52 Week Money Challenge: Don’t Call The Experts
It’s another week in the 52 week challenge- week 23! How are you doing so far?
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This week you are depositing $23 in your money jar. Or if you’re doing the challenge in reverse, then $30. Or if you’re making up your own challenge, then be sure to deposit that money!
Here’s this week’s money savings tip: Don’t Call The Experts!
Last week we talked about using rebates to save money. If you missed that tip, read it here!
In our consumer and service driven society, we have become accustomed to calling someone to fix something for us, do something for us and make something for us. This is great for the economy and gives people jobs, so don’t get me wrong on what I’m saying. I don’t see anything wrong with it, however, it is also leaving folks paying for services when they don’t need to.
One example of not needing to call an expert is replacing the “guts” of your toilet. Many people would call a plumber to do this. A plumber can cost you a lot and usually to stop something like a running toilet just takes 10 minutes and less than $5. If you are unsure of your abilities, just look up some videos on Youtube. I go to youtube and google to do my best to figure these things out before calling in the Professionals.
Another example of using an expert service when it is not really necessary is when you go get your oil changed in your vehicle. On most makes and models this can be done in less than 20 minutes at home with very few tools that can be used over and over for years. Doing your own oil changes can save you over $100 a year or more!
While it is important to know when to NOT call in the experts to do things, it is equally important to know when TO call them in. It is never a good idea to mess with potentially dangerous things such as rewiring your own electrical issues, mixing chemicals and so on.
Also, unless you know exactly what you are doing, having a contractor is almost always a great idea if you will be doing any huge home repairs or you could end up with something that costs you more than wasted time or even something that damages your existing home.
Another option is to call your energy company to see if they offer service plans. For an example, I use Consumers Energy. They have appliance plans that will cover every major appliance in your home, from the kitchen sink to your air conditioner. I pay about $32 bucks per month for this plan. It’s like paying for insurance that you hope you will never need, but just in case…
Just last month I had to call Consumers to come out and repair my dryer. This would have easily cost me $500 bucks or more. My cost? $0 bucks because the repair and labor is covered under the service plan! So call your energy company to see if they offer this service!
What are some things you do yourself that others rely on experts for? I would love to hear how you save money by not calling in the experts!
Did you miss a week of the 52 Week of Saving Tips? You can find them HERE!
It’s not too late to join the 52 Week Money Challenge.
Why should You join the 52 week money savings challenge?
Most families are on the constant look out for ways to save more money. This challenge is easy and doesn’t require you to do a lot each week. It starts out with just saving a $1 on the first week. Or, if you’re doing the challenge in reverse, then $52 bucks.
It’s an easy way to save money and it does work if you apply just a little self-discipline and you are determined to save money. And having a goal is a good way reach your saving objective. Below are a few saving goal:
- You can use the money you saved to pay for your Christmas at the end of the year.
- Go on a vacation
- Jump-start a college fund
- Pay off debt
- Buy a car
- This could be your first time actually saving money in a bank account
The reasons for saving extra money are endless!But the key is getting started!
People tend to do better when faced with a challenge (of any kind).
- You will receive a weekly email reminder telling you to make your deposit into the bank or jar
- You will also receive a weekly savings tip on a way that you can save that week.
- You will receive inspiring stories and ways to save money each week!
- Many people and blogs start out doing this challenge within their communities. But by March, most have fallen off the band wagon. As you can see,by just looking at our 52 weekly challenge archive, you can see that we kept up with it each week.
- I’ve personally and successfully completed this money saving challenge two years in a row! I am doing this challenge right along with you and to encourage you along the way. And if you need to tweak it to fit your families needs, save more , etc. then I am here to help you with that too!
- You can find out more about the 52 Week Challenge HERE
So, let’s get started! Sign up today to start receiving the 52 week money saving challenge newsletter!
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