December 27, 2017

Living on 30000 or Less: 10 Frugal Living Ideas

Frugal Living Ideas for Living on 30000 or Less

As a full-time stay at home Mom and full-time college student, saving money is extremely important and beneficial to our family. Over the past several years I have learned different ways that our family can get all the bills paid, buy groceries for the month, have extra money for entertainment and put a little away in savings. Here are 10 Frugal Living Ideas to help your family live on an annual income of $30,000 or less and still find time to have fun and save for a rainy day:

1. Coupons – Use them, love them…they are free money. Coupons can be found for pretty much anything now; you just have to hunt them. Sign-up and join as many coupon/bargain sites that you can find. Also remember to search and use coupon codes when ordering items online.

2. Comparison Shop– always look to see what store or company will offer the better price; shop around.

3. Take advantage of local farmers and farmers markets – You can find really good quality produce at a better price than what grocery stores sell produce.

4. Grow your own food- dirt, seed, water and sunshine is less expensive and more rewarding.

5. Cut down on your electricity usage and save on your power bill – if you’re not using something, cut it off and unplug it. Make sure lights are off throughout the house when you aren’t in those rooms. Keep your thermostat on 68 in the winter and 72 in the summer. Don’t run your dryer any longer than you have to and on warm sunny days, hang your clothes out to dry.

6. Take advantage of thrift stores or yard sales.

7. Save gas – reduce the number of trips you make out of the house every day on days that you need to run errands, plan your trip beforehand. Find a route that will take you from place to place that you need to go without having to back track. Carpool if that is an option; find an errand/shopping buddy.

8. Pack your kids lunches for school – Not only is it cheaper; it is healthier. Read our list of 15 Healthy Snacks for Lunchboxes

9. Find way to re-use items – For example: I use old baby wipe containers to hold the kids markers and crayons. Take worn out towels and use as dust rags, used baby food jars are great to store nuts, bolts and screws, plastic grocery store bags can be used in small trash cans.

10. Use the internet to your advantage on finding money saving deals. Use sites like restaurant.com or groupon.com to save money on doing things your family enjoys, like eating out. Look at store sales papers every week and buy in bulk when it is something you use a lot of and have found a great deal on it.

There are tons of ways that you can save money every day and live on an annual household income of $30,000 or less; be frugal and always hunt for the best deal or bargain.

Thanks Tabitha J. for this Living on 30000 or Less tips!

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