Like a leaky faucet that slowly drips water, many of us allow money leaks to slowly drip away our savings. An individual leak may not seem like much. But after a few drips here and a few drips there you may be surprised at how much of your money is going down the drain.
Patching up some of your money leaks may be just what you need to start getting your finances in order. Let’s take a look at some of the most common ways you could be leaking money.
Recurring Fees for Services You Don’t Need
Are you still paying for the mega-movie cable package even though you barely watch any television at all? Subscribe to a bunch of magazines that sit unread in the corner?
What about the gym membership you signed up for last New Year’s? You had good intentions of losing weight and getting back into shape but if you haven’t worked out since Valentine’s Day you’re just throwing your money away.
Sit down and take a look at all of your expenses and you’ll probably find a few services you’re still paying for even though you no longer use them.
Senseless Fees
Don’t tell me you’re still paying a monthly fee for your checking account when there are plenty of banks that offer completely free checking? Switching banks is not that big a deal and it can save you money.
When you need some cash do you go to one of your bank’s branches or do you just hit the nearest ATM? Paying $2 or so to an out of network ATM doesn’t seem like much but it can add up quickly if you do it often.
Not paying attention to your balance will cost you too. Write a check that your balance can’t cover and you’ll get slammed with overdraft charges.
Storage Units
Last summer I asked my buddy Rob if I could borrow his power washer so I could give the house and patio a good cleaning. He said sure, as long as I could meet him at his storage unit to pick it up.
Of course I didn’t realize we’d spend two hours digging around the over-packed storage unit trying to find the power washer!
I already knew Rob was a bit of a pack-rat but I couldn’t believe how much stuff he had jammed into the storage locker. Just about every inch of space was taken up by a plastic bin or cardboard box.
The scary thing is that most of the boxes were completely empty!
You see, Rob has a habit of keeping the boxes for everything he purchases so he can pack it up again if he wants to. Unfortunately, things rarely fit back into the box they came in and some of the boxes were for things that Rob doesn’t even own anymore!
I told him he needed to “minimize” a bit and get rid of some of his stuff. Storage units are not cheap (Rob’s cost $189 a month) so cutting them out of your budget can really give your savings a boost.
Try sorting your storage unit into piles. One pile is for things that you absolutely must keep (you’ll have to make room in your house for these items). Another pile is for things you can sell to make some extra money. The third pile is for everything else…also known as garbage.
Are you suffering from any of the money leaks above? What are you doing to patch them up?
Mike Collins is a freelance writer and blogger who specializes in personal finance topics. He’s also a husband and father of three children who keep him very busy. You can read more about his quest to achieve finance freedom for his family at WealthyTurtle.com
Mike Collins is obsessed with building new streams of income and achieving financial freedom so he can live life to the fullest with his wife and 3 amazing children. Read more about his adventures at WealthyTurtle.com.