Aside from talking about how to cook inexpensive meals, I want to also talk about frugal living in these trying times. It's great to know how to cook the meals but I want to talk about other things that pertain to frugal living. I will be entering articles about saving money, shopping smart and also spending smart.
It is hard for many people to save money. I know it has always been impossible for me to have any money left at the end of the month to have anything saved. I have had good intentions for years, and still I had not ever saved a single dollar until recently. It is extremely easy to save if you have a
savings plan that puts a dollar into your savings account whenever you use your debit or check card. I have a Way2Save savings account at my bank. Your bank most likely has one too. The savings account such as the one I am speaking of may not be of the same name as mine is, but most banks have this kind of savings account. You cannot deposit money into this account; it only adds money to your account when you make a purchase with your bank card.
In two months time I have $46 in my Way2Save account. I am saving money to have for my income taxes when they come due in April. The more you use your card the more dollars will build up in your savings account. My Way2Save account also puts a dollar into my savings account every time I use the online bill pay feature that my bank offers. One more way your bank puts a dollar in for every transaction is if you use an automatic teller machine. The other day I went to the hospital for a test. I was there early, so I decided I wanted to go to the cafeteria. I didn't have any cash so I used the bank's teller machine, and I was surprised to see that my bank saved a dollar for me due to that transaction also. So I have tree ways to put money into savings.
It would be very easy to just add this saved money into your checking account and spend it; you just do an online transfer, or you call your bank byphone and they do it for you. I would suggest though that you fight the urge to transfer this money and let it build up. Depending on how many online bill pays you do a month, and how many times you use your check card could mean earning up to $50 or more a month. I don't make that many transactions in a month, but if I did I could save up to $600 a year just by using these paying features.
Ask your bank if they have a Way2Save account. They may have another name for it, so just ask if they have a plan that saves a dollar for you every time you use your card or use your online bill pay feature. It is a way to save money without even trying. It doesn't hurt at all. Whether you are saving for your future, or for taxes like I am, you will be surprised at how fast your savings grow.
Wachovia and Bank of America has this type of savings account. The Bank of America may have a different name for their savings account. Check to see if your bank has such a savings account.
What are the advantages of having a savings account such as the Way2Save account?
1. You never miss the dollar coming out for your purchase. When you enter your purchase just add $1 to the price of your purchase in your check book.
2. It builds up quickly depending on how often you use your check card (online or offline), use the online bill pay feature, or use the ATM. The ATM is any ATM, it doesn't have to be from your particular bank.
3. It's easy to access your saved money if you need to. Just do an online transfer from your savings to your checking, or call your bank and they will do it while they are on the phone with you.
4. Your savings account is listed right under your checking account so you can see how much money you have in the bank total. Let's say if I have $800 in my checking account and I have $50 in my savings account there will be a total of $850 showing, so you never have to guess on how much money you have in the bank.
5. You start saving the same day your start your savings account. If you use your debit card, use the online bill pay feature, or use an ATM machine the next morning you will have a dollar saved for every transaction you made the day before.
6. Your savings account will never cause you to have an overdraft. If your savings account is too low, the savings account will not take any money from your checking account.
In Summary
Savings accounts, such as the Way2Save account, are painless. You never miss the dollar that goes into your savings account. If your checking account balance is extremely low and it would cause you to go into the negative on your checking, the bank will automatically omit taking out the dollar. The system is smart that way, so it will never cause you to be charged a non-sufficient funds fee.
Though you will always have access to your savings, you will want to resist the urge to transfer the money into your account if you are saving for something specific. I plan to let my money build until the amount saved reaches $100 and then I will transfer that money into my main savings account to save toward my taxes.
Think about how you could save money for big purchases. You would not ever have to use your credit card again. You could always live within your means by saving money for the bigger purchases. We become more affluent when we spend less than we earn, so a savings account, such as a Way2Save account will help you to achieve your financial goals.
Thanks for reading!
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