Reduce Household Expenses With These 7 Tips You Need To Know
We are all looking for ways to reduce household expenses while not having to give up too much of the things we enjoy. Do you think you are spending too much money on your household expenses? Maybe, you need to save up for some significant purchase? Is your budget limited, so do you need to cut your spending in general? These are some critical questions we must ask ourselves to reduce household expenses and save money.
Reduce Household Expenses The Smart Way
We participate in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, Skimlinks, and other Associate Affiliate Programs. Affiliate advertising programs like these allow us to earn fees by linking to affiliated sites at no cost to you. As Amazon Associates, we earn from qualifying purchases. Please check our Disclosure Privacy Policy page. Thank you for supporting our website.
Regardless of what your reasons are, if you decide you need to save money at home, you have a multitude of options. They go far beyond shopping around for discounts and using coupons.
Many methods that can save you money and reduce household expenses, in the long run, have nothing to do with cutting immediate costs. Some of them even require an initial investment. Therefore, you need to consider these options and find ways to include them in your long-term money-saving plans.
7 Things You Should Be Doing to Reduce Household Expenses in the Long Run
1. Buy high-quality appliances from the beginning
When we bought our last major appliance, which was our refrigerator, we made sure to research thoroughly first. We look at lower end fridges and compared the online reviews to those of the higher end brands. When we saw the average repair cost, we knew exactly what fridge to buy.
It didn’t make sense to save money on the initial purchase and spend more on repairs down the road. For example, we have a second fridge in our garage we use for bulk food items and having a second fridge was one of the best decisions we made. That second fridge is about 17 years old, and I never spent a dime on repair costs. Amazing right? You can see in the image below how great it still looks too!
I fully believe that’s because when we first purchased it, we bought a top of line fridge, and it has paid off over the years. That’s exactly what we did for our main fridge too. While I didn’t buy the most expensive fridge, I made sure to spend more than I had originally planned because I didn’t want to spend a small fortune on repairs for that one either.
Check out the average appliance repair costs and you’ll see how avoiding those should be your first priority if you want to save money. Bear in mind that those costs don’t include additional damage that may result from a broken appliance, for example, water damage from a busted heater.
One of the more effective ways to reduce the risk of expensive breakdowns is investing in top-quality devices from the start. There is a reason why products from industry leaders are more expensive, and that reason is that they are better by default. Therefore, do your research and pick the most reliable appliances. Then, save up and replace your cheap devices one piece at a time.
2. Know how to maintain your appliances and Do It!
Did you know that you need to keep the coils on your fridge dust-free and check its seals every month to ensure they are in perfect condition? Those simple things affect the energy efficiency of the device as well as reduce the risk of breakdowns.
Every few months, we pull out all of our appliances and give them a good deep cleaning. This is so important because those hard to reach dirty areas are often what causes appliances to break in the first place. Keep all of your user manuals and make sure you know which areas are safe and important to maintain.
There is a set of maintenance tips like that for every home appliance and system. You need to study them carefully and do the mandatory maintenance for your fridge, oven, water heater, etc. Note that even the manufacturer’s warranty might not apply if you don’t maintain the device properly. A handy checklist for cleaning appliances is a top priority!
3. Invest in a home warranty to avoid huge emergency repair costs
Unfortunately, even well-maintained high-quality appliances might break down. However, even then you can save money by avoiding huge repair costs. For this, you’ll need to protect your appliances and systems with a home warranty. There are many of those available across the U.S. Therefore, you will be able to find a plan that will provide maximum coverage for your home.
Another smart way we reduce household expense is with a home warranty plan. We bought one a few years ago and I regret not getting one sooner. If I told you how much money we’ve saved since purchasing a plan, you’d be shocked! Here’s a quick breakdown of how many times we have used our home warranty plan since purchasing it. All we are responsible for is $100 copay which is very reasonable a great way to reduce household expenses.
- Washing Machine Repair – 4 times ( don’t ask :)
- Dryer Repair – 2 times
- Dishwasher repair – 1 time
- Hot water tank replacement – the plan was amazing and covered all but $100 for the copay
- Air conditioner repair – 1 time
Can you imagine the cost of repairing these items if we didn’t have a warranty plan? Choose the plan carefully and consider which devices truly need this protection. Usually, old appliances aren’t worth it as the premiums for them will be too high. However, this is a great additional layer of protection for new devices.
4. Grow a small garden
Trees increase property value and strategically placed trees help shade your windows and keep your house cooler. This will allow you to cut down the use of an AC unit and therefore cut the energy bills.
In case you don’t have an opportunity to grow actual trees at home, you should consider a small vegetable or herb garden to help cut your grocery costs.
In fact, you can grow some plants even in an apartment and Bring The Outdoors Inside With An Indoor Herb Garden In Your Kitchen, so don’t miss your chance.
5. Save rainwater
If your property allows saving rainwater, you definitely need to have at least one barrel for it. Use it to water your plants or wash your car. This way you will not only save money on monthly water bills. You will also help the planet, which is on the brink of the freshwater crisis.
Since water is fast becoming a limited resource, you can save money and reduce household expenses by collecting rainwater for things like watering your lawn too. Did you know that more than one billion people lack access to safe clean drinking water today?
6. Cut your water and energy use
Continue your efforts in helping the planet while saving money by replacing your water fixtures and use making sure you use high-efficiency lightbulbs. This method is based on the same idea as installing top-quality appliances (check those for energy efficiency, by the way). You will need to make an investment in various efficient fixtures, but they will save you money in the long run.
Last year, we replaced all of our water faucets to ensure they were water-saving and we also replaced every single lightbulb as well. Replacing our shower head with a water-saving shower head was a great idea and, of course, we did that in both bathrooms with showers.
Replacing all the lightbulbs was also a great idea and helps us to save money too. Here’s a good example – we have about six flood lights in our kitchen. Instead of saving money at first, we invested in floodlights that will last up to 20 years. Yes, they were more expensive at first but over time, we will save so much money replacing them.
However, you also shouldn’t forget about more basic methods of saving money on energy bills. First of all, you should reconsider your daily schedule. Try to rearrange your plans to match the natural daylight cycle. This will have a nice additional effect of making you healthier, which, in turn, saves you money on medical costs.
7. Start making your own cleaning products
You might not have the time or skills necessary to complete DIY repairs or renovations, However, everyone can whip up some homemade cleaning products.
Like many money-saving methods described here, this one also helps your budget and the planet at the same time. As these formulas are also less ‘harsh’ than the majority of household cleaners, they are also less damaging for the surfaces you use them on. Therefore, they contribute to the extended life of your possessions.
Recently, I subscribed to a subscription box called Simply Earth – they give you everything you need to make your own home and cleaning products and it’s all natural too! So far, I’m loving it! I’ll be featuring how to make your own all natural liquid hand soap soon so stay tuned for that article!
I hope you were able to glean some exciting new ways to reduce household expenses and start saving money too!
Don’t forget to read 5 Easy & Inexpensive Home Decorating Ideas For A Fresh New Look!!
We participate in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, Skimlinks, and other Associate Affiliate Programs. Affiliate advertising programs like these allow us to earn fees by linking to affiliated sites at no cost to you. As Amazon Associates, we earn from qualifying purchases. Please check our Disclosure Privacy Policy page. Thank you for supporting our website.
