Get organized and start saving money

Knowing where things are and what’s going on can save you money

By Wendy Thomas

Sue West of Space4U is a professional organizer who has helped me figure out ways to organize my house with its six kids, husband, three dogs, and 33 chickens. One of the many lessons I learned from working with Sue is you save a lot of money when you are organized. When you are organized you know where the school supplies are and you don’t have to rush out at night for poster board.

When things are organized, you know what clothing you have and you don’t spend money buying something you don’t need. And when you have a system, you know what dinner will be that evening, eliminating the expense and hassle of take-out.

I asked Sue to share some of her favorite money-saving organizational tips:

1. 1.      Write important family tasks in a calendar

• You forgot to bake five batches of brownies for the Scouts’ fundraiser. When that weekend came, other things got in the way.

Savings: The money spent on supplies and ingredients. When will you need to bake five batches again?

1. 2.      House maintenance: Use your calendar and/or your vendors’ plans

• Use calendar reminders to stay on top of preventive house maintenance.
• Sign up for service plans. Have the providers call you.

Savings: No expensive emergency visits. No unexpected, high cost repairs.

1. 3.      Use what you have

• Organize your food. Check cabinets as you write out your list. (Always use a list!) To buy in bulk, set a dollar amount.
• Include your family in meal planning. They’ll gain an understanding of the cost of wasted foods when they don’t feel like eating what you’d planned.
• Decide on a reasonable number of clothing items for each person. Use the bureau as a physical limit for how much you can buy.
• Belong to a gym? Organize your time so you can go … or drop the membership.
• When it comes to hobbies and home improvement, organizing materials prevents purchasing duplicates. And many of us buy with an idea in mind, which, if it doesn’t come to fruition, means wasted materials.

Savings: No more duplicates; less waste in food, hobby supplies and services.

1. 4.      Learn more about where your money goes

• Have a bill-paying system. Stop late payments and losing out on early payment discounts.
• Call each bill provider. Negotiate rates, drop unnecessary services and ask about specials. My data plan dropped by tens of dollars monthly because I asked.
• Know the interest rates on your credit cards so you know which one you should pay off first.

Savings: Unnecessary fees and interest costs.

It’s tough to stay organized, especially when we have kids who have such active schedules. But if you start, say by using a central family calendar so you’ll know when things are due, you just might be surprised at how much it makes a difference.

Sue West is a Certified Organizer Coach and a Certified Professional Organizer.

Her book, Organize for a Fresh Start: Embrace your Next Chapter in Life, is due out this later this year. Contact her at 765-9267 or www.OrganizeNH.com.