6 Secrets to Stop Wasting Cash Now

Although generic drugs contain the same active ingredients as their brand name counterparts, when a company is required to have them tested they only need to have 80% percent of the effectiveness of a brand name drug. Usually slight discrepancy has little to no effect on the treatment, but there are cases that the generic should not be taken without checking with your physician or a pharmacist.

100 Million Dollar bonuses for AIG executives this year (they haven"t paid back a dime to our failing government) Must be nice to pull the wool over a whole country. SAVE GOLD ! money is dying off

you can stop money from being wasted by having none at all. just like me. no problems, see?

Does anyone read the comments except their own?

Whats funny is when someone buys a 20oz soft drink for $1.49, and right next to it is a 2 liter for $.99.

Library books are used and abused, not to mention germy. I buy all my books at Half Price books or using steep discounts. In this way I can read the book as many times as I want or reference it as many times as I want for as long as I want. And if I don't read it for 6 months, it's not 5 months overdue. Library fines have gotten steep these days.

Bottled water - I don't know where this guy is buying his bottled water, but mine is 3 bucks for 24. That's 12 cents a bottle. I can't get it out of my tap for that price much less carry it to the gym. That's cheaper than buying a CUP!

Generics - Yes good idea.

Credit cards - got rid of mine years ago, and learned to live on a 60% budget. (60% for bills and things, 40% to save or for emergancies)

Coupons - only good if you actually USE the item. generally even generics are cheaper than a brand name with a coupon.

Another option for books is to use a swapping site or netflix like book rentals - of which there are a few. Or swap books with a small group of friends.
Another tip is when you go shopping for 'wants' to visit the item a few times over a period to make sure you want it for real or there is something else more worth your money. If it is a true want, you might find that on a subsequent visit, you absolutely have to have it or that it is now on sale and thus worth the wait. Also, setting a want budget helps to prioritize.

With auto insurance most damage can run into the 2-3k range, so why will you risk paying $1000 if somebody else hits you? Then you have to chase down their insurance if they have any to get reimbursed which in some cases may take a long time. Meanwhile, you're stuck paying that bill. I buy bottled water for work because the water has an odd odor to it. At home I drink from the tap. When in doubt boil your water. Oh, I do agree that some store brands and generic meds are as good if not better than the name brands.

Also moron who worte the article, how is the econmomy supposed to grow if everyone is a cheap ass?

I just lowered my deductible from 1000 to 500. For me, the increase was less than $5/mo on 2 cars. I generally leave scratches and minor dents alone so repairs will be only if it is truly expensive.

I totally agree with all this...but I feel like the author is acting like everyone doesn't already do this and we are all idiots.

I agree with all of these, and practice them in my everyday life, with the exception of one. When it comes to books, I can't believe anyone would say, "Stop buying them totally." There are some books you just can't find in a used book store. There are some people who reread books constantly (and I'm one of them). And when I'm done with a book and decide that it isn't worth rereading, I donate it. Books are a big part of culture, we really should be embracing them. I did notice that you didn't recommend not buying DVDs, which you can rent for low monthly rates, or getting rid of cable options you don't need.

If you can't find it at the library, try paperbackswap.com. You trade books with other people- it's pretty fantastic!

dear yahoo 500 1000 deductible will generate only 20 bucks difference a year, what a sorry article, and .2 percent on cash vs 20% on card...hm if i do not pay off card i still have cash but when i use up cash.... cards will not give me cash

People would be surprised at how there's really no difference in generic brands. No matter what it is, cleaning supplies, face wash, etc they have literally the SAME ingredients. I admit, I used to be a snob about it... but then came the hard times and now I feel stupid! I learned a lot and I honestly feel happier... not to mention smarter by making some of those choices. I just started requesting generic medications at my pharmacy as well... NO DIFFERENCE in the quality, it was $80 dollars cheaper. There's no 'placebo' effect in that since my mom was helping me out at first and didn't tell me she switched lol.
It's hard to trust the internet sometimes when they say they have 'exclusive offers' etc. But there truly are some really good deals, you just gotta search for them.
Another thing I would suggest to people, I LOVE selling cd's, workout dvd's, and used books on Amazon. It's so easy and a great way to get a little cash.

I work in a brick and mortar bookstore - you know that dying species? So thanks for advising people not to buy books. Soon, I'll be one of those in the unemployment line. (By the way, the number one complaint I hear from my customers about libraries is that they don't have, or have too few, copies of the newer releases - so they come to the bookstore to buy them! I say, keep on coming!)

I don't agree with the emergency fund/credit card. You should always have something in your fund. A tip for Angela (in the hopes you never heard it :) ) At Christmas time when restaurants offer extra gift cards when you buy $25 or $50 - buy the cards for yourself. We only eat at one chain restaurant and at Christmas, I buy $200 worth of gift cards and usually get an additional $20-40 for free. Our local grocery store also gives you 10% extra if you buy gift cards just after tax time (an effort to get people to use their tax refund). I buy the largest amount available and use them plus the 10% free money they have given me. This is one way an "emergency" fund helps. I use this money and then replace it with what I would have used for groceries.

#3 - Not everyone has the luxury of living in an area with drinkable water. Even with a filter, the levels of pH are through the roof and the water is very hard where I live. I grew up in So Cal where tap water was fine with a Brita filter, not true in Texas where I'm at. I don't spend $1 on a bottle of water, that's just ridiculous unless you're in a situation where that's your only option (road trip, for example), but I have to constantly refill gallon bottles for 25-35 cents. I tried filtering our water, 4 times through a Brita filter and it was still nauseating. It was like drinking pool water.

If you're in college you should try to borrow books from upperclass students who already took that class. Alot of people don't sell their textbooks back and you can use them for a semester for free! Even if it's only a couple of your books, think about how much that saves you!

And let's not forget subscribing to magazines, such as Reader's Magazine, when you can read the same content online or at the library. I notice the author did not include that one but felt the need to include books. Magazines usually get read once and are then discarded or recycled. Unlike books, the collector's market for periodicals (except perhaps comics) is limited.

While library books are great for new books once the text has passed through a few dozen hands you start to wonder what exactly that yellowish stain on pages 100-110 is and what is causing the pages to stick together?