This week I made myself R570 by sorting out my admin and if I look at what it has saved me for the year, I am up R1 080.
With a big move (like moving provinces) there will always be some paperwork that slips through the cracks, so this week I decided to tick a few off my list.
Firstly I updated my details with my car insurance. Because I had moved provinces they reviewed my policy and my premium dropped by R40 a month — that is a R480 annual saving. Not as impressive as our household insurance which has dropped by 25% (clearly there is a crime difference between Jo’burg and Cape Town), but it will pay for a coffee and slice of cake at my favourite coffee shop.
When it came to changing my details with my stockbroker, I realised when looking at the statement that I was paying a monthly fee of R50 yet I am not using my trading account. So I made that dormant, saving myself R50 a month or R600 for the year. I am going to use this saving to top up my monthly Satrix debit order.
The real highlight came when I updated my Fanatics card (this is Exclusive Books’ loyalty programme). The woman informed me that they had not sent me a voucher for a very long time — which I hadn’t even noticed — and that I was due a R480 voucher which will now be posted to my new address. Free books!
American personal finance guru Suzie Orman strongly believes in the power of respecting your finances. She believes in having a tidy wallet. Don’t have millions of slips of paper stuffed into it and have your money notes in order (R10s, R20s, R50s etc). She says if you do this money will find you.
Coincidentally on the same day as my mini-windfall I had actually tidied up my purse. Maybe it was the power the universe, but it probably had more to do with the fact that I was in a sorting and tiding frame of mind. When you keep your finances in order you are more likely to find the opportunities to save or make money.
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