1. Your cell phone bill
Call your carrier to review your phone usage and see if you’re still on the best plan. “If you go from being single to married to having kids in a few years, your calls, texts, and online usage habits will change,” says former purchasing manager Gary Forman, founder of The Dollar Stretcher. Keep your bill low by avoiding extra fees and charges; for example, don’t dial 411 for information, which can charge up to a $1.99 for each curious call. Instead, text Google for what you need. Include what you know in the message: “Staples store, Cleveland, Ohio” and text it to GOOGLE -- which translates to the numbers 466-453. As soon as you hang up (it’s creepy how fast it works!), you’ll get a text with the address and phone number so you can call them on your plan.
2. Your dry cleaning bill
“You’d be surprised to learn that even though something says it might need to be dry-cleaned, you can still hand wash it,” explains Tiffany Bass Bukow, CEO of msmoney.com and author of the free e-book Live Your Life at Half the Price (available on msmoney.com). “Get a great spot remover pen you can use on high-quality fabrics so you don’t have to take that suit jacket to the dry cleaner after just one wearing because you splashed a bit of soup on it.”
3. Your heating bill
First, block all drafts so that you’re not blowing hot air out the window. Next, only have heat where you need heat. “It’s much cheaper to heat up just your bed or just your living room than it is to heat your whole house,” explains Foreman. “If you’re watching TV in the evening, use an electric blanket when you sit on the sofa. If you want heat on your sheets before you crawl into bed, toss a two-liter soda bottle filled with warm water between the sheets a half-hour before bedtime -- the sheets will be warm when you get there.” He also advises to choose a portable space heater to warm just one area or room at a time. There are two basic types: Radiant heaters heat the objects at which they’re aimed; they’re great for just one or two people so you can heat the chair you’re sitting in. Convection heaters warm the air in the room, which is better for a small family.
4. Your mortgage bill
“Interest rates continue to drop so you might consider refinancing since we’re at a two-year low right now,” explains Bass Bukow. “If you have an ARM and won’t be able to afford any hefty increases that come when rates rise, you might consider locking in a fixed rate in the next six months.”
5. Your computer bill
Buy in bulk -- it’s not just a good idea for your groceries, but for your cable, Internet, and phone plan. If you buy all three from a local carrier, they will give you all three at a greater discount than each alone.
6. Your gas bill
“Don’t buy premium gas,” says Bass Bukow. “You could save up to 30 cents a gallon. Your auto manual might still call for it; however, if you do research online, you’ll find that you can still use a lower octane gas if you don't mind sacrificing a little bit of performance.” It’s not bad for the engine, so you and your car will never be the wiser.
7. Your hot (and cold) water bills
“If you have a home where the water pipes run under the home or in the ground and open air, insulate them,” explains Foreman. “You can lose a lot of heat while the water travels. And insulation doesn’t go bad. It pays dividends virtually forever.” When it comes to the water you drink, buy a water filter to attach to your faucet instead of buying bottled water. It’s an up-front expense that will quickly save you money.
8. Your insurance bills
“There’s a lot of competition in the insurance realm, so do your research online and investigate the best deals for auto, home, life, health, and so on,” says Bass Bukow. Have you checked to see you’re paying the least you can? Auto insurance can be lowered by taking a safety course and having your car’s VIN etched into the windows. And if you’re paying health insurance out of pocket, check yearly to see if you can lower your costs for records of good health.
9. Your electric bill
“Clean or replace filters for anything that heats or cools around your house once a month. If they get blocked, you lose all your efficiency,” says Foreman. “Use a vacuum to clean the coils inside the front grill of your refrigerator, which releases the heat that’s been removed from inside the fridge; the harder they have to work to release that heat, the more you pay.” And be sure to check another major source of electricity usage: Clean the lint collector in your dryer as well as the hot air duct leading out of the house. (Or just skip the dryer in warm weather altogether!)
10. Your credit card bill
“With interest rates being cut again by the Fed, it’s a great time to call your credit card company and ask for a reduced interest rate,” says Bass Bukow. She adds there’s an easier way to cut down on your monthly bill: “Stop spending!” Oh, you’ve heard that one before, have you?
by Amy Spencer
6/19/08
See more:
Bills,
Budgeting,
Money,
money q&a