Sorry for such a quick note the other day, but it’s been pretty busy times lately. Many wondered, and many more asked about them, so here are baby Sara’s pictures. Say Cheese.
They turn up in the mailbox every month, demanding your attention and your money. If you want to save money on bills you need to approach the problem in two ways. The first thing is to cut services you don’t need and the second is to find ways to get the things you need, cheaply.
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Vacations provide an escape from reality. They give us the opportunity to step outside our daily routine and relax in a new environment. One week a year we book the fanciest hotel, go to the big name restaurants, and splurge on the ultimate activities. Then, in 2009, came the staycation. With everyone watching their budgets, these luxury vacations fell by the wayside. Holidays were spent in the back yard or at the neighborhood pool. No more cruises, no more resorts.
Most people think of vacations as “all or nothing”, but there is a middle ground. A vacation does not have to be expensive. Like many other things in life, a vacation can be done on a budget, and the experience can be more valuable because of it. Though this strategy involves changing the way you think about travel, reconsidering your vacation options can open doors to new places, new adventures, and reduce your budget too. Here are some tips to help you along the way.
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It used to be that saving for college was a relatively simple process: if you wanted to save for your child’s college education, you put money away wherever it was convenient. Now, though, there are several types of specific savings plans that offer you benefits that your old coffee can’t compare with. They may not be as convenient, but when your child is ready to start college, there will be more money available. Of these plans, a 529 plan offers some significant ways to improve on your college savings options.
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In these financial times, many people are looking for ways to get a little more cash — usually in lump sum form. The thinking is that a lump sum could pay off debt, or cover medical bills. For those receiving some sort of settlement payment, or receiving annuity payments, it is tempting to turn to one of the companies, like J.G. Wentworth or Peachtree Financial, that offer to “buy” your annuity or settlement, giving you a lump sum.
This arrangement works when you sign over the right to receive your regular installments (which may be monthly, quarterly or at some other interval) to the company. This company then pays you a lump sum. This lump sum is usually the value of your settlement or annuity, minus a fee. And this is where things can get a little sticky. After all, companies are in business to make money. Therefore, you may pay fees of between 9% and 15% or more. These fees are deducted from the total amount you would receive. So, if you had a $50,000 settlement, and you were charged a 15% fee, you would actually only get a lump payment of $42,500. If you desperately need this money though, you might not mind, since the monthly payout of $50,000 over a period of years might not be enough to sustain you.
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“The measure of success isn’t if you have a tough problem, but whether it’s the same one you had last year.”– John Foster Dulles
Sometimes, a simple statement contains so much wisdom.
- It’s okay to fail. In fact, fail fast.
- It’s okay to have problems, but make sure you address them when they pop up.
- Notice that there’s no mention of outside help. Results are important, not necessarily how exactly a problem is solved.
- Efficient is good too. This is obvious, but it is not nearly as critical as actually fixing what’s wrong. Someone who can get things done with less is, in theory, more valuable; but in reality, not that many people can quantify and measure the difference.
- It’s okay that the problem is tough to solve. In fact, some problems are tough by design. If every solution is trivial, we will start categorizing the easier problems tougher, because everything is relative.
