Money Saving Tips

Save Money This Christmas on Stocking Stuffers

save money on your stocking stuffers this ChristmasIf you and your family enjoy the tradition of giving each other a stuffed stocking on Christmas Day, here are some neat and affordable stocking stuffer ideas that will satisfy everyone and won’t break your holiday budget:

*A pair of socks.  Socks are useful, practical, and inexpensive.

*Candy!  Get creative.  Go to your nearest dollar store and pick up random Christmas treats.  Throw in some gum and Lifesavers, oh, and maybe some Smarties! 🙂

*Small notepads or journals. Everyone needs a place to jot down important notes.

*A small calendar.

*A Christmas ornament or decoration.  It’s always fun to be able to use it next Christmas.

*Practical things like small tools, shaving creams, tiny shampoos and lotions, etc.  They come in handy, especially for frequent travelers.

*Gloves, toques, mitts, and scarves are great for stockings.

*Gift cards and lottery tickets are also fun!

*Playing cards, small puzzles or puzzle books, and other little games that you can find in the dollar store.

*Combs, hairbrushes, hair accessories, and lip gloss are practical and fun.

*Silly gadgets such as back scratchers and whoopee cushions can be purchased inexpensively at dollar stores and can make for a really entertaining Christmas!

There are a million and one things you can stuff in a stocking and none of the items have to be expensive.  When it comes to stocking stuffers, the dollar store is your friend!  Have fun stuffing stockings this Christmas!

December 7, 2009
Money Saving Tips

Cooking Christmas Dinner on a Budget

ways to save money on Christmas dinnerFor those of you who enjoy eating turkey dinner with family at Christmas, there a few things you can do to serve a great meal with all the trimmings, without breaking your budget.

For one thing, turkeys are relatively inexpensive compared to other meat you can buy, especially when it goes on sale during the holiday season.  Always be sure to buy your turkey on sale, and compare prices with other grocery stores as some have better deals than others.

Secondly, I find it’s cheaper to make your own cranberry sauce than to buy it canned, and it tastes ten times better.  The best time to stock up on cranberries is right after a holiday, so I recommend buying your cranberries right after Thanksgiving and then freezing them to use for Christmas.  You can often get a package for less than 60 cents.

If you’re inviting family and friends over for dinner, suggest that they bring a salad or dessert.  They will want to feel that they have contributed anyway, and it will save you time and money if everyone brings something.

Potatoes are fairly cheap and you can often find a twenty-pound bag for four dollars.  You can use dried out bread to make stuffing, or if you’re like me, you can buy Stove-Top stuffing when it goes on sale.  I’ve seen it as cheap as 88 cents a box.

You can make gravy from the good stuff at the bottom of your turkey roaster, so all you need is a bit of flour or cornstarch and water for thickening.  So you see, hosting a turkey dinner at Christmas does not have to cost you a lot of money – especially if some of your guests are helping out with salads and desserts.

If you do end up making a salad, make one from scratch instead of buying the more expensive pre-made ones.  Although the ready-made ones are convenient, you are paying dearly for them.  A suggestion is a simple ceasar salad.  All you need is some romaine lettuce, a few veggies, and most importantly, the croutons. 🙂

Making Christmas desserts can get expensive, depending on what you want to serve.  Shortbread cookies and sugar cookies are some of my favorites and they are not that expensive to make.  If you’re looking for inexpensive dessert ideas, search in Google and you will be sure to find something that interests you.

Happy cooking!

December 5, 2009
Money Saving Tips

Ways To Save Money This Christmas – Write a Christmas Letter

write a Christmas letter and save money this ChristmasChristmas will soon be upon us and I wanted to start writing some posts about the various ways we can save money during this holiday season.  It’s so easy to overspend this time of year, so for the next few posts, I will be writing about ways we can all save money this year.

Today’s suggestion is to write a Christmas letter in place of buying Christmas cards.  The best time to buy Christmas letter paper is right after Christmas as it usually sells for half price.  Although it may be too late for this year, be sure to pick up some extra paper on sale to use for next year.

Once you’ve picked out a pattern you like, all you need to do is decide what you want to highlight in your letter.  Be sure to include anything of interest such as a job change, a vacation you took, etc.  Also include some plans for 2010 that you are looking forward to.

When your scripting is complete, use a festive font and add a graphic or two.  Then print off as many letters as you need.  You may also want to include a photo of your family.  Leave a bit of space at the bottom for a short personal note that you can handwrite to each individual on your mailing list.

Your family and friends will love receiving a Christmas letter in place of a boring old Christmas card.  The letters are much more personal as they tell so much more of what has been happening in your life.  They are also a lot cheaper than sending traditional store-bought Christmas cards that often lack creativity and meaning.  If you want to be really cheap, you can scan your Christmas letter and then send it as an attachment in an email.  However, I personally prefer sending my Christmas letters through snail mail as it is always fun to receive something in the mail.  It’s much more personal.

Have fun making your Christmas letter.   More money-saving tips for the Christmas season will be posted shortly.

December 3, 2009
Book Reviews

Want To Know How To Retire Rich?

want to know how to retire rich?How To Retire Rich; Time Tested Strategies To Beat The Market And Retire In Style by James O’Shaughnessy

How to Retire Rich is a an easy-to-read book about investment strategies that will help you to reach your retirement goals.  The author, James O’Shaughnessy, is a mutual fund manager and an experienced investor who has studied the history of the market for the past 45 years.  Based on in-depth research, he has developed solid investment strategies and has shared them in his book.

He uses four different couples at different life stages to illustrate how the various investment strategies can be streamlined for every situation.  By doing so, it makes it easier for readers of all ages to identify with what he is saying.

Some key points outlined in the book are that investing in the market is extremely important if you want to retire rich.  Instead of being afraid of market fluctuations, the author says we should be afraid of losing purchasing power if we insist on investing in cash and other “safe” investments.  Although knowing that your principal is guaranteed may give you peace of mind today, knowing that your money will be worth so much less in the future should motivate you to consider other options.

According to O’Shaughnessy’s research, the New York Stock Exchange has gone up 71% of the time in the past 45 years.   He continuously emphasizes that the only way to retire rich is to invest in the market and that informed investors realize that day-to-day gyrations mean almost nothing in the long term.  The important thing is to not get overwhelmed by current market fluctuations but to focus on the future and understand that the value of your investment will ultimately grow over the long term.

An interesting point in the book is that successful investing runs contrary to human nature.  The author says “The reason most people don’t retire rich is that it’s simply too hard to keep their emotions in check and stay focused on the long term.”  Once we are able to accept that the value of our investments will fluctuate and discipline ourselves to stay invested, we will be set up for success and will ensure that we don’t lose the purchasing power of the money we have worked so hard to save.

I would highly recommend that you read this book if you are interested in learning how to develop a solid investment strategy for your retirement.  O’Shaughnessy provides practical tips on choosing individual stocks to create a portfolio.  He also discusses the benefits and disadvantages of mutual funds, and provides recommendations based on historical research.   It’s a book that will encourage you to stay invested in the market even in the event of a market crash or an economic downturn.  Check out this book and start implementing the strategies today.

December 1, 2009
Debt

Are You Really Ready To Ask Someone To Co-sign For You?

use caution before asking someone to cosign on a loan with youIt looks like you may have reached a turning point in the road. Whether it’s for an auto loan, a personal loan, or department store credit, you may not be able to qualify by your own merits. This is when the cosigner comes into play. The best place to look for a cosigner is within the family, or among friends. You’ll want to trust them just as much as they will want to trust you.

If this individual is backing your loan, they will be privy to the same credit checks as you would be if this were your loan all by itself. Their creditworthiness is based on income, homeownership, credit history, and job security. If you default on any payments, the cosigner will have to pick up the tag. That’s why it’s good to make sure that you have all of your ducks lined up in a row before you put the cosigner’s financial credit rating on the line.

Say what you mean and mean what you say!

To the cosigner, you are saying that you plan to honor the credit contract to the letter they have cosigned for. Don’t try to take on too much new credit at first. Take the time to really look at your spending habits. If you have had trouble in the recent past keeping up with your finances, this may not be the best time to put someone else in the cross hairs.

Building and managing credit is a huge responsibility. Just ask any one of the thousands of people that have low credit rating scores. These people started out in good faith. They had every intent of making sure their payments would be complete and on time. However, things often happen beyond anyone’s control and those things that happen are events that can often send a good credit rating south for much longer than just the winter.

Put aside a little money each month to cover the loan repayment and make it a priority. Protect the person who cosigned as if he or she were you. Remember that the reason you needed them in the first place was because you couldn’t qualify on you own merits. That doesn’t make you a bad person in the least. It just means that it may take a while before the system deems you credit worthy and until that happens, make sure you have the cosigner’s best interest at heart.

About the Author

Liz Roberts is a loan consultant with New Horizon Finance, specializing in bad credit,& has been providing consumers & business owners with financing since 1989.  Join Experian Triple Advantage at http://www.newhorizon.org & get a free credit report & credit score.

November 29, 2009