Your money saving checklist!

Lately I’ve been discussing money-saving tips with clients and identifying small things that can make a big difference.

Here is a list of things you can do that may be useful for your savings:

Insurance: It’s worth reviewing general insurance cover to ensure you are getting good value for what you need. General insurance covers things like car, house and contents, health etc. With house insurance, make sure the sum insured is for the cost of replacement of the house, not the market value of the property. When reviewing health insurance, ensure you aren’t paying for items you might not need, such as obstetrics or joint replacements.

Electricity & Gas: Reviewing utilities costs, such as electricity and gas can be a quick job which will make a real difference. You can check out the Vic Government comparison site here:
https://compare.energy.vic.gov.au/

Phone & Internet: It’s probably worth reviewing your mobile phone and internet costs too! Aldi uses the Telstra network and offers one year and family plans which are very reasonable and normally include data rollover.

Mortgage: Speaking to your bank and comparing interest rates you are currently paying to other options is highly recommended. The bank may be willing to switch your mortgage to interest only for a period of time. Look at using mortgage offset accounts if you have savings set aside. Consider making weekly or fortnightly repayments.

Credit card: Avoid paying interest on your CC, which is often over 20% and consider refinancing.

Groceries: Plan ahead and make a list! Try to avoid impulse buys.

Budget: Do a budget to identify your expenses. ASIC have a good budget tool here along with other tips.
https://moneysmart.gov.au/budgeting/budget-planner

Unclaimed money search: You can search the ASIC database to see if you are owed any money.
https://moneysmart.gov.au/find-unclaimed-money

Check eligibility for Federal & Vic government concessions and benefits:
https://services.dffh.vic.gov.au/concessions-and-benefits
https://www.centrelink.gov.au/custsite_pfe/pymtfinderest/paymentFinderEstimatorPage.jsf?wec-appid=pymtfinderest&wec-locale=en_US#stay

Fuel: It’s a good idea to compare fuel prices in your area. I recently saved 20c per litre using the 7 Eleven app, there are other apps available such as PetrolSpy.

Review streaming service subscriptions: Only keep those that you use regularly. You could consider joining your local library and getting access to the streaming service Kanopy for free.
https://catalogue.grlc.vic.gov.au/cgi-bin/spydus.exe/MSGTRN/WPAC/JOIN
https://www.kanopy.com/en

Sell unwanted items: Have a garage sale, a stall at the local market or sell things online to get rid of all the unwanted items around the house.

This information has been produced by Craig McKenzie, an Authorised Representative of Personal Financial Services Limited (ABN 26 098 725 145), of Level 10, 88 Philip Street Sydney NSW 2000, AFS Licence no. 234459. Any advice in this document is general advice only and does not take into account the objectives, financial situation or needs of any particular person. It does not represent legal, tax, or personal advice and should not be relied on as such. You should obtain financial advice relevant to your circumstances before making investment decisions. West Carr & Harvey Financial Planning is a registered tax (financial) adviser and any reference to tax advice contained in this document is incidental to the general financial advice it may contain. You should seek specialist advice from a tax professional to confirm the impact of this advice on your overall tax position. Whilst every care has been taken in the preparation of this information, it may not remain current after the date of publication and PFS and its related bodies make no representation as to its accuracy or completeness. Published: December 2023 © Copyright 2023