Over the last few months, I have been trying to see where we can cut some costs. First, I refinanced my car. I had an ugly interest rate because when I bought the car my credit was in the shitter and the car was going to rehab it (which it did, I was able to get a mortgage because of it and now my credit is close to immaculate). I was able to get it down to 5.9% and reduce the payment to $350/month saving $150 a month- win!
Next, the decision that was the hardest for us- switching cable providers. We are HUGE TV people, so while it may not be a big deal to some people, trimming our cable channels is painful. We decided to cut the cord on Comcast because I was sick of spending $200/month on TV, phone and internet. We called around some other places and were able to get all the channels we wanted for $79/month and $54/month for internet and phone. We also will not keep any premium channels unless a show we watch is on. So, unless True Blood or Dexter is playing, we won't order the channel.
Between refinancing my car and changing cable companies, we're saving $215 a month, almost $2600 a year. It's amazing what 2 little changes can do! We decided we could do more though and we are actively cutting down on our Starbucks consumption. There have been weeks (we're not proud of this) that we have both gotten Starbucks every day, that's like $10/day. To save a considerable amount of money, we've been making our own 2 gallons of iced coffee for the week. I found this recipe that uses a cold process method that really turns out well. No acidic taste at all. There is another $100/month.
I think we're on our way to being more conscious about spending. One thing we need to do more of is weigh need vs want when we make a purchase. It's hard because we haven't had to do that in the many years we've been together. I guess it will make us easier to shop for during holidays though!
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