How much is your time worth? It is a cost that needs considered.

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It seems to me that in the quest to pay off debt and spend less than you earn, something important gets forgotten by a lot of people. In fact, it is something that I overlooked until a few months ago.

How much is your time worth?

This is something that is important to consider.  And it directly relates to paying down debt, being frugal and so on. You see, in the not too distant past we decided against renting a washer and dryer for our apartment. The cost when I had check on it was 30-something dollars plus tax each month. Then there was also the cost of using more water. After discussing it we decided that it would be cheaper to go every so often to the ‘wash and wait’ or try to do our laundry at family member’s homes for free. So, for the entire duration of that apartment lease that is exactly what we did.

We forgot to consider the cost of that decision. Sure, it saved $30-plus dollars a month on the rental fee as well as the higher water bill. Most months we did laundry only once a month and typically at the home of a family member that we were visiting. The months that we did not do our laundry for free, we spent an average of $15.00. There is no denying that we saved money on paper.

But what we saved on paper we lost in time. You see, those trips to the ‘wash and wait’ ended up being an average of about three hours each time.  That was three hours that could only be spent waiting in a dingy chair. Sure, it allowed us to catch up on some reading; but that was only when it was not incredibly loud in there or when someone did not try to engage you in conversation. And those times that we did laundry at the home of a family member – well, that meant less time spent with them and more time doing laundry.

When we moved into our new apartment a while back, we were presented with the option of renting a washer and dryer again. Like an idiot, I hesitated at first. Then I had the epiphany above and realized our time was definitely worth $30-something a month.

Frugal, cheap or stupid? Silly things I do to save money

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In the name of saving money or being frugal, I do a lot of silly things. These things could be considered only one of three things:

  • frugal
  • cheap
  • stupid

So, which is it? You be the judge.

Baggies

I always try to re-use sandwich baggies. Of course, there are some that can’t be saved. For instance, a baggie that has had a PB&J in it usually has some residue that makes it not usable again. I’ve even been known to wash out baggies in the past. I think I remember Riley recoiling in horror at that.

Moldy cheese

I am a cheese snob. It is just one of those things where I have tried to go generic and just can’t. I have to have Sargento cheese. I even tried Target brand cheese. And Target brand everything is always good in my experiences. Well – not their cheese. It is Kraft. So if you like Kraft cheese then buy Target brand. Anyways, so, I spend a lot of money on cheese which means that I do not like it to go to waste. Just this week I was trimming mold off of some Sargento cheese cubes. I looked it up online and it is perfectly safe for hard and semi-hard cheese to do this. I just can’t bear the thought of wasting some lovely Sargento cheese.

Heat and A/C and unnecessary electricity

I hate high electric bills. For the past two months our electric bill has been around $100 and that is just unacceptable for a tiny 2BR apartment. That means that I am always looking for ways to cut electricity. I do things like plug all electronics in a room into a power strip that I turn off when the stuff is not in use. I unplug toasters and coffee makers too. And if it is cold outside I will bundle up and even use candles that I have been given for free. All to avoid using the heat. Sometimes I will let it get below 60 degrees before turning on the heat. But it is hard to type when my fingers are frozen. The same applies for the A/C, only in reverse of course. I will try to endure up to 80-something degrees inside before turning on the A/C – until Riley says to freaking turn it on! But I can make it with shorts, a tank top and some ice water!

Buying ugly

Today I had to go to Big Lots to get a gift bag for a birthday present for Riley’s brother. I went to Big Lots because they usually have great prices on solid color gift bags. When I finally found the aisle with gift bags I was met with two viable options. They had a solid purple bag for $1.00 or the hideous bag below for $0.80. Yup, I chose the ugly one to save $0.20. And before you say that it is not that ugly – remember, it is for a grown man. (I think Riley would have preferred the solid color bag – but his gift is blue, so I think it will be okay)

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Office klepto

I have been known to come home from work with staples or scotch tape. However, if I need a lot then I will buy it myself. For instance, around Christmas I will go to Big Lots and buy tape instead of swiping it from work.

Shop at discount stores

I *love* going to Big Lots. They always have the best prices on stuff. And if you have not signed up for their email Buzz Club then do it – NOW! Every so often they email out 20% off coupons to Buzz Club members. I used one of those on a mattress once – it was awesome. Then I ended up selling the mattress for more than I paid for it. That was really sweet.

Free samples

I love free stuff. So I am always filling out things online for free samples of this or that. And that just means that I end up with a cabinet full of random shampoo samples in my bathroom. Well, in my experience, those samples are not enough for two hair washings but way too much for one. In the past I have been known to pour them all together in an empty bottle. Just give it a good shake when you’re done and you’re good to go. Of course, the actual shampoo might be an ugly brown color, but don’t let that deter you.

Free condiments and napkins

We do not dine out often. And we go to fast food restaurants even less. But when we do end up at a greasy fast food place I take a little extra ketchup, napkins and such to bring on home. Sure, it can be tedious opening up several packets of ketchup to refill your bottle, but you could always leave them as individual packets.

Going “college clean”

Typically I will wear my pants more than one time before washing them. That is assuming that I do not spill anything on them. Not only does this save money on detergent, water and such but it also extends the life of the clothes. Most things I wash after one wearing, but pants almost always get worn more than once.

Library card supa-star

I heart the library and all of their books and movies. I have not been in a while, but I love being able to get the latest books and movies for free from the library. The important thing is to be mindful of those due dates so that you do not end up paying late fees. And sometimes you have to wait on a list to get something popular, but instant gratification is for the Joneses!

Buy used movies and re-sell

I think we have gone to the movies three times in the past year – and one of those times we used free passes! We hate paying movie prices and movie food prices. And rental prices are not cheap either (unless you have a RedBox near you). If we watched movies regularly then I suspect Netflix would be a good deal for us. Instead, we watch for Blockbuster to do their “4 for $20″ sale on used DVDs and make a shopping trip. We look for not only things that we want to see but things that we think we will be able to re-sell. Indie movies are awesome for this as their retail price is pretty high. We typically end up making money on the indie movies that we have scored for $5 used from Blockbuster. Of course, with some of the movies we buy we either can’t sell for a profit or just plain can’t sell at all. In the end though I think we come out ahead.

Foil

I admit it – I re-use aluminum foil. Often.

Target bags as trash bags

I never buy trash bags for our small trash cans. Why? Because Target bags and other similarly sized bags make perfect trash bags. I must have inherited this one from my dad – except he has a serious bag problem. No joke. The cabinet under the kitchen sink in his house is packed full of bags. My mom tries to toss them at times – his feelings get hurt. It’s almost too comedic to be true, yet it is. (Riley says everyone uses bags like Target bags as trash bags. Well, everyone – do you?)

Thoughts? Tips? Suggestions? Profanity? Throw ‘em in the comments.

Moving to a New State or City in a Bumblefucked Economy

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This household is on the move. Our apartment lease is up on the 24th and that means our rent payment of $625 has gone bye-bye.

But we don’t know where we’re going!

We’re spending two weeks staying with family in the area. Then we will spend at least one more week with another family member. Free rent rocks. But with the instability of no permanent home comes unemployment. So free rent doesn’t mean much if you’re not employed.

So, the Bumblefucked household has gotta make a move to a town that’s right for us. Clearly, I am thinking Funkytown. Sadly, when I go to Google maps and ask for directions to Funkytown I do not get anything! I thought it might take me to Detroit ( you know, Motown is kind of like Funkytown).

So, if you are making a move to a new state or city, how do you find a place that is right for you? Do you look for a job first and then just move to that place? Or do you pick a place first and then hope you can find employment in paradise?

In the past, we have just picked a place, moved there and crossed our fingers for employment. However, the economy is a horse of a different color these days, so to just pick a place and move without some economic consideration would just make you an assclown.

Guide to Moving to a New State or City in a Bumblefucked Economy:

Step one, consider for a moment where you would like to move to if a crappy economy was not a factor. Make a list of at least five of these places.

Step two, for the five places you got in step one, research the cost of living for each one. Look up the cost of housing to get a ballpark estimate of what you would spend. See if the states have state income taxes. Look for the state sales tax rate and see if there is a sales tax charged on food. Come up with a monthly amount you think it would cost you to live in each place.

Step three, go to PaycheckCity.com and plug in amounts for each state you are researching to see how much you would need to make pre-tax to afford the monthly total you came up with in step two. This way you will see how much will come out for state income taxes and whatnot. I find it the easiest to use an hourly amount and use the “basic hourly paycheck calculator” for this exercise.

Step four, look at the salary amount you came up with for each state in step three. Be realistic and decide if you can actually get paid that amount with your work history and qualifications. If not, cross those places off your list.

Step five, if no places are left on your list then go back to step one and repeat this process with five new places. If you do have places left, it is time to look at the economy in those states or cities.  You can find this info on the US Department of Labor website (assuming you are in the US).

Step six, after looking at the local and metropolitan area unemployment statistics, cross off any places that have unemployment higher than the national average. If you have no places left after this, return to step one and repeat process with five new places.  If you have only one place left, this is your winner! If you have more than one place left, continue to step seven.

Step seven, time to narrow down the pack! If possible, try to visit the remaining places on your list to pick the best place for you. Or, do your “visiting” online by visiting message boards and websites about the places you have left.  Then, you can use the info you have just gotten to make an informed decision with the remaining contenders.

Unemployed? Make Some Quick Extra Money Around Your Home

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If you find yourself unemployed and looking for ways to make some extra cash, or just plain looking for some extra cash, there are some easy steps you can take. In fact, you can sit at your computer at home and easily make enough to cover a cable bill or a weekly grocery bill with little effort.

First, go through your home looking for things you don’t really need. Then you can sort your stuff into piles – Craigslist, Amazon Marketplace, eBay, second-hand store, used book/cd store, garage sale, goodwill.

I like to sell things like books, dvds and cds on Amazon Marketplace. I have found that you can make more on there than you can with eBay. And as a bonus you don’t have to deal with PayPal.

I tend to use eBay to sell bulk lots of clothes (say 5 pairs of near perfect Levi’s jeans in the same size), used electronic items (laptops, digital cameras) and collectibles like comic books or Disney items.

Craigslist is reserved for larger items. Things like furniture, desktop computers and other things that are too heavy to mail using eBay. You can also use Craigslist to offer your skills. Let’s say you want to walk dogs – you can place an ad saying you will do that. If you have a truck, you can offer to cart off people’s trash or furniture for them. I often see ads on Craigslist where people are offering to pay someone with a truck to help them move some furniture.

If I have books, cds or movies that are not selling for at least $2.50 on Amazon (I figured up how much it costs me for postage, mailer and Amazon fees and this is the minimum I list for) then I will go to a used bookstore or music store that buys those things. Sometimes they even buy things like comic books and other collector items.

Some places have second-hand stores that will buy used household items. In central Ohio there is a chain called “New Uses” that buys everything from TVs to ice trays to dressers to pots & pans. They pay pitifully though. But once when I lived in Orlando there was a used furniture store that would drive to your home and make you an offer and haul stuff away for you. I sold them a $90 table/chair set for $50, which I thought was pretty decent.

If you have a yard or a place where you can have a yard sale you can do that to get rid of things you could not get rid of elsewhere. You can’t price things too high though, which is why I recommend the other avenues first.

And with everything that is leftover you put that in your Goodwill pile and cart that all off to be donated. Why? Because it will make you feel good and it will get some clutter out of your home!

If you are still in need of cash and are looking for something other than a part-time job you can turn to the internet. There are a few different ways to make easy money online, but usually there is a 30 day wait for payment. You can make money a little quicker by doing something like writing articles for Yahoo Voices. But with Yahoo Voices and other ways of making money online, there is likely a lot more work involved than you realize. And unless you are a super speedy typer/writer then you might be better off getting a part-time retail job.

How to Save Money at Whole Foods

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My household has been shopping at Whole Foods for about 3 years. However, the past 6 months or so has seen Whole Foods being our primary grocery store. It is no secret that you can spend a fortune at Whole Foods.

Organic foods that are not in season can indeed be pretty pricey. But overall, you can spend about the same at a regular grocery store. The key difference I have found is coupons. Most of the stuff that we buy at Whole Foods (that is not produce) are the Whole Foods 365 brand or other brands that just don’t put coupons in the Sunday paper.

Today when I made my trek to Whole Foods I discovered something awesome that I am ashamed to say I did not know about before.

This little booklet is chock full of recipes and coupons! Apparently this is something that Whole Foods makes for customers. According to what I read on their site, you can typically get The Whole Deal at the customer service desk.

At my Whole Foods though it was sitting on the tables in the dining section. The “More than $40 in coupons inside” thingie caught my eye while I was waiting in line. And there are great coupons in here! You can download The Whole Deal from their site in PDF.

Have a look and see the coupons that are available.

I can’t wait to start saving money at Whole Foods with these coupons!

Money Making Ideas for Teens

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As a teen I wish someone had given me some advice on finances and money making. You see, as a teen I was busy doing stupid stuff like acquiring as many CDs and other unnecessary items from the mall that I possibly could. And the best time to be a bit of an entrepreneur is when you are a teen. I mean, think about it – you have no real expenses and the whole teen entrepreneur is such a gimmick and it truly works in your favor. Sure, not every teen can be an Ashley Qualls and make millions, but there are some great ways for teens to make money.

The tried and true

Babysitting – This is something that teens have been doing for some time now. You won’t get rich off of babysitting jobs, but the work is fairly simple. You get to wear whatever you want and play with kids and a lot of time you also get to eat for free. Not a bad gig. I actually did this for a while my freshman year of college.  I got to eat for free, the kids went to bed fairly early and then I got to sit and do my homework, all while getting paid.

Mowing lawns and collecting trash – I knew a lot of  guys that spent their summers mowing lawns. They got exercise and they actually got paid pretty well. If you are in a large neighborhood there is even more potential for cash. And if there is not a trash pickup then offering to collect trash weekly is another great way to make some money.

Farm work - I grew up in the South where there were a lot of tobacco farms. So, each summer a lot of people that I knew made an amazing amount of money just by helping out on the tobacco farms. Of course, this is pretty hard work.

Tutoring – There is always a need for tutors. So, if you excel in a subject area, why not offer your assistance to someone else that could use a little help? A lot of times you can even reserve a meeting room in a local library for free to do your tutoring.

Thinking outside the box

Baking – If you have a teen that loves to bake, then this is a potential money maker.  And who can resist a teen going door-to-door selling baked goods?

Computer services – Teens that are interested in computers and can do things like design websites can offer their services to the community.  This can include everything from building computers to installing software and memory to setting up networks or other more complicated endeavors.

Blogging & website services – There are plenty of web savvy teens making money from everything from blogging to offering up SEO services.  If you have a teen that does this sort of thing for fun, why not encourage them to make a little money from it.

Art & crafts- These days more and more artists are selling their artwork on the web.  There are plenty of artists making a lot of money just by selling artwork on eBay. If your teen is more into things like making jewelry for instance there is also Etsy where your teen can sell all sorts of different art and craft items that they have made.

Writing - Freelance writing is not just for adults. Teens can get paid to write from all sorts of places. In addition to sending out queries to traditional places, there are sites online like Yahoo Voices and Helium where writers can earn a modest sum for their words.

eBay seller – If you are teen with a keen eye for items that can be re-sold for a profit you might want to think about being an eBay seller.  This means going to yard sales and flea markets and the like and looking for things you can buy cheap and resell for a profit. Of course, you do not have to use eBay for that. You could go with Craigslist or another route. You could also offer to list items for eBay for other people in your community for a small fee.

Graphic designer - If you are a teen with some graphic design skills, why not offer those up to local businesses? Offer to do flyers, posters or brochures. You could also offer to do party invitations for people in the community.

Photographer/videographer - All you need is a decent camera or video camera and you can be on your way to making money as a photographer or videographer. Look for sports teams in your area and see if they need someone to video their games for a small fee. Offer to take photos of sports teams, pets and more in the community. Businesses, like real estate offices, also need photographers to take photos of homes.

How to Donate Your Car to Charity

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Do you have a car that you are thinking about donating to charity? In most instances charities will take your car whether it runs or not! And as you may know you can get a tax break for donating a car to charity, however there are steps you need to take to make sure that you get that tax donation.

Before donating a car to charity you should check out the charity; check the value of your car; and see what your responsibilities are as a donor. You can get some guidance from IRS publication 4303 or keep reading.

Select your charity

In order claim a tax deduction for donating your car to charity to be sure to that the charity is a qualified organization. Otherwise, your donation will not be tax deductible. The most common types of qualified organizations are section 501(c)(3) organizations, such as charitable, educational, or religious organizations. To verify an organization’s status call the IRS Customer Account Services division for Tax Exempt and Government Entities at (877) 829-5500 (toll-free). Have the charity’s correct name and address when you call.

Tax Deduction Qualifying

You must itemize deductions on your Schedule A of Form 1040 in order to get your charitable tax deduction. Some limitations may apply to your individual tax situation, such as your deduction cannot exceed 50% of your adjusted gross income.

Determine the Value of Your Car

You can only deduct the fair market value of your car on your taxes. This is not the same as the blue book value. The fair market value is the price a willing buyer would pay and a willing seller would accept for the car, when neither party is compelled to buy or sell. Note that you will need to obtain written acknowledgment from the charity if the total deduction you are claiming for a donated car is $250 or more. And if If the deduction you are claiming is greater than $5,000 you must get a written appraisal of your car.

Other requirements

You will need to transfer the title of your car to the charity. If you do not have your car title, do not worry. Most charities can assist you in obtaining the title for the car you are donating.

A lot of charities can also pick up or tow your car if necessary. This is typical of local charities at least. Of course, if you want to maximize the amount of money that goes to the charity then you should get the car to them yourself.

Charities take items other than just vehicles for donations. You can donate your boat, your trailer, your RV and even your motorized wheelchair or scooter.

These tips should help steer you in the right direction to donate your car to charity!

How To Withdraw Contributions From A Vanguard Roth IRA

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While it is not something that I advise anyone to do, there comes a time when you have to dip into your retirement savings to pay some bills. Due to the current crap economy, I had to do this not too long ago and found it to be a surprisingly easy process.

The thing about Roth IRAs is that you can withdraw your contributions at any time and not get penalized for doing so. Only when you take out the earnings does the tax man come after you.

If you find yourself needing to take a little bit out of your Roth IRA, and if you are with Vanguard, then I can tell you the exact steps that I had to take in order to withdraw some of that money.

Roth IRA Contribution Withdrawal Steps

Getting your contributions out of a Roth IRA is easy and there are no nasty tax complications to worry about. I have my Roth IRA with Vanguard. Here is what I had to do.

1. Call Vanguard at 800-805-0614.

2. Verify your identity with the person that answers the phone.

3. Tell them you are calling to withdraw some of your contributions from your Roth IRA. They will then transfer you to a retirement withdrawal specialist.

4. You will be told that there may be tax implications, etc. They HAVE to say this regardless of whether or not your situation has any tax implications.

5. They ask if you want the money deposited into your attached checking account or if you want it in a different one.

6. They verify your request and tell you when to expect the sale and transfer of funds. It only takes 2 business days to get the money in your checking account.

Do You Really Need Renter’s Insurance?

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I started renting apartments when I was in my third year of college and have been doing so ever since. And for most of that time, I did not have renter’s insurance.

That was stupid of me.

Sure, I did not have anything bad happen, but it could have and I would have been financially up a creek, so to speak.

Why You Need Renter’s Insurance

Here’s the thing – if someone breaks into your place and steals some of your stuff – OR – if there is a fire or other damage to your stuff — your landlord’s insurance does NOT cover it!

That’s right – the landlord’s insurance will not pay to replace your stolen or damaged stuff.

Without your own renter’s insurance, everything you have lost is just gone.

You NEED Renter’s Insurance

Fire and theft is not the only thing that renter’s insurance covers. Hazards like vandalism, utility malfunctions (plumbing and electricity), weather related damage and a all sorts of other things are covered so that if YOUR stuff gets damaged, it can be replaced.

Usually, you have to pay extra to have natural disaster things like floods and earthquakes covered though.

How Much Does Renter’s Insurance Cost? Is It Cheap or Expensive?

If you pay for car insurance, then you might be expecting a renter’s insurance policy to be crazy expensive. It’s not.

Renter’s insurance is CHEAP!!

Right now I have a $25,000 coverage policy, with extra riders for computer equipment, that costs me only $8 per month via Progressive!

The most that I have ever had to pay for renter’s insurance is $18 per month and that is only because the apartment complex required the use of a certain insurance company. It was clearly overpriced, but still a low cost for what it offered.

AND – if you get your renter’s insurance through the same places as your auto insurance, then you end up getting a discount on both!

Using Credit Cards for Free Flights

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I have a hefty amount of debt that I am paying off, but that does not stop me from using credit cards. In fact, I put as many monthly expenses as possible on our two United MileagePlus Explorer cards from Chase. Of course, I pay those off in full each month so as to not accrue any further debt.

Why do I do this?

Easy. Because I like to travel and this results in free flights.

With this card, you get one United MileagePlus mile for every dollar spent (and more if those dollars are spent on United flights). And if you spend $25,000 in a year then you get 10,000 bonus miles. Pretty cool, eh?

I put pretty much everything that I can on those cards to maximize the potential air miles. I even put my car payment on it. The thing with the car payment though is that my lender charges a $9.00 fee to pay by credit card. To kind of make this fee more bearable, I will double up or triple up payments so that I am not spending a full $9 per monthly payment. Doing that makes it worth my time to pay by credit card, but only if I can actually pay off that balance without incurring any interest charges. Otherwise, it is just not a good idea.

I just wish that I could pay my monthly rent by credit card!

You might be wondering how many miles we have earned thus far, right? Well, we each got out cards in Feb. 2013 and it is now Sept. 2013 and I am less than $7,000 from hitting $25,000 on my card while my other half is around $20,000 away from it. We will likely only get that bonus on my card.

And with the sign up bonus miles, we are going to have enough air miles for two free one-way first class flights from the USA to Europe by the end of the year. Or, we can take economy round-trip to Europe or even multiple flights in the USA in economy.