Category Archives for Saving Money & Frugal Living

3 Ways for Parents of Current (or Future) College Students to Save Money For Their Education

These days, a college education is not exactly cheap. In fact, it’s more expensive than ever to attend a university in the United States.

While this is rather daunting, there are ways that parents of current (or future) college students can save money to help finance their education. Here are just three examples:

Have your student apply for scholarships:

There are a lot of different scholarship opportunities out there, and often times the ones closest to home are overlooked. While there are larger national-level scholarships available, there are often scholarships available locally for students to apply for in order to help finance their college education. These local scholarships are also often less competitive than larger regional or national scholarships, so your odds of getting one are greater.

Optimize your student’s meal plan:

When it comes to paying for your student’s meals on campus, make sure you’re not pouring money down the drain by having the wrong meal plan. If you find you are ending up with a lot of extra meals at the end of the term, you should consider changing to a plan with fewer meals (and likely a cheaper price tag!).

On the other hand, if your student doesn’t currently have a meal plan, or he or she has a plan that doesn’t include enough meals to last the whole term and they’re spending more on groceries or take-out than they would if they had a larger meal plan, scale up. Take a closer look at their budget (or what you’ve set for them) and if you find they are spending more money on outside meals than they would if they went for a larger meal plan, then consider upgrading to a meal plan that includes more meals per term.

Use a cash-back credit card:

While you need to be careful that you keep your spending in check and not let it get out of control, when you do use a credit card you should make sure you use one that offers cash-back.

For example, the Upromise MasterCard® is a great example of such a card, allowing you to save money or directly help pay off your child’s student loans while you spend. With over 850 participating online stores, over 10,000 restaurants, and several major travel sites, you can get up to 10% cash back on your purchases through Upromise.com simply by using the Upromise MasterCard. There are a lot of necessary items that you’ll need to purchase for your student, and with hundreds of online retailers participating, there’s no reason not to get cash back on what you spend. Similarly, if your student lives far, you’ll want him or her to travel and visit during school breaks, and with several major travel sites participating, you can get cash back when you book your travel plans using the Upromise MasterCard. Further, you can get up to 2% cash back at certain department stores and movie theaters. Finally, you can get up to 1% cash back on any other purchase you make, therefore no matter what you spend your money on, you’ll be able to get a little bit back each time to help you finance your child’s college education. If you’re interested in learning more about the Upromise MasterCard, take a look at the infographic at the link below!

10 Smart but Frugal Wedding Gift Ideas

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.

With wedding season in full swing, some might be a bit overwhelmed with working extra money into their budget for wedding gift expenses. Wedding gift shopping is of a whole different genre; you want to give a gift that the newlyweds will cherish forever. So, how to make that special gift mesh with a frugal budget? Here are ten ideas for frugal wedding gifts that come from the heart and will bring joy and remembrance to the wedded couple for years to come.

Personalized Cookbook

Purchase a blank cookbook and fill it with hand-written versions of your (or their) favorite recipes (if you don’t have great handwriting, print out the recipes and glue them to the book page). You can also use some pages to put photos on or to share memories you have about the couple’s pre-wedding years. Remember to leave at least half of the pages blank so that the newlyweds can add their own favorite recipes.

Themed Gift Basket

Themed gift baskets can cover so many different genres and are a joy both to give and to receive. Here are some basket ideas:

A cleaning supply basket containing:

A brightly colored cleaning bucket
Staple cleaning supplies such as window cleaner, toilet bowl cleaner, dish soap, hand soap, etc
Sponges, paper towels and/or cleaning rags

A dinner basket containing:

A box of pasta
Your favorite sauce
Non-refrigerated garlic or other bread
Croutons (for a salad)
An inexpensive bottle of wine
Inexpensive wine glasses

A bonfire basket containing:

Hershey’s chocolate bars
Marshmallows
Graham crackers
A cozy blanket

A picnic basket containing:

A picnic basket
Plates, silverware and napkins for two
A cozy blanket
An inexpensive bottle of wine
Wine glasses

There are a host of other gift basket ideas you can use too; just check online at sites such as Pinterest for more ideas. Wrap the baskets in clear cellophane and use a bow to add extra sparkle to the gift.

Framed Wedding Photo or Wedding Invitation

Purchase a nice but inexpensive wedding frame and use it to frame their wedding invitation or a great casual photo you have of the couple, either from their wedding reception or from another event.

Personalized Stationery

Hook the newlyweds up with a package of personalized stationery designed to fit their personalities, and add a nice but inexpensive pen/pencil set if it’s in the budget. Online sites such as Vistaprint have a host of different types of personalized stationery at affordable prices.

First Anniversary Bottle of Wine

Go to the wine store and find a nice, specialized bottle of wine – maybe something locally produced – and place it in a basket with a nice hand towel, some inexpensive wine glasses, a corkscrew and a note saying that the basket is for the celebration of their first anniversary. Wrap the basket in cellophane and a bow to keep it looking nice for the year.

Photo Scrapbook

If you have access to a dozen or so photos of the newlyweds, consider buying an inexpensive scrapbook and making a nice album for them to hold cherished memories of their life pre-wedding. Take advantage of craft store coupons when buying supplies to save even more money on this gift.

Personalized Christmas Ornament

A personalized Christmas ornament ready for their first Christmas together as a married couple is another great gift idea. Online stores, sites like Etsy and brick-and-mortar stores such as Things Remembered are great venues to find personalized ornaments.

Digital Kitchen Timer and/or Scale

These are two items that I really find helpful in our kitchen but didn’t take the time to buy until years after I was married. You can pick up a digital kitchen timer and a digital kitchen scale for less than $40 if you shop right.

Lawn Chairs and/or a Full-Sized Cooler

This is one of those gifts that your newlywed friends will likely use over and over again. An especially great gift if the couple likes to hang out in the great outdoors.

A Nice Blanket or Quilt

We received two really nice blankets from different people as wedding gifts and we still use both blankets nearly every single day after twenty years of marriage. Every time we use them, I think about the people who gave them to us with fond remembrance for this useful gift idea.

With a little thought, you can come up with a cherished wedding gift for your newlywed friends that won’t break your budget.

How about you all? What are your favorite smart but frugal wedding gift ideas?

Share your experiences by commenting below!

***Photo courtesy https://www.flickr.com/photos/43027029@N00/1078586764/

4 Ways to Keep Medical Costs Low

July 16, 2016
/ Saving Money & Frugal Living
/ By J. Irwin

With out-of-pocket medical costs continually on the rise, individuals and families need to be more aware than ever before of where the leaks are in their medical expenses. According to this 2015 Forbes article, the average family of four spent $24.671 on medical costs, with $14,198 being paid by the employer and $10,473 being paid by the employee.

This number includes both premium costs for health care plans and out-of-pocket expenses such as deductibles and prescription costs.

So how can you cut costs on medical care in a way that won’t put your health at risk or break your bank account? Here are some tips.

Choose the Plan that’s Right for You

It’s important when studying your available health care plan options that you read the fine print carefully. Depending on your current health situation and the amount of time and money you spend at the doctor and on prescriptions, etc., different plans may or may not be beneficial to you.

When choosing a health care plan, be sure to read every detail of the plan’s coverage and costs and match those benefits with the amount of time you spend at the doctor, choosing a plan that best suits your current medical needs and/or the medical needs of your family.

Practice Good Self Care

This is vitally important for those wishing to keep medical costs low. Many of today’s health maladies are a direct result of a poor diet, a high stress level and a lack of exercise. There are things you can do to avoid those health maladies. Here are some suggestions.

Eat Better

Hollywood stars such as Michael Strahan of Good Morning America recommend the 80/20 diet: Eighty percent whole foods, twenty percent junk food. I like his plan because although it does involve discipline and healthy food choices, it also leaves room for those temptations that come along with social gatherings and stressful days.

By choosing to eat well, you create an optimal environment for your body to defend itself from sickness and disease.

Get and Stay Active

Exercise helps your body to get rid of disease-producing toxins, to ward off sickness, to sleep better and to lower your stress level.

A good exercise program doesn’t have to mean running marathons or spending thousands annually on a gym membership. A simple 30-minute walk four times a week will do wonders for your health, as well a calisthenics program, a simple weight lifting routine and/or an at-home exercise video DVD.

After you get your doctor’s approval to begin an exercise program, pick a type of exercise that you enjoy, and make a commitment to be active several times a week. When it comes to exercise, every little bit helps you to have a healthier body that requires less trips to the doctor.

Keep Vices to a Minimum

Over-indulgence of alcohol and tobacco account for many health problems today. While a daily glass of wine has been shown in studies to improve health, more than that can have adverse effects. Keep alcohol and tobacco use in check, and if you feel it’s gotten out of hand, seek help.

Lower Your Stress Level

While eating well and exercising will naturally lower your stress level, it may be necessary to identify and eliminate other stress-inducing situations in your life as well. If your job is highly stressful, it may be a good idea to seek a different job or career field. If you’re struggling with toxic relationships, it may be time to seek professional help from a psychologist or counselor.

Studies indicate that stress accounts for up to eighty-five percent of illnesses, so you’d be doing your body good by reducing the stressors in your life.

Save for Health Care Costs

Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) and other types of saving vehicles can help you offset some health care expenses. Because some plans are tax-deductible, you lower your taxable income by utilizing an HSA or other healthcare savings plan. Also, using an automatic health care savings deduction plan through your employer can help you to make sure you’re setting aside some cash to cover upcoming health care expenses each year.

Re-Think Your Doctor Visits

While it’s vitally important to visit your doctor if you’re concerned about your health, research shows that nearly seventy percent of all doctor visits are unnecessary. Before you make that doctor’s appointment, call your doctor’s nurse line and ask if a visit to the doctor is necessary.

With a little research, effort and planning, you can reduce health care costs and give yourself the gift of better health as well.

How about you all? What are your tips for keeping health care costs low? How do you budget for health care expenses?

Share your experiences by commenting below!

***Photo courtesy https://pixabay.com/en/money-bills-calculator-save-256312/

How to Get Kid’s Clothing for Cheap

July 14, 2016
/ Saving Money & Frugal Living
/ By J. Irwin

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!

I’m pretty numb to other people’s responses about how much more expensive my life must be because I have a child. Some expenses that society labels on parents can be a little over exaggerated – like the price of clothing.

I spend next to nothing to clothe my 6-year-old son year-round. This doesn’t mean he walks around with holes in his clothes and pants that are a size too small either. I probably spend less than $150 per year clothing my son and he still wears nice and sometimes new clothing. Here are a few of my favorite ways to score children’s clothing for cheap or sometimes even for free.

Shop at Thrift Stores

Thrift stores are the best places to search for discounted kids clothing. Not all thrift store clothing is good quality, but not all of it is poor quality either. Kids grow super fast, and it’s common for parents donate lots of childrens’ clothing when they don’t know any younger children to pass the items down to.

As a parent of a younger child, I know that kids don’t take very well care of their clothes so it’s nice to find some good deals on quality used clothing at thrift stores.

Some of my favorite stores for the best finds are Goodwill and Once Upon a Child. Once Upon a Child is a nationwide chain that actually pays customers to sell them their children’s old clothing, toys, and baby accessories. This store tends to sell name brand gently-used clothing for an extremely discounted rate and they have high standards in terms of the quality of the clothing. This store is best to shop at when you have younger children, but you can seriously get more bang for your buck on designer brands without paying the high price.

Visit Garage Sales

Visiting garage sales is one of my favorite money-saving activities during the summer. Since I never go on big shopping sprees when my son needs clothes, I love picking up little things here and there at local garage sales during the summer. One time I found several shirts and pairs of pants in good condition for as low as a quarter each.

To find garage sales near you with kids clothing, search online to see if anyone is advertising their event on sites like Craigslist, or be on the lookout for signs in your neighborhood. Most online ads will include some of the items they are selling and if you find local garage sales on social networks like Facebook, you can even reach out to the host for pricing and more information. Keep some cash on hand during the weekends (like $10-$20) just in case you happen to see a good deal.

Take Advantage of Retail Store Coupons and Sales

Shopping used isn’t the only way to save. Two of my favorite stores to shop at when I’m looking for new outfits for my son are Target and Kohls. Both of these stores have great sales on children’s clothing along with coupons to generate additional savings.

Most people live remotely near at least one of these popular stores. I have one right by my job and sometimes I stop by on my lunch break to scope out the clothes they have. I’ll look through the clearance rack where most items are way less than $10 to see if I find anything I need. Or I’ll make a mental note of anything I would like to get for my son that is currently listed at full price (but I won’t make the purchase that day). Sometimes, I’ll wait a while and see if certain things go on sale. Almost all the clothing at Target goes on sale after a while so if it’s not an urgent need, I’ll wait. Other times, clothing is so cheap at Target I may just purchase it regardless if it is on sale. It really depends

At Kohl’s, they also have an impressive clearance rack, along with coupons and Kohl’s cash that customers can use. You can sign up to receive coupons in the mail along with email alerts about other sales the store is having.

Shop Online

Shopping online is easier for kids than adults because it’s easier to tell what size your child is. Some online retailers like Crazy 8 offer free shipping after you spend a certain amount and other online consignment shops like like Thredup and Schoola give you a free credit so you can save instantly on your first purchase. Shopping online is convenient and can help prevent you from overspending.

Additional Tips

In addition to the options mentioned above, I do a variety of other things to keep the costs for my son’s clothing to a minimum while still putting him in nice, wearable clothes.

I accept hand-me-downs – If a friend or family member offers me hand-me-downs that their child grew out of, I almost always accept them. Even if the clothes are too big at the time, I store them away until my son can grow into them. Right now I have enough jeans stored away for him for the next two years.

I usually shop for news clothes at the end of the season – I don’t participate in the crazy back to school shopping rush outside of school supplies. For clothing, I let my son wear his summer clothes back to school in August (since it’s still pretty hot), then I purchase additional items when the prices have went down. I also always save a little extra money to grab clothing for the following year/season during the season end clearance sales.

I don’t care about brands– Finally, one of the main reasons why I am able to spend so little on children’s clothing is because I have absolutely no brand loyalty. While some parents care about their child exclusively wearing Carters or Oshkosh, I don’t set an example for my child to be materialistic and care about brands. Instead, I focus on affordability, quality, convenience. A few weeks ago, I found some Lee jeans on sale at Kohl’s for $5. It was a very convenient purchase for me, and I could care less about the brand.

How about you all? Do you set a budget for your child’s clothing? How do you minimize the amount of money you spend on children’s clothing?

Share your experiences by commenting below!

***Photo courtesy https://www.flickr.com/photos/ironypoisoning/6968717778/

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.

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/

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

June 16, 2016
/ Saving Money & Frugal Living
/ By J. Irwin

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/

10 Cheap Summer Activities for Kids

Summer is almost here, which means the kids will be out of school and looking for something to do. How can parents make sure to keep kids entertained without breaking the bank this summer?

I know that for us, as we work to pay off our debt we also work to keep entertainment expenses at bay. We don’t want the kids locked in the house all summer in the name of saving money, so we work to find cheap summer activities that will entertain the kids while still keeping our budget in check.

Here are some of the fun activities we’ll be having our kids do this summer.

Organized Outdoor Play

Once the kids reach age 5 or so, they love gathering with friends and playing organized games. Soccer, baseball, airsoft, sword tag; there’s tons of options for play when you gather up some friends and meet at a local park or at the house of someone who has a large yard to play in.

Fishing

There’s something about fishing that is simple yet fun. Dig up a few worms, head to a local fishing lake and toss in your line for hours of entertainment. This is an activity that the whole family can enjoy, and if you do it right you can come home with dinner.

Hiking & Biking

Our family spends lots of time at local state and county parks on hikes and bikes. Depending on which parks/paths you choose, you can go for an easy trek or a rugged one. A Burley for your bike or a baby carrier or jogging stroller for your hike allows you to bring little ones along as well.

Picnics

A picnic is a super simple way to do something different for very little cost. You have to eat lunch anyway; why not enjoy it in the great outdoors on a soft blanket while listening to the birds sing? Don’t want to go anywhere? Simply picnic in the summer sun of your back yard.

Free Outdoor Summer Concerts

Many cities and towns boast free summer concerts via local musicians or music houses. Check out your state’s tourist website or specific city websites for information on times and dates. Be sure to arrive early so you can get a good spot for enjoying the show.

Game Nights/Movie Nights

Spoons, anyone? There are tons of board and other games that can be played with kids of any age. If you’re not into board games, pop some popcorn (the old fashioned air poppers really do make it better), turn down the lights and enjoy a movie theater atmosphere right in your living room.

Bonus: Many local theaters offer free movies for kids on summer mornings. Check out your local theaters for more information.

Bonfire Nights

It doesn’t cost much to install a fire pit in your back yard, and the one-time expense can account for years of enjoyment. This easy-to-build and inexpensive fire pit makes a great gathering place for families. Just add some bonfire-friendly foods such as s’mores and you’re set.

Beach Days

A bit of gas in the car, some sunscreen, some snacks and you’re all set for an inexpensive but fun day at a local beach. Be sure to bring some drinking water for staying hydrated and some friends for extra fun.

Day Trips

Check your state’s tourist site for some nearby towns or cities that have fun things to do, and plan a day trip with your kids. Smaller towns often have goodies such as candy shops or historical sites that make for an educational and fun day for kids and adults alike.

Summer Festivals

In our family, we just can’t get enough of summer festivals. Nearly all small towns and communities hold a summer festival of some sort. In Minnesota it’s Kolacky Days in Montgomery, Taco Daze in Scandia, and the Strawberry Fest in Cottage Grove, just to name a few.

Although these types of events can get expensive if you don’t make a plan, we keep costs low by bringing a picnic lunch and setting limits on costs for rides and/or festival foods. Many town festivals don’t charge an entry fee and have free entertaining attractions such as bands, car shows and variety shows.

Summer can be an expensive time for keeping kids entertained, but it doesn’t have to be. With a little research and planning, you can load up on summer fun for your kids without draining your pocketbook.

How about you all? What is your favorite cheap activity for your kids?

***Photo courtesy of https://pixabay.com/static/uploads/photo/2016/01/16/02/49/kid-1142785_960_720.jpg

Are Our Children Causing Our Personal Financial Crises?

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.

My son competed in both the preliminary and then the regional qualifying National History Bee competitions. The preliminary exam was taken for free at home, so no cost to us. The regional Bee was only 1.5 hours from our house, so, besides gas, it cost us next to nothing.

He did well in both exams and has now qualified for the National History Bee in June which is almost 2,000 miles from our house. While he was very excited and we were excited for him, we cautioned him that we might not be able to afford the trip. After all, between the fee to compete, the airfare for two, the hotel for four nights, taxis, and meals, the trip would easily cost us $1,500. That is simply not money we can come up with quickly and easily.

Years ago, when I was in high school studying Spanish, I would have loved to have joined the Spanish Club on their trip to Spain. For years I had wanted to travel to Spain, but I knew that was not a trip our family could afford. I didn’t even ask because I knew it was definitely not in the budget.

So, you can imagine my surprise when my mom heard about my son’s performance in the History Bee and immediately told everyone we knew that he’d be competing even though we hadn’t said yes yet.

Kids Today Get Much More Than We Did As Kids

This is not the first time that my mom has surprised me this way. When I was young, my grandparents always sent me a card for my birthday and one for Christmas. My birthday card always contained a crisp $2 bill, and my Christmas card had a $1 bill. I saved all of those bills because they came from my grandparents, and honestly, even back then there wasn’t a lot I could buy with them. Even now, years after both of my grandparents passed away, I still have those bills.

So, when I had my own kids, I expected my mom to behave as my grandparents did, but she didn’t. Instead, my kids get $20 for birthdays from her and many presents from her for Christmas. In fact, she was going so overboard at Christmas that we had to have a heart-to-heart and ask her not to give them so much.

We Spend on Our Kids at Our Own Financial Detriment

But it’s not just my mom. Kids today get a lot today, and not just from grandparents. I, too, have been guilty of giving my kids too much.

When my son was three, he started attending an immersion Montessori language academy. It was expensive, but it was only a tad more expensive than day care in our area would have been. I was working full-time and my husband was a full-time graduate student, so child care was essential.

But when my son was five, I took maternity leave for a year to care for our newborn child. Without my income, we couldn’t afford to leave him in that pricey school, but we didn’t want to uproot him. We went in debt for a kindergartner. Even now, seven years later, I shake my head at our stupidity.

But we’re not the only parents making these irrational decisions. Neal Gabler recently wrote a controversial article for The Atlantic in which he confessed dumb money decisions over the years that have forced him and his wife into a financial hole as they near retirement. He states that he and his wife “manage to scrape by, though child care and then private schools crimped our finances. No, we didn’t have to send our girls to private schools. We could have sent them to public school in our neighborhood, except that it wasn’t very good, and we resolved to sacrifice our own comforts to give our daughters theirs. Some economists attribute the need for credit and the drive to spend with ‘keeping up with the Joneses’ syndrome’, which is so prevalent in America. I never wanted to keep up with the Joneses. But, like many Americans, I wanted my children to keep up with the Joneses’ children because I knew how easily my girls could be marginalized in a society where nearly all the rewards go to a small, well-educated elite.”

Like Gabler, we lived in an area with a poor public education system. After the Montessori school, we sent our son to a parochial school. We did get financial aid, but to be honest, we couldn’t afford any amount. When we got ready to put our two daughters in the same school, we realized just how insane our tuition bill would be, even after financial aid. Before our daughters could even go, we pulled our son out of school and started homeschooling, which has been a great financial and family decision.

Since then, we’ve been cautious with the way that we spend money, especially on our kids.

Society’s Expectations Have Changed

But here’s the thing—society’s expectations have changed. When I was in school and couldn’t travel to Spain with the Spanish Club, it wasn’t that big of a deal because many kids’ families couldn’t afford the trip. The ones who got to go were usually the kids from rich families.

But now, whether you’re a family with money or not, you’re expected to fork over the cash for every opportunity your child might have. I can’t tell you the amount of pressure we’ve been under to send our son to the National History Bee. In the end, we did decide to send him, but we’re doing extensive fund raising so we don’t have to go in debt for the event.

People just expect that you’ll spend money on your kids for every opportunity that they get, and if you don’t, the implication is that you don’t care and aren’t willing to sacrifice at best, or that you’re a bad parent at worst.

These Assumptions Are Killing Our Finances

Unless you’re making a very healthy income, giving our kids all of these experiences is not realistic. But the better question is, should we still try?

A friend, Kathy, recently sent her second college-aged child on a study abroad to Italy. While there, Kathy’s daughter had the chance to travel on weekends to many other countries and see much of Europe. Kathy’s daughter did get some scholarship money, but Kathy and her husband are footing most of the bill.

Kathy has wanted to go to Europe for years, but she hasn’t been able to because she’s been paying for her children to go. She doesn’t expect to be able to go for some time because while she’s helping her children go to college and study abroad, Kathy and her husband have been neglecting their retirement account. They’ll have some serious catching up to do when their daughter graduates next year.

Kathy’s situation is not unique, just like Neil Gabler’s isn’t. Over and over, in family after family, children are reaping all of the rewards while their parents struggle financially. As Rhonda Stephens of The Huffington Post writes, “At some point in the last 25 years, the tide shifted and the parents started getting the marginal cars and cheap clothes while the kids live like rock stars.”

How about you all? Have you noticed this trend? Should this be happening, or are we causing harm to both ourselves and our kids who are getting so many perks without really working for them?

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