Your wedding day is one of the most important days of your life, but it can also be one of the most expensive. You want your day to be perfect, but with the average cost of a wedding in America totaling $25,200, that price tag is hard to swallow. That’s a lot of money to pay for a few hours of celebration.

It’s tough to cut back on your wedding. After all, it’s a celebration of love in front of the most important people in your life. But at the same time, spending the bulk of your savings doesn’t make sense either.

Thankfully, don’t have to spend your life savings to have a fabulous wedding. You can still have a beautiful event on a tight budget. Before you spend thousands on a wedding, here are 5 tips to help you save on your special day.

1. Set the Date During Off-Peak Seasons

One of the first steps to planning a wedding is setting the date. Choosing the right date for and your partner also has a big affect on your budget.

Wedding season tends to run from April to October, and during this time, costs can be a lot higher. If you’re flexible, consider scheduling your wedding during an off-peak season or less popular time of year.

Additionally, Saturdays and Sundays are the most popular days of the week for weddings by far. While it may be slightly inconvenient for you and your guests, a weekday wedding can save you a lot of cash.

2. Rent Your Dress

For women, choosing the dress is one of the most exciting parts of the wedding planning process. Your dress is something you dream about as a little girl, but most dresses don’t come cheap.

You could end up paying thousands of dollars for a dress you’re really only wearing for a few hours. In order to avoid this, many women are now renting wedding dresses for their big day. This way, you can get your dream dress and still save money.

3. Limit the Options at the Bar

Your guests will undoubtedly be looking forward to the open bar at your wedding. You don’t necessarily need to go all out, because alcohol isn’t cheap.

To save money on drinks, you have a couple options. You could limit the bar to wine and beer only — just don’t forget about champagne for toasts! You can also create a few signature drinks for your wedding. This way, only need to buy a couple types of alcohol, instead of getting a full bar.

Even though the selection will be limited, the drinks will be flowing and your guests will still have a great time.

4. Get Creative With the Venue

Traditionally, most weddings are held in a hotel, country club, or banquet hall, but these locations tend to be the most expensive. To save money, get creative with your venue.

Think of places that mean something to you and your partner, like a park or aquarium. You might be able to get a good deal on a non-traditional approach to your venue. Just be sure to get all the licenses and permits you need, before moving forward with the ceremony.

5. Stay True to the Purpose

Wedding planning can definitely get a little crazy. And sometimes, you might want to spend more money just to please everyone. However, the most important thing for you and your partner (as well as your budget!) to remember is that the wedding day is to celebrate you merging your lives into one.

Stay true to yourselves, and keep the purpose of the day in perspective. Do what you want, not what everyone else expects. Remember, it’s your big day. If there’s one thing to remember, it’s this: stop stressing and enjoy the celebration.

Coming into your special day with the right attitude will allow you to focus on the true purpose of what a wedding is supposed to be. And doing so will allow you to have more money to spend on the honeymoon and actual marriage!

What’s another non-traditional way to save money on your wedding day?

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Let me share a story with you:

My friend chose to sacrifice himself and stay behind for work reasons when his family immigrated to the States a few years ago. It was a difficult decision I’m sure, but one that was necessary (I’m told) due to financial constrains.

His son was 14 at the time but he was always upset. I remember one evening while we were over for dinner, he asked his mom out loud “Why can’t we be rich?”

That was then.

In a few short years, my friend’s son completely changed. He is now 17 and working part time at a local cafe. He told me that he realized how foolish it was to be upset. How blaming everyone else who was trying to keep the family close together did nothing to help the situation.

Instead of wasting his time being mad, he started thinking of ways he could change his situation. He started helping out around the house so his mom had more free time to find a part time job. When he was old enough, he started working part time as well.

The extra income helped his dad (my friend) come up with the courage to move here and look for a job. At long last, the family was together.

The Way We Look at the Problem IS the Problem

I saw the matured youngster at the café the other day and while speaking to him, he reminded me what everyone should know:

Every problem has a solution, but if we don’t create a solution, we become another problem.

I couldn’t believe that it was coming from a 17 year old, but what he said was absolutely true – even if we don’t create the problem, we can become a part of it.

The Bulb That Should Light Up

There is no doubt the economy is deteriorating right now. There is no question that people are losing jobs and it almost seemed like an understatement when I say that our investments lost significant value.

You might be upset but blaming everyone is easy and unproductive. Instead, ask yourself what you are doing about the situation:

• How are you trying to secure your own job and helping the company you work for so further layoffs aren’t necessary?
• What steps are you taking to make sure that even in this downturn, you are well on your way to financial prosperity?
• What lessons are you teaching your kids about the financial crisis?

The Glow from Within

If you want to be heard, learn to listen. If you want to be helped, assist others. If you want to prosper, take action.

It really starts with you. Even in a dark tunnel, you can brighten it up by glowing from within.

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I was talking with a friend about a few ways that he could start earning some more money the other day, and he said something that absolutely stopped me in my tracks: he told me that he didn’t want to earn too much money because it would bump him into the next tax bracket. He was absolutely adamant that he didn’t want to be paying more in taxes.

But, in my mind, a higher tax bracket is a good thing. It’s not something to be avoided. Don’t get me wrong: I’m not quite crazy enough to go out of my way to pay extra taxes, but higher tax brackets are beneficial to your bottom line. Here are five reasons for that simple fact.

1. A higher tax bracket means you have more money.

Do I need to say more? Are there more people out there who think that more money is a bad thing? Our government uses the progressive tax system. That means that the first certain amount of income is not taxed, then the next is taxed at a slightly higher rate, and so on and so forth. Let me use an example with very small numbers to illustrate how a progressive tax system works. Let’s say you earn $50 and that’s taxed at a 10% rate. In this case, your after tax income is $45 because $5 was paid to Uncle Sam. Now let’s say you earn $55 and that bumps you into a 20% marginal tax rate. Yes, you are paying more in taxes now, but the first $50 is still taxed at 10%. It’s only the earnings from $50 on that gets taxed at the higher rate. In our example, You still get the $45 from your first $50 of earnings, plus $4 from the $5 of additional earnings, a total of $54.

In the United States, the higher before tax earnings you make, the more money you can expect in your pocket at the end of the day.

2. A higher tax bracket means more deductions and exemptions.

The average taxpayer isn’t in a position to write off a whole lot on her taxes, which is one of the reasons why the IRS offers the standard deduction. Without the provision, many people would wind up with a higher tax bill. But when you’re earning more money, your deductions, added together, can exceed the standard deduction. For one, many high income earners pay a hefty state tax bill, which is deductible on the Federal tax return.

Many high income earners are also business owners. When you run a business, plenty of business deductions open up. For example, business meals with clients are 50% deductible. While you can’t deduct the expense if you just go out to eat with friends, you certainly saved money if you went out for lunch with a business client since you likely won’t need to eat a second time that afternoon.

3. A higher tax bracket means you can save more.

There are a lot of ways to bring down your tax bill and many of them are good for your overall financial situation. More money means that you are in a position to put away the extra in tax-advantaged accounts for your retirement or your child’s education or for medical expenses, reducing your tax bill. Sure, you may hit limits on certain savings plans, but you probably make quite a bit of money already if you are worried about hitting limits.

4. A higher tax bracket means you can afford a better accountant.

There are plenty of ways to keep your tax bills down, although they require someone very familiar with the tax law. It may not be a bad idea to see a financial planner, as well, but if your only goal is to keep your money out of the hands of the government, an accountant can provide plenty of options.

However, these professionals need to make a living and they can charge quite a good sum for their services. High earners can justify this expense because the same deduction is worth more to them. When you aren’t in a high tax bracket, the deductions an accountant might uncover for you may not save you as much as the fees that are charged. The good news is that you can read up on them yourself no matter how much you make, but having a professional does make things easier.

5. A higher tax bracket means you have more freedom.

If you’re earning enough money that your taxes really are growing by leaps and bounds, you’ve got many options. I wouldn’t suggest moving abroad to somewhere that doesn’t even have taxes, personally, but you can take steps to invest your money and make it grow in such a way that the IRS won’t touch it. You can spend it on purchases that are tax deductible (fixing up your home so it’s more eco-friendly can put you in the way of a few tax breaks). You can donate a big chunk of change to charity. You can even pay your taxes willingly and then go out and spend your money however you like. Earning more money is a fast way to buy yourself some freedom, even if you have to send the IRS a check first.

I know there are plenty of people who look at taxes as one of the biggest burdens of their lives, but if you can change the way you look at your taxes, you’ll eliminate a lot of stress from your life. While I wouldn’t go so far as to say that paying taxes is a badge of honor, I do keep in mind that the money is going to a good cause and that I benefit directly from it. Our tax dollars pay for roads, schools, police forces, and far more, along with helping out people who can’t afford that higher tax bracket. There’s waste in the system, but I like to think that the country is still a lot better with our tax dollars than without.

Don’t be scared of a higher tax bracket, if only because it means that you’re earning more money overall. There are plenty of ways to keep your tax bills to a minimum, but they require you to earn money in the first place. Rather than being afraid of a higher tax bracket, it’s better to be afraid that you’ll wind up in a place where your income is so low you don’t have to pay taxes.

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One of the best things you can do if you want to build wealth over time is to invest. Thanks to the power of compound interest, investing offers one of the most effective ways to grow your nest egg and prepare for financial freedom down the road.

Unfortunately, there is a good chance right now that you believe some of the myths circulating about investing. And since it’s easy to get bogged down with misinformation and do nothing to build your finances for the future, I want to talk to you about four of these investing myths so you can stop believing them now.

1. Investing is Complicated

We feel like investing is complicated, but the reality is that it doesn’t have to be. While some investments are hard to understand, most of us don’t need to use those instruments to get started. Instead, there are plenty of simple and straightforward products, like ETFs and index mutual funds that keep things easy.

While you can certainly increase the complexity of your investments as you learn more, the truth is that it’s simple to start, and you don’t need anything complicated or special to succeed.

2. Investing is Too Risky

Thanks to the way humans process events, it’s easy to believe that investing is too risky. News about flash crashes, the Great Recession, and speculation about impending doom combine to create a climate of fear. Historically, though, the stock market as a whole hasn’t ever lost out over long periods of time (think 20 to 25 years).

If you have a long time horizon, you can make most investments work for you, including stocks. The key is to invest in the market as a whole, rather than pick individual stocks. Index funds that follow large swaths of the market can help you take advantage of long-term market gains to your benefit. Start as early as possible, invest for two or three decades, and you have a much better chance of building a solid nest egg.

3. No One Will Work With Me

Many of us still think that it’s important to have an investment adviser or some other professional to work with us if we want to invest. We remember scenes from movies and TV showing a rich guy calling a stock broker to make trades.

Today, the landscape is totally different. The Internet made it possible for you to use research tools and trading tools to make your own trades. On top of that, there are robo-advisors that can help you work out an investing plan and automatically invest each month.

If you want to work with a person, some financial advisors are available and willing to help you work out an investment strategy without requiring you to place assets under management. Many of these advisors charge a flat fee or an hourly fee. This makes it a little more affordable for you to get a bit of guidance for your plan.

4. I Need A Large Chunk of Capital to Start

Finally, many people are tripped up by the idea that they need a large chunk of capital to start investing. The good news is that you don’t. If you have $50 or $100 each month to spare, you can open an account and set up an automatic investing plan. There are even accounts and apps that will help you invest pocket change or as little as $5 per paycheck.

So don’t let investing myths keep you from building a firm financial foundation.

Readers, what other tips do you have for those who are scared to get started? How did you get over the fear of investing at the beginning?

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Credit card debt is the worst. The super high interest rates make paying the debt off seem to take forever. When I got my first credit card, it took me more than a year to pay back the $1,500 I’d racked up.

Luckily, it’s extremely difficult but not impossible. I eventually dug myself out of a hole, and you can, too. This is true no matter the amount of debt you’re in. There are a few strategies that can help you pay down your credit card debt faster. But before we get to those, I need you to do one thing.

First: Call Your Credit Card Company

If you’re living with mountains of credit card debt, my guess is that you’re currently paying around 20% in interest. You need to try and get that lowered. The less interest you pay, the faster you can pay back your debts.

Call your credit card company and ask if they’ll lower your interest rate. You might get told no, you might get a “call back in a month,” or you might get a yes. If your credit score has improved since you first took out the cards, you’ve got a fair shot at getting your interest rate lowered.

Just get the call over with. You could save yourself hundreds of dollars in interest. The worst they can say is no.

Now that we have that out of the way, let’s talk strategies.

1. Pay Your Bill Biweekly

If you’ve been meaning to pay more on your credit card bill, but your money seems to disappear before you get around to it, you need to pay it as soon as you receive your paycheck.

Figure out what you can put toward your debt, and do so as soon as you get paid. This might mean paying your credit card bill weekly or biweekly. The point is to make those extra payments before your money gets spent on the non-essentials.

2. Use the Debt Snowball Method

Made popular by Dave Ramsey, the debt snowball method can really psych you up to get the debt ball rolling.

In order to use this method, list all of your credit card debts from lowest balance to highest balance. Now start concentrating on wiping out the credit card with the lowest balance while still making the minimum payments on the other cards.

The point of this strategy is to build momentum. In theory, you’ll pay more in interest but in reality, you’ll feel much more motivated to continue on your debt freedom path by celebrating several small wins. This will get you to pay off debt much faster.

3. Pay Off the Highest-Interest Card First

For those who can’t get over the fact that the debt snowball method isn’t theoretically the most efficient way of paying off debt, another method that can save you hundreds of dollars is paying off those balances with the highest interest rates first.

To do this, you need to list all of your credit card debt in order from highest interest to lowest interest. Now focus on eliminating those high-interest debts while paying the minimum on everything else.

There are several strategies you can use to pay off your credit card debt. No matter which route you choose, it’s important that you stick with the plan. You’ll only see results if you completely commit yourself. Go with whatever strategy best suits your lifestyle and empowers you to go full force.

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One of the things that many of us aspire to be is, surprisingly, average. We want to have the same things that those around us have. (Or at least, have the same things we think those around us have.) This is natural. We all like to feel as though we belong.

However, it’s not always best to be average — especially when it comes to money.

After all, do you really want to spend money on something just because someone else is? Do you really want to buy something just to maintain appearances?

Average = Debt

Even though the pandemic bumped up the savings rate and reduced the debt levels for many people, there’s still quite a bit of debt out there. On average, the American household has tens of thousands of dollars in credit card debt.

The average American borrows to pay for college, to buy a car, and to buy a home (not to mention borrowing for other things, like furniture, vacations, and weddings).

It’s true that some of the things we borrow to buy have some other value. I’ve borrowed to pay for my education, my transportation, and my shelter. These are things that ultimately led to a better life for me. I would also have an extremely hard time saving up to pay for these in cash. Can you imagine in this day and age to save up to buy a house? I might not be able to ever buy one if I don’t choose to tap into my future earnings to make that purchase. (As a student, I racked up credit card debt though. I regret that. Luckily, I’ve learned my lesson and I pay for most things without debt now.)

What are you willing to go into debt for, and why? Before you borrow for even what people consider as “good” debt, like a house, think about why you’re purchasing the home. When we owned a house, we bought that property because we wanted a stable place in a good school district for our son.

We also bought a home that was less than half what the bank said we were approved for. We could have bought a bigger, fancier house and lived on the mountainside, but we didn’t want to spend that much. We have other priorities.

David’s Note: Miranda made the right decision with the house. What’s interesting is that the mountainside home she could have bought would probably be farther away from her son’s school, not to mention being farther away from everywhere else she usually goes to.

At the end of the day, a dollar borrowed costs just as much whether it’s good or bad. What matters is the interests charged and how much you are borrowing. Keep that in mind next time you go shopping.

Instead of Going for Average, Go for What You Want

According to the New York Times, the average size of a TV in North America is 38 inches. Everyone I know with a TV has at least a 50-inch model though. Our TV is 32 inches because we just don’t care about having a big TV. I guess we are keeping the average down!

We spend our money on other things, like Lord of the Rings action figures and trips. It’s not exactly “average,” especially in my neighborhood, but it’s what we like to do with our money.

That should really be the focus of your saving and spending decisions. Rather than asking yourself whether you have what others do and whether you look “normal,” consider your financial priorities and bring your spending in line with them. Do you want to buy something to impress people who really don’t care that much about you? Or would you rather spend money on something that will make you happy?

It might be comforting to be average, but it can also get confining. Figure out what you prefer to spend your money on, and then adhere to those principles. You don’t have to be average.

How average have you wanted to be in the past? Do you still want to be average?

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None of us like to think about our own or our loved ones’ mortality, but ignoring that eventuality will not make a stressful situation any easier. When a family member dies, it’s important for you to know what responsibilities you might be facing.

Here’s a breakdown of what you can expect if a family member dies and leaves debts behind:

Paying From the Estate

After a death, the executor of the deceased’s will is responsible for notifying creditors of the death. At that point, the creditors submit proof of the debts, and ask for repayment from the estate. The executor will then pay off the debts, first by using whatever cash the deceased left, and then by liquidating whatever assets are left.

If there is still not enough to pay off the debts, then the estate is declared insolvent. The creditors cannot then go after the heirs — unless they were cosigners on any of the debts.
When the estate pays the creditors, secured debts (meaning debts with an asset attached, like a home or a car) are paid first, while unsecured debts (generally, credit cards) are paid afterwards. This means that the unsecured debts might not receive a payment in the case of an insolvent estate.

Credit Card Debt

Creditors will do what they can to see that a debt is paid. In most cases, that simply means that debts must be paid off before any assets can be passed on to the beneficiaries of a will. When there is no money in the estate to pay off a credit card debt, creditors will generally close the account and forgive the debt. However, as we all know, creditors can be quite tenacious.

Often, creditors will attempt to collect payment from the heirs, even though there is usually no personal liability if the estate is insolvent. If you are hounded by a creditor for a deceased family member’s account, discuss the situation with a lawyer before you make any payments.

The one caveat about personal liability has to do with community property states. In those states, any account opened by one spouse could automatically be considered a joint account, in which case the surviving spouse could be considered liable for the debt. Again, an estate lawyer can help a spouse in that case to determine the best course of action.

It’s important to note that the 2009 Credit Card Act has now made it illegal for credit card companies to add additional fees or penalties to an account while the estate is being probated.

Dealing with the IRS

If a spouse passes away while still owing back taxes, the surviving spouse must pay the IRS both those back taxes and any current taxes owed. In the year of the death, the spouse must file taxes for the deceased’s final year of income, and s/he may file a final joint income tax return, although there must be a note of the death when filing.

The IRS will hold spouses liable for tax debt, but it will not hold any other family members responsible. However, as with any other debt, the estate must pay any taxes owed before heirs can claim their inheritance.

Life Insurance

In general, life insurance will not be considered part of the estate, and is safe from creditors. Since the insurance company pays the benefits directly to the survivor, the money is never placed in the deceased’s name, and is therefore not in the estate. There are a couple of exceptions to this, however. First, if the deceased names the estate as the beneficiary, rather than an individual, then that money is fair game for creditors trying to collect from the estate. In general, it’s a good idea to name a specific beneficiary for this reason.

A second way that a life insurance payout might be taken by creditors is if the beneficiary is a cosigner on any of the debts. In that case, the creditor has the right to sue the surviving cosigner for the balance if s/he does not continue making payments on the debt.

It is important to note that there is a difference between being a cosigner and an authorized user on a credit card. An authorized user did not sign the application and is simply allowed by the signer to use the card, which means s/he is not liable for the debt incurred.

The Bottom Line

Know your rights and responsibilities before you have to deal with the fallout of a death in the family. Familiarizing yourself with what you might have to deal with will make a stressful and sad time easier to manage.

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A few months ago, a group of my husband’s online gaming friends mentioned they’re planning to take an Alaskan cruise next spring or fall, and invited us to join. While we’ve mentioned the idea of taking a cruise some time in the future, this conversation put the decision, place, and time right at our doorstep.

After some thought, we decided… why not?  We have almost a year to save for it and plan the details, and if we don’t go now—while we’re still without children—it might be a long time coming.

But then came the fun part: how are we going to finance it? Since we don’t own credit cards, and don’t want to finance anything, we plan to pay for it all out-of-pocket.

We don’t immediately have the funds for this kind of expenditure, especially considering the required round trip plane tickets and likely hotel costs, too. But we do have a solid history of being able to save for large expenses in the past, so I know we can do it again.

If you’re thinking of going on a cruise, here are a few of the strategies I’ve come up with for saving and planning for our cruise.

1. Create a New Line in the Budget

With our Goodbudget App, we have the ability to easily adjust our budget categories and make room for a new cruise savings line. I haven’t decided how much money to set aside, but this will probably come together once the plans become more final.

We plan to save more money than our final dollar amount, to leave room for miscellaneous expenses. Once we start “loading” our virtual envelope with funds, it will be encouraging to see it grow each month and build toward our cruise savings goal. It’s always so much more rewarding, and fun, to save for a particular goal, versus just saving money in general (that’s not nearly as exciting).

Whether you have a budget app, an online tool, or a paper-and-pencil version, see what you can do to create a separate savings category for your cruise trip. But be careful, you don’t want to take away from your usual savings allocations.  You never know when you’ll need to use savings for other needs, so don’t short-change other goals to fund your upcoming cruise.

2. Re-Allocate Your “Fun Money” Funds

One of our budget categories is labeled, “fun money”. Basically, this is a fund we use for non-essential purchases, like entertainment, going out with friends and maybe even seeing a concert.

This line in the budget isn’t essential to our monthly spending, so we plan on shifting this fund to funnel more money into the cruise savings category. I’m sure we could get by a few months without purchasing unnecessary items, in order to reach our goal of going on a cruise.

3. Look for Unlikely Ways to Save

While you’re creating a new line in your budget, and re-allocating funds from other money sources, look for unusual opportunities to save more money. Get creative and see how you can still plan the trip of your dreams without spending additional money out-of-pocket.

For instance; one way we plan to save on hotel costs is by cashing in our travel rewards points my husband has earned during his travels for work, instead of using them on free hotel stays for other events. Even this little bit could save us a few hundred dollars!

4. Set Out a Cruise Savings Jar

While our savings account will work just fine as a short-term, and safe place to build our cruise fund, making a physical savings jar is a more visible way to keep us motivated. It’s a daily reminder of why we’re working so hard to work together towards a common goal.

From extra cash to pocket change, it all counts, so don’t think that any amount is too small to save in your cruise jar. Having the jar visible to family and friends will spark conversation and reinforce our savings goal. Who knows; they might even want to pitch in their extra change towards your goal — like an old-fashioned version of crowdfunding.

These are just a few ideas we’ll be using to save for our cruise trip. What’s another savings tip we can use to reach our goal faster? 

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I used to think that perfectionism could only be a positive trait. After all, it comes with a drive to achieve many things, and to do so with a high level of excellence. When it comes to academics or athletics, perfectionism can set you apart from the crowd; in the workplace, perfectionism impresses the boss and earns promotions.

But, as with any mostly-good trait, there are downsides to perfectionism — all of which stem from the reality that, in an imperfect world, it’s impossible to achieve (and therefore crazy to expect) absolute perfection in any area of life.

In academics, athletics, and careers, perfectionism can lead to self-created stress and burnout or procrastination and immobilization, not to mention what it can do to personal and professional relationships. The same dangers of perfectionism apply to the way we handle personal finances and other assets, as well.

Taking responsibility of your finances and seeking “perfection” is a noble mindset, but it can also lead to wasted money, lost earnings, and lost value. Here’s how.

#1: Throwing Out the Budget Because You Can’t Follow It With Diet-Like Rigidness

Perfectionists tend to be all-or-nothing kind of people. If we do something, we want to do it right. We have to do it right. There’s no in-between. So, when we fail to stick to our perhaps-too-unrealistic budget, we can be tempted to think we’re incapable of budgeting, period. Not allowing a little room for mistakes or spontaneity or miscalculations in your budget is setting yourself up for failure (the same goes for dieting!).

Instead, try to focus on areas where you’ve improved. Adjust your budget categories gradually from where you are to where you want to be, and find a budgeting buddy that can help you stay objective.

#2: Holding Off on Investing Because You’re Not Sure You’ll Be Good at It

The ironic thing about perfectionism is that, while it can be highly motivating, it can also immobilize you. Because we believe we won’t be able to do something perfectly, we don’t try at all.

This is especially devastating with investing, because time is, literally, money. Thanks to compound interest, the earlier you invest, the more passive income you’ll have years from now — regardless of how “perfectly” you did it.

Many of us are clueless about investing, but there are plenty of tools and resources (including humans) that make it very easy to learn just enough to get started. Like many other areas of finance, you’ll learn and improve along the way.

David’s Note: If you can’t decide how to invest, then just start investing in low cost index funds. It’s really the best choice for pretty much everybody, but it’s also a safe choice because you are paying lower fees and only making a bet that the economy will continual expand through time.

#3: Never Purchasing Any Home Because It’s Not Your “Dream Home”

While the value may not grow as exponentially as a long-term investment, a home can be an incredibly good way to force you to build wealth through making mortgage payments. The longer you live in a home, the more your equity grows. This isn’t to say that some homes aren’t wise investments, but with perfectionism, even a good house might not make the cut because it’s not your dream house.

Don’t let this tendency rob you of the value of investing, the joys of home ownership, and maybe even the opportunity to increase a home’s market value and turn a profit when it comes time to sell.

#4: Fixing What Isn’t Broken and Doing Projects Over and Over Again

This one hits home for me. I have a perfectionist’s eye when it comes to fixing and renovating my home, and it could easily lead to spending more on home improvement and DIY projects. Thankfully, this perfectionism clashes with my equally-strong sense of frugality, or I would have spent way more than I have.

It’s fine to want to fix things and make them look nice, but the quest for perfection can be costly. I’m learning to look for ways to improve on what’s there instead of throwing it out and starting over. It’s taking some time but I’m chalking up my failures to DIY “perfectly” as learning opportunities that only my eyes will criticize, and I’m keeping my eagerness to be “perfectly” done with everything within the constraints of a reasonable monthly home-improvement budget.

How about you? Does perfectionism cost you, financially or otherwise?

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A popular trend in the health community is cleansing – setting aside a week to 30-days dedicated to reigning in bad eating habits, losing weight, finding energy, or maybe just feeling better. Cleanses can help people reach short-term health goals faster, change their eating habits, and find new motivation to turn short-term discipline into a long-term lifestyle.

Imagine what could be done if more people applied this concept to purging out the bad things “feeding” their finances – a financial cleanse, if you will. Setting aside time to focus on money habits can make a huge impact on short-term financial health and provide just the motivation to kick bad habits, get your finances in order, and keep them that way. Here are a few tips you might want to try if you’re considering taking a summer financial cleanse.

1. Clean out your financial refrigerator: identify and eliminate spending temptations.

One of the first steps people take when starting a cleanse is to get all the junk or off-limit foods out of their refrigerator and cupboards. By removing these immediate temptations, you’re showing you mean business and intend to stay on track. This same concept can be applied to your finances – specifically, things you have ready access to that tempt you to spend wastefully, compulsively, or out of boredom (just like a refrigerator full of junk food).

For me, one of the greatest spending temptations is getting emails with coupon codes from my favorite stores. Just when you find something you ‘need’ to use one of them on, they send you another coupon. Hitting unsubscribe, unfollowing, or even turning off your social media can help you purge these sources of temptation.

2. Keep a food diary: record everything you spend.

Just as someone who goes on a cleanse might record everything they eat during the day to keep themselves accountable and reveal things that are sabotaging their goals, recording everything you spend can offer the same accountability and insight into your unconscious financial habits.

Using cash is one of the best ways to do this, but if you use a credit card for the points and rewards, you can still track your spending with an app, spreadsheet, and other tools. The idea is to get a better idea of where your money is going. You might be surprised to find that you’re spending way more than you realized in a specific category.

3. Cut the calories or carbs: focus on one category you need to correct.

Cleanses are often focused on cutting or reducing calories and food sources. For instance, during a Whole 30 cleanse, participants cut out grains, dairy, added sugars, and other processed foods. With the insight gained from recording all of your spending, a financial cleanse can be further enhanced by cutting back one of the categories you’re splurging on a little too much. This might be entertainment, eating out, or buying lotto tickets and snacks every time you hit a fuel station, or something entirely different.

By focusing on correcting one aspect of your finances, it’s easier to gain a sense of accomplishment, which builds confidence to tackle other categories, as well.

4. Separate your needs from your wants.

Once you’ve identified some of the problem categories, it’s time to look back at the essentials. During a health cleanse, this might mean ensuring you’re getting the essential amounts of protein, vegetables, or fiber in your diet before you “spend” on empty calories and treats. For a financial cleanse, this means looking at the category we all dread: bills.

Getting familiar with how much of your income is allocated for essential spending, compared to discretionary spending, can help you identify areas to work on in order to create a bigger gap between the two. The bigger that gap, the more you can start saving and planning for the future.

It might seem like a stretch to apply the concept of a health cleanse to your finances, but try these tips and see if they help you cut unnecessary consumerism and spending, energize your budget, and motivate you to pursue a healthier financial lifestyle.

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The cost of even a small repair makes car insurance nice to have. When we start adding in the medical expenses that can go with a car accident, insurance becomes downright necessary. In many states, insurance is even a legal requirement before you can drive your car out on the road.

But a wide variety of options are available when it comes to insurance—there are actually seven different types of car insurance you can choose from—and it can be difficult to decide just what type of auto insurance is the best choice for you, your vehicle and your budget. Here is a list of the seven types and what you need to know about each one.

1. Liability Insurance

When your state requires that you carry some sort of insurance for your car, they’re usually looking for liability insurance. In the event that you are in a car accident and the police decide it is your fault, liability insurance covers the cost of repairing any property damaged in the crash (such as cars or buildings), as well as the medical bills from resulting injuries. Most states have a minimum requirement for liability insurance coverage that you absolutely must have.

However, it usually makes sense to go beyond that minimum requirement if you can afford the payment. That’s because you are personally responsible for any claims that exceed your coverage’s upper limit. In the event that you are in an accident, you don’t want to run the risk of having to pay a significant amount of money out of your own pocket. How much liability insurance you need depends on whether you have a lot of assets to protect, as it is more important to have higher levels of coverage just in case of a catastrophe.

2. Collision Insurance

The biggest problem with carrying only liability insurance is that if there is an accident, you may wind up without the money to repair your own vehicle. A collision insurance policy makes it so that someone else — your insurer — will pay for the repairs to your car. If your car is totaled in an accident, a collision insurance policy will pay out the value of your car. While the payout won’t cover for a brand new vehicle, the sum will equal approximately what the car was worth before the accident.

Collision insurance isn’t a must-have, as far as insurance goes. If your car is older, it may not be worth paying for insurance, especially if you can work on saving up enough to replace the car if necessary. If you have a good-sized emergency fund, you may be safe without collision insurance. If you’ve chosen a more expensive car or your car is relatively new, however, collision insurance can help you sleep much better at night.

3. Comprehensive Insurance

Liability and collision insurance policies exclusively cover car accidents. If something else happens to your car — weather damage, theft, an animal collision — you won’t be able to get your insurance company to address the problem. With a comprehensive insurance policy, however, your insurer will handle just about any situation that comes up.

A comprehensive insurance policy is one of those things that are nice to have. However, coverage can be pricey and may not be worthwhile if your car would be relatively easy for you to replace, if you had to. Note though that you can bring down the price of this policy if your vehicle has an anti-theft and tracking devices installed.

4. Uninsured Motorist Protection

Just because the law requires everyone to have insurance doesn’t actually mean that’s the way things work out. Even if a driver has a liability insurance policy, most states have relatively low minimums that may not cover all of the expenses that can go along with an accident. One of the worst things that can happen is that you get stuck with the bills in an accident that wasn’t even your fault.

The decision to get a policy that covers damage by an uninsured motorist isn’t as clear cut as other policies. In theory, even if a driver doesn’t have enough insurance to cover damages during an accident, he will still have an obligation to cover the costs out of pocket. It’s only when the person at fault doesn’t have any money that there can be problems.

5. Medical / Personal-Injury Protection

The costs associated with treating injuries after a car accident can be astronomical. In order to cover those costs, medical and personal-injury protection is available. No matter who is at fault, such protection will cover your medical bills along with those of your passengers.

If you have a good health insurance plan, however, it’s far less likely that medical and personal-injury protection will be useful to you. And considering how much more a general health insurance policy covers, it should be your first choice.

6. No-Fault Insurance

So far, no-fault insurance is available in twelve states. This option covers injuries and property damage, no matter who is ultimately responsible for a given accident. The decision to choose no-fault insurance really depends on what other insurance options are available to you and at what price. Some no-fault policies can be expensive, making it more cost-effective to choose other options, especially if your car is inexpensive to replace.

7. Gap Insurance

If you are still making car payments, gap insurance may be a good choice. It’s meant for drivers who still owe money on their cars and need to pay off the vehicle if it is totaled in an accident. It’s generally a good choice if you owe more on your car than you could easily pay off on short notice.

Gap insurance is especially worthwhile if you owe more on the car than you could get for it if you sold it today, since many insurance policies will only cover the value of the car, rather than the cost to replace it. Some lenders may require you to have gap insurance or something similar until you pay off the vehicle, so you may already have it whether you know it or not.

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As a woman, you definitely understand what I mean when I say that beauty doesn’t come cheap. From makeup to manicures to haircuts, maintaining your appearance can really put a dent in your budget.

In a 2013 report, it was found that a woman will spend approximately $15,000 on beauty products in her lifetime. That’s a staggering number considering beauty products and services aren’t something we necessarily need to survive (although I might disagree).

Even so, beauty is fun! Plus, it’s hard not to splurge on it every now and then. If you’re on a tight budget, here are five beauty tips to help you stay beautiful without breaking the bank.

1. Try It at Home

While I wouldn’t recommend trying to give yourself a haircut (although there are plenty of YouTube video tutorials available), there are plenty of other beauty regimens you can do yourself right from your own home.

For example, instead of spending $20 to $40 on a manicure, you can purchase salon quality products for a fraction of the price and do it yourself.

Additionally, you can make a spa night out of it with your girlfriends. Try out some DIY facial mask recipes, or give each other hair treatments. These are things you can do right from the comfort of your own home — and you won’t have to worry about how much to tip.

2. Find a Cosmetology School

Professional stylists, with years of experience, can cost an arm and a leg. But looking for someone who’s less experienced can save you a bit of money. If you don’t mind being a guinea-pig-of-sorts, seek out a cosmetology school.

Many schools are often looking for models to learn on, and in exchange offer services at discounted prices. These students are trained, and often have a supervisor looking over their shoulder, so there’s nothing to worry about.

3. Use a Groupon

Maybe you have a salon or spa that you love and go to religiously, but if you’re on a tight budget, you may have to try out a few other places. Give Groupon a try. They have lots and lots of discounted beauty services to choose from right in your neighborhood.

You may even find one you really like, and that costs less than your regular salon. Just remember to tip accordingly to the regular value, not the Groupon price.

4. Stick to the Drugstore

If you’ve ever walked into a pricey beauty boutique like Sephora, or down the beauty aisle at a department store, you know that these places can be a huge trap for your wallet. It’s hard to walk away without spending less than $50. When you’re on a tight budget, stick to the drugstore instead.

You can find really great quality beauty products for a fraction of the price. Keep in mind, many high-end and low-end beauty brands are owned by the same company, so at the end of it day it’s the same beauty masterminds formulating these products.

5. Cut Back on Regular Visits

A weekly manicure or a monthly haircut may work for your routine but not necessarily for your budget. Honestly, you really don’t need to go so often. Cut back on your visits and space them out accordingly, so you can go less but still keep your look fresh.

If you really do need a trim or color in between visits, go to a cheaper salon to get it done, or try to touch up your color by own using a drugstore box that matches your hair color.

Beauty isn’t cheap but that doesn’t mean you have to spend a chunk of your paycheck on it. Use these tips and be more conscious about what you really need and what beauty areas you should splurge on. This will help you save a pretty penny, while looking pretty too.

How do you save money on beauty products, salon visits, and other routines? What’s another tip you use when you have a tight budget?

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