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Newsletter to Your Friends (Use this link only if you receive this newsletter by email) Week of July 19, 2010This 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 ColumnGrandpa Terry's Update
You won't want to miss the Secret Offer this week. Click Here to check it out. You have probably noticed that I am using quite a few tips supplied by Dollar Stretcher. That is because I'm not receiving enough tips to cover 3 tips per issue. There are some pretty neat gifts available for those that submit their tips and it is used in the newsletter. Click Here to visit your Subscriber Benefits Page and use the form to submit your tips.
Gas in Anderson, SC on 7/15 was $2.33 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 AdvertisementAre 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 WeekBy Terry Rigg I guess the best knock-down, drag-out fights my wife and I ever had was about money. No, it never came to blows because she's meaner than I am. Believe me you can have a lot of fights in 45 years. At some point we realized that it wasn't accomplishing anything. We still didn't have any money but we never earned a nickel fighting about it. To get a handle on your finances it is going to take a team effort. The whole family has to be working in the same direction. My suggestion would be to sit down and talk your money situation over with your spouse and the kids. It's important for everybody in the family to know what is going on. You may be surprised at what the kids will come up with. When I bought my first house I made a miscalculation on how much I would need to come up with for the down payment. When I realized it we had maxed out our credit cards and wasn't sure where we would get the rest of the money. My wife and I discussed this with the kids and they offered to baby-sit and mow lawns. They came up with enough to cover the down payment. I'll never forget how proud that made them feel and how proud we were of them. All too often one person in the family is strapped with making the money decisions. This is a great idea and the best way to keep things organized but they shouldn't take all the blame when something doesn't work out. A family solves difficult problems everyday. Money is just one of them. Sponsor AdvertisementPaying 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: ///////////////////////////////////////// Grandpa Terry's EmailHi Grampa Terry,I have been a long time reader (although not a premium subscriber yet)...and have used your website and emailed news letters to help me get through a horribly difficult divorce, that robbed me financially. I have never stopped reading your information and taking your advice to better my situation. I have spent a considerable amount of time trying to get myself back on my feet, and have come quite far. Although, I have so much more to do, I am better than I was. As of Wed. of this last week, I was laid off from my job at Post Office Credit Union in Madison. I was a loan officer, and the reason given was a.) I was the last loan officer hired and b.) the economy is so poor and our volume so low they had to cut a salary. I have so many questions, and one of them that I just can't seem to figure out is this. I was docked vacation pay that was used but not accrued, from my last paycheck. How can they do this in a lay off situation?????? I could understand if this was a situation that I decided to terminate my own employment. But this was not something I had any choice, or decision over, so I don't feel I should be docked pay. It just doesn't feel right. I'm sure it's perfectly legal, and they squeezed every last drop out of me before they booted me out the door. There is NO severance package what so ever, and my vehicle loan is there (at 14%). I asked and assumed my loan would be deferred, as they terminated my employment. The President didn't seem to have even wanted to defer my loan, and "will look into possibly maybe giving me from 1 to 3 months worth of payment deferrals". WHAT?????? You terminated my employment, and you're going to "think about it"?? Possibly? So, my question on the previous paragraph, is...can they dock me the vacation pay in a lay off situation, and should I contact the Unemployment Office about that? (I have applied and will be getting unemployment) A second question I have is this: I have about $12,000 in a 401K from the credit union. My bills are 2 credit cards about $7000, my car loan about $4000, an overdraft protection/line of credit about $1800, and rent $650 per month, as well as car insurance etc. Should I cash in my 401K, and pay off my credit cards, or just my car or just the high interest stuff. I know after going through this with the divorce that the credit card people don't give a rip about any situation you are in, and are not going to help in the least. The one credit card is from a local credit union, and may be better than the other one. The other one is a reduced rate and is only $2800 or so. Or, should I cash it in just to live on until I can find work. Or, what I want to do is go back to school, and maybe waitress...then I would pay as much of everything off as possible. I know this is a pivotal point in my life, and I truly hated the employer anyways. But, what do I do?? I'm completely daunted by going to work for any of the high powered credit unions that will surely burn me out to the bone...I've been there before also. I know this was a big email, so I'll just start with this stuff, and scour your website for articles and info until I hear back from you. I've already started making phone calls to see about deferrals on my car insurance, and other bills, so, fingers crossed until I figure this out. Thanks so much for all you do, and for being so available to us all when we need you!! Sincerely, Tori S. Madison, WI My Response Hi Tori, I'm really sorry to hear about your situation. While I can't be sure (each state has different laws that control employment), I believe that withholding the un accrued vacation and not deferring your loan is within your employer's rights. I would check with your state's Attorney General to find out the laws in your state. Here is a list by state: http://www.naag.org/current-attorneys-general.php I would avoid cashing in your 401k if possible. Besides the problem of raiding your retirement fund, there could be serious tax consequences. Unless your are at least 59 1/2 years old you will pay a minimum of 10% penalty plus paying taxes on the extra $12,000 as income. I recommend that you develop a budget based on the income you will have now. Consider your unemployment compensation and any other source of income you may have. Also, if you have any items that you can sell now would be the time to do it. Next list all of your bills and expenses. If there is a shortfall you may have to consider using part of your 401k to make up the difference if that's the only savings you have. I wrote an article that may help: Big Money Problems http://www.homemoneyhelp.com/articles/bigmoneyproblems.html If there is any type of employment or business you have thought you would enjoy, now may be your opportunity to make a dream come true. I've talked to so many people that lost a job they hated and decided to give their dream career a try. If you have any other questions just let me know. All the best, Grandpa Terry Featured Articleby Jill Cooper I keep saying you can save on groceries before you even leave to go to the store and one of those ways is to stop wasting the food you do buy. Today I'm going to share are a few examples to illustrate how those little things that our families don't eat and end up throwing out add up. These are estimates and when there the price of an item varies, I generally estimated using the less expensive amount. Here are a few examples of commonly wasted items in a typical home: Juice - If each member of a family of 4 leaves 1/2 a glass of juice in the glass a day, that family wastes 10 cans of juice per month. That works out to $20 per month or $240 per year that gets thrown away. Peanut Butter - If 2 kids leave 1/2 a sandwich uneaten, it adds up to 2 jars of peanut butter a month. At $2.00 per jar, this works out to $4.00 per month or $48 per year. This doesn't factor in the wasted bread. Apples - If 2 kids leave 1/2 apple a day uneaten, it works out to 3 bags of apples a month. At about $3 per bag, that works out to $9 per month or $108 per year. Milk - If 2 kids leave 1/2 cup of milk in a glass or a cereal bowl twice a day, 1 gallon of milk gets wasted per week. This works out to $3 per week, $13 per month or $156 per year of wasted milk. When we total the waste on just these four items, it works out to $46 per month or $552 per year that is wasted and simply gets thrown away. Note that these figures only consider families where 2 children leave just 1/2 a sandwich per day or leave 1/2 a glass of juice or milk per day. The reality is that most kids toss that much per meal 3 times or more per day so, in most cases, those figures could be easily doubled bringing the total to $1104 per year. I calculated these numbers based on a family with two children, but if you have more, then these numbers would be higher. Note that I used just 4 food items as examples. How many other things are thrown out like wasted veggies, potatoes, meat, cookies on and on? And not only that, there are the stale chips and other things that get wasted because they're not stored properly or they get lost in a disorganized pantry until they go bad. Think of your food in this way: If my kids leave half a sandwich a day, not only am I throwing out that much peanut butter but I am also throwing out a couple of loaves of bread each month. None of us would dream of going to the store, buying two loaves of bread, bringing them home and throwing them in the trash but that is exactly what we do. We just do it with small amounts daily. You can save $46 a month preventing waste with just the four items listed above. If you start counting bread from the uneaten sandwiches, cereal left in the bowls each morning, stale chips and cookies, you could instantly increase your savings to $100 a month (and probably more) without changing one thing about your spending (coupons, clearance items, sale items) at the store. Open your eyes and really notice what is happening with your food in your home. Jill Cooper and Tawra Kellam are frugal living experts and the authors of the Dining On A Dime Cookbook. Dining On A Dime will help you save money on groceries and get out of debt, by cooking quick and simple homemade meals. For free tips & recipes visit http://www.LivingOnADime.com |
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