I was brought up by my frugal mother, whose motto in life was, ‘Make do with whatever you food you have in the house.’ Anyone can cook a meal with all the ingredients they happen to have. Cooking is all about experimenting and coming up with the new ideas. You don’t just go to the shop to buy couple of ingredients if the dish requires. I have followed my mother’s philosophy after I got married at 18, left the country to live in U.K. I am 76 now. I do grocery shopping once a month. Buy milk when I need it. I cook for three; freezer, fridge and for me. So I always have food to eat. I use up whatever I have during the last 15 days each month. I live alone, but I used to do this when I had the children living with me. It is doable, if you really want to.
I do that too and, since I live out in the country, it's easier to limit shopping trips. My mom used to say that, when you think you need to go out and shop, try to make do for another day or two with what you have on hand. If you think about that idea and do it faithfully, you could save at least one trip to the store monthly. For me, that would be at least a $70 saving a month. And it's fun coming up with ideas for those last few days before shopping.
If you have a vehicle you don’t drive year around, put the vehicle on “storage” with your auto insurance. We live in a climate with a ton of snow so we put our car in storage over the winter and drive the truck. Once spring arrives we reverse that and put the truck in storage. This has saved us hundreds of dollars each year.
We just sold the truck because we never used it after we sold our trailer. We also sold them for more money than we bought them for. Never use the dryer. We pay Amazon Prime annually. Costco we go 2 months between annual subscriptions.
We plan to look at the things we buy and use routinely for alternatives this year. For example, if you can save $1 on am item purchased weekly, that comes to $52 on just a single item over the course of a year. If you can find 10 items to save $1 on weekly, that comes to $520 per year.
We live out in the country, so no cable nor Netflix. We don't watch a lot of TV...we pick a series we like and watch on DVD. Some we've purchased, some checked out from public library.
I cut Netflix out this month. Only buying the groceries I need with a list. Next I will see if I can lower my car insurance. Wish me luck with that. Also have saved on electricity.
Omg yes cable & phone & internet rolled into one. A huge waste of money . I do the i.p.t.v. & it's like $ 15.00 a month..free movies.. xmas time Christmas movies..new movies..
Honestly, just track discretionary spending for a couple of months. Count up the coffees, lunches, new clothes, subscriptions, online impulse buys, things you buy the kids when you are out with them and you buy them a little something every time you are out, etc. That’s where the real holes are. Writing down when you use your crockpot isn’t where the problem lies. Pay yourself first. If it’s taken out of your paycheck, you can’t spend it.
Or even just specials. My husband and I don’t go out more than once a month usually but if we do, we look to see what the specials are and we can often cut the bill in half compared to everyone just ordering whatever they want.
Last year we used the Dave Ramsey 'Snowball' system to pay off ALL of our credit cards. Was not easy, took 3 years - but we DID it! NOW we can save more money Automatically - for a different house!
My goal is to reduce our food shop, I have the feeling we don’t use the products properly as the fridge is always full and we have no products for the dishes I want to cook. Thank you guys you made a real impact on our family budget! I am glad I found you last year 🥰🥰🥰 we managed to save finally 😊
I added solar it didn't cost me anything to install I pay 200.00 a month instead of 300.00 a month for electric. And the power company buys back from me what I don't use and that gives me a surplus first month in the winter. I get less solar in the winter with the shorter days. So back up to 300.00 or more in the winter. I use heated water. Buckets for my horses and chickens in the winter. So Jan, Feb, and March I have a solar bill and an electric bill. But all summer just the 200.00 solar bill.
Utilities - we do not use our dryer. We have a wood stove. In the winter , we hang our clothes in doors. This creates humidy for the house and within 24 hours, the clothes are dry
Me too. I stopped using my dryer years ago. I hang my clothes up on the doorways. I unplug everything that I’m not using. I’m all electric and it’s my biggest bill.
I only use 40 LED light bulbs I set my thermostat at 68 in the winter 72 in the summer never use my dryer never used it since I've been here keep it unplugged my electric bill is about 35 dollars a month never use my stove only use my microwave it use's half the electric as a stove it's 700 Watt
The easiest way to save money is to just have it automatically deposited into your savings/investment accounts especially like a 401k. Stretch it to the point you think you will be uncomfortable and barely able to eat. It you don’t have the money available to you, you learn to cut everything extra out. You can always back off if you truly are starving. Budgeting doesn’t help because you can just “budget” for anything you want. You need to force yourself to put every disposable dollar out of your reach. That is what I did and tracked my net worth. I didn’t make great money and we sacrificed a lot over the years (lived in an old house with no a/c and original kitchen from the 20s). I find it interesting people have to have Netflix that are on TH-cam and watching how to save money. No way would I pay for subscriptions when there are so many free offerings.
Just throwing this out there, in case someone doesn't know: On my utilities bill (electric and water) there is an "A" (actual) and an "E" (estimate). For years, I was robotically paying an estimated amount (even when I wasn't living in the house) My utilities company never reimbursed me. So, please look at your utility bill! :)
Shouldn't they sum up what you paid and level that out at the end of the year? The method I'm used to is that they charge a monthly payment, ask me to read the counter at the end of the year, pay back or charge the remaining money and then adjust the monthly payment for the following year.
1 splurge I do with my friend is meet at Olive Garden between noon and 3pm. They have an excellent affordable lunch special. Starts at 8.99 unlimited soup, salad, and bread sticks, or for 11.99 unlimited salad and bread sticks, plus a pasta meal. We get water, no dessert. It fills us up and we get to take left overs home.
Merry Christmas, Hope, and Larry!! Thank you for your videos and knowledge of savings. I've been watching you on TH-cam for 2 years now. So helpful. I have reduced my Electric bill in the last 2 years by 58%.My bill now averages about $42 a monwhat.A savings from what I learned from your channel
Being frugal with groceries is always a good idea, however, I don't advocate using everything in your freezer, fridge and pantry. Too many unplanned thing could happen where one couldn't get to the grocery. If you're bare bones already you might be in real trouble food wise if you can't get to the store.
Just a couple of ideas for power/water usage: 1. Many houses these days have mixer taps. Face the handle towards Cold. That way your hot water system is not switching on every time you wash your hands or turn on the tap. 2. When in the shower and the temp is too hot, don't go for increasing the cold water supply. Instead, start with turning the hot down.
Love this! Handy tip re online purchasing- I have found that when I add things to a 'shopping cart,' and think about the possible purchase for a couple of days....I will often receive a discount voucher from the company😊 to nudge my purchase along...doesn't mean I have to buy it- but super handy if it is something I actually need. Great frugality pyramid- I am going to hang that up as a reminder and aim to purchase or borrow as much second hand as I can in 2025. Wishing you both a wonderful 2025 and thank you for keeping us all on our frugal tippy toes with your advice- I just don' t know how you keep coming up with new material and I can't wait to see what next year brings x
I read my grocery list before I leave the store bc often they will not have changed the price for the item that was on sale, and I will get that fixed before I go home.
My Nov. 2023 National Grid electric bill was $103.00. My Nov. 2024 National Grid electric bill was $18.81.a savings of $85.00. My food bill two years ago was $150.00 a month on avedage. The average food cost in the last six months is around $25.00 on average. This is all for one person. Thanks for the tips as I couldn’t have done it without you. It has saved me several thousand dollars.
Changing the temp does not save. It takes the same amount of btu's to go from 60 to 70 as it does from 50 to 60. But now when you want to go back to 70 from 50 you are using more energy. Set it and forget it. Stop changing it.
It is amazing how much a phone plan can save you money to pay other bills. We use Tracfone. Mint supposed to be good too. You get the same quality cheaper. Even if you use it for a month as an extra phone to try it out, it becomes so obvious you can save this way. Use solar lanterns for lighting where you can. Get energy star appliances when old ones break down. Our lg front load washer has saved us on water and heated water over a top load maytag that lasted a mere 8 years. We also started a $3,000 buffer fund. Heard this on Kate's you tube channel. She keeps the fund at $3,000. Basically an emergency fund idea. Keep working on goals this really has us. Thanks Hope and Larry. You guys and everyone..hope you have a Merry Christmas! If you have had loss this year, may God and others comfort you.
There is another TRUE (501c3) thrift store where you fill a bag for $3.00. I have managed to get a dozen shirts, many brand new in its original packaging for $3.00 or 25 cents each.
Christmas Day watching this. Going to try hard in January just using food on hand. Got a couple of grocery gift cards for Christmas that will buy what extra groceries I think I will need. Will make more room that staples is now taking up on shelves.
Good tips. Hubby and I saved on Transportation AND Insurance costs by going to 1 vehicle that we share! We do it by religiously coordinating our calendars. careful planning with both calendars is crucial.
I specifically love to buy ex-library books used, as hardbacks often have the nice plastic covers, and paperbacks may be laminated. Either makes the book more durable and longer lasting.
About once a year, our county library culls all the books from surrounding libraries and takes out old ones, duplicates, etc and they have a few days where they give them free to the public. So boxes and boxes in the parking lot to sort through. We got our children’s books and a few ones I wanted to read for free. Some people ruin it by not even looking and just take the boxes so they can sell it online through their book store website or Amazon used books, etc.
@@ellenm2873 our library sells them as a fundraiser, but still quite inexpensive (3 books for $1). Too bad that people are taking them to resell that way though.
One of the best things I did for my ultility bill was get an air fryer instead of my electric. No preheating involved, and it’s super fast. I use my pressure cooker all the time, too. Both of these are time savers.
Every week the Salvation Army has a certain color where all clothes are marked down to 99 cents for that week. This applies to almost everything else except to large furniture items.
Utilities. I try to diversify and have alternatives available so that I’m not wholly dependent on one utility. It can seem like a utility has a monopoly but often there are alternatives available. For example for heating in my area, oil heat is the main way everyone heats their home. For years I had a wood burning stove as an alternative so that when oil prices were high I had an alternative. Now I had to get rid of that stove because in my area home insurance companies were dropping homeowners who had wood burning stoves and I was dropped several times in 1 year and had trouble getting covered. But now I installed 2 mini split Ac/heat units in my house and the savings on oil have been tremendous. The cost of electric has been minimal. I do the same in other areas just trying to have alternatives so that I can choose what is better at the moment to use.
I love how you have made saving money kind of like a game challenge. You have it almost down to a science. We do many of the things discussed but are still learning. It’s a fun journey for us. Thank you both so much for sharing your knowledge. Merry Christmas!
Wow you are so fortunate to be able to get gas cheaper at different stations,here in South Africa it’s all one price at every gas (petrol) station. Thanks for all the information.
Please invite your kids into your video sessions so that we can learn from them too. You have raised an amazing family of 4 kids. Apparently your kids must have learned a lot about appropriate budgeting to safeguard their money🙏.
Merry Christmas, Hope and Larry! Flannel is great! You might even want to buy a brushed Flannel for Hope that she can wear as a very cozy huggable layer! Larry would look nice in a plaid flannel. My sister bought me a set of Christmas flannel sheets a couple years ago. I ended up using them year round. In the summer, I only need the sheets. (I love Christmas, so yay!) My 21 year old who has autism found my sheets ok with her sensory issues. So I need new sheets that I will buy after Christmas. I'm a vegan and found out my vitamin B 12 is way too low (exhaustion). So remember to check your labs so you can function optimally. (Plus you cannot maintain your body temperature if your B12 is low. You will feel cold!) So this can help you with your heating bills. I asked my wifi company for a discount. They gave me a one time $10 rebate. I'm reviewing your videos for more saving ideas! Happy healthy (and frugal) New Year!
We haven’t had cable since about 2008, we used to free stream everything but in the last few years we have been getting subscriptions. We alternate through them every three months so we only ever have one, we get a lot of use out of them so I feel it’s worth it for us. I will be focusing at reducing our electric bill in 2025, aiming for 20% savings, we heat with wood but have put our water heater on a switch. Also need to get my 12 year old on board to turn off his electronics.
Please pay attention to charges at register, lot of problems with over charges where i live, dollar general is especially bad about this, charging different price than on shelf
We finally just got rid of cable and save $170 a month. We bought a $30 antenna and get about 16 channels and just use the free movie/live tv apps. So mad that I didn’t do it years ago.
Merry Christmas Larry and Hope! A big thank you for all of the helpful videos you create, and the downloads you sell. Together they have really helped me gain a better understanding and management of my finances. Wishing you a beautiful and peaceful Christmas season. 🎄🙏🏽💝
Some energy companies in the UK tell you when the price of energy is low so you can do all your washing, vacuuming etc. Using this and reducing my washing time by 3hrs a week my bill has been reduced by £19pm. I unplug everything based on your advice. All the foods stores here have again this year reduced all the vegetables. 2kgs carrots 10p, Parsnips 10p, potatoes 8p 3kg etc., By the way my Netflix account got hacked. Charging to much, then twice a month. Neither Netflix or Visa could explain it. So I closed my account.
Yes! Check receipts. We stock up on our grocery staples at Costco once a month. We usually spend between $600-1,000 a month (we have 4 boys, eat organic, and have 3 kids in diapers so it adds up). We knew that we were having a higher bill that month because we were out of more supplies than usual. Our total was $1,200. That felt wrong to me, I was expecting to be closer to $1,000. Well, I looked at my receipt and they accidentally charged our organic chicken breasts as $300 instead of $30. Turns out we were $100 UNDER what I anticipated. 😂
I'm so thankful and grateful to have the two of you to listen to every week and am in no way surprised you are fast approaching 200K subscribers! You both are mv voices of reason and sanity in an otherwise crazy world. Thank you for everything you do, from a sincere fan, somewhere in the middle of a forest outside of Olympia, WA, USA.
We dont have severe cold weather but we rely on blankets or warm clothing instead of our furnace. A small space heater is more economical (electric) vs heating our whole house (propane).
My electric bill goes sky high in the winter time because I have electric baseboard heat this year. I refuse to turn up my heat past 50°. I have a wood-burning stove and every morning I start a fire and I sit by my fireplace trying to stay warm, but this is already saving me hundreds of dollars it is a sacrifice I’m willing to do.
I made Christmas dinner for the fam without using the oven! All stovetop & two crockpots & just a little microwaving. The crockpot cooked the turkey breast! Who knew? EDIT: I did bake the dinner rolls last week. Temps were in single digits; I needed heat!
Groceries - we have a look every 3 months, we search our bank accounts for the name of the stores we shop at... To reduce that spend a little bit we've bought modern reusable nappies! They're really bright and cute, and they seem to work really well! Haven't had any leaks yet- we've been using them for 4 days so far 🤣🤷♀️🥰 big fan so far!
Great video. You are good models of the phrase, "where there's a will, there's a way." There's always more ways to save and be frugal.. You certainly have some fuel efficient cars! Have your cars been reliable in terms of maintenance and repairs?
We have had fantastic luck with both cars being reliable. Unfortunately, these days it doesn't take much for repairs to go over $1000 no matter what make and model of car you own.
Been analyzing grocery receipts and mo. totaling for a few mo.. Extras, yes, but inflation YES! Purchased and installed STOPWATT devices, cook and laundry 9 p.m.- 7 a.m. and weekends only when rates are lowest. Most efficient in my area now, even reheating with microwave.
Beware of power strips. They can overheat and start fires. I worked at a rental company and the tenant overloaded the strip, it caught fire, and took out an entire floor from fire and smoke damage.
I'd suggest not wearing flannel jammies with flannel sheets on the bed. It's kinda like Velcro when you try to turn over! 😅 I've decreased my electric bill over 80% in the past by unplugging everything I could find. Now, I've also started turning off the stove at the fuse box when I'm not cooking. A stove has a large plug in, which takes a lot of power. That means a lot of vampire power is lost when it's plugged in and just waiting to be used. I tried turning the fridge off at the fuse box for a couple hours a day, but it was too much stress to try to remember whether or not I'd turned it back on in good time. I've never had cable... and haven't had a TV for decades. In the 80's, some friends gave me one, but I never used it. I just don't like spending time on fiction, "fake" news, sports...etc. I like historical documentaries, but not enough to buy a TV. I can get that for free on TH-cam. I like quiet more than I like the noise of a TV...or radio. I can think better when it's quiet. I edited a hospital bill once and found that there were bills for about $300 more than was used. Some was for medicine I didn't get, a physician's consult, etc. I called the insurance company to let them know those charges were inaccurate. They said it was only $300 and not worth doing anything at all about it. I thought to myself... well, there's one reason health insurance is so high. Once when I was unemployed, I knew my water bill water bill was $20 a month. I was extremely frugal and kept my water usage at an absolute minimum. One month, the bill was for $21. I believed it wasn't right because I always challenged myself to get my bills lower every month. Since I was unemployed, every single dollar counted. I called the water company. In the conversation, I told the water company lady all I did to keep the bill low. She said she was astounded and had never heard of anyone doing all I did to save on water. Unemployment is an extreme time. It requires extreme measures. I live in a different area now, and my water bills are usually around. $14-15 a month. I work on keeping it that low, but not to the extremes I used to. When I shop with cash, I ask to have that 2.5% fee for using a card taken off the total. It usually works. I love that you challenge yourselves!
Our electric company has peak hours year round which we can view on line. They also offer budget billing and also peak hours. Our peak hours are 3-6pm. So we really watch what we use during that time. Electric can be so expensive here in the desert (high temps of 118) They also have seasonal prices Winter 12.15 kwh Summer 22.95 and summer peak 26.10. Sometimes its just a lot to keep track of but We have never gone over $220 compared to others that are upward of $800 and don't blink an eye.
For us is transport in Singapore. Travelling from one train station to another cost $1.50 one stop only and the transport continue to increase each year.
I wear Cozies like a big hoodie with Sherpa lining and it is very warm. Fuzzy socks with fur lined slippers. Also when it gets real cold I wear sweatpants or flannel pants that are lined with Sherpa inside. So warm- although I feel like the abominable snowman or a Michelin man! Lol!
My elderly mother was hospitalized a while ago, she was charged for nicotine patches and she's a non smoker! Needless to say, we disputed it and they took it off the bill!
Thankyou as ever !!...I was wondering if u guys have ever dabbled in infrared heaters or looked into wood burning masonry heaters ...both are becoming more popular ..but I know the initial costs have to be balanced up with the heating systems we already have !! ..we've started using fans on the radiators...which helps kick out the heat more....but i havent worked out the cost of the fans !!!.do u guys have radiators?? Many thanks as ever Happy Holidays !!!also do u guys ever make cold pressed coffee ...and would it save money ...no beautiful smell though !!! 5:33 🎅🎄🎁✨️
I see that your wall oven is probably from the 1960s or 1970s. My grandmother had a similar one at her house, which is still in the family as a rental. When it finally died after 50+ years of use, we learned that we would have to order a European model as a replacement because current American brands are all larger now. FYI
It's actually1948 and is original to the house. Before we bought the house we had a friend who builds homes come look at it. He said, "It's incredibly well built. If it ain't broke, don't replace it." So, we kept it. We have had it repaired twice in 14 years.
@ We were told that replacement parts were no longer available on ours. Wow, that is amazing! My refrigerator is from the 1980s and works great. I have no problem using older appliances.
My goal is to see how long I can go without going to the store. Using fridge, freezer and pantry items.
I was brought up by my frugal mother, whose motto in life was, ‘Make do with whatever you food you have in the house.’
Anyone can cook a meal with all the ingredients they happen to have. Cooking is all about experimenting and coming up with the new ideas. You don’t just go to the shop to buy couple of ingredients if the dish requires.
I have followed my mother’s philosophy after I got married at 18, left the country to live in U.K. I am 76 now. I do grocery shopping once a month. Buy milk when I need it. I cook for three; freezer, fridge and for me. So I always have food to eat. I use up whatever I have during the last 15 days each month. I live alone, but I used to do this when I had the children living with me. It is doable, if you really want to.
I do that too and, since I live out in the country, it's easier to limit shopping trips. My mom used to say that, when you think you need to go out and shop, try to make do for another day or two with what you have on hand. If you think about that idea and do it faithfully, you could save at least one trip to the store monthly. For me, that would be at least a $70 saving a month. And it's fun coming up with ideas for those last few days before shopping.
Love this! Such a fun challenge.
that is what i plan to do
Great idea!
If you have a vehicle you don’t drive year around, put the vehicle on “storage” with your auto insurance. We live in a climate with a ton of snow so we put our car in storage over the winter and drive the truck. Once spring arrives we reverse that and put the truck in storage. This has saved us hundreds of dollars each year.
LOVE this tip!
@@readyornot316 doing so.
We just sold the truck because we never used it after we sold our trailer. We also sold them for more money than we bought them for.
Never use the dryer. We pay Amazon Prime annually. Costco we go 2 months between annual subscriptions.
I never thought of this! Thanks for sharing.
We plan to look at the things we buy and use routinely for alternatives this year. For example, if you can save $1 on am item purchased weekly, that comes to $52 on just a single item over the course of a year. If you can find 10 items to save $1 on weekly, that comes to $520 per year.
Great idea. I think I may use that one too 😊
Love this!
I dont have cable - I have a Free Air Antenna and get several channels via 60 mile range. Best move I made.
I carry my own water and a fruit with me now in case I get hungry.
Fruit that’s loaded with sugar? 🙄
I love the way you both work together onyour savings goals. Not all couples/families have every person eager to work toward those goals.
Yes our house too
We live out in the country, so no cable nor Netflix. We don't watch a lot of TV...we pick a series we like and watch on DVD. Some we've purchased, some checked out from public library.
I usually. Gro
Shop. Once. A. Mo. I. Have😊 a. Deep. Freezer. If. I. Run. Low. 0 cook. Out. Of. Freezer.
I cut Netflix out this month. Only buying the groceries I need with a list. Next I will see if I can lower my car insurance. Wish me luck with that. Also have saved on electricity.
GOOD EVENING MERRY CHRISTMAS
Because of your and Frugal Queens channel I cut my cable a month ago. I will be saving $102 a month now. Thank uou all for your help.
Omg yes cable & phone & internet rolled into one. A huge waste of money . I do the i.p.t.v. & it's like $ 15.00 a month..free movies.. xmas time Christmas movies..new movies..
That seems like common sense
There’s so much free content on TH-cam these days you really don’t need to pay for things to watch
We watch Pluto tv, freevee and tubi..all free...
Yes! We cut cable several years ago and haven't missed it at all.
My goal is to pay off my car, so I can take that money and have a good emergency fund. I also want to have 3 months living expenses saved
I love the grocery store pickup service ❤I have no choice but to get what was ordered and the items only needed.
I wish my hubby would let us do this. even when he is sick [he does the shopping] he won't use any grocery service...wish me luck.
Honestly, just track discretionary spending for a couple of months. Count up the coffees, lunches, new clothes, subscriptions, online impulse buys, things you buy the kids when you are out with them and you buy them a little something every time you are out, etc. That’s where the real holes are. Writing down when you use your crockpot isn’t where the problem lies. Pay yourself first. If it’s taken out of your paycheck, you can’t spend it.
Also always ask if the restaurant or anywhere else has a senior menu or discount, they don’t always advertise it.
Or even just specials. My husband and I don’t go out more than once a month usually but if we do, we look to see what the specials are and we can often cut the bill in half compared to everyone just ordering whatever they want.
Good ideas !
Last year we used the Dave Ramsey 'Snowball' system to pay off ALL of our credit cards. Was not easy, took 3 years - but we DID it! NOW we can save more money Automatically - for a different house!
My goal is to reduce our food shop, I have the feeling we don’t use the products properly as the fridge is always full and we have no products for the dishes I want to cook. Thank you guys you made a real impact on our family budget! I am glad I found you last year 🥰🥰🥰 we managed to save finally 😊
I love your channel, the ideas, and how well you two get along and have fun with each other.
Thank you so much, Kim.
I am 56 single I live with my 27 year old daughter in the hills in regional Victoria Australia on my bed I have many blankets and we rug up in winter
A blanket under the bottom sheet will keep you cosy!
@genevievebarker943 Yes, I do that as well! I like my bedroom on the cooler side. But I can't abide cold feet! 😮
We use a blanket as the bottom sheet
I added solar it didn't cost me anything to install I pay 200.00 a month instead of 300.00 a month for electric. And the power company buys back from me what I don't use and that gives me a surplus first month in the winter. I get less solar in the winter with the shorter days. So back up to 300.00 or more in the winter. I use heated water. Buckets for my horses and chickens in the winter. So Jan, Feb, and March I have a solar bill and an electric bill. But all summer just the 200.00 solar bill.
Utilities - we do not use our dryer. We have a wood stove. In the winter , we hang our clothes in doors. This creates humidy for the house and within 24 hours, the clothes are dry
Me too. I stopped using my dryer years ago. I hang my clothes up on the doorways. I unplug everything that I’m not using. I’m all electric and it’s my biggest bill.
I only use 40 LED light bulbs I set my thermostat at 68 in the winter 72 in the summer never use my dryer never used it since I've been here keep it unplugged my electric bill is about 35 dollars a month never use my stove only use my microwave it use's half the electric as a stove it's 700 Watt
I also stop using my dryer. I hang my clothes up on a line inside in the winter as I live in michigan and in the summer outside .
The easiest way to save money is to just have it automatically deposited into your savings/investment accounts especially like a 401k. Stretch it to the point you think you will be uncomfortable and barely able to eat. It you don’t have the money available to you, you learn to cut everything extra out. You can always back off if you truly are starving. Budgeting doesn’t help because you can just “budget” for anything you want. You need to force yourself to put every disposable dollar out of your reach. That is what I did and tracked my net worth. I didn’t make great money and we sacrificed a lot over the years (lived in an old house with no a/c and original kitchen from the 20s). I find it interesting people have to have Netflix that are on TH-cam and watching how to save money. No way would I pay for subscriptions when there are so many free offerings.
We don't have a dryer or a wood stove. So this helps and I appreciate this. This is great advice. Thank you
Just throwing this out there, in case someone doesn't know: On my utilities bill (electric and water) there is an "A" (actual) and an "E" (estimate). For years, I was robotically paying an estimated amount (even when I wasn't living in the house) My utilities company never reimbursed me. So, please look at your utility bill! :)
Shouldn't they sum up what you paid and level that out at the end of the year?
The method I'm used to is that they charge a monthly payment, ask me to read the counter at the end of the year, pay back or charge the remaining money and then adjust the monthly payment for the following year.
I always pause my Netflix during the summer. I’m outside in my gardens or doing other things. I don’t watch much tv in summer.
1 splurge I do with my friend is meet at Olive Garden between noon and 3pm. They have an excellent affordable lunch special. Starts at 8.99 unlimited soup, salad, and bread sticks, or for 11.99 unlimited salad and bread sticks, plus a pasta meal. We get water, no dessert. It fills us up and we get to take left overs home.
Brilliant! wish I liked Italian food.....
Merry Christmas, Hope, and Larry!! Thank you for your videos and knowledge of savings. I've been watching you on TH-cam for 2 years now. So helpful. I have reduced my Electric bill in the last 2 years by 58%.My bill now averages about $42 a monwhat.A savings from what I learned from your channel
Saying in our house is: If it's glowing it's flowing. We unplug everything when bot in use including the number (microwave).
*nuker
Have you noticed how much you saved unplugging the microwave?
Being frugal with groceries is always a good idea, however, I don't advocate using everything in your freezer, fridge and pantry. Too many unplanned thing could happen where one couldn't get to the grocery. If you're bare bones already you might be in real trouble food wise if you can't get to the store.
Expecially in winter!
Just a couple of ideas for power/water usage: 1. Many houses these days have mixer taps. Face the handle towards Cold. That way your hot water system is not switching on every time you wash your hands or turn on the tap. 2. When in the shower and the temp is too hot, don't go for increasing the cold water supply. Instead, start with turning the hot down.
Love this! Handy tip re online purchasing- I have found that when I add things to a 'shopping cart,' and think about the possible purchase for a couple of days....I will often receive a discount voucher from the company😊 to nudge my purchase along...doesn't mean I have to buy it- but super handy if it is something I actually need. Great frugality pyramid- I am going to hang that up as a reminder and aim to purchase or borrow as much second hand as I can in 2025. Wishing you both a wonderful 2025 and thank you for keeping us all on our frugal tippy toes with your advice- I just don' t know how you keep coming up with new material and I can't wait to see what next year brings x
I read my grocery list before I leave the store bc often they will not have changed the price for the item that was on sale, and I will get that fixed before I go home.
My Nov. 2023 National Grid electric bill was $103.00. My Nov. 2024 National Grid electric
bill was $18.81.a savings of $85.00.
My food bill two years ago was $150.00 a month
on avedage. The average food cost in the last
six months is around $25.00 on average.
This is all for one person.
Thanks for the tips as I couldn’t have done it
without you. It has saved me several thousand
dollars.
$25 a month for groceries?
Amazing. Well done
Wow, 😮 what are you eating, nothing?
@@marymanning5150it’s not
Changing the temp does not save. It takes the same amount of btu's to go from 60 to 70 as it does from 50 to 60. But now when you want to go back to 70 from 50 you are using more energy. Set it and forget it. Stop changing it.
Love the way you two give examples and then, detail them out! Step by step and if uts not gonna work, easy to know right away.
It is amazing how much a phone plan can save you money to pay other bills. We use Tracfone. Mint supposed to be good too. You get the same quality cheaper. Even if you use it for a month as an extra phone to try it out, it becomes so obvious you can save this way. Use solar lanterns for lighting where you can. Get energy star appliances when old ones break down. Our lg front load washer has saved us on water and heated water over a top load maytag that lasted a mere 8 years. We also started a $3,000 buffer fund. Heard this on Kate's you tube channel. She keeps the fund at $3,000. Basically an emergency fund idea. Keep working on goals this really has us. Thanks Hope and Larry. You guys and everyone..hope you have a Merry Christmas! If you have had loss this year, may God and others comfort you.
Great ideas. I loved the blooper at the end. Merry Christmas to you both and your family.
Workout! Exercise warms you. And adds to your health. Wear Shearling or wool slippers
Merry Christmas love to you and your family ❤❤❤
There is another TRUE (501c3) thrift store
where you fill a bag for $3.00. I have managed
to get a dozen shirts, many brand new in
its original packaging for $3.00 or 25 cents
each.
Christmas Day watching this. Going to try hard in January just using food on hand. Got a couple of grocery gift cards for Christmas that will buy what extra groceries I think I will need. Will make more room that staples is now taking up on shelves.
Good tips. Hubby and I saved on Transportation AND Insurance costs by going to 1 vehicle that we share! We do it by religiously coordinating our calendars. careful planning with both calendars is crucial.
I specifically love to buy ex-library books used, as hardbacks often have the nice plastic covers, and paperbacks may be laminated. Either makes the book more durable and longer lasting.
About once a year, our county library culls all the books from surrounding libraries and takes out old ones, duplicates, etc and they have a few days where they give them free to the public. So boxes and boxes in the parking lot to sort through. We got our children’s books and a few ones I wanted to read for free. Some people ruin it by not even looking and just take the boxes so they can sell it online through their book store website or Amazon used books, etc.
@@ellenm2873 our library sells them as a fundraiser, but still quite inexpensive (3 books for $1). Too bad that people are taking them to resell that way though.
One of the best things I did for my ultility bill was get an air fryer instead of my electric. No preheating involved, and it’s super fast. I use my pressure cooker all the time, too. Both of these are time savers.
Every week the Salvation Army has a certain
color where all clothes are marked down to
99 cents for that week. This applies to almost
everything else except to large furniture items.
Not in my area. SA is the most expensive thrift store with pants at $12+, coats at $20+, blouses $10+. I can buy new on sale for those prices.
Have a Merry Christmas 🎄 ❤
Utilities. I try to diversify and have alternatives available so that I’m not wholly dependent on one utility. It can seem like a utility has a monopoly but often there are alternatives available. For example for heating in my area, oil heat is the main way everyone heats their home. For years I had a wood burning stove as an alternative so that when oil prices were high I had an alternative. Now I had to get rid of that stove because in my area home insurance companies were dropping homeowners who had wood burning stoves and I was dropped several times in 1 year and had trouble getting covered. But now I installed 2 mini split Ac/heat units in my house and the savings on oil have been tremendous. The cost of electric has been minimal. I do the same in other areas just trying to have alternatives so that I can choose what is better at the moment to use.
Thanks guys. Happy holidays!
I love how you have made saving money kind of like a game challenge. You have it almost down to a science. We do many of the things discussed but are still learning. It’s a fun journey for us. Thank you both so much for sharing your knowledge. Merry Christmas!
Love Hope's jacket! Have a wonderful Christmas. Thanks for your hard work!
Wow you are so fortunate to be able to get gas cheaper at different stations,here in South Africa it’s all one price at every gas (petrol) station. Thanks for all the information.
We cut the cord on cable year's ago & don't miss it at all. We have a couple well-priced subscriptions and that's enough.
Hope, I am wearing the same sweater today. Thank you for all your advice and Merry Christmas to your entire family.
Please invite your kids into your video sessions so that we can learn from them too. You have raised an amazing family of 4 kids. Apparently your kids must have learned a lot about appropriate budgeting to safeguard their money🙏.
Merry Christmas, Hope and Larry! Flannel is great! You might even want to buy a brushed Flannel for Hope that she can wear as a very cozy huggable layer! Larry would look nice in a plaid flannel. My sister bought me a set of Christmas flannel sheets a couple years ago. I ended up using them year round. In the summer, I only need the sheets. (I love Christmas, so yay!) My 21 year old who has autism found my sheets ok with her sensory issues. So I need new sheets that I will buy after Christmas.
I'm a vegan and found out my vitamin B 12 is way too low (exhaustion). So remember to check your labs so you can function optimally. (Plus you cannot maintain your body temperature if your B12 is low. You will feel cold!) So this can help you with your heating bills.
I asked my wifi company for a discount. They gave me a one time $10 rebate. I'm reviewing your videos for more saving ideas!
Happy healthy (and frugal) New Year!
Thank you for helping others
We haven’t had cable since about 2008, we used to free stream everything but in the last few years we have been getting subscriptions. We alternate through them every three months so we only ever have one, we get a lot of use out of them so I feel it’s worth it for us. I will be focusing at reducing our electric bill in 2025, aiming for 20% savings, we heat with wood but have put our water heater on a switch. Also need to get my 12 year old on board to turn off his electronics.
Your channel has helped me soo much.
Instead of an electric blanket, I sleep with a hot water bottle
Please pay attention to charges at register, lot of problems with over charges where i live, dollar general is especially bad about this, charging different price than on shelf
Yes on the medical bills!
We finally just got rid of cable and save $170 a month. We bought a $30 antenna and get about 16 channels and just use the free movie/live tv apps. So mad that I didn’t do it years ago.
Are you able to watch sports? My husband enjoys sports....i would love to findal a free way to watch
Merry Christmas Larry and Hope! A big thank you for all of the helpful videos you create, and the downloads you sell. Together they have really helped me gain a better understanding and management of my finances. Wishing you a beautiful and peaceful Christmas season. 🎄🙏🏽💝
I look over my basket of grocery purchases before I check out, estimate cost & put back what I really do not need.
That will definitly work for me, since often there is some extra to splurge a bit looking harmless.
I do the same thing. I try to stick to my mental list and the coupons I have on hand.
Some energy companies in the UK tell you when the price of energy is low so you can do all your washing, vacuuming etc. Using this and reducing my washing time by 3hrs a week my bill has been reduced by £19pm. I unplug everything based on your advice.
All the foods stores here have again this year reduced all the vegetables. 2kgs carrots 10p, Parsnips 10p, potatoes 8p 3kg etc.,
By the way my Netflix account got hacked. Charging to much, then twice a month. Neither Netflix or Visa could explain it. So I closed my account.
Check your insurance documents! I discovered my new policy erroneously included mortgage payment coverage. $40 saved.
Mine too! Saved $100 a year bc my policy hasn't had "computer errors" updates corrected.
Happy Christmas Eve everyone!
It's actually Merry Christmas not happy.😊
Yes! Check receipts. We stock up on our grocery staples at Costco once a month. We usually spend between $600-1,000 a month (we have 4 boys, eat organic, and have 3 kids in diapers so it adds up). We knew that we were having a higher bill that month because we were out of more supplies than usual. Our total was $1,200. That felt wrong to me, I was expecting to be closer to $1,000. Well, I looked at my receipt and they accidentally charged our organic chicken breasts as $300 instead of $30. Turns out we were $100 UNDER what I anticipated. 😂
Consider cloth diapers!
@ we did with our first. For various reasons, it didn’t work for our younger three.
I'm so thankful and grateful to have the two of you to listen to every week and am in no way surprised you are fast approaching 200K subscribers! You both are mv voices of reason and sanity in an otherwise crazy world. Thank you for everything you do, from a sincere fan, somewhere in the middle of a forest outside of Olympia, WA, USA.
We dont have severe cold weather but we rely on blankets or warm clothing instead of our furnace. A small space heater is more economical (electric) vs heating our whole house (propane).
My electric bill goes sky high in the winter time because I have electric baseboard heat this year. I refuse to turn up my heat past 50°. I have a wood-burning stove and every morning I start a fire and I sit by my fireplace trying to stay warm, but this is already saving me hundreds of dollars it is a sacrifice I’m willing to do.
Your information is so helpful, I appreciate your channel and want to see you succeed .
Good program review of small changes. Thanks!
I made Christmas dinner for the fam without using the oven! All stovetop & two crockpots & just a little microwaving. The crockpot cooked the turkey breast! Who knew?
EDIT: I did bake the dinner rolls last week. Temps were in single digits; I needed heat!
Hello Larry and Hope wishing you and family a Happy New Year and best wishes for 2025 .God bless from Canada 🇨🇦
Love your haircut! Very flattering Hope
Got my Christmas Tamales for a dozen for ten dollars from neighbor, good deal & I love doing business with the community.
You did get a good deal. Tamales here in Ca could cost up 36.00 a dozen.
@@MoonlightSerenity1 I could not even afford California.
Groceries - we have a look every 3 months, we search our bank accounts for the name of the stores we shop at... To reduce that spend a little bit we've bought modern reusable nappies! They're really bright and cute, and they seem to work really well! Haven't had any leaks yet- we've been using them for 4 days so far 🤣🤷♀️🥰 big fan so far!
Excellent content
Merry Christmas and HNY. If it helps, you can turn the small light off in the back of you. The lights are bright and distracting as well IMO.
Great video. You are good models of the phrase, "where there's a will, there's a way." There's always more ways to save and be frugal..
You certainly have some fuel efficient cars! Have your cars been reliable in terms of maintenance and repairs?
We have had fantastic luck with both cars being reliable. Unfortunately, these days it doesn't take much for repairs to go over $1000 no matter what make and model of car you own.
Been analyzing grocery receipts and mo. totaling for a few mo.. Extras, yes, but inflation YES! Purchased and installed STOPWATT devices, cook and laundry 9 p.m.- 7 a.m. and weekends only when rates are lowest. Most efficient in my area now, even reheating with microwave.
Oh my goodness, ❤ the blooper at the end😂😂😂
Thanks!
Thank you so much! That's very kind of you!
@UndertheMedian You are most welcome
Merry Christmas
I live on a low income apt. I can't change my thermostat but I do try to keep my light bill low
Merry Christmas ⛄🎁
Beware of power strips. They can overheat and start fires. I worked at a rental company and the tenant overloaded the strip, it caught fire, and took out an entire floor from fire and smoke damage.
I'd suggest not wearing flannel jammies with flannel sheets on the bed. It's kinda like Velcro when you try to turn over! 😅
I've decreased my electric bill over 80% in the past by unplugging everything I could find. Now, I've also started turning off the stove at the fuse box when I'm not cooking. A stove has a large plug in, which takes a lot of power. That means a lot of vampire power is lost when it's plugged in and just waiting to be used. I tried turning the fridge off at the fuse box for a couple hours a day, but it was too much stress to try to remember whether or not I'd turned it back on in good time.
I've never had cable... and haven't had a TV for decades. In the 80's, some friends gave me one, but I never used it. I just don't like spending time on fiction, "fake" news, sports...etc. I like historical documentaries, but not enough to buy a TV. I can get that for free on TH-cam.
I like quiet more than I like the noise of a TV...or radio. I can think better when it's quiet.
I edited a hospital bill once and found that there were bills for about $300 more than was used. Some was for medicine I didn't get, a physician's consult, etc. I called the insurance company to let them know those charges were inaccurate. They said it was only $300 and not worth doing anything at all about it. I thought to myself... well, there's one reason health insurance is so high.
Once when I was unemployed, I knew my water bill water bill was $20 a month. I was extremely frugal and kept my water usage at an absolute minimum. One month, the bill was for $21. I believed it wasn't right because I always challenged myself to get my bills lower every month. Since I was unemployed, every single dollar counted. I called the water company. In the conversation, I told the water company lady all I did to keep the bill low. She said she was astounded and had never heard of anyone doing all I did to save on water. Unemployment is an extreme time. It requires extreme measures. I live in a different area now, and my water bills are usually around. $14-15 a month. I work on keeping it that low, but not to the extremes I used to.
When I shop with cash, I ask to have that 2.5% fee for using a card taken off the total. It usually works.
I love that you challenge yourselves!
LOL! "Velcro when you try to turn over!" That describes it perfectly. You are warm, but you do have to sort of lay in one position.
Wonderful tips!
answering product surveys of purchases can help
Our electric company has peak hours year round which we can view on line. They also offer budget billing and also peak hours. Our peak hours are 3-6pm. So we really watch what we use during that time. Electric can be so expensive here in the desert (high temps of 118) They also have seasonal prices Winter 12.15 kwh Summer 22.95 and summer peak 26.10. Sometimes its just a lot to keep track of but We have never gone over $220 compared to others that are upward of $800 and don't blink an eye.
For us is transport in Singapore. Travelling from one train station to another cost $1.50 one stop only and the transport continue to increase each year.
Slow cooker are great. Especially for bone brought.
Yes! I use mine heavily all winter long.
We have heated throws, teddy bear bedding, oodies etc and that keeps our bills down. Our energy co say we should be £96 pm but were well below that.
I wear Cozies like a big hoodie with Sherpa lining and it is very warm. Fuzzy socks with fur lined slippers. Also when it gets real cold I wear sweatpants or flannel pants that are lined with Sherpa inside. So warm- although I feel like the abominable snowman or a Michelin man! Lol!
I love your channel
My elderly mother was hospitalized a while ago, she was charged for nicotine patches and she's a non smoker! Needless to say, we disputed it and they took it off the bill!
Thankyou as ever !!...I was wondering if u guys have ever dabbled in infrared heaters or looked into wood burning masonry heaters ...both are becoming more popular ..but I know the initial costs have to be balanced up with the heating systems we already have !! ..we've started using fans on the radiators...which helps kick out the heat more....but i havent worked out the cost of the fans !!!.do u guys have radiators?? Many thanks as ever Happy Holidays !!!also do u guys ever make cold pressed coffee ...and would it save money ...no beautiful smell though !!! 5:33 🎅🎄🎁✨️
No green thumb, keep trying, start with herbs like sage, basil, mint, I fail as well but also have many successes.
We followed the energy guide from met Ed...
I see that your wall oven is probably from the 1960s or 1970s. My grandmother had a similar one at her house, which is still in the family as a rental. When it finally died after 50+ years of use, we learned that we would have to order a European model as a replacement because current American brands are all larger now. FYI
It's actually1948 and is original to the house. Before we bought the house we had a friend who builds homes come look at it. He said, "It's incredibly well built. If it ain't broke, don't replace it." So, we kept it. We have had it repaired twice in 14 years.
@ We were told that replacement parts were no longer available on ours. Wow, that is amazing! My refrigerator is from the 1980s and works great. I have no problem using older appliances.
Ty. 😊
Merry Christmas Cousin Connie & all here.
What is the name of the heated hoodie and vest