"Free Money"

"Free Money"

Nothing in life is free, but there are some things that close or at least feel free. Between getting deposits back, money equivalents, subsidized service, easy side gig, unlocking trash to cash and using coins. There are many ways to get little advantages of "Free Money" whether real, or psychological.   

Bottles

In Alberta bottles can be returned to receive a refund from a deposit initially paid when the beverage was purchased. Now technically this isn’t free money, it's just getting your money back, but it certainly feels like free money. Now when I see people throwing a bottle in the garbage they are just throwing away money. Sure it's just cents but it adds up. It's normally around $10 a month.

Google Opinion Rewards

This is only for Android users, sorry Apple users. Google has an app called Google Opinion Rewards that periodically sends surveys directly to your phone. Each survey takes between 5 to 30 seconds to complete and pays 10 cents to a dollar. The money is not real sadly, but it can be used for anything on the Google play store and Google TV app. This allows you to buy movies, games, music all without having to take out your credit card. I have personally done 863 surveys over the years and have earned $198.19 in Google money. That is on average 22 cents per survey which takes me on average 10 seconds to complete. If you extrapolate out the 22 cents for 10 seconds of work, it is equal to making $79.2 per hour (0.22 cent x 6 = $1.32 x 60 = $79.2). Not too shabby.

Library

This is actually free and it is underutilized by many. Library has a wealth of knowledge and entertainment all for free, not to mention the wonderful programs and activities they put on for children. Library cards are completely free as long as you are a resident of the city. You might say, who still uses DVDs and CDs, and that is true. But they have downloaded music on the library website as well as a host of other online content.

Online Surveys

If you are desperate and have lots of spare time that you cannot be using to better yourself, well then there are online surveys which pay anything from cents to multiple dollars per survey. The money is normally held on your profile which then can be exchanged for gift cards or cash deposited to your bank account. These normally pay less than minimum wage so unless you are getting paid from another job while doing them, it's not worth dedicating a lot of time. The best case scenario is you get invited to do a focus group or interview. These normally pay much better, around $50 an hour, plus if it's in person there is normally snacks 😛.

Selling Used          

Cleaning out your house for spring cleaning can be financially beneficial as well as therapeutic. Instead of pitching furniture and clothes, consider listing them on Marketplace or selling clothes at Plato's Closet. You can turn your unwanted items into money that would otherwise be lost. It's a win-win situation, cleaning out your house and getting extra cash.   

Coins

Using cash to buy things is pretty rare nowadays and I would advise against using cash but if you do, there is the annoying aspect of dealing with the coins. Coins are technically worth money, but so annoying and awkward to use at a store. Counting out nickels and dimes while the cashier looks at you with daggers can be quite uncomfortable. So what do we do? We have a coin jar that we add our loose change to and the coins stay there to die. Maybe eventually we bring them into a coin machine that can convert your coins into a cash voucher, with a lovely 12.90% coin processing fee. To avoid the fee you can buy paper rolls from the dollar store and manually roll the coins yourself then drop them off at a bank. Very easy and not arduous at all... But if simply consider coins to be dead money, which most of us do with our coin jar. Anytime we use coins it feels sort of like free money. The coins weren't going anywhere and they aren't doing anything for us anyway. So the next time you are going for a small purchase, consider using coins. It will feel like a free purchase.

Credit Card Rewards

Using credit cards is like playing with fire, but if you are safe and wearing proper personal protective gear you can avoid getting burnt while enjoying the heat. The heat being cashback rewards or points and getting burnt is the outrageous 20%+ interest fees. If you can use a credit card like a debit card and pay it off immediately on time each month, you can enjoy around $200 to $1000 per year in rewards.

Even small amounts of money can add up to create a difference or at least make you feel less bad about your purchases. Get an edge on your finances by taking advantage of these "Free Money" strategies.  

If you found this helpful and would like help budgeting or investing please email me at TaylorMckeeCoaching@gmail.com