One of the popular topics of discussion right now is Extreme Couponing. This show, on TLC, highlights the efforts that some people make to get items for very cheap — or for free. The idea is to use coupons and sales (combining coupons and sales is especially important) to get multiple items, building up a stockpile of products bought for cheap. It takes a lot of planning and effort: Some extreme couponers spend 20 hours or more each week looking for deals, clipping coupons and shopping the sales. On top of that, the stockpiles can take up quite a bit of room in your house.
Do you really need to be an extreme couponer to get good savings? Most experts agree that it isn’t necessary, since while extreme couponing can work for some people, the reality is that many of the items stockpiled aren’t food items. Instead, one should focus on food items. Here are 4 simple strategies for saving on groceries each week.
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Deciding to have one parent stay at home with the children is a huge decision that’s complicated by the emotions involved. Nobody can make this decision for you, but here are five things to consider before you make the decision.
1. Will the working spouse’s salary be enough to cover the bills? Seems like an obvious question, but it’s easy to forget about all of those little expenses and not be overly optimistic about prices remaining the same, continued availability of overtime or side work and so on. It could be a good idea to track your spending for a month or two so that you know every penny you spend, not just the numbers on your bills.
If your little one has not been born yet, be sure to account for his or her expenses. Allow yourself a very ample cushion, because…
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If you are planning on riding the bus to save on your commuting costs, you have made a good choice. Many cities and states offer bus service along popular routes, and the costs are inevitably lower than driving on your own. Gas, insurance, wear and tear, and other intangibles add up quickly. Still, it helps to know a few tricks if you want to save even more.
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The new TLC show about savvy coupon shoppers is certainly shocking to watch. These dedicated coupon-clippers spend hours each week planning their grocery trips, finishing with huge hauls worth hundreds to thousands of dollars—and they walk away with only a few dollars leaving their wallets. I’ll admit that some of the details of the shoppers’ lives turned me off. I couldn’t imagine having so much food and toiletries stockpiled that I would need to store things in bedrooms, bathrooms, closets, basements, attics and so on. But watching the checkout price go from nearly $600 to less than $10 is certainly tempting. So, how do these extreme couponers do what they do? Here are the secrets behind paying almost nothing at the grocery store:
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Health insurance is a big deal. People pay a fortune to make sure that they keep coverage, if only because they expect to pay several fortunes for health care without insurance. And if you have even a hangnail that could be considered a pre-existing condition, the nightmare of losing your health insurance and being unable to get it back can haunt you.
But paying for COBRA or purchasing private insurance isn’t the only approach that some people take. A marriage license with the right name on it could be the only thing standing between you and health insurance. Would you get married just to make sure you can go to the doctor when you need to?
Just How Far Will You Go?
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When I was an exchange student in Europe more than a decade ago, I used Traveler’s Checks. Anytime I needed to replenish my supply of Austrian shillings (this was before the currency union in Europe), I needed to find someone to change money. And, of course, I had to pay a commission. The commission paid at the airport or train station, I found, was higher than that paid at a bank in town. Now, of course, few people use Traveler’s Checks, as credit cards and debit cards are much easier to use.
Using Credit or Debit for Foreign Purchases
If you have plastic branded with a major credit company logo, you can use it at a number of places. You can even use your card at an ATM to get cash in a local currency if needed. Doing so can actually save you money. This is because the interbank exchange rate is usually better than the rate used by the currency exchange services you see set up. Bringing your own cash or Traveler’s Checks and having them exchanged at a special service provider is likely to cost you.
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