Pennysaverblog – Page 166 – Smart Finance and Money Saving Tips

Five Ways To Save On A Summer Family Road Trip

As the weather starts to heat up, it’s natural to start getting antsy for summer’s freedom and the lure of the open road. There’s nothing like a family road trip to see the sights, spend quality time together, and avoid sky-high air fares. Yet the cost of a road trip can quickly add up as well, when you factor in the cost of food, lodging, entertainment, and fuel. Keep the following tips in mind to save a bit of cash without sacrificing on family fun time.

1. Use Money-Saving Apps

Load up your smartphone with apps designed to save you money on fuel, food, and accommodation. Gas Buddy is an app that provides you with current fuel prices at the stations nearest to your location, using real-time stats sourced from other users. One of the biggest money wasters on the road is convenience store meals. You can not only eat better food but get more for your money by downloading apps like Yelp and MenuPages, which show you the top rated options in your current location.

May 15, 2014

Taxes

Claiming A Tax Refund: Agency or HMRC?

If you are – or were – an expat living in a foreign country, it’s not uncommon for you to feel overwhelmed by an entirely new tax system. Many expats who have lived and worked in the UK don’t know that they could be due a tax refund, let alone how to claim it. Here we explain the two ways to claim back your UK tax refund.

What is a tax refund?

A tax refund is a repayment of PAYE tax that you have overpaid during the tax year. You might be eligible for a tax refund if:

You’ve only worked for part of a tax year
You’ve worked for more than one employer in a tax year
You’ve had two or more jobs at the same time
You’ve been taxed on a basic rate tax code
You’ve left the UK before the end of the tax year (6 April – 5 April the following year)
You’ve been on an incorrect tax code at any point in the last five years

In order to get your tax refund, you need to claim through an agency or take the solo route by claiming through HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC). The route you choose to claim your refund depends completely on your personal preference and what works best for you.

May 12, 2014

Health & Beauty

5 Effective Ways To Cut Expensive Fitness Membership Costs

Getting in shape, maintaining your health, and reaching physical fitness goals won’t be easy, but it is something we all need to do if we want to look and feel our best now and in the future. Unfortunately, most adults lack the knowledge and tools needed to see to their own fitness needs. We don’t even know how to set realistic goals, much less reach them – saying you want to lose 20 pounds is a lot easier than figuring out how to get there. But there are options that can offer the help you need, and joining a gym is a great way to gain access to the equipment, classes, and even personal trainers that will get you to your goals. The only real caveat is that a fitness club membership can cost you a pretty penny. Of course, there are ways to cut costs and still enjoy the advantages associated with joining a gym. Here are just a few ways to get fit without unduly taxing your wallet in the process.

Wait for sign-up specials. If you’ve found the gym you’re interested in joining, it might be wise to wait until the location nearest you holds some kind of promotion for new member sign-up. Most gyms do this periodically as a way to increase their membership, and you could enjoy benefits ranging from having the signing fee waved, to getting a discounted monthly rate for a set period of time, to extras like free personal training sessions, just for example. So it’s worth your while to wait a while.

May 8, 2014

General

Why It Is Important To Keep Your Car In Top Shape At All Times

Your car is probably one of the most valuable assets that you have, assuming you’ve paid it off. Why would I say that? Well, your vehicle is valuable because it is an asset that you could resell to generate cash if you need it. It is also valuable because it makes it possible for you to get to work and to fulfill family obligations.

When you own a vehicle, it is important to do everything you can to take care of it. This means getting regular oil changes to keep your vehicle running well. This also means taking care of maintenance issues, driving within the speed limit and otherwise taking steps to make your car last as long as possible. There are a lot of important reasons why it makes sense to keep your vehicle in good shape.

May 6, 2014

Credit Cards

Top 5 Tips For Safe Credit Card Use Online

Online shopping has made it easy for consumers to compare products and prices from the comfort of their own home. You no longer have to drive all the way to the store only to discover that the item you’re seeking is out of stock, wasting fuel and polluting the environment in the process. But while you might appreciate the convenience offered by online shopping, you probably also have concerns about the safety of using your credit cards in cyberspace.

Identity theft is nothing new, but the combination of lax security measures and determined hackers has made for a perfect storm of mineable data. And the people willing to break into company databases in order to steal your sensitive data are not likely to have any qualms about selling it to the highest bidder or racking up charges using your credit, especially online, where no ID is required. However, you can find ways to use your credit cards in at least as safe a manner as if you were shopping in-store. Here are some guidelines to observe.

April 30, 2014

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