Every year the United States government increases Social Security benefits through the COLA stimulus. The percentage that retirees’ monthly check goes up depends on the CPI-W in certain months of the year. In this sense, the ultimate idea of the COLA is that retirees can fight inflation and not lose purchasing power. This data is very important to understand why that 8.7% may be insufficient due to inflation in recent years.
Between the years 2021 and 2022, the price in groceries has increased about 12%. Likewise, the COLA for 2023 has been 8.7%, which has pushed the average Social Security benefit up to $140 per month. But it doesn’t seem to be enough for most retirees who still see how paying all the monthly expenses can be complicated.
That’s why it’s always very important to know ways to save money on every month’s expenses. This doesn’t make our Social Security check go up, but it does make it so that we don’t have to spend all the money on some things. For example, if we keep in mind that it is not mandatory to spend a lot of money on cleaning products, the final savings can be very significant.
Save part of your Social Security with these tricks, according to AARP
The first thing to keep in mind when it comes to saving money on your Social Security check is that any trick is welcome. When it comes to cleaning products, sometimes it can be very expensive to buy them all. It is possible to make these types of products at home, according to the AARP, and save a lot of money as a result.
The items needed are inexpensive, as they are basically baking soda, distilled white vinegar and some essential oil. Retirees will not have to pay much of their Social Security on these products.
- Window cleaning product. We will need four cups of hot unboiled water, half of cup of distilled soft vinegar and 8-12 drops of essential oil. We mix everything very well without shaking and we have a homemade window cleaning product. It can also be used for other surfaces.
- Unclogging pipes. Calling a plumber is really expensive and can cost us a large part of our Social Security. While it is true that sometimes it is mandatory to call one, it is not always necessary. If our pipes are clogged, we can use 4 or 5 tablespoons of baking soda. We add them inside the affected pipe. Then we add half a cup of distilled white vinegar. We must cover the pipe and wait about 15 minutes. Then we add 4 cups of hot water. In case it does not work the first time, we can try again the next day.
With these two tips we can keep the house clean and totally free of pipe clogs. It is a very good idea to do pipe cleaning once or twice a month, even if the pipes are working fine. It’s a good way for us not to spend our Social Security check on plumbing bills.