Money Solutions!

[CHEESE2009]

We all work to make money.

Do you know of any tactics which we can all follow in order to save, or even make more money?

Do you use a special credit card?

Do you rely on a savings account?

What do you find yourself spending money on, & how can you spend less?

Personally my life is limited to going to a movie every week & eating out at restaurants. Though I can't exactly scratch the above from my life, or else I would have nothing to keep me sane.

A few things that I find help me when going out to see movies or even watching movies (I love movies).

1. I have a scene card & collect points every time I see a movie at a certain theater (my favorite theater to go too). After going to the movies a few times, I will earn a free movie pass. Not only that, EVERY time I buy anything from the counters, popcorn & drinks etc, I will get a 10% discount. There are some upgrades as well that I haven't looked into, but I will!

2. There are several websites that host movies, new & old. If you find these sites, keep an open mind & you might find something to enjoy. This doesn't keep me from going to the theater, though it keeps me from buying DVD's from the video store. They have deals where they sell DVD's for 4.99 - 6.99, it's fair, though watching movies online will save me $50.00 a month! LOL!!!

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As for restaurants, there isn't much I can do. I like to treat myself to expensive food, no idea why! I do however eat all sorts of junk, & don't mind stopping to get a few hotdogs with fries.

I am good friends with everyone at a buffet restaurant, they always give me free beverages because of my loyalty. It costs me $10.00 - $15.00 to eat there, depending on the day of the week. I'm a person who loves a glass of cold coke, & if I get it free, I'm happy!

There are also tons of places here that will sell large pizzas for $5.00. The quality isn't that bad, but I personally don't like pizza.

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Credit cards...

Well I own a Visa which gives me rewards, it sounds great, it's better than nothing**** but it'll take years before you can buy anything decent from catalog, they offer junk. Though in time, you might get something decent & be proud you spent NO MONEY at all on it.

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Savings account...

If you own a credit card, that's when a savings account is more worthwhile. You are able to take a small percent of the money you own & deposit it into your savings, for you to forget about.

I collect cash from most of my customers. What I do is, I deposit a percent of my cash into my savings, & I pay my visa with the rest. I never have to touch my savings, unless I'm making a deposit.

Forget about your money "growing" inside of your savings account, the best part about the savings account is that you can forget about it. When the time comes where your freaking out & actually NEED money, it's right where you left it! It's like giving your money to your mother, so she can protect it & for you not to spend it like a moron.

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Does anyone have any suggestions/tips for everyone, including myself?

Any banking tips or investment ideas?

How can we control our money better?

[mark123]

... I personally don't like pizza. ... WHAT?!?! WHATTTTT???!??!?! I didn't think Canada was that foreign. ;)

I haven't had a credit card for 12 years. I only spend money I have and even then I think twice before putting an item in the shopping cart and never put anything in the cart that isn't on my list. I make a new list while I'm there to think about.

Not having a credit card makes it very, very hard to get any sort of loan. It always comes back saying "lack of credit history - DENIED". So I guess you aren't allowed to have debt if you don't already have debt. :confused:

My biggest spending I do is my house. I always pay extra on the premium of the mortgage every month and right now I am about 21 years ahead in payments. I've lived here for about 4 and a half years and I expect to have it fully paid off either next year or the year after.

[justin_time]

WHAT?!?! WHATTTTT???!??!?! I didn't think Canada was that foreign. ;)
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Nope, that's only Scott that doesn't likes pizza.. I don't think he's truly Canadian :p

About paying money, I have accounts all over, Home Hardware, my Husqvarna/Stihl Dealer, Esso gas, they give me 30 day credit. They all give me a statement and I pay that at the end of the month, don't have to worry about not paying everytime i get gas or grab some supplies or whatever.

I collect points with my Aeroplan at Home Hardware and Esso.. my next trip.. will be free and it will pay off. I currently have about 10,000 points or so. More to come for sure :)

[CHEESE2009]

Cards are a pain...

I remember eating at a fancy restaurant & leaving the waiter a gift card to some burger joint in the booklet. Silly mistake...

[justin_time]

I think the trick to a business is have credit with other businesses you deal with.

For example. You should send your bills at the 1st of the month that way you will have your money at the end of the month to pay your 30 day credit at your supplier/vendor

Some give 30 days, 60 days or even 90 days to pay depending what kind of supplier they are

[Steve]

This makes me think. Are we better off finding ways to conserve the outgoing flow of cash vs trying to find better ways to improve cash flow? Or maybe a mixture of both is best.