Top Spending & Saving Tips For Australian Families Struggling Financially

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If your finances haven't been at their healthiest lately, you're not alone. Inflation is hitting us all pretty hard, and we're not necessarily earning more to compensate.

Whether your attempts to tackle the cost of living crisis involve finding ways to reduce your grocery bills or deciding to refinance a home loan, many households are looking for ways to stay above water.

In this article, we'll be covering our top spending and saving tips for Australian families struggling financially. Keep reading for ways to cope with these challenging times and improve your finances.

Getting a snapshot of your financial situation is a great way to reduce stress and add clarity. Start by adding up your total family earnings. Remember to include all income streams: salaries, wages, government benefits, freelance earnings and family assistance. Getting a hold on your finances is becoming increasingly important as expenses like rent prices continue to increase, even in regional areas of Australia.

Similarly, if you're not doing this already, start tracking all your monthly expenditures. Categorise them into fixed expenses, such as your mortgage payment or rent, and variable costs, such as entertainment, groceries, and food and beverage out.

Then, estimate your net worth by deducting your total liabilities from your assets. The latter includes your investments, savings, etc., while your liabilities include payables like credit card balances and miscellaneous loans, mortgages and car notes. Your net worth figure is a point-in-time snapshot of your financial health.

Finally, review your near-term obligations, such as monthly bills and insurance premiums due, to help you prioritise your spending and plan to meet these debts on time.

Stretching your household's finances as far as they'll go involves treating every purchase as a deliberate, strategic decision. Start with your groceries: get into meal planning, if you haven't already. Create a shopping list and stick to it, and look for discounts wherever you can. Sign up for your groceries' mobile apps and collect coupons.

Another way to save is by purchasing generic versions of household staples. These cost a lot less than branded goods, often without sacrificing on quality. Combine buying generic items with coupon-collecting and discount-hunting to boost savings even further. Avoid impulse purchases like individual chocolate bars stocked near the checkout counter. This will benefit both your wallet and your health.

Join as many loyalty programs as you can. If you've been throwing your junk mail in the trash, you'll want to go over it first to see if there are any special offers on the types of products you already use. Often, you'll find discounts for new products on trial.

Buying in bulk also helps cut down on spending. Non-perishable food items, for instance, are good candidates for bulk buying. Research the better wholesale clubs and co-ops in your locale for deals on a more extensive item selection.

Find excellent savings opportunities by waiting for national holidays. Take advantage of clearances, seasonal sales and new product releases. Use major events like Black Friday and Cyber Monday to score deals on higher-value purchases, but don't buy things you don't need just because they're on sale. Postpone purchases where you can if you expect what you're looking for to go on sale, such as tech, home furnishings and outerwear.

Strategically minimising spending doesn't necessarily mean lowering your living standards. Often, there are ways to get the same benefits while spending less. Adopting thriftiness as a way of life puts you in a better financial position in the long term.

Entertainment is one area where small changes make a big difference. If you're an avid moviegoer, consider subscribing to a streaming service. If you're into sports, you'll find plenty of usable secondhand equipment at a fraction of the price of their store-bought counterparts. Adopting free leisure activities like taking walks in the park also help you save.

Transportation is another area in which to cut costs. Avoid driving if you can: taking walks and riding a bike help lower fuel expenses. If you're travelling a long way, public transport might be cheaper than what you spend on fuel. When car use is unavoidable, try to get multiple errands done in one trip.

Reduce your home's utility bills by unplugging unused electronic devices, turning the lights off in empty rooms and investing in energy-efficient appliances. Implement decluttering and minimalism to clear up your living space. Sell or donate unused items. Try to veer away from finding happiness in material things, and spend time with loved ones.

Lastly, explore online and local second-hand marketplaces like thrift and charity shops when you need to go shopping. You'll save plenty by purchasing used but still-usable items such as clothes, accessories, electronics and furniture.

Once you've increased your overall supply of money by saving, you'll want to store some of it in an emergency fund. Regularly add to it by dedicating a percentage of your income each week or month. If you can, funnel at least a part of unexpected cash inflows, like gifts, tax refunds and work bonuses, into your emergency fund.

Setting aside some money for emergencies is a great way to ensure your long-term financial wellbeing. If you run into unexpected costs sometime in the future, you'll be better prepared to stay afloat. Just make sure it's well hidden - to protect your cash in the unlikely event of a break-in.

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Our finances are one of the areas in life that give us the most stress. This is because everything we need and do, from the food we eat, to the roof over our heads, depends on how much money we have.

In this article, we've gone through some helpful ways to spend and save more wisely. While we don't live in an ideal world and the economy is less than ideal for most people, you can improve your financial health and prepare for the future by following these tips.