52 Week Money Challenge - Week 8 - Negotiate Your Bills

Saving money is hard. It takes discipline and self-control to stick with the plan you developed.  This year why not make it easy on yourself?

I am a huge fan of ING (ING has been bought by Capital One and will become Capital One 360. Doesn't look like much will change...). ING lets you automate your savings so you don't have to think about it. The greatest feature is that it takes a couple days to get money transferred back to your checking account. There are a couple ways around this, but not being able to touch the money in your ING accounts is great for medium/long term savings goals.

If you have an ING, or other savings account, simply automate your savings transfers each month according to the chart below and watch the money stack up.

If you don't have a savings account, GET ONE! Not just for this challenge but everyone needs at least one savings account - with an Emergency Fund.

This week $8.00 should be transferred to your savings account. We are up to $36.00 this year.

Things from this point on will start to grow pretty quickly. How are you doing? Any savings light bulbs going off? Have you planned what you are going to do with the money at the end of the year?

Challenge Total Week 8 = $36.00 

The last couple weeks we have been bringing our lunch, taking public transportation, or any other way to save a couple of bucks a week. This week, start really looking into your expenses. Look at your monthly bills. Is there any you can cut back? Do you need all of those channels? Do you read those magazines? Are you using your gym membership?

The best bills I have found to cut back or negotiate are cable, cell phone, and credit card interest.  Call your provider and ask for a lower plan or rate (you stand a better chance of having your bill lowered if you consistently pay your bill on time). Give it a try and share the results in the comment section...

Even if you missed weeks 1 through 7, you can still get started today. Deposit $28 into a savings account and you will be caught up.

Keep Up the Good Work!