Everyone is talking about the cost of living crisis. Prices are rising rapidly, with more to come. This may be causing you stress, especially when thinking about energy costs coming into the winter season.
This guide will give you some tips on how you can save a bit of money here and there, to hopefully help ease your stress.
Here are our top 7 tips to saving money…
Focus on heating yourself and not your whole home
As Money Saving Expert Martin Lewis put “heat the human, not the home.” This simple piece of advice is so effective. There’s the obvious layering up with thick jumpers and socks but have you thought about using a heated blanket? They are much cheaper to run than having the heating on all day – brilliant for those working from home.
Similarly, using a good old fashioned hot water bottle can work wonders. It only uses the energy it takes to boil the kettle and focuses the heat on the most important thing – you!
Are you paying more than you need to for broadband?
Have you been with your broadband provider for a long time? If your initial contract has ended, you could be paying the premium rate! It’s always worth going onto a price comparison site to see what other deals are out there – you could be saving hundreds per year.
Use a slow cooker to batch cook
You can seriously cut down on costs by preparing your meals for the week ahead of time. There will be less food waste and less temptation to opt for fast food or takeaways.
A slow cooker is a great way to do this. According to some sources it only costs 23p to cook a meal overnight!
Reduce washing machine costs
The yearly average cost to run a washing machine is set to double. You can lower this cost by filling your machine to 80% capacity rather than doing more frequent smaller washes.
For clothes that are not too dirty, washing at 30C can make a big difference. This can cut energy usage by 38% on average compared with a 40C wash.
Insulation
Up to 35% of heat can be lost through uninsulated walls. Loft insulation is the cheapest way to combat this and can be done yourself. Hardware stores will be able to advise here, so get down to your local B&Q!
Remortgage
If your fixed rate has ended and you are currently on your lenders standard variable rate you may be paying more than you need to. Luckily, we are very experienced at finding great mortgage products and have a large panel of trusted lenders.
Contact your local Mortgage Services Consultant to find out if we can help you save!
Sell the unwanted
We love this simple trick to declutter and make some extra cash. If you haven’t used or worn something for a year, why not consider selling it? eBay and Facebook are perfect places to get started. You’ll be surprised what you can make money on!
A BROKER FEE MAY BE PAYABLE UPON MORTGAGE APPLICATION AS WELL AS AN ADMINISTRATION FEE. THE TOTAL FEE PAYABLE WILL DEPEND ON YOUR CIRCUMSTANCES. YOUR MORTGAGE CONSULTANT WILL EXPLAIN ANY FEES APPLICABLE IN YOUR INITIAL APPOINTMENT.
YOUR HOME OR PROPERTY MAY BE REPOSSESSED IF YOU DO NOT KEEP UP REPAYMENTS ON YOUR MORTGAGE.
YOU MAY HAVE TO PAY AN EARLY REPAYMENT CHARGE TO YOUR EXISTING LENDER IF YOU RE-MORTGAGE.
Information correct at time of publishing 14.2.23
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MOST BUY-TO-LET MORTGAGES ARE NOT REGULATED. MS/SQ/6388/10.22
