Forward this
Newsletter to Your Friends
(Use this link only if you receive this newsletter by email)

Week of March 1, 2010

This is an OPT-IN list ONLY! If you feel that you have received this message in error, please follow the directions at the bottom of this email to unsubscribe. Thank you.

Click Here to view this newsletter online.

Navigate This Column

Grandpa Terry's Update

Grandpa Terry's Tip of the Week

Grandpa Terry's Email

Featured Author's Article

Grandpa Terry's Update

Welcome to The Budget Stretcher!

Free Tips Download

I found an excellent download that lists several money saving tips put out by the University of Missouri. Just click the link below to start the download.

Money Management - Living For Less

New Credit Card Statements

Very soon, if you haven't already, your credit card statement will look a little different. The new credit card regulations that became law on February 22, 2010 requires your statements warning you about the costs of making late or minimum payments.

The below graphic shows that it would take 8 years to pay off $1563 paying only the minimum payment. It also shows that by paying $50 per month you can pay this bill off in only 3 years and save $285 in interest charges.

Gas In Fredericktown MO - $2.49 a Gallon!!!

That's all for now. Remember, I really enjoy hearing from you folks. If you have any comments, complaints, suggestions or just want to say Hi, please send me an email to tre2000@midwest.net

If you know someone that may be interested in subscribing to our newsletter just copy and paste the below link into an email to them and have them subscribe:

http://www.homemoneyhelp.com/confirmsubs.html

Have a great week,
Grandpa Terry

Sponsor Advertisement

My Budget Planner
Are you frustrated trying to get by on the money you make?

Would you like to get a good view to where all your money is going?

Would you like to start saving your money, or save even more?

Looking for something easier then software like Quicken or Money?

Would you like to teach your children about finance?

Click Here to check out My Budget Planner Today

Grandpa Terry's Tip of the Week

Fix It Up Savings
I thought this was an excellent email showing how to save on remodeling. Thank you SLEE for your article...

I was glad to see that my 2 cents was helpful for Dean, so I thought I'd give some thoughts about remodeling. I bought a townhouse about 6 years ago that was in need of both TLC and R&M, and I was on a fairly tight budget. Anything I did to the house was going to have to be paid out of additional income as I could produce it (I was self-employed, and had regular clients that took care of my regular budget items only). Knowing what I wanted to do with extra income was a great motivator for me too!

Here's what guided me:

1) Set priorities and take small steps. The house inspector explained that the water heater was reaching the end of it's useful life, and could cause a LOT of damage if it suddenly went one day - so that was tops on the list. (Yeah, I hated seeing the old linoleum that was ripped/missing in the laundry room and downstairs bathroom, but it wasn't a priority)
Priorities were things that could create havoc & high costs if ignored.

2) Research and plan. And more research. Know what your options are - ask friends about how they like an appliance they've replaced, or a plumber they've used, etc. Get a subscription to Consumer Reports (ask for it as a birthday/Christmas gift!), know what the normal price is (and wait for sales while saving up money). Planning has meant that I haven't had to deal with any emergencies beside the roof leak one winter after a 3 foot drop of snow - so almost everything I've bought has been on sale.

3) The only place I allowed myself to spend more than the lowest possible price was to buy energy star appliances, because this would reduce my monthly utility bills.

4) Do as much of the work as I could. Accepted friends offers of help (most of this was in painting the rooms), and asked for help with other stuff too, like for some of the landscaping.

5) Before each project, I asked: How could I do what I wanted for less? Was there anything I had that could be re-purposed for something else? Example: the previous owner left behind yellow & pink paint - neither of which I liked. Then it occurred to me to mix them - and I got a gorgeous salmon color for FREE that I did the laundry room & bath in. Also - I love the look of copper switch plates, but don't love the cost. My solution was to buy regular ones and spray paint them with "hammered finish" copper paint.

6) After the "have-to's" I started on the "want-to's." This included upgrading the light fixtures from the original, 15-year-old cheap ones to beautiful ones bought on sale, one at a time, as I saved up the money; replacing the cabinet knobs & drawer pulls in the kitchen; upgrading the hardware for the curtains; and re-finishing the bathroom counters. Of the last project, I saved quite a bit of hassle & money by sponge-painting the countertops with oil-based paints (about 6 layers) and then protecting with 3 layers of oil-based polyurethane, rather than replacing them. Lots of little improvements can add up to a big impact.

And another thing people might want to consider before a remodel: do a serious de-clutter and deep cleaning FIRST - you might find the extra room you're needing! For help and support in de-cluttering, FLYLADY.NET is a great website (and FREE).

I've made my house my home through all of this, and my only regret is not taking "before" pictures!

all for now,
Slee

Sponsor Advertisement

/////SPECIAL SUBSCRIBER OFFER/////
THE MORE DEBTS YOU HAVE, THE FASTER YOU CAN PAY THEM OFF!

Paying highest-interest debt first is the SLOWEST way out ... You can laugh at money worries - if you follow our simple plan. Discover savvy consumer money secrets your friends don't know and banks won't tell you. Limited time only. ACT NOW:

http://www.1shoppingcart.com/app/aftrack.asp?afid=107959

/////////////////////////////////////////

Grandpa Terry's Email

Good afternoon Terry,

I need your opinion on something. I received notice from CitiFinancial this past week that they are going to start charging an Annual Fee of $60, which will be charged unless I use the card for I believe it was $200 in purchases during the year. I have to notify them in writing on by phone by March 31, 2010 to cancel if I don't agree to this change. The problem is that I don't use this card anymore and the last card I received from them in the mail I cut up. I don't have my full account # and I'm afraid if I send them a letter with only the last four of my account # that they won't cancel the card as requested. Do you think that would be an issue? I thought about getting my credit report to try to get the entire account # but wasn't for sure if it would show on there or not?

What do you think? I don't want them to have any excuse to not get this canceled for me.

Thank you very much!
Leigh

My Response

Hi Leigh,

If you still have the notice they sent informing you of the annual fee you can probably call them and they may be able to identify your account from the information in the letter.

You may also be able to use your credit report to get the full account number. The credit bureaus normally list the first 12 numbers of your account (i.e. 0000 0000 0000 ****.) Since you have the last four numbers this should complete the account number. You can request your free credit report at the below link:

https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp

Let me know if you need anything else.

All the best,
Terry

Featured Article

What Do I Do With My Tax Refund?
by Tawra Kellam
http://www.LivingOnaDime.com/

It's that time of year when all that "free" money starts rolling in. I'm talking about the bonus money, you know -- the fun money (otherwise known as our tax refund)! That is the way so many of us think of a tax refund and five minutes after we spend this year's refund we are already thinking about what we are going to do with next years money.

Many of us look at it almost as if we have won the lottery. We are going to do so much with it and it seems to have such amazing powers. I mean a $1000 tax return can buy a car, furniture, big screen TV, or a family vacation all in one fell swoop. There is almost nothing it can't do; no problem it can't solve. It's our mad money, our fun money.

Not!!!!!!!!!

It you have debt, it is none of the above. It is not mad money. It is an opportunity to move closer to getting out of the debt you have already committed to pay. If you have credit card debt, use your tax return to pay off that debt rather than to buy that big screen TV or the couch you have wanted. Ouch!!

Use common sense and wise thinking when it comes to spending that tax return. It is no different than a regular paycheck. In fact, when you look at the fact that you make so much money a year, the tax refund is actually part of the salary that you say you make.

It is not a bonus, but because it has been protected from your usual spending habits, it is more income available to pay your debts. Once you pay off those debts, a tax refund can be a great opportunity to start a savings account.

We get so many questions from people who are panicking and asking what we do for an emergency fund. Instead of throwing away that tax return money on something that gives you instant pleasure, set aside that tax return for an emergency (keeping in mind that even most "emergencies" are not true emergencies).

Once your debts are paid and you have enough savings, then use your refund for fun. We live in a society where we always put the cart before the horse. People used to get married and then have children but now it is common to have children and then get married. We used to carefully save our money and buy what we wanted from our stockpile but now we charge what we want and later try to figure out how to get the money to pay for it.

Because of how we think about credit, many of us don't give any serious thought to paying for something until it is worn out and we want to buy the next one. Once the item is worn out, how do most of us feel about still paying for it? "It's not fair that I have to pay for this and I don't even have it anymore..." Avoid the stress later -- Pay off what you owe now and stop buying things on credit.
Income Tax Forms

If you are behind on your credit payments or not making the payments at all, use your tax refund as an opportunity to get current. When we buy an item on credit or with our credit card we are saying "If you let me have this product now I promise (vow) to give you money for it later". When we don't pay our credit card bills it is no different than walking into a store, filling a basket with whatever we want and walking out with it. To my knowledge that is still called stealing. (I'll have to check because they change the meaning of words so often to make them more politically correct. I mean who knows, maybe it's not stealing anymore but just "temporarily using it until it is repossessed").

When you literally put the cart before the horse, (kids before marriage, buying and then trying to save money to pay for something, etc.) it will cause extra stress in your life and will make it much harder to get where you are going. So re-think not only how to use your tax refunds more wisely but give the same consideration to any other "extra" money that comes into your life.

Once you get a handle on your debt and your spending habits, you will be surprised how far your money will go. Start by making a wise decision about your tax refund.

Tawra Kellam is the editor of http://www.LivingOnaDime.com/. Tawra and her husband paid off $20,000 debt in 5 years on $22,000 a year income.