All you seasoned parents know that babies are quite expensive. Adding a new member to the family means additional furniture, food, clothes, and insurance costs (and a whole lot more!). But what we often fail to compute is the cost of little extras that come about simply because we’re stressed, ill-prepared, or in a rush.
Here are a few tips for new parents looking to bring home a baby without breaking the budget.
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For as long as I can remember, my family has purchased used and inexpensive cars. Subsequently, I never used a car that cost our family more than $5,000. I recently wrote about my decision between buying a used car or leasing a new one. If I decided to buy used, I would be on the hook for any repairs that needed to be done — which are often quite expensive. Some would say to repair all problems at any cost, but is this the most cost effective way? [ continue reading… ]
Holiday shopping season is already under way, as stores attempt to draw in consumers preparing for the gift giving that comes with this time of year. The National Retail Federation thinks that holiday sales will rise by 4.1% in 2012.
Even though that’s a slower pace than last year, retailers are still looking forward to the coming holiday shopping season, hoping to encourage shoppers with the help of good deals. Some of the things you can expect this holiday season:
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The housing market seems to have turned the corner. Thanks to an upswing, prices are improving slightly, while interest rates are still low enough to encourage real estate investment.
Sure, we saw a slight slip in the housing market recently, but investors are still calling for an upward movement, based on tighter inventories and lower jobless rates.
Don’t get too excited about prices just yet. It wasn’t long ago when the housing crisis hit and foreclosure signs were scattered across practically every street corner in the country. Families that once proudly owned their own homes were now looking for a place to rent. People who already owned rental properties saw BIG profits, but many others are still struggling with big losses years later.
As of March 2012, 1.5 million people moved into rental properties — many of them going from owners to renters. That decrease in home ownership pushed rentals, which led to a tightening in market availability and nudged the average rental price higher than it had been in years.
This means that income for rental investors has skyrocketed over the last year and a half. Predictors are saying that it’s going to be another two years before current renters will be able to look at home ownership again, so the trend of price increases will likely continue for a while longer.
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When you’re making your retirement plans, it can be easy to overlook one thing: taxes in the golden years. It’s important to remember that just because you’re retiring doesn’t mean that you no longer owe taxes to the IRS. Here are the tax issues you’ll want to plan for during your retirement:
Many retirees will be counting on these retirement plans for at least a portion of their retirement income. But don’t forget that you haven’t paid taxes yet on your contributions to your traditional IRA accounts and 401(k) plans. These tax-deferred plans don’t owe money to Uncle Sam until you withdraw the funds.
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The old adage, “it is better to give than receive” is one many Americans don’t readily embrace anymore, as our culture’s evolved to focus more on building our own wealth than investing in the financial well-being of others. But there are plenty of Americans who DO give, and give generously. I have a friend who makes quite a healthy salary. She also gives away more than any other person I know. Her giving doesn’t break her financially, and it enriches her life and the lives of those she helps.
But as a nurse, I’ve also seen many people who give out of a sense of compulsion. They simply can’t stop themselves from giving. These people give everything to anyone who has a need (either real or perceived), and some even go so far as to borrow money from friends, take out loans, or mortgage their homes to give to others. These people are often targeted by those who have no compunctions about taking what’s handed to them or made available, and these compulsive givers often fall prey to predators who feed off the kindness of others. For them, giving truly does hurt.
Giving can, in fact, be an addiction. Some people feel a rush after giving, while others give compulsively to try to meet basic needs like love, acceptance, and approval. Giving is a Love Language for many people, but like any other behavior pattern, we can take giving to extremes. When you view extreme giving as an addiction, you know that simply telling the giver, “Stop giving! This doesn’t make sense! You give too much!” doesn’t help. These types of statements only make the giver feel persecuted and helpless and can damage your relationship.
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