Memorial Day Sales: Do’s & Dont’s
Sale (Photo credit: Gerard Stolk (vers la Pentecôte))
If you are one who likes to take advantage of Memorial Day Sales, you need to be prepared. There are thousands of stores getting ready for your appearance this weekend. Their hope is that you spend as much money as possible at their store. My goal is to help you be an informed consumer. Here are a few things to do and not to do:
Things You Should Do
1. Make a list of things you need/want – This way you know exactly what you need to get before you head to the store.
2. Map out all the places to shop ahead of time – This is the best way to save money on gas and eliminates going to the same area twice.
3. Make a budget for what you will buy – Look at your budget for the month and figure out how much money you have to work with. If it is $200, then take $200 out of the ATM and when it is gone, stop shopping.
4. Shop around online first – Sometimes you can find a better deal online than you could ever find going to a sale in a retail store. Go to sites like Ebay.com and Amazon.com first, to see if you can find the item cheaper.
5. Make a list of events coming up – Do you know someone with a birthday or anniversary in June? Now might be a good time to get their present on sale.
Things You Should Not Do
1. Don’t buy things not on your list – The impulse buys can be so tempting but a lot of times they can also break the bank. Your best bet is to stick to what is on the list. If you do have money left over, after you got everything you needed, then it would be OK to get a couple other items as long as you stay under budget.
2. Don’t buy just because it is on sale – Sometimes items on sale are not really that good of a deal. I remember looking at a sale item that was listed for $29.99 with 30% off which was still more expensive than another retailer that had an everyday price of $12.99. Be careful not to buy just because the store says “sale.” Shop around on local stores websites first.
3. Don’t think that this is the best deal you will ever find – There will always be deals to be found. Whether it is at that store or another one. Be patient and again, resist the impulse buy.
4. Dont leave the house without your coupons - This can seem obvious but it can happen. Before you lock the door to your house, make sure that you have your coupons withyou.
5. Don’t spend the whole weekend shopping - Life is too short to spend it buying stuff. I like finding good deals but I love my family and friends more. Make sure you spend sometime with them this weekend.
Lastly on this Memorial Day, be sure to remember those who lost their lives defending our freedom. Also, if you are reading this and have served in some way to protect our nation, THANK YOU! We are blessed to live in the United States of America and to have people like you to keep us safe.
Are there any good deals this weekend you know about? Feel free to share in the comment section above.
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How to Buy a Used Car
Category:Toyota Echo sedan (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
On Monday we bought my wife a newer “used” car. She drove her previous car, which was a 1998 Honda Accord, for about 3 years and it was time to replace it. I know firsthand that buying a used car can be frustrating, so here are some tips for buying a used car.
Dont Buy From a Dealer
Often when I find a car on Craigslist that I like, I get excited about it. Mainly because the buying process appears to be almost over. Then I scroll down to the bottom of the ad and realize that it is being sold by a dealer. My excitement is instantly replaced with disappointment. There are 3 reasons why I don’t like buying from a dealer:
1. Sales tax – A dealer is obligated to charge you sales tax, where a private party is not (at least this is true in Arizona). If you were to buy a $5000 car and add 9.3% sales tax, that is an extra $465.
2. They are generally more expensive - While I was searching for a car for Kim, I saw a couple of cars sold by dealers that were about $1,000 more than the private party listings.
3. You don’t know what you are going to get – What I mean is, if you buy from a private party, you can ask them questions about the car and they can tell you. A dealer has no idea how the car was driven because often times they buy it from an auction. A person that actually drove the car for years can generally tell you about every rattle, blemish, or detail about a car where a dealer would have no clue.
Ask the Right Questions
Here are a few that I use:
Has it ever been in an accident?
Is there currently anything mechanically wrong?
Do you have the maintenance records?
Why are you selling the vehicle?
Does it have any leaks?
Do you have the carfax report?
These should give you a good basis on making an educated buying decision.
Do Your Research
I use MSN Autos to see if there is any known issues with the car. It is a great resource to find out if the year, make and model that you are looking at has transmission, engine, or other issues. If it does, then ask the potential seller if they have fixed those issues in the past. If they have, it might still be worth buying. If they haven’t then you will probably want to keep looking.
Have a Mechanic Check it Out
This is one that can be difficult but is worth doing. I took a car to my mechanic that I was interested in and he showed me at least $1,000 in repairs that would need to be done. The engine mounts were shot. I could see the engine rocking back and forth when he put his foot on the gas. It also had multiple leaks amongst other issues. This helped me determine not to buy the car and to move on.
Know What it is Worth
Go to Kelly Blue Book to determine the value of the car. You can generally ignore the excellent price as they say only 3% of cars are in that condition. You really only want to buy a car that is in Good or Very Good condition, so you can use those numbers to make an educated offer.
Negotiate the Price
I know this seems obvious, but there are people out that don’t even ask. I looked around the car and mentioned everything that I saw wrong with the car. These were mainly cosmetic issues, but nonetheless, they reduce what the value of the car is. We were able to get $500 off the asking price by doing this.
Don’t Sell Your Old Car First
If you do sell your previous vehicle first, than you have to figure out how your going to get around. This can be stressful, burdensome, and can be an overall headache. I recommend saving up and paying cash for a used car while keeping your old car. This way you can take your time while you search for the right replacement and not be rushed into buying something.
How to Build Your Credit at No Cost
Credit Card (Photo credit: 401K)
Since we talked about How to Check Your Credit for Free yesterday, I figured I would follow up and show you how you can improve your credit score for free.
First, I want to mention that debt should not be a lifetime endeavor, but only used for a short stint of your life. The goal should be to use debt for the smallest amount of time possible and then with the extra cash you were using to make your debt payments, start saving up and paying cash for things.
Many people think that they need to go out and finance a car or get a store credit card to build their credit, but this can be costly. If you take a loan out on a used car, the current average interest rate is 4.35% according to Bankrate.com. If you take out a store credit card, you could have annual fees and the possibility of overspending.
Here is a simple, free way to build your credit score:
Get a credit card that has no fees whatsoever. Then, setup auto-pay for bills that are fixed. Here are some examples: cell phone bills, internet bills, insurance bills, cable bills, etc. Then cut up the card and never use it. This way, you are never at risk of overspending. Also, you should never pay interest because you already budgeted that expense. Then pay it off every month so that you never carry a balance. This is what we have decided to do and it works great.
But I don’t Overspend
According to a study done by Dunn and Bradstreet, people spend 12-18% more when they use a credit card. On top of that, if you pay cash, a lot of times you can get a discount. I can’t tell you how many times I have told sales guys, “I am paying cash, what is the best price you can give me?” There is a reason why 75% of the Forbes 400, the richest 400 Americans, said the best way to become wealthy is to become debt-free and stay there.
Our goal is to be completely debt-free, including the house in 6 years. What’s yours?
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How to Check Your Credit Report for Free
Checking your credit report can be a really good thing to do. The challenge is that there are so many websites out there that appear from the surface to be free. However, there is only one website that is truly free: AnnualCreditReport.com. According to the Federal Trade Commission, this is “the only authorized source to get your free annual credit report under Federal law.”
Why is it Important to Check my Credit?
Inaccuracies or Fraudulent Activity - The main reason is to look for errors or fraudulent activities. A couple of years ago we ran my wife’s credit report and it had a delinquent bill from a cable company in Texas. The funny thing is that she never lived inTtexas. We since got it taken off, but the only way we knew about it was by pulling her credit.
Securing Low Rates – If you read yesterdays post about How to Pay Your Mortgage Off Early, I talked about refinancing to a 15 year mortgage at around 3.11%. The only way you could qualify for a rate that good is by having a solid credit score.
How Often Should I Check my Credit Report?
Once a year should suffice. Pull one report from each of the three bureaus: Experian, Equifax and TransUnion. If you pull one every 4 months, this would be a good system to catch errors and address them quickly. Then go through each item and verify that it is correct. If you find any errors you should be either able to submit a request online or there is a telephone number for each company where you can file a dispute on what is being reported.
How Much Should I Care About my Credit Score?
All a credit score does is tell people how good you are about borrowing money and paying it back. You should desire to have a history of paying people what you owe them, however, the goal should be to borrow money for a short period of your life and transition to a cash based approach. Once you have a paid for house and are completely debt-free, a credit score will basically be useless. In fact, if you don’t borrow money for an extended period of time your report may come back with zero data. That is a good thing if you don’t want to use debt as a way of life.
So if you haven’t checked your credit report in a while, why not check it today for free?
How to Pay Off Your Mortgage Early
Housing (Photo credit: james.thompson)
Many people want to pay off the mortgage on their house early. They want the flexibility to have less money going out the door every month. They want to be debt-free and not have to worry about living paycheck to paycheck. Is this you? Maybe your skeptical and don’t think it is that big of a deal to pay it off faster. Well, let’s start with an example. Let’s say you buy a house and get a 30 year mortgage for $200,000 at 3.8%. If you kept the loan to the end of the term you would have paid $135,489.29 in interest. This means the total amount you paid for the house would be $335,489.29.
If you bought a house and got a 15 year mortgage instead at 3.11%, you would pay only $50,518.36 in interest. Bringing your new total to $250,518.36. This is a difference of $84,970.93! I don’t know about you but I am interested in saving that kind of money.
So how do you do this?
Create a Financial Gameplan
Track your expenses on a monthly basis and determine what your surplus is. That is, after all your bills are paid and investments are funded, how much extra money do you have left over each month.
Increase Your Monthly Payment
Calculate what a 15 year payment would be by going to Bankrate.com. Then if you have enough surplus, begin paying that payment toward your mortgage each month.
Decrease Your Expenses
If you have little-to-no surplus, go through you financial gameplan (budget) line by line. Ask yourself, ‘how can I spend less in this category?’ By doing this you could free up extra cash to pay down your mortgage faster.
Refinance to a 15 Year Fixed
If you currently have a 30 year mortgage at an interest rate above 5%, consider refinancing to a 15 year fixed. The current average national rate is 3.11% on a 15 year. This could save you a few thousand dollars a year in interest just by making this move.
Make One Extra Payment Per Year
If you want to wear the minimum amount of flair, you can make one extra payment per year. In the 30 year scenario above, you would pay your home off 4 years sooner.
Do you have a plan to pay down your mortgage early? What is it?
How to Watch the Solar Eclipse for Free
Eclipse Annular (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
As you have probably heard, today there will be an Annular Solar Eclipse in the Western United States starting around 5pm. It is referred to as an “annular” eclipse because the sun is covered by the moon which produces a “ring of fire” effect as it blocks most of the sun’s light. There are several different observatories and organizations that are offering free viewings of the solar eclipse later today. If you are looking for the time and location of a viewing in your area, then you have come to the right place:
Arizona
Who: East Valley Astronomy Club
Where: Riparian Preserve at Water Ranch - Gilbert, AZ (Phoenix area)
When: May 20th, 2012 at 5:15pm
California
Who: Sacramento Valley Astronomical Society
Where: Sacramento City College - Sacramento, CA
When: May 20th, 2012 at 5:00pm
Nevada
Who: Sidewalk Universe
Where: Sparks Marina Park - Sparks, NV
When: May 20th, 2012 at3:00pm
New Mexico
Who: Bandelier National Monument Night Sky Team
Where: Bandelier National Monument - Los Alamos, NM
When: May 20th, 2012 at 6:30pm
Texas
Who: The South Plains Astronomy Club and TTU Museum
Where: Lubbock Lake Landmark - Lubbock, TX
When: May 20th, 2012 at 6:30pm
If you are looking for more viewing opportunities, NASA has a site where you can search by city here.
Make sure not to look directly at the solar eclipse without protective glasses as it can severely damage your eyes. See the article, “How to Safely Observe Sunday’s Solar Eclipse“ on Space.com for safety tips.
If you’re not much of a risk taker and want to play it safe, you can view the eclipse live online via the Slooh Space Camera.
Lastly, if you have your own glasses or viewing equipment, you can find out the best time to see it in your area by going to TimeandDate.com.
How to Sell Stuff on Craigslist Fast!
Last night I decided to sell my old cell phone on Craigslist and I didn’t want to wait a couple of weeks to get rid of it. So I implemented the following steps and I was able to sell it within 2 hours of listing it. Here is how to sell your items on Craigslist quickly and at a decent price:
Make Sure There is Demand for Your Item
I usually go to Ebay and check the ‘completed listings’ because this will show you what has actually sold and for how much. This will give you an idea of what the demand is for your particular item. If there is no demand then your item will not sell fast.
Price it Right
On top of checking Ebay, I will see what prices the item is listed for on Craigslist within the past couple days. This is what other people will be looking at who want to buy what you have. Then I would price it competitively to be slightly less than one in a similar condition. For instance, there was a phone on there for $240 so I listed mine at $220. Remember, just because something is listed at a certain price, doesn’t mean somebody will get that price for it.
Be Willing to Negotiate
Plan to sell your item for 10-20% less than the list price. I listed my old phone with the idea that I would sell it for $200. One of the first things the buyer asked was what my lowest price was. I told him that I just listed it and the lowest I could go was $200. He bought it and did not even try to negotiate any lower.
Describe the Item in Detail
Have this question in mind when you list the product, “What would I want to know if I were buying this item?” Here is my answer to this question:
- Condition: Does it have any flaws, damage, and is it fully functional?
- Specs: What are the specific characteristics? In my case last night, I listed the screen size, storage capacity, processor speed, how many mega-pixels the camera was, etc.
- Accessories: What comes with the item? Listing the accessories is important because it could be a reason someone buys yours over a competitors.
- List a Reason: What is the reason you are selling it? This does not have to be long. One sentence should do. This way people know the “why” behind the listing and they will be more comfortable to give you a call.
- Telephone Number: You must list your phone number to sell it quickly. I actually don’t even contact people with just an email address. Often times those are scams or marketing ploys to get your contact info. Also, use the digits like this: 602-555-5555. Don’t do this: Six 0 Two 555- 555Five. This is annoying because often I like to call from my cell phone. if done right, I can just touch the number when I see the ad and it instantly places a call. If you list it the latter way, this is not possible.
- Special Features: Is there anything about this item that is different from others listed? If there is, make sure to put that as well. This could be the difference between someone buying yours or another item they find.
- Pictures: I am very leary of an ad that does not have any pictures. I am also not fond of ads that post pictures found on the internet, instead of posting pictures of the actual item for sale. You might sell your item with somebody else’s pic, but probably not quickly. So take good pictures that are clear and that show all the accessories that go with it.
Have you sold anything on Craigslist fast? If so, did you do anything different than I described above?
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How to Stay Fit on a Budget
(Photo credit: Wikipedia)
“Losing weight” is the #1 New Years Resolution, according to the study by the University of Scranton’s Journal of Clinical Psychology. Did you set this goal for yourself? How has your progress been so far in 2012? Often times, people give up on their resolutions because of the cost. According to Dr. Sal Arria, President of National Board of Fitness Educators, the average hourly rate for a trainer is $60-$70 per session. If this isn’t in your budget, I have 3 ways that you can stay fit and that won’t break the bank:
1. Create a Workout Routine at Home - If you create a habit of jogging, doing push ups, sit ups and lifting free weights, you can accomplish a lot for little-to-no cost. This is the route I chose while we were getting out of debt.
2. Join an Inexpensive Gym – This is what I do now. I have a membership to a gym called YouFit and it is only $10 per month. They do not have a pool, racquet ball courts or a sauna; But what they do have is cardio equipment, weight lifting machines and free weights. This is all you really need to stay in shape, the rest of the amenities are just luxuries that can be done without when your on a budget.
3. P90X – This is for the person who is willing to commit to working out, 6 days a week, for 90 days straight. This is not for the faint of heart or the physically challenged. This is a program for people who are serious about making significant progress in a 3 month time frame. I was actually able to buy a copy on Craigslist for around $60. So what you could pay for one session with a personal trainer, you could get this DVD set which will give you 12 different workouts.
Is it your goal to lose weight or to be healthier? If so, why not commit to doing one of these suggestions today?
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How to Watch Movies Before They are Released for Free
The original Paramount logo seen on 1930s movies and Popeye shorts (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Last night I saw a movie 5 months before it is going to be released. It was crazy, because all I knew beforehand was a list of movies that it was like, as they haven’t even named the movie yet. They had me sign a non-disclosure agreement so I am limited to what I can tell you. But what I can say is that it was a Paramount Picture and that it was a crime-drama.
I didn’t think it was that big of a deal at first, until I got there. They had a metal detector to get into the theater and a half-dozen guys in suits that looked like secret service agents. Apparently there are people out there who would bring their cell phone into the theater to record a movie. This screening company was not going to let that happen. So much so that they had people survey the audience with night vision goggles to see if any one had smuggled in recording device.
Now, not all screenings are like this. Most of the one’s that I have gone to in the past were finished, had a title, and were being shown only weeks before the official release. If you want to be able to see movies for free that are completed you can sign up at www.Gofobo.com. All you need to do is fill in a little about yourself and if you meet the criteria of the audience they want to preview the movie, they will send you an invite via email.
If you are into watching movies way in advance that are not a finished production, you can sign up at www.TheScreeningExchange.com. The cool thing about these movies is that they actually WANT your feedback; What you liked, what you dis-liked, or what you thought was missing. I really liked this aspect of the screening last night because, although it was a great movie, there were holes in it. I felt like I had the ability to tell the movie studio what it was lacking and tell them how it could be better. I guess the only way to truly know if I had in impact is to go see the movie again in November.
One last thing you should know is that this is not always so glorious. You are taking a gamble because you have no idea if the movie is going to be good or not. Also, it is a decent time commitment. Often you need to get to theater 3 hours in advance and stand in line. This is a huge struggle for me because I hate lines.
Have you ever been to a movie screening? What has your experience been like?
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The Importance of Setting Goals
According to a study by the University of Scranton in the Journal of Clinical Psychology, 30% of New Years resolutions are money related. It also states that 45% of Americans make a resolution and that only 8% are actually successful in achieving the goal they set forth. Why is that the case?
The main reason is that they don’t write them down. When you have clear & concise written goals, you know what to strive for and you can devise a plan to achieve them. The criteria that I use for making written goals is called “SMART goals.”
Specific – Your goal can’t be vague. It has to be pointed and have a specific purpose.
Measurable – It has to be quantifiable, otherwise how do you know if you have truly achieved it?
Attainable – It has to be something that is achievable. Saying you want to fly to the moon tomorrow, is not likely to happen, so make sure your goal is attainable. It is OK if it is difficult to attain, but just don’t write down goals that are improbable. You will just get frustrated and you are likely to give up.
Relevant – It has to be a goal that is relevant to what you are trying to accomplish in life. Again, if you say you want to fly to the moon, yet you are a CPA with no desire to do the astronaut training, you may want to re-think this goal.
Time Sensitive – It has to have a deadline attached to it. This way you have a time-frame in order to plan how to achieve your goal.
Here is an example of a SMART goal that Kim and I used which we were able to accomplish:
“We want to pay off $52,000 in debt in 18 months.”
This was Specific because it was clear and precise. It was Measurable because there we specified an amount which allowed us to gauge our progress. It was Attainable because we had a car to sell that would pay off $17,000 of that debt as well as I had a commission based job where the harder I worked, the more I got paid. It was Relevant because it applied to us and it was something that we really wanted to do. Lastly, it was Time Sensitive because we listed that we wanted to pay it off in 18 months.
What are your financial goals? Do you have them written down on paper? If not, today is a good day to start.
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