Cut Your Household Costs!

Tackle those creeping costs by cutting back elsewhere. Why not check out these tips and find out how you can save money on those household expenses?

In my last article I examined how we can compensate ourselves in part for those rising outgoings (mortgage etc) by attacking those bills. In this article I'll take a look at those household expenses.

Food

Food bills tend to be a major cost in most homes, especially for families. According to Abbey we spend on average £190 in supermarkets per month, but a family is likely to be spending far more than this. Add to that the costs of eating out and takeaways and we could be spending a small fortune on food every month.

But there are easy ways to cut back on these costs. For a start, cooking from scratch as much as possible is cheaper and generally healthier too. Add less meat and bulk out meals with protein rich (and cheap) pulses instead (make sure you cook them properly though). Buying a whole chicken is generally far better value than breast portions (check out this post on how to make it go further).

Making meals in bulk and freezing portions will give you a night off cooking. Check out these tips to find out more ways to save money at the supermarket and cut down that food bill.

I would add that one of my favourite tips is to invest in a terribly un-trendy but fantastically useful slow cooker (they cost about £30 in the shops, or the canny amongst you could probably pick one up at a car boot sale for a couple of quid). Its very nature means you can use cheaper, tougher cuts of meat (think shin of beef, brisket and lamb shank etc) and after hours of gentle cooking turn out the most delicious tender stews and casseroles, or soups, pot roasts and curries. Check out this post for some recipe ideas. 

Takeaways

If you really want to trim those expenses, cutting back on takeaways will do wonders for your wallet (and waistline too). At around £20 a pop, a family having takeaways twice a week could have an extra £160 each month!

If your kids particularly love the excitement of a takeaway or junk food, why not use your imagination and create your own cheap and healthy version? Make your own hamburgers, add lettuce and sliced tomatoes in a sesame seed bun, wrap them in greaseproof paper and serve them up with potato wedges in paper bags. Alternatively, get them to make their own pizzas. I have friends that do this and their kids get just as excited with their "home takeaway".

Meals out

Instead of eating out for lunch, why not pack up a picnic and take it to the local park? Alternatively, £2.50 in Tesco Clubcard vouchers can be traded for £10 in Deals vouchers, to be used in restaurants such as Bella Italia, Café Rouge and Caffe Uno.

Garden

And of course, a great way to save money is to grow your own vegetables. If you're really keen, contact your council about putting your name down on the waiting list for an allotment. But anyone can grow a few veggies; no matter how little space you have. (My sister has successfully grown tomatoes from seed this year in the window box of her flat, for example). Dedicate an area of the garden, or get a grow bag, buy some seeds from the garden centre and off you go!

Crops to sow in August/September include winter spinach, lettuce and Chinese cabbage, and check out these gardening tips for more ideas.

Cleaning

And if you spend a fortune on different cleaning products for every area of the house, you could save some cash by opting for more natural alternatives.

I've always been baffled as to why my best friend watches the "How Clean is your house" TV show and even notes down the tips, but even I have to agree she has a point, as their bicarbonate of soda, distilled vinegar and lemon juice solutions can pretty much clean anything for a fraction of the cost (plus they're kinder to the environment). Check out these tips for cheap, eco cleaning.

Holidays

Finally, we all need them but they can cost a small fortune. I'm talking about holidays of course. But there are ways to have a cheap break. To really save, why not go camping - sites charge just a few pounds a night and you can have some great family time.

Many of us, surprisingly, haven't explored our local areas in great depth. If this describes you, why not "holiday from home"?

Make an itinerary of different activities to do each day, pack a picnic and go. Depending on what's relatively close you could organise a day's walking, horse riding, abseiling, fruit picking, theme park, cinema (check out this post to find out how to get 2 cinema tickets for free) or a day at the beach etc. As you don't have to pay for accommodation it can be surprisingly cheap -- just make sure you don't ruin the fun by doing chores when you get home!

Hopefully these tips have given you some ideas as to how you can save money in your household and claw back some of that extra cash disappearing to your mortgage lender. Why not give them a go?

More: Seven Tips To Cut Your Bills