The Debate Over Buying a New or Used Car

Deciding whether to buy a new or a used car can be difficult. When considering your options, which of these three do you fall under:

1. I am looking for a particular car, and am not concerned with its depreciated value over time.
2. I am looking for a balance between investment value and features/preferences.
3. I am looking for a car that will retain the highest value possible over time.

There are distinct advantages and disadvantages no matter which way you choose to go. But let's look at my recommendations based on the above categories. If you fall into Category 1, you should buy a new car, and drive it for years to come. The key thing here is, that you do not sell you car within the first two years, as new cars lose 60-70% of their value during this time. You should expect less maintenance costs with a new car, but I highly recommend obtaining a great warranty package as well to further reduce your maintenance costs, the point being that since you will be making a car payment, you want to have as few unforeseen costs as possible.

If you fall into Category 2, your decision is the toughest. You will most likely want to buy a used car, looking to take advantage of the first owner's loss in value, but not too old (maybe only 2-4 years old). But, you also have preferences, such as how large the vehicle needs to be to suit your family, bad weather performance capabilities, gas mileage, and aesthetics like color, interior type, etc. This will instantly narrow your list of potential candidates to choose from, and you may want to consider buying a dealer authorized pre-owned vehicle. You may still end up with a car payment, but you will have the satisfaction of retaining the value of your vehicle longer, and the advantage of a dealer warranty and inspection/guarantee. For many middle income families, this is a very popular and often chosen method.

Category 3 is where I fall. This type of person is looking for maximum value and Return-On-Investment (ROI). They will buy an old car (I usually buy cars that are 10-15 years old) that has high mileage and only a small blue book value. Many times I will buy my cars for around $2,000-$3,000 in cash. I have no car payments, high gas mileage, and low car insurance costs because old cars aren't worth much. Maintenance costs tend to be a little higher, but still far less than a car payment every month. The key here is to choose a reliable vehicle, and my personal preference is to go with small 4 cylinder Hondas. My last Honda Civic lasted about 3-4 years and was pretty reliable, with only a handful of maintenance problems. Hondas run forever (many people putting 200,000+ miles on them) and are known for their lack of maintenance nightmares.

In closing, I recommend buying an old used car, paying with cash, and driving the car for as long as possible. You will be able to take advantage of someone else losing all the value of the car due to depreciation, you will not have a car payment, and your car insurance costs will be less due to the lower value of the vehicle. It just makes the best sense financially speaking.

Get more great finance and investing tips at Jeffry Evans' personal finance blog. Should I Buy a New or a Used Car? is just one of many great articles you will find at Personal Finance Resources.

No Nonsense Money Saving Tips

There are many ways to make saving money easy and doable. You don't need a lifestyle change to succeed in saving money. Listed below are helpful tips to make it easier for you to start saving money.

Make it a habit to prepare a grocery list. Write down the items that you genuinely need. Be strict with yourself and strike out superfluous items. Your grocery list will steer you away from pointless purchases as long as you stick to the list you've made. This routine will only take a little of your time each week but the benefits can be substantial.

Take advantage of discounts and coupons. Buy things that you use often in bulk to enjoy discounts. Toilet paper, dish washing soap, and detergents are some of the items you can purchase in larger quantities. Since they are non-perishable, you don't have to worry about them getting spoiled. On your spare time, cut out coupons and use them on your next grocery trip.

Enjoy homemade meals. Include on your grocery list food items you can use to prepare a homemade sandwich for lunch. Pack them well and take them with you to work every day. This not only saves you money for cafeteria food but also helps you eat healthy. For dinner, stay at home and simply prepare easy-to-cook dishes that are cheaper than restaurant food.

As much as possible, pay for what you buy in cash. Credit cards may be more convenient but it is also the fastest way to temptation. When shopping, leave your cards behind so you don't get tempted to buy unessential items. Use your card only when doing so would be more economical such as when there are installment plans or cash rebates you can avail of.

Check your pantry for natural body and skin care products. Milk and honey are known to be good for the skin. Using them instead of your usual lotion can help you save money and can even be healthier for your skin in the end.

Prepare your own snacks. Instead of always buying chips from the store, create your own popcorn or French fries at home. You don't only save money by doing this; you can also be creative and come up with even more delicious flavors!

Take your home-made snacks to the cinema. Save money on over-priced drinks and snacks being sold at the movie house and simply bring your own snack creations with you.

Reduce your electricity bill. Turn off lights in parts of the house that you don't use. Use energy saving light bulbs which consume less energy than the usual incandescent bulbs.

Don't substitute walking in the shopping mall for real exercise. More often than not, you wont stick to just walking. You'll go look in a store and find something you'll be lured into buying. Resist the call of the mall and choose a nice park to walk, jog or run in during weekends.

For more family budget tips, visit http://www.familybudgetguide.com

Make Your Credit Cards Work For You

Convenience is the name of the game these days. Most people have credit cards so they can easily pay for their bills and things they want to buy. For these people, convenience is identical to swiping their cards.

Credit cards have made it now optional to carry cash. This greatly reduces the risk of getting held up as you are on your way to shop. It also speeds up things at the counter because you do not have to count out bills and coins anymore. By charging your water, phone and electricity bills to your credit cards, you also avoid having to line up at the payment centers just to settle bills.

These conveniences bring you benefits but there are also drawbacks to using credit cards. Poor management on your part can lead to more unplanned purchases that you cannot pay anymore. Sooner or later, you end up just being able to pay the interest charges and so your outstanding balance never seems to get smaller!

You can sidestep this trap by being credit card savvy. The tips below can help you take better control of your credit cards.

Always review your credit card statement. Check the entries and see if you truly made the purchases listed. Keep your store receipts so you can go back on them and compare the amounts charged to you. Be on guard against billing errors and report them immediately.

Study your purchases. Admit to yourself if they were merely for luxuries you simply could not afford but failed to resist buying. Make a resolution to think first before buying next time you go shopping so your purchases will be limited to the necessities.

Compare credit cards. Study the terms and conditions of other credit card companies and see if they offer lower membership fees and finance charges. If you have a huge outstanding balance, then check if there are balance transfer promotions being offered by other card companies. Here, you can move your outstanding bills to the new credit card company and pay for them longer with lower interest charges.

Reduce the cards in your wallet. They may look nice and give you a feeling of security but having too many cards have its pitfalls. It encourages you to purchase more since you can always swipe one card after another. Soon, you will not be able to make sense out of all your credit card bills. Keep in mind that in the case of credit cards less would definitely mean more.

Make timely payments. Note on your calendar the payment date for your credit card bills and pay them on time. This helps you to avoid penalty charges. If possible, pay the total amount due in full so that you do not incur additional interest charges. This habit will also reflect on your credit record and improve your credit rating.

Managing your credit card can be simple and convenient too. Just remember never to bite off more than you can chew.

For more information on how family budget and how to spend wisely, visit
http://www.familybudgetguide.com

Household Budgets: The Secret Weapon in the War on Debt

Ah, America...land of the free, home of the indebted. According to CNNMoney.com, the average American household has almost $9,200 in debt. That's the average. Some have much, much more. Interest rates generally run in the mid to high teens, so counting interest and payments on other debt, such as mortgages, the average American is dealing with a heavy debt load.

So what can you, Mr. or Ms. Average American, do to get yourself out of this nasty situation? The first step, which may be the most uncomfortable, is the most critical: get your life under control!

And that means preparing a household budget.

A successful business prepares a budget. It attempts to anticipate funding needs going forward, and then does its best to stay within the budgeted amount for its expenditures. You probably have an advantage over most businesses in that you have great foresight in anticipating your financial needs. You know what you typically spend in a given month on various things such as food, clothing, utilities, and rent or mortgage. If you don't have an idea of what you spend on these things, take a look at your checking account registry, or your online checking account information. Your past financial dealings are right there for you to see.

It may also be helpful to use a financial tracking application such as Microsoft Money. You can find out more about Money at http://www.microsoft.com/money/. These types of applications are excellent for becoming more aware of where your money goes. A free online application that is designed specifically for improving your awareness of your spending patterns is http://mint.com. The application automatically labels many of your expenses and lets you classify expenses any way you want. One unique feature of the site is that it lets you compare your spending to the spending habits of people in any city, state, or nationwide.

Just becoming aware of how you spend your money will greatly increase your power. You will likely find yourself becoming less prone to wasting money once you develop this awareness. Once you have a handle on where you money goes, the next step is controlling where it goes. And for that, you need a budget.

The first items in your budget should be the necessities - expenses that are not optional. These would include things like your house payment or rent, electricity, water, car payments, gas so you can get to work, and food. Many financial experts recommend that you pay yourself before paying anyone else, and by that they mean you should take 10% (or however much you can afford) and put it in savings or an investment account. However, if you don't have a roof over your head or food in your stomach, then saving is a moot point. So for purposes of creating your first realistic budget, I recommend that first you take out the necessities. Necessities, of course, vary greatly from the mind of one person to the next, but think of it in terms of BARE necessities - things you absolutely have to have to survive.

If you're really, really serious about getting out of debt, you might want to take a hard look at those car payments. If you could get by with something less, and you're not "upside down" (meaning you owe more than the car is worth), it probably makes a lot of sense to sell and downgrade. It will likely save you some money on a monthly basis, and may even put some immediate cash in your pocket.

Next, take out 10% for your savings. If you can't afford 10%, allocate SOMETHING. But strive for the magic 10%. It is also recommended that you allocate another 10% for charity. This may be an item you leave off until last, but many good things happen to those who are willing to give away some part of their income with nothing expected in return.

After savings and possibly funds for tithing, factor in your debt payments. Yeah, this is when you start to feel the pain. There are steps you can take to help ease the situation, such as debt consolidation. Another strategy is to pay off your debts in ascending order of size; i.e., pay off your smallest debts first, as fast as you can. As debts are paid off, add the amounts you were spending on those debts to what you pay to service larger debts. It's a snowball effect, whereby over time you end up paying larger and larger amounts on your biggest debts in order to get them paid off faster.

Next, factor in your non-necessities. This is where you really have to take a hard look at your life. Are you spending too much money on entertainment? Alcohol? Clothes? Fancy cars (as discussed above)? If you are serious about getting out of debt, then you've got to scale down these types of expenses. Just becoming aware of how much you spend on non-necessities may shock you into action. You should budget for these types of expenses, but cut them back, and allocate the remainder for debt repayment.

The final step in preparing your budget is to write down your income, and make sure everything balances out. You can't spend more than you make (that's probably how you ran up all that credit card debt to start with). If your expenses are too high, start cutting back on the non-necessities. In the end, you'll have a nice, balanced budget.

Once your budget is in place, you've got to find a way to stick to it. One recommended strategy is to use a cash system. The problem with the way money is handled today is that it's just too easy to spend it. Just whip out your debit card. No cash required. No check book and no ledger entry required. But you quickly lose track of how much you're spending. The solution is to allocate your budget requirements into cash categories. Literally put cash into envelopes every month for various categories of expenses. You will be less likely to spend money needlessly if you literally see your pile of cash getting smaller. And you will have much more clarity about your financial situation.

If you follow these steps, it can have a profound impact on your life. You can get out of debt quicker, take control of your finances, and feel much better about yourself. It's all up to you. And it all starts with a budget.

ClearOne Debt Relief is a full-service debt management company providing debt settlement services such as credit card debt relief to hundreds of thousands of customers. We help people cut their debt in half, lower their monthly payment, and get out of debt in as little as 24 months.

The Top 10 Ways to Take Back Control of Your Finances

If you're like many people these days you have a least some issues regarding your personal finances. Far too many people are living paycheck to paycheck and are barely keeping their heads above water. These people often find themselves being just one missed paycheck from financial disaster.

Perhaps you are only making the minimum payment on your credit cards each month. You could be one of the unfortunate people who are finding they need to use their credit cards for regular expenses like groceries. Or maybe you just feel like no matter how much you make, you seem to spend it as fast as you get it.

Whatever your situation you probably just want to regain control of your personal finances. There is the way to control your spending, get out of debt and build savings. Yes. I said it. Build your savings.

There is a relatively simple way of taking back control of your money. Like all endeavors, it starts at the beginning. Here are the Top 10 ways to begin to get your finances under your control.

1. Decide to do it.
This can be as hard or as simple as you want it to be. There are many people who will read this article with the intention of taking back their financial future. Too many will read all of the suggestions and then they will do nothing. Don't be one of those people. Make your decision now.

2. Commit to do it.
Unlike the 1st suggestion, this one may not be as easy for some. Only your commitment to take control of your finances will lead to success. You can't wish it, want it, hope for it or just say you'll do it. You must commit to doing it and committing means taking action immediately. Like as soon as you are finished reading this article. You will only succeed by taking action.

3. Make a list of all spending.
No, I didn't say expenses, I said spending. All of it from food, prescriptions, credit cards, mortgage, car payments and car insurance, newspaper and magazine subscriptions, etc. Take your time. It is likely that you will miss a few things the first time you sit down to make your list. Don't worry about that. You can always add in the things you may have forgotten later on.

4. Really know where the money goes.
Now, you might think I'm repeating number 3 but I'm not. The best way to know where your money is going is very simple. For one month you will record in writing every check you write, every credit card purchase and every dollar and cent that you spend. This is the only accurate way to know how much you are spending each month.

5. Separate the needs from the wants. Like step 1, this step will be as easy or as hard as you choose to make it. But it is very simple. Food = need. Fast-Food = want. You don't need expensive clothing, shoes, etc. You want them. If you're committed to this, you'll find that your wants are things you can do without, at least for a while. Master this and you've gone a long way to regaining control of your finances.

6. Make a realistic budget.
And stick to it. It is not about depriving yourself but it is about money management.

7. Pay yourself first.
Yes, you're reading that right. You get paid first. This will become what the rest of the world calls savings. It is to be used for your future or unplanned emergencies should they arise and too often they do. Having some money in the bank can help cushion the blow.

8. Find ways to save on your needs.
If you want control of your spending then rid yourself of any issues you may have about shopping at discount stores, using coupons any buying store brand items over name brand.

9. Reduce your debts.
To reduce your revolving debt such as credit cards, you should either pay off the smallest balances first or pay off the debts with the highest interest first. There are different schools of thought on this, but you have to decide which is best for you.

10. Set goals and when you reach them, reward yourself.
This last one may sound contrary to all the suggestions that have come before, but it is not. As I said in number 6, this is not about depriving yourself. It's about properly managing your money. If you're following these suggestions and succeeding in getting back control of your money then rewarding yourself a little now and then is a good thing. It adds incentive to reach your goals.

And there you have it. The top ten ways to begin gaining control of your personal finances and in doing so, take back control of your life. It's your money. It should under your control.

Tom Schaffer is an ex-Bill Collector who has escaped from the corporate world to pursue affiliate marketing at http://www.jerseyshoremarketing.com. He's using his powers for good helping people regain their financial freedom. One way to do that is http://www.jerseyshoremarketing.com/redirect77.html

Seven Ways For Journalists To Save Money

Being a journalist can involve a lot of travel to do interviews for newspapers, television or radio and can rack up many expenses that can occur at the last minute that may not be covered by your job. These expenses can make it difficult to make ends meet. To save money, create a budget and look for ways to reduce expenses. Here are seven ways for journalists to save money:

1. Travel Discounts. Comparison shop for discounts on parking or air, hotel and rental cars or buy as packages. Some companies that provide discount fares LongTermParking, HotDeals, SideStep, and Kayak. Sign up for online alerts with airlines to learn about their weekly specials. Search for fares early in the morning or on weekends. Check to see if they accept discounts for membership to Diner's Clubs, AAA, AARP, etc. This can save you $30 to $175 per transaction.

2. Supplies and Expenses. Shop for office supplies at Costco or online sites such as Amazon. Consider setting up a home office. You can write off a portion of your mortgage, and utility bills. If you do not have space for a home office consider using a telecommuting or telework center at companies such as Virtual Office Center, Regus or the World Environmental Organization and search for telecommuting sites. This can save you $50 to $100 per week in supplies, wear and tear on your car and gas.

3. Food. Pack you own drinks such as water and juice along with your favorite snacks. Search online for coupons to your favorite restaurants. Sign up for a free newsletter from restaurants to receive coupons. This can save you $30 to $200 per month.

4. Car Maintenance. Perform regular maintenance on your car by keeping your tires properly inflated and balanced, which improves mileage. Save money on gas by using the lowest octane which is usually 87. Fill up your gas tank before going to work or in the evening when it is cool. This can save you $.05 to $.30 per gallon.

5. Insurance. Make sure you have health and disability insurance. If you need to see a doctor you won't have to worry about paying medical bills. If you become sick for an extended period of time you won't have to worry about how you will pay your bills. Contact eHealthInsurance for health insurance quotes. If you need disability insurance contact the Assurity company. This can save you $20 to $200 per month.

6. Use coupons. Use coupons to save money when shopping. Search for online coupons at sites such as Visit MyCoupons, CoolSavings, and CouponSurfer. This can save you $20 to $250 per month on your grocery bills and other household costs.

7. Go green. Try eco-friendly ways to save money. Visit sites such as Bankrate and search for ways to save money going green. This can save you $20 to $500 a month.

If you receive an advance, spend the money wisely and plan ahead. These seven tips can reduce many of your work related expenses and stress, allow you to focus more on your work assignments and become more productive as a journalist.

Harrine Freeman is the CEO of H.E. Freeman Enterprises, a credit repair and personal finance services company and author of "How to Get Out of Debt: Get an "A" Credit Rating for Free." Visit http://www.hefreemanenterprises.com.