Are you like me and secretly wish you were more like Martha Stewart when it comes to your house, garden, decorating, entertaining, and just about every other aspect? If only Martha could advise me on finances I'd not need look any further. However, I've recently come to start channeling Suze Orman where my finances are concerned and went online today to find a spreadsheet by her and wasn't able to find anything. She has several books about family planning, trusts, and why finances are so important but so... read more »
The FIFTH step is to pay down the debt while enjoying life.Knowing how much money is coming in and where your hard earned money is going puts you in the drivers' seat. See which credit cards or loans have the highest interest rate and start paying more each month. When you pay one credit card or loan off, apply that payment to the next highest interest rate loan. Pay your bills on time and ALWAYS pay more than the minimum required payment. See if you can feasibly transfer a balance to another credit card... read more »
The FOURTH step is to have a plan that will help you attain your goals.Find a program that works for you. There are so many forms on the internet, books written containing forms, computer programs, and Apps that you will need to know yourself and what will work best. Gather as much information as possible this first month. Paychecks Bank Statement Credit Care Statements Car Loan Other Loans Child Care Insurance Statements (Mortgage/Rent, Life, Health, Car) Cable Bill Phone Bill Membership Dues (Fitness... read more »
It's important to know how much money is coming in, going out and where it's going. It's also very important to have goals. We need to ask the five W questions Who? What? Where? When? Why? and How? so we can set clear goals. Answering the questions will turn the dream or thought into an accountable and attainable goal. The efforts to reaching a goal must be track-able.Who: Who is responsible for each taskWhat: What is the path, What will get paid off firstWhere: Where will the savings goWhen: When is the... read more »
Wearing a Mask Doesn't Always Protect Your Identity from Thieves The SECOND step is to protect your identity. Did you know that there are probably over 500,000 people, each year, that have their identities stolen?Thieves have ways of stealing your personal information: They could hack into your computer, break into your home of office, riffle through your trash, steal your mail, steal your purse or wallet, copy your credit card information. There are probably as many ways as there are thieves. What spe... read more »
We've had two full weeks of receipt collecting with the June 2012 Money Management Challenge. Hopefully it's starting to become second nature remembering to keep the receipt or to ask for one. What system did you choose? Are you separating your receipts by week, putting them all in one envelope, or sticking them all on your refrigerator door?You've seen the commercials or magazine ads for Neat Receipts and the cool things it can do. But do you really want to spend about $200 or more on a scanner or anoth... read more »
How are you doing so far with June's Money Management Challenge? Are you remembering to save all your receipts?DH and I are both taking the challenge. The biggest thing that DH has found is remembering to ask for a receipt so he's had to write down a few purchases on a piece of paper. He is keeping his receipts in an envelope and mine are stuck on the refrigerator with a magnet.In honor of full disclosure; we thought about postponing this challenge to another month that wouldn't be as hectic, but wondere... read more »
