Frugality is a powerful trait to wield when you know how to use it. In fact, being frugal can literally take you from struggling to stable when done properly. Did you know, however, that frugality can also lead to increased debt and expenses? It happens every single day across the planet . Ironically, some of the most common frugal tips can bring on the most damaging mistakes. Sometimes it is due to misunderstanding the tips and other times it is simply bad advice. Here are five common “going frugal” tips that can be quite destructive to your financial well being:.
Insurance Roulette – Are you one of those people that always seem to surf the edge of your insurance policy limitations? Perhaps you are paying the lowest possible deductible and hoping for divine intervention. Maybe you have the minimum coverage on your automobile policy and are rolling the dice on your good luck. Taking chances to save a few bucks on insurance is a very bad plan for financial security. You are not buying insurance to follow the law…you are buying it to prepare for emergencies.
Bulk Buying Warehouses – Sam’s Club, Costco and countless other big box retailers that offer up giant jars of mayo in bulk are awesome for things you use on a regular basis. That said, you have to keep some things in mind when doing so. For example, twenty five pounds of mayo is no good to you ninety percent of it will expire before going bad. People tend to go overboard in these stores so you have to stick to the things you will actually use. Toilet paper, kitty litter and supplies for your next bake sale all make sense for frugal minded people. Fifty pallets of green olives? Not so much…
Going Cheap on Electronics – When you buy a car, you generally purchase quality. The reason is because you know that repairs are expensive. The same goes for a home or other high ticket item. Electronics fall into this category as well if you are living a modern life. Think it over…imagine you could buy your cell phone, television, computer, Blu-ray player, laptop and video game all over again. Odds are you probably would do some things differently. Everyone goes cheap on something and wishes they had spent the extra money for a decent electronics brand.
The Quickie Food Diet – Fast food has fallen in popularity dramatically over the last few years…Oh wait a minute. That would be on a logical planet. For whatever reason, people still insist on eating the foods that will inevitably hurt them. As a side benefit to this terrible affliction, money is wasted in massive quantities every year to this industry. Many people think that eating out is cheaper, but the numbers don’t show that to be true. Eating out costs you extra money and that is a proven fact. Eat fresh, clean foods and you will save money.
Coupons for Everything! – Coupons are a fantastic way to save money. Coupons are basically free money waiting to be collected. That said, using coupons to buy copious amounts of things you are never going to use or to “save money” for the sake of being able to say you did is a waste. There are people out there that will spend fifty cents on something they would never normally buy simply because it normally costs a couple bucks. If you buy something you did not want, you lost fifty cents. Like everything else on this list, coupons must be used smartly.
Despite the seeming contradiction, being frugal can certainly cost you money in the long run. What other ways can you think of?
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Sometimes buying cheaper products don’t work. If they don’t work well, it doesn’t matter that they’re cheaper.
i agree :) I use brand name laundry soap, fabric softener, dish soap, and hair products, to name a few. I do however, shop sales and use coupons to get the brand name products, often cheaper than store brands. But I have fallen trap to buying too much of something because it was on sale or I had a coupon to get it for a cheap price and then storing it and eventually tossing it out (which I have a hard time doing) Pack rat tendencies …