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How to lower your bills and get money back in your pocket quickly
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How to lower your bills and get money back in your pocket quickly

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6 minutes, 51 seconds Read

As Australians return from holidays and settle back into everyday life, many are suffering from a post-Christmas financial hangover.
Spending too much during the holidays is easy to do and can leave people feeling stressed and overwhelmed when they realize how much debt they’ve racked up.
But financial adviser Helen Baker said it was important to take action straight away.
“If you just bury your head in the sand, nothing will change and you will have more problems later,” she said.

To get your finances on track, here are 10 ways to get money back in your pocket.

1. Sell unwanted gifts or other items around the house

You don’t have to keep every gift you get. Decluttering your home can also help boost your bank balance. Source: Getty / Cavan Images RF

“Use that money to pay off credit cards or buy now and pay later,” Baker said.

“Everyone wants to give…but people don’t [always] have room for more stuff, otherwise it’s not what they want.”

You can also sell other items in your home that you no longer need, which will eliminate clutter and make room for new items that you may have acquired.

2. Focus on your most expensive debts

If you’ve built up debt on your credit cards, Baker suggested paying off the debts with the highest interest rates first.
‘Make sure you pay something off everything, but try to get it [down the debts with the highest rates] first,” she said.
She said it was worth analyzing your spending plan for the next month or so to figure out how much money you can put on these debts to pay them off quickly.

“If your mortgage interest rate is 6 percent, but your credit card is 20 percent… then you might want to try to use whatever you have in your offset account or your drawdown to pay off those other debts as quickly as possible,” she said.

3. Take advantage of 0 percent balance transfers

Many banks offer 0 percent interest balance transfer agreements to entice customers to transfer their credit card debt. They offer a period of months or even years without interest.
Baker said these can be helpful, as long as you pay off your debt and don’t keep adding on to it.
“You need to take this opportunity to pay off that debt as quickly as possible,” she said.

You can also call your bank and ask for a lower interest rate or to transfer the debt to a card that offers a better deal.

Close-up shot of a female hand holding a smartphone near a credit card machine and making a contactless payment to pay for her groceries at a self-checkout in a store.

Interest on credit card debt can be high, so it’s important to pay it off quickly. Source: Getty / d3sign

Converting the debt into a personal loan can be an option because you will be forced to pay it off within a certain period of time and you will not be able to top it up.

4. Reassess your mortgage or car loan

According to financial comparison site Canstar, the average variable interest rate for an owner-occupier was 5.51 percent in December.
If you pay more, or even just under this rate, you can ask your bank for a better deal or consider going elsewhere.

It may also be the right time to switch part of your mortgage to a fixed rate, with Canstar noting that the number of banks offering fixed interest rates below 5 percent has fallen due to expectations of rate increases this year.

But Canstar’s data insights director Sally Tindall said it was important to analyze the figures carefully when setting your rate and to shop around as offers can vary widely.
Baker said refinancing a mortgage or car loan can free up cash flow that you can use to pay off other debts, such as credit card debt.
It may also make sense to consolidate all debts so that you only have to make one repayment and can use the extra money to pay it back as quickly as possible. This can also save you on separate annual fees for each debt.

But paying off a mortgage can be expensive and Baker said it was important to look at all the costs to make sure it’s worth it.

5. Generate short-term income

To pay off debt faster, Baker said short-term ways to make money can be considered, such as taking jobs advertised on Airtasker.

“It’s not like you keep doing these jobs forever, [you’re] I’m just getting rid of the ‘hurt money’ that’s lying around right now,” she said.

A woman in jeans stands in the middle of a road next to a dog on a leash.

Doing odd jobs like dog walking can help you earn a quick income. Source: Getty / oatawa

“There are a lot of needs right now – people are on holiday – maybe there are dogs to be walked or gardens to be tended, some cleaning to be done or Ikea furniture to be put together, and there are job opportunities.”

6. Check your subscriptions

It’s easy to sign up for subscriptions (whether streaming services like Netflix, fitness apps, or media sites) and then forget about them.
Ricardo Goncalves, SBS financial editor, suggests looking at what you’re actually paying for (reviewing credit card statements can be a useful way to find forgotten charges) and then assessing whether you’re really using it.
You may also consider reducing a subscription level.

“Some providers have cheaper offers if you’re willing to put up with a little advertising,” says Goncalves.

You can also rotate subscriptions for streaming services so you don’t pay for all of them at once. For example, you can watch shows on your Netflix account for three months, then pause your subscription and activate another service in the coming months.

To save even more money, you can switch to free services like SBS On Demand instead.

7. Use your reward points

One benefit of excessive shopping during the Christmas and holiday season is that it can increase reward points for loyalty programs.
Canstar notes that 100,000 Everyday Rewards or Flybuys points currently translate into $500 off your Woolworths or Coles store.

While it can be satisfying to see your balances increase, they can also lose value over time if you don’t use your points.

8. Check for unclaimed funds

The NSW government holds about $300 million in unclaimed money, Goncalves said, and other states are also holding money owed to residents.

This money may come from companies that have been unable to contact you because you have moved, changed your name or lost your papers.

You can also view the state databases at the relevant websites below:

9. Reduce your bills

The average family of four spending $260 a week on groceries can potentially do that save more than $2,000 per year by switching half of their weekly shopping to cheaper brands in the supermarket, according to research by Canstar.

Other tips for saving money on groceries include creating a weekly meal plan so food doesn’t go to waste, cooking from scratch instead of buying prepackaged and processed foods, using recipes with few ingredients, and cooking larger quantities so you can enjoy leftovers.

A woman stands in front of boxes of vegetables.

Making your own food and buying cheaper brands can save you money. Source: Getty / Tang Ming Tung

Goncalves also suggests looking at your electric bill to see if there are better deals available. The Australian government has its own comparison website called Energy Made Easy, which can help.

Family vouchers can also be a good way to save money.
All state governments offer vouchers to encourage participation in recreational activities, including sporting, arts and cultural events. Most of these are aimed at children, but Tasmania also offers vouchers for older Australians.
Many of these vouchers are renewed at the beginning of the new year. Information is available on the relevant websites below:

10. Embrace freebies

Today, libraries can provide access to a wide range of items, including toys and audiobooks, as well as digital films, magazines, books and children’s books.
There are also tool libraries where you can borrow ladders, angle grinders, circular saws, as well as cleaning, gardening, kitchen and camping equipment (although you may need to subscribe to some of these).
It is worth checking your municipality’s website to see what free programs are offered to residents.
Sites like Facebook Marketplace or local buy/trade/sell pages also offer free items.
Disclaimer: The information in this article is of a general nature and not intended as financial advice. You should consult a licensed professional to make the decisions that are right for you.

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