Given my reputation as a cheapskate bargain hunter, I will be starting an irregular series that may help you in your money saving ways. These will be particularly appropriate to those in Australia, but may have broader applicability in some instances.
Now the cynical among you might think this is because I can’t think of anything else to blog about (actually, that is a strong possibility). But by incorporating even 1 or 2 of these ideas you might be able to save anywhere from $10 – $500 a year. And many are quite simple to do (almost all of the ideas and services I will be suggesting I have actually used and still use today).
So here goes with Operation Cheapskate: Episode One (in no particular order)…
Websites to find out about bargains
- These sites are great resources for finding out about new deals (mainly within Australia). After each website I have included their RSS feed (if that sounds foreign to you, you may like to check out Google Reader).
Saving money on your phone bill (landline or mobile)
- If you have a home phone line and make alot of STD calls then consider Better Telecom who do flat rate STD calls for 17.5c a call. Cheaper still is Voice over IP – you can read about this more here.
Banking
- If you are planning to get a new loan, make sure you shop around. There are some websites that will help you get started, but note that you may be able to negotiate a better deal with the lender or a mortgage broker (for example I negotiated not having to pay Lender’s Mortgage Insurance when I got my first home loan). I can certainly recommend my mortgage broker (disclaimer: he is my brother-in-law) – he has saved me thousands of dollars.
- For day-to-day banking, look at the fees you are paying and see if you can get a better deal elsewhere. Credit Unions, in particular, are an excellent option. Gateway Credit Union is open for membership to the general public and is worthwhile investigating. One of the best credit unions in Australia (from my research) is the QANTAS Staff Credit Union (of which I am a member). If you (or a member of your family) meet the eligibility criteria then you will find your transaction fees massively reduced (there are no monthly fees, free cheque facilities, 12 free monthly withdrawals at certain ATMs, free online banking, free phone banking etc etc).
Choosing a Health Insurance Provider
- ISelect is a great tool for helping you wade through the myriad of options.
Great tips there Matt, especially with how to minimise phone charges by utilising various call plans.
And thanks for the mention
Comment by Scott Y. — April 8, 2008 @ 4:02 am
Well Done Matthew – very good tips.
Comment by Ron — April 24, 2008 @ 11:57 pm
[...] — mjwills @ 11:40 am Given the positive feedback I continue to receive concerning my first Operation Cheapskate entry, now is as good a time as any for Episode [...]
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