Money-saving and Environmentally-friendly Tips

In these hard financial times, many families are finding their household budgets stretched to the max. Things are getting more and more expensive, but incomes are remaining stagnant or even declining. I am going to give you some tips on how to stretch that budget, and it just so happens that these tips are friendly to the environment, as well as to your wallet.

1) Limit eating out to once a month or special occasions. Eating out at restaurants- fast food or otherwise- will definitely put a damper on any budget. Plus, with all of the disposable packaging that ends up in the landfills, it is also not good for the environment. You can pay anywhere from $6 on up for a meal at a restaurant.

2) Be sure to make your grocery list around sale items and clip coupons, and you can definitely make your shopping experience less painful. Doing so will shave your grocery bill by a minimum of $50/month.

3) If there are Farmers Markets in your area, they are a great way to get quality food at a reasonable price. And not only that, but you won't have to buy fruits and vegetables as often because they will stay good longer because they did not have far to travel before they got to you. This is good for you and for the environment because that head of lettuce did not have to travel across the country to get to your plate. *Find a Farmers Market in your area online by typing Farmers Market-name of your city in any search engine.

4) With gas hovering at $4/gallon, it is a no-brainer to find alternative ways to get to work. Public transportation is the best way for people who have access. Car-pooling/car-sharing for people who absolutely have no alternative. But either way, in addition to saving green, you are being green by reducing your carbon emissions. If you are using even 10 gallons a week to get to and from work, that is $160 per month, plus parking fees, if applicable.

5) If you are in need of clothing, furniture, any kind of household item, it is often quite possible to find something suitable for a reasonable price or even free from websites like craigslist.org, freecycle.org, local.com. You can even barter with people, trade something they need for something you need. This can save you an enormous amount of money, in addition to having the added benefit of not adding to the landfill or using any resources to make something "new." By the way, selling things that you no longer need or use is also a great way to make a little money on top of being good for the environment.

6) Take your reusable shopping bags with you to the store, especially the grocery store. Some stores, like Trader Joe's and Whole Foods, will give you $.10 off each bag of groceries placed in one of their reusable bags. You can keep money in your wallet while keeping plastic bags out of the landfills. Take your reusable coffee mug with you to the coffee shop. If you must buy coffee out, using a reusable mug will generally get you at least $.10 off of your purchase, and will again prevent disposable cups, sleeves and lids from the landfills.

7) Turn off the lights when you leave a room, and unplug appliances when not in use, or at least make sure they are powered down or off. This is an effective way to keep your electricity bill low. And with summer less than a month away, remember to turn off the air conditioning when you are not at home and keep windows shaded to prevent unnecessary heat from the sun.

These are only a few things out of the many, many things that you can do to save money---and the environment. With just a little bit of creativity and imagination, you can come up with money-saving tips of your own. After all, no one knows your family better than you do.