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I do a large portion of my holiday shopping (or any shopping, for that matter) online. Not only is it more convenient because I live about an hour away from the closest city, but I often find precisely what I need for a lot less.
But there are, of course, some trade-offs in online shopping that aren’t as optimal as shopping in a physical store. I’ve learned to deal with this medium so make it not just convenient but cost effective. Many of these tips I’ve learned mostly by trial and error, and wasted my share of money along the way.
So, if you’re new to shopping online (or even a veteran like me), here’s some wisdom that will hopefully help you avoid some of the pitfalls of shopping online.
The holiday season is in full swing and with that comes the joyous music, sweet smells of delicious food, and precious family time. The holidays are a great time to relax and prepare for the New Year.
However, this time of year has also turned into a consumerist frenzy, with many people stressing about money, running around trying to find the perfect gifts, and some even going into further debt to pay for all holiday expenditures.
But there’s a better way! You can say “no” to holiday spending without being a grinch. I know this because of my personal experience.
Frustrated with not getting the cable or satellite TV service you really want? Are you tired of wasting money on channels you don’t watch? It’s time to stop wasting money and start getting the value you pay for.
It’s all too common to let the cable or satellite TV bill sneak out of control until you have no idea what your bill includes anymore. This is why it’s important to evaluate all your household expenses (not just your cable TV bill) and make certain you…
Know what you’re paying for
Are actually getting what you’re paying for
Aren’t paying for things you don’t want
When it comes to cable or satellite TV, the channels are packaged together and services sometimes bundled, making it easy for customers to be unsure of what they’re being charged for when the bill arrives every month.
Even if you started out with a plan that was right at the time you signed on, introductory offers may have expired, causing your bill to creep upward, unnoticed.
In addition, your tastes, lifestyle, and television programming has likely changed over time. For these reasons you want to re-evaluate your TV plan on a regular basis. Don’t know where to start? I recently followed the case of a particular cable TV customer who decided her bill was higher than she wanted it to be.
When researching expensive baby buys during pregnancy, it’s usually the mother-to-be who makes her requests known. However, with our first baby, it was my husband that spent hours researching costly cameras and asking if we could buy one.
The price tag was $1,600 for a Canon DSLR, which he assured, would be worth the investment as our child grows up. That is quite the cost for a so-called “baby item”.
In fact, I don’t think I spent that much the entire first year of raising our baby (thanks to used items and cloth diapers). After purchasing our new Canon camera though, I admit that my husband was right.
It was a good investment for us and has saved us hundreds of dollars on photography costs over the years.
But is buying a new camera a good investment in general? Especially with smartphone cameras and other alternatives that are a lot cheaper?
I recently sold my home for $173,500 and this, combined with my move across the country, has me thinking a lot about home affordability. While I’m not anxious to buy again anytime soon, I was interested to see how my new local real estate market compares with the market I left behind a few months ago.
First of all, I found there isn’t really anything in my new ZIP code that compares exactly to the home size, year built, and lot size I had previously owned. The closest I could find was a condo-type home (without the large yard we had) for $275,000.
The stand-alone homes with square footage similar to ours are 3 BD/2 BA homes, as opposed to the 4 BD/3 BA home we had in Utah. But these homes are right around $300,000 to $475,000. Buying a home in our new area, (which is part of the Philadelphia metro area) is much more expensive than it was in our semi-rural neighborhood in Utah.
The holidays are one of my favorite times of year because I love all the family photo cards. Okay, I don’t love the actual process of getting everyone ready, ordering the cards, and sending them out, but I do love having that keepsake from each season.
If it weren’t for the obligation to send Christmas cards, taking family photos may never get crossed off my to-do list. (I’m sure you can relate!) While I enjoy the finished result of holiday cards, it can be hard to swallow the price tag that comes with it. Between the photographer, ordering the prints, envelopes, and stamps, this usually costs several hundred dollars.
Here are some fun cost-cutting tactics you can use to produce quality holiday family cards, that you will cherish each season.
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