Household bills are one of the most boring things to spend your money on.
I don’t want to spend my cash on the heating bill – I’d rather something fun like drinks with friends, or an investment in my future like an extra payment on the mortgage.
The biggest expenses for the average person are housing, transport and food, with housing easily taking out first place.
Tackling these big, core expenses is therefore where you’ll get the most bang for your buck.
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It’s also set and forget; make a few adjustments once, then carry on with your life, with a cheaper base cost of living.
That’s why I'm so excited that housing is now catching up to what we all want, with innovations that can save us big time on life’s boring expenses.
Listen to the podcast below
Insulation is becoming thicker, and more commonly installed. Solar power is getting cheaper, and putting out more energy. House designs are getting smarter, built to automatically store and circulate heat.
But the problem with these innovations is sorting the wheat from the chaff.
Any time a new trend comes out there are those who are willing to jump on it, talk a great sales pitch, and then charge you a lot of money for very little result.
Sam Archer from the Green Building Council says people often forget the low hanging fruit that has a big impact. Insulation under your floor and in your roof won’t cost much and will save you lots in heating.
LED lightbulbs can pay themselves off in as little as six months. Wrapping your hot water cylinder will cost a handful of spare change and could save you hundreds.
But when it comes to those bigger investments, you need to start thinking about your lifestyle to work out whether it’s worth it for you.
Solar has made huge advances in recent years, but is obviously still reliant on the sun. That means it works for those who are home during the day and can take care of energy-hungry household chores while the sun is shining.
Or if you’re clever and have quite a digital household, you could set appliances on timers and arrive home to a magically clean house.
Some of these innovations are only cost effective if you’re building a home from scratch. Double glazing is great for keeping your house warm and dry, but is tricky on a purely financial basis.
Archer estimates the average double glazing retrofit could take 20 years or more to pay itself off in savings.
The problem is that when so few of us are doing it, it stays expensive.
So if you are in a position to build, then it’s a great time to think about the little extras that will make your home cosy in the long term.
Ian Watt from Construction Marketing Services says designing a home to face north and absorb free warmth from the sun is crucial.
Hard floors like polished concrete or tile means the warmth will be absorbed and released slowly through the cooler evening.
You can also take advantage of building to put in double glazing for much less, meaning you can get extra sunlight benefits without worrying about losing heat.
But if there’s one thing to remember it’s that the building code is a minimum, not a limit.
Just like the minimum wage, the building code makes sure there’s a minimum of comfort for us all.
But if you have the ability you want to get yourself more than that, to create a set-and-forget easier lifestyle.
Listen to other episodes in the series:
Episode 1: Buy v rent
Episode 2: Saving for a deposit
Episode 3: Negotiating a mortgage
Episode 4: The power of location
Episode 5: Tricks for paying off the mortgage faster
Episode 6: How to crush the debt
Episode 7: Apartment v house
Episode 8: Renovate or detonate?
Episode 9: How to solve land headaches
Episode 10: Is now the time to get nervous about your KiwiSaver?
- Frances Cook is the host of the personal finance podcast Cooking the Books. She is not a financial adviser, and all information is general in nature. For individual advice, see a financial adviser. Listen to her podcast on OneRoof.co.nz
