• Plan your meals for the whole week and create your grocery-shopping list based on the ingredients needed to prepare those meals. Menu Planning Central has created a simple solution for meal planning and a grocery list creation. I love this simple online software! Their trial membership is basically FREE ($0.01), then it is about $7.00/month.

• Make your shopping list based on what you need. It will keep you focused and it will prevent impulse buying. Do not buy an item just because it is on sale, only stick to the items on your list.

• All financial gurus and hopefully your own common sense tell you- Do not go grocery shopping when you are hungry. I have done it myself before and I must tell you first hand when I am hungry and I walk in to the supermarket, I start drooling and my eyes tear up. Then I just start grabbing anything that looks good to me. These days, to curve my hunger, I have a snack before I go grocery shopping.

• Start paying attention to the “private-label” store brands. A lot of manufacturers use the same exact recipes for brand names and store brands. It is all in the ingredients. Compare those products yourself the next time you are at the supermarket.

• Why not sign up for the store’s savings card? This is probably one of my favorite ways of saving money and seeing savings right away. A few years ago, I was standing at the check out and the shopper a front of me said while paying for her groceries “Wow, today I save $40.00 dollars! I am going to put that money in my piggy bank, this way I know I saved.” I took a note to myself and started doing it too. Every time I shop, I use my store card, then, when I get home, I transfer the amount of money I saved in to my savings account. It sure does add up!

• I never liked using coupons before, but now I can’t get enough of them. This is not being cheap- this is being frugal. I remember a while ago I read an article about a woman who spends just about $10.00 on $400.00 worth of groceries. My jaw dropped, when I read it, and it took me some time to get it off the ground. She had copies of her receipts posted and all. She used a lot of store and manufactures’ coupons. Simple. I am not that good yet at saving with the coupons, but I am getting better. Coupons! Save Money, Be Happy!

• Here is an easy one for you: Do not buy anything other than groceries at the supermarket. The prices on other products such as shampoos, toothpastes, cleaning products and such are way high. Go to Target or Wal-Mart to get those.

• Try shopping at the farmer’s market for your fresh produce. Farmer’s markets have fresh local produce and sometimes organic for a lot less.

• Go grocery shopping no more than once a week.

• Stay away from prepackaged meals and frozen TV dinners. Stick to your grocery list that you create based on your planned meals.

• If you like buying in bulk then only buy your staple foods in bulk. Avoid buying perishables in bulk (what a waste of money).

• I know, I know, some of you will hate me for saying this, but have you ever considered cutting down on your meat intake? There are a lot of different ways to replace your meat as a protein source. Beans anyone? They are delicious and healthy. Your body and wallet will appreciate it.

• Avoid buying cold cereal. They are usually packed with sugar and processed carbs, some of them do not have much of nutritional value. Why not opt for whole grains such as oats, barley, quinoa, wheat, kamut, etc.?

• Buy seasonal fruits and vegetables.

• Instead of buying bottled salad dressing, why not make your own? I personally sprinkle my salads with lemon juice and add some olive oil, salt and pepper. So yummy! Or if you want, make something a little bit more elaborate.

½ cup of canola oil

½ cup of lemon juice, or vinegar, or water if you wish

add chopped onion and garlic, salt, pepper and any other herbs or spices your heart desires
let it marinate for a couple of hours and then ENJOY!

Share your money saving grocery-shopping ideas. How do you save?

I say yes! More and more people these days utilize this shopping strategy. I am not exception. I haggled and will continue haggling regardless of my financial situation. Even if I save just a dollar by haggling, I am satisfied. Am I cheap? No, I am just concerned about my money.

A few years ago, when everything was fine and dandy in my world, I went shopping for a bedroom set. I went to a little family-owned store and found what I liked. The owner of the store came up to me and asked how he could help. I told him straight up that I would buy the set for $700.00 (the set was priced at $1500.00). He looked at me like I was a little crazy, and maybe I was, but I wanted to take my chances. He said he would not be able to meet my expectations. I paused for a moment and on the way out I said to him that his competitor was willing to sell it to me for $750 and I asked the owner if he wanted his competition to have my money. I think at that moment he made a decision to sell the set for $700.00. It wasn’t easy to negotiate the price in this case because I was asking for a huge discount, but haggling for something a little bit more reasonable is very easy.

Just about a month ago, I went to my dentist for a regular check up which regularly priced at $99.00. However, for the first time visitors, the price is only $49.00 for the same exact service. I told my dentist that the only way I can stay with him is if he gives me the same price as for his new clients. What do you think? Not only did I get this discount, I have also been told that they will continue giving me this discount at my future visits. Not bad at all!

These days, you can haggle anywhere, even at the stores such as Macy’s, K-Mart, Target, etc. It is not very easy to haggle for groceries, but big items such as appliances, furniture, home improvement products and such are very easy to get discounts on, especially right now when the economy is down. The retailers need to get rid of their inventory and the service providers want to stay in business.

I am absolutely shameless about haggling! One of my friends said that she does not feel comfortable doing it, because she wants the store owners to make some profit and that she would not want to take something away from the business owner and his/her family. What? This is crazy! You should never feel that way. In the example above, if the owner of the store did not make any profit at all on the bedroom set, there is no way he would ever sell it to me for such a deep discount. See, there is such a thing called “markup”. Every retailer marks up the price. Here are a few examples for you:

• Jewelry markup could be up to 500% (yes, you read it right!)
• Clothing-up to 50%
• Furniture-up to 60%
• Appliances and Electronics-up to 30%
• Sporting Goods-up to 45%

See? The next time you feel bad about haggling, think twice, because, most likely the retailer you are purchasing from is not thinking “Oh, My God, I cannot charge this person too much because I do not want to take money away from his/her family.” Businesses are there to make profits; otherwise, they would not exist. Haggle as much as your heart desires. If you do not ask, you will never know.

For some people, budgeting comes as second nature. But others are not as blessed with “financial prowess” and need to do some extra work. Setting a budget is easy enough, but when it comes to following your budget you may be in a little bit of trouble. Anybody can say they have a budget, but only those who are truly interested in financial success will follow it.

Here are three basic budgeting tips to guide you:

1. Know your income. This is one of the most important numbers for setting a budget. You need to know how much money is coming in each month so you can determine how much money you can comfortably spend. Remember to count all income including your primary job, secondary jobs, etc.

2. Know your expenses. Just as you need to know your income you also need to have a good feel of how much your expenses total. One rule of thumb: you should not be spending more than you are earning. If so, you are either taking money from your savings or using a credit card; both of which will harm you soon enough if you continue.

3. What are you going to do with your savings? The difference between your income and expenses is extra money that you have each month. What are you going to do with it? While the choice is yours you may want to think about starting a savings account, emergency fund, or paying extra on your debt. Consider all your options to ensure that your “extra” money is being put in the right place.

The above tips are perfect for anybody who is planning their first budget or those who need to get back to the basics. No matter who you are the basics of budgeting include knowing your income, expenses, and what to do with your savings.

Have you ever heard the phrase that some debt is better than others? While this may not make sense at all, and it is hard to believe, this is a true statement. The fact of the matter is that there is a big difference between good and bad debt. Do you know the difference? If not, you are not alone.

Good Debt

There are a couple types of good debt and the most common are student loans and a mortgage. Why are student loans considered good debt? Simply put, when you take out this type of loan you are taking steps towards bettering your life. Once you get out of school and have a degree you will be in position to secure a good job and hopefully pay back your loans sooner rather than later.

A mortgage can also be good debt. The reason for this is that you are paying for something that usually appreciates in value. To go along with this, your home is where you live. Why put money into renting a place when you are not going to get anything in return?

Bad Debt

The most common type of debt is credit card debt. Why is this the case? For one, you don’t need credit card debt. You should never pay for anything with a credit card unless you can afford to pay it back in two months at the most. If you don’t pay off your credit card bill you are going to rack up large finance charges.

Are you thinking of applying for a home equity loan? This is a bad idea in most cases. Your first mortgage can be considered good debt, but when you move into a home equity loan you are making a mistake as this is no longer a solid money move.

Now that you know some types of both good and bad debt you should be able to put yourself in a better financial position.