By Erin Campbell |Staff Writer|
Holiday spending takes a toll on our bank accounts.
We overspend on gifts and lose sight of how we will rebuild our bank accounts.
Simple tips and changes can help avoid money management stress and develop a more plentiful bank account.
Taewon Yang and Greg Richey, advisors from the CSUSB Finance Department, suggest a strict budgeting method and a plan for spending that works best for students.
After asking a few students about saving money, most of them didn’t know how to manage money and didn’t have a plan to build a savings account.
To make the remainder of 2014 financially easier, I’ve thought of a couple tips that can help you save money.
First and foremost, pack a lunch.
The campus cuisine is undeniably delicious; however, it can get pretty expensive.
Buying a wrap at the WOW Café or a few tacos at the Taco Bell on campus everyday you’re on campus can really add up.
Instead, try packing a lunch from home and bring it take it with you to school.
Not only will this alternative will be cheaper but also healthier.
Carpooling is a great option to save on gas and avoid wear and tear on your vehicle.
If you know someone that is at school around the same time you are and you both live relatively close to each other, carpooling will be a huge help for you in the long run.
Even signing up for free customer reward programs will save you dollars in the end.
Reward programs allow you to accumulate discounts and coupons. Office Depot gives 10 percent back on printer ink, toner, paper and copy center services.
As a college student, this reward program works great when it comes to having to print homework or make presentations.
Another suggested rewards program is the Rite Aid Wellness rewards card. For every dollar spent, a point is added to the rewards, which become available after accumulating 500 points.
When it’s time to do some mandatory shopping, those rewards can be rather generous to your bank account.
However, you should also consider canceling memberships you aren’t using.
For example, gym memberships that aren’t being used are better off canceled.
I suggest using the gym on campus that you pay for every quarter already. Why not use it?
And if by any chance your schedule may not allow you to stay on campus to enjoy the gym, the outdoors makes for a great workout place.
Going for a run around the block or a hike up a hill is a good and cheap way to get exercise.
Rebuilding a bank account can be easy with these few tips in mind as the year progresses.
CSUSB offers a free online brochure focusing on financial planning, creating budgets and using money wisely on the financial aid website under resources.
Find a plan that will help you save money in 2014 and stick to it!
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