Sharing insights since 2007 on carefully saving money, investing, frugal living, coupons, promo codes because the little things matter in achieving financial freedom!
This week marks my fourth year wedding anniversary. I know it may sound cliché, but I am going to say it anyway: It feels like it was just yesterday!
While a lot has changed in four years, I think many couples still find themselves in the same situation my husband and I did. We wanted to have an elegant wedding for about 150-200 people, but only had a budget of $8,000. The first venue we visited quoted us over $8,000 for just the venue and food!
While we quickly realized we had to do a lot of DIY projects to stretch our budget, we also found out there are some things you just don’t DIY when it comes to your wedding. Here’s what we learned: [ continue reading… ]
Raised by an extremely frugal parent, I now enjoy freedoms like turning fans on full power when I want to (seriously, how much electricity does that really waste?) and not saving things that are clearly junk but might be able to be fixed or re-purposed in some way. Still, some of that extreme frugality my parents swore by stuck with me.
As an adult, I take pride in being frugal in sensible ways. For instance, I’ve recently started buying the majority of my clothes from thrift stores and online re-sale services, managing to save serious money on either brand-new or only lightly-used, quality-brand items. But sometimes, that’s still not enough to keep me from experiencing spending guilt.
I had a reality check the other day when I felt guilty for spending money on a few items off the clearance and thrift store racks that were for myself. Something that should have brought me joy – finding great deals on clothing I needed and loved – instead had me second-guessing. Why is this? [ continue reading… ]
A friend of mine lost her longtime job back when one of the biggest companies in the state closed during the financial crisis. She received small unemployment checks for nearly a year and a half while she searched for a new one.
With two kids to support, she could barely make ends meet. Soon after her job loss, she stopped paying on her two credit cards and cell phone bill.
The result? Three accounts amounting to the tune of $3,500 are now in collections.
She finally found a new job and started to straighten out her finances a few years later. But by then, her debt was already sent into collections. She wanted to know what the best way to deal with the obligation was and asked for my advice, so I went into research mode.
Here’s what I found out about settling debts that are in collections: [ continue reading… ]
“Come on. We’re going out tonight. You and Rebecca meet us at Dave & Buster’s. We’ll be there at seven.”
“We can’t.”
“Why not?”
You’re at a loss: You don’t want to admit you’ve blown your budget for the month and have no play money to go out with. “Uh, Becca’s not feeling well,” you say. This is immediately followed by that awful feeling of lying to your best friend and the resentment of not being able to go and have a blast.
Money is a complicated subject because we all have unconscious beliefs about it. Financial planners and psychologists refer to these beliefs as “money scripts.” They’re the stories about money we’ve told ourselves since childhood, and they’re often rooted in how money was viewed in our childhood homes.
Once we know and recognize our money scripts, it’s easier to amend the way we view money, thereby improving our finances. Here’s how: [ continue reading… ]
One of the scariest financial situations to be in is living paycheck to paycheck. Unfortunately, too many people are in this predicament. According to a study done by LendingClub and PYMNTS.com, 64% of Americans live from paycheck to paycheck. What’s even more surprising is that almost half of Americans who earn more than $100,000 live this way as well. It’s a difficult situation to be in, especially when you have a family to support. It can also be mighty tough to get out of this rut.
Having savings to fall back on in case of emergency is important to everyone, which is why living paycheck to paycheck can be so dangerous. Any unexpected expenses can really complicate your life and create long term problems that make it more and more difficult for you to dig out of this hole. If you’re living paycheck to paycheck, consider these seven tips to help you get on the right course: [ continue reading… ]
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