A reader wanted to know what savings methods we used to pay our mortgage and debt off early.
My answer was, start early, which is what both Mrs. CBB and I did as paper carriers.
Coincidentally, a mother at our son’s school asked if Mrs. CBB worked, and she said no.
The mom’s response was, oh, it must be strict with one income to pay the bills.
Unfortunately, there are people out there that don’t understand how many savings methods there are.
Just because someone doesn’t work doesn’t mean they are broke or in a bad financial situation.
Today, I will explain 18 savings methods we used to become debt-free.
Exploring Savings Methods When Kids Are Young
Now, let’s get back to the paper carrier story for both Mrs. CBB and me.
Although we can’t turn back the time, we can still pay off debt and teach children the importance of saving money.
As parents, we go through this with our son wanting the latest video game machines and gadgets.
He has a piggy bank and briefcase (don’t ask) where he stores all of his Canadian dollars and coins.
I’ve taught him about money on numerous occasions using a pizza app on an Osmo learning device.
He loved it more than we had imagined, especially being a worker at a pizza shop.
The first savings method we were both taught was to put our money in the bank.
Both of us had bank accounts from a young age and would deposit our paper delivery cheques.
Cheques are still widely used however they cost a small fortune depending on where you bank.
We picked our cheques from Cheques plus in Canada to review, but we also get them free from Simplii financial.
We have been with Simplii Financial for almost 20 years without any issues.
We love them the most because they are a no-fee bank, and they accepted me when I first moved to Canada.
It’s one of the best banks in Canada that do not have a brick-and-mortar bank.
Everything is done online or on the Simplii Financial App, which we also use.
Join Simplii Financial today! No monthly fees. Great rates. As simple as that.
Plus, just for signing up, you get perks right from the get-go.
Get $50
When you use your friend’s unique link to open a No Fee Chequing Account, High-Interest Savings Account, or Personal Line of Credit
Deposit at least $100 in a No Fee Chequing Account or High-Interest Savings Account within six months after account opening, and keep $100 or more in the account for at least a 60 day
Use $100 off your Line of Credit within six months after opening the account.
Plus, get $200
When you open a No Fee Chequing Account
Add an eligible direct deposit of at least $100 a month for three straight months.
Your payroll, pension, or employment insurance should do the trick.
We also had to pay the bill to the newspaper company based on how many newspapers we sold.
Savings Methods For Kids To Increase Knowledge
In essence, paper carriers deliver a product, collect money for the development and pay a bill.
That’s all learned experience from having the responsibility of a paper route.
Pretty cool, huh? I loved it, and our neighbours were always kind to me.
Saving Methods That Allowed Us Mortgage Freedom
Here’s the thing, we never anticipated being mortgage-free by the age of 40.
Like most Canadians, we signed up for 25 years and did our best to save before we bought.
As the years go by, I feel that the ability to save more is available, but only if you look for it.
There are many mobile apps, discount codes, and free shipping, although it wasn’t available in the ’80s.
Hiding Debt To Look Good
The more stuff you have, the happier you’ll be are a dreamer or is good at acting in front of people.
I’m betting that some of you are house poor and regret spending what the bank allowed you to borrow.
I feel sorry for anyone looking to buy a house right now because it wouldn’t be an option for us.
Aside from buying our house in a buyers market, we used various savings methods to torch debt.
Here’s a little tip, debt freedom didn’t happen overnight. If you’re dedicated to becoming debt-free, then don’t let anything or anyone get in your way.
Let’s discuss the savings methods that we used and currently use to earn money, save money and invest it.
There was always a spark in the back of our minds about the future, even before we were married.
It’s no surprise we clicked when it came to understanding money and savings methods.
When you think about savings methods, it’s not just saving money in the bank either.
Savings methods encompass everything you do to keep money in your bank so you can invest it.
Investing your money also doesn’t necessarily mean going to a financial advisor and dumping it into a tax-free savings account.
I mean, you could, but before you do that, I’d suggest sitting down with a piece of paper and writing out your debts.
- Do you still have a mortgage?
- Is your vehicle paid off?
- How much money do you have invested in an RRSP or TFSA?
- Can you afford to put money into your child’s RESP?
- How much debt do you have? List everything
- What is your debt to income ratio?
Savings Methods Worth Exploring To Build Wealth
If you have zero debt, congratulations, but there are ways to pay it off for those who do.
I won’t be discussing all savings methods in today’s post, although I’ve narrowed it down to 18.
There will be an Ultimate Guide For Saving Money blog post that I’m working on for 2022.
Until then, let’s explore savings methods you may be already doing and perhaps some new ones.
Paying off debt was the best feeling in the world, and with no help from anyone but ourselves.
If you’re not new to CBB, you may have already read some of our savings methods in various blog posts.
For those who are new to CBB, please subscribe and enjoy our journey to debt freedom.
We have lovely CBB friends on this blog who share, comment and want to learn.
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1. Projected Expenses
I probably should have put budgeting first; however, we need to consider what we need to pay for during the year before we build a budget.
For example, if we have a $200 bill for Central Air maintenance and inspection for a unit under warranty, you save for it monthly.
Bill is due in October, so 200 prices of the inspection /10 months = $20 a month you need to set aside in a projected expense bank account.
We have a designated bank account just for our projected expenses, so they are entirely separate.
By following my projected expenses method, you will always have money to pay for future bills.
You can read more about projected expenses in my 10 Step Budgeting Mini Series.
2. Budgeting
The biggest and worst of all the savings methods for us is our monthly budget.
Without using the budget, we created in excel (free for subscribers), we know we would not be debt-free.
How do we know? Well, we used to calculate our expenses in our heads and by estimating.
Sure we saved money but nothing near as much as we did when we created our budget and stuck to it.
3. Second-Hand Shopping
For the record, we still go second-hand shopping because we love it.
We have found so many amazing deals at second-hand shops that it became one of our savings methods for housewares, clothing and everything in between.
4. Investing Money
We’ve both invested money for our retirement ever since our employer offered a matching pension plan.
Even though we are no longer working at the same places, we continued to invest in our RRSPs and constantly topped up the TFSA.
Most of the investing came after we paid our mortgage off as we had the extra money to do so.
We use a financial advisor as neither of us knows how to invest online like some of you might.
There’s nothing wrong with having a financial advisor, but you will pay for the services.
5. Buying and Selling
Another fantastic savings method is buying used or new items at second-hand shops and reselling them for more money.
We’ve been doing this for years and have always gotten a return on items we list.
Often it would be toys we bought for our son from Value Village or clothing.
Home decor is also famous as well wooden puzzles and educational materials.
6. Adult Allowance
A few years back, we decided to give ourselves an allowance which helped us control miscellaneous spending.
It has become a helpful budget category for us as we get what we get $50 each, and that’s it.
Once the $50 is gone, there’s no more dipping into the savings account for more.
We tend to save for what we need first and then wait for a sale to match rewards points or discount codes.
7. Refurbish
Like we purchase second-hand items to resell and earn money, we do the same with wood furniture.
My sister-in-law does a fantastic job with the furniture. She fixes up and sells it for an excellent return.
I find wood desks or other wooden household items or furniture, sands it, then stains it and sells it.
The best returns are when we find free furniture on the curb.
8 Rewards Points
Rewards points are fantastic, and we have rewards cards for almost every store we visit.
We also have online apps and mobile apps such as Rakuten Canada, where we find discount codes.
I’ve always said if you can earn money by spending money on items on sale, you’re halfway there.
Currently, we are sitting on over six million PC Optimum Points that we plan on using for groceries next year.
9 No-Fee Banking
As mentioned above, we bank with Simplii Financial that was once called PC Financial.
Both Mrs. CBB and I have bank accounts with Simplii and a MasterCard with PC Financial.
It’s no shock how we manage to earn extra PC Optimum points, which for us is lucrative.
You can spend your points at the grocery store, mobile store and Shoppers Drug Mart.
Having a no-fee bank account is incredible, and after using this bank for over 20 years, we have nothing wrong to say.
10 Do The Job Yourself
If you have a renovation or job that needs doing around the house, do it yourself.
Stop paying for people to come and do work for your home when you are capable.
DIY jobs are a huge money saver and one of my favourite savings methods since I enjoy renovations.
We do pay for some work as I can’t be a tradesman when I’m not.
11 Regular Maintenance
Saving money on regular maintenance such as completing an oil change on my truck to mowing the lawn, washing windows and landscaping is all done by me.
As in the Do it Yourself category, consider the amount of money you will save if you complete the work on your own.
12 Online Focus Groups
We both love online focus groups, which have been more in demand since Covid-19.
The other day a company emailed me a focus group opportunity, and it pays $150 for my time.
Check with your local university and college to see if they have focus groups that pay money.
As well, Google your city to see if there are any paying focus groups.
13 Went Without Or Bought A Cheaper Version
Buying name-brand items is not always the best savings method for us.
Unless we found second-hand items that are name brand, we’d stick to no-name.
As long as it does what it’s supposed to do, then there is value in these types of savings methods.
14 Borrowing From Friends and Family
We don’t do it—end of the story.
15 Low-Interest Credit Card
We have a handful of credit cards such as PC Financial MasterCard, Scotia Bank, TD Visa, Canadian Tire and Costco MasterCard.
Although they don’t have low interest rates, we chose them for the rewards points.
The other factor is that we’ve never paid a penny in interest for any credit card and know we have the money.
I’d be looking at credit cards with low interest if we were starting, especially if I knew we would be paying it back slowly.
16 Change In A Bottle
We have a massive water bottle that we throw all of our coins in just because we hate carrying coins.
Currently, we don’t know how much money is in our change bottle, but it was one of those savings methods we taught our son.
Please save your money so you can use it for a car or to buy a house.
That’s what we tell him, and he has no qualms about it which is a big win for us.
17. Bought Smaller House
When we went house shopping, the bank offered us near a million dollars worth of mortgage.
I’ve written about our house search many times before, but we bought small the most brilliant thing we did.
Our house cost us $265,000 to purchase minus an $85,000 down-payment, and we live in the Greater Toronto Area.
It’s a 1500 sq foot modern cookie-cutter home with 1000sq feet in the basement along with a sunroom and double garage.
This house is enough for the three of us and paid off because we didn’t listen to the bank.
Buy the smallest house in the most expensive area if you can afford it based on personal calculations.
You can also test a monthly budget that includes your mortgage and utilities to see if you can handle the payments.
Always try to buy a house using only one income just in case something were to happen.
Lastly, always get life insurance instead of mortgage insurance.
Good luck on your journey to debt freedom, and remember there are lots of articles I’ve written with in-depth information and experiences.
Discussion: What types of saving methods do you use to save money?
Please, I’d love it if you could share your experiences below.
Mr. CBB
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Support CBB and I’ll continue working to bring you the best information in frugal living and finance.
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Mr.CBB’s Thoughts and Quotes
I bumped into a friend of ours yesterday who couldn’t speak English when she moved to Canada.
We were constantly teaching her new words, as were her two children, but we lost touch two years ago.
Not only did she get divorced from an abusive relationship, but she graduated college and bought herself a second-hand car.
The best part was that she could have a conversation with us in English without issue.
That’s when I thought to myself, anything is possible.
Stop Dreaming and Start Doing.
Mr.CBB
Frugal Recipe Idea
Nathan and Emily, who blogs at Inside The Rustic Kitchen, shared their recipe for mushroom ravioli with parmesan cream sauce. I love ravioli, and with the cream sauce, it has to be a winner.
Mushroom ravioli made with the most delicious mushroom pate, fresh homemade pasta and tossed in a garlic, parmesan cream sauce. This pasta dish is perfect when you want something a little extra special.
The Rustic Kitchen
With the colder fall weather on the way to getting cozy in the kitchen, the best recipes begin.
Landscape And Garden Ideas
I didn’t know a couple of the plants mentioned in this article would give me a return on investment.
Two of the 18 plants the writers at Natural Living Ideas describe we have in our garden.
The apple tree and daylilies are both excellent plant and tree purchases that keep on giving.
Find out what plants or trees that you have and leave me a comment here below.
You might be shocked at a few of them as I know I was.
Saturday Search Term Giggles
These are keywords that readers typed into their search engine and landed on this blog.
I get quite a few of these every day and pick some of the best to feature right here.
- Wifi access to estate after spouse passed away– It’s important to have and Emergency Budget Binder which I’m already working on.
- Hobosexual– This is a popular search on CBB and if you don’t know what it’s about read the article I wrote.
- How many chocolate chips should be in a cookie? – Haha, as many as you’d like.
- Need budget help – You came to the right place as there’s lots of great information on CBB
- Wife keeps stealing money – Time to have a couple’s meeting
- Canada People – Canadians are very friendly and I love calling this home.
That’s all for this Saturday, CBB Friends.
Mr. CBB
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