Posts Tagged ‘ budget ’

Five Financial Mistakes to Avoid

10/04/2012
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Financial Mistakes

Wise money management is a skill that many people struggle to acquire. The combination of poor budgeting and careless spending can lead to deep financial trouble down the road. Consider the following mistakes and work hard to avoid them. Their consequences could have lasting effects. Making minimum credit card payments. The average American household carries roughly $16,000 in credit card debt, a sum that many pay off in small, minimum payments. While the credit card companies allow customers to pay off debt in this way, it isn’t for the sake of convenience. Consumer credit interest rates can top 20%, adding thousands of dollars to the principal balance over time. The less you pay, the more they earn. Ask yourself if those original charges are worth the outrageous markup and start paying more than the monthly minimum. Living from paycheck to paycheck. Whether you live extravagantly or struggle to make...

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5 Ways to Stretch Your Grocery Budget

21/11/2011
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Grocery budget

With the economy we have right now, it is important that we learn how to maximize our income. We can do this by being more careful with how we use our money. There are things that we can live without. But there are also things that we have to allocate money for. This includes food. If you are the bread winner of your family, you know that grocery shopping can be a constant drain on your resources. In order to help you with budgeting, here are five ways to stretch your grocery budget. Plan your meals in advance. Before making that grocery list, decide first what your dishes are going to be for the week. This will save you both time and money. By planning your meals in advance you will get to buy only what you need. Shop in Farmer’s markets. The food here is fresh and a...

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Eat Healthy, Save Money?

22/09/2011
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Stretching that monthly budget during tough times is no easy task. Raises are rare, the cost of living is increasing, and so is the price of preserving our health. Getting ahead in this world takes more than a mix of grit and gravitas; the system is designed to cater to those who have already established themselves. Even if you were to know the best stock picks, would you have the funds available that are necessary to seize upon such an opportunity? We’re very limited in what we can accomplish when it comes to making significant gains in both lifestyle and financial stability. Luckily, there might be an easy way for any family to accomplish both at once: eating healthy. Saving money by eating right is not exactly easy, at least seemingly so. Healthier options on many store shelves are oftentimes priced higher than the preservative-packed alternative. Indeed, it’s telling...

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Pawnshops See a Spike in Small Business Clientele

22/08/2011
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Due to ever-increasing strains brought on by the seemingly terminally-ill economy, thousands of small business owners across the United States are making payroll through the pawning of their possessions. The trend has been noted by pawnshop owners from New York to Los Angeles. While the typical pawnshop exchange is a matter of a few hundred dollars or maybe a grand or two, small business owners are putting up Rolex collections and diamond rings that net them $15,000-20,000 at a time. The select minority is engaging in this behavior to take advantage of a swelling precious metals market, but the overwhelming majority is pawning items for payroll because they have no other choice. Websites like Pawngo.com are ballooning because of this trend, with the stand alone mom and pop pawnshops picking up the slack. The reasons, apart from the fact that economic environment is forcing it, are that unlike bank...

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8 Small Things That Can Change Your Spending Behavior

05/08/2011
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spending

The million-dollar question that everyone is asking is how do I cut my budget and save money? About ten years ago, no one was as concerned with trimming the fat. Well the truth is ten years ago America was not on the verge of a recession. Today more and more individuals are looking for authentic ways to change their spending behavior. There are hundreds of ways in which anyone can contribute to less spending. The most important ingredient to any recipe is to substitute the most expensive ingredient without sacrificing quality. This can be said for budgeting as well. It is time for households to eliminate luxurious items. The most expensive household bill that any family can control is the utility bill. For instance, rent or mortgage has a fixed rate that cannot be changed, and so does car insurance. However, gas bills, electric bills, and water bills are...

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To Budget or Not to Budget that is the Question

07/07/2011
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budget

We’ve all been enticed by that “awesome new what-cha-ma-call-it” before. So what is it that gets us to pull out our wallets and hand over our hard earned money instead of putting it away into savings? A lot of it has to do with the emotional appeal of whatever it is we’re considering purchasing. In the heat of the moment however, budgeting doesn’t always seem like the best route. After all it would mean passing up the must-have object. In order to make a clear decision on whether or not to live on a tighter budget and save we have to remove ourselves from the temptation to buy. Go home and think it over before you make a purchase. Let is simmer for a day and see if it still is that important to you. Reaching bigger goals in life, like owning a home, saving for retirement, or paying...

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Getting Your Budget under Control

03/05/2011
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budget

Getting Your Budget under Control If you are like most people, your budget could use a little tightening; your credit cards need to be locked up, and your debit card could use a rest. The first step to getting your budget under control is to keep track of your income and expenses, so you know exactly how much you are bringing in and how much is going out. You can do this with software, an excel spreadsheet, or just old-fashioned pen and paper. You don’t have to get fancy; just get organized. Write down or type in all of your monthly expenses: cable, hydro, heat, mortgage, car payments, credit card payments and any other expense you have. Don’t forget to include your life insurance and car insurance payments. If you don’t have life insurance, that should be one of the first things you fix in your budget. Whether you...

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How has the budget affected you?

20/04/2011
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budget

The Government insists that their recent budget announcements are not about raising tax but are about reforming the economy in order to enable future growth. The impact of the budget, however, will be felt by individual UK households with some gaining and some losing and, with a number of fundamental reforms set to take place, the impact will continue to be felt over the next few years. Longer term changes that the Government intends to make include a complete overhaul of the UK’s tax system with a view to simplification. Consultation will start on merging the income tax and national insurance systems which are currently run as separate entities. The way that direct taxes are calculated is intended to change too, with indexation moving to the lower Consumer Price Index (CPI) rather than the Retail Price Index (RPI). This will have an impact on many, particularly those claiming benefits...

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