6 ways to save money on bills

Nobody likes bills. And lots of expensive bills can decimate your hard-earned income and often leave you with nothing to put towards savings or the finer things. We’ve outlined six simple ways you can save money on bills and leave you with more cash in your back pocket.

1. Refinance your home loan

Refinancing your home loan could not only immediately save you money on monthly repayments, but thousands over the life of your loan.

Refinancing may seem daunting, but refinancing to an interest rate as little as 10 basis points lower can significantly reduce the interest you pay on the loan and your monthly repayments.

2. Use an offset sub-account

An offset sub-account is essentially a transaction account linked to your home loan. The money in your offset sub-account is offset against your home loan balance when interest is calculated, bringing down your monthly repayments and the interest charged on the loan. For example, if you had a $400,000 home loan balance and $50,000 in your offset sub-account, you’d only be charged interest on $350,000 of the loan.

An offset sub-account can be a quick and easy way to bring down bills. We have an offset sub-account available on many of our low-rate home loans for just an extra 0.10% on your interest rate.

3. Find a home loan with no fees

Finding a home loan with a low-interest rate is vital and can potentially save you thousands. But your efforts to do so could be nullified if your home loan has numerous expensive fees. Home loans can have upfront fees like establishment fees, conveyancing fees, and government charges, and ongoing fees like redraw fees, and monthly service fees. These fees can add up quickly, especially if you have to pay them monthly, so check the comparison rate to reveal the true cost of the loan.

4. Consider going green

If you’re in the market for a new car, you may consider going for a low-emission or ‘green’ vehicle. These cars can save you money at the servo by being more fuel-efficient, or by going electric, prevent you from having to go at all.

We want to reward households who share our goal of fighting climate change, improving air quality, and conserving our energy resources. You can get a 0.7% discount on your car loan interest rate if you buy a qualifying green car. This discount could drastically reduce the amount of money you have to pay in interest and bring down your monthly repayments.

5. Avoid a loyalty penalty

Phone, internet, electricity, insurance, gas, water bills, the list can feel endless. These bills often roll in monthly or quarterly and when you add them up can be super expensive. What makes many of them more expensive is the provider hiking up the price every time there is an automatic renewal of the service. However, by simply not automatically renewing, negotiating with your provider, or taking your business elsewhere, you can bring down your bills. It does not pay to be loyal but providers make money off of people not bothering to shop around for the best deal. It’s arguably never been easier to switch providers than it is now, so if you feel your current provider is ripping you off, move to someone else.

6. Pay off debts

“Hang on, aren’t I supposed to be saving not spending money?” The simple fact you often have to spend money to make money. If you have large amounts of credit card debt, buy now, pay later debt, or numerous other loans, you may be getting charged an arm and a leg in interest. These interest costs can often balloon out too far more than the original amount you borrowed and that's without factoring in any late fees you may incur. Where possible, pay debts down as much as you can to eventually save you in bills.

Other helpful resources: 

How to start the new year in a good financial situation

8 Spending habits that will get you to your first home sooner

Importance of budgeting when buying a home