While you’re doing your taxes this month, you can be assessing your finances and looking for ways to save. Here are some tips that might save you money on your car insurance:

• Most insurance companies will offer a discount for multiple policies, so try to have all your insurance policies with one company.

• Consider a higher deductible. Remember, the deductible is the amount of money you might have to come up with if you have an accident.

• Pay your premium in one yearly payment instead of monthly. Companies will sometimes add installment fees for multiple payments. There will also be late fees if your payment is not received by the due date.

• You may be able to lower your car insurance premium by taking a defensive driving class.

• Talk to your agent or insurance company to make sure that you’re taking advantage of all available discounts. Do you commute to work by bus instead of using your car? Do you have students on your policy who are away at school and only drive a limited amount of time. Does your car have certain safety features? Any of these scenarios could mean a lower premium.

In addition, you may want to check with other companies to see what they charge.  It never hurts to comparison shop.

A bad credit score can also increase your car insurance. Join me on February 20 for our call Could Your Credit be Costing You Money?

Do you want to save money?  That’s probably a silly question, because everyone wants to save money. Let’s think of a better way to say this. Do you want to try another way to save money?  I have a really simple suggestion – don’t buy new.

You’ve probably heard this advice when you were buying a car. A new car depreciates the minute you drive off the lot. If you buy used, you can negotiate a price that’s closer to its real value. Expand your thinking to other items and you could save money.

Let’s discuss furniture. Most people buy brand new furniture, but it doesn’t last forever – especially if you have kids and pets. What if you were to buy that sofa used – how much could you save? There are stores that specialize in selling gently used furniture, either on consignment or from furnished rentals. Much of this furniture is in great condition.

Many years ago (over 15), I was able to purchase our patio set – table for 6 with chairs, a chaise lounge and end table.  The cushions had seen better days, but the furniture was in excellent condition.  I paid $100 for all the pieces.  I still have this set in the yard.  All I had to do was purchase new cushions.

Let’s talk about kitchen items. Dishes, silverware and small appliances are always available at tag sales. Some of these items have never been used. Think of how many times you’ve been gifted with something you didn’t need. You can find brand new coffee makers, mixers, waffle-makers – still in the box with instructions – for sale cheap by your neighbors.

What about clothes? My assistant lost weight a year ago and didn’t want to spend a lot of money on new fall clothes. She went to a consignment shop and a thrift store and spent $40. What did she get? With $40 she was able to 4 pairs of jeans, 3 sweaters, 2 jackets and 4 long-sleeved knit shirts – all relatively new and in good condition.

Let’s be clear here, I am not talking about items that should have been thrown out. You can get good quality items. Depending on what you need, you can look at tag sales, consignment shops, websites, classified ads, etc.

I am not suggesting that you buy everything used.  There are some things that come to mind that you shouldn’t buy used – underwear and makeup just to name two.  But the next time you need something, consider the alternative.  Have you saved money by buying used?  Tell me about it.

You know how tracking your spending and budgeting are important things to do.  These are the only ways that you can make the changes necessary to achieve your financial goals.

After suggesting that you track your spending, I did a month of tracking for my family. It was an eye-opener. Here are some of the changes we made:

• Decreased our TV bill by eliminating channels and services
• Eliminated some of our cell phone services that we didn’t use
• Used a local pet store for some of our pet’s vaccinations (instead of the vet)
• Planned our meals a week in advance using the supermarket sale flyer
• Cooked ahead on weekends so that there was food available to eat for lunches

These reductions in cost saved us enough money that we were able to make some necessary home repairs without having to stress about tapping into savings to pay for it  Our furnace is cleaned and tuned up for the winter, our roof is repaired, and the car had a tune up – all things that needed to be done, but were things I would have considered “budget-breakers” before reducing our expenses.

Our food spending is still higher than I would like, and I need to get that down even more.  Next week, I will tell you what I did to reduce our grocery bill while still cooking meals at home.

Did you do the budget exercise with me?  I know that several of you requested my budget worksheet.  What did you learn about your spending?  Let me know.

by Vicki Heise, CHC, CHHP/AADP

Did you know that not only can you save money by cooking at home but it doesn’t have to be complicated?

If you think you don’t have time to add another thing to your to-do list, with a little planning you can not only save money, but feed your family great tasting nutritious food and not spend lots of time in the kitchen.

Here’s how:

1. Use whole foods. Buy whole foods, the ones you find around the outer edge of the grocery store. That’s where you’ll find the fresh herbs, fruits, vegetables, meat, chicken, fish and dairy. Add some things from the bulk bins like grains, beans and nuts (a huge money saver) and don’t forget to get some canned beans and frozen vegetables that are real time savers.

2. Prepare them simply. You don’t need lots of recipes with long lists of ingredients. Save the complex, full of ingredient recipes for when you have the time to enjoy the whole cooking experience.

3. Make large batches ahead of time of the things that take a while to cook like beans and grains. Yes they do take time, but it’s on the stove time, not you actively being involved time. They’ll be ready when you get home so you can quickly put all the pieces together. Use a quick cook method for the other ingredients and make extra to have leftovers for lunch/dinner the next day or later in the week.

4. Add flavor. How about letting everyone season their own meal? Prepare the food simply and have favorite condiments, spices and dressings on the table. Everybody gets to decide how much and what flavors they want to add. This make it easier on you and keeps everybody happy!

Take a little time to plan ahead to save yourself time and money starting this week!

If you’d like a copy of the Live Your Healthy Life meal planning and grocery list, just email Vicki at info@liveyourhealthylife.com. She will email it to you and also send a complimentary subscription to the weekly Live Your Healthy Life e-newsletter full of healthy tips and ideas AND your 12 page special report on the 7 Keys Every Woman Needs to Unlock Her Healthier, Happier Life™ (Retail Value $27). Privacy is important to me, so I will never sell, rent or give your name or address to any third parties.

Vicki Heise, Your Healthy Life Mentor is the founder of LiveYourHealthyLife.com and creator of the “7 Keys Every Woman Needs to Unlock Her Healthier, Happier Life™”.

Have you ever written down a budget to see where your money is going? Well, we did this earlier this month and everything looks fine, meaning that we make more than we spend.

That means we can pay our bills – great! That’s check one. Check two – are we saving enough? No, we’re not, but where do we get the money? We won’t find extra money to save until we find out exactly where our money is going.

If you want to do this process with me, follow these steps:

1. Write down a couple of short and long term goals. (Just so you’ll be inspired to do the work.)

Short term goals can be planning for a vacation, buying a car, paying down debt, saving for something that you want, and starting an emergency fund.

Long term goals can be saving to purchase a home, saving for your children’s education, retirement planning, and paying off debt/mortgage. What are yours? Imagine what you want or need and write it down now.

2. Track every penny you spend. That means finding a way to record your spending as it happens.

Don’t wait until the end of the month and use your bank statement or receipts. A single store can fall under many spending categories and receipts don’t always list items by name (or by names that you can decipher). Don’t think for a minute that your grocery store trip can be lumped under food. You may buy your pet food there, as well as cleaning supplies, shampoo, or even magazines.

I know this sounds time consuming, but it’s worth it. You can carry a pen and pad with you and write down everything by hand. Another way to track your money is by using a phone app. Choose the way that works best for your lifestyle.

3. Write your totals in a budget worksheet to see where you stand. Once you see a month’s worth of numbers, than you can begin to analyze what is going on. With this clear picture, you can make changes – lower bills to save money, get rid of unused services, check out the competition to switch etc.

Tell me what you have discovered with this exercise. Next issue, I will tell you what we have changed.

Download my budget worksheet here.

Have you ever wondered what happened to the cash in your wallet? You cashed a check or used the ATM and suddenly the money was gone!

If this is you, you are not alone.  It’s the little spending that gets forgotten.  It’s also the little spending that can break any budget and lessen the amount you have to save. A restaurant meal, a few coffees, a movie, some lottery tickets, and poof! The $60 dollars in your wallet is gone.

You have to know where you spend your money to make your goals a reality.  This month my husband and I are tracking every penny we spend. That means we are writing down all the credit and debit card purchases, checks written, bills paid,  ATM withdrawals, and cash spent.

How do we do it? Each day we come home  and put it into a tracker. How you track your spending is up to you (written, spreadsheet, or online). Already at midmonth I can see some areas that need addressing.

Our next step is to make the changes we feel are needed, by cancelling services we don’t use, calling to see if there is another option, checking out the competition for pricing, etc.

Just like us, you will see areas that need changing. We had no idea we spent so  much on little things that really aren’t that important to us. Then, it’s up to you to decide if you need to address that area or not.  Through your efforts, you will be able to lessen some areas of spending and put the savings towards things you really feel are important.

All these little changes will add up to extra money you can put towards your financial goals.

Tracking your expenses is the first step to understanding your spending habits as they really are.  If you want a copy of my tracking form, email me. You have to see your spending to believe – only when you believe will you make the necessary changes.  Saving a few dollars here and there can help you make a big start on your emergency savings.

The new CT budget will take effect on July 1 and will be taking more money out of our already tight wallets.  Some of the new changes include:

Sales tax will increase from 6% to 6.35%. You will no longer have the exemption for clothing under $50.  (It seems as if there still will be a tax-free week coming up later in the summer on clothing.)  Sales tax will increase on alcohol, cigarettes and hotel rooms.  You will now pay sales tax on items that you did not before, such as manicures / pedicures, non-prescription drugs , vitamins and more.

State Income tax will increase and there will be changes to the current tax brackets (retroactive to January 1, 2011). The new income tax rates are 3%; 5%; 5.5%; 6.0%; 6.5% and 6.7% (see your accountant for information on your new tax bracket.)

Motor vehicle fees (driver’s licenses and car registrations) will be increased.

What can you do about this? Adjust your your spending.

As I tell my coaching clients, start by writing out your monthly budget.  I know this is painful, but you have to know where you stand if you hope to make changes.

• Don’ t forget all those expenses that you pay that aren’t monthly – license and registrations, activity fees for your children, classes, gifts etc.
• If you still feel like something is missing, track your cash spending with a daily log.  You will see where the cash in your wallet goes.

Once you have an accurate picture of your spending, you can look at the big picture and make the changes necessary to meet the additional costs of the new state budget.