Grocery Shopping Strategies

Sunday always seems to be a big grocery shopping day.  Since everyone has to eat--and we all know eating at home is a better use of money than eating out--let's talk about ways to save on those necessities.

Smart Cards.

Some credit cards have great "cash back" deals on groceries and other necessities.  If you have a card with perks like that, take advantage of it when buying your groceries!  It might not seem like much, but you've got to buy groceries regardless, so that cash back will add up.  I have a Bank of America Cash Rewards card, but most credit card companies and banks are getting on the cash back bandwagon.  Check for one at your bank of choice and put some of your hard earned money back in your pocket.

Store Hopping.

Everyone has a grandparent who clips coupons for the handful of local grocery stores and wants to drive around to all of them to get the best deals.  Obviously it's important to strategize about where to get which groceries, but driving to four stores isn't practical with gas prices these days.  Here's what I suggest: For your basics, consider Costco.  Buying in bulk allows you to cut costs on the food itself, but also make fewer trips to the store (which means saving gas and time).  Although it might seem like a painful upfront cost, the membership fee should pay for itself relatively quickly.  Once you stock up on the basics, check the ads in the Sunday newspaper for the best prices at the local grocery stores, and make your decisions from there.  Of course, be strategic about driving around; you can always make a quick stop at a Hy-Vee or Price Chopper on your route home from work during the week if one store has a particularly good deal.

Store Cards.

Price Chopper's Chopper Shopper cards might have been the original grocery store savings cards, but they aren't the only ones out there now.  Hy-Vee has the "Fuel Saver" card.  Hen House and Sun Fresh both have rewards cards.  Any savings you can accumulate from weekly deals, gas savings, and extra discounts are well worth spending three minutes signing up for a discount card.

Sale Shop.

Many of the grocery stores match their sales with their reward card deals, but not always.  You can always find a few good stand alone sale items, and they're usually worth considering.  One of the best places in the store for good deals?  The meat counter.  When you find meat on sale, you can package it up in small portions, freeze it, and instantly have lunches or dinners available to prepare quickly.  And it goes without saying: you save yourself a ton of money when you snag a great cut of beef at a great price.  

Basics and Luxury Items.

It's important to remember that certain items are "treats," so you don't always need to have them on hand at home.  Try to make some rules for yourself/your family.  If things are expensive (and for that matter, unhealthy too), only buy them for special occasions, or when they're on sale.  Sticking to the basics will keep your costs down and your meals healthy.  Of course, sometimes you can't escape certain convenience items when you're always on the go... but just keep in mind that snack foods and pre-packaged foods are always more expensive because of that "convenience" factor.

Coupons.

You can't be a savvy shopper without coupons, right?  These money-saving staples are great ways to bring down your grocery bill on top of store discounts and sales.  It might only amount to $5 per shopping trip, but it doesn't take long to clip a few coups on Sunday or print a few off from Coupons.com.  Besides, saving a dollar on a luxury item is a reasonable way to justify the purchase!

With all of these strategies, you'll be well on your way to saving money on your necessities.  I'm sure plenty of savvy shoppers have their own strategies on how to save a few bucks... I'd love to hear other ideas!  How do you save money on groceries?

Keep Track

First and foremost, everyone should be aware of their money.  You don't have to be Scrooge McDuck swimming through money piles to be aware; you just need to know how much you have, where it is, and how you're managing it.  Let's talk about the key aspects of managing and being aware of your money.

Budget.
The simplest reason you want to be aware of your bank account, your credit card, and any other investments?  Making sure you don't overspend.  If you know you only have $X, you can't spend more than $X.  It seems easy, but when you have a number of costs--bills, rent, insurance, expenses--it can be hard to keep track of how much you have left to go to restaurants or shop.  It takes some discipline, but sitting down and running some numbers and creating a budget is a great idea.  You know how much income you have, and you should know what your expenses will be (to an extent).  So find out what you have left.  Then decide how you want to use it.  How much do you want to save?  How much do you have available to go out to dinner with your friends?  What if you really want to buy something?  Your budget will help you figure out if you can afford to do it.  That's right, you might not be able to do it.  If you budget, you'll know if you can afford it, or at least how long you'll have to save to accomplish a goal.

Pay bills on time.
Know when your bills are due!  Nothing is worse than making a mindless error and having to literally pay for it!  Keep it on your phone calendar, a wall calendar, or stick your bills on your fridge; do whatever it takes to make sure you never forget to pay a bill on time.  The more aware you are of due dates and the consequences for not paying on time, the more likely you are to spend wisely.  You'll be acutely aware of the fact that it's not worth it to run a balance on your credit card, so you won't stretch your limits and put off paying something until later.

Keep track of finance charges.
If there's no way around it and you can't pay everything on time (emergencies happen!), that's okay, but make sure you know what the interest is and how much you'll be charged for a late payment, carrying a balance, etc.  When you see a $15 charge on your account for no benefit, you'll be even more motivated to stay up to date.

Set money aside.
This gets back to our main point.  SAVE!  Save save save!  Even if you're paying off student loans, you should try to save at least some money for emergency purposes, if for no other reason.  Have a savings account and try not to take anything out of it unless it's absolutely necessary.  You'll feel better if you have savings, anyway.

All of this sounds like a lot of work, but there's actually a website out there that makes it much less complicated, and actually maybe even fun.  (You read right.)  What is this gem?

Mint.

Mint, powered by Intuit, is a FREE application/website that provides you with the tools to manage your finances.  It's legitimate, protected, and comes highly reccommended by The Wall Street Journal, Money Magazine, and The New York Times.  You plug in your data--loans, credit cards, investments, savings, etc.--and then you let Mint do the work.  It categorizes your expenses, notifies you of charges and when bills are due, and allows you to make budgets and goals.  It provides visual data, so you can see how you're spending your money and where.

If you're looking to improve your financial awareness and feel more confident about where your money is and where it's going, you can't find a better tool than Mint.  Give it a try and feel empowered!

Where to Start

The biggest challenge for many young professionals is managing their personal finances.  At times, it can be difficult to make responsible financial choices.  There are houses to be bought, weddings to celebrate, trips to take, and cars to buy.  Coworkers, friends, and classmates all seem to be spending freely, and we can't let ourselves fall behind.  Our generation is accustomed to a certain kind of lifestyle; many of our parents were able to work hard and have a comfortable standard of living.  Because they were able to provide us with many things they didn't have themselves, we automatically have a higher expectation.

Unfortunately, the harsh reality is that the economy has changed dramatically.  Money isn't quite as "easy" to earn, the cost of living is higher, jobs aren't easy to find.  And the biggest hurdle of all?  Student loan debt.

An incredible number of young people graduate with student loans.  According to the Huffington Post, the national total of outstanding student loan debt is between $986 billion and $1.1 trillion.  It's the highest category of debt other than home loans, surpassing auto loans and credit cards.  In Missouri, the average amount of student debt was $23,229 in 2011.  In Kansas, the average was $23,321 for the same year.  And that's just for a four-year degree; professional or graduate students will amass considerably more.

What are you going to do about it?  How can you get ahead?  The answer is simple: SAVE.  Saving doesn't always have to be on a big scale; the small things add up.  Finding ways to cut costs, invest, and make extra money can make a big difference.

savvyKC is the young professional's guide to being smart with money.  This is your source for all things financial... you'll find ways to save money and plan ahead, but still live a sophisticated, career-minded lifestyle.

Let's get savvy, KC.