Surviving a Crunch: Money Saving Tips That Count

People often think that having a savings plan requires making significant lifestyle changes and cutting back on the more enjoyable things in life. Depending on your current situation there may be some areas which require a more frugal approach; although there are many strategies available which can help you save without drastically changing your lifestyle.

For example do you make sure you only withdraw money from your banks ATMs? Australians pay over $50m a month in transaction fees which are easily avoidable. Withdrawing cash from you own bank’s ATM will avoid such fees which can add up to a considerable amount by the end of the month.

Low and middle-income earners are in the poll position to save a on tax obligations, according to a recent study made by UHY Haines Norton Chartered Accountants. The study revealed that a single, unmarried Aussie with a salary up to $24,141 will be eased of heavy tax burdens—the third lowest in the world, next to Japan and United Arab Emirates. However big income earners whose salaries are as high as $193,000 will bear the tax burden; they rank 11th highest taxed earners out of 25 from selected countries.

Additionally, Australians also face the high cost of living in cities like Sydney and Melbourne which are among the world’s most costly cities to live in. With all these financial woes, how do we cut down on high costs, actually save on tax breaks and benefit from interest on savings? Here’s a few tips on how.

 
Manage your income
Are you on a tight budget? You might be getting by with daily expenses in your household but what about saving for the future or for emergency cases? Draw up a monthly budget and see where you need to keep a reign on your costs. If you are managing a low income and find it difficult to cover your needs, maximize all the financial help you can get for family assistance and child support.

Keep banking simple and manageable
Banking doesn’t have to be complicated. However it becomes so if we can’t manage to keep track of a lot of transactions from different accounts that we handle. If this is so, we may be losing money and we may not even know it. If you need to pay the bills, have a transaction account that you can regularly use. Keep your high interest savings account untouched so you can keep on earning interest.

Start on money-saving habits and lifestyle
Apart from housing and the usual household needs, the average Australian loves to spend money on cars. In a 2012 survey made by MoneySmart, Aussies have approximately spent $78.4 billion a year in cars compared to $2.2 billion a year on public transportation. A significant amount of money can be saved on buying petrol if car owners start to carpool on their way to work. Furthermore, car owners could also consider doing without a second car.

Start saving now!
Regularly put money aside however small the amount is. A saving habit like this will make a small fortune in the long run and having it invested in the bank can assure you of a guaranteed return in interest.

Be sure to compare interest rates and term conditions among banks. Check official websites or even bank brochures for updated and certified information on how to boost your earnings through high interest accounts and term deposits.

This article is brought to you by Simple Living Australia in conjunction with RaboDirect. To find out how a term deposit account can give your savings a boost visit RaboDirect.