5 Advantages of Having a Side Business

The following is a post by MPFJ staff writer, Kevin Mercadante, who is a freelance professional personal finance blogger for hire, and the owner of his own personal finance blog, OutOfYourRut.com. He has backgrounds in both accounting and the mortgage industry.

A lot of people feel stuck in jobs today. They’re plagued with small pay increases, a lack of promotions, and often a missing sense of fulfillment in their work. Though it may not be possible to shift into an entirely new career, you may be able to accomplish much the same objective by starting a side business.

There are many advantages of having a side business, and here are five of them.

1. Creating Multiple Income Streams

One of the less comfortable phenomena to develop the 21st Century is career instability. Technology and the offshoring of jobs means that the average worker will hold several jobs over a lifetime. The goal is now less about job security than it is about income security. One of the best ways to create income security for yourself is by developing multiple income streams.

Your job may represent your single most important income stream, but you can also add additional streams from your investments and from a side business. In doing so, you may not improve your job security, but you will certainly improve your income security.

A side business can be a valuable second source of income that also helps offset the relentless rise in the cost of living. Even if your salary has been largely stagnating, you can use the side business to generate your own pay raises.

2. It Creates a Retirement Funding Source

One of the best dedicated purposes of a side business is earmarking it for retirement savings. You can do this by using the additional income to fund a traditional or Roth IRA. If your side business earns at least $5,500, you can fully fund an IRA account, without touching the income from your primary job.

If your income from the business is higher, you can consider setting up a dedicated self-employment retirement plan. There are several choices here, but one of the best is a solo 401(k) plan. Under this plan, you can save up to $18,000 per year ($24,000 if you’re 50 or older) as an “employee” of your business. And that can be the first $18,000 that you earn, there is no percentage limitation.

But since you’re also the employer in your business, you can contribute up to 25% of your compensation (as defined by the solo 401(k) plan rules). This gives you the ability to contribute up to $53,000 ($59,000 if you’re 50 or older) into the plan (but less any contributions made to any other retirement plans). Under this scenario, if your side business earns $30,000, you can contribute $18,000 as an employee, plus $7,500 ($30,000 X 25%) for a total of $25,500.

That will certainly supercharge your retirement savings, and you can do it by having a side business, and creating a retirement plan specifically for the business.

3. A Getting Out of Debt Plan

One of the main reasons why it’s so difficult to get out of debt is a lack of income. This is particularly true since pay increases are seldom more than 2% per year. And that usually gets eaten up by income taxes and higher health insurance premiums.

But having a side business can provide you with the extra income that you need in order to get out of debt once and for all.

For example, let’s say you owe $20,000 in student loans, which you will be paying for the next 15 years. But if you can generate an annual income from your side business of $10,000, you could pay the debt off in just two years. And you can do it without disturbing your regular paycheck from your job.

4. A Chance to Advance if Your Regular Career is Stagnating

Not only are pay raises smaller than they have been in the past, but promotions are often more difficult to come by as well. If you feel that you are stagnating in your main job – whatever the reason – a side business will give you an opportunity to find advancement outside of your job.

For example, the additional income from your side business will represent a form of a pay increase. And you can increase your income each year that you have the business. And just as important, the side business can represent work that you find fulfilling in a way that your primary job is not, or is no longer.

5. It Could Develop Into Your Main Occupation

One of the most under-appreciated benefits to having a side business is that it can create an opportunity to create a full-time business. The side business is a way to test the waters on a part-time basis, and while you still have the security of a paycheck from a full-time job.

Once you have proven to yourself that your business is successful, it will mostly be a matter of scaling it up from part-time to full-time. That would be a lot less risky than if you were to quit your job to start a new business. The side business would be proof that your business works, and will provide you with a continuing cash flow as you move forward and increase the business to full-time status.

There are probably other advantages to having a side business. But it’s clear that a side business represents a real opportunity to move forward in terms of both income and your career. Give it some serious consideration, if you haven’t already.

How about you all?  What other advantages have you found with your side business?  Any disadvantages? 

Share your experiences by commenting below!

***Photo courtesy https://www.flickr.com/photos/89228431@N06/11322953266/sizes/q/

Manage Your Own Vacation Rental With Ease

The following post is by MPFJ staff writer, Marie. You can read more of Marie’s articles over at her own blog, Family Money Values. Enjoy! 

If you own a vacation home, you may have considered renting it out to help cover the costs.  Many resort area area complexes have their own on site rental management companies to manage the short term vacation rentals.

Using these types of rental services can make the job of renting easier, but there can be issues with professional rental management.

They have control over which of the complex’s units are rented for example.  If there isn’t an equitable process in place to distribute the rentals among all of the unit owners, your unit may not get rented enough to pay many of the operating costs.  This happened to me with our vacation rental.  The professional property management service owner also owned units in the complex herself.  Guess which ones were always rented out first?

They charge management fees, re-stock fees, maintenance fees and more.  The base rate for our old management firm was 38% of our gross rent!  Onto that, were added $10 per stay to buy supplies to restock (no matter how many of the items stocked were or weren’t used), $25 per maintenance item – which were done without consulting the owner (items such as cleaning the furnace filter); $85 for each cleaning up after guest stays and on and on.

They write terms into their contracts that dictate what you can and cannot do with your own property.  Ours reserved the right to inspect the quality and condition of the interior decor and furnishings and not rent out our unit if they decided the inspection failed.

Property managers in our state are supposed to be real estate professionals.  Ours wasn’t, but somehow was ‘exempted’.

You never get to know who is staying in your property and have no say over who does stay.

You typically don’t get to set the rental rates for your unit.

You have to rely on your rental management to relay any guest comments about your property.

After several years of paying exorbitant fees and suffering from non-rental of our unit, I decided to try self management of the property.  Although many resort rentals are in condo, hotel or apartment complexes, some are stand alone homes.  Finding a local property management company may be challenging in that situation.

We found the benefits to be satisfying.  Not only do we get the full rental amount (not having to fork over 38% of the gross rental), but we have also saved on maintenance and supplies as well as being able to deduct some of the expenses off our passive and regular income.

There is a cost, however, and that cost is my time.

Each year I do a top down cleaning and re-painting of the unit.  I wash all linens, windows, rugs, fans, closets and etc.  I visit the property (which is located some 200 miles from our home) several times a year to check in on it, perform needed maintenance and purchase and organize supplies.  I spend time answering rental inquiries, keeping books, sending payment invoices, answering calls, updating web sites, rental agreements and more.  I find that I enjoy the activities and over the years have become more efficient in handling them.

Here are some of the ways I have found to make self management of our vacation rental easier.

Market to generate rental inquiries

By far most of my inquiries come from Vacation Rental by Owner (VRBO), which the only commercial site I use.  I chose VRBO because my property is smack dab in the middle of the USA and this site markets to that audience.  It also has so far allowed me to control most aspects of pricing, booking, describing and etc for my property.  I recommend that you do use a popular commercial site to market your rental, but pick one that matches your style as well as the type and location of your rental.

I also have built my own website, using Word Press as the content management system.  Word Press is a free and easy to use tool to build a website and comes with many free ‘themes’  – or designs – which you can use to build out your site.  No coding expertise is required.

In addition, I’ve listed the property on our state’s main visitor web portal.

Pricing is key as well.  Most commercial sites will use your rates as one of their sort criteria, to determine how far to the top (or bottom) of the search results your property lands.  Typically you set multiple rates, depending on what season you are renting.  Higher prices for the popular seasons.

Hire a reliable cleaning/maintenance service

You have to have a good cleaning service if you are not local or if you don’t want to do the cleaning your self.  In addition you have to have yard maintenance, snow removal and the like services.

Since my property is included in a condo association, the association handles all of the outdoor maintenance.

Cleaning services should have the following characteristics to be considered reliable:

• Someone local who can handle the workload and clean between same day renters.

During the high season, you are likely to have someone checking out of the unit the same morning that someone else is checking into it.  Your cleaner has to have enough resources to get your unit cleaned, checked and resupplied in that short window or your afternoon renters will be hanging out waiting to get into the unit while the cleaners finish up.

• Be willing to clean/do laundry/perform minor routine maintenance light battery & light bulb changes; supply replenishing and repurchasing.

In addition to cleaning, your housekeeping service would do well to make sure the beds are changed and the linens washed and stored for the next guest set (you want enough linens to have two sets for each bed so that one set can go back to the cleaner to get washed while the guest is using the other set).  Ask them also to check batteries (in remotes, clocks, door locks, etc) and light bulbs and change them out when needed.  They also will be responsible for replenishing any thing you stock for your renters (such as coffees, teas, toilet tissue and more) – and a reliable cleaner may even provide an extra service (at an extra charge) to go to the store and buy anything that you run out of.

Have a local emergency contact

In addition to (or as part of cleaning services) you need someone local who will come in emergency situations on an as needed fee based service.

Things happen.  Renters want to know that there is someone in the area who can come when they do.  I’ve had situations where the renter can’t get in the door, or where they wanted someone to come over with a metal detector and check for fish hooks in the carpet – as examples.  Your emergency contact should also be (or have on call) a handyman service that do things such as unclog a toilet. My cleaning service has a handyman on call for these things.  Besides those types of services, you need to have a method to handle bigger maintenance issues, such as replacement of faucets or ceiling fans.  For these  I currently rely on big box subcontractors – such as those that work for Home Depot or Lowes.

Make entry possible without needing on site help

Folks used to mail keys back and forth when they managed their own remote rentals.  Thank heavens that isn’t needed anymore!  Instead of paying someone to check in your guests, you can now install a key-less door lock so the guest can let themselves in.

At first I used a Kwikset lock – which allowed the guest to enter a 4 digit code to unlock the rental, but each code had to be set at the physical door lock.  I had my cleaning crew reset the code each time the renter changed, but they forgot to do so multiple times, resulting in a late night scramble to get the next renter into the condo when they tried to use the new code.  This type of lock only allowed 2 active entrance codes at one time.  It presented an issue for me when I needed to allow someone access for the day, to say, let the exterminator in to spray or allow the association manager to enter the unit.  Once given, the code was active until changed at the door, which I didn’t particularly want to do.

This year I am trying a lock which allows the entry code to be set remotely.

There are multiple types of locks now which allow new entry codes to be set remotely.  I picked one that did not require wifi to be up and running, since we have frequent electrical storms which can knock it out at times.  I can sit on my couch 200 miles away and generate a code for someone to use for one day, multiple days, long term or for just a few hours.  It cuts out the need for anyone to be at the door setting the code.

However, it still uses batteries.  So, just in case, I do have a key on premises, outside, locked up in a key save.  I had to use this method to allow guests to enter last year when the codes didn’t get set for them.

Remotely manage as much of the home environment as you can

Although our unit is not yet equipped for it, I would recommend that if you self manage and are not close to your rental, that you set it up so that you can turn the thermostat up and down, turn out the lights or lockup the unit remotely.

Just one light left on during the long winter vacant period cost money in utility bills.

Make extra supplies accessible when needed

You probably stock certain things for your guests to use during their vacation.   I’ve found that leaving extra supplies out in easy reach is too tempting and they disappear.  One thing I have to have available however, are parking permits.  Without them, the renter’s car could get towed.  In the past I relied on my cleaner to put them out, and they often forgot.  Although I have a printable version of them, emailing that to a vacationer doesn’t do much good.  Therefore, I have learned to leave extra passes in a hidden, but guest accessible place.  Then if they call saying there aren’t any passes, I can tell them where to go to find them.

I have lock out closets where the other extra supplies are kept and keep keys hidden inside the condo to get at them (mainly so the cleaners have access).  I could, if needed, also allow guest to access the keys on an honor basis to get into the supplies.  However, to date, I have not done that.  After all, the store is only 15 minutes away for them.

How about you all? What tips do you have for easier self management of vacation rentals?

Share your experiences by commenting below!

***Photo courtesy https://www.flickr.com/photos/7493568@N02/1368668021/

8 Tips to Help Repair Your Bad Credit

The following is a guest post. Enjoy! 

Have you had some financial missteps over the course of the past few years? Is your credit score less than ideal? If you answered yes, you’re definitely not alone. Failing credit scores have become one of the largest victims of the recession and financial crisis. Unfortunately, that’s the number banks, mortgage lenders and credit companies use to determine whether you can get credit and what interest rate you qualify for. It can now even impact the rate of your insurance premium or ability to get a good job. The following tips can help you repair your bad credit and gain some financial independence.

Fix Errors

Making unfortunate financial mistakes in the past can be bad enough. But you don’t want to be penalized for errors that you didn’t make. With close to 70 percent having errors, your credit report may be included. To eliminate any errors, you can obtain your own free credit report and analyze it for blemishes. If you find something that could be wreaking havoc with your credit score, fix it immediately. Then when it’s time to sell your house quickly and purchase something new, you’ll be ready.

Credit Repair Services

If you’ve tried your hand at repairing your credit score on your own, you may have hit some road blocks. That’s why many individuals hand this job over to an expert. Although a credit repair firm has the resources to tackle your disputes, you may not know where to turn. There are credit repair firms ready to take your money. There are also those who are legitimate. The best credit repair companies will know the regulations in place to help repair your credit. Based on user reviews, consumers will be able to make the best educated decision on who is reputable and those that are scammers.

Catch Up on Payments

If you’re having issues making a payment for your debt, you can work out a plan. Whether you consult a non-profit counseling agency or you contact the creditor directly, you may be able to negotiate better payment terms.

Timely Payments

How you pay down your debt will have a huge impact on your credit score. Going forward, plan on paying your credit card payments, auto loans, mortgage or rent on time each month. Your utility bills such as cable, gas and electric can also have an impact. If you miss a payment, contact the creditor immediately and ask if the late payment can be removed.

Establish Credit

You won’t be able to build your credit history without credit. Unfortunately, in order to achieve a good credit score, you need to get credit. To establish your own positive credit, check with your bank first. They may offer a secured credit card for individuals with a checking or savings account.

Upgrade to an Unsecured Card

Once you’ve made timely payments on your secured credit card, see if you’re able to upgrade to an unsecured card. You may want to begin by applying to a local department store. At the end of each month, make sure you can pay your bill in full.

Pay Down Debt

If you have outstanding debt, you want to pay down as much as you can. Set a budget to determine how much money you need for bills. Whatever is left over, use it to pay off your credit cards.

Avoid Credit Card Closures

Closing a credit card that you’ve had for a significant amount of time can have a negative impact on your credit score. If it’s the annual fee that you disagree with, ask the creditor to waive the fee or switch you to a card without one.

Why Your 401(k) Shouldn’t Be Your Only Retirement Plan

The following is a post by MPFJ staff writer, Kevin Mercadante, who is a freelance professional personal finance blogger for hire, and the owner of his own personal finance blog, OutOfYourRut.com. He has backgrounds in both accounting and the mortgage industry.

People sometimes believe that if they have a 401(k) plan that their retirement is covered. That’s sometimes true – if you can make the maximum contribution, and you have an excellent plan with a wide variety of low-cost investment options. But if you don’t, then your 401(k) shouldn’t be your only retirement plan.

Here are some major reasons why you should accumulate retirement savings outside of your 401(k).

Increasing Your Retirement Contributions

If your company caps your retirement contributions at a certain percentage of your income, you may not get the full benefit of the maximum contribution. For example, for 2016 the IRS allows a 401(k) contribution as high as $18,000 (or $24,000 if you are 50 or older). But if you earn $60,000, and your employer caps your contribution at 15%, you’ll only be able contribute $9,000.

At the opposite end of the pay scale, if you earn well over $100,000, the $18,000 maximum contribution may not be adequate for you to reach your retirement goals.

In each situation, you may need to add additional retirement plans in order to reach your retirement investment goals.

Increasing Your Investment Options

One of the common complaints about 401(k) plans is limited investment options. In many company plans, your investment choices are limited to a small number of mutual funds or exchange traded funds (ETFs). In some plans, you are limited to the funds from a single fund family.

This can limit your investment options. For example, if your plan does not offer sector funds, you won’t have the option to invest specifically in technology stocks, energy stocks, or resource related stocks. There may also be no option available for you to invest in real estate through real estate investment trusts (REITs).

Self-directed plans, such as IRAs, allowing you to hold your plan with any investment broker you choose. As such, you can choose a broker that offers the widest variety of investments in such a way that your investment options will be virtually unlimited.

This can also improve return on investment, which can make a huge difference in the size of your retirement portfolio by the time you retire.

Adding Income Tax Diversification to Your Retirement Plan

401(k) plans are great when it comes to income taxes while you are funding your plan. Your contributions to the plan are tax-deductible, and the investment income earned on your capital are tax-deferred. From a tax standpoint, contributing to a 401(k) plan is a double win.

But the dynamic shifts when you retire and begin taking withdrawals. After all, 401(k) plans are not tax-free, but tax-deferred. “Deferred” means that the taxes are simply due at a later date, and that date is when you retire and begin taking withdrawals.

You can get around this problem by simply not taking distributions from the plan – under the assumption that you won’t need the income. But even if you do this, eventually you will be required to take distributions. That requirement will apply once you turn 70 1/2. 401(k) plans are subject to required minimum distributions, or RMDs. That means that distributions from the plan become mandatory at that age.

For this reason, you may want to have certain retirement related investment accounts that will not be tax-deferred when you retire, but not subject to tax at all.

A Roth IRA is one such account. The contributions to this plan are not tax-deductible, but the investment income you earn is tax deferred. But both your contributions and the accumulated investment income can be withdrawn tax-free when you turn age 59 1/2 and have been in the plan for at least five years.

Another alternative here is to have money invested in regular taxable investment accounts. Since you pay tax on the investment earnings in such accounts on an annual basis, you can withdraw money from them that is not subject to income tax.

Either account could be an excellent counterbalance to a fully taxable 401(k) plan.

You Will Need Emergency Funds Outside Your 401(k)

Even if you have a very large 401(k) plan, you will want to have savings for retirement that are held outside of the plan. This is because the primary purpose of a 401(k) is to provide you with income. As such, you won’t want to be withdrawing large amounts of money to cover emergency expenses. That will be a strategy for draining your 401(k) plan prematurely.

For that reason, you should plan to accumulate a significant amount of money to have available to cover expenses that can’t be paid out of regular income. Examples include large uncovered medical expenses, major repairs to your house, the replacement of one or more vehicles, or even money to help your adult children.

Other Retirement Plans to Add to the Mix

There are plenty of choices even if you have a 401(k) plan.

Traditional IRA. You can save up to $5,500 per year ($6,500 if you’re 50 or older) and put the money into a self-directed investment account, maximizing your investment options. Your contributions to the plan will be tax-deductible, however there are income limits which if exceeded will limit or eliminate their tax-deductibility.

Roth IRA. These have the same contribution limits as traditional IRAs, and you can also invest money into a self-directed investment account. However your contributions are not tax-deductible, and there are income limits after which you will no longer be able to make a contribution. But up to that income level you can make contributions even if you are already covered by a 401(k) plan. And as already mentioned, the distributions you take from a Roth IRA are tax-free as long as you are at least 59 1/2 and have had the plan for at least five years.

Regular Taxable Investments. These can include any investments are held outside of a retirement plan. This includes an investment brokerage account with stocks and funds, money held in mutual funds or ETFs, certificates of deposit, or US Treasury securities. There is no tax benefit while you are accumulating this money, but for the same reason you can access it without tax consequences. This is an important part of retirement tax diversification.

Investment Real Estate. Investment real estate accumulates value in two ways – from property value appreciation and from amortization of any financing on the property. And if you can purchase an investment property now, and pay off the mortgage by the time you retire, you’ll have the benefit of either the cash flow from the property from rents, or the proceeds from selling it.

Each of these investments represents a retirement diversification, so that your 401(k) plan won’t be your only retirement plan.

How about you all? How else have you diversified your retirement portfolio?

Share your experiences by commenting below!

***Photo courtesy https://www.flickr.com/photos/45688285@N00/970158361/

Instead of Taking Out a Payday Loan, Do This

The following post is by MPFJ staff writer, Chonce. You can read more articles by Chonce over at her personal blog, My Debt Epiphany. Enjoy! 

If you find yourself in a financial bind, the idea of taking out a payday loan may come up. Payday loans are short-term loans often with high interest that a borrower is often expected to pay back when they receive their next paycheck(s).

There are many payday loan lenders all throughout the country and you may even see some stores in your neighborhood offering these services. However, payday loans are often the worst type of loan to get and not a real solution to your financial problems which is why I always advise against them.

 

The Trouble With PayDay Loans

Payday loans appeal to low income earners with average or poor credit. Ultimately, they only truly benefit the lender. Lenders get to loan you money and collect interest on it while you stress out over paying them back. If you take out a payday loan, you may feel a brief sense of relief while you pay for the expenses you have, But when it’s time to pay back your loan and you have to cover interest as well, you always loose money.

Payday loans have some of the highest interest rates typically around 400% which is outrageous. If you have to borrow $300, you’d have to pay back that money along with almost $100 in interest meaning you lose money during your next pay period. If you can’t pay back the loan quickly, it can get worse which makes these loans not worth it in regards to the convenience they do provide.

To avoid having to consider a payday loan, try out these options instead.

 

Start Building Up Your Emergency Fund

When things are going well financially or you have a little extra money at the end of the month, put it into a savings account for a rainy day. It’s best to save and build your emergency fund consistently no matter how good or bad things are going and don’t stop until you get your account to a reasonable number that you feel comfortable with.

Payday loan lenders take advantage of borrowers by offering high interest rates because they know a payday loan is an absolute last resort and the borrowers don’t have any savings to fall back on.

Even if you can only set $25 or $50 aside each paycheck, it’s a start and will come in handy should you ever need it.

 

Do Some Extra Work

If you don’t have much in your savings account and an emergency or unexpected expense pops up, consider doing some extra work to earn the money you need. Ask your employer if you could pick up some overtime, ask friends and family if they need help with anything or need a babysitter, offer to help someone move, or apply for gigs online on sites like Craigslist.org, and Upwork.com.

There are so many things you can do to earn some extra money quickly. Worst case scenario, consider selling something you no longer want or need for quick cash. Odds are, you have something lying around your home that you can do without. Sell that item online, at a garage sale, or utilize your local area’s online buy, sell, and trade group.

 

Change Your Budget Around

When options are slim, you can always change your budget around so you can be able to round up the extra money you need. If you reach out to your utility companies, landlord/mortgage company, other lenders etc. and ask for an extension on your monthly payment until your next payday, they may work out a verbal or written agreement with you.

Shuffling around the due dates for certain expenses can really help you avoid a high-interest payday loan.

 

Use a Credit Card

While I don’t like advising people to use a credit card to cover extra expenses they can’t handle, credit card interest rates are much cheaper than payday loan interest rates. If you have a smaller purchase that you need to make, I’d definitely recommend making it on a credit card and paying off the balance as quickly as possible.

If you have a credit card with a temporary 0% APR, that might be an option that is well worth it too. However, if you’ve maxed out your credit card or don’t have one, I wouldn’t recommend signing up for a new credit card just to pay for expenses you truly can’t afford.

Also, if you have bad credit, this option may not apply to you and you will have to try some of the other alternatives along with preventative methods like building your emergency fund while you work on improving your credit.

 

Once You Start Using Payday Loans It’s Hard to Stop

Once you get started with payday loans, it’s very easy to get sucked into the debt cycle. You start by paying back your loan along with the extra interest charges. Since you paid extra money due to interest, your cash flow may be offset for the following month causing you to be short on money for savings and regular expenses. This can prompt you to take out an additional payday loan to help make ends meet for the time being. The vicious cycle can continue again and again and wastes a lot of time and money while causing you unwanted stress.

Your best option is to build up a comfortable savings buffer and avoid taking out a payday loan at all costs by utilizing the alternatives mentioned.

How about you all? Have you ever had to take out a payday loan? How are you avoiding the option of having to take one out in the future?

Share your experiences by commenting below! 

***Photo courtesy of https://www.flickr.com/photos/foilman/5640782502/in/

Making Networking Work for Your Career

The following is a post by MPFJ staff writer, Kevin Mercadante, who is a freelance professional personal finance blogger for hire, and the owner of his own personal finance blog, OutOfYourRut.com. He has backgrounds in both accounting and the mortgage industry.

Networking is one of the most time-honored ways to find a new job or to advance your career. Sometimes it doesn’t seem networking is actually working. But often the reason for that is that we don’t manage it the right way.

Here are strategies to help you get the most out of career networking.

You Should be Networking Even When You Don’t Need to Network

Networking is often an activity that we participate in only when we are actively seeking a new job. But approaching it in this very limited way is one of the primary reasons why networking might not seem to work.

The power of networking is in the network itself – you will have to keep it active at all times, even when you’re not looking for work. That is, you need to stay in touch with your network partners at all times.

This is a situation that can work against you if you have been working with the same employer for many years. For example, if you have been with the same company for 20 years, the stability of your employment might make networking seem to be unnecessary. But should your situation change, either due to a layoff, an unfortunate termination, or on the realization that you cannot/will not be promoted, you’ll wish that you had done a better job of maintaining your network.

Be Intentional in Your Networking Efforts

What does it mean to be active in your network? It means being intentional. You should have some sort of loose plan as to how you maintain at least semi-regular contact with your network partners.

That will involve periodic phone calls, emails, and even occasional face-to-face meetings. This will keep your network contacts active and solid. It will also remove any hesitation you might have about contacting people in your network when you finally do need a job.

Not All Networks are Formal

You can of course join formal networks, such as industry trade groups, but that’s not always entirely necessary. You can also maintain common interest contact with people in your field where you get together for purposes unrelated to work. It could be hobbies, sports, religious affiliation or any common bond you can think of.

A contact is a contact, so it doesn’t necessarily need to be part of a formal group. Any kind of group that involves regular contact works as a suitable network. Each member of the group is a potential resource for referrals for professional purposes if only on an as-needed basis.

Your Former Co-workers are Some of Your Best Contacts

It’s very easy to lose contact with former coworkers. And unfortunately, in some organizations, once a person leaves they are considered to be “outsiders” and all contact with them stops.

But former coworkers can be some of your best networking partners. Since they actually worked with you, they know more about you, and may not only be more likely to give you job leads, but also personal referrals. This is especially important since many employers require referrals who are people you have worked with in the past, but not necessarily your immediate supervisors and managers (because legally they can usually only confirm dates of employment). A former coworker who will speak well of you is a powerful personal referral.

Network in Parallel Fields and Industries

If all of the contacts in your network are in your immediate field or industry you may be leaving an entire very important group out of the equation. That’s people who work in related fields, but not specifically in your industry.

These contacts are important because they are often aware of job openings within your industry. Even more important, since they are not specifically employed in your industry, they’re not competitors for the same jobs. They would likely have no reservation about referring jobs to you, unlike people who are employed in your industry and may be reluctant to make a referral.

Make it Mutual – Always!

Successful networking must always be mutual. If you want to get job and career referrals, it’s absolutely essential that you reciprocate. Even if you are not interested in a new position right now, you probably know of job openings and promotions. If you do, this is an excellent opportunity to reward the people in your network with specific referrals from you.

Rest assured that if you refer a network contact to a new position, that person will reciprocate when the time comes that you need a new job.

This is another networking activity that you need to be very intentional about. For example, when an opening becomes available with your employer, or even with an outside employer that you know, send out an email to some of your network contacts who may be qualified or interested. Even if they aren’t, they’ll remember your referral. If nothing else, it’s another opportunity to contact some people in your network. And you should be doing that all the time.

If you’re working your network even when you don’t need a job, it will be there for you when you do.

How about you all? What other ways have you utilized to network with others? Have you found anything that works better than others?

Share your experiences by commenting below!

***Photo courtesy https://www.flickr.com/photos/83532250@N06/7650804342/sizes/n/

Change Your Thinking, Change Your Financial Family Tree: 7 Lies that Keep Families in Financial Bondage

The following post is by MPFJ staff writer, Laurie Blank.  Laurie is a wife, mother to 4 and homesteader who blogs about personal finance, self-sufficiency and life in general over at The Frugal Farmer. Part witty, part introspective and part silly, her goal in blogging is to help others find their way to financial freedom and to a simpler, more peaceful life.

Financial expert Dave Ramsey often talks about how choosing to live a debt free life means re-writing your financial family tree. Many people who are in debt can look at their family tree and see that a host of other family members have also struggled or are still struggling financially. For many families, debt, poverty and lack are a way of life. Not saving money is normal. Not planning for retirement is normal.

For these folks, changing your money is going to take changing the way you’ve always been taught to think about money. It’s going to take renewing your mind to be like the minds of savers, investors and wealth-growing people. Here are 7 mindsets you might need to change if you really want to change your family’s financial tree for good.

I Have No Control Over My Financial Situation

We thought this for years. My husband and I were raised with the unspoken message that people either have money or they don’t, and that there’s nothing an individual can do to change that – it’s simply luck of the draw.

While people don’t always have control over every expenditure that comes their way, you do have the option to save more and spend less when it comes to items that are in your control, and practicing discipline on those things will help put you in a better financial position when unexpected expenses come.

The rule: control what spending you can so that you’re better prepared for those expenses you can’t control.

Saving Isn’t Important

Or as we used to say, “My credit card is my emergency fund.” The general rule is that if one chooses to rely on credit for covering emergencies they’ll never make saving money a priority. The truth of the matter is that money in the bank always trumps available credit in terms of enhancing financial security.

Choose to put a designated amount into a savings account, and commit to leaving it there. Even if it’s just $10 or $20 a paycheck, it’s something and it will eventually begin to add up to big bucks.

Debt is Okay

Some experts agree that some types of debt are okay. Mortgages and student loan debts are among those types of debt that are considered to be acceptable debts.

But the fact of the matter is that as long as you owe somebody money, they have a certain amount of control over the way you live your life. And as long as you’ve got payments to make, you decrease your financial security in situations where you might be forced to live with less income, such as in a job layoff situation.

It’s a “debt is okay” attitude that keeps people borrowing instead of saving to pay cash for items.

If you’re going to change your financial family tree, you’ve got to reject the mindset that debt is okay. That doesn’t necessarily mean that you can never borrow money again, but in order to truly change your habits and start building wealth, taking on debt has to be an exception instead of a rule in your financial life.

Financial Goals Aren’t Necessary

For years our family’s financial goals consisted of vague statements such as “I want to get out of debt”. Unfortunately, those types of semi-goals don’t usually get achieved.

People who achieve financial independence usually have written out goals that contain a step-by-step action plan that will help them achieve those goals. Here’s an example.

Goal: I will pay off $20,000 in credit card debt in two years by putting an extra $800 a month toward my credit card bills. I will find that extra $800 a month by cutting X, Y and Z expenses and by making X amount of money at a second job delivering pizzas.

Without specific, written goals you can pretty much guarantee that your financial family tree will continue to follow the path of those before you who also never had written financial goals.

Retirement Will Just Work Itself Out

I remember my grandparents struggling tremendously in retirement (and in all the years before retirement) from a financial standpoint. Birthday and Christmas presents from their kids and grandkids always had to be cash to help them pay the bills or purchases to repair things on the house because they didn’t have the money for anything other than the basics.

Back in the olden days, when social security money was guaranteed and debt wasn’t the norm, your grandparents and great-grandparents might have been able to get away with this mindset. After all, they probably had little to no debt and didn’t need much to live on.

Also, healthcare coverage in those days was much more all-encompassing than it is now. In today’s world, however, people need to have a plan for their money if they want to retire and be able to eat and pay the bills.

Choose to change your financial family tree by starting to save for retirement right now. Again, it doesn’t take much to add up to big bucks if you’re still in your thirties or below. Take advantage of employee matches on your 401(k), set a monthly pre-tax contribution amount to go into your 401(k) and put a small amount of cash monthly into an IRA.

If you’re into your forties and fifties and are on the road to a dismal financial place in retirement as your ancestors were, take steps now to do things differently. Cut expenses drastically, downsize your house if need be and start making retirement savings a top priority so that you can make big strides to live a more financially secure retirement than your parents and grandparents have or had.

I/We Don’t Really Spend That Much Money

This was our mantra – and the mantra of our family members – for many years. Then one day back in October of 2012, when we hit our financial rock bottom, we gathered our bank and credit card statements and took a look at what we actually spent our money on.

Here’s what we learned.

We spent 50% more on groceries per month than we thought we did. Three times as much on entertainment and eating out than we thought we did. Twice as much on gas for the cars as we thought we did.

It was then that we began changing our family’s financial tree and spend tracking each and every month. Spend tracking allows us to have a daily update of what we’re spending so that if we see we’re getting near our budget limit on a particular item we can reign in spending immediately.

Now that we know exactly what we’re spending money on each month, we are paying off our debt instead of accumulating more debt and not understanding why.

I Just Need to Earn More Money and Then We’ll Do Better Financially

I can’t count how many times my husband and I said this to each other. But the truth of the matter is that financial problems are rarely (as in 1% of the time) due to a lack of money, but instead due to a lack of restraint when it comes to spending.

If you can face this and other facts regarding how you and your ancestors manage money, you can indeed make the necessary changes to change your financial family tree from one of constant money struggles to a lifetime of financial freedom.

How about you all? As you look at your family’s financial history, do you see a pattern that lines up with your own spending and saving habits?

Share your experiences by commenting below!

***Photo courtesy https://pixabay.com/en/family-dollar-money-hedged-forward-960451/

Take These Steps to Protect Your Family and Assets from Fire

The following post is by MPFJ staff writer, Melissa Batai.  Melissa is a freelance writer who covers topics ranging from personal finance to business to organics to food.  She blogs at Mom’s Plans where she shares her family’s journey to healthier living and paying down debt.

Fire.  We all hope a fire doesn’t happen in our homes, especially at night when we’re sleeping.

We hope that it doesn’t happen to us, we may live in fear of it, but we do very little to protect ourselves.  A surprising number of us don’t even have fire extinguishers in our homes.  We don’t know how to put out a grease fire in the kitchen.  Sometimes we don’t change the batteries in our smoke alarms, or worse yet, we don’t have smoke alarms.  We don’t go over a fire escape plan with our children.

And yet, for all of our lack of precautions, or maybe because of it, household fires are fairly common.  According to the National Fire Protection Association, “Between 350,000 and 400,000. . .house fires occur in the United States each year.  Households can expect a fire every 15 years on average. . .Your household has a one in four chance of having a fire large enough to be reported to a fire department during an average lifetime” (CBS5AZ).

Are you scared by those statistics, or do you think, “We’re careful.  That won’t happen to us.”

Hopefully none of us reading this post will have to experience a house fire, but as the statistics say, some of us will.  However, there are important steps you can take to protect your family and your assets:

Install smoke alarms

Don’t kid yourself—you need smoke alarms.  According to the National Fire Protection Association, “Almost two-thirds of home fire deaths resulted from fires in homes with no smoke alarms or no working smoke alarms.”

How many smoke alarms do you have in your house?

You should have one on every floor.  In addition, you need one inside every bedroom and outside the bedroom, such as in the hallway.  The National Fire Protection Association recommends that you change your smoke alarms every 10 years.  If you can interconnect your smoke alarms so that when one goes off all the other ones go off, that’s the best protection.

Replace smoke alarm batteries every time there is a time change

Every time we switch to daylight savings time and then back again, in the spring and in the fall, replace your smoke alarm batteries.  This is a small price to pay for your safety.

Have a fire extinguisher on every floor of the house

If there’s a small fire in the bedroom upstairs, you don’t want to have to run downstairs to the kitchen to grab the fire extinguisher.  Have one on every floor, and make sure there is one in the kitchen.

In addition, know that there are different types of fire extinguishers, A, B, and C, that put out different types of fires.  Ideally, get a fire extinguisher that is Type ABC and can put out any small fire you may have in your home.  In addition, replace the fire extinguisher every 10 to 12 years, even if it hasn’t been used.  If it has been used, it will also have to be replaced.

Have an escape plan and practice it

You and your family members should plan two different ways to get out of the home.  You should also practice your escape plan regularly so that if there is a fire, your natural tendency to panic is overcome with your prior preparation.

Make sure younger children know how to open the windows and doors so they can get out.  If you have an infant or someone with mobility problems, make sure someone is assigned to help them out of the house.  Mark a spot to meet outside.   The National Fire Protection Association has a detailed list and sample map to use when making your escape plan.

Keep a flashlight and a phone by your bedside

If there is a fire in your home, you will likely want to call 9-1-1 immediately, and you’ll also need a flashlight to help you navigate the darkness, especially if you’ve already lost electricity.

Take pictures of your assets yearly

Imagine, if everything you owned was gone, would you be able to remember all that was missing and the value of everything?  Likely not.  Instead, today, go around your house taking pictures of everything that you own.  Open closet doors; open dresser drawers; take pictures of all of it.  Then, put those pictures somewhere safe so that if there is a fire and you lose most of your belongings, you’ll have documentation of them.

However, doing this once is not enough.  You’ll need to repeat the process every 12 to 24 months.

Have home or renters’ insurance

Your home and belongings are too valuable to risk losing.  Indeed, losing your home to a house fire and not having home insurance can be financially devastating.

If you’re renting, don’t assume that your landlord’s insurance covers you.  The landlord’s insurance covers his loss from the building.  You’ll need renter’s insurance to cover the cost of replacing your belongings.  When we rented, our renter’s insurance was only $100 a year.  That’s less than $10 a month and well worth the cost.

When you take out your home or renter’s insurance, make sure that the insurance is for the replacement value of your items (called replacement cost insurance), not the depreciated value (called actual cash value by the insurance company).  The latter type of coverage may be a bit cheaper annually, but if you have a catastrophe like a fire, it could cost you much more.

Say you lose your computer in a fire.  If you paid $800 for the computer but you’ve had it for two years, your insurance may only pay you half the amount you paid or less.  Consider this being done for all of the items that you lost, and insurance suddenly becomes inadequate.  However, if you sign up for replacement cost insurance, you’ll be given an amount to cover the cost of the item in today’s dollars, without depreciation.

Regularly update your insurance

As you stay in your house longer, you tend to accumulate more valuable items and your house also likely appreciates.  Make sure every two years or so you reevaluate your insurance.  You may find that you need to increase your insurance coverage for the items in your home, and determine if you have enough to cover the replacement value of your home now, after it has appreciated.

Have and use a fireproof safe deposit box

Finally, make sure you have a fireproof safe deposit box somewhere in your home.  Use it to store the photos you took of your valuable items as well as any valuable paperwork like birth, marriage, and death certificates, passports, licenses, etc.   You may also consider storing heirloom items in here like your grandmother’s wedding ring or older pictures that you wouldn’t want to lose.

No one thinks about the fine details of going through a house fire, but every year hundreds of thousands of people have house fires.  In fact, in 2013, there were 369, 500 reported house fires (NFPA).  Hopefully, you’ll never experience such a devastating event, but if you do and you’ve taken the steps above, you’ll likely reduce the possible damage.

How about you all? Have you or someone you know ever experienced a house fire?  What other tips would you give?

Share your experiences by commenting below!

***Photo courtesy https://pixabay.com/en/flame-fire-orange-flammable-heat-1013280/

How To Consistently Earn An Extra $1,000 Per Month

The following post is by MPFJ staff writer, Chonce. You can read more articles by Chonce over at her personal blog, My Debt Epiphany. Enjoy! 

How nice would it be to make an extra $1,000 this month? If you have bills piling up, debt payments that need to be taken care of, or just need a little extra money to make ends meet, an extra $1,000 probably sounds very nice.

Let me tell you a little secret. It’s pretty easy to earn $1,000 this month if you consider all your options and work hard at it. You can pick up an extra job, sell some of your clothes, have a huge garage sale, or take on an additional project this month.

However, it’s not as easy to consistently earn $1,000 each month, but that’s what you really want. Instead of receiving a one-time lump sum, you can earn up to $12,000 per year if you utilize any of these techniques to earn at least an extra $1,000 per month.

 

Freelance Writing

If you have any experience with writing content for print or online or if you’ve ever written for a blog before, you might want to earn extra money for freelance writing. It’s a popular side hustle and an effective way to earn $1,000 per month consistently.

To get started, you should start a blog or develop an online portfolio to showcase your work. Once you start interacting with other bloggers or leaving comments on other sites, you can ask to contribute some quality guest posts to other sites to get yourself noticed and develop some writing samples.

Then, you’ll want to start pitching potential clients including other bloggers, small business owners, or solopreneurs who you think could benefit from your content on a consistent basis. A great way to earn money as a freelance writer is to pitch sites with a blog to see if they can hire you as a regular contributor or staff writer. Pitching is the hardest step in the process but the more you do it, the better your results will be. It’s a competitive industry but there’s also more than enough work for everyone.

Start quoting clients with a starting rate of $50 per 800-1000-word post, then you can raise it as time goes on. If you charge clients $100 per post and complete 10 posts per-month or two per-week, you’ll earn at least $1,000 each month.

Virtual Assistant Work

Virtual Assistants are becoming more and more of a necessity for growing businesses. A virtual assistant (VA) is an online work-from-home personal assistant who helps businesses and individuals with a wide variety of different tasks.

Being a VA allows you to work from the comfort of your own home and set your own hours so you can earn a flexible income. VAs do everything from scheduling social media updates and creating invoices to editing content and blog posts, checking emails, creating newsletters, online research and more.

As long as you are good with computers and can type well, you should be able to market yourself as a VA and learn how to perform a wide variety of tasks. Some of the best ways to get started are to start searching for gigs on sites like Zirtual.com, start a blog or professional website to immerse yourself in a community of people who may need your help in the future, and cold pitch busy blog owners, companies, and entrepreneurs.

VAs can start off earning between $12-15 per hour but can earn up to $30-60 per hour depending on the task. Of course, the higher you charge, the less you have to work to get to $1,000 per month, but even if you start with a rate of $18 per hour and work very part-time to earn $1,000 each month.

Real Estate Photography

Like to take photos? You can turn your habit into a profitable side hustle that allows you to earn an extra four figures per month. Real estate is a bountiful market as there are always potential renters and buyers who are searching for a new residence.

Property owners know the value of presentation and understand that good photos means more quality leads. If you have a quality camera that takes professional photos, start a portfolio of your work by uploading photos to sites like Flickr or even starting your own professional website to advertise your services.

Print out business cards and start sending them to realtors in your area and going to local networking events to meet other potential clients in the industry. You can even take on one or two pro bono gigs in exchange for a testimonial or referral. Freelance photography is already a pretty popular gig and with real estate images, you can easily charge anywhere from $100-300 per shoot so if you did just a handful each month you can earn $1,000 in no time.

Website Development

With more than 2 billion people on the internet, it’s no wonder why almost everyone wants a website these days. While everyone wants a visually appealing and professional website, they have no idea about what all goes into the process or how to create a stunning site.

If you have an experience with programming and coding, you can cash in on your skills by developing websites for clients. You can start marketing your services by using the same techniques I mentioned for the previous gigs.
On the bright side, if you’re interested in this type of work but don’t have much experience, you can always take a programming class and learn everything you need to know. You can make that investment back pretty quickly because experienced programmers who work full-time can earn up to $150k per year. If you just do it in your spare time and charge clients anywhere from $300-800 for a fully functional website as a starting rate, you can easily earn at least $1,000 after just doing two or three projects.

Teaching Students a Second Language

You don’t have to speak any foreign languages fluently to earn money from this side hustle. You can teach students English online from the comfort of your own home.

If you have a knack for English or a teaching background, this would be an ideal opportunity. Some great places to start looking for online teaching jobs are TurtorABC.com and Italki.com. You’ll want to charge a reasonable rate of around $30 per hour of language tutoring. If you teach online for at least 8.5 hours each week, you’ll earn $1020 per month.

Summary

As you can see, the list can go on and on. In order to earn $1,000 per month consistently, you must determine what your skills are and what you like to do. Then, properly market yourself to potential clients and network. You have to present yourself as a professional and showcase your experience in order to lock in the rates I discussed earlier. It may be a challenge in the beginning but it’s not impossible since many other people are doing it.

As an added motivation, just think of what you could do with an extra $1k each month when it comes to paying off your debt, making progress on your investments, and increasing the savings in your bank account.

How about you all? Do you have a side gig that brings in consistent income each month?

Share your experiences by commenting below! 

***Photo courtesy of https://www.flickr.com/photos/76657755@N04/7027595009/in/

4 Ways to Help Your Parents Prepare for Retirement

The following post is by MPFJ staff writer, Laurie Blank.  Laurie is a wife, mother to 4 and homesteader who blogs about personal finance, self-sufficiency and life in general over at The Frugal Farmer. Part witty, part introspective and part silly, her goal in blogging is to help others find their way to financial freedom and to a simpler, more peaceful life.

It’s only been in the last decade or two that personal finance education has really begun to weigh importantly on the minds of adults. Because of that, many people find themselves wondering how to help their aging parents prepare for retirement.

Helping your parents prepare for retirement isn’t just about the money they’ll need to live on after they quit working; there are many other factors that need to be considered. As I recently worked through this with my mom, I thought I’d share our experience and what issues we addressed as we helped mom prepare for retirement.

Figure out Living Arrangements

This is a big one for those considering retirement. Some retirees prefer to stay in the home they’ve lived in for many years; some prefer to move on to less work-intensive living.

It’s important to talk with your parents about how they wish to live after they retire. If they want to and can afford to stay in their own home, who will do the maintenance and upkeep work? Will the kids and grandkids help?

If that’s not an option, can your parents afford to hire out to take care of home projects? Is there room in the budget for a maid? It’s important to have these conversations early so that kids can understand their parents’ wishes and parents can ascertain whether or not it’s realistic to stay in their current home.

If moving is the best option, where will your parents needs best be served? Will a 55+ apartment complex suffice, or is more intensive care – such as assisted living, – needed? If your parents are considering moving, visit several potential places before picking one.

Also, it’s important to start the moving research process early as many senior living facilities have long waiting lists for new residents.

In my mom’s case, we chose (after a lot of research) a basic 55+ apartment complex. The place we chose has a plethora of activities available for seniors but is somewhat small in terms of the number of apartment units.

There are many different types of living complexes for seniors to choose from, which is why you should allow plenty of time for the research period before deciding on where your parents will move should they decide not to stay in their current home.

Establish a Post-Retirement Budget and Financial Plan

How much money will your parents need to live on? How much do they currently have saved for retirement? What will they earn monthly from social security, pensions and part-time jobs?

Income often changes after retirement. Are your parents prepared for this change? Do they have an idea of how they want to live in retirement and if they can afford that ideal?

Some people’s parents may need the help of a professional financial planner to determine how to strategize investments to produce a sufficient monthly income. Others may simply need to sit down and create a realistic post-retirement budget.

Helping your parents assess their current financial situation and create a plan that will allow them to survive financially during retirement is key to making the senior years enjoyable and peaceful for parents and for their children as well.

Create a Realistic Plan for Medical Expenses

Your parents’ current health status is important as you help them determine just how much money they’ll need to cover medical expenses during retirement. Find out what prescriptions they’re currently taking and how much each one costs per month.

Factor prescription and other regular medical expenses in as you work with your parents to create a realistic budget.

Also, work with them to determine what types of medical insurance coverage they’ll be eligible for after retirement. Will they be covered by Medicare only, or do they have insurance coverage eligibility through their former employer or military time served?

How much will they pay monthly for their coverage? What does their coverage cover in terms of expenses and what are the deductibles? Having a thorough understanding of these factors will help you determine if your parents have sufficient income to pay for medical expenses.

Make Sure a Proper Will is in Place

Laws vary from state to state, so it’s important for you to check on the state laws governing estate property where your parents live. Some states require that all property go straight to probate if the property is only listed in a parent’s name, even if the will states clearly who the property should go to upon death of the owner.

In order to avoid long court battles, it’s wise to check on individual state laws where your parents live and to title all property (including bank and investment accounts) in a way that makes sense for your family.

It’s also important to discuss your parents’ burial wishes with them. Although this isn’t a fun topic, it’s important to know what your parents’ wishes are and to plan accordingly for those wishes (both financially and regarding the details) so that those details are out of the way and aren’t creating stress later on.

Retirement can be an exciting time and a scary time for one’s parents as they look forward to a new chapter of life. The more prepared you can help them be beforehand, the easier the transition will be.

How about you all? How have you helped prepare your parents for retirement and beyond?

Share your experiences by commenting below!

***Photo courtesy https://www.flickr.com/photos/rzuranski/6444826991/