How to save money with a busy family

Running a household can be stressful, especially if you have children! According to reports from CNN, the cost of raising a child has increased by nearly 40% in the past 10 years and 1 in 5 mothers have returned to work earlier than planned to keep up with the cost of running a home. Whether you have one child or a growing family, there are many ways you can save a little extra cash each day. Refused Car Finance are here to help you save as much money as possible whilst also giving your kids the best years possible! Saving more doesn’t mean you have to do less or overhaul your whole budget!

Sell as they grow

Don’t get rid of it if you could potentially sell it! Many people will keep baby clothes if they are planning on having another child or give them to friends or family who are expecting. However, if you’re thinking of throwing them out, see if you can sell them first! This can be anything you no longer need as they grow up, including clothes, prams, toys, beds etc. People love a second-hand bargain! You can do this through a number of ways such as social media, online auction websites, car boot sales, newspapers and more.

Who says free isn’t fun?

Most adults will know that some of their best childhood memories were actually completely free! Whether that’s playing football with your friends, a day at the beach with your siblings, sledging on a snowy day or even building a fort at home with your sofa cushions! Not everything these days has to be an expensive day out. Some of the best days out you can enjoy for free include visiting a museum, a country bike ride, a park natural trail or even your own sports day in the garden!

Cut your car costs

For many families, their car is a lifeline! For commuting to work, dropping the kids off at school, doing the weekly shop, weekend activities and much more! In recent years, the number of ‘two car’ families has increased massively, not only does this double the cost per household but it also negatively contributes to the environment. With this in mind, some families are limiting themselves to just one car per household and turning to public transport. Alternatively, you could consider getting a car on finance to spread the cost of owning a car into affordable chunks. Car finance deals have massively progressed in the past few years and is more accessible for many people. Now you can even get car finance with bad credit, no deposit car finance or even deals where you can pay nothing for up to six weeks!

Reduce your household bills

If your electricity, water and gas bills are getting more expensive each month, you should have a look at how much you are spending and wasting! The simplest of actions can reduce your costs month on month. Many of us leave our appliances on standby during the day when at work or school. This can be costly, especially with older devices that aren’t as energy efficient. Make sure you turn them off instead of leaving them on standby. You can also save money by turning off lights when you leave a room, having shorter showers to save water or buying energy efficient appliances. Even by turning down your thermostat by 1° can cut your heating bills by £75 a year!

Educate your kids on the value of money

Some parents are wary of teaching their kids the value of money from an early age as they don’t want them to worry about adult pressures, which is fair enough! However, teaching your kids about the value of money can develop an appreciation for saving money and become more money conscious. It can also make them less demanding of you when out shopping which ultimately helps you save money.

Plan your meals and create a list

Planning your meals for the full week is a great way to save money! Write down which meals you will be having that week and then make a shopping list of the ingredients you need for each. If possible, also plan your meals around the ingredients you already have to reduce waste. Planning will help you be more organised and can reduce any impulse buys when you’re out!

Shop with cash

In theory, you’re more likely to spend more money when you pay on card. This is because people see it as having less of a budget. Many shoppers give themselves a budget and only take cash when out shopping. This way you can’t physically spend anything other than the cold hard cash in your pocket!

Join the cashback hype

These days you can get cashback on just about anything! You can now get cashback when you top up the fuel in your car, shopping online for clothes, doing the weekly food shop, eating out or even when you switch utility suppliers! There are many online websites which provide cashback when you shop online and in store, you then receive cashback into your online account which you can withdraw when it’s ready.

Stop wasting money on work lunches

Buying a £3.50 meal deal for your lunch at work can set you back £17.50 a week which equates to £70 a month! If you already make packed lunches for your kids, why not make an extra one for yourself? You could also take any leftovers from your dinner the night before to eat at work!

Cancel any unused accounts

Still paying for a gym membership that you never use? It’s time to cancel it! Thousands of us waste money on subscriptions that we don’t need each month! If you’re paying for a full television provider package where you only watch half the channel, it’s worth getting in touch with them to reduce your package and payments. Or you may even consider cancelling all together and watching online on demand services instead. If you love music and couldn’t do without a paid subscription service, that’s ok! But many popular ones offer ‘family’ packages now, where you can have multiple accounts on one and then split the cost!

This is a featured post