It has never been more important to make our money go further. Inflation may have reduced, but we are still paying a lot more for our food,energy and homes.

One way open to us all to make money is to sell stuff. It may be old clothes, old books, games, tech toys, kitchen equipment, in fact anything you have finished with.

Remember we typically wear less than half the clothes we own. We have wardrobes, chests of drawers, and rooms full of items that could boost your bank balance.

Every household has stuff that can be sold.

It is straightfoward to set up as an online seller, and surprisingly addictive. There are no selling costs with most sales, and there should be no tax to pay either.

Selling can make a big difference to our family budgets and as a bonus make space in our cluttered homes.

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Fraud is an increasing problem in the UK made worse by the closure of thousands of bank branches. Banks are now required to pay compensation up to £85,000 within five days when criminals defraud their customers.

But as banks try to reduce their potential compensation bills it is becoming more difficult to make bank transfers and open new accounts, especially if your bank has closed the local branch.

It may be worth opening a second bank account that gives you local access to your money and the help of banking staff.

Mobile phones, internet businesses, social media and the way we shop online make it easier for criminals, and the banks on the hook for our fraudulent losses are upping their game in providing information about what to watch out for.

Essentially we should trust no one especially if they call on your land line, sound friendly and say they are from your bank; and never allow yourself to be rushed to make a payment.

My bank has twice got in the way of transactions I wanted to make. It was annoying at the time but if the deals had been dodgy they would have saved me from being defrauded before compensation became compulsory.

We need to make sure we understand the rules that our banks impose on interbank transactions before we have to make a transfer. If possible visit a bank branch.

If you are making a payment to a new payee then send a small amount as a test transfer. Read the small print when buying online.

It is also important to tell actionfraud.police.uk if your are defrauded. It may help them to warn others of a new danger.

Most importantly taking time may save you from repenting at leisure.

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Supermarkets make it difficult for us to get the best value for our money. They game us with their loyalty cards, special prices, extra points, yo-yo pricing and price matching.

The last quarter of the year is the most profitable for them.

We all need to work hard to make sure we are not made fools of by attractive displays, misleading prices and two tier pricing.

Shopping takes a little longer, but you can save a lot more by checking prices and trying own and basic brands than you will by being seduced by the loyalty card prices.

And you will soon see the patterns of when prices are increased. Big shopping baskets at the end of the month are likely to be more expensive than mid month because shoppers are less price conscious when they have just been paid, and the stores know it.

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