Take It To The Bank!

What animal was showcased on the nickel?

What president is on every penny?

What percentage of grocery costs are saved by using coupons weekly?

How much did Bailor earn in her piggy bank from loose change over a year?

How much should you pay yourself 'first' each paycheck? Example.. Rule of thumb is what percent?

How can you save $75 each year when withdrawing cash?

What can you do to save $8-10 when eating out?

Between back to school clothes, supples, school tuition etc...It's going to hit you where it hurts....Mama's checkbook.

Ok so you have October: Candy (LOTS OF SALES AT DRUGSTORES, WALGREENS, CVS ETC) for Halloween, costumes (they are going on sale left and right, etc...Thanksgiving...Those little Pilgrims are not cheap, and neither are their family members..

During the summer, vacations are optional, but the next few months are budget breakers. That's why someone very smart made them at the end of the year.

So when you were out blowing savings on Holidays it didn't feel so bad to the melodies of Holiday music...and January felt sooo far away.

I will update on Holiday tips...because we're about to enter the 'Most Wonderful (and expensive) Time of the Year'...

Here is a type of account that I am very found of! Money Market that is associated with local banks...your account is liquid after 90 days and you gain interest in the mean time. My husband and I shop around for the highest interest rates in town on these things and shuffle money around. It's safe and you never lose. There are stipulations on beginning balances...Sean and I have 2 of these accounts and it's liquid savings that we "forget" about...Money Market accounts can be regular checking (sometimes)..each bank is different. In March we opened one of these (a new one) with and interest rate of 4.25% guaranteed for 90 days. We can write 3 checks out of it a month if needed,  but we lose that rate if we go any further...Just until June 20th..and then we're free to go wherever if there is a better deal across the street! Just something to look into!!

What to look for with Money Market Accounts....
Here are some questions a consumer should ask before opening a money market account:

What is the minimum opening deposit?

1. Prioritize credit cards by amount owed and interest rates.
2. I personally paid off the card with the smallest amount off first (it gave me a sense of accomplishment).
3. Call and lower your interest rate. No matter what they say they can do it. I would simply say I have several other offers for a lower fixed interest rate can you help me. If they say no, say "Let's save us both a lot of time, and adjust it now because as soon as I switch to another card company you will send me another application." I will attach the script from Oprah's personal debt diet to show you how you can control the conversation with these credit card companies.
4. Don't just pay the minimum. Really make it hurt when you pay the bill...you will feel better sooner I promise.
5. Make a budget and live by it. If you have left over money from the month put it towards the credit card. Short term sacrafices long term results.
6. Put it on the table. REALLY, PUT IT ON THE TABLE. Look at what you're spending and where. Put it all on the kitchen table and get your highlighter out. Prioritize. Highlight the charges in the last 3-6 months that were absolutely necessary, then in a different color highlight the charges that were needed, but may have gotten a little more. Finally, highlight the charges that made no impact whatsover (that's why it's good to look 3-6 months back because you can really see where the overage is).
7. With your budget, take out cash at the beginning of the week and make it last until the next week.
8. Quit eating out (this is my personal weakness) and buy only what you need with coupons. Meat can be fozen, so if you see something on sale (I just bought 6 pork tenderloins because it was buy one get one free). We just had a huge Sunday dinner and cooked what we had in the pantry, freezer and refridgerator. It was fabulous, and didn't cost a thing. It's fun to see what you have and what you can do with it...
9. Pull your credit report. If you any collections pay them off and ask them to remove the mark from your credit. Credit card companies also look at your credit card to leverage interest rates with you.
10. SAVE everything you can. Make it fun, challenge yourself and see how tight you can be. Just try it for 3 months!

Let's get on a "Debt Diet"!! And you thought Weight Watchers and Jenny Craig were hard....

First thing, first. Save, save, save. This was not my philosophy 5 years ago, quite the contrary. If I wanted something, I got it. Charged it and said I would pay for it later...We all know the ending of that story. I probably bought a $30 shirt and ended up paying $80 after credit card interest for a couple of months. I recently paid off my 2 credit cards with the money I saved and now, besides my home, live debt free...sigh. But the road to getting there was not easy, and it didn't feel good writing those checks to pay them off with my hard saved money, but it had to be done. I actually felt better than wearing a size 2, though I've never actually worn a size 2 (well, maybe in like 5th grade)!! I swear I did feel as though the weight of the world had been lifted off my shoulders and I walked a little lighter (too bad my scale didn't read that one either).

Little Money Saving Tips
-Tell everyone you're on a new diet, the "debt diet"!
-Skip the $5 latte & Happy Meal (neither is good for you).
-Get a water jug. The big ones that you can put change/cash into and CAN'T break into it, without cutting through it. Put it in a closet and drop change into it and don't look! We cashed in our change before we went on vacation and had almost $500! Took care of our food for the trip, and a raft! Nice!
-You don't need another black dress! I used to buy a shirt, dress etc for a "special" event! Well, I now am the proud owner of 10 black dresses, all that look the same, but I somehow thought I would "feel" better in the new one! Trust me, you have enough clothes!
-Credit Cards are a necessary evil. The help you with credit history, but can hurt you if used and plundered. If you have high-interest credit cards, call them to get your rate lowered, if they deny you let them know you have several other options and would like to talk to a supervisor. NO RATE WITH A CREDIT CARD IS FIXED, no matter what they say...In addition, shop around and switch your balances over to lower rate or no interest for 12 months...and pay it off, because when you do hit the end of the no-interest grace period, you will be charged a higher than average rate, but they can't charge you interest on money that isn't on the card...so use your debt diet and make sure you get serious with your money.
-Use coupons...lots of them! I save an average of $50-$75 a month using coupons on items I buy. I also look at my receipt, see what I saved and then write a check into my savings on the way home from Wal-Mart. I even get into competition with myself on trying to save more money with coupons everytime I go. But at one point I caught myself buying items I didn't need because I had a coupon, now that has changed.
-Dollar General is a rip off (mostly)! I have priced Dollar General with Wal-Mart, not even close. Sorry, for you Dollar General girls! (Though cleaning supplies is a little cheaper for the most part). But I always walk out of these "dollar stores" with crap I don't need...so I don't even go in there!

Once we get this down, we'll get into the meat and potatoes of finances!

I'll give tips for saving money, what to do with the money you've saved, and what are all of these terms that keep coming up in regards to finance and have no idea what they are.

Also, feel free to PM me with questions. I will keep it all confidential, but I can answer the questions on the blog so that everyone can benefit from your question!

Contest time!! I think we all need to start with how much money you have saved right now...This is going to be on your honor type of contest! Today is April 15th...At the end of June, I will ask how much money you have saved. The person who, now this is on your honor, has saved the most will receive a prize from me! It's a good one, I promise!