Archive for January, 2012

Cost of new Car

Benefits of Buying a New Car

posted in Cars

A new car starts to depreciate once it is driven off the lot. The amount of depreciation depends on the car, but most of the time you will lose a significant amount of money if you tried to sell it right back – even if you only drove that car for one mile. This is the truth, and should be considered when making the decision between buying a new or used car.  But there are some great things about buying a new car. Let’s go over some benefits. If you buy a new car you will be able to choose ...

notary cost

How to get Free Notaries

posted in Save Money

One of the ways you can be frugal is to save on document notaries. I know some places, like UPS, charge for their notaries. Although there is a maximum fee, based on state law, let me tell you how you can get them for free. First you need to either have a bank account or a bank sponsored credit card. If you have a bank account, with a major Bank e.g. Chase, they will always have someone available to notarize your document. All you will need is your account number and your driver’s license for verification purposes. If you do ...

self employed

Pros and Cons of Self Employment

posted in Making Money

 Do you think being self employed is awesome? Well you’re right it is. Nothing beats being your own boss and setting your own times. Don’t feel like doing work? Well take a break, you deserve it. You’re the boss! Starting your own business and being self employed is a dream many people have, but in reality are not prepared to handle. There are a lot of costs that self employed people have to account for. One of the biggest costs is paying for health insurance. Unless you want to roll the dice, and gamble with the potential costs of paying ...

frugal eatting out

Is Eating out is Cheaper than Cooking?

posted in Save Money

Recently, MSN money published an article about how eating out is cheaper than cooking. Eating out and frugal should not be in the same sentence; restaurants are in the business of making money. If they are saving you money, how are they making any? Obviously I have a few issues with this claim. But first, here is an example from their site. Outback Steakhouse Meal: 10oz rib-eye dinner (includes soup, salad and asparagus) Total price: $17.99 Grocery store: rib-eye, $9.55; soup, $2.99; bag salad, $3.99; asparagus, $3.99 a bunch Total: $20.52 Winner: Outback   First, the calculations they are using ...

plunger

The Basic Necessities

 When I left for college, I was unprepared for life alone. I did not think about anything that I needed, and basically bought a whole bunch of useless junk; I bought things that I thought were cool and that I would use frequently. I even bought a $400 air purifier, because I thought it be a great addition to my small bedroom. I did not realize it back then, but in reality I only needed a few basic necessities.  So you are just starting off your life and have never lived alone before, let me give you a few tips ...

frugal tent

Frugal or just Plain stupid?

posted in Save Money

I am a big fan of Reddit.com and specifically the frugal section. For those of you who do not know, Reddit is just an online forum where people can discuss various things – such as being frugal. I recently stumbled upon a post about this guy who wanted to share how frugal he really was. In my opinion he went extremely beyond Frugal and ventured into the stupid territory.  Here are some pictures of how he is living “frugally”.     “I pay $150/month to live in this backyard and share the kitchen, bathroom and living room with my house ...

roommate cost savings

How a Roommate will save you money

Having a roommate is a great idea for those who are willing to trade a bit of privacy in exchange for some hefty money saving.  There are tons of basic living expenses that can be split between two or more people. One of the biggest things you can save on is rent. The highest cost of living alone is rent. If you ever looked for a 1 bedroom 1 bathroom apartment, you know what I am talking about; the availability of 1-1s is limited, hence they usually go for a premium. So why not get a roommate? The cost of ...

house costs

Costs of owning a Home

If you are single or do not have a huge family, think about renting instead of buying a house. You might be thinking if mortgages rates are so low why am I even renting? Yeah, you could buy a house with a really low mortgage rate, but have you considered the real cost of owning a house? The biggest cost of owning a house is the property tax. The actual cost of this tax will vary on what state and county you are located in. In Texas, the property tax can be very high- up to 3-4% of your home’s ...

groceries

How to: Save Money on Groceries

posted in Save Money

A very important part of being Frugal is learning how to save money with groceries. Buying groceries is something you need to do each week or two. So if you do not know how shop for groceries, you will end up losing a lot of money. Here are some grocery saving tips that I have learned. Buy only fruits and vegetables that are in season. This is because if the produce is out of season, you will end up paying a premium for them and they might not taste as good.  A good tip is to buy frozen vegetables and ...

credit score

What is a Credit Score

posted in Credit and Debt

What the heck is a credit score (Fico score), and why should I care about it? Say you want to buy a house, but you need a loan. Well before you get the loan, the loaner must do his due diligence and figure out if you qualify for it. How does the loaner do that? Well one of the ways is by checking your credit score. The credit score is a number that quantifies how risky of a person you are to lend money to. The lower the score, the more risky of a borrower you are and vice versa. ...