Awesome Money-saving Tips For Your Home 🏠

Let’s explore practical and legal hacks that can save you money on your home, your furnishings and your home entertainment.

Read on to free up cash for your next expedition and keep your wallet as full as your passport! 🤑

1. Pay Less For Your House

Owning a home is a huge financial investment, so it’s usually a top priority for homeowners to reduce the overall cost of this.

In my experience, one effective strategy to save money and reduce the total amount paid towards your mortgage is by overpaying. This means paying more than the required monthly amount towards your home loan.

The extra payment will be applied directly to the principal, which is the original amount you borrowed. By reducing the principal faster, you will decrease the interest accrued over time.

Consider this example: Say you have a 30-year mortgage for $200,000 at an interest rate of 4%. If you make your scheduled payments without any extra payments, you’ll end up paying about $143,739 in interest over the life of the loan.

Now, let’s say you start to overpay your mortgage by just $100 per month. The additional payment directly reduces the principal balance of your loan, which is what the interest calculation is based on.

By doing this, you’ll end up paying off your mortgage about 4 years and 3 months earlier, and you’ll save approximately $26,855 in interest payments over the life of the loan.

Just imagine what you could do with those savings and what you could achieve by owning your home outright over 4 years sooner! That’s the power of overpaying your mortgage.

The Benefits of Overpaying on Your Mortgage:

• Reduced Interest Payments: As illustrated in the example above, overpaying on your mortgage decreases the total interest paid over time. This results in long-term savings, which can be especially meaningful at higher interest rates.
• Shortened Loan Term: By overpaying, you can reduce the time it takes to pay off your mortgage.
• Increased Home Equity: Overpaying on your mortgage also helps build home equity faster. Home equity is the difference between your property’s market value and the outstanding mortgage balance. Higher equity can provide financial benefits, such as qualifying for better loan terms or borrowing against your home’s value for other purposes.

Examples of Overpayment Strategies:

• Regular Overpayments: One approach to overpaying is to consistently pay a fixed amount above the required monthly payment. This strategy is ideal if you have a stable income and can commit to a higher payment each month.
• Lump-Sum Payments: Another strategy is to make occasional lump-sum payments towards the mortgage principal (great for anyone with healthy savings).
• Biweekly Payments: This is a strategy where instead of making 12 monthly payments per year, you make half of your monthly mortgage payment every two weeks. Because there are 52 weeks in a year, this amounts to 26 half-payments, or the equivalent of 13 full monthly payments. This strategy effectively allows you to make an extra full mortgage payment each year, which can reduce the life of your loan and save you money on interest.

Overpaying on your mortgage is a smart financial strategy that can lead to significant savings and help you achieve full homeownership sooner. By understanding the benefits and employing various overpayment strategies, you can reduce your mortgage costs and pay less for your house in the long run.  

Just speaking from my personal experience, this legal life hack is one of the most powerful ways to save money on your home!

It’s important to note that every mortgage is different and there might be fees associated with overpaying and certain lenders might not offer some of the above overpayment strategies. So it’s always best to discuss overpayment with your mortgage lender or financial advisor. Also, don’t forget that making extra payments towards your mortgage means you’ll have less cash on hand for other expenses, so make sure this fits into your broader financial plan before moving ahead with an overpayment strategy.

2. Leverage the Power of Geographic Arbitrage

Have you considered the financial potential sitting right under your roof? If you own a home, a smart money-saving strategy can be to rent out your property and relocate to a cheaper location. This can turn your home into a cash-flowing asset while significantly reducing your cost of living.

Let’s say you own a home in a major city where rental rates are high. You could rent out your home, potentially covering your mortgage payments and even making a profit. Meanwhile, you move to a location where the cost of living is much lower, perhaps even a country with a favourable exchange rate if you’re able to work remotely.

The benefits of this approach are twofold. Firstly, you’re generating income from your property rather than it being a static asset. Secondly, your living expenses could decrease significantly, allowing you to save more.

Consider this a form of ‘geographic arbitrage.’ This financial hack is all about taking advantage of the economic differences between two locations. And with the rise of remote work, this strategy is more feasible than ever.

Believe it or not, I have saved a small fortune by following this exact finance hack and living on the road!

Note: Always make sure to consider all costs involved, like property management fees or potential taxes, before making your decision.

3. Pay Less for Home Furnishings

IKEA is an affordable furniture and home goods retailer with global presence. It’s a real treasure trove if you are looking to create a comfortable living space without breaking the bank or weighing yourself down with permanent, expensive furniture.

IKEA’s Generous Return Policy is known for its flexibility. You have up to 365 days from the date of purchase to return items, even if they’ve been assembled, as long as they’re in a resalable condition. This policy applies to most products, with a few exceptions such as plants, cut fabric, and customised items.

To ensure a smooth return process, follow these tips:

• Keep your original receipt, as it is required for all returns.
• Ensure items are in their original packaging or a packaging that allows for safe transport.
• Disassemble large items to make transportation easier and reduce the risk of damage during transit.

Did you know thar IKEA also has a Buy Back scheme?

This allows you to sell back your gently used IKEA furniture in exchange for store credit!

The amount you receive depends on the condition of the item, with “as new” items fetching back up to 50% of the original price, “very good” items 40%, and “well-used” items 30%. This is a seriously epic money-saving tip!

So, you can furnish your space, use the furniture for as long as you need it, then sell it back when you’re ready to move on. This is amazing for digital nomads and travellers who might be temporarily based in a city for a limited time.

What I love about IKEA’s Buy Back policy is that it aligns sustainability with convenience and cost-saving benefits, making it a win-win scenario for both the planet and its people – especially those with a mobile lifestyle.

By buying back used furniture, IKEA promotes a circular economy where products are reused or recycled instead of ending up in landfills 👏

4. Save Money on Home Entertainment

• Disney+ Bundle: The Disney+ Bundle offers subscriptions to Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+ at a lower price than subscribing to each service separately. It gives you access to a huge range of content that can keep you entertained during your downtime at home or even while on the move.

• Xbox Game Pass: The Xbox Game Pass offers access to a library of over 100 games for a monthly subscription fee. This is perfect if you’re a gamer on a budget, as you won’t have to fork out for each individual game.

• Sony’s Extended Warranty for PlayStation: Did you know that when you purchase a PlayStation console, you can extend the standard one-year warranty to two or even three years? All you need to do is register the product within 90 days of purchase.

Conclusion

And there you have it – a collection of practical, legal hacks and money-saving tips, which are ideal for digital nomads and just about anyone on a budget. From overpaying your mortgage and renting out your home, to leveraging generous retailer policies, we’ve covered a multitude of ways to help contribute towards financial freedom.

Remember to share this post with all my awesome money saving hacks with your loved ones to help them save money too! 🤑

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Disclaimer: The information provided on this blog about home discounts is intended for general informational purposes only and should not be considered as professional advice or endorsement. While I make efforts to ensure the accuracy and timeliness of the information, I do not guarantee the completeness, reliability, or suitability of the content. It is recommended that you independently verify the details, terms, and conditions of any home discounts or offers mentioned on this blog before making any decisions or purchases related to your home.