I just called to complain about a price hike on my T mobile account and they gave me $100 off for this month! Complaining always works!!! Great video Nicole!!!
Complaining doesn't always work, especially at your job, where you'll most likely get fired if you ask for a raise. Trust me, I know plenty of people who got terminated simply for asking for a cost of living raise just to keep up with inflation.
Is it for phone line? You can just switch to Tello and pay $25/month unlimited and use the same T-mobile network. That’s what I did. Best decision made this year.
@@ZenPT It's deprioritized which is why it's so cheap. It may not be worth it for some people, especially if they live in areas where towers get constantly congested.
I wish there was a way to bring down the price for your whole contract. A $100 discount seems just like a placation with the expectation that you won't call back next month to complain again because you forgot.
I came up with the phrase “complacency tax” to describe money lost to low motivational inertia-paying more than needed, when a subscription cancellation or a call to customer service could save money.
I had problem comprehending trading in general. I tried watching other TH-cam trading channels, but they made the concepts more complicated. I was almost giving up until when i discovered content and explain everything in detail. The videos are easy to follow
Trading on a demo account can definitely feel similar to the real market, but there are some differences. It's important to remember that trading involves risks and it's normal to face looses sometimes. One piece of advice is to start small and gradually increase your investments as you gain more experience and confidence. It might also be helpful to seek guidance from experienced traders or do some research on different trading strategies.
One thing I rarely hear mentioned is a dollar saved is worth more than a dollar earned. Earned dollars are taxable. Saved dollars are tax-free, so essentially you are earning your tax rate as a return on saved dollars.
Unfortunately where I live they will even tax me on a 1 1/2 percent return on my savings account. I don't think any savings account making 3% or less should be taxed at all. You are not even making money or even keeping up with inflation at those rates. :(
@@chuck_howard I apologize for being unclear. I didn’t mean savings account, I meant purchase savings. For example, if you catch a surprise grocery sale and spend $20 less than you budgeted for, that is $20 where you keep 100%. If you were to earn $20, that is taxable, and you may only get to keep $15 of it. To your point, put that $20 in a savings account ha account and at least the interest is taxable. That $20 in grocery savings is the equivalent of earning $33 in my example, so I say a penny saved is more than a penny earned.
I have never owned a car. Just think of how much money I've saved over the years by not feeding, housing, insuring and paying for that car. I purposefully live where I don't need one.
Yeah, I do the same with housing. I've saved a lot by not paying rent, mortgage, insurance, maintenance etc. I purposefully live under a bridge, where I don't need a house.
A lot of people are too lazy to follow this really great advice! I know someone who pays for a whole separate phone line for her tablet even though she uses home wifi and never takes her tablet outside of her home. When she was complaining about the price I suggested dropping it and she was like omg too much trouble. So she pays at least $600 extra every year for that "service" she's not using.
A lot of people pay for services they’re too lazy to cancel. It’s unfortunate. Money literally burned, usually by people who can’t actually afford to burn it.
@@AccordingtoNicole And that lost money could be used as a donation for organizations who desperately need it. Or to do something nice for a less fortunate neighbor, etc.
Your comment about customer service reps probably hating and being screwed over by the company too made me laugh…I will remember that every time I have to talk to customer service.
"Don't be lazy, its costing you money." Ouch Nicole 🥺 but really, its the wake-up call i definitely needed to hear! So thanks for that! Also, new subscriber here 😃
Insurance is a total scam, they screw the people with no claims, to pay for dumba$$es that put themselves in stupid situations-this should be illegal. Love your work!
Yeah, I couldn't help but notice that Nicole's experiment completely disproved her statement that the dog has no preference for the fancy treats. He has a nose that's about 100 times more sensitive than ours, and it led him straight to it. But otherwise. . . great video!
Commenting to emphasize that's really worth checking Internet/Phone/Insurance plans. I went from 70, to 50 down to 30 on my phone bill and 85 down to 50 on my Internet. That stacks up quite a lot in a year.
You don't need to pay $100 a month for your phone service. I learned that years ago. No $1200 phone + $100/month plan. Buy a good mid-price phone (like Motorola) and a good plan (like Mint Mobile). That will save you about USD $130 a month. Invest that money in something like an Index fund, and that $130 will become $2563 in 20 years. Your one-year savings of $1560 will become $30,000 in 20 years. I don't expect most people to have the long term vision to do stuff like this. But the few who do, will be much much better off later in life.
For me the payoff is enomous. A friendly interaction with a waitress just makes everyone a bit happier at no cost to either party. And I have a policy of inverse tipping. I give the highest percentage tips on inexpensive meals, not to to a waiter who thinks he's entitled to a 25% tip on a $80 meal. That $20 represents over an hour of hard labor by workers trying to earn a living for their family. I'd rather my money go to the person doing hard labor and not to a guy who can carry a menu and possilby pronounce French items on that menu for a couple of minutes of effort.
One way to save in Streaming Subscription is to take only one at the time. Watch everything you like on it and when you reach the point where you can't anything you like, cancel and move on the next subscription and repeat.
Yes, this is good advice, my wife did this with Disney +, Netflix etc - buy a subscription, watch the shows you want, cancel the subscription after a month, and move on to the next one. And that's your 'entertainment budget' for that month.
Plus after you cancel and move on, a few months later they'll offer you another subscription at a much lower rate to try & lure you back in. By then they'll possibly have new content you haven't seen. Win win.
Even better, sign up for 1 month free trial on Jan 30 or 31. One month later is Feb 30 or 31, but since those days don't exist, the free trial never expires!!!
You are right about landlords especially if they are mom and pop. If you pay on time every month they don’t want you to leave. Some mom and pops clean up the houses themselves and really want to avoid that. One other caveat it’s not just paying on time. If you don’t bother them with phone calls or complaints or stupid repair requests that anybody can fix themselves you have tons of leverage and they will try to keep you as long as possible.
I rented a unit for 5 years. Small problems i dealt with myself and any larger one like replacing a patio roof, I helped the owner. This meant he never needed to get in a contractor. Rent wasnt a lot and didn't change in the time i was there.
This might have been the single most valuable piece of advice offered in this video. I rent the attic suite of a house. My landlord lives below me, with his family. I've been here for 23 years. I'm currently paying about half market rent. Some of my friends (friends who are landlords themselves) tell me I'm paying even less than that. This happens because, well, first my landlord is a prince of a human being. So I got lucky, I admit it. But it doesn't hurt that when something breaks, I fix it myself. I even will pay for a plumber or exterminator, if needed, out of my own pocket. I've replaced the fridge and the stove at my own expense during those years. I'm quiet. He's never had to remind me once to pay the rent . I've looked after his children (now all grown up) when they were little. When he goes on a trip, he lets me use his car--all I have to do is drive him to the airport and pick him up when he comes back. I've painted the interior twice and installed new flooring in my kitchen--again, at my expense. I'm a conservationist, using minimal electricity and hot water. In short, making yourself useful can pay huge dividends. Yes, he could get a new tenant and double the rent he collects each month. But from his POV, he has enough money to live well as it is and would rather not have the hassles of switching tenants or worse, as Nicole points out, risking taking on the tenant from hell. There is one downside to all this: I live in fear that one day he will sit bolt upright in bed at 2:00am and say to himself, "Nah, I think I'd rather have the money." But so far, so good.
Levi is so goddamn cute, it's like he does it on purpose. Another thing I would add to the kindness and be polite to customer service reps, is if a company representative has been nice to you, helped you out, been pleasant and professional, send the company a quick email or find their customer satisfaction survey or whatever, and say how much you appreciate the good service and even name the person you spoke to, because companies love that shizz and it might help that person out if they want to move up the greasy corporate ladder. People are always quick to complain (including me), and I think it is important to try and balance that out and make it known if you have received particularly good service.
Another thing you can do, is if the company phone rep isn't being as cooperative as you like, don't argue with them, just politely ask, "May I please speak with your supervisor?" You can reassure them that you're not upset, but you know the supe is authorized to do more.
Hi Nicole. I just discovered your fantastic channel a few days ago or so and I've been going through alot of your videos since then, and loving them. I have been thinking about decluttering and embracing minimalism for awhile now because I want to change my life and old habits plus do better saving money, and your channel has been a fountain of information for me and I've already started taking your advice on many things you have discussed. I have subbed of course, and thank you for what you do
"And hope for the best!". Good thing I had put my coffee down! I would have choked! You are such a surprising wit! I keep thinking you are too serious and then you crack me up!
I'm with you - car insurance irks me to no end. Like, I'm seriously considering selling my car and getting rid of all the costs associated with owning a car altogether. Insurance, registration, maintenance, tires, fuel. It gives me a stress headache. lol A bus pass costs 100.00/month and its more appealing to me every day.
I don’t know what city you’re in, but we use weekend rentals and car shares ( Ontario ) for our family of 5 to do all our errands, visiting and appointments. We budget to have a car 2x a month, and since our jobs, school and daily life is all walkable and bikable , we’ve done it for over a decade. People keep reminding us we “can’t do that with kids” - and yet we are :) Of course we use public transit too, but find walking or biking is generally faster. Anyway. We have saved literally tens of thousands of dollars, are more fit, and definitely appreciate having a car when we rent, but are greatful we can live without owning one. 😊
@@katrinagascho6165 Excellent! Well done. I'm in Edmonton, AB. I can walk most of my errands and I was thinking that I could just rent a car or do car sharing if I ever needed one. If you can do it with a family, I really have no reason not to as I am single. Winter time might not be so fun taking public transit, but even if I got a cab or Uber or whatever; it would still be cheaper and less frustrating than owning a car. :)
I am very seriously considering getting an e-bike for my commute to work. Insurance has more than doubled for me even though a ticket has fallen off my record in the time that I've had my current car insurance. My record is clean and yet I pay more. Make it make sense. Highly recommend Not Just Bikes on TH-cam, he dives deep on infrastructure and so on. Car companies want to sell cars and tire companies want to sell tires etc etc and so now there is no safe option but to drive a giant SUV a mile down the road to the grocery store. Its bonkers. There is a thing called Strong Towns that has plans towns can use to figure out zoning and cheap infrastructure to make life better for citizens and it's so instrumental in getting rid of our dependance on cars. It's cool stuff. In any case, I agree.
I love your videos, even if I live in Italy and things here are sometimes worser. I hope to get some useful suggestions from your videos in order to save money!
You forgot the utility/electricity companies… Just a couple of weeks ago I checked on other ones which will save me hundreds of euros in the upcoming year. 😅💪🏼
Great content as usual! You are very articulate and wonderfully down to earth! Have you ever considered giving courses to high school students about money matters?
On insurance, if you’re driving an old car, don’t get full insurance. After a few years you will of spent more on insurance than the vehicle is worth. Set that insurance money aside toward a new vehicle if you need to replace or repair it. I also use credit cards with cash back, or gas cards that give me gas discounts. Where I bank, no minimum balance, no late fees, free checks and checking account. Yes, shop around.
Once you've put the full cost of your car+liability coverage into an insurance company they should be forced to stop charging you. It's bullshit that I have to pay over and over when I've probably already paid anything they would pay out twice over.
I love your content. Please keep it up! I’m on my debt free journey and you are an inspiration! (P.s I’m from the UK and you guys are getting shafted on your home and motor insurance!)
One cash grab I don’t understand is “storage units”. People store junk they don’t use, and pay many times the value of the contents in monthly fees. Many people would be farther ahead $$ by giving away the contents and using the saved monthly cost to buy new when they need.
I am applying what Nicole says and saving money to my bank account. It is not much, but it is something. I have also negotiated my rent. I have actually had successful insurance claims.
Love your candid approach nicole! For car insurance i switched to smart miles where i pay by the mile. Its about $35 less a month. Plus i purposely drive an older car, all paid for. Got phone down from 115 a month to 85. Every extra bit i save like that goes into what i pay myself first for savings. Thank yoi!
I shopped around for cheaper pasture raised eggs and am saving hundreds a yr because I eat two or three e every morning I also found cheaper arugula, mushroom,cheese, fruit,coffee beans which saves me a bunch as these are staples as well.yes things add up.thanks💛
This is excellent advice. Whenever my wife and I find something we enjoy, like food or a particular vacation spot, etc. We will experiment and try the cheapest way to get that experience. It doesn't always work out. But very often It does and that saves us a ton of money. In fact, we often buy generic brands of grocery items and find that we actually like them better than the name brand.
You are right. We stopped buying hamburger after it went to $5 a pound(it had been $2). After a few months, I decided just spend the money and we enjoy hamburgers and meatloaf again. We just don't buy it as often as when it was $2 per pound. Excellent point about the bad companies having unhappy customers. Be careful about insurance companies. In the US, some insurance companies are so bad that you have to sue your own company to get them to do what they are contracted to do. Very good video. I liked the cameo by your pup. Good Luck, Rick
I ask my mobile provider for a courtesy discount once a year...they wont do it more than that... 9x out of 10 i get something off... Anywhere from $15 to $100... Its something....
I don't do business with banks. I have an account with a local Credit Union that is non-profit. I am also a voting member and can even run for the board to oversee it if I so desire. No fees for holding any accounts and the other fees are super low just to cover costs like doing money orders, notarizing or things like that.
I am always amazed at how your banks can charge for simply having an account. In England the only accounts that charge (other than overdraft fees etc) is one with “extras” which are often things that are not useful but sounds good. I’m not sure if you’ll see this comment as the video is a month + old but I wanted to say I am loving your content. I am 46 years of age and have struggled in the past (still working through it) and while I wouldn’t say it’s about learning I am finding your openness and honesty very refreshing. It’s not too much (like some others) it’s just enough to be relatable. I’m very happy to have found your channel 😊
Woah! I didn't even know about the credit card deal! I'm so on that one! Thanks so much for always providing all types of useful information! Stay Awesome! 🤗
Make sure you got the exact coverage if you switched. Also, make sure you have rental insurance for a car if you are in an accident and also will be allotted money for a rental car. For your home, if you have outside structures, make sure they're covered. Is your policy for "repair or replacement" of things and actual cash value or true replacement costs? And make sure you're covered for alternate housing in case of being out of your home for any reason. :) I'd carry a specific rider for your tech gear too.
❤ Levi!! I do all of these. The truely aggravating thing is that you have to keep on doing them. Ive been at this for 20 years now! You would think that companies would be offering discounts to loyal customers not trying scr*w us over!!!
Banks charging monthly fees for you holding a basic chequing account seems crazy to me - here in the UK all banks have to offer a basic chequing account for free, available for all users no matter their credit rating. They make money on business accounts and other things like overdrafts, credit cards, exchange fees etc
Speaking of the real estate scam (a different video), I TOTALLY agree with you. I casually got a real estate license at one point, but gave it up quite quickly. Back in 1982, a house sale of $180,000 (Hawaii) was a LOT of money. A fellow realtor and I listed the house on Monday evening, and talked about it in our staff meeting Tuesday evening. A realtor in our office put in an offer, which was accepted the next day. The non-negotiable commission was 6%, approximately $10,000. We had done absolutely nothing to sell the house. All we did was push paperwork until it closed. I was infuriated. But the commission was the law, and no kickbacks were allowed. I didn't stay long in real estate after that.
Great video,as usual.I only have my smart tv,no streaming services anymore.I don't mind "missing out" on certain shows,cause it saves alot of money. Course,i watch mostly youtube,anyway.😅
@innitandting my son does this deliberately!!! In UK when I use a public loo I always say ' that's me using my Council Tax!" ( in UK councils provide public loos)
Hello Nicole! I really enjoy your content and relate to it. I can tell you really love your puppy. Have you seen the "Pet Fooled" documentary? It opened my eyes! Respectfully GG
Levy is the star of the show, Nicole is just a supporting character. Oh yes, the funky-colored poop all dog owners know about. My dog pooped red once, I was freaking out until I realized he hate the wax packaging of a Babybel.
Re: Lower insurance premiums. Make sure that the only reason that you are paying less is not because you have lower liability limits. To have an apples-to-apples comparison the amounts of liability coverage must be the same.
Great advices! I chose a new insurance Company last month and it saves me nearly 400$ a Year. 👏🏼 Same bank for 20 years but they have no extra charges on accounts and cards. And I have negotiated a lower interest on my loan (and are paying more of xtra each month) - so I’ll be debt free in less than 2 years. 💃🏻 I pay only 10$ a month for my phone each month, but I believe it’s much cheaper here in Denmark than in Canada. 😉 Anyway.. I like your videos. Always gets me inspired to do more.. to live a better life but not in a miserable way ❤️
Speaking of rent... When I was stationed in South Korea back in 1978, a military friend and his wife rented a place off base. He had a deal that if he paid all of 1 year's rent up front, he would get it all back at the end of his 1 year lease, because the landlord apparently made plenty income from investing (gambling?) the rent money.
We bought alot of stuff on affirm and are spending all year trying to pay it off. I hate debt. Trying to hard to get out of this debt. It was tired for my car, Christmas for kids and grandkids, things we needed also. Went over board.
It kind of blows my mind that people actually have a bunch of subscription services they pay for and don't use. I keep seeing that used as a point for things like this and that one company that sponsors a bunch of TH-cam videos and cancels stuff for you or something. Like I'm bad with money, but I'm not keeping subscriptions I don't use.
I noticed some restaurants and business are charging a 3 or 4 % fee to use your credit or debit card,which would cancel out your reward points. So now i ask first or don't do business with them
Pay cash. The banks/CC companies are getting paid on both sides- the vendor pays cc fees, the consumer pays interest on charges. Cut out the banking service and pay cash.
Crazy so here in Australia I was paying $59 phone plan for 100GB a month, they increased it to $62, can't remember if the GB went up as well, anyway I switched to a different company for $30 for only 25GB though , but I never used the 100GB and now I just make sure to use wifi more and then my old company offered me 50% off for 12 months to come back , no thanks should have given me that when I was there not when I left .
I've read that calling insurance companies rather than completing a form online can save you even more. The online forms are not designed to get enough information about you to give you their lowest possible rates. Maybe the online forms could be a way to gauge what company to try calling first.
One of the best things I’ve ever done is call my credit cards companies at least once a year to ask for better interest rates. 9 out of 10 times, they reduce it!
Thank you for your advice. Maybe one of the worst problems is shyness because most of times if you call your phone provider or bank or even your landlord surprisingly they reduce the fee or the interest rates. But how difficult is to me to make that call!!!
I have a friend who will drive 30 minutes away to save a few dollars on an item not realising how much extra they spend in fuel to pick up said goods 😂
Oh, our landlord was very happy when we moved out after 2,5 yrs... spiked the rent $400 for the new tenant! And our rental wasn't even rent controlled to start with.
I haven't payed $1 of insurance in my life. I have an insurance açcount, I make insurance payments into my own bank account, that way I still own the money.
Woah those prices are so high in Canada! In the UK my phone plan is £40 per month for two years, this august I will have paid it off and will be paying £10 a month for unlimited texts, calls and data (I currently have that). My car insurance and breakdown cover is £380 per year inclusive.
I just called to complain about a price hike on my T mobile account and they gave me $100 off for this month! Complaining always works!!! Great video Nicole!!!
Complaining doesn't always work, especially at your job, where you'll most likely get fired if you ask for a raise. Trust me, I know plenty of people who got terminated simply for asking for a cost of living raise just to keep up with inflation.
@@AK-47ISTHEWAY The squeaky wheel gets the oil! If you don’t ask you’ll never get anything!
Is it for phone line? You can just switch to Tello and pay $25/month unlimited and use the same T-mobile network. That’s what I did. Best decision made this year.
@@ZenPT It's deprioritized which is why it's so cheap. It may not be worth it for some people, especially if they live in areas where towers get constantly congested.
I wish there was a way to bring down the price for your whole contract. A $100 discount seems just like a placation with the expectation that you won't call back next month to complain again because you forgot.
I came up with the phrase “complacency tax” to describe money lost to low motivational inertia-paying more than needed, when a subscription cancellation or a call to customer service could save money.
‘Kindness is the most valuable currency in the world’ ❤ my favourite😃🐰
I do eat beans, almost everyday, but I love it, I'm Cuban.
Honestly I do too. They’re so versatile and delicious.
Me too ❤
I had problem comprehending trading in general. I tried watching other TH-cam trading channels, but they made the concepts more complicated. I was almost giving up until when i discovered content and explain everything in detail. The videos are easy to follow
Trading on a demo account can definitely feel similar to the real market, but there are some differences. It's important to remember that trading involves risks and it's normal to face looses sometimes. One piece of advice is to start small and gradually increase your investments as you gain more experience and confidence. It might also be helpful to seek guidance from experienced traders or do some research on different trading strategies.
I will advise you should stop trading on your own if you keep losing.
If you can, then get a professional to trade for you i think that way your assets are more secure
I'd recommend Annabelle Hartfield, her profit is great even when there's a dip
it's great to see others who also benefits from the service of mrs Annabelle Hartfield.👍
One thing I rarely hear mentioned is a dollar saved is worth more than a dollar earned. Earned dollars are taxable. Saved dollars are tax-free, so essentially you are earning your tax rate as a return on saved dollars.
Unfortunately where I live they will even tax me on a 1 1/2 percent return on my savings account. I don't think any savings account making 3% or less should be taxed at all. You are not even making money or even keeping up with inflation at those rates. :(
@@chuck_howard I apologize for being unclear. I didn’t mean savings account, I meant purchase savings. For example, if you catch a surprise grocery sale and spend $20 less than you budgeted for, that is $20 where you keep 100%. If you were to earn $20, that is taxable, and you may only get to keep $15 of it. To your point, put that $20 in a savings account ha account and at least the interest is taxable. That $20 in grocery savings is the equivalent of earning $33 in my example, so I say a penny saved is more than a penny earned.
Your videos are genuinely so helpful. Both financially and philosophically.
"Road rash on your Ass"... Thanks for lightening my day🤣
That's hard to unsee.
@@waynehendrix4806 That's why she didn't show it.
I have never owned a car. Just think of how much money I've saved over the years by not feeding, housing, insuring and paying for that car. I purposefully live where I don't need one.
Yeah, I do the same with housing. I've saved a lot by not paying rent, mortgage, insurance, maintenance etc. I purposefully live under a bridge, where I don't need a house.
I would go crazy without a car - hated living in downtown Chicago and not being able to have one. Never again.
@@valiblaj appropriate for a troll
A lot of people are too lazy to follow this really great advice! I know someone who pays for a whole separate phone line for her tablet even though she uses home wifi and never takes her tablet outside of her home. When she was complaining about the price I suggested dropping it and she was like omg too much trouble. So she pays at least $600 extra every year for that "service" she's not using.
A lot of people pay for services they’re too lazy to cancel. It’s unfortunate. Money literally burned, usually by people who can’t actually afford to burn it.
@@AccordingtoNicole And that lost money could be used as a donation for organizations who desperately need it. Or to do something nice for a less fortunate neighbor, etc.
Levi's chewing is the cutest thing in the world! And thanks for the advice!
Your content is gold Nicole! You should have at least a million subscribers!
She will.
Yes, she will eventually surpass Pewdepie as the most subscribers on TH-cam!!
Awesome advice. Currently I'm trying to.give up my red wine addiction. At least $70 a week. Wish me luck.
Good luck, buddy!
Your comment about customer service reps probably hating and being screwed over by the company too made me laugh…I will remember that every time I have to talk to customer service.
I speak from experience on this. Worked in a couple call centers.
"Don't be lazy, its costing you money." Ouch Nicole 🥺 but really, its the wake-up call i definitely needed to hear! So thanks for that! Also, new subscriber here 😃
Levi is a legitimate star 💫🙌🏼
Insurance is a total scam, they screw the people with no claims, to pay for dumba$$es that put themselves in stupid situations-this should be illegal. Love your work!
Insurance is a form of protection. Protect the important things in your life.
Being nice to people is almost always the best way forward
And stay out of debt
Good debt or bad debt?
"Cancel your dog treat subscription! Your dog doesn't care!" *dog goes for the fancy-schmancy dog treat first*
Yeah, I couldn't help but notice that Nicole's experiment completely disproved her statement that the dog has no preference for the fancy treats. He has a nose that's about 100 times more sensitive than ours, and it led him straight to it.
But otherwise. . . great video!
Commenting to emphasize that's really worth checking Internet/Phone/Insurance plans. I went from 70, to 50 down to 30 on my phone bill and 85 down to 50 on my Internet. That stacks up quite a lot in a year.
You don't need to pay $100 a month for your phone service. I learned that years ago. No $1200 phone + $100/month plan. Buy a good mid-price phone (like Motorola) and a good plan (like Mint Mobile). That will save you about USD $130 a month. Invest that money in something like an Index fund, and that $130 will become $2563 in 20 years. Your one-year savings of $1560 will become $30,000 in 20 years. I don't expect most people to have the long term vision to do stuff like this. But the few who do, will be much much better off later in life.
Great tip be polite, it gets you a long way!
For me the payoff is enomous. A friendly interaction with a waitress just makes everyone a bit happier at no cost to either party. And I have a policy of inverse tipping. I give the highest percentage tips on inexpensive meals, not to to a waiter who thinks he's entitled to a 25% tip on a $80 meal. That $20 represents over an hour of hard labor by workers trying to earn a living for their family. I'd rather my money go to the person doing hard labor and not to a guy who can carry a menu and possilby pronounce French items on that menu for a couple of minutes of effort.
One way to save in Streaming Subscription is to take only one at the time. Watch everything you like on it and when you reach the point where you can't anything you like, cancel and move on the next subscription and repeat.
Yes, this is good advice, my wife did this with Disney +, Netflix etc - buy a subscription, watch the shows you want, cancel the subscription after a month, and move on to the next one. And that's your 'entertainment budget' for that month.
There are sites that exist outside of subscriptions, though. I only sub to the one site I watch the most on. Everything else is a treasure hunt.
Plus after you cancel and move on, a few months later they'll offer you another subscription at a much lower rate to try & lure you back in. By then they'll possibly have new content you haven't seen. Win win.
Even better, sign up for 1 month free trial on Jan 30 or 31. One month later is Feb 30 or 31, but since those days don't exist, the free trial never expires!!!
Piracy works even better.
You are right about landlords especially if they are mom and pop. If you pay on time every month they don’t want you to leave. Some mom and pops clean up the houses themselves and really want to avoid that. One other caveat it’s not just paying on time. If you don’t bother them with phone calls or complaints or stupid repair requests that anybody can fix themselves you have tons of leverage and they will try to keep you as long as possible.
I wish I knew this about bugging them about simple fixtures.
I rented a unit for 5 years. Small problems i dealt with myself and any larger one like replacing a patio roof, I helped the owner. This meant he never needed to get in a contractor.
Rent wasnt a lot and didn't change in the time i was there.
This might have been the single most valuable piece of advice offered in this video. I rent the attic suite of a house. My landlord lives below me, with his family. I've been here for 23 years. I'm currently paying about half market rent. Some of my friends (friends who are landlords themselves) tell me I'm paying even less than that.
This happens because, well, first my landlord is a prince of a human being. So I got lucky, I admit it. But it doesn't hurt that when something breaks, I fix it myself. I even will pay for a plumber or exterminator, if needed, out of my own pocket. I've replaced the fridge and the stove at my own expense during those years. I'm quiet. He's never had to remind me once to pay the rent . I've looked after his children (now all grown up) when they were little. When he goes on a trip, he lets me use his car--all I have to do is drive him to the airport and pick him up when he comes back. I've painted the interior twice and installed new flooring in my kitchen--again, at my expense. I'm a conservationist, using minimal electricity and hot water.
In short, making yourself useful can pay huge dividends. Yes, he could get a new tenant and double the rent he collects each month. But from his POV, he has enough money to live well as it is and would rather not have the hassles of switching tenants or worse, as Nicole points out, risking taking on the tenant from hell.
There is one downside to all this: I live in fear that one day he will sit bolt upright in bed at 2:00am and say to himself, "Nah, I think I'd rather have the money."
But so far, so good.
Levi is so goddamn cute, it's like he does it on purpose.
Another thing I would add to the kindness and be polite to customer service reps, is if a company representative has been nice to you, helped you out, been pleasant and professional, send the company a quick email or find their customer satisfaction survey or whatever, and say how much you appreciate the good service and even name the person you spoke to, because companies love that shizz and it might help that person out if they want to move up the greasy corporate ladder. People are always quick to complain (including me), and I think it is important to try and balance that out and make it known if you have received particularly good service.
Just had this conversation with my hairdresser yesterday. Every time one of her stylist gets a good review she gives them a bonus.
Another thing you can do, is if the company phone rep isn't being as cooperative as you like, don't argue with them, just politely ask, "May I please speak with your supervisor?" You can reassure them that you're not upset, but you know the supe is authorized to do more.
Hi Nicole. I just discovered your fantastic channel a few days ago or so and I've been going through alot of your videos since then, and loving them.
I have been thinking about decluttering and embracing minimalism for awhile now because I want to change my life and old habits plus do better saving money, and your channel has been a fountain of information for me and I've already started taking your advice on many things you have discussed. I have subbed of course, and thank you for what you do
All great advice! You always have to advocate for yourself, none of these businesses track you down for a better deal. 🇨🇦
I admire your contempt for banks, utilities and insurance providers. I share them all.
So spot on on days and time ,thank you Nicole once again for your wisdom ❤❤❤❤keep going
You are made to help people homie
Keep up the great work
"And hope for the best!". Good thing I had put my coffee down! I would have choked! You are such a surprising wit! I keep thinking you are too serious and then you crack me up!
It’s hard to be serious. And also no fun.
I'm with you - car insurance irks me to no end. Like, I'm seriously considering selling my car and getting rid of all the costs associated with owning a car altogether. Insurance, registration, maintenance, tires, fuel. It gives me a stress headache. lol A bus pass costs 100.00/month and its more appealing to me every day.
i'm on the way to do doing that myself
I don’t know what city you’re in, but we use weekend rentals and car shares ( Ontario ) for our family of 5 to do all our errands, visiting and appointments. We budget to have a car 2x a month, and since our jobs, school and daily life is all walkable and bikable , we’ve done it for over a decade. People keep reminding us we “can’t do that with kids” - and yet we are :) Of course we use public transit too, but find walking or biking is generally faster. Anyway. We have saved literally tens of thousands of dollars, are more fit, and definitely appreciate having a car when we rent, but are greatful we can live without owning one. 😊
@@katrinagascho6165 Excellent! Well done. I'm in Edmonton, AB. I can walk most of my errands and I was thinking that I could just rent a car or do car sharing if I ever needed one. If you can do it with a family, I really have no reason not to as I am single. Winter time might not be so fun taking public transit, but even if I got a cab or Uber or whatever; it would still be cheaper and less frustrating than owning a car. :)
I am very seriously considering getting an e-bike for my commute to work. Insurance has more than doubled for me even though a ticket has fallen off my record in the time that I've had my current car insurance. My record is clean and yet I pay more. Make it make sense. Highly recommend Not Just Bikes on TH-cam, he dives deep on infrastructure and so on. Car companies want to sell cars and tire companies want to sell tires etc etc and so now there is no safe option but to drive a giant SUV a mile down the road to the grocery store. Its bonkers. There is a thing called Strong Towns that has plans towns can use to figure out zoning and cheap infrastructure to make life better for citizens and it's so instrumental in getting rid of our dependance on cars. It's cool stuff. In any case, I agree.
I love your videos, even if I live in Italy and things here are sometimes worser. I hope to get some useful suggestions from your videos in order to save money!
Thanks!
Thank you 🙏🏼
💗💗💗
Just found your channel, I love it true and helpful information.
New subscriber from Los Angeles, California ❤
You forgot the utility/electricity companies… Just a couple of weeks ago I checked on other ones which will save me hundreds of euros in the upcoming year. 😅💪🏼
Great content as usual! You are very articulate and wonderfully down to earth! Have you ever considered giving courses to high school students about money matters?
On insurance, if you’re driving an old car, don’t get full insurance. After a few years you will of spent more on insurance than the vehicle is worth. Set that insurance money aside toward a new vehicle if you need to replace or repair it.
I also use credit cards with cash back, or gas cards that give me gas discounts.
Where I bank, no minimum balance, no late fees, free checks and checking account. Yes, shop around.
Once you've put the full cost of your car+liability coverage into an insurance company they should be forced to stop charging you. It's bullshit that I have to pay over and over when I've probably already paid anything they would pay out twice over.
I love your content. Please keep it up! I’m on my debt free journey and you are an inspiration! (P.s I’m from the UK and you guys are getting shafted on your home and motor insurance!)
One cash grab I don’t understand is “storage units”. People store junk they don’t use, and pay many times the value of the contents in monthly fees. Many people would be farther ahead $$ by giving away the contents and using the saved monthly cost to buy new when they need.
I am applying what Nicole says and saving money to my bank account. It is not much, but it is something. I have also negotiated my rent. I have actually had successful insurance claims.
Let's see how negotiating rent goes?! I want to do that too or move.
@@chaoticallysay2625 Great thing with minimalism is that moving is easy.
Love your candid approach nicole! For car insurance i switched to smart miles where i pay by the mile. Its about $35 less a month. Plus i purposely drive an older car, all paid for. Got phone down from 115 a month to 85. Every extra bit i save like that goes into what i pay myself first for savings. Thank yoi!
I have a prepay plan with AT&T in the US for one phone; it’s $30 plus tax. Mint is the next step.
I shopped around for cheaper pasture raised eggs and am saving hundreds a yr because I eat two or three e every morning I also found cheaper arugula, mushroom,cheese, fruit,coffee beans which saves me a bunch as these are staples as well.yes things add up.thanks💛
This is excellent advice. Whenever my wife and I find something we enjoy, like food or a particular vacation spot, etc. We will experiment and try the cheapest way to get that experience. It doesn't always work out. But very often It does and that saves us a ton of money. In fact, we often buy generic brands of grocery items and find that we actually like them better than the name brand.
You are right. We stopped buying hamburger after it went to $5 a pound(it had been $2). After a few months, I decided just spend the money and we enjoy hamburgers and meatloaf again. We just don't buy it as often as when it was $2 per pound.
Excellent point about the bad companies having unhappy customers. Be careful about insurance companies. In the US, some insurance companies are so bad that you have to sue your own company to get them to do what they are contracted to do.
Very good video. I liked the cameo by your pup. Good Luck, Rick
I ask my mobile provider for a courtesy discount once a year...they wont do it more than that...
9x out of 10 i get something off...
Anywhere from $15 to $100...
Its something....
Great message!
I don't do business with banks. I have an account with a local Credit Union that is non-profit. I am also a voting member and can even run for the board to oversee it if I so desire. No fees for holding any accounts and the other fees are super low just to cover costs like doing money orders, notarizing or things like that.
You speak the WHOLE TRUTH!!
I am always amazed at how your banks can charge for simply having an account. In England the only accounts that charge (other than overdraft fees etc) is one with “extras” which are often things that are not useful but sounds good.
I’m not sure if you’ll see this comment as the video is a month + old but I wanted to say I am loving your content. I am 46 years of age and have struggled in the past (still working through it) and while I wouldn’t say it’s about learning I am finding your openness and honesty very refreshing. It’s not too much (like some others) it’s just enough to be relatable. I’m very happy to have found your channel 😊
Just an FYI, single ply toilet tissue is recommended by plumbers for having fewer clogs and toilet problems.
I’ll take my chances
@@AccordingtoNicole😅
A bidet is an option I’ll explore when I renovate my bathroom. Not to the exclusion of TP though …
Thank you for another great video Nicole but I gotta say that Levi stole the show! 🐶
I think so too!
Hey, Girl! Your videos always make me feel better! And I love Levi!
I asked my apartment complex to not raise my rent when I was up for renewal and they surprisingly said ok!woohoo
I negotiated my apt rent before. I was a long time tenant and apt was well taken care of.
Thank you for the reminder!!!
Beautiful video. I would love to visit Mejico!
Thanks! Great tips! Great Video!
Side note with phone bills and insurance companies most of their get paid by commission instead an hourly rate very few people have a regular pay rate
I haven’t had any luck with negotiating my car insurance last year, but I am looking forward to trying again this year
Woah! I didn't even know about the credit card deal! I'm so on that one! Thanks so much for always providing all types of useful information! Stay Awesome! 🤗
Make sure you got the exact coverage if you switched. Also, make sure you have rental insurance for a car if you are in an accident and also will be allotted money for a rental car. For your home, if you have outside structures, make sure they're covered. Is your policy for "repair or replacement" of things and actual cash value or true replacement costs? And make sure you're covered for alternate housing in case of being out of your home for any reason. :) I'd carry a specific rider for your tech gear too.
❤ Levi!! I do all of these. The truely aggravating thing is that you have to keep on doing them. Ive been at this for 20 years now! You would think that companies would be offering discounts to loyal customers not trying scr*w us over!!!
Agree about rewarding loyal customers.
Banks charging monthly fees for you holding a basic chequing account seems crazy to me - here in the UK all banks have to offer a basic chequing account for free, available for all users no matter their credit rating. They make money on business accounts and other things like overdrafts, credit cards, exchange fees etc
Speaking of the real estate scam (a different video), I TOTALLY agree with you. I casually got a real estate license at one point, but gave it up quite quickly.
Back in 1982, a house sale of $180,000 (Hawaii) was a LOT of money.
A fellow realtor and I listed the house on Monday evening, and talked about it in our staff meeting Tuesday evening. A realtor in our office put in an offer, which was accepted the next day.
The non-negotiable commission was 6%, approximately $10,000.
We had done absolutely nothing to sell the house. All we did was push paperwork until it closed.
I was infuriated. But the commission was the law, and no kickbacks were allowed.
I didn't stay long in real estate after that.
Great video,as usual.I only have my smart tv,no streaming services anymore.I don't mind "missing out" on certain shows,cause it saves alot of money.
Course,i watch mostly youtube,anyway.😅
You forgot to mention that toilet paper actually has 2 sides, if You want to go extreme 😅😀
Crap at work and get paid for it, plus free bog roll
@innitandting my son does this deliberately!!! In UK when I use a public loo I always say ' that's me using my Council Tax!" ( in UK councils provide public loos)
hahahah
Hello Nicole! I really enjoy your content and relate to it. I can tell you really love your puppy. Have you seen the "Pet Fooled" documentary? It opened my eyes! Respectfully GG
Deferred gratification❤
I'm calling my credit card company and asking them to take off the yearly fee. If they won't, I'll go to another company.
Levy is the star of the show, Nicole is just a supporting character. Oh yes, the funky-colored poop all dog owners know about. My dog pooped red once, I was freaking out until I realized he hate the wax packaging of a Babybel.
😂
Re: Lower insurance premiums. Make sure that the only reason that you are paying less is not because you have lower liability limits. To have an apples-to-apples comparison the amounts of liability coverage must be the same.
Great advices! I chose a new insurance Company last month and it saves me nearly 400$ a Year. 👏🏼 Same bank for 20 years but they have no extra charges on accounts and cards. And I have negotiated a lower interest on my loan (and are paying more of xtra each month) - so I’ll be debt free in less than 2 years. 💃🏻 I pay only 10$ a month for my phone each month, but I believe it’s much cheaper here in Denmark than in Canada. 😉 Anyway.. I like your videos. Always gets me inspired to do more.. to live a better life but not in a miserable way ❤️
Im going to suck it up and try mint mobile.
Speaking of rent... When I was stationed in South Korea back in 1978, a military friend and his wife rented a place off base. He had a deal that if he paid all of 1 year's rent up front, he would get it all back at the end of his 1 year lease, because the landlord apparently made plenty income from investing (gambling?) the rent money.
We bought alot of stuff on affirm and are spending all year trying to pay it off. I hate debt. Trying to hard to get out of this debt. It was tired for my car, Christmas for kids and grandkids, things we needed also. Went over board.
Yes and no on insurance. Base minimum is cheaper but might not cover enough. An accident could impoverish you and leave you in debt.
It kind of blows my mind that people actually have a bunch of subscription services they pay for and don't use. I keep seeing that used as a point for things like this and that one company that sponsors a bunch of TH-cam videos and cancels stuff for you or something. Like I'm bad with money, but I'm not keeping subscriptions I don't use.
I noticed some restaurants and business are charging a 3 or 4 % fee to use your credit or debit card,which would cancel out your reward points. So now i ask first or don't do business with them
Pay cash. The banks/CC companies are getting paid on both sides- the vendor pays cc fees, the consumer pays interest on charges. Cut out the banking service and pay cash.
Was wondering where you were, we need good advice. 💪🏽
I love the zoom in on the bank fee rant 😂😂
Crazy so here in Australia I was paying $59 phone plan for 100GB a month, they increased it to $62, can't remember if the GB went up as well, anyway I switched to a different company for $30 for only 25GB though , but I never used the 100GB and now I just make sure to use wifi more and then my old company offered me 50% off for 12 months to come back , no thanks should have given me that when I was there not when I left .
Another good video.
This was my fastest Subscribe ever❤
I've read that calling insurance companies rather than completing a form online can save you even more. The online forms are not designed to get enough information about you to give you their lowest possible rates. Maybe the online forms could be a way to gauge what company to try calling first.
I first heard of Bell when I caught wind of them having mass layoffs around the same time as BellLet'sTalk a few years back 🙄
One of the best things I’ve ever done is call my credit cards companies at least once a year to ask for better interest rates. 9 out of 10 times, they reduce it!
Thank you for your advice. Maybe one of the worst problems is shyness because most of times if you call your phone provider or bank or even your landlord surprisingly they reduce the fee or the interest rates. But how difficult is to me to make that call!!!
I am like you, but I /pretend/ to be a person that is prepared to be on the phone ALL DAY LONG if I need to be, and it pays off lol
Thanks.
I have a friend who will drive 30 minutes away to save a few dollars on an item not realising how much extra they spend in fuel to pick up said goods 😂
split toiletpaper "and hope for the best"
ha ha, that's very funny.....😄
Oh, our landlord was very happy when we moved out after 2,5 yrs... spiked the rent $400 for the new tenant! And our rental wasn't even rent controlled to start with.
Good content as usual.
I haven't payed $1 of insurance in my life. I have an insurance açcount, I make insurance payments into my own bank account, that way I still own the money.
🇺🇲 Connecticut here
Woah those prices are so high in Canada! In the UK my phone plan is £40 per month for two years, this august I will have paid it off and will be paying £10 a month for unlimited texts, calls and data (I currently have that). My car insurance and breakdown cover is £380 per year inclusive.
He chose fancy-schmancy treat!😂
Cute dog, but he didn't read the script and ate the fancy treat first! Never work with kids or animals.
But it got me watching till the end! Good dog.
Hey I love your videos. :D You are the best
You are super funny!!!