Seniors For Living

This guest blog post is contributed by Boomerater, a free online resource for Baby Boomers helping you find everything from an investment advisor to great vacation ideas. Seniors for Living‘s properties are featured in Boomerater’s Assisted Living directory.

Is one of your 2010 resolutions to find new ways to lower costs and save money? Boomerater members have good news you can use; try these seven tips offered on Boomerater.com.

Tip 1: Save through online discount sites.

My favorite site online to save money is www.dealslip.com! They have tons of great online coupon codes for 500+ stores. Learn more about other online discount sites.

Tip 2: In addition to saving money, how about finding it?

At http://missingmoney.com/main/index.cfm you can search for money you may have forgotten in banks, with utilities, rent deposits, etc. It doesn’t cost anything to see if you have ‘found’ money waiting to be claimed.

Tip 3: Your memberships can save you 10 – 15% on products and services.

AAA is a great way to save money. Most people initially get the service for emergency road assistance, but a lot of national companies will give you a discount when you give them your AAA number. We have saved at Target, UPS, Marriot, Barnes & Noble, and Hertz. We never book a hotel without asking first if they offer the AAA discount. We also have an AARP membership and often save when using their card.”

Tip 4: Bartering can be a real money saver.

I started by swapping my landscaping services with members of my church (we publish a list of anyone willing to barter services.) I also tried Craig’slist but didn’t see anything in my area I wanted to trade for. ITEX is a more flexible alternative. You sell a product or service and get ITEX virtual $$ in your account. Then you can use those $$ to buy another product or service from an ITEX member. I have traded landscaping for computer services, and have gotten new clients in the process. The only drawback is they charge a 6% fee to both parties in the deal.Find out how other Boomers are saving by bartering.

Tip 5: Explore ways to save when paying bills and managing finances.

If you don’t have a mortgage, or pay very little on yours, you may be able to bunch itemized deductions into every other year, taking the standard deduction in the non-bunching year. When you drop non-cash items off to charity, you can deduct the value of items in good condition if you itemize. See goodwill industries website for help with valuation. Also, if you are in the range where your social security payments are starting to be included in your taxable income, your effective marginal tax rate is higher than you may know. See if you can do something to either stay below it, or go way above it some year to avoid it in future years. Lastly, many people pay too much on investments – yours may have built in expenses you don’t know about.

Tip 6: Cut your phone bill.

I don’t really have much of a clue about phone networks, but I know they aren’t very cheap. My son showed me a site called FishText.com which is 90% cheaper than normal networks. It may not seem like great savings, but it just gives me that little extra change in my pocket!

Tip 7: Frugal shopping pays off.

I was recently laid off. Very little savings and no clue about frugal shopping. Now I am a pro. Amazing how need can be such a strong motivator! I save $92 a month on my prescription and my neighbor saves over a hundred. We have a nationwide discount card. I save $70 a month on groceries and save $37 on pet food. To me, saving on these things is like earning money every month. Learn more about other tips on how to save on prescriptions.

Add your own money saving tips, or learn advice from Boomers about finances, travel, family and relationships, shopping, interests and passions, health and fitness and careers at Boomerater.com.