25 Ways to Fund Your $1,000 Emergency Fund

Some people whip thru this step without thinking.  For some people, this will be the first time they have ever accumulated $1000 cash.  Ever.  Here are some ways that can help with your $1,000 baby emergency fund:

1. Watch out for “spaving.”  Retailers have twisted the word “save” in such a way that we now think when we buy something from them we are “saving” money.  They may have lowered the price a little and you may have received a better value.  But unless you take that money and deposit it in the bank, you did not “save” the money.
2. Work Overtime.  Dave Ramsey quotes his grandmother.  “There is a good place to go when you are broke:  to work!  It’s a sure fire money making scheme.”
3. Extra Jobs:  Get a 2^nd job delivering Pizzas, Waiting Tables, etc.  I have a client who adds $2,000 a month to his budget by delivering pizza Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights from 6pm to Midnight.
4. Be on the look out for extra income at work.  Employee referral programs.  Incentives for certain behaviors.
5. Have you purchased anything recently that you can return for a refund?  I saw a Nightline type TV program a while back that stated the average American family has almost $2,000 a year of purchases they make that they intend to return but never do so.
6. Do you have any gift cards laying around?  If so you have two options.  1) use the gift card and put the cash you were going to spend in the bank toward the $1,000.  2) sell the gift card on e-bay.  Gift cards typically bring 80-90% of face value on e-bay.  After fees, this can be 75 to 85% of face in cash.
7. How long has it been since you cleaned out the garage?  Any pop bottles to return?  Any junk copper or aluminum sitting around you can recycle?
8. What rebate forms are still sitting on your desk that could be mailed off?  Rebate experts state as high as 80% of rebates are never sent in.
9. Outside Aisle Grocery Shopping.  Have you ever noticed that the outside aisles contain the fresh food you need to buy each week?  Produce, Deli, Meats, Dairy & Bread?  Inventory your pantry and freezer.  Dust off that Chef-boy-ardee and Hamburger Helper.  Buy only WHAT YOU NEED to complete a meal using existing items.  (This will also help you consume your canned foods before they expire).  When you start grocery shopping on a budget, you’ll be amazed at how much less food gets thrown away.
10. Do you have any business expenses that you haven’t submitted?  That is giving your employer an interest free loan while you’re paying interest on other debts.
11. If its February to April – file your taxes ASAP to see if you get a refund.  That refund is your freedom money.
12. If you’re getting over $1,000 tax refund.  You need to adjust your withholdings so that you’re not giving the government an interest free loan.  If you get a $2400 refund, that is $200 a month more that could be in your take home pay.  That’s an extra $200 a month toward the emergency fund and/or your debt snowball.
13. Do you have any receipts for health care reimbursement just sitting around?
14. Have you loaned any friends or family money?  If so, it may be time to see if you can start collecting on your loans.
15. How long has it been since you robbed the non-interest bearing piggy bank full of spare change?  Do not use the Coinstar counter at the grocery store.  They will charge a service fee of 7-10%.  You need to roll it yourself or see if your bank has a branch with a free coin counter.  (Bank of America Pulled their Machines in Michigan.  Community Choice Credit Union still has them in some branches.)
16. Look for Free Cash offers when switching banks.  I get $250 offers regularly from National City at the ATM machine.  ING direct regularly offers a $25 bonus for new accounts.  (They will pay existing customers $10 for that referral.  Fill out a comment form, I’ll be glad to e-mail you an invitation.)
17. Sell something!  If you haven’t used it in the last year, you really don’t need it.  Once you start to get a taste of debt free living, you’re going to realize all that “stuff” you had to have – you really don’t need after all.  Here are some things I’ve seen people sell off:
    Look on www.ebay.com and www.craigslist.org to see what people are buying.
    1. Books that are collecting dust on your shelves:  (some sites buy them back and provide free shipping to them)  You can sell your books yourself as used on Amazon.com.  I buy most of my books used there.
    2. Movies, DVDs, Disney Videos from when your kids were younger.  I sold off a Baby Einstein Video set for $50 on Craig’s list.
    3. Video games and gaming systems
    4. Children Toys & Children Clothing
    5. Audio CDs
    6. Used car battery cores.  (This use to pay a lot more)
    7. Guns, Stamps, Coins, etc.  Most “collectable” stuff is really just a waste of money that could be invested elsewhere.  Beanie Babies are worthless.
    8. Car parts.
    9. Project cars that use to be a very expensive hobby.
    10. Note:  I never recommend selling family heirlooms or things with sentimental value that you cannot replace.
18. Do you have any magazines subscriptions that you can cancel and get a partial refund?
19. Costco gives a guaranteed satisfaction on its membership and most products.  If you really don’t get your value out of that membership, cancel the membership and get the refund.  (Just for the record, I like Costco and shop there often.)
20. Do you have somebody you can car pool to work with?
21. Can you start brown-bagging your lunch as opposed to eating out?
22. Can you scale back your cell phone to plain vanilla service?  Cut out the TXT packs.  Drop the music features.  Drop all that other its-only-$2-a-month stuff.
23. This is the most “Gazelle Intense” action I have ever seen.  I have a client who donated plasma twice a week to generate an extra $50 a week.  (She is a nurse and regularly uses products made from donated plasma in her practice.  She will say the emotional benefits of giving here outweigh the financial benefits.)
24. I tend to start with the small items.  To me parting with a DVD I haven’t watched in 2 years is less painful than other things.  I’m of the opinion that every dollar counts.  Now you can’t only do small things.  Small things make small changes and take large amounts of time to add up to large changes.  When I started this program, my cell phones, home phone, 2^nd home phone, fax, internet, internet hosting, and satellite TV were about $340 a month.  Today those expenses are about $135 a month.
25. Don’t overlook the big ticket items:  Motorcycles.  Cars.  Jet skis.  If they have a loan against them, even better.

Remember, if you live like no one else, later on you get to live like no one else.  When you have a fully funded emergency fund, the cable can be upgraded again.  The bells and whistles are easy to turn back on.  The hardest part about any self-improvement program is getting started.  These tips will help you break a financial log jam.