Buying a home can be a daunting task for many first-timers with little understanding about the process. From purchasing to moving, there is a lot to keep up with that is completely different than renting an apartment. Additionally, if you are moving to an entirely different region or across the country, you will likely have a little more to juggle than the average home buyer.

However, rest assured that with a proper understanding of everything the home buying and cross-country relocation processes entail, you can make a seamless transition to your new home in no time.

Step 1: Research the Location

One of the most important things you can do before a big move is in-depth research about the place you’re looking to live. Aside from the limited Youtube videos you may have watched and tourist locations you’ve visited, you will need to actually experience the reality of the location before buying a home.

This means taking a tour of your desired neighborhood or city a few times to truly capture the feel of the location. Explore restaurants, gyms, and other amenities to decide if the new city offers you enough to commit to living there. Also, take to your computer and find all that you can, good and bad. You should be looking for school reviews, crime rates, and other demographics pertaining to you. Then if all checks out, you can finally begin your house search.

Step 2: Find the house

Next is the fun part—the house hunt. Finding your first home can be exciting because you get to truly showcase your style and aesthetic in your home purchase. Depending on the location you are moving, you may notice common themes in home styles. However, with the hundreds of styles out there, you can still find one fitting to you.

In the United States, many northwest and western homes are modeled after modern styles. They have sleek finishes and subtle accents throughout the home. While in the midwest region, you may notice an abundance of rustic and craftsman-style homes that allow for a lot more warm tones and textures. Southeast and mid-Atlantic homes typically aim to bring in a relaxed and refreshing feel with urban farmhouse and traditional Cape-Cod-style homes. Lastly, northern states typically opt for Colonial homes that allow for plenty of customizations.

Step 3: Estimate the Costs

Once you’ve found the house you want, you now have to start considering how much you will spend on the home’s down payment, mortgage payment, closing costs, and moving costs. Depending on the type of mortgage you are considering for your home, you can pay 3-20% of the home purchase price. First-time home buyers typically lean toward the lower end of that range and opt for loans from FHA-approved lenders given that they have less financial requirements than other mortgage options.

Additionally, it is wise to start your lending process by applying for a mortgage preapproval letter because this will give you a more accurate estimate of how much you can afford to spend on your home. Then once you have gone through the lending process with your loan provider, you can then discuss your closing costs and you will finally be the owner of the home.

Lastly, with a cross-country move, you’ll have to incorporate moving costs into your budget as well. Consider at least three moving companies before making your final decision and if possible, schedule an in-home estimate so that you can budget the moving expense as accurately as possible.

Step 4: Get Mover’s Insurance

Unfortunately, not every moving company cares about your belongings as much as you do so with that, comes the inevitable moving damage. This is why you should always explore your options for moving insurance, especially when traveling such a long distance.

Meet with your insurance agent and discuss your coverage plan for your auto and homeowners insurance. Generally speaking, these plans won’t cover any moving damage so you should also discuss insurance plans with your moving company. They will typically offer a base-level protection plan, however, you can talk with them to determine which coverage option makes the most sense for your move.

Step 5: Keep Track of Everything

Keeping tabs on everything you want to bring with you is incredibly important when moving across the country. You are naturally at a greater risk of losing or misplacing valued items and documents which is why you should take your time when packing. Tackle one room at a time and categorize all your belongings before placing them in the boxes. Keep all clothing items together, kitchen supplies sorted, and be sure to label all boxes that have fragile pieces in them.

While packing, you can keep a list or spreadsheet of the belongings in each particular box and label them to correspond with your list. This way you know exactly where everything is and if something does come up missing, you’ll know where to begin looking.

Also, dedicate a particular box or folder to your important documents and files. When moving across the country you’ll want to make sure you keep track of passports, birth certificates, medical documents, and insurance forms at all times so try your best to keep them in your possession during the move.

Step 6: Update Your Information

When moving to an entirely new region, there are a few added steps you must take in addition to the traditional moving process.

• Search for new physicians and care providers in your area and get all records and documents transferred.
• Register and enroll any family at a new school district, if necessary.
• Update your address on your license, registration, car insurance, and bank information.
• Cancel your license plates and get a new registration at least 30 days before your move.
• Update your voter registration and decide on a new polling place.
• Notify government offices of your address changes.

All of these are important when moving, however, with relocation across the country, you should make sure you contact your new state’s offices to become familiar with any other specific requirements the state may have. It can even be wise to explore your moving company’s state regulations before beginning business with them.

Step 7: Make the Move

Finally, now that you have done everything else, you can officially make the move. Although you’re nearing the end of the process, there’s still a number of things you can do.

First, enjoy your new city. Try not to overwhelm yourself with unpacking or organizing as soon as you get to your new place. Take time to explore the best attractions and amenities around you. Use this time to meet your neighbors and get familiar with any local groups and communities you can join. Then, as you slowly begin to unpack, try to take it one room at a time and remember you don’t need everything back to normal immediately. In fact, most people use this time to shop for any new furniture or decor given that they can actually see the “bones” of the space before unpacking.

Be sure to visit your family’s new school, the new physician’s office, or a new job site if you choose to make a career change during this transition as well. Ultimately, allow yourself to relax from this exciting new journey you just began and fully indulge yourself in your new city.

Making the decision to buy your first home across the country is a big choice and one you should certainly be proud of. While it is a lot to take on, you can use these steps to help guide you and make the process as enjoyable as possible. Good luck!

Academy Success

Work first, then play. It’s something I tell myself all the time, but I’ve never really started saying it out loud until my daughter turned 3 last month.

All of a sudden, she is blossoming from a baby girl into a full-fledged toddler, and moving at what seems like light speed towards being a little girl.

As she continues to grow up and learn about the world, I continue to tell her, “work first, then play,” because I want her to understand that playtime is a reward for the work that you put in.

In my most successful years, this principle is what has gotten me through whatever it was I was trying to accomplish. It got me through some tough classes in college, graduate school, running two businesses, and growing a project management career, and now it’s getting me through raising a daughter.

As any young kid, I used to play a lot of video games, active sports and did a lot of goofing off back in my teens and twenties. Sometimes I played first, and then saved the work for later. That never worked out very well, but when I did the work first and used the games (or whatever it was that was fun) for my reward after the hard work was done, that was usually pretty successful.

Sometimes I didn’t have time for the play part, which is OK, because sometimes you have to work until you fall asleep to get ahead, but I always tried to make sure I got a little bit of playtime in. I always felt like this was important for mental health and just being an overall rounded person.

My daughter might not know exactly what this phrase means yet, but she will. I’ll continue to use it to progress my own life, and I hope she picks it up as a way to get what she wants out of life and still have a lot of fun along the way.

So play the video games, but do the work first. Shoot some hoops with your friends, but do the work first. Play a round of golf, but do the work first. Have a night out on the town, but do the work first.

Life should be fun, but remember to do the work first, then play.

Academy Success

Heading Back to College

There is no doubt you will need to dust off the books and head back to college before you are capable of changing careers. Regardless of your current field of work, career changes usually explain a drastic jump from one industry to another, which means you will need to evaluate how capable your schedule is of handling studies. Going Ivy may be able to help you find a suitable institution to further your education and reach your recently uncovered career goals.

Financial Aspects

Making a career change can often be a costly journey, as you will need to accommodate your education costs. You may also find yourself employed in an entry-level position when making the change as you would lack experience in the field. Therefore, it is vital to consider the financial aspects of making a career change to establish whether or not now is the right time.

Your Family

Making a change will not just affect you, especially if you have a family. Your decision will affect your partner or spouse, your children, and any other dependents you may have. Even though you may feel as though the decision is entirely yours to make, it is wise to discuss your plans with your family to ensure you have adequate support while making the transition.

Have a Plan B

Nobody wants to consider potential failure when dreaming up a dream, although, crafting a solid plan that includes plan B can ultimately put your mind at ease. Ending a career and embarking on a journey to starting another can be extremely stressful, which is why planning for every possible outcome should be a priority. Your plan B could be another available job, or it could be a college course that opens new doors. Regardless of the details of your plan B, it is vital to have one.

Consider the Pros and Cons

Changing careers is not a decision that should be hasty, which is why considering all the pros and cons of your decision is essential. Before making the decision, it is wise to consider the reasons you are no longer content in your current career and evaluate whether or not these factors are adjustable; therefore, you may be able to salvage your career.

In instances where you are no longer willing to salvage your current career choice, making a change may be the best decision. However, you should make each step with caution to ensure you are on the right path.

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This is a sponsored post and does not reflect the views of Academy Success.

Academy Success

I’ve got an awesome treat for you today, an excellent infographic provided by my friends at disturbmenot! as well as some health facts you may not know about sleeping less.

This infographic describes some bizarre sleeping habits of famous people, such as Einstein, Newton, Tesla, da Vinci, van Gogh, and more. Read the post, and then check it out below.

The Deadly Myth of Sleeping Less and Working More

The modern world is one created and (seemingly held together) by paradoxes – we live longer, but we are not healthier; we have all the trappings technology and rampant advancement in just about every area in life offer, but we are increasingly feeling isolated and lonely. We do not seem any more happy than our ancestors, who had to contend with far less.

And then there is the fact that we increasingly work more and sleep less. There is even some sort of displaced pride in boasting how little we sleep and still manage to get everything done. There are plenty of those that claim that sleeping less helps them get the work done and even be more creative. 

Certainly, there are well-documented cases of successful people throughout history who either struggled with sleep disorders or simply had very strange sleep habits and still managed to be brilliant in their respective fields.

However, one would argue that while this is true, this is still a very limited number of people and this argument could hardly be successfully applied to the world at large. Actually, open any newspaper and there will be an article about just how important sleep is for humans. It cannot be disputed, it is a fact.

Just as it is a fact that there have never been so many people struggling to get a decent night of sleep. Just how alarming the situation became is clearly depicted in figures showing how much sleep disorders are costing the economy. It is hardly a surprise then that we all seek to increase our productivity and still have time to actually live our lives too. 

Sleep and Creativity 

Can we truly be more creative (and productive) if we sleep less?

The recent research points this is not so and sleep plays a vital role in how our mind works and how creative and productive we are during the day. The right, creative side of the brain is traditionally linked with creative and insightful solutions and research has shown that this side of the brain works better when we have a proper rest.

It is the REM phase that is especially important for creativity and there are certainly plenty of artists that claim they produced their best works influenced by their dreams such as Dali, Mary Shelly, and Coleridge. Actually, in more recent years Stephanie Mayer, the author of megapopular Twilight Saga books, claimed the idea came to her in her sleep.

t would seem that important memory restructuring happens during the REM sleep phase and it is this restructuring that provides the necessary boost for the right brain hemisphere, which can then lead to creative and out-of-the-box solutions. 

Sleep and Productivity 

While there might be some among us who can come up with creative, brilliant ideas while struggling to get some quality sleep, most cannot go long without it and keep up with daily tasks. In fact, the more tired we are, the less we can accomplish. A tired person makes mistakes. A tired person is slow. A tired person is often grumpy and not always pleasant to be around.

However, the slow, grumpy and irritable bit is nothing compared to fatal mistakes that can happen to medical staff if they are tired, over-worked, and up all night.

Of course, this is not just true for doctors and nurses. Just think about tired parents, sleep-deprived drivers or those operating heavy and dangerous machinery.

Perhaps it is time to stop feeding ourselves with this dangerous, superman-ish narrative we can go on indefinitely on just a few hours of sleep. Or, even worse, that we can do an inordinate amount of work and be brilliantly creative too.

This silly myth that has wormed its way into a modern-day living is just as dangerous, just as detrimental, as actually going without proper sleep.

Conclusion 

Paradoxes, the plage of humanity in a way. Having all we have in terms of medicine, technology, and educated experts and still, for whatever reason, we run around pretending to be able to cope with it all alone. Especially when it comes to sleep disorders.

An asinine idea most definitely. But one that has far-reaching, dangerous, and sometimes even deadly outcome.  

We need to sleep in order to function and if we are not one of those genetically blessed creatures (and mind you there are only about 1% of those walking about), then we need to stop, sort out our priorities, and sleep more so we can be the better, more creative, and more productive versions of ourselves.

Infographic – Bizarre Sleeping Habits of Famous People

Find the original post of this infographic here, with some excellent editorial details about what is shown below.

Academy Success

More than 60% of businesses in the United States use Excel as their main budgeting and planning tool. 

Excel is one of the most organized ways of keeping track of numbers and using formulas to calculate data. 

If you are a business owner you must take advantage of Excel and all of its features. 

Continue reading to discover some of the best Excel tricks and tips that you can use for your business! 

1. Find Lost Files

There is nothing worse than losing important documents and data after putting hard work into them. 

Life can be unpredictable and if the power goes out without saving, you no longer need to panic. To recover lost files you will need to select the “file” button up top and click “info.” Once you are at this point you can select “manage versions,” then click on “recover unsaved workbooks.”

2. Remove Data That’s Been Doubled

If your company is constantly working with new and old data, you likely have duplicates within your files.

For your programs to run efficiently and for you to easily process data, extra information will need to be erased.

If you want to remove data that has been duplicated you can do so by selecting “data” and highlight the duplicated information that you want to get rid of. Once you have highlighted everything that you want you can click “remove duplicates.” This will make it easier to view data and see the big picture. 

3. Extend Formulas

There are many features that Excel has to make life easier for users and business owners.

It is common for businesses to use Excel for payroll needs that are constantly being updated. Using the same spreadsheet can help manage payroll and keep information organized. Many people use the extend formula when working on a paystub generator and it is easy to do.

After you have typed in a formula to the cell you can copy if horizontal or vertically. You can simply click “copy” and drag the formula down as far as you need and it will be applied to all of those cells.  

4. Conditional Formatting

One of the best Excel tricks and tips is conditional formatting for making data easier to search through.

If you have a difficult time finding data, this can help you set parameters to help save time. If you have a common trend that you want to be applied to your data you can do so by clicking on “conditional formatting.”

After you have selected that option, highlight the relevant column and set your specifications. 

5. Set Filters

Being a business owner means that you have to always be finding ways to improve work performance and efficiency. 

Knowing how to set filters on Excel can help you quickly view the information that you want to without having to ignore added information. You can use filters on numerical values with a “greater or less than” option. Many people also use the colors of the cells to filter through information as well.

These Excel Tricks and Tips Will Improve Your Life 

Being a business owner means that you have to stay organized at all times.

With these Excel tricks and tips, you can have a sense of relief and know that work doesn’t always have to be as difficult as it appears. There are many shortcuts that you can take to get the job done and stay on track.

Be sure to check out our blog for more articles with do-it-yourself projects and tips that will help improve your business! 

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This is a sponsored post and does not reflect the views of Academy Success.

Academy Success

It’s gone from an idea in my head to a real source of income for my family, making over $15,000 in 2018 and on pace to make over $25,000 in 2019.

This isn’t baller money or anything, but it does provide an extra level of security for my family and helps us save for our daughter’s college, and who knows what it will eventually become.

As things stand right now, I have almost all of the things that people think of when they think of owning a business – business cards, a logo, a checking account, etc… (I still don’t have office space, and don’t plan to) but it wasn’t always this way.

I started out with one single client (that I still have to this day). As I learned more and more, I developed processes that made things more efficient, then I was able to add more clients while continuing to serve the existing ones.

From there I got a logo designed, set up billing and accounting automations, set up a business checking account, an LLC, built standard procedures, and many more things that go into running a business, but it took A WHILE to do all of that.

I’m a little embarrassed to say I didn’t have a business checking account for almost two years. I have one now, but there was no need. It was a detail that didn’t matter yet, and it worked just fine.

And there are still plenty of things I don’t have set up yet… but I do have what matters, a bunch of happy clients and extra money for my family.

You only really need one thing, revenue.

If you have revenue coming in from either selling a product or providing a service, you have a side business. That’s the most important thing. Provide something people want, and make some money. Once you figure out that it’s working, the rest can develop along the way.

A lot of people like to “play business” and they end up getting stuck in the details, overwhelmed, and in debt before the business even makes its first dollar. Some people even lose thousands of dollars by trying to move too fast.

They do things like start an LLC, buy fancy equipment, buy inventory, get business cards, pay for advertising, get a logo designed, hire contractors, open a business bank account, rent a building (gasp!), and more.

But what’s missing from that list? Making money!

None of those things will earn you any money without paying customers, and you don’t need any of those to get customers.

Use your network to first prove your idea. See if you can get a few people paying you to do the thing you want to do. If that works out, then you can worry about building your business up to be more legitimate.

Academy Success

The most simple example is the gas pedal in your car. What happens when you pull that lever (or more specifically, mash your foot on it)? It makes your car go faster.

Every system has a few strategic levers you can pull to make it more effective.

As expenses increase over time, we also need to make sure we’re doing something to increase our income.

Otherwise we end up like this, getting into debt as expenses surpass income.

Every day you are bombarded with messages to earn money on the side, to start a business of your own, to sell your extra stuff for extra money, and there’s nothing wrong with making a few extra bucks on the side, but if you’re not working on increasing your salary as well, you’re missing a huge opportunity.

Check out our in-depth training on increasing your salary, along with your professional value at the same time. You can access the entire course here for free, supported by our sponsors.

Academy Success

Guest post by: Jennifer Hahn Masterson

If you like the idea of finding creative ways to capture people’s attention and influence their money-spending decisions, a career in marketing might just be the right choice for you. Since today’s marketing offers a plentitude of different job opportunities, we narrowed down the list to five prosperous jobs, along with the most important skills that every future marketer needs to possess. 

Essential Skills Every Marketer Should Master

RM Istituto Moda e Design in Milan, one of the leading contemporary faculties offering valuable courses in collaboration with leaders in their industries, emphasizes the importance of developing different communication techniques that support the brand within its master in advertising.

Besides covering copywriting, which one of the most common ways to communicate with the target audience, the course also includes learning less frequent but equally important communication skills such as crisis management and defense methods against the so-called fake branding.

Moreover, marketing students are motivated to build a rock-solid skillset in the field, learning everything from briefing and product analysis to campaignability and production.

“The main goals of our current master in advertising,’ explains the Director of RM Istituto in Milan Pasquale Volpe, ‘are to inspire global talents to expand their education horizons with a progressive program in the cosmopolitan Milan and properly prepare them for lucrative careers in this field.”

Brand/Product Manager

Brand managers are in charge of analyzing the consumer trends, the behavior of the target audience, and the product or service characteristics to come up with a powerful marketing strategy that will attract consumers’ attention, raise awareness of the product or the service and sell it.

Brand and product managers must have a strong analytical, presentation and advertising skills to be able to conduct effective research, present the ideas to lower and higher management within the company, and turn the gathered information and ideas into marketing strategies. To gain confidence in these skills, brand and product managers usually start their careers as market research analysts, marketing assistants, and sales representatives.

Market Research Analyst

Marketing students that have strong attention to detail and sharp analytical skills should consider a career as a marketing research analyst. This job includes researching different aspects of the product’s characteristics such as packaging, potential modifications, advertising themes as well as the consumer’s reaction to new products and services.

The marketing research analyst has the responsibility to gather and organize valuable data and analyze it using software and statistical tools. They report to marketing managers and brand and product managers helping them make the right decisions based on their research and findings.

Media Planner

Media plays one of the most significant roles in advertising which means the media planner has a highly responsible job that analyzes the behavior of consumers around media and their viewing, reading, listening, and surfing habits. The media planner needs to determine which media channels the company should use to reach its target audience and successfully advertise its products or services.

Marketers that work in media planning should also determine which forms of communication would attract the most attention and engagement from consumers. Besides creative and critical thinking, this job requires analytical, organizational and presentational skills.

Admissions Representative

Admissions representatives work in admissions offices that help colleges and other educational institutions promote themselves and attract students. Presentation skills are of the highest importance for this job because these marketers need to engage with future students, uncover their interests, and present them a school program that suits their personality and aspirations. Additionally, admissions representatives should be able to plan, organize and coordinate admissions programs and represent their institutions at school visits and college fairs.

Fundraiser

Contrary to popular belief, non-profit organizations still need a marketing strategy to sell, but the main difference is that they are not selling mainstream products and services but ideas.

Their ideas to make a difference in some areas need generous donors, which is exactly where a creative marketer should step in and promote these organizations through touching stories and the meaningful services they provide. Marketers who work in the non-profit sector should be able to attract potential donors, both individuals and companies, and create strong bonds with them, so they continue to support the organization on a regular basis.

The marketing industry is more dynamic than ever, offering a wide variety of promising jobs which leaves future marketers with a lot of choices. No matter which way you decide to go, the most important thing is to choose a quality school that will not only give you a solid theoretical foundation but help you develop essential marketing skills by working side by side with established professionals, so you can launch your career the moment you leave the classroom.

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This is a guest post and does not reflect the views of Academy Success.

Academy Success

When something is easy to do, can save me time, money, and alleviate a stressful activity all at the same time (like cutting cable / satellite), that thing is a golden intersection of life-hack greatness, and is absolutely something I will do forever.

Online grocery sales are projected to reach $100 billion (yes billion) by 2025, which is just over 5 years as I write this post. This is one of those golden intersections of life-hack greatness.

As technology has evolved in the last few years, the grocery delivery and pickup space has taken full advantage. All major grocery retailers, and even some of the minor ones (Aldi for example, which I now frequently use) now have online ordering capabilities that feature either grocery pickup or grocery delivery, in some manner.

Some of them use independent ordering and fulfillment services to do this, such as Instacart, and some of them do it on their own, such as Walmart. Some use a hybrid model where shoppers are free to choose their own method of fulfillment.

It’s all evolving pretty rapidly as well, so this will likely change a few months after I write this post. Either way, it’s exciting to see.

While all of them offer some type of online ordering, the fees and services vary widely depending on how you choose to get your groceries from the store to your refrigerator.

Let’s take a look at some of the options, and why you should absolutely be taking advantage of this time-saving, money-saving, stress-relieving, super easy life hack.

For the sake of simplicity, we’ll talk about the ones that are the most widely available as I write this post.

Grocery Delivery and Pickup Options

Shipt

Shipt is an independent grocery delivery service that partners with various grocers around the US. Their big brands include Target, and Meijer, as well as many smaller regional favorites.

They mark prices up slightly on the items they deliver, and also charge a delivery depending on the amount you order (sometimes it’s free, but you have to have a paid membership) and a service fee. Shoppers are also paid a tip chosen by the customer.

You can also elect to purchase an annual membership for $99 which gets you access to the service, or $14 a month.

Learn more on the Shipt FAQ. It’s way better than the actual homepage of their website, which offers very little useful information.

Instacart

Instacart is similar to Shipt, but better in my opinion. You’ll see why in a moment. I’ve been using Instacart for the last several months, and it’s amazing. Excellent app. Great service, and a nice selection of grocers.

They also partner with several major brands, including Kroger, Meijer, Costco, and Aldi being the main ones, plus many smaller regional stores.

Instacart works in almost the same way as Shipt, in that they mark up items slightly to create their margins, with a couple of major differences. They don’t require a membership for delivery. You can simply elect to pay for delivery, and they’ll take a small service fee. You can also leave the shopper a tip.

This is nice because you don’t have to worry about activating and cancelling a membership. You can just use them a few times a year if you want to.

They also offer a $99 a year package, which waives the delivery fee and service fee and allows you unlimited use of the service, making this an excellent deal to hop on.

The best thing about Instacart that I’ve found is they partner with Aldi, who is known for extremely low prices (competitive and even less than Walmart in many cases) and high quality food (similar to Trader Joe’s).

The fact that they’ll deliver from Aldi makes the markup pretty easy to stomach. Even with the $99 annual membership, you get high quality groceries for less than the cost of Kroger and Meijer, and far better quality than Walmart will ever offer.

Learn more about Instacart here, and get $10 off your first order.

Walmart

Walmart offers free pickup at most of their locations throughout the US, which is great for their cheaper items like butter, eggs, milk, yogurt, milk, etc. You just have to order over $3o to get this for free, which isn’t too difficult.

They’ve also recently started offering delivery in many states, with a $30 minimum and a $10 fee. I haven’t yet used Walmart delivery, but I hear it’s pretty nice.

Walmart is also a tech leader in retail, so their app is very easy to use and well thought-out. It’s also pretty difficult to beat Walmart prices, so that’s the main attractiveness factor for this option.

Learn more about Walmart delivery here.

Kroger

Kroger is the one major retailer who uses a hybrid model to offer both pickup and delivery. They manage pickup themselves with their ClickList service, but use independent services, like Instacart, for delivery.

To be honest, there’s nothing great about what Kroger offers. Their technology is OK, not great. Their prices aren’t very competitive, and they charge you $5 on top of your order.

Nothing really sets them apart from the others aside from their customer loyalty. Some people will just never shop anywhere else because they don’t want to change.

Learn more about Kroger Clicklist and delivery here.

How Can This Cost Money, But Also Save Money?

So now let’s address why these services can actually save you money, even if they do have a small cost, especially the delivery services.

The first thing people ask when I tell them I have my groceries delivered, is “Wow. How much does that cost?” This is always said in a strange tone, like I drive a Bentley or something (I’m rolling in a 2009 Honda Accord btw).

Yes, there is a small price to this, but it’s not that much. At $99 a year, plus a $5 tip, and a small markup for some items (not all items), Instacart delivery is extremely affordable. I figure it’s around $250 a year or so, depending on freqency of delivery. That’s where most people stop thinking, and this is actually where things get really interesting.

Not having to perform the act of going to the store does a few pretty large things, all of which save money:

• It saves me around 3-4 hours a month (or more)
• It virtually eliminates impulse buying
• It eliminates fuel and car maintenance costs
• It allows very simple control of spending

Opportunity cost is a huge deal. Personally, my time is worth a lot more to me than to spend it fighting crowds and germs in the grocery store. I figure the 3-4 hours I save each month are worth at least $1,000. I can now spend this time with my family, on other projects, or side hustles. This fact alone more than pays for the amount above.

You can make more money, but you can never get back your time.

Retailers are tricky. They know how to get you to buy more stuff. On average, impuse buying accounts for close to $5,000 per year in household spending, much of which is at the grocery store (especially “Superstores” like Walmart and Target that sell everything.)

Being able to tap what you need on your app without retailer tricks messing with your impulse control is very valuable. Also, being able to keep a close watch on exactly how much you are spending is a key as well. You can’t do that at the grocery store.

If you save just 10% on impulse buying, you’ve paid for the cost of delivery with ease.

You also eliminate the gas money, and vehicle maintenance you would otherwise spend driving to the store. And not to mention those door dings by runaway carts and toddlers (and adults) that don’t pay attention.

All of the facts above can account for thousands of dollars per year in the other direction, completely nullifying that small up front cost, and then some. Even for families on the tightest of budgets, this is likely a win.

So… Which Service Should You Use?

Hopefully by now you’re convinced that grocery pickup / delivery is a good financial decision. Which one to choose depends on your preferences and finances.

If you’re on a pretty tight budget, it’s hard to go wrong with Walmart grocery pickup. You still benefit from the reduction of impulse buying, spending control, and you save the time spent inside the grocery store. You also get Walmart’s very low prices. The only thing you don’t get in this case is the reduction in vehicle cost and opportunity cost of your time, which you can work towards over time.

If you have a little bit of flexibility in your budget to free up time for other things, I highly recommend using Instacart paired with Aldi for grocery delivery, with Walmart as a close second. Both have excellent prices and reasonable delivery costs. It’s hard to go wrong with either, although I prefer Instacart / Aldi due to their food quality.

Whichever one you choose, you’re making a huge improvement vs. wasting time and money roaming the aisles of a physical grocery store. The horror!

What to Watch For

As consumers use more and more services geared towards convenience, this space is growing faster than ever.

Look for more competitors in this area with excellent technology. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Amazon grow it’s Amazon Fresh brand to a juggernaut in this space over the next five years.

Also keep an eye out for companies like Uber who already have a massive network of drivers, to do the same.

You’ll likely also see retailers offering these services for cheaper to compete with one another, and enhacing their technology all the same.

Whatever happens, it’ll be great for the consumer, freeing up time, money, and making life easier in a lot of ways.

Academy Success

Regardless of what you do, moving comes with expenses, but it doesn’t have to be costly at all times. You just have to be prepared for all the costs including the packing supplies and the fees for the moving company. However, while there are finances associated with relocation, there are still ways where you can keep money in your pocket and reduce the underlying the costs.

In this article, we’ll discuss some tips on how to save money for your moving plan. Here are some of them.

Get rid some of your stuff.

Now is the perfect time to ditch some of your belongings. Find time to go through all your closets and identify which items need to be taken away from your useful stuff. By donating or selling these unnecessary things will give the opportunity to earn some income. Not only does it help you save money but it also allows you to reduce the number of boxes you have to move to your new place. The fewer your boxes are, the cheaper your moving costs will be.

Look for free boxes.

When you’re preparing for a move, you’ll absolutely need many boxes to pack up all your possessions. However, purchasing them in various sizes might be expensive on your part. That said, it’s a good idea to find the boxes you need for free. There are several department and grocery stores that toss used boxes on a regular basis. Thus, get to know who is taking care of the disposal of the boxes. Once you get the information, call them and inquire if they have available boxes to give you for free. If they don’t offer the item for free, ask if you can purchase them at a much lower price. Moreover, you can also save a lot by asking your neighbors or friends if they have unused boxes that are kept in their basements.

Pack your things.

Packing, among other moving tasks, is the most challenging part of the process. Not only that but it’s a tiring task that you should go through when relocating. However, by packing your stuff, you can minimize your moving expenses. While hiring the packing services of the best planner moving company can save a lot of time and energy, doing the packing job yourself can be a cost-efficient way of making your move successful. All you need to do is to distribute the task among the members of the household to get it done properly.

Wrap your belongings with newspapers.

Like your moving boxes, you can also reduce the expenses by making use of newspapers instead of bubble wraps to cover your stuff. Remember, buying a lot of wrapping materials will leave you with no choice but to shell out additional money. If you don’t want to exceed with your budget, try using newspapers as a good cushion for all your fragile items. They’re not only environmentally-friendly, but they’re also light and easy to use.

Consider the costs between DIY move and professional services.

Do you think hiring movers is more expensive than carrying out a DIY move? Whatever your answer is, never assume that seeking out professional help is more costly than DIY. Instead, it’s best to research the costs of these two moving options so you can get the most out of your budget.

For example, if you decide to have professional Movers NYC for your move within or from New York City, gather at least three price estimates from several companies for comparison. Make sure to consider doing a background check to know if your prospective moving company is reliable or not.

On the other hand, if you opt to move on your own, be sure to plan out everything on time. Think about the renting expenses you might incur and the potential traffic situations during the moving day. Also, ask yourself if a DIY move will prevent you from paying high gas consumption.

Conclusion

Moving will never be stress-free at one glance. However, by keeping these money-saving strategies, you can be able to stick with your budget and save bucks of money in your bank account. So, don’t stress yourself out with your moving costs and start getting all belongings dropped to your new location without spending a ton of cash throughout the process.

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This is a sponsored post and does not reflect the views of Academy Success.

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