Albuquerque’s housing market is changing quickly, and so you may wonder whether or not you can afford a down payment on a home. However, you can use a technique to save more money for the down payment. All you need to do is adjust some of your daily habits.
In the wake of the COVID outbreak, many people have changed their daily routines. This has led to some people saving more money. Can you adjust your life and finances further in order to save more for a better down payment on a home in Albuquerque?
How much money you have available for discretionary spending depends on your situation. Here are a few suggestions for making adjustments to it:
Fewer Fancy Coffee Drinks
Is driving through Starbucks a daily ritual for you? The price of just one regular Grande coffee at Starbucks is $2.10. We won’t even mention their other drinks. That adds up when you do it five times a week. If so, you spend $500 a year on coffee alone. If you purchase your own cappuccino machine, you save money making your own, and maybe even enjoy it more.
Skip the lunch out (or delivery)
Because lunch is less expensive than dinner and delivery is more affordable, you might think you are saving money. However, as with coffee, the $15 and $20 meals add up over time. Eating out five times a week for around $50 results in a total of $2500 in expenses per year. Add that to the coffee expenses, and you could easily save a total of $3000 if you stop using these two suggestions.
Now let’s talk about dinner. You have $5200 if you eat out twice a week for dinner for $50 per week. That’s just shy of $8000 for a down payment on a home that costs $222,000! By giving up eating out and Starbucks, you could save nearly all the down payment in just one year.
Working from home
Working from home has been an option for many of us. Have you calculated the savings from not having to commute throughout Albuquerque if that’s the case with your job? If you can channel that extra money you’ve been saving on gas to your bank account, that can also make a big difference in how much you can save.
Wash Your Own Car
How do you clean your car? Do you use a car wash or do you do it yourself? The average car wash costs $7. Why not cut that out and wash it at home to earn that down payment? The $364 you’ll save after a year of weekly washes can allow you to stretch your budget or give you extra cash should you exceed your budget in moving expenses.
Cancel the gym membership
Did you keep your gym membership after the pandemic hit? Cancel your gym membership and continue to work out at home. This could save you more than $50 a month.
Cancel the cable
Do you still pay for cable AND internet? You can save hundreds or more in a year with high-speed internet and a streaming television subscription. If you pay for an Amazon Prime plan for $99, Netflix for $132, and Hulu for $96 all at once, you’ll still only be paying about $327 a year, saving you up to $875 if you are a former cable subscriber.
Saving money for a down payment takes time and discipline, but if you use these tips above, you can be in your own home in Albuquerque before you know it.
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