Are you feeling the pinch of inflation? The cost-of-living crisis is hitting families hard, and they’re struggling to keep up with basic costs. Budgets are hurting, families are cutting back everywhere they can, and some are turning to credit cards and even payday loans to pay for essentials.
Costs are rising everywhere, including:
- Groceries
- Rent
- Mortgage payments
- Gas
- Childcare
- Taxes
- And more
While it won’t be easy, these tips should help you get through these lean times and manage the rising cost of living. From drastic moves to minor tweaks, there are a lot of ways you can tackle rising costs.
#1 Move Somewhere More Affordable
In cities across North America, rent and mortgage costs have become unrealistic. In places like California, New York, Ontario, and British Columbia, shelter costs have become out-of-reach for normal people.
That’s leading to a massive out-migration of working and middle-class families to places with more affordable costs. There are still cities, states, and provinces out there with plenty of job opportunities and a lower cost of living.
To be fair, picking up and moving cities is a drastic measure, and it’s not going to be a solution for everyone. Nevertheless, there may be towns and cities within commuting distance from your job, family, and friends with more affordable prices.
Other options for reducing your rent costs include finding a roommate or moving in with a partner. The single tax (the difference you pay for living expenses when you live alone rather than splitting those costs) is steep, and one way you can reduce those costs is by living with someone else.
Homeowners may want to take advantage of their basement and renovate it into a separate rental. While you may need to lean on a line of credit to renovate, it can become a reliable source of income over many years.
#2 Sell Your Gold and Silver Jewellery
If ongoing costs aren’t your current problem, but you’ve recently depleted your emergency savings or gone into debt, you might just need a one-time influx of cash.
One of the best ways to raise some extra cash is to sell gold and silver jewellery that you no longer like or wear anymore. Even broken jewellery can be worth a lot if you take it to the right place.
Buyers like Muzeum focus on the precious metals content of jewellery. They look at the weight of the piece and the precious metal content, which is measured as a percentage or in karats. Take your jewellery to get a quote on how much you can get paid to part ways with it.
#3 Drive Less or Give Up Your Car
Not everyone will be able to give up their car, depending on where they live and work, but if you have access to decent public transit, you can save thousands of dollars every year. Car ownership can cost up to 20% of your household income between car payments, insurance, repairs, and gas.
By contrast, a monthly transit pass should cost $150 a month or less, depending on where you live. Drastic moves can lead to big savings like these.
Even deciding to take transit for your daily commute while you leave your car in the driveway can make a difference. Crunch the numbers to see what makes sense: always filling up your tank for your work commute or paying for transit to get back and forth. You can still use your car for running errands or getting out of town, and it makes a lot of sense if your vehicle is already paid off.
Another way you can save money and improve your physical health is by riding a bike to work. Whether or not it’s feasible really depends on where you live and the kind of cycling infrastructure that exists, but you can reduce your commuting costs to zero while burning calories, building strength, becoming more physically fit, and enjoying all the benefits of cycling.
#4 Start a Second Job or Side Hustle
If you’re not able to make a big life change that will reduce your expenses, you may want to consider a move that will boost your income.
Get a second job that will fit your schedule. For some, that might mean taking evening shifts. For others, it might mean freelancing your skills online and fitting work in whenever you can, whether it’s after the kids are in bed, early in the morning, or on the weekends.
There are plenty of ways you can earn more money on your own. Taking advantage of ride-sharing and food delivery apps can help you quickly earn some extra cash when you have the time to spare. It provides flexibility and freedom, as you can log on whenever you have the chance.
Alternatively, you can also look into freelancing opportunities to leverage the professional skills you already have. With the rise of remote work, there are more opportunities to work off-hours and in a freelancing capacity. Check out your opportunities online to see what kinds of freelancing opportunities exist.
#5 Review Your Budget
You never know if there are more places where you can cut back until you try. There are several easy wins most families can find when they review their budgets.
One is often subscriptions you don’t use or could easily live without, as well as internet, cable, or cellphone plans that you could be saving more on. Take some time to do some deal shopping. Are there packages or bundles you can take advantage of that will reduce your costs?
Thanks to rising inflation, essentials are increasingly the cause of a budget crunch, and it can be very tough to reduce costs like groceries. That said, there are a few things you can try. Your first option is to try doing your shopping at a more affordable grocery store. Many grocery chains have both up-market and budget stores, where you can usually find all of the same products you’ve gotten used to at a lower price.
Another idea to cut down on groceries is to do more meal planning. Plan meals that revolve around similar ingredients so that you don’t wind up throwing so much out at the end of the week.
Getting ahead with the high cost of living can be a challenge, but there are steps you can take to make more progress and fight back against rising costs.
