Not many people know how to save each month, as this task is, in itself, very complicated. It is hard to hear that we are losing money without knowing it, but it is the reality. And who is responsible for this happening? Expenses, but first of all, we should know that they can be of three types: ghost expenses, vampire expenses and ant expenses. Read on to find out what each of them consists of, how to identify them and what we can do to avoid them.
Learn how to differentiate between phantom, vampire and ant expenses and how to control them.
All of these expenses share a common characteristic: none of them seems intimidating at first, but they are the ones that cause the money in our pockets to dwindle as the month progresses. In addition, there are certain differences that distinguish them. A microwave clock light is not the same as a Spotify Premium subscription. Understanding what differentiates them also facilitates the task of being able to provide a concrete solution adapted to the nature and type of each one. That’s why we recommend that you read them all to the end!
Phantom expenses: that money that we invest and then do not make good use of it
Phantom expenses can represent a waste of up to 30% of our monthly budget, and they include everything we buy and then do not make good use of it. Do you already know what kind of expenses we are referring to? Let’s take a look at some examples.
Has it ever happened to you that you wake up on January 1st with overflowing energy, confidence and excitement, and you decide to join a gym? A gym that, as the days, weeks, or months go by (depending on your conviction and willpower), you never go back to, but you keep paying for it. Or, for example, that Netflix subscription, which, now that you look at it, you haven’t opened for a long time. It even happens to us with mobile apps, which one day we decided to buy for some reason, and we haven’t used them enough to get a return on the money we invested in them.
And it has happened to more than one of us with free trials initially, and then they completely forget to cancel the charge and, out of laziness or absent-mindedness, they let it go over time.
In addition, as they are expenses attached to our credit card or bank account and are automatically deducted, we do not check them often, or when it is already too late.
What can you do to control and avoid phantom expenses?
The first thing to do is to have a conversation with ourselves. A sincere talk, in which we make a real and honest balance about the importance and the need to keep these small and medium expenses, especially those that are entertainment. Then, we will be able to make a real judgment and monitor with head, make the pertinent changes, cancel if it is due and optimize our budget.
Vampire expenses: those basic services that shoot up all at once.
They lurk behind the door, and, unlike the fantasy character, they do not only attack at night.
Electricity, water or internet are expenses that no one would dare say we can do without. But often, the amount withdrawn from our bank changes imperceptibly. And, almost without being aware of it, we get used to these possible increases in our consumption that “suck” between 10% and 20% of our monthly expenses. According to economic experts, we can pay between €1,200 and €1,800 per year for them.
This is the case of a gas leak or a misuse of household appliances, cable TV consumption or mishaps with lighting installations.
How can we keep vampire expenses at bay?
We could summarize all the possible tips in maximizing the contracts we have with the companies that provide us with these services. To do this, we should periodically review all the energy sources and installations in our home. If necessary, talk to the energy company and ask for a modification of the contract or ask them for a convincing explanation that justifies these variations, in case they are considerable variations. It is also useful to make a list of the energy expenses that we really need to use per month, in order to be able to design a budget adjusted to the real needs.
Ant expenses: small amounts of money that we had planned to spend.
These expenses are a real tribute to their own name. Amounts of money so small, so insignificant, that they go unnoticed. Moreover, they are part of the daily routine that we are used to, so no one questions them.
At the time, it is true that they do not involve a large sum of money, and that is precisely what makes us relax, when, in fact, adding up all those small amounts, we realize that they really are a threat to our economy and financial health. Therein lies the danger of “ant-spending”.
They are, for example, that €1.40 coffee every morning (what’s one euro compared to a month’s expenses, right?), tips we leave at the bar we trust, or the chewing gum that catches our eye when we are about to pay at the supermarket checkout. In conclusion, these are impulsive or unreflective purchases that we make in our daily lives.
How can we crush ant-spending?
Take your last month’s routine expenses and write down one by one each of these small but thuggish expenses and the amount they have cost you at the end of the month. Analyzing expenses by making a list is the most efficient way to identify them. Obviously, there are ant expenses that are unavoidable, so it is not feasible to expect to reduce them to zero, but what we must do is stick to a fair and invariable budget, much less than we allow ourselves. After all, it is up to us to manage ourselves better.
Once we know these expenses, we cannot make the excuse of not knowing what they are or how to avoid them. Now it is time to put our personal or family economy in order, and put into practice all the possible saving tips and techniques to live more comfortably with the money we generate each month. To do this, we need two great friends who should accompany us throughout our lives: discipline, to be able to reach our goals more easily and in the shortest possible time, and planning.
The idea is that we start saving 10% of our salary, if that does not mean not paying other responsibilities that we already have on top. Little by little, we will be able to save more and better.