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7 things you lose money

These days, keeping your budget in line is not measured by the amount spent, but how much to save.

Before blaming your daily trip to Starbucks or a weeklong trip to the cinema to break your budget, a very hard what you pay for less obvious but much more wasteful of money, as overdraft and car insurance.

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Reduce consumption of these seven items and you can save about $ 1,000 per year.

1) Bottled water

Get your recommended eight glasses of water a day by the bottle rather than the key is a huge waste of money, "said Phil Lempert, founder of Supermarket Guru. This Buck water bottle down on a regular basis can add up. (Even more so now cities like Chicago that charges a fee of five cents a bottle.)

Potential savings: Spend $ 37 to buy a Brita 40-oz pitcher and filter ($ 13 at Bed, Bath and Beyond), more than four packages of replacement filters ($ 24), and you will be able to filter 200 liters of water. Buy This amount of water in 24-packs 16.9 oz bottles of Aquafina shop Rite site, and wants to spend $ 283.50. Your Total Savings: $ 246.50.

2) Guarantees extended

Think twice before paying $ 10 per month for a plan to protect your BlackBerry two years in new and expensive. New products tend to malfunction in the original manufacturer's warranty, or after an extended warranty has expired, "said Michael Gartenberg, vice president of strategy and analysis interpretation LLC, a market researcher. (Most extended warranties exclude accidental damage, too, so we would still be so if you drop the BlackBerry and the crack of the screen.) For protection, pay with credit cards right. Many credit cards – including most of the cards American Express and MasterCard – double the warranty on purchases, adding up to one year of free coverage.

Someone buying potential savings: a 40-inch Samsung HDTV flat screen for $ 800 Best Buy has the ability to add a security plan for four years for another $ 150. Skip, and pocket the money instead. (All is a year manufacturer's warranty.)

3) go to the gym

The cost of a subscription the gym can actually earn in a year (an average of $ 775, according to the International Health Regulations, Racquet & Sportsclub Association). Therefore, be sure to call the discounts available. Check with your employer, health insurance and other membership groups, such as your union or foundation to see if they offer discounts on subscriptions to health clubs and fitness, "said Bob Nelson, president of Nelson Motivation, benefits consulting.

The potential Savings: yours, it would pay $ 54.99 per month plus $ 49 registration fee for a national access to Bally's Total Fitness. Thanks GlobalFit.com discounter, offering special rates for members of affiliates, you must pay $ 37.80 per month plus registration fee of $ 29 for members of the same Bally's. More a one-year membership, $ 226.28 registration.

4) overdraft fees

overdraft fees can run as high as $ 35 each, and banks have a lot of clever tricks that can make the consumer even more diligent in opening an account. For example, you can approve Debit purchases you turn red, or change the order of operations so that larger purchases are the first – and last processed deposits. To protect yourself, join for overdraft protection, which can cost as little as $ 5 to $ 10 per year (and often without high level of control accounts), and can save you hundreds of dollars.

Potential savings: pay $ 5 per year for a credit line associated with Citibank. Only starts when in excess, to help avoid charges of $ 30 per overdraft. Spoil the only four times a year and has saved $ 115.

5) organic

Sure, buying Eco you feel like you do right, but not always the best choice for your portfolio. Fruits and vegetables such as kiwi, broccoli and sweet corn are particularly some pesticides to grow. Others – such as avocado, onion and pineapple – have thick skin or rind, to reduce their exposure to hazardous chemicals. "Any pesticide that is is not happening, "says Lempert. For a useful reminder when you buy, download the Environmental Working Group Guide portfolio of organic products.

Potential savings: fresh broccoli $ 2.99 per pound organic grocer FreshDirect online, which also offers conventional broccoli $ 1.49. A book of navel oranges is $ 4 to $ 2 for organic and conventional. A person buys a book each week could save $ 182 on topic over a year.

6) Insurance "Car Insurance>

"Auto insurance [] often offer discounts to consumers who do not drive long distances, "said Sam Belden, a spokesman for Insurance.com. If your driving habits have changed in recent months – for example, have changed jobs or cutting travel expensive in the mall – Call your insurer to see if they are now entitled to a better rate.

Potential savings: Driver cuts back to less than 7,500 miles per year could reduce by 5% to 15% reduction in premiums, according to your insurer. Note that the average deposit $ 817 per year in auto insurance, according to the Insurance Information Institute, which saves $ 40.85 to $ 122.55.

7) Download Music

For years, owners of Apple iPod and iPhone have been blocked downloading of their music on iTunes, while consumers with MP3 players could not put the contents of the service on your device. But now the online music providers more (from Apple, including Mars) offer content in a DRM-free format – which means that play on any MP3 player What. This frees users from iTunes to pursue music sites like expensive Wal-Mart and Amazon.com. Fans of the music with other MP3 players can benefit from Apple goes DRM-free, too. The Company plans to reorganize its prices in April, charging 69 cents to $ 1.29 per song rather than the current rate of 99 cents flat. In brief: Check the prices on several sites for download.

Potential savings: Hot N Cold "by Katy Perry on iTunes cost 99 cents, but only 74 cents at Wal-Mart and 79 cents a song Someone buys Amazon.com per week. could save $ 1040 to $ 13 a year around the basket.

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