Unexpectedly Expensive Daily Habits That Drain Your Bank Account

Unexpectedly Expensive Daily Habits That Drain Your Bank Account

Do you constantly find yourself running out of money?

Or

Maybe you are trying to identify habits that are draining your bank accounts?

If you find yourself nodding in a yes to either of the above-mentioned scenarios, you are in the right place. This article is going to provide you valuable insight into what daily habits might be depleting your bank accounts unexpectedly.

Did you know 69% of all adult U.S citizens have no more than $1000 in their savings account? To put it a shot and simple, your bad spending habits can weaken your financial position. Therefore, as you continue to read, you will be amazed at how your repetitive daily habits can burn a hole in your wallet.

So without further ado, let us dive right and figure out why savings are essential. Moreover, you will learn about what habits you can cut down in order to crank up your savings account.

Why is saving important?

If you have always dreamed of becoming financially secure and independent, you will have to master the art of saving money. This will offer you a safety net in case you ever find yourself in financial turmoil or an emergency.

Help with Large Purchases

Whether it is a medical emergency, a leak in your roof, or you losing employment, savings can help deal with such foreseen circumstances without having to get a loan with huge interest rates. Apart from that, your savings can help pay for any large purchases, reduce financial strain, avoid debts and leave a financial legacy for your heirs.

Pursue Your Dreams

Apart from all the monetary benefits of savings, it can also offer you freedom in other aspects of life too. For example, if you feel stuck in your current job, savings can provide you with the financial freedom to quit your job and pursue a career you have always dreamt of.

Investment to Multiply Your Money

Having ample savings sitting in your bank account will also allow you to explore a myriad of investment options such as stocks, bonds, IRA, and other retirement investment plans for your post-retirement days.

Savings Offer Long-Term Security

No matter how well prepared you are, a financial emergency can through you off-balance. This is probably the most significant reason why financial experts put so much emphasis on saving. Therefore, no matter what you do, where you live, and what your lifestyle is, you must save and drop any habits draining your bank account.

14 Daily Habits That Drain Your Bank Account

Now that you know the importance of savings, it is time to identify which of your bad daily habits have been eating away your money without you even noticing. In this section, you will learn about major habits irrespective of which walk of life you belong to.

If you are thinking about becoming more mindful of how to spend your money and become better at financial management, this will be helpful for a long time to come. Let us begin.

1. Alcohol

An occasional drink with your mates does not harm anyone. However, drinking alcohol is not a cheap affair, especially if you are drinking at restaurants and bars.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), Americans spend approximately 1 percent of their gross income drinking alcohol. These include wine, beer, and other liquors. Imagine throwing your health away while spending thousands of dollars for years on boozing.

Why not challenge yourself to a dry week every month or only limit your drinking to holidays and social events. If you really have to buy, try to pick pocket-friendly hard liquor instead of expensive best-selling wine, whiskeys, and beers.

2. Bad Driving Ethics

Bad driving etiquettes affect the gas consumption of your car by decreasing the mileage per gallon. Moreover, aggressive driving habits can reduce gas mileage average by almost 30 percent. Some of these habits driving haphazardly by swirling in and out of your lane, accelerating harshly to avoid red traffic lights, and constant braking.

All of these and more can lead to frequent gas station visits. While you might not see it as a big deal, you may be paying thousands extra just because you have developed bad driving habits. If you wish to avoid further leakage from your bank account, try to adhere to speed limits and avoid rash driving habits.

Moreover, do not carry extra weight in your vehicle, as the lighter the car, the better your mileage average will be. It is also advisable to always use cruise control while driving on a highway for better gas mileage.

3. Brand Loyalty

Lets us be honest; many of us live by the brands we love. Yes, it is a great idea to wear the best clothes you can afford, but we end up overdoing it. Do you find yourself tempted to buy products from our favorite brands during their sales season without evening thinking if you really need them? Well, if yes, then it is time to say farewell to those expensive brands and buy from a generic local store.

Whether it is food, medicine, or other products, buying from a local store will drastically reduce your expenditure by 80 percent.

4. Cable Television

Most cable television subscriptions are pretty expensive as most cable service providers’ basic television price plans at $60 per month. However, most of us do pay extra for sports and movie channels subscription.

Did you know you can actually buy a digital antenna for under $50 to watch national television network stations with high-definition (H.D.) quality? Moreover, instead of buying an expensive cable T.V. add-on plan, you can opt for a cheaper online streaming service such as Netflix or Hulu for watching your favorite movies and sports.

Moreover, you can visit a friend or family’s home to watch a big game instead of subscribing to a sports channel for an entire month.

5. Energy Drinks

Even if you are not a heavy coffee drinker, it is still a stimulant that can be addictive. Sometimes, having a harmless morning coffee cup can lead to you craving for other caffeine drinks, including energy drinks. This is a perfect example of one bad habit working as a catalyst to instigate another draining your money and unexpectedly.

6. Eating Out

Due to our busy modern-day demanding lives, most of us are used to eating out frequently. Restaurants and takeaways around almost every corner and online food delivery services are massive budget killers.

Did you know that U.S. citizens, on average, spend approximately $3,000 on eating out every year? During COVID-19 lockdown, this price might go even higher. Try to adapt to cook and eat at home if you wish to save thousands of your hard dollars every year.

7. Frivolous at the Bar

If you are a generous person who loves to pay for everyone’s drink, stop doing it. While others may praise your generosity, it is you burning a big hole in your own wallet.  Yes, it feels good to treat your family and friends but do not do it if you cannot afford it.

Next time you find yourself at a restaurant or a bar with your mates or sensible and split the bill. It is ok to take turns when paying for the bar tab. You will suddenly notice having extra bucks in your bank account that it previously had.

8. Morning Tea on the Commute

Although spending a couple of bucks on your morning tea or coffee on your way to work might not seem like a lot, but it adds up over time.

For example, if you spend $3 on average every morning for five days a week, this makes your total morning coffee cost to be about $720 in a year. Shocking right? And this is the basic cost; the designer drinks expenses can spike this cost into thousands.

9. Smoking

Are you a smoker? Then simply multiple your brand’s price with the years you have been smoking, and you know how much of your dollars have you burnt to ashes so far. According to National Cancer Institute figures, an average cigarette pack costs about $6.28. So, if you smoke a pack a day, you are spending over $2,300 per year on smoking alone.

Smoking an expensive brand? Well, you do the math.

10. Shopping on Empty Stomach

Ever get that feeling when you are hungry and wish to eat almost everything you can think of? Well, that is why they say never to go shopping while you feel puckish. The chances are that you will end up buying more than you actually eat.

Make a shopping list while you are full, and make a sensible shopping list and stick to it, no matter what.

11. Those Un-used Gym Memberships

This is a common one. How many of us have bought gym memberships as part of our new year’s resolution or to get into shape before the next summer? Result? we barely end up using them while the gym continues to suck monthly subscriptions out of your bank account.

According to statistics, an average a gym membership in the U.S. costs about $58 per month. Calculate it for a year, and it comes up to $700 a year. However, if you live in cosmopolitan cities, a gym membership can cost you over $100, taking this annual unwanted, unused expenditure into thousands.

If you ain’t an avid user, get rid of that gym membership and save your money when you really need it.

12. The Lottery Craze

You have to be in it to win it! That is how they lure you in when it comes to buying a lottery ticket, week after week. You have to remember that even when you do buy a ticket to play, the odds of you winning are very bleak.

Just imagine that more than a million people buying a ticket to win a lottery jackpot means you have 1 in a million chances to win. Would it not be nice to actually invest that money that might offer you a guaranteed return? Therefore, why not save the money and look into investment options for consistent returns for many years to come.

13. Throwing Away the Leftover Meals

Stop throwing your leftover meals into a trash can. Imagine, it is not the food but spare cash you are throwing away. It is wise to learn to eat your leftovers for next-day lunch or make a box and freeze it for the future when you might fancy having the same meal again.

14. Using Your ATM

Did you know that using an ATM that is not your own bank costs you about $4 per transaction? You can easily avoid this fee if you opt to use the ATMs of your card issuer. Doing so will leave those extra dollars in your account that you can use when you really need them.

Moreover, try to shop from places offering you cash back for using a debit card for payments. That is a win-win situation to get something back while you spend your hard-earned cash.

Tips to Save Money on a Daily Basis

Here are some extra tips to help you start your saving journey from today.

  • Don’t be shy when asking for discounts
  • Try to pay off your credit card bills and other loans to avoid added interest rates
  • Track your expenditures by reviewing your bank statement and get rid of any unnecessary expenses.
  • Avoid dining out and cut down on your daily drinking habits.
  • Learn to DIY some of your home repair and maintenance tasks. YouTube is full of DIY tutorials these days.
  • Always pick an economic travel package to maximize your savings.

Conclusion

Whether you are a homemaker or a working professional wondering how to start saving in 2021, this article can help you start your journey today. However, there might be many other habits that you may have developed over time, so think outside the box and try to rectify any of the unnecessary habits that may contribute to building a healthy savings account.

Happy Savings!

Previous
Next