Save your change

[csonneman]

Here is an idea that I just started. Remember back when your grandparents or parents had a little bank for you to put change into and save up? Well here is an adult version. Take your change daily or everyother day out of your pockets and purses and put it away. I don't just mean in a jar that you can get at in a pinch.

Go to a store and buy a change sorter. They range from $2.00 (cheap and time consuming) to $60.00 (digital and a little over the top for the average saver).

Place the change right into the sorter and then it will be in rolls so that you cannot tap into them when you feel like it. Save the money for a period of time. I am doing a year. Then take all of your rolls and take them to the bank and put them into a savings account or into I bills.

I have been saving for about a month and have $50.00 already.

Another challenge would be to save your $1.00 bills as well. You would be amazed at how much you can save. Out of $40.00 I took out of the bank saving my change and $1.00 bills I have saved $10.00 of that and I haven't even noticed that it is gone. I have found that if it is there it goes into the vending machine at work. Good for my wallet and waistline.

Good luck and save those coins.

[DivaJen]

Jeffrey has an article somewhere around here about change jars, and their pros and cons in the days of Coin Star an such. I've always had one and found it to be a small thrill, rolling up all those coins.

I was actually going to post today about saving my one dollar bills. I rarely have cash on hand, but lately I have for various reasons. I've been saving quarters and one dollar bills. I think I already have over $20 saved in ones, and it's probably been about a month that I've done this.

[jeffrey]

I think this is the article you're referring to: The Money Jar Trap - Why Many Lose Money With A Coin Jar

[DivaJen]

Yep, that's the one!

[skipper]

We save our change in a jar we turn it in once a year last year we had 857 dollars used it on vacation

[PRICEPLUS]

Buy the cheapest coin sorter. They work fairly well. Most smaller banks won't charge a fee for taking your coins. If yours charges a fee tell them you are leaving and why. It really is a great way to save money.

[tango]

I just joined this forum yesterday, and today i have decided to take this method. I will post again and let you guys know how I do at the end of this month. Hm...

[jeffrey]

Originally Posted by tango

I just joined this forum yesterday, and today i have decided to take this method. I will post again and let you guys know how I do at the end of this month. Hm...

There are a lot of different money saving cames you can play - the money jar game being one of them. Here is a list of some of the more popular money saving games - choose the ones that best fit you.

[jacquelynrose]

I have a Jar now, I think believe I started it when I joined this forum...and let me tell you it is heavy with quarters, a couple of dollars and other loose change. I usually don't care change for the exception of a couple of weeks ago, but would it be wise to take out a $20 bill out of a check to spend and save the change?

Jacquelyn

[csonneman]

You need to do what is comfortable for you.

When I take money out of the ATM I put my change and singles away each night. I found that I was not then spending it at the vending machine or throwing it away on impulse items in the line at the grocery store. Actually the last time I took out money I found that $40.00 lasted me 2 weeks for just cash items(quick trips to store, fast food on a day trip, etc.). When it was all said and done I actually saved half of that money by putting it in the change machine and stacking the dollars.

Sometimes there are exceptions, like when I went to the baseball game started with 35 and came home with 4 but that was expected. I do not expect to save a ton of money from each time I take out cash but try to make sure that I put away what I have each night. It is kind of fun to see how much I have to put away. It is a easy way to save without feeling the pinch of paying yourself first (which I do anyway).

[srace]

I have been saving my change for a while now but always spent it when I rolled it. Now I am just going to get a savings acoount and deposit it there when I roll it. I am a bartender and this adds up quickly. It would make a nice emergency stash if I could just get it to the bank.

[mom-from-missouri]

I do this, but once a month I empty it and put it into my credit union savings account. That way I am drawing interest. If I deposit it only once a year, I may miss several dollars of interest.

[momma4]

we use to save our's for emergency grocery money the last time we needed it, it was over $40 and mostly pennies. we used the change sorter at the store but you loose 8.9¢ per $1 but beats having to take it to the bank to cash them in. Our store won't take rolled coins.

[CheaplyClever]

We used to save loose pennies. We had two 34.5 ounce cooffe cans full. They were so heavy I couldn't pick them up! We cheated and took them to coinstar. A 34.5 oz can holds about 4000 pennies! Now I roll those nasty little pennies as soon as I get 50.

We have three banks. One (now the smallest) for pennies. Another for quarters, and a third for dimes and nickles.

During the flood (Hurricane Floyd- 1999) we rolled nickes, dimes and quarters. Had $120 to deposit when the electrity came back on a week later.

Our bank does not charge to deposit rolled coins, but you can bet if they did, I would stop. (Maybe change banks too!)

[amomof4]

I can't save change because I don't have any. I keep no cash in my purse. i pay with a check for everything. For me, it helps me spend less. I put my budgeted amount in my checking account & I have no more to spend. I'm less likely to impulse shop when I can only spend X amount.

[dolfinrose]

I have been saving my change for over 6 years now, and I either save it to get something nice for the kids or for whatever the need arises. I started out with a jar, and have moved up to large piggy banks.

About 3 times a year I empty the piggy and I get anywhere from $65 to $180 in change which I roll myself.

It adds up very quickly and putting it into a jar everynite is alot better then letting it float around in the bottom of my purse until I clean it out only because it is so heavy from all the change.

[locolorenzo24]

It's pretty easy to do...only use bills instead of change. I usually end up doing this whenever the glass is too full. My major problem is that once I cash it in, I end up spending the cash. Need to get a handle on that. Last time I had about $20. My bank works out well, they have a self service coin counter so you only need to wait in line to cash the reciept.

[mjrube94]

For anyone who has an account with Bank of America, they have a new twist on saving your change: If you sign up for their program, anytime you use your debit card to make a purchase, they'll round up to the next higher dollar and transfer the difference into your BOA savings account. For the first 3 months, they'll match 100% of whatever they transfer, then after that they'll match 5%, up to an annual limit of $250 (not bad).

So if you buy a soda for $1.25, they'll deduct $2 from your checking account ($1.25 for the soda, and $.75 which they will transfer to savings. During the first three months, they'll put in an additional $.75).

It's free, and I'm thinking of signing up on Tuesday (you need to actually go to a branch), but I haven't yet figured out how to maximize my benefit. I almost never use my debit card, as I get back 1% or 2% from my credit cards. So for every potential transaction, I'd have to figure out if I get more from the BOA match or from the credit card. Also, I think I really need to concentrate my effort during the first 3 months when I'd get the 100% match, because it will take a while for 5% of $.75 to add up!

[jillymcnilly]

sounds awesome!!! i use my debit card all the time, i never carry cash. there's no bank of americas in my area otherwise i would do it

[jillymcnilly]

i started doing that too. now i put in my son's piggy bank