Financial Planning, Retirement Plan, 401k, Investment Blog

Financial Planning, Retirement Plan, 401k, Investment Blog

Posts Tagged ‘savings’

5 Money Savings Tips You Can Benefit from Today

Posted March 27, 2009 by Bernz

When people become concerned about money, their first thought is that they’re simply not making enough at their current job. Well, switching jobs or even getting a significant raise are both tough things to accomplish within a short period of time. So, what can you do if you need more money? The answer is simple, look to you.

Most people are spending hundreds if not thousands of dollars each and every month on things that they do not need or are simply unaware of the money that they’re losing from not keeping track of it properly.

Below are five money-saving tips that you can begin using today to help you save hundreds of dollars or more every month.

Make a budget

Making a budget seems like a simple thing to do, but most people never do it. Simply writing down every single expenditure that you have on a monthly basis as well as writing down every single thing you buy will help you get a fantastic picture of just exactly where your money is going. Simply start crossing off the items that you don’t need and reap the benefits of the savings.

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Technorati Tags: Frugality, investing money, save money, Saving Money, savings, savings bonds, savings tips

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Tags: Frugality, investing money, save money, Saving Money, savings, savings bonds, savings tips
Posted in Financial Education, Financial Goals, Frugality, Saving Money | No Comments »

The Lost Art of Savings

Posted March 9, 2009 by Bernz

Once upon a time in a land far far away, people put aside some of their earnings for a rainy day. They knew that there would be flush times and lean times. When things were good, they would squirrel away crops, can their own vegetables, and tuck some money away under a mattress. Inevitably, hard times would come, and those who had prepared ahead of time survived from their savings, while those who hadn’t bothered saving when times were good suffered.

The average amount of savings per capita in the United States has declined by more than 80% in the past twenty years. What were once luxuries that people saved up for are now waiting to take home with a simple signature on a loan document. Total debt versus income has more than doubled in that same time frame. Now, instead of setting aside savings every paycheck, many people are making loan payments.

Debt represents risk. The more debt you have, the more vulnerable you are to economic shifts like the one we’re having right now. The prolonged recession we are experiencing is causing many- who live on the financial edge at the best of times- to falter. Personal bankruptcy rates are soaring as debt loads become unbearable and incomes disappear. Living beyond their means has caught up with many people and there is only more pain on the horizon.

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Technorati Tags: how to save, Saving Money, savings, savings account

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Posted in Financial Goals, Frugality, Retirement Planning, Saving Money, Wealth Building | No Comments »

Cash is King Once Again

Posted February 12, 2009 by Bernz

Not that long ago, investing was all about the hot stocks; the Googles, Apples, and RIM’s of the market. Solid, reliable stocks were considered boring and cash…well, cash was just unheard of in portfolios. Why would you want to have cash hanging around when you could be investing it in a stock or mutual fund that was about to reach astronomical heights?

In a bull market, most investors keep their cash balances to a minimum as they try to stay fully invested. However, when markets slide, cash is the right investment to hold. Cash holds its value regardless of the condition of the market and it always generates a positive return. That’s more than most stocks can say these days.

Holding cash in your portfolio also allows you to take advantage of bargain basement prices on quality stocks and mutual funds that will occur in the future. This allows you to pick and choose your time to jump back into the market with both feet. Being fully invested in a down market leaves you with the unattractive sole option of selling out of an under-performing stock to buy a bargain. This locks in your losses and paints you into a proverbial corner when it comes to finding the money to take advantage of deals.

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Posted in Misc, Saving Money, Stock Market Investing | 1 Comment »