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We’re witnessing all out war between major cell phone carriers. They’re in a constant battle to outdo each other with better coverage, faster speeds, cheaper rates, and even offering incentives to customers to switch to their service.
It’s not only a fight between major carriers, but smaller ones too. The big players also have to contend with smaller providers who use the buzz term, “no contract” to entice customers to switch.
Now everyone is offering no-contract service, but is it really much different than the traditional 2-year deal?
After graduating from college with student loan debt, it can be difficult to come to terms with the debt repayment schedule.
If you’re like me, you might even be surprised by how much interest had accrued while you were in school, or shocked by how much money you actually owe.
Student loans, while often considered the “good” kind of debt, are still debt and should be taken seriously.
I never took my student loan repayment seriously, that is, until after I took on more debt and graduated with my master’s degree. In total, my debt load equaled $81,000 which consisted of$23,000 from my undergraduate degree and $58,000 from my master’s degree.
I chose to go to a fancy private school for my master’s and took off a bit more than I could chew. But with a student loan repayment plan, I’m paying off debt on a small salary and making it work. Currently, I have roughly $35k to go and have paid off the majority of debt, $30k of it, in the past three years.
Here’s the student loan repayment plan I’m using, and that you can use for your budget, too.
Are you familiar with this after-holiday scenario? Gifts are cluttering up your home, many of which you won’t use, don’t need, or simply have duplicates of. This is something we’ve all experienced! But what do you do when you’re facing a pile of unwanted gifts?
The easiest way of dealing with unwanted items, while remaining discreet, is to return them to the retailer they came from. But not all company policies support gift returns without a receipt, and many gift-givers neglect to include them.
So what can you do with unwanted gifts? Other than chalking these gifts up as a loss on both ends, here are a few suggestions you might consider.
My income has always been regular. So much so, that I liken it to the rhythmic tick-tock of a clock hanging on the wall. Paychecks from my job as a software engineer have been automatically deposited into our checking account twice a month for the last 19 years.
Even my income as a freelance writer has been regular. I submit my invoices and receive payment at the same time each month. That all changed recently, however. This was quite a big transition, and something my budget was not used to dealing with.
Every year, all types of changes are announced to retirement programs. The government encourages us to set money aside for the future by offering tax advantages when we put funds into certain accounts.
Although this can be a nice incentive, it can present a problem too. Because the financial and economic landscape is always changing, retirement accounts often change as well. This makes knowing the rules about retirement accounts, and putting away money for the future, a bit daunting.
Don’t miss out on important tax deductions, and additional ways to decrease your overall tax burden, just because you’re not sure of the current rules. We talk to an expert who shares 4 important things you should about retirement in 2015.
Now that Christmas is over, do you feel like your house is more cluttered? Are you still sifting through the presents, gift cards, and stocking stuffers?
I am! While I’m grateful for family members and friends that love us and give us gifts, it’s overwhelming how much stuff acquires in such a short period of time.
I’m thankful my family members want to spoil my toddler, but it can be hard to be grateful for new toys and clothes that she didn’t need (especially when I politely requested books for her library). On top of all of that, I feel horrible complaining about too much stuff when so many are suffering and don’t even have the basic necessaries.
Can you relate? Please tell me I’m not alone in this after-Christmas dilemma!
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