General

8 Things You Can Do With Your Tax Refund

1. Pay down high interest debt such as your outstanding credit card debt.things you can do with your tax refund As unappealing as this may sound, you will be much farther ahead financially the sooner you can get rid of your credit card debt or other high interest debt.

2. Put it toward your retirement savings, or if you haven’t started saving for retirement, start now with your refund money.

3. Build up your emergency fund. It is wise to have at minimum 3 months worth of monthly living costs saved up for a rainy day. Ideally, you should save 6 months worth.

4. Buy insurance that you would otherwise not be able to afford to protect your family in the event of illness or emergency. By using your tax refund, you don’t have to factor the expensive premiums into your monthly budget, making it much easier to keep your family protected without financial stress.

5. Service your vehicle. You may have neglected your car recently because you were strapped for cash. Now that you have the funds, take care of your car.

6. Do some home renovations that will increase the value of your home.

7. Put some extra money towards your mortgage. It’s always a great feeling when you can pay down your debt and think about how much interest you won’t have to pay!

8. If you have been really disciplined all year and already have an emergency fund and retirement savings plan in place, spend some of your tax refund on yourself! Enjoy a day at the spa or a meal at your favorite restaurant. Do something that you normally wouldn’t do and create a nice memory. Think of it as a reward for all of your hard work throughout the year.

April 29, 2009
General

10 Ways to Make Money Fast

If you are in need of some fast cash, here are some ways you can earn money quickly:

1. Sell stuff that you don’t need or no longer use. Yard sales are great for getting rid of larger items. For smaller stuff, advertise your items online and sell them on Ebay, Craigslist or Amazon. Offer to sell stuff for family and friends as well if they are unfamiliar with selling stuff online. You can share in the profits.

2. Tutor. If you enjoy teaching others, why not consider tutoring? I have had some great experiences teaching English to international students at a local university. Tutoring is a great way to supplement your income and you will meet a lot of neat people.

3. If you enjoy making crafts, make your favorite ones and sell them online at www.etsy.com.

4. Do odd jobs such as mowing lawns, trimming hedges, and shoveling snow. Advertise your services for free on community billboards.

5. Consider taking on a boarder if you have an extra bedroom and more than one bathroom in your home. You could also rent out your garage or parking spot. If you take this route, make sure to have the proper legal documents in place.

6. Offer to baby sit or take care of someone who is elderly.

7. Start your own small business in whatever you are skilled in. You can make extra money by cleaning people’s homes and businesses or by repairing computers or appliances. You could even start a business walking people’s dogs!

8. If you like entertaining people with your musical talents, consider busking to make some extra money. Start playing music or singing on the street, and people that pass by will often give you their spare change. Keep in mind that in many places you need to obtain a license to busk.

9. Bake cookies, pies, and breads and sell them at a local farmer’s market.

10. Participate in a research study as a “guinea pig” and you can earn some fast cash.

April 28, 2009
Investing

Avoid Investment Scams

Investments scams are everywhere. Every time you receive an unsolicited email or phone call about an “opportunity” it is likely to be a scam. It is important to pay attention to the warning signs so you don’t get fooled into falling for any of them.

Here are some things to watch out for:

1. Guarantees for success or promises that the opportunity is risk free.

2. Promises that you will make lots of money really fast and/or that the opportunity is risk free.

3. Sob stories from strangers asking you for favors in helping them access bank accounts.

4. Requests to invest offshore and benefit from tax sheltering.

5. Being told that you must keep the investment opportunity confidential.

April 27, 2009
Travel & Entertainment

15 Cheap Ways to Have Fun

cheap ways to have funYou can have a lot of fun without spending a lot of money.  Try out some of the suggestions below:

 1.  Play board games or card games with family and/or friends.  You can even entertain yourself by playing solitaire or free online games like spider solitaire, mahjong, etc.  

 2.  On a clear night, go stargazing and watch for falling stars.

 3.  Visit your local library.  Take advantage of the free books, movies, and music.  Libraries are a great place to take your kids – instill in them a love for reading and learning.

 4.  Go on a picnic in your favorite park.

 5.  Go sledding.  This is fun even if you don’t have kids.  My husband and I go out once or twice every winter and it makes us feel like we are young again!

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April 26, 2009
Travel & Entertainment

Save Money When Eating Out

My husband and I don’t eat out a lot because it is expensive, and we can buy a lot of groceries for the cost of one meal at a restaurant.  However, eating out is a lot of fun, especially because then we don’t have to cook and clean up.  Whenever we eat out we try to order something really unique that we wouldn’t be likely to make at home.  We also usually follow these simple suggestions below that help us to save money when we do eat out:

 1.  Drink water.  Beverages are overpriced at restaurants.  Instead of spending extra money on beverages, order some nice dishes instead.

 2.  If it works with your schedule, eat out at lunch instead of supper.  At most restaurants, you can often order virtually the same dish at lunch and it will cost a lot less.

 3.  Skip the appetizers.  Unless you are going out with a large group and everyone is splitting the bill, I wouldn’t recommend choosing appetizers.  Your dollar will go the furthest if you order the main dishes.

 4.  Order main dishes that will be filling enough that you won’t have an appetite for dessert.  Desserts are usually overpriced and, at least for me, they are often disappointing.  Somehow they just don’t taste as good as I would have expected after looking at their pictures on the menu.

 5.  Use coupons.  Restaurants often mail out coupons to their local areas, or you can find coupons in your local community coupon books.  Some restaurants also offer promotions and coupons online on their websites. 

 6.  If you are really hungry and want it all – appetizers, main dishes, soup, salads, and dessert – go for a buffet.  For a flat fee you can eat as much as you want and it will cost a lot less than if you were to order everything individually.  We especially enjoy going out for a seafood buffet  – all you can eat crab legs and shrimp is absolutely fantastic!

April 25, 2009