Food, drinks outside home sip disposable income

By: Kim Covert

OTTAWA -- Ever wonder what's been eating away at your disposable income this summer? Well, here's a tip: There's a good chance it's you.
Eating -- and drinking -- outside the home account for four of the top five most popular destinations for Canadians' spending money, according to BMO Bank of Montreal's recent Rainy Day Survey.
Results of the online poll conducted by Leger Marketing suggest more people are spending their spare cash on dinners out this summer than last -- 32 per cent compared with 24 per cent -- and the number of people paying someone else to make their lunch has also risen, to 28 per cent from 25 per cent last year.
Hot drinks can also empty wallets drip by drip -- 24 per cent of respondents say they buy a morning coffee or tea, compared with 20 per cent last year. After-work socializing is depleting the spending money of 14 per cent of Canadians, up from 11 per cent last year, while transportation is a factor in the budgets of 17 per cent of respondents, again an increase from 12 per cent last year.
"With volatile market conditions and continued economic uncertainty, now is a good time for Canadians to review their daily spending habits and -- if necessary -- revise their budgets," says Su McVey, BMO's vice-president customer communications and marketing.
"Learning to put aside savings and build a financial cushion to fall back on can be easy if you pay attention to where you are spending your money and address what is -- and isn't -- essential."
So how can you keep day-to-day expenses from nibbling away at your nest egg?
BMO offers these suggestions:
-- If you bring your own lunch to work you won't be tempted -- at least not as often -- into impulse spending on prepared foods. Buying $20 of sandwich fixings can feed you for a week --compare that with buying a $10 sandwich every day, the bank says. Monthly savings could be as much as $120. An added bonus? Controlling what goes into your food can mean healthier meals, too.
-- Take your own coffee in a travel mug. Fans of pricey coffee-shop brews may pooh-pooh the comparison, but BMO points out while the daily latte can cost $3, a bottle of instant coffee, which lasts much longer, costs about $5.
-- Instead of meeting up at a pricey restaurant, invite friends to your place for a potluck dinner. You get to work on your culinary skills and enjoy your friends' food and company for a lot less money.
-- Shop the specials, look for the deals, and take advantage of coupons if you do plan to eat out.
-- Heard of a staycation? How about a staydate? Instead of spending $30 on a movie and snacks (not to mention a babysitter, after-movie drinks or dinner, and transportation), rent a movie (better still, check one out from the library) and pop some popcorn at home. Or, if you want the theatre experience, take advantage of cheaper matinee prices. There's often entertainment just waiting on your closet shelves too -- when was the last time you pulled out the board games? That's a fun evening with friends and family for the price of some beverages and a few snacks.