How to Make Your Money Last Longer

When you are trying to save or need to find ways to stretch your income a little bit further, it can be difficult to prioritize where you should spend your money, how much you should budget and where you might find some extra money when you really need it.

Though it would be wonderful to get a paycheck advance just once in a while, this is only ever going to be a temporary solution. What you really need to do is figure out a way to ensure that you always have some back-up cash and you are smart with your spending.

Why You Need an Emergency Fund

An emergency fund should always be a top priority if you are new to saving. Living day to day and month to month is not a sustainable way of living and can easily catch you out with an unexpected bill.

Building an emergency fund is quite simple: just save between 10% and 20% of your income each month and don’t touch it. This will help you to slowly grow your savings without putting too much pressure on your monthly budget.

There is plenty of debate about how big an emergency fund should be but usually, around a month’s wages should cover most things. And, if you do have to dip in in an emergency, you should make rebuilding the fund your top priority as soon as you can.

Easy Ways to Scrimp and Save

Though not everyone is thrifty by nature, there are lots of things you can do to save money fast. Often this is more a case of changing to more sensible habits and should be fairly painless.

One of the best ways to save money is to look at your weekly shop and think about cutting out all the convenience foods you buy in favor of batch cooking your own. This is often a much cheaper option because you can do all your cooking in one and then essentially have healthy ready meals on standby all the time.

Another easy way to save is to put all your change in a jar when you get in at the end of the week. This way if you don’t have it to spend, you can’t spend it. You will be surprised by how much you save this way.

Where to Find Fast Money

There are lots of ways to make money quickly and you just have to have a bit of imagination and be willing to do it. The first method is the easiest: go through your house and wardrobe and put anything you don’t want anymore on a site like eBay. Make sure you add on your postage and packing correctly though!

You could also sign up to complete questionnaires or participate in market research. There are lots of websites that will pay in vouchers or deposit the money after you reach a certain threshold. This is simple and is something you can do at home without making too much effort or spending a lot of time.

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Rasha

Rasha writes about family, parenting, and home décor for Unfinished Man. Drawing from her experiences raising her own kids, she provides tips on creating warm, welcoming spaces. Rasha also shares home staging expertise to help transform houses into magazine-worthy dream homes.

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