Live at Minimalistic Ambiance

You can easily save thousands of dollars a year with very little effort by following even a few of the cost-saving measures in your “Household save” campaign. The more money-saving measures you adopt, the more money you'll save. Potential savings will vary, depending on your personal situation.

Save Money on Personal Mortgage

• Consider refinancing your mortgage.
• For even more dramatic long-term savings, consider a 15-year mortgage rather than a 30-year mortgage.
• You can achieve similar results by paying an extra principal payment on your 30-year loan each month.
• Still another way to achieve these results is to pay one half of your monthly mortgage every two weeks.

Save Money on Utilities - Electricity

• Install the new type of fluorescent bulbs in lights you leave on for long periods.
• Lower the temperature on your hot water heater to between 110 and 120 degrees.
• Find out if your utility company offers free energy audits, where they inspect your home for energy effectiveness and recommend inexpensive ways to cut energy costs, such as insulating hot water heaters, weather-stripping, etc.
• Set thermostats no higher than 68 degrees in winter and no lower than 78 degrees in summer.
• Cut back on the use of your clothes dryer.
• Use your microwave instead of your oven whenever possible and save up to 50% in energy costs for cooking.
• Cut Costs on Miscellaneous Home-Related Expenses
  

Save Money on Utilities - Water

• Always do full loads of laundry. A typical full load uses about 21 gallons of water.
• Run your dishwasher only when you have a full load.
• Fix running toilets or leaking faucets promptly.
• Install flow restricting shower heads.
• Add fabric softener to your laundry at the appropriate point in the cycle instead of adding it at the end and running another rinse cycle, which can use up to 10 extra gallons of water.
• Use warm or cold water for washing clothes, and always rinse in cold water.
  

Save Money on Utilities - Other

• Stick to basic phone service.
• If you can live without cable television, if you can't live without it, get basic service only.
• Plant perennial flowers instead of annuals.
• If you live in a cold region of the country, heating costs are a major expense.