Archive for December, 2008

To keep your credit in good standing, buy smarter and continue giving…that is something we can all strive for. 

Try to keep your credit card balances low:
As a general rule, keeping your credit balances around 25% - 30% of the credit limit is a smart move. This will assist in protecting your credit score. When you use your credit cards pay more than the minimum due if possible. And if you have more than three or four cards reducing the number is a good idea: especially store cards. It’s easy to forget you have all those cards, acquired when being offered 10% off your store purchases, but these all go onto your bureau and show you have a lot of credit lines available.

Buy a car that will last at great financing:
If you have good credit you can get a new car at a good rate - however, some states are requiring a score of over 750. There are still a number of ways to get a car loan – directly with their finance companies or through your bank or credit union. Be sure to shop around to find out how to get the best rate. The car companies are eager to move their 2009 inventory so you might be able to negotiate a better deal once you have your bank/credit union rate in hand.

Don’t forget the charities:
Charities are hurting this year in large part due to the credit crisis. However most of us can afford to give a tax deductable donation of some small amount. Or you can always clean out your closets and donate the items to Goodwill or the Salvation Army. You can even donate your car – it’s very simple – you can fill out a form online or call a toll free number and a representative will assist. Once the information is input the organization will work with you to ensure you get the best tax deduction possible. They then provide you with the official paperwork so that you can file your tax deduction. If you search “donate car to charity” a number of sites will show up. Many are nationwide and arrange free pickups.

We wish you a very Happy New Year and here’s to keeping all those resolutions for longer than a few days!

Well here are a few that you might want to think about as 2009 draws closer and a few key dates to make a note of….

 Stocks and such: the Stock Market opens up again January 2nd 2009 – this might also be a really good time to develop a plan for saving more money and readjusting your budget in light of a potentially difficult first quarter.

College for kids: don’t forget to fill in the Free Application for Federal Student aid if you have a teenager applying for college this fall.

Taxes:  If you are doing quarterly taxes your estimated federal taxes for the fourth quarter are due. And of course you can start preparing for your taxes for all of 2008 in January so you can file early and receive your rebate check.

Review your credit:  you are entitled to a free credit report once a year. Be careful of those sites that tout free and then ask you to sign up for all sorts of bells and whistles that end up costing you about $40.00. Since 2003, the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act has made it possible for individuals to obtain one free annual credit report from each of the three major credit reporting agencies per year. AnnualCreditReport is the only site that provides them without strings attached so you might want to check that one out.

Fun days: January 20th is the Inauguration – of course every network will be carrying this live.  And the SuperBowl is on February 1st.  Who will be playing in Tampa Bay, Florida we wonder….

Travel less this season
Traveling at holiday time is expensive and stressful, and this holiday season is proving to be an absolute bear. The weather in the Northwest and the Northeast is causing huge delays at airports. Many airlines are letting you reschedule at no extra charge. Be sure to ask about these special offers and if you are able to cancel at no charge, even better. We hope you are not one of the thousands of stranded travelers at the airports but if you are, we wish you the best in getting where you want to go as soon as possible.

Curb your spending!
There are going to be some incredible bargains after the holidays. In order to keep myself away from the stores I say – “do I really need this?” And “do we have the room?” Most of the time it is a resounding no!  If you think your spending is not optimal, there are online tools you can use to do a better job of budgeting such as Mint and Wesabe. You can use their budgeting tools and discuss strategies with active online communities. It may be that you find out those extra take out meals or that additional night out at the movies and dinner is costing just a little too much at the current time and if you cut back, your savings could exceed more than $500 a year.

Credit cards
Yes we all know we need to cut back on credit cards. Easier said than done? Try shifting everything over to your debit card. If you are carrying a large balance and have good credit try getting a balance transfer and a lower interest credit card. But pay them off whether you have transferred the balance or not. And while looking for those lower interest cards, assess your lifestyle. There are so many cards that offer value added perks such as cash back, gasoline discounts etc. - you can select one that best meets your needs.

How’s your driving?
If it’s good you could always up your deductable so that the annual premium is lower. You could also do this on your dental and medical if you have not signed up for your annual plan. It’s really a lifestyle choice and an assessment of whether you can afford the deductable if you have to use is, vs. the ongoing higher premiums.

Receive more money in your paycheck
If you think you are going to get money back for this year you might want to reassess your
W-4. It’s wonderful getting the tax refund – makes you want to jump for joy, but you could have been using that money throughout the year rather than waiting until the first quarter of 2009 to receive the money back. There are really good online tools you can use to determine whether you could take more exemptions and therefore have more take-home pay each paycheck.

This holiday season I requested edible gifts – we can all enjoy them, they are relatively inexpensive and we don’t have to worry about finding the space for them!  Have a very Happy Holiday with your loved ones. And hopefully you are not stuck with the horrible holiday weather holdups.

Tis the season to be jolly! This year, Christmas for many people may be different than the previous years. The economy is taking some time off and most consumers find themselves strapped for cash this holiday season. It’s times like these that remind me how lucky I am to have a big family, and how important they are to me. I look forward to traveling to Southern California just to spend time with them.

I’ve been Christmas shopping and applaud myself for not waiting until the last minute this time. To make my money go further this year I’ve tried to put more thought into my gifts, but ultimately less cash. I’ve used several different strategies to buy gifts and I think my final shopping days are coming very soon.

Since I live in San Francisco and my family does not, I’ve been shopping at second hand stores to find fashionable items they haven’t seen before. Crossroads and the Buffalo Exchange are stores that sell used clothes and accessories. I’ve shopped there and bought inexpensive jackets and jewelry for my brother’s girlfriends. I’ve also bought a couple of pre-viewed DVD’s from blockbuster. When my friend was visiting she noticed a picture in a store she liked. Well I bought it, and I’ve been waiting for months to give it as a gift for Christmas.

I’ve made my father home made T-shirts of his grandchildren using iron on transfers and my digital camera. For the adults who don’t act like adults, a cheap gag gift from Spencer gifts can go a long way. Lastly, when I find myself searching for a gift idea I turn toward the sauce. Around the holidays you can find a gift set with a bottle of alcohol and a glass or two. I like to buy this gift when I’m going to a Christmas party; we always seem to have a great time. Happy shopping and happy holidays!

As the year ends and we frantically find all our co-pays for doctor’s offices, miscellaneous drug store receipts and bills from medical labs, it reminds us that putting aside money for these medical expenses was a good idea. 

If you have the opportunity of being offered a Flexible spending Account by your employer its worth looking into as long as you reconcile before the year ends – you don’t want to lose the money you have set aside. 

Flexible Spending Accounts are a way of setting aside pretax dollars in your account and using the money to pay for out-of pocket bills – these can include myriad items including braces for your kids, dentistry, prescription drugs, medical alert jewelry and many other items. Depending upon your needs you can even put in for acupuncture – but verify with your provider first.

When you next check out at Walgreens or Duane Reade look at your receipt. If there is an F beside an item – such a cough medicine – it means that the purchase on this item is eligible for your Flexible Spending Account – with most programs.

The accounts can save you hundreds of dollars, not just in federal taxes, but also in Social Security and, in some states, state income taxes. If you have kids and therefore run up some hefty bills, putting aside $1,500 could save you around $500 a year. The $1,500 is taken out of your paycheck (before taxes) over the year however you can apply your doctor visits, prescription drugs etc to the account and it will be deducted from your continuing contributions. But be sure to use up the money because it is a use it or lose it program. Most companies give you a few weeks in January (some even through March 15th) to find all those bills and fax them in to the provider.

However, if you find you have not used up all the money you elected to have set aside from your paycheck, you can always schedule an eye examination and purchase new eyeglasses – that’s more than likely to put you over your allotted contribution!