you should have a plan for all the groceries that you need and buy accordingly.

On this line, you should avoid using meal-kit companies like Blue Apron that send you proportioned meals. Research shows that using these companies is a bit expensive than buying in a grocery store.

Eating Out

How many times per month do you go out for lunch or dinner?
I agree the feeling of being served is usually good. Also, the experience of eating out is exceptional. Therefore, I am not proposing that you stop eating out.

Rather, I am suggesting that you limit the number of times you go out. Research published in 2016 showed that on average, most Americans eat out about five times per week. On average, a meal costs about $36.

This means, on average, they spend about $180 per week.

If you were to cook the food, the average cost would be less than $5. Therefore, I recommend that you limit the number of times you eat out and possibly invest the balance.

Gym Membership

Every month, 37% of people pay between $20 and $50 for gym memberships while 20% of them pay between $50 and $100.

Being a gym member has its advantages which include the morale and the energy that comes with it. It also comes with a trainer.
However, if you have been a gym member for years, you should now consider using your home gym and other forms of exercise. A house gym will cost you a few thousands of dollars, but it will save you thousands in gym memberships.

Ignoring Loyalty Points

Many companies, including popular ones like Amazon and Walmart, offer free loyalty points to their customers. The same is true for other organizations like banks and hotels.

Sadly, research by Adage found that most people don’t use or redeem their loyalty points. In total, they miss being part of a $100 billion industry.

This year, I recommend that you start using loyalty points when buying. Every year, this can save you hundreds of dollars.

Other things you should consider doing this year are:

Buying branded items. Research shows that you can save a lot if you purchase unbranded products. You can try a company called Brandless.

Impulse buying. You can stop this by carrying exact cash and setting and sticking to a budget.

Cut the Cable and only pay for TV channels that you watch.

Bottled water. Bottled water is not better than your tap water. You can save a few dollars by carrying your water.

Not using Airb&b for your extra room. You can make some money by renting out your spare room.

Research shows that most people can save thousands of dollars by easily adjusting their lifestyles. In this article, the goal is not to interrupt the quality of your life. Instead, the article highlighted a few ways you can save money by doing simple things that don’t let you live a lower quality life.