Smart shopping - Once baby comes, you’ll see pretty quickly that you need to budget to keep your family expenses under control. Here are some tips you can use to help make ends meet:


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Smart Shopping

Once baby comes, you’ll see pretty quickly that you need to budget to keep your family expenses under control. Here are some tips you can use to help make ends meet:

Look for Sales - Many items that you need on a regular basis tend to go on sale every few weeks or so. So keep an eye out for sales prices on the items that you know you are going to need. And if you do see a good sale, stock up on the item, assuming that it isn’t perishable or has a limited shelf life.

Make Sure it Fits - A “sale” is no sale if the item doesn’t fit or isn’t built well. Before being enticed to purge during a “sale” make sure the item you are purchasing is worth it. Check clothes for proper fit and quality material. Remember, it’s better to buy fewer pieces of higher quality that will last than wasting money on cheap items that won’t suit their purpose.

Compare Items - Sometimes paying for a brand name good is a great idea. For example, buying a good quality car like a Toyota is well worth any extra cost because you know you’ll save money and time by having a reliable trouble free mode of transportation. But sometimes brand names goods cost appreciably more, with little or no premium in quality. So look at the product, test it out, compare the quality vs. other similar goods and ask friends for recommendations before you make the purchase.

Don’t Finance Your Purchases - Stores always have incentives for you to open credit card accounts with them. The reason they do this is that the finance charges you pay them are basically pure profit. Paying 18%-22% or more is not a cost effective way to make purchases. So only use credit cards for purchases that you can pay off immediately. Otherwise, you are going to go into debt and with these outrageous interest rates, it will take you forever to get out. So if you can’t afford to pay cash for an item, you can’t afford it! Move on and wait until you have saved enough to make the purchase.

Look for Quality - As mentioned, sometimes you buy a brand for brand sake. Does it really make sense to go all out on those branded, high end jeans for your 3 year old when they will outgrow them in a couple months? Instead, use your money wisely and trade up (from a quality standpoint) on those goods that you will need over the long haul such as appliances and reliable transportation.

Do You Really Need It? - Retailers really know how to get us in our pocketbooks. With all those sales, beautiful displays and easy credit terms, it’s easy to want, want, want! So before you plunk down your hard earned cash, think to yourself, “Do I really need this?” If you’re not sure, wait a couple weeks and see if you still need it. Chances are you’ll figure out that the item isn’t as critical as you thought.

Hand Me Downs - Hand me downs are great for kids. Kids grow so fast that sometimes they only wear a clothing item 1 or 2 times. So take advantage of hand me downs, or buy lightly worn children’s clothes at thrift shops or consignment shops where you can save up to 90% off of new prices.

Shop Off Season - Shopping off season is a great way to save money. As stores move to their new seasonal merchandise, they will normally put their off season products on tremendous discount. Use these opportunities to selectively buy merchandise that you know you will need.