How to Save Money on Entertainment Expenses

Lunch here and a dinner there might look like small expenses but if not budgeted correctly can ruin your budget calculations. If you are really serious about working on your budget and saving on your entertainment expenses be realistic with payday loans and leave a certain percentage of your budget for entertainment. The entertainment budget ensures that money is available for relaxation.

With an estimated fortune of $62 billion, Warren Buffett is the richest man in the world. Warren Buffet once said, “Don’t waste money! There is a big difference between being cheap or stingy (i.e. not being willing to open your purse strings to pay for anything) and being frugal (i.e. saving money in smart ways wherever possible and never paying more than the value you’re receiving in return).

Understand what are your needs and wants. Entertainment expenses come under wants.

Payday loans and Cash advance can be helpful in some situations, but they are best left for emergencies. A well-planned and properly maintained budget goes a long way not only in guilt-free relaxation but also helps in maintaining a bank account balance. Very small steps taken in the right direction can add to huge savings. Let us see how to begin:

· First and foremost, recognize that you need a provision for entertainment expenses in your budget. Usually, 5–7% of the budget should be an ideal amount to be kept aside for entertainment.

· Each family might have different kinds of entertainment expenses, so understand what all expenses come under this category.

On an average 5–7% of overall expenses of a family ideally should go under the entertainment heading. Cash loans quickly can help you with a cash advance in case you overshoot this amount. This percentage is just an estimate. It depends on what you include under this category. Typically, it should include expenses on services, movies, music events, books, fitness activities, leisure, and recreational activities, going to restaurants and bars. Some may include expenses on the internet and cell phones under entertainment. Family vacations are sometimes calculated separately or otherwise included herein.

Whatever is included in this category can be enjoyed with family and friends and a little planning beforehand, and involving your full family can help in saving on entertainment expenses as well.

· Expenses on services can be reduced: Services like cable, internet, and phone bills can be reduced by first analyzing your usage and checking whether there are any cheaper and better plans in the market. There are websites that allow you to compare and check for the best options available as per your needs. Free cable offered by Free view and Free view Plus or cheaper cable plans which offer the channels you watch is always available. Trim the expenses by cutting out the channels that you don’t watch. Internet expenses can be reduced by reducing the bandwidth. Many companies also have offered. Sign up with companies, for cheaper plans. Phone companies also have a variety of offers and the best offer suitable to your needs can help in saving.

Also Read: Household Finances

· Movies: Matinee shows are much cheaper than regular shows. Watching movies on Netflix, Amazon Prime or sites like Hulu can be a cheaper alternative instead of going to a theatre. Share your memberships to further reduce costs using the share benefits feature with another adult. Borrow DVDs from the public library. It comes without a fee.

                                                          

· Coupons: There are blog sites, newspapers, special deal sites that offer discount coupons. Some stores have coupons printed at the bottom or at the back of a receipt. Survey sites also offer a discount for filling online surveys. Eating out, movie tickets and such other entertainment expenses can be available at a discount. Finder will help you to find the best coupons, discounts, and vouchers in Australia.

· Music events, club expenses, fitness expenses, and other recreational activities: Most communities in Australia have community events planned for their community. Community events like music festivals and art fairs are a great way to spend your time and these events cost you nothing. The Simple Dollar has some great options listed. If you are looking for free things to do? The simple dollar having are more than a hundred fun and free ways to spend your time and not your money. Going to such events for spending time is a great alternative to going for paid events. Cancel your club memberships, if you are not using it much. Join the public library to loan out books, magazines, and movies instead of buying or subscribing to them. The public library also plans events for the community. Australia has great outdoors. Quit spending on expensive gyms and take to outdoor activities for remaining fit. Collaborate with others in the neighborhood and make it an enjoyable activity.

· Love your Coffee: Australians love their coffee. A simple switching from a large to a small latte can save $1.50 a day. This alone will save more than $500 a year on coffee. On the other hand, making your own coffee could save anything between $200 to $1000 a year based on an average cost of $2–5 per cup. Have coffee making activities and make it a joyful event with others around whether at home or in office and save your precious dollars.

                                                        

· Eating Out: Takeaways or fancy restaurants for entertaining, cost money at varying levels. Moderation is okay but when it becomes a regular feature for entertaining, it will make a huge dent on your entertainment budget. Think of alternatives like cooking at home, plan your meal ahead and shop at farmer’s markets to further cut costs, ask the other families whom you are entertaining to pitch in with a dish to make it a fun event, so that it does not fall on the host alone, carry your home-cooked lunch to the office to avoid takeaways. Another great option is Happy hours which lots of restaurants practice. ABC gives a break upon how much is spent per person on food by various groups of people. Spending on meals out and takeaway continues to rise, but where you get your money from plays a role in how much you spend.

· Alcohol and bar expenses: While eating out watch out for your alcohol bill. A great way to save on this is to go by the BYO policy (Buy Your Own). Restaurants who follow BYO policy allow you to get your own drinks and charge only corkage rates. The cost of drinks at a restaurant is much higher than when you buy it from a store. Otherwise, have your drinks at home first and then head to the restaurant for food.

Don’t let saving on entertainment expenses become a chore or a must-do. There are always Instant cash loans online, to help you with your financial needs. But to ensure continuity with saving on your entertainment expenses, and building a healthy bank account balance, it is important that you make it a fun and pleasurable activity that involves all the members of the family. The entertainment or relaxation budget should be relaxation and not a strain on anyone and if planned and adhered to properly will result in good savings.