Ways to Save for My College Expenses This Month & Beyond

Last December I decided to quit my full time job and to go back to school. We had a small savings account for my college expenses. However, during this current semester those funds were depleted. For next semester (coming up in a few weeks) and the upcoming ones, we have to find extra ways to save funds to pay for my tuition and books. In order for this to occur, we have had to creatively develop ways to save money. Our savings plans will include small, mid and large ticket items to help reduce our overall expenses.

Ways to Save for My College Expenses This Month & Beyond
#MarchIntoSavings #CollectiveBias

We developed a game plan by analyzing our big ticket items. We began by looking at our house & car insurance policies. Our home insurance premiums have increased almost every year, therefore, we started by calling the insurance company to find the cause of this and to make the necessary changes to reduce our overall premium. We determined that by increasing our deductible, it will save us more than $700 yearly, which is a huge savings for us. After finding this we moved onto our car insurance, which coincidentally is up for renewal later this month. In revising our car insurance policy, we were able to reduce the cost of our monthly premium by more than $50, which translates to a yearly savings of $600.

In order to keep the saving money ball rolling, we took a closer look to our medium ticket items. I began by making a list of our utilities and finding ways of reducing them. First stop, I changed all the light bulbs in the entire house to compact soft white florescent light bulbs. I also, installed a low cost water flow meter in every water outlet. By re-sealing all the windows and adding needed insulation in the attic will also furthered our utilities savings. In addition, I have replaced the flap that holds the water in the toilet tanks, and lowered the water level per flush to one gallon. These small but significant adjustments, will not only save us money this months & this year, but for years to come.

Another medium ticket item for us is our cell phone bill. Paying more than $150 a month for phone service is not an effective way to save money. While my wife and I were shopping for a few needed items at our favorite Walmart store, we decided to stop by the entertainment area to learn more about the Walmart Family Mobile plans and the current devices available. We learned that the Walmart Family Mobile plans are only $29.88/month(for the first line). Which includes Unlimited Talk, unlimited Text & unlimited Data service plan and up to 500MB of 4G LTE data. Deciding to switch to the Walmart Family Mobile was no brainier, we went with the Samsung Galaxy Avant smart phone for me. After that, all we had to do to switch was purchase a Walmart Family Mobile starter kit for $25 and sign up for the Walmart Family Mobile in-store or online. We did it online and it was easy as one-two-three.

(My typical veggies for lunch, doesn’t it looks yummy?)

Finding all these ways to save money has been quite a fun task but since I am on a mission to save my family as much as I can, I decided to take one more step before concluding my mission for now. Last but not least, if you have been following my journey, you know that I am determined to not only succeed in school, but to also maintain my weight loss journey. Since earlier this year, my family and I have been making more conscious decisions on the products we purchase at the grocery store. We are purchasing less processed foods and focusing on healthier options, subsequently save us money on medical bills and extends our health. We have also integrated other small changes to this, such as, eating more at home and eating less out, which in turn helps up save a lot of money. Honestly, I know it’s easier to eat out then cook three meals a day at home. However, with a little effort it can be done and you know exactly what you are eating, plus the best part is that you get to spend more time with your family catching up.

Now that I have been able to find ways to save money that could go towards my college expenses, I feel more at ease. However, this journey doesn’t end here as I will continue to look for ways to help my family save more money, so that I can continue with my mission. Do you have other effective ways of saving money, I would love to hear your comments. Please drop me a note, by leaving a comment in the comment section below.

Keep in mind: All prices for phones and plans included in this post are accurate as of the date of posting; however, these prices are subject to change. Please refer to this list here or your local Walmart for current pricing.