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5 More Ways to Save Money

A few months ago, I wrote about a few ways to save money. Here are five additional steps you can take to save even more money.

1. Get an account with a higher interest rate

Regular savings accounts rarely pay a significant amount of interest. For example, the TD Every Day Savings Account has an annual interest rate of 0.05%. If you deposit $10,000 in this account, you’ll earn $5 in interest after one year.

But if you open up a high-interest savings account, you can earn a lot more interest income. For example, if you deposit that $10,000 in an EQ Bank Savings Plus Account (which has an interest rate of 2.25%), you’ll earn $225 in interest or $220 more than you would with TD’s Every Day Savings Account.

2. Move to a cheaper place

If you’re going to buy a home, you obviously shouldn’t spend more than you can afford. It’s better if you spend less than you can afford even if you’ve been approved for a pretty hefty mortgage. That’ll give you a buffer in case your house needs some repairs or a special assessment (a charge to repair something in the building and when there’s a budget shortfall) is levied on your condo.

If you’re going to rent, it’s nice to move to a brand new condo building because everything is modern. Unfortunately, it’s likely going to cost you more. If you want to live in a particular neighbourhood, you can often find an older apartment complex nearby. While it won’t have the latest and greatest amenities, it’ll be less expensive and much larger in size.

3. Cut the cord

Paying for cable, satellite, or internet protocol TV subscription can be expensive. According to the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC), the average subscriber paid $66.08 a month ($792.96 annually) for their service in 2015. High prices and alternatives like Netflix have prompted some Canadians (nearly 160,000 last year) to cancel their subscription altogether.

If you want to watch new TV shows, you can get an antenna. Also, most networks (Global, CTV, City, and CBC) make both Canadian and American programming available for free online or on their app the day after it was aired. Not paying for TV can save you hundreds of dollars a year.

4. Pay down high-interest debt

Carrying a balance on your credit card can be expensive, especially if the interest rate is 19.9%. If you have a balance of $2,000 and only make a payment of $60 a month, it’ll take you more than four years to pay off that debt. You’ll also have to pay $942 in interest.

Alternatively, you can move that money to a balance transfer card and not pay any interest for up to a year while you pay off the balance in its entirety. Or you can get a line of credit and pay a much lower rate of interest. Once you’ve paid off your debt, you shouldn’t run up a balance again.

5. Unsubscribe from store newsletters

Signing up for that email from your favourite retailer may have saved you 10% to 20% off your next purchase but it’s also prompted you to buy a few more items over the years that you didn’t really need. Why? Because email marketing works and retailers know this. Coupons are sometimes worth it but if you’re using them to buy items just to get a deal, you’re probably making a lot of unnecessary purchases.

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Flickr: KMR Photography