Cutting Costs

To pay off my debt faster, I need to either increase my income or reduce my expenses. Today, I will discuss reducing my expenses. It’s the fastest and easiest (well, we’ll see how easy) way to increase my payments to slay the credit card beast. I have cancelled my Platinum cable package. I don’t know the exact savings yet because of all the little fees, surcharges, and taxes that Comcast charges. I’ll post my exact savings when I receive my next invoice, but I estimate it to be around $50. I will replace the premium channels with more online content from Hulu, Fancast, and borrowing DVD’s from friends. I started watching all the MacGyver episodes this weekend. We’ll see if I can cancel cable altogether, but…baby steps, baby steps.

I have reduced my food costs by buying frozen and canned foods instead of eating out. In the past few days, I’ve saved over $200 by not ordering takeout and eating in restaurants my fellow Wall Streeters frequent. Man, I miss the raw bar and steakhouses. I will continue to splurge on my weekend Indian buffet. I have to draw the line somewhere. I am using my supermarket club/rewards card, which is also tied to my Upromise account (will post about that in the future). I also used some coupons from various websites.

I have a Blackberry through my day job. I have a personal cell phone through a shared family plan, so I get that for free as well. I pay for a land line and Verizon Fios Internet service. I was one of the first to get that in my area at the time and I got a substantial discount. I know I can save much more by choosing a triple play package, so I will begin investigating that. It also makes billing easier.

I reduced my programmable thermostat to hold at 66 degrees, but if it very windy, the wind just cuts through the west-facing wall, so I increase it to 68 degrees in that situation. I reduced the water heater temp a little. I’ll investigate the plastic that people put up around their windows to reduce the wind cutting through the walls/windows. I installed weatherstripping around the front door. I didn’t install a storm door after doing some cost analysis. You can’t beat a $3 roll of weatherstripping. Even if you replace it every year, it’s cheaper than the storm door and installation costs. I also turn off the surge protector/power strip when I’m not using the entertainment center or any other appliance. I only run the dishwasher and washer/dryer when full.

Well, that’s it for now. I think I’ve accomplished a lot in a few days. Anyone have any other tips to share?