tips for
SAVING
your cold hard cash written & designed by newie
tips for students, from students. The tips start here --------------------------------------------------------- Pg 2 Budgeting guide
------------------------------------------------------------ pg 6
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13. Get a U-Card. 10% off woolies/coles and lots of discounts on-campus.
1. NUSA on campus provide a huge array of services to help your budget, including (but not limited to) cheap fruit and vegie boxes, a free BBQ lunch on Thursdays & free breakfasts. http://www.nusa.org.au/
14. Make a fair trade – swap some of your extra time helping a mate move their lounge to a new house in exchange for them to use their plumbing skills and fix that tap in your kitchen.
2. Free exercise – running, bike riding, aerobics in your living room, swimming at the beach, situps etc. Much cheaper than a gym membership!
15. Whenever you have spare change in your wallet, take it out at home and put it in an empty milo or coffee tin. This will not only start a little cash nest egg (which you should take to the bank regularly to deposit) but will curb spending small amounts of cash regularly on things like coffee, snacks, etc because these places often only accept cash.
3. Shop at Aldi/own brand foods. Buy generic instead of brand name products eg. Wheat Bricks instead of Wheat Bixs 4. Cook together with housemates/college mates. Buying in bulk and splitting the cost is an amazing saver and eliminates waste!
16. GO ONLINE! You can buy almost anything online at a cheaper price, especially clothing, cosmetics, and electrical products.
5. Buy second hand textbooks. A good place to look is www.textbookexchange.com.au
17. Cheap, refurbished laptop website: www.greenpc.com.au
6. Pack lunches, or eat leftovers – avoid fast foods or prepackaged foods.
18. Don’t be afraid to buy second hand – especially things like bicycles.
7. If heading out for the night, have some pre-drinks at your place beforehand, instead of spending money on pub price drinks.
19. Gumtree.com > look for products (often furniture) that are being given away – all your need to do is go pick it up!!
8. Use your Pockitpal whenever you can. 20. If you are going to buy pizza, make sure you do it on Cheap Tuesday
9. There are free carparks (carpark 15 & 16) on Callaghan campus, and you can park along University Drive for free!
21. Suss out which nights different pubs have their drink and meal specials on and plan your social events around those like birthday parties etc.
10. If you have one, make the most of your travel concession – use public transport and receive a 50% discount! 11. Split the cost and share a University parking permit between yourself and boyfriend/housemate/sister etc. If you don’t have a parking permit, then carpool with friends and split the cost of the day ticket between you! 12. Read the back of shopping dockets. Sometimes you will find deals for handy things like 2 for 1 meals at Hogs Breath Cafe.
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22. Have a high interest, second bank account that you don’t have a keycard for. Use this as your savings account, and have an automatic transfer set up to deposit into it weekly. It will add up quickly – just don’t touch it!! 23. Use SKYPE! Compare skype rates to your mobile phone calling rates to see what is cheaper for different calls (overseas, interstate, landline, etc). 24. Save your Money. Save the Environment. Save your health. Bike Ecology Centre http://newcastlebikeecologycentre.blogspot.com
25. Shop around for the best student banking and credit cards deals. You can compare banks at websites like mozo.com 26. Food shopping late at night for specials (especially bbq chickens!) 27. Hold a swap night with friends to exchange unwanted items! 28. Save on Electricity - When possible, use the microwave over the stovetop or oven, wash clothes in cold water, turn off lights and lamps, don’t open and close the fridge often 29. Use places that ‘price match’. This goes for electrical goods, flights, hardware, etc. 30. Go veggie as often as possible! Three meatless days a week (using beans or other appropriate protein substitute) can save you up $25 a week, which adds up to $1,200 a year!!! 31. If you insist on buying meat, BUY IN BULK from a butchers and FREEZE. 32. Set up an automatic transfer from your savings account. Preferably straight after pay day each week/fortnight so you won’t even notice the money missing!
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What is something small and cheap that you buy often or regularly? These costs add up so quickly! Use the demotivator tool & find out how much you’re spending: www.moneysavingexpert.com/protect/demotivator/
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BUDGETING GUIDE.
Using your guide will commitment much money
own personal income and expenditures, this give you an idea of what kind of financial studying at University involves, and how you will have to work with anually.
WEEKLY Employment Centrelink Partners/Parents income
income
ANNUAL ______ + +
Grants or Bonuses
______
Scholarships
______ x 52wks
= ______
+ +
Other income
A
______ ______ ______
= ______
B
expenses WEEKLY Rent Food Childcare Petrol/Public Transport Sport/Gym membership Spending money Other weekly
MONTHLY + + + + + +
=
______
Utilities (Gas, etc)
______
Internet/Phone
______
+ +
Other monthly
______
______ ______ ______ x 12mnths
______ =
______ ______
ANNUAL
x 52wks
Car Rego/Insurance
______
C
Parking/Permit Course Fees (upfront) Health Care Other Insurance Other Yearly
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D
+ + + + +
=
A + B - C + D + E
______
- $
______
E