Pinpoint The ‘Money Leaks’ That Screw Up Your Budget Over Time

When you pay for something super expensive, your budget immediately feels a hit. But there are smaller, more subtle expenses that get incrementally more expensive over time. Trulia points to a few common “money leaks”.

A money leak is basically an expense that increases over time and ends up straining your budget. Some of them are so subtle, you probably don’t think anything of them at all. For example:

Price creep: Cable and internet providers are frequent culprits of “price creep.” New customer pricing eventually expires and sometimes fees get tacked on incorrectly. If you aren’t paying attention, you could be paying far beyond your budgeted amount.

Food waste: … A study by the Natural Resources Defence Council found that Americans waste 40% of their food purchases — which equates to an average of $2,000 [$AU2,638] per year, per household. Meal planning and resisting the urge to buy in bulk can do wonders when it comes to cutting down on waste and combating this socially prevalent money leak.

Energy hogs: If your heat or air conditioning is overworking during the hours you’re away, you could be wasting hundreds of dollars each year. Other energy hogs that could be costing you big? Outdated appliances and incandescent light bulbs. Make a few small changes, and you could spend less all year long.

To pinpoint these creeps, look at changes in your budget over time. This way, you can see if your spending in any particular area has increased. If it has, it could very well be a money leak. For more detail, head to the full post at the link below.

Are Invisible Money Leaks Draining Your Account? [Forbes]