Monthly Archives: October 2011

Here’s a Quick Way to Deal With The Biggest Problem With a Credit

Posted on by  at  8:52 am
9

The following is a guest post from Martin of Studenomics and Passive Income Now. He’s finishing up his first guide that will show 20-somethings how to conquer credit for once and for all. He wants young people to be able to live life on their own terms without being stuck in debt.

“Credit is a system whereby a person who can’t pay gets another person who can’t pay to guarantee that he can pay.” — Charles Dickens.

I must confess that the past three years I’ve been running my blog off some crappy laptop I bought for $500 in 2008. My laptop finally died on me recently. Normally this wouldn’t be too big of a deal. The reason that it was a colossal problem was that I was in Budapest, Hungary, a country where I don’t speak the language. Did I mention that I earn most of my income off the internet? Yep it totally sucked. I lost my most important files and was worried about how I would access the internet for the duration of the trip. I thought that my life was over.

Sure I could still enjoy cheap drinks and great company. How would I blog without a laptop though?

Then I found a solution. I realized that there was an Apple store in town. Long story short is that I ended up picking up the MacBook Air, a piece of technology that I had fawned over since I first saw it in the store a long time ago.

Now it’s time to finally answer the question in the title. What’s the biggest problem with a credit card?

A credit card will let you buy anything that you want without asking any questions.

Thankfully I had the money in my savings account waiting to be transferred over. If I didn’t have a decent savings account I would’ve been totally screwed. I would’ve been screwed over because my credit card doesn’t ask questions. I bought my Macbook Air without much thought put into it.

That’s not a very wise decision for a personal finance blogger. A personal finance blogger buying a a brand new laptop without planning for it? I’m pretty sure that’s a sin.

Before I go on with this article I want you to know that I’m not one of those anti-credit dudes. I’ve actually been using a credit card since I was 18 and it helped me build my credit to the point that I got a home mortgage at 21. I do believe that there are many issues that need to be resolved when it comes to credit cards and 20-somethings.

If you have a credit card I’m 100% positive that you experienced this before. Your credit card will never ask you any questions. You don’t have to ask for permission. Your credit card won’t ask you if you have the money to pay for this. The store associate won’t ask you how long it’s going to take you to pay off your credit card balance. There are no questions asked. As long as you stay below your credit limit you can have anything that your heart desires.

You can have anything that you want without having to answer any questions.

What’s my solution for this problem? What’s my quick way for dealing with the biggest problem with a credit card?

Before every purchase that you make with your credit card ask yourself the following questions:

1. Do I really need this right now? Can I wait another few weeks to make this purchase?

2. How will I pay for this?

I guarantee you that just the time that it takes you to remember these questions will be enough to start second guessing yourself. Once you ask yourself the questions that your credit card won’t ask, you’ll realize that you’re making the wrong choice. You might even realize that you have other stuff you would much rather save up for. I personally try to save all of my money for trips. Going out in town or buying a new pair of shoes is alright. Going on a trip a few times per year, well, that’s how I want to live life for the next little while.

Have you experienced this with a credit card? Have you ever gotten carried away just because your credit card doesn’t ask you any questions?

If you want to follow Martin on his journey you can sign up for his exclusive newsletter, which happens to come with a free gift. The gift is a case study conducted with internet entrepreneur, a dude earning a killing online every month

Ipad 2 vs. Kindle Fire (Things you should know before purchasing and a tablet)

Posted on by  at  12:35 pm
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This post was written by a good friend of mine who happens to have fantastic insight on everything tech/gadget related

I recently drove my daughter to the University of Washington for her freshman year. Everything seemed to be in order—she had a new account with Wells Fargo, she had a new phone, her books, and a cozy room to share with someone who seemed sane enough. I drove home no more concerned for my daughter than I naturally should be.

Two days later, though, she called in near hysteria. Apparently, she had spilled coffee on her laptop, and hadn’t been able to revive it. When I said I’d buy her a replacement, she asked if she could also get a tablet of some sort, and said that most of her friends could accomplish more on both a social and academic level with said gadgets. For the time being, I’m replacing just the computer. Then I’ll gift her with a tablet for Christmas…but which one?

As someone who takes pride in being frugal, my gut response is to buy her an older, still well functioning Kindle Keyboard. I could solve her technological problems with just a single Ben Franklin. But not so fast: if she wanted an ad-free model that provided Wi-Fi service, we’re looking at steeper prices (somewhere between $169 and $189). That’s nearing the Kindle Fire price range. If the Fire or iPad2 can provide her with more tools for academic success, as well as for social connectivity (hey, I want my daughter to be happy, too), then maybe it is worth checking out. After all, “frugal” doesn’t just mean “cheap.” It means “cost-effective” and “resourceful.”

The new Kindle Fire is dazzling for the eye that’s accustomed to the austere, black-and-white mode of the original. It operates using the Amazon Silk browser, which means the server can process demands on both a local level, and also on the Elastic Compute Cloud. If you want to free up some space by keeping a minimal amount of books on your Kindle, you can store the rest of your data in the Cloud. However, the internal memory of the Kindle Fire weighs in at a mere 8GB, and only 6GB are usable. There is no expansion slot to help remedy this.

The iPad2, on the other hand, comes with 16GB of internal memory, with variants of 32 and 64GB should you want the upgrade. This device also operates on a cloud system called—predictably—iCloud. This is a very important factor to my daughter, who’ll be saving a lot of information on the tablet, including movies (she’s a film studies major).

There are iPads capable of operating on a 4G service, but those are much more expensive, and some compromises need to be made if I’m going to spend more money. The iPad2 is a tad heavier, but it’s also a bit sleeker. Also, she’ll want to have a working camera on her tablet, which is a feature you won’t find on the Kindle Fire. I, for one, would forego the extra expense for this, but I must keep in mind that this is an investment for my daughter, not for me. And so being frugal isn’t just about what’s cost-effective, but also about what’s durable, lasting, and appropriate for her. By the way: the iPad2’s camera? It’s capable of 720p HD video.

It’s true that the iPad2 starts at $499.99, which makes it $300 more expensive than the Kindle Fire. And it’s true that I’d leap on a Kindle model were this a purchase for myself. But the iPad2 seems more flexible, more dynamic, and more likely to thrill my daughter at Christmas. I’m all for saving money now, but I get the feeling that the Amazon Kindle ‘s cheaper price is more an apology than a bargain, and that my investment will save me more in the long run. The iPad2, therefore, is the smartest and the most cost-effective choice, the buying it will allow me to maintain a sense of frugality. Besides, as an informed consumer, I understand that time, alone, will reduce the hit on my wallet—the holidays bring deals every year, making patience as much a virtue as frugality is.

For the latest coupons and promotional deals from Amazon, check out the Frugal Dad Amazon Coupons page.

Frugal Homemade Halloween Costume Ideas

Posted on by  at  12:00 pm
10

This scary economy has many folks terrified at the thought of spending $40 (or more) on a Halloween costume, so frugal ghosts and goblins across the country have yet again decided to go with homemade, frugal Halloween costumes.

We typically do this in the Frugal Household, although we did spend a bit more in planning this year’s trick-or-treat outing. My son wanted to be an “Army Man” or “Sniper.” We splurged on some camouflage gear, but it does have a dual purpose as he wears the jacket to school quite often (minus the outer ghille suit layer).

My daughter is more creative, and each year enjoys coming up with her own homemade Halloween costume ideas.  With her help (and a lot of input from my wife) we offer up the following frugal homemade Halloween costumes, along with the supplies needed for each:

Hobo/Bum

  • Old tattered clothes with a few holes (maybe some of Dad’s old work clothes)
  • An old, beat-up hat
  • An old pair of well-scuffed shoes
  • Worn canvas sack on a stick over the shoulder carrying belongings

Spa girl (My daughter dressed as a “spa girl” a couple years ago)

  • Green face paint to simulate a mask
  • Towel for head or curlers
  • Sleep mask
  • Bedroom slippers
  • Bath robe
  • Pajamas

Nerd

  • An old pair of eye glasses with black electrical tape for reinforcement
  • Too-small pants (short ones/high risers)
  • Shirt tucked in with pocket protector and a handful of pens
  • Hair slicked down with gel
  • White socks
  • Black shoes

Ghost (a frugal Halloween classic!)

  • Sheet with holes cut out for the eyes
  • White, long sleeve shirt to wear underneath
  • White gloves
  • white pants, socks and shoes

Hunter/Soldier (my son’s choice this year)

  • Camouflage clothing
  • Dark green (olive) paint for face
  • Black face paint for under the eyes
  • An old Army belt with canteen
  • A green backpack

Scarecrow

  • Flannel Shirt
  • Overalls/Jeans
  • Rope belt
  • Wheat straw to stuff under the cuffs of the jeans and shirt
  • A straw hat
  • Paint a few freckles on face

Present

  • Big box wrapped in festive wrapping paper
  • Large bow to place on your head
  • Cut holes on sides of box for arms, and in the top of the box for your head

Bunch of Grapes (This one reminds me of the old Fruit of the Loom commercials)

  • Purple sweatsuit
  • Purple balloons pinned to sweatsuit

Chef/Cook

  • Tall chef’s hat or hair net
  • Apron
  • White button down shirt
  • Black pants and shoes
  • A big pot to collect candy in (with a big wooden spoon)

Kitty cat

  • Black clothes
  • Black shoes/socks
  • White cardboard for the belly
  • Tail (can use an old sock or buy one)
  • Ears (headband with felt)
  • Facepaint for whiskers and nose
  • White gloves (optional)

Most of these homemade Halloween costumes can be put together with items from around the house, or for less than $10 by visiting a consignment shop or Dollar Store.

Channel Your Inner Science Nerd to Make Extra Money

Posted on by  at  5:00 am
9

The following is a guest post from Kyle Taylor who blogs about weird ways to make money at The Penny Hoarder. You can read his “5 Wackiest Ways to Make Extra Money” by signing up for his free newsletter.

“Did you hear about the biologist who was the life of the party? He had to throw out his results. Apparently he had no control.” Ba-dum-chhh!

If you found yourself laughing uncomfortably loud on the last joke, you may just be nerdy enough for the rest of this article. I’ve always loved science. So much so that if you stop by our house on a Sunday afternoon you’ll almost certainly catch us watching a marathon of Discovery channel specials. I’m also a personal finance blogger so whenever I can merge the two, I’m in Artiodactyla Suinae heaven. Haha! Get it? Ok, that was a last one. I promise.

Here are a few of my favorite ways to make money with science…

Astronomy – the study of space

Become a NASA Test Dummy - NASA is currently looking for willing participants to come down to their University of Texas facility and be a part of a bed rest study. The study pays participants $5,000 a month to stay in bed for 90 days and let NASA study the impacts to your body.

The downside to this project is that they are studying your body for muscle/bone loss, similarly to what an astronaut might experience living in a zero-gravity environment. On the plus side, it’s 3 months of quiet time to read, watch TV, and play video games. Here’s a link to the application.

Climatology – the study of weather conditions over time

Invest in Hurricane Options – A new website called Weather Risk Solutions is promising to let users buy options on where they think a hurricane might strike. The site is still in its beta stages, but the idea is modeled off of flood options which are used by investors as a way to insure their capital against floods.

For an example of how this works, lets look at the Galveston, Texas option. If you thought a hurricane might strike Galveston this year, you can purchase an option for $30.50. If unfortunately, a hurricane were to strike Galveston, you would be paid $997.40.

Biology – the study of living things

Sign up for a Clinical Trial – This is probably one of those weird ways to make money that you’ve read about, but never knew how to actually do. Try doing a search for “make money research studies” and you’ll have enough spam to survive a cold winter, but you won’t actually find a study to participate in.

I’ve developed a little trick for finding out about studies in my area. I use the National Institute of Health’s website, ClinicalTrials.gov. It’s mainly used by doctors/scientists to research studies in their field, but it can be a helpful resource for finding a medical study that is paying in your area.

When I searched for my city I found more than 3,000 results. Each result will tell you the requirements in order to participate and gives you the contact information for the sponsors. Sometimes the listing will even include a website that will take you to their website where you can fill out an application.

Physics – the study of matter, energy and time

Get Paid to Reduce Your Energy Usage – One of the cool trends in the fight to reduce energy usage is that there are growing number of financial incentives. There are even a couple of websites that will pay you to do your part.

One such website is EarthAid.net. Once you’ve signed up for a free account, they will link up with your online electric bill and help you track your energy usage. Every month that you reduce your energy usage, you are rewarded with points that can be redeemed for cash and discounts to local retailers.

RecycleBank.com is another great resource, which among other things will reward you for pledging to shut off your lights before you leave the house. You can also make money recycling your garbage with Recyclebank and pledging to save water.

So what are you waiting for my fellow nerds? Start cashing in on your love of science.

If you aren’t up for these types of money-makers, here are another 40 business ideas to start from home.