57 tips to beat the recession

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Readers and the professionals offer their tips to beat the recession.

You can send in your own tips here

See our Surviving the Recession special section at nzherald.co.nz/go/surviving09

READERS

FOOD
1. Get together with friends, family or neighbours and buy groceries, meat and vegetables in bulk lots.
2. Find the cheapest supermarket – shop wisely.
3. Look for cheaper substitutes for expensive food.
4. Don't buy takeaways except on special occasions. Home cooked meals are yum.
5. Drink water rather than soft drinks.
6. Cut back on non-essentials, especially coffee.
7. Consider becoming a vegetarian or vegan.
8. Buy in bulk.
9. Take your lunch to work.
GOODS
10. Swap kiddies clothing as soon as they grow out of them instead of hanging onto them.
11. If you have two cars, sell one.
12. Sell things you can do without on Trademe.
13. Buy clothes that will last.
BILLS
14. Change to a pre-pay mobile.
15. Save on electricity – use extra blankets.
LIFESTYLE
16. Stop smoking.
17. Cut out Sky. Hire the odd DVD.
18. Keep internal optimism. Keep focused on what's important/a goal, or intention. Appreciate what you have today.
19. Watch your health – don't stress.
20. Stay warm.
21. Carpool or bus.
22. Walk the dog instead of going to the gym.
23. Limit all hot showers to 10 minutes.
24. Shower in the dark, using just the cold tap.
25. Try energy saving lamps.
26. Repair your clothes instead of buying new ones.
27. Put on more layers of clothes instead of using the heater.
MANAGING YOUR MONEY
28. Put all items on your credit card and get rewards points.
29. If you use a credit card pay it off before incurring interest.
30. Differentiate between need and want, - shop only for needs.
31. Get a set amount of cash out every week, leave credit/EFTPOS cards at home.
32. Stop buying Lotto tickets.
33. Reduce debt.
34. Buy an accounting journal to keep track of your expenses and income(s).
35. Reduce your broadband plan.
WORK
36. If you're still employed, work hard and appreciate your job. Don't give them an excuse to fire you.
37. Set up another income stream, eg home business/part time job.
38. Use automatic payments for bills so you know how much is left over each week.
39. Consolidate loans.
TIPS WE DIDN'T NECESSARILY AGREE WITH!
40. Ditch the poor husband and find a rich one!
41. Take up smoking - tobacco is cheaper than food and it's an appetite suppressant.
42. Lick the inside of the baked beans can clean
43. Wait by any duck pond, quite often you'll get bits of bread that the ducks haven't got.
44. Lie cheat and steal. The best way to get through a recession.

PROFESSIONALS

Raewyn Fox, New Zealand Federation of Family Budgeting Services (0508 283 438):
45. Don't take on debt that you're not absolutely sure you will be able to service.
46. Be very sure of your income and your job before taking on more debt.
47. Ask yourself, "What will happen to your debt commitments if you lose your job."
48. Have a backstop bank account.
49. Set up a bank account with enough money in it to pay for your expenses for up to two months. That includes mortgage payments, power, phone and other bills.
50. Do some forward planning. Work out a 12 month projection of your expenditure using bills and bank account statements. An annual projection is necessary because it takes into account annual expenditure such as car registration, winter school uniforms, rates and insurance payments.
51. Don't wait for the mortgagee sale notice or the repossession notice.

Jackie Gower, Simple Savings NZ:
52. Fill your pantry with staples.
53. Start cooking from scratch, instead of buying expensive ready-made options. "We've lost a lot of basics and survival skills in the last few decades".
54. Put in a veggie garden. It doesn't have to be big but it will help and it's amazing how much you don't have to buy.
55. Change your habits. Look at what you're spending money on everyday and look at the big picture.
56. Look at the cheaper brands in the supermarket. Don't just look at the products at eye-level, look for specials and cheaper brands.
57. Take a look at electricity. Check your lights at night and think about which rooms need to be heated in the winter and which don't.