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Retired Community Manager

ATM Smart Savings Sweepstakes

We know that saving, especially for retirement, isn’t easy! That’s why the editors of AARP The Magazine created a digital magazine all about savings and retirement. AARP The Magazine’s Special Money & Retirement digital issue is here to help you better save for what lies ahead.  Post your favorite savings tip in the discussion below. Just by posting you’ll be entered for a chance to win the grand prize of $1,000!

 

How to download the special Money and Retirement digital issue:

 

It’s easy to download the digital magazine! Click here  to read the special Money & Retirement digital issue.

 

Enter the sweepstakes in 2 easy steps:

1. Sign in or register on AARP.org

2. Post to the “AARP Smart Savings Sweepstakes” discussion board.

 

That’s it. You’ve entered the sweepstakes.

 

Contest ends October  1, 2016. See Official Rules and Terms of Service. Be sure to tell us what you think about the new digital magazine by completing our short survey here.

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Regular Contributor

One of the best ways we taught our savings strategy to our children was to open up Roth IRA's for them. They had to have earned income (but they managed to find grass cutting or pet sitting assignments) and we would match what they earned and deposit it in an account. At first it was hard to find a financial institution that would establish a Roth IRA for minors, but with a little research we managed.

 

We have not had to dip into our retiremnt savings to bail them out. They have maintained this savings habit after leaving the "nest" (and not moved into our basement)!

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Contributor

Every time you get a $5.00 or $1.00 bill set it aside. You'll have enough for vacation or put in your retirement fund. 

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Contributor

We need to save and we also need to consider green options for saving. In Southern California, it pays off to install solar panels on the roof and use it to recharge the electrical vehicles, meaning covering both the household electricity usages and the transportation costs. Solar panels for household electricity alone might yield any savings on energy costs. However, with the electrical vehicles, the savings could turn positive. This is an environmental friendly way of saving for everyone, not just retired folks.
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Contributor

Have the funds automatically transferred to your savings account.

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Contributor

What really excites me is that there are so many topics covered that all one has to do is read, read, read...

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Contributor

If you are still working, have money deposited into a savings account or invested before you ever see it. No temptation to spend it on something else!

 

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Contributor

As a self-employed person, I learned to pay yourself first!

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Contributor

In our town the 1st Wed of the month the grocery stores offer 10% discount to 55+ shoppers.  We make it a savings adventure by combining our store savings card, digital coupons, and buying the staples we need for the month on the first Wednesday. It is a fun way to save-- enjoy "oldies" muzak, free cup of coffee and cookie.

jodi oh
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Periodic Contributor

There is a video that you can Google called Thai Tricks.  It shows you many unbelievable but amazing ways that you can reuse your plastic bottles(soda).  Watch it-you will be amazed!


@AARPLynne wrote:

We know that saving, especially for retirement, isn’t easy! That’s why the editors of AARP The Magazine created a digital magazine all about savings and retirement. AARP The Magazine’s Special Money & Retirement digital issue is here to help you better save for what lies ahead.  Post your favorite savings tip in the discussion below. Just by posting you’ll be entered for a chance to win the grand prize of $1,000!

 

How to download the special Money and Retirement digital issue:

 

It’s easy to download the digital magazine! Click here  to read the special Money & Retirement digital issue.

 

Enter the sweepstakes in 2 easy steps:

1. Sign in or register on AARP.org

2. Post to the “AARP Smart Savings Sweepstakes” discussion board.

 

That’s it. You’ve entered the sweepstakes.

 

Contest ends October  1, 2016. See Official Rules and Terms of Service. Be sure to tell us what you think about the new digital magazine by completing our short survey here.


 

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Contributor

I've been trying to teach my kids to search the stores and the internet for the best value when they purchase something. Coupons can often be found for the online counterpart of an actual brick and mortar store.  One day my daughter said to me, "Mom you would have been proud, I found a discount coupon online and another coupon for free shipping."  Yes, I was proud!

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Contributor

Keep a cushion savings in the bank. Don't spend everything you have
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Periodic Contributor

Make savings an every day habit and always ask "Want or Need?"

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Contributor

The best question to ask: How much do you really need?
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Contributor

Keep your bread in the freezer for longer lasting freshness

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Regular Contributor

Use a credit card with cash back.  Tonight we had a nice meal in a good resturant all paid with the cash back.

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Regular Contributor

Join AARP and enter the sweepstakes

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Contributor

Right after I enter my deposit into the checkbook I them pay myself first with a minimum of 10% of the total deposit. this money is subtracted from my balance but never spent. It is saved in my checkbook but not as a balance in the register.

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For the time being, with the sole exception of gasoline prices, real (vs government reported) inflation continues to outpace interest paid on consumer savings. As a result, traditional savings accounts yield a net loss of total value over time. This is not to say that no one should try to set aside some funds in traditional savings, but the net result will end up being a loss in real value over time as long as interest savings is far outpaced by real inflation. Other "investment" options, like stocks, are not a substitute for Federally insured savings, because stocks not long held for decades are nothing more than a form of gambling, not "savings." That said, what savings I do have I keep with reputably insured credit unions, who are far more likely to use that money to issue productive loans that are based in my local economy. As a result, my credit union savings yield higher interest than equivalent savings instruments offered by commercial banks. I mimimize my losses against real inflation (although I still lose), while actually stimulating my local economy in truly beneficial, grassroots ways. In today's economy, I look at "savings" more from a fiscal, rather than monetary, perspective. Pay for what you really need, while maximizing the performance/utility/value of everything you buy. 1) No impulse buying. All "splurges" (anything outside of necessity) are thoroughly researched in advance, so that when the price and time are right, that's the time to finally pounce. 2) Learn about the true value of the things you buy. Not just the price per unit, but the effectiveness, reliability, durability, guarantees (reading the fine print) and other protections that are also knowable through reliable sources (don't just "google it"). You'll save a lot of time and money by not just shopping on price alone and make life more repeatably predictable in good ways. 3) Join buying clubs and rewards programs that make sense according to your needs. Discounts in bulk on items that pass muster according to 1) and 2) above and reasonable rebates/dividends on necessities are always good things. Even if you're an apartment dweller with limited storage space, bulk buys can be divided among multiple households. I always ask if my AARP (AAA, professional society, etc) membership gets me any special deal and am pleasantly surprised more often than not. 4) Do business with retailers that have a genuine price match guarantee. Know the exact terms of their offers and hold them to it everytime. We should all know by now that no savvy consumer pays MSRP. 5) I also clip coupons, but never for anything less than $1 off per unit. Manufacturers' coupons are paid for in their marking budgets, which really means I paid for them, previously, as a consumer. If it's for a penny less, I personally don't have the scissors time. 6) Never engage in transactions that will incur fees that can otherwise be avoided. My credit unions allow me to use any ATMs within their networks of participating CUs with no ATM fees, making them just as available to me as my commercial bank's ATMs. I never use my commercial bank's ATM card outside of their network. 7) Pay off credit cards monthly. Period. If you aren't doing this, you are hemmoraging money in order to live beyond your means; making any money set aside in savings a total fantasy of financial security. Card issuers are addicted to revolving consumer debt like addicts to opiods. Time to save yourself by cutting those vultures off. If you're already in their hole, make a plan to really pay it off (vs transferring that debt to some other instrument) ASAP.
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Contributor

Always pay yourself first. 

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Regular Contributor

Mu husband and I rent out a room in our home $500 a month cash our rent is $500 a month Cash

I figured out if we would use the cash we receive to pay the rent we would save a $1.80 a month on ATM fee over the last 44 months that adds up to a little over $75.

If we would stop withdrawing cash from my account which is at least once a month we would save $4 per transaction soover the last 44 months that addds up to $176 plus the $75 tats $251 we would have saved over the las 44 months not a lot but it is a start and if husband would quit drinking and smoking wel hell we could save a bundle. Will he listen to me Noooooooooooooooop

GEH
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And oh yes I have a big teddy bank I save pennies in used to be a small can but it got full so no I have my Big Teddy Retirement Fund., As I have figured out I will be working till I am 82 years old before I can collect Social Security if there is any Social Security Left by then.
GEH
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Contributor

Think before you spend!

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I've tried couponing -- been very obsessive about it even -- but the time it took to find coupons, clip them, store and sort them and remember to use them before they expired, coupled with the frustration of coupons that required me to buy 3 of something when I needed only one, finally convinced me that I was wasting far too much time.

 

Same thing with most so-called "loyalty" programs -- most weren't loyal to me because I'd rarely get enough credits before they expired or the value of the points was decreased sufficiently to make them nearly worthless.

 

I'm old. I don't know how many years I've got left, but I don't want to spend a moment of them chasing down elusive credits and rebates and cents-off coupons. I've got places to go, people to meet, things to do, life to experience! When money gets tight, I get a part time job or sell off something that I collected years ago and rarely look at today. I never go into debt -- if I can't afford something I want, I'll wait until I can. And if and when medical issues become too much to handle, financially or physically (as they almost certainly will), well, I've always thought Sweden would be a nice place to go.

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Sign up for savings cards and rewards cards at all of the grocery stores and pharmacies you use. I've gotten about $100 worth of points at my drugstore, and I only go about once a month.
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I have the AARP Chase Visa and I love it. With the points I earn I use them to put cash in the bank. Free is good.

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Medical medical medical.  You are threading the needle, how long will you last and how long with good health maintain.  From a 50,000' policy perspective, the nation needs to invest heavily in NIH and modernize FDA drug evaluation procedures.  They can find cures and methods to maintain healthy independent living far more successful than the 20 year old "standard of care".  Not making this investment sooner than later will bankrupt the country with massive health care costs and bankrupt families, dragging down the entire economy.  But to make it happen, NIH and FDA need to re-engineer how they get advanced meds and techniques to the population.  The Economist called it their 'lazy dogmatism".  Autologous regenerative medicine is to the medical profession as the car was to the horse and buggy.  It's vastly different and FDA/NIH have failed to meet the challenge and recognize the urgent need of how to think differently.  Even the cancer "moonshot" is mired in decades of procedural mud unless vast changes are made and drug/technique evaluation methods are modernized and fast tracked.  Let's roll people. 

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Periodic Contributor

Buy the best quality your money can buy.  By doing so, your things will last longer, and you'll save money in the long run.

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Periodic Contributor

The internet is great for finding coupons and discount codes. I use a credit card that gives cash back. I pay the credit card in full each month.  It is free money.

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There are SO many good ideas for "smart savings" it's hard to pick just one to talk about. I invested my money so I could retire early (at 55). I pay attention to store sales in the newpaper, and may go to 2 or 3 different stores to save the most on the items on sale at each. I also looked at my "fixed" expenses like phone bill, cable bill, utilities, etc. to see if I could comparison shop to reduce those bills by downgrading plans or switching providers. Also, I look for free or cheap entertainment ideas in my local community publications.  But my best tip is what to DO with your smart savings: Put away lots of extra money into IRAs or other mutual fund investments through your working years, so YOU can retire early.

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Newbie

Pay off highest interest rate debt first like credit cards, then work your way down towards the lower interest rate debt.

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