by Guest on January 16, 2012
Don’t let a small budget stop you from planning the vacation of your dreams. Worldwide travelers on tight budgets have come up with imaginative ways to save money and still enjoy a quality vacation. With a little research, you can find enough inspiration to help you to plan a getaway to that ideal destination.
Couch Surfing
Couch surfing is an option that can save you tons of cash on lodging. The concept, which has taken off like wildfire, connects travelers to people who are willing to let them stay at their home for no cost. Hosts in those cities post pictures and other information in their web profile. Prospective travelers surf, or browse, the couch surfing websites for the cities they wish to visit for compatible accommodations.
In addition to free lodging, travelers also receive the benefit of getting first hand knowledge about sightseeing in the city from the people who live there. They are also provided with the opportunity to meet new people; including the potential to meet other travelers who may be staying at the home. Couch surfing continues to increase in popularity around the globe. One primary couch surfing site, which offers tips on safety and other useful information, boasts over 65,000 registered members from the United States alone.
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by Guest on January 9, 2012
With this recession biting hard, there are plenty of money saving tips and personal finance type articles around the place – but what if “eating out less” and “walking more” just isn’t enough for you? If you want to be a money saving queen (or king) you need to dig deeper.
Here are 5 seriously tightfisted money savers for people just like you:
Trim Your Christmas Gift List
Some people feel like they have to buy Christmas gifts for every cousin and their kids – this really isn’t true though. Rather than wasting money on cheap presents which will probably not be missed anyway, why not downsize your gift list, spend a little extra on the ones that matter and pocket the difference?
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by Guest on December 28, 2011
Last month, I bought a kindle
. Although my only desire at the time was to have a portable library to carry with me on planes, trains, and (the passenger seat of) automobiles, I soon discovered that my Kindle gives me access to hundreds of free books. Far from being a mere convenience, the availability of so many free books means that, for the price of a Kindle, anyone can become the smartest blogger in the room, with money to spare.
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by Guest on December 23, 2011
Think off campus when finding cheap alternatives to the campus bookstore
If you’re a college student you already know that textbooks cost a small fortune. Textbooks can cost almost as much as tuition, according to a study from the Advisory Committee on Student Financial Assistance, which shows students paying an average of $1000 or higher per year for books. However, that’s only for suckers who decide to buy their assigned reading from the campus bookstore. There are other ways to find cheap textbooks, for instance, you can buy used textbooks, photocopy textbooks or even rent your textbooks. Just let that creative student brain think outside the box—or rather outside of the campus box—and look for the following money saving alternatives to buying textbooks for college on campus…
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by Guest on December 16, 2011
If the approach of the holiday season causes you more financial stress than joy, getting (and keeping) control of your spending may help. When you know how much you have to spend, keep track of your purchases and plan ahead, you can focus more on finding the right gift for each person on your list – and hopefully cut out some stress at the same time. Consider these ideas for surviving – and enjoying—this gift-giving season:
1. Actually have a budget: If you don’t know how much you have to spend, you could get a nasty surprise when you start perusing your shopping list. Take a look at your monthly budget and decide how much money you have to spend for holiday gifts. Include any money you plan on withdrawing from a holiday club bank account, or that you have earned and earmarked for gifts. Once you know how much cash you have over all to spend, you’ll be able to plan out your purchases, without the risk of running way over your budget.
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by Guest on December 13, 2011
Unless we are unemployed, self-employed, or choose to telecommute, most of us have a physical commute that we undergo daily as we move from our homes, to our place of work, and then back to our homes again. As online calculators that assess your commute can show, the trip back and forth every day can be a costly one – especially if you drive a car. While there are certainly many factors to take into account, a person who commutes 10 miles to work and drives a car with average gas mileage can expect to pay over $200 per month on commute-related costs. This includes primary expenses (gas) as well as more peripheral ones (car maintenance). It does not include the cost of a parking pass at your place of work.
On its own, therefore, your commute can be similar to the cost of a home loan in the long run. For most people, this is simply an accepted fact of life; you need to commute in order to receive your paycheck, after all, and most Americans do not have easy access to mass transit.
That being said, if you’re looking to cut costs and you have the ability to explore other modes of transit, you may want to consider forsaking the car for a more budget-friendly (and environmentally-friendly) means of travel. Here are your options, broken down by cost: [click to read…]
by Guest on December 2, 2011
With the days getting shorter and Christmas right around the corner, there’s no denying that the winter season is close at hand. If you live in the South, this may just mean some damp weather, an occasional jacket, and a greater number of cloudy, gloomy days. But for those of us in the North, winter means snow, cold, and ice – and the expenses that go along with such weather-related extremes.
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Don’t let a small budget stop you from planning the vacation of your dreams. Worldwide travelers on tight budgets have come up with imaginative ways to save money and still enjoy a quality vacation. With a little research, you can find enough inspiration to help you to plan a getaway to that ideal destination.
