It’s important to evaluate all your monthly expenses from time to time for value. Eliminate the ones not worth their value, reduce others to be inline with the value they provide. General cable, subscriptions, insurance, and cell phone bills are staples to this process. But during home quarantine due to Coronavirus, I’ve had time take my expense analysis to a new level to make sure I’m getting the most value possible for my money.
Here are four things I’ve looked at and made adjustments to over the last few weeks:
Broadband Analysis
In a conversation with a coworker I realized my broadband download speed was half what he was getting with the same provider. Turns out I had ignored an email to exchange my cable modem for a new one, and the old cable modem was throttling my connection. Occasionally check your speeds using a speed test, and make sure you’re getting the speeds advertised by your broadband provider.
Cell Phone Data Plan
A few years ago, my cell phone provider offered a deal to sign up for the 30GB a month plan for the 15GB a month price with no expiration of the offer. It was a great deal, then. As time has gone by, the size and prices of offered data plans changed. Recently I looked at current prices and found the 50GB a month data plan actually cheaper than I was paying for my 30GB plan.
Programmable Thermostat
It’s been years since I’ve programmed my thermostat to heat or cool the home based on when we’re home or sleeping. It was obvious our lifestyle and schedule has changed significantly. By reprogramming the thermostat’s heating and cooling cycles, the temperature of our home will be more inline with our current schedule.
Water Heater
The last time I set the temperature on the water heater, we were a family of four. Since then, our son has moved out of the home to college. Theoretically, that means we’re using 25% less hot water and could stand to reduce the setting of the water heater. This would save some money and it we probably wouldn’t even notice the difference.
Evaluating monthly expenses at face value is an important part of getting the most for your money. But to really maximize the value you get from each dollar, you have to do expense analysis of things that contribute to your staple monthly bills.
How about you, EOD Nation, when was the last time you really evaluated your monthly bills?
