Money Monday: The price of a bagel

You see these kinds of comparisons all the time.  Skip your daily latte and retire early.  Pack your lunch and save your family thousands a year.  Budgeting and keeping yourself from splurging are great ways to find money within your own family that might be spent on other things.

A few days ago, I spotted this infographic on a blog I follow from a site Keeping Current Matters.  As a coffee lover, I got exactly where they were going with this.  I especially like the houses on top of her head.

This infographic is a little bit deceiving.  Now, I know there are people out there who hit Starbucks every day, and if you are one of them, you are likely spending at least $5/day on coffee or coffee and a bagel.  I would say for most of us, Starbucks is an occasional splurge, but are there other things that you buy that could be cut out?  This infographic uses $5/day, so figure about $150 a month.  Use coupons, cut monthly bills, do less online shopping, etc.  In reality, if you plan to stay in your house for the life of your loan, or if you plan to be there 10, 15, 20 years, you can shave years off your loan, and thousands of dollars off the amount you need to repay when you do sell your home.

Talk to your mortgage lender if you have questions, and see what your savings could be, or if this is a good move for you.  Maybe you could discuss it over a Pumpkin Spice Latte.