Any seasoned gambler knows that gambling responsibly and maintaining good judgement is the key to a happy and productive experience.  You should never gamble more than you can afford and you should always log how much you’re spending each week.

It’s always good advice to keep a detailed log of how much you’re winning and losing as well as the nature of each bet you make.  This not only makes for sound financial sense, it also informs you as to what a good bet may be, with different punters having different but often creditable theories.  This applies to the casino as much as to the sports field.

In sports betting you’ll find some teams win only at home, whereas others have a distinct tendency towards the draw.  When it comes to the likes of cup finals or high stakes games, you may start to see correlations as to which way the result may go taking in factors like experience, hunger and mind set.  Some clubs exhibit tendencies every bit as glaring as Man United’s late wins.

If you do lose a bet, you shouldn’t blindly try to chase it and cover your losses as this can lead to impaired judgement.  It’s often wise to stick to the markets you know best and begin to specialise in certain fields.  Some may prefer the casino whereas others are strictly sports betting; nobody knows their team like a fan who attends all of the games and this is where you may be able to beat the bookie.

Many responsible sites such as www.casinoonline.co.nz will let you impose a limit on how much you can spend each week.  You should never put your livelihood at risk and try to win outlandish sums of money.  Stay focused on the small gains and be happy to lose only what you can easily afford.  The growth in things like online casino gambling should be seen as a leisure activity rather than something that consumes your entire income.

I do this whole debt review thing every single month.  With the exception of one month I’ve done so for four years.  That’s four years of putting everything all out there for the world to see.  Have you ever had that nightmare where you suddenly find yourself naked in a very public place?  That’s pretty much what doing this feels like every month.

You would think that I would be desensitized to this whole process by now, but the truth is that I’m not.  Every single month when I sit to write these posts I get anxious and apprehensive about what to say and how you will react.  Many of my peers who started their blogs tracking their debts have moved away from doing this because it can feel pretty dehumanizing to have perfect strangers comment on the most personal aspects of your life. But, I signed up for this right? There’s no use in backing down from it now!

This month I’m going to go right to the debt and then talk about a bunch of other things.  Let’s do this!

The Debt

My debt continues its downward trend as it is supposed to.  You will notice that there has been a shift in the debt.  I took advantage of yet another 0% balance transfer offer and consolidated my debt over onto one card that will cost me nothing for the next year.  Yes, I paid a 1% transfer fee which was abut $50.  So, I’m continuing this “pay as little interest as possible” thing with almost 4 years of 0% balance transfer offers. Not bad, I think.

The credit card debt is actually about $3,000 higher than it should be because of renovation costs of one rental property’s bathroom AND the costs of a new project that I’m launching.  More on that below.

The other reason why many of you read this blog is for my income reports.  Here goes the numbers:

Online Income

Google Adsense My Tenant From Hell: $1.92
Google Adsense YIAC: $105.14
Gogle Adsense Niche Site: $207.59
Private ads: $ 785.79
Ad network #1: $ 109.60
Ad network #2: $42
Total: $1,046.64 NET

I do have to spend money sometimes to make money.  This month I spent $34.21.

Some of you might recall that last month I vowed to double my online income to $2,000.  To say that I failed would be a miserable understatement.  I’m not too big on excuses, but I am big on causality.  Why did I fail? A couple of things.  One was because I refused about 10 ad requests in May.  That might sound counterproductive when I’m trying to make money, but I do have my reasons.

There is a floor for what I will accept in payment for advertisements of writing.  If I receive offers or proposals below that floor, I try to negotiate.  If, after negotiating, we are too far apart, I decline.  Some advertisers think that they are doing you a favor by offering you anything at all.  The way that I view things is that this must be a mutually beneficial arrangement.  There is nothing one-sided about it.

You must know what you are worth, and you should not be willing to accept anything less than that.  When you do, you begin to devalue your time, your work, and your effort.  This holds true whether you work for someone else, or for yourself, but I find it to be especially important when you are self-employed.  Yes, there is a huge temptation to accept just anything to have income, but I’m just not there yet.  If we have completely different ideas on what my work is worth, then I am not the right fit for you nor are you the right fit for me.

The second reason is that I’ve been secretly working on launching “Plan C”.   By now you probably tired of hearing the talk about having a “Plan B”.  I will always speak the gospel of never depending on any one thing for the entirety of your income.  My “Plan B” is making money online through this blog.  I shared with you a couple of ways that I do that, and will continue to do so, however, my “Plan B” isn’t at income replacement levels yet which is my ultimate goal.  So, it’s time to activate “Plan C”.

I am going to reveal what “Plan C” is for the first time.  I have spent the past few months talking to my brother and learning a bit about that I am going to do.  He already runs his own business and I’ve been acting as his consultant for some time. Now it’s time to dip my toes back into the entrepreneurship waters. So, while its yet unfinished, here is the what I’ve been working on: custom cell phone cases.  I’m still building the site, so it’s pretty rough right now.

Launching a new business is always fun and exciting, but there are so many risks involved that I would encourage anyone thinking of being an entrepreneur to seriously consider the negative consequences of what you are doing.  At this point I consider myself a serial entrepreneur having launched a number of different businesses since I was age 14.  I’m not a Debbie Downer on being your own boss though.  If you don’t mind disappointment, working 25 hour days and losing your hair, then I’m all for it!

Now that I’m working on putting “Plan C” into effect, it time to begin developing “Plan D”.  I hope that you get what I’m doing here.  I am always and will also work on visualizing something else to do just in case this does not pan out.  Call me paranoid, but it’s just how my brain works.

In the meantime, I’m still working on this whole blogging thing.  It’s still the cornerstone of my income replacement plan since it will take some time for any new business to get off the ground.  Hopefully, you’ll be seeing more of me since I’m out of the blogging closet.  Below is an appearance that I made on Huffington Post Live last week.  This week I’m scheduled for a radio interview.

What I Learned This Month

My word this month is perseverance.

I might not spell it well, but I’m great on execution!  I had to deal with a tenant eviction, an apartment renovation, a serious health issue, hiccups with launching the business and building the new website, and a host of STUFF last month, but you know what? I did everything that I had to do.  That meant multiple trips out of state, lots of sleepless nights, cuts, bruises and money spent out of pocket, but I GOT STUFF DONE.

Sometimes you just have to suck it up and do what you have to do, whether you like it or not.  That’s called being an adult and handling your business, whatever it is.  No matter what is going on in your life, don’t give into the “woe is me” temptation.  Give your best effort to succeed.

When the new site is done, I’ll be hosting a giveaway with my brother for some custom cases.  I’m doing iPhone right now, but we’ll also do iPad, Galaxy and a number of difference cases.  Good luck and see you guys next month!

If you’re anything like me, you watch a ton of sports. If it wasn’t for sports, I think I could pretty easily ditch my satellite TV for good, since I could just easily get DVDs of whole seasons of my favorite shows from the library. Or I could even watch them on my laptop, even though watching TV on a 14 inch screen isn’t exactly my optimal viewing experience. I finally upgraded to a 21st century TV a few months ago, so I’ve gotta get my money’s worth.

There’s only one thing better than sports on TV, and that’s live sports. Oh baby, nothing beats live sports. The atmosphere is buzzing. The food is delicious. There’s always the chance you’ll see something amazing. As any sports fan can attest, live sports are fantastic, even compared to high definition screen.

But, going to live sports is expensive. I can’t even imagine how much tickets cost to the aforementioned game 7, but I’d imagine even the cheap seats would be going for north of $100, and court side seats would be pushing $1000. We’re a frugal bunch, so nuts to that. Here’s how you can save some cash while still checking out your favorite team.

Use Stubhub

Everybody is familiar with Stubhub, right? They’re an online marketplace where people can sell their unused tickets. While in New York last year, I snagged Yankees tickets for less than half their face value, just by being patient and waiting until a couple of weeks before my visit.

You have to use Stubhub intelligently. I looked for tickets during a day game, and against a less popular rival, two conditions that significantly reduced demand for the tickets I wanted. The world of ticket resales is very dependent on supply and demand.

Buy Singles

Want to see the game so desperately that you’ll ditch your friend to do it? Then start searching for single tickets, which professional resellers will often discount significantly just to get rid of them. Stubhub is a great place to look for these too. One of the best parts of Stubhub is a map of the venue that will let you easily find single tickets.

Or, do what I did. While in Las Vegas recently, I wanted to watch the Pac-12 college basketball tournament. I walked over to the venue, and was promptly harassed by many ticket scalpers. I quickly located a fan who had bought tickets for the whole tournament, but was much more interested in gambling than watching that night’s action. I got his single ticket for less than half of face value, leaving me more cash to spend on overpriced popcorn.

Go To Alternative Games

Watching professional sports can be expensive, especially if you’re watching a really popular team. One of the easiest ways to avoid paying the big bucks is making alternative choices. Instead of watching MLB baseball, go check out some AAA action instead. You can probably get a ticket for $10, the food is considerably cheaper, and less people mean a greater chance of a foul ball.

Plus, if you’re like me and you live away from a major city, going into the city to watch the game is a big ordeal. I have to drive two hours to the arena, two hours back, plus I have to pay for parking, snacks, and then the tickets. And that’s just going in with a friend. I’d be in the poor house in about a day and a half if I was dragging kids to the game.

Public Transportation

You know what’s an easy way to save $10 or $15 for parking? Take public transportation to the game. Most arenas offer all sorts of options, and cities will often have more buses and subways running to accommodate the influx of people. Plus, the parking lot right after a professional sporting event is the worst traffic jam ever.

Conclusion

Every now and again, you’ll get the chance to go to an amazing sporting event. You’ll manage to score World Series tickets, or you’ll find a way to watch your favorite team during the playoffs. If you do, then you’ll have the money to spend on the amazing opportunity, since you saved money by getting cheaper tickets earlier. Enjoy the game.

Editor’s Note: The Pacers lost in a blowout of 76 to 99.

Did you know that the U.S. has the highest college drop out rate in the world?  According to a new study by Fidelity, 70% of the class of 2013 is graduating with an average of $35,000 in college-related debt including federal, state and private loans, credit cards and debt owed to family.  Many college dropouts leave with debt that might be hard to repay.

But why are American students dropping out at rates that are triple that of some Asian countries? Check out the infographic below.

Click to enlarge

For those of you who have not been around for the past three years, I now own to rental properties containing three units.  These homes are located in an economically depressed area in Pennsylvania.  Did I mention that I live in New York City?

I decided to buy both of these homes strictly as investments.  In order to do that, I raided my 401(K) to finance my purchases since I did not have the cash on hand and because it’s incredibly hard to find financing for homes valued at less than $50,000.  You can read more about that decision in Why I’m Buying Rental Property While Still In Debt. Anyway, it’s time to get to the finances.

Let’s review how each house is doing separately.

House #1

Purchase Price: $19,500
Annual Taxes: $1,617 a fricken 50% increase in ONE damn year
Annual Insurance: $600
Sewer & Garage Collection: $360
Annual budget for repairs: $575
Annual rent: $ 6,900
Net annual cash flow: $3,748

After a few initial hiccups with bad tenants, I found the perfect set of tenants last year.  So far, they’ve always paid on time and never called me for repairs or anything.  I did make a few upgrades to the home even though they did not request them.  Their lease is up for renewal at the end of July and I hope to keep them forever.  I would kidnap them and tie them in the basement if I could.  Alas, I hear that kind of thing is illegal.  Instead, I’ll keep the rent as is in the hope that they choose to stay.  Plus, they’re both chefs and baked me the most awesome pumpkin cookies for the holidays.

House #2

Purchase Price: $36.000
Annual Taxes: $ $1,663
Annual Insurance: $725
Sewer & Garage Collection: $720
Annual budget for repairs/incidentals: $1,100
Annual rent: $ 13,800
Net annual cash flow: $9,592

Now, keep in mind that the numbers of all assume a 100% occupancy rate. I purchased that home less than a year ago and will now be on my second set of tenants.  The tenant with the horrible credit score will move into the second floor apartment on June 1, and I’ll be going to court for final eviction proceedings for the first floor tenants tomorrow.  If all goes well I will have a new tenant downstairs for July 1.

Since purchasing home number two I’ve completed a gut-renovation of one bathroom, and replaced pretty much all of the flooring in the entire house.  I’ve also made some minor updates as well.  In total, since purchasing the house, I’ve spent about $4,500 on renovations.  I had budgeted for half that amount, but you never know what you will find when you open up walls or floors in an old house.  I do hold a mortgage on this second house which I track in my monthly debt updates.

If we use the best case scenario numbers above (which is pretty much what I call them), then the payback period on the initial purchase price of each home is a little over 5 years and a little under 4 years respectively.  Assuming that I hold on to each property until those periods elapse, any rents received after those time periods (minus expenses of course) pretty much goes straight into my pocket.

Now, if I were employing a different strategy I would be more concerned with the value of each home.  Based on the improvements that I had made to each home and recent comparable sales I could probably sell each house for $25,000 and $45,000 respectively.  If I use a website such as Zillow to check home values, the numbers are $45,000 and $85,000 respectively.  Apparently Zillow is on crack which would be normal in this area. So, if I wanted to cut and run I would still make a profit.

Before you go thinking that everything is rosy, the numbers don’t exactly match what I had expected when it purchased homes.  A few things impacted my calculations:

1. Property taxes have gone way up.  The tax on the smaller house went up by 50% in the last year alone.  WTF man!  How greedy can the local government get?
2. My insurance premiums are much higher than the previous owner’s because this is not my primary residence and because I live out of state.  Double whammy.  The insurance premiums would be  one third lower if I lived in the house.
3. Obviously, I have not had a 100% occupancy rate.

This is pretty much why you must plan for a worst case scenario.  As long as the homes have a five year repayment period or less, I’m very happy.  I could not do this in New York City, where I live.  Based on the price of homes in New York, I would face a minimum of 15 years before I would break even.  Yes, the rents are higher but so are the home prices.  There’s a much bigger risk associated with a more costly home.  So, I dabble at the bottom end of the market because everyone deserves a decent place to live…and someone has to provide them with those homes.

Before you go thinking that I’m a slum lord, these are actually really nice homes.  The bottom just completely fell out of the real estate market in that particular area.  Homes were being sold for less than 50% of their values in 2008.  The home that I purchased for $19,500 had previously been sold for $75,000 only a few years ago.

The question that you’re going to ask next is, was this worth it? Absolutely!  I firmly believe in having a mix of different types of investments within your retirement portfolio.  Here I am at age 35.  These homes will have paid for themselves well before I turn 40.  Having both property paid off this early gives me a decent income stream for years to come.

Is this something that you should do? I can’t tell you that you should.  There are a lot of risks and headaches involved with owning rentals.  My initial strategy was to buy one home every 2 years, however, I am seriously thinking about revising that strategy for something else.  When I decide what to do, you’ll be the second to know.