Be careful of advice

Ok, so the title of this post is kind of funny since I'm giving advice, but it's important to be careful of the advice you are getting. Make sure it's from a good source. Crown is an excellent source with a biblical basis to it. One of the things it teaches very strongly is avoidance of debt. Whenever you see something encouraging you to incur debt I would strongly advise against it. Debt is nothing more than bondage to your lender. There is an article in the Fresno Bee that I found very little to agree with. Our grandparents understood the value of living within their means but somewhere along the way that was lost and credit was encouraged. So if you read the article today on "Feeling the pinch" for whatever it's worth here is my take on it.
1. I do agree with looking through your checking account and credit card statements to get a clear picture on what you are doing with your money. Be careful with how you pay your bills. Avoid atm fees and late fees. It can mean hundreds of dollars in savings each year.
2. Do not buy bottled water. You can buy a good home filtration system instead for a couple hundred and just take your own water with you. Better yet just drink from the tap. There is nothing wrong with it.
3. Only buy stuff on sale. Be careful of the prices. Sometimes what you think is a sale isn't a sale so it's important to know your prices.
4. Buy private label brands. They taste the same, believe me. I see no difference from one can of tomatoes to the next but there is sure a difference in price.
5. The article advises shopping at warehouse clubs. It used to be true that if you bought in larger quantities you saved money. Now this is no longer true. Be careful shopping at warehouse clubs, often the prices are no better.
6. Cook your own food. I totally agree with that one. Eating out is very expensive.
7. I don't agree with using your credit card for a large purchase in order to get the extended warranty. It is often much cheaper to pay cash, you can often get a discount for that. If you have money you keep in savings for household maintenence it will draw interest. Extended warranties are rarely used anyway making them a waste of money, but in the event you need a repair it is often less than what you paid for the warranty.
8. Use credit cards for shopping discounts. This is sort of true only if you pay off the card immediately. Otherwise your savings in eaten up in interest.
9. Take advantage of AAA or AARP discounts when traveling. Always ask what discounts or specials are available. Definitely like that advice. There is almost always a way to save on that stuff.
10. Review insurance accounts and eliminate unneeded coverage. Sometimes you can combine your home with your car giving you an excellent discount.
11. Raise the deductible on your insurance but make sure it isn't for more than you can afford.
12. Cut back on ongoing subscriptions or services. I recently changed our cell phone service at a savings of over $300 a year.
13. The last piece of advice was to keep the thermostat at 60 degrees and use baseboard heaters in the rooms the family spends the most time in. I'm not so sure about that one. Gas is generally cheaper than electricity and many space heaters are far from efficient. I do highly recommend a programmable thermostat. Our bill dropped by $50 a month when we started using one of those. When my daughter moved out it dropped another $50. I'd like to know how one person used so much! Since you can't really get rid of your kids, I do recommend talking with them about the cost of the utilities and the importance of using them carefully.

So that is my take on the article, and as it stated it can all be done without clipping coupons!