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How to Organize a Budget Calendar

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r<p>Everyone has a way they like to organize their financial plan. For some, it is easier to log everything into a spreadsheet. Others have started using apps to manage their cash. In our family, we use a budget calendar to stay on top of our finances.</p>::Pexels

Everyone has a way they like to organize their financial plan. For some, it is easier to log everything into a spreadsheet. Others have started using apps to manage their cash. In our family, we use a budget calendar to stay on top of our finances.

Our Budget Calendar

While writing everything down on a calendar may seem a bit old-fashioned, it can work really well, especially if you do better with writing things down. I personally still keep a physical calendar for everything, so adding our budget into it made complete sense. Here’s what ours looks like…

<p>As you can see above, I have color-coded what money we have going in and what we have going out every week. Our paydays are written in red and all of the money going out is written in blue. This includes all of our bills, groceries, and my hubby's vape fluid for the month. As you can see, there is also a note to have money budgeted for Valentine's Day as well as $500 into savings.</p>::Pexels

As you can see above, I have color-coded what money we have going in and what we have going out every week. Our paydays are written in red and all of the money going out is written in blue. This includes all of our bills, groceries, and my hubby’s vape fluid for the month. As you can see, there is also a note to have money budgeted for Valentine’s Day as well as $500 into savings.

Creating Your Own

If you’d like to create your own budget calendar, it is really easy. All you need is a monthly calendar layout (you can even do this on your computer if you prefer). Once you have your bills and earnings written out on the calendar, you can decide how much money you can budget towards entertainment and additional debt payments.

 

Of course, everyone’s budget calendar is going to be different. If you have a larger family, you’ll spend more on food. People who have more debt may also have more monthly payments to consider on their personal calendars. As you begin to pay things off, you can always change your budget because you’ll be jotting down your expenses and earnings every month as it changes.

Also, it is a good idea to set aside a day every month to review your budget and see what the month ahead will bring for you financially. Be sure to also note any large, one-time expenses that may occur, like paying taxes or renewing your car’s registration.

Readers, do you use a budget calendar? If not, what kind of budgeting method do you use?

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The Most Common Budget Busters That Can Derail Your Financial Plan and What to Do About Them (Plus, a Free Download!)

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We are continuing our journey to free you from debt by diving in to the much-loved topic of budgeting!

We have come a long way on this journey.

We started with a promise and getting your spouse on board. Next, we clarified your current financial picture and reviewed the checklist for a strong financial plan. Then, you got clear on your goals, started tracking your spending, and created your payoff plan.

But we’re not done yet!

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Why You Should Look at Motor Finance Alternatives

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<p>As a driver, there will come a time where you’ll be looking at changing your vehicle for a newer one. Whether that’s because your current vehicle has become a bottomless pit of repair and running costs, or you’re starting a family a need something bigger than your current model. Unless you have the savings to cover it, it’s more than likely you’ll be looking at financial help to make this purchase easier. But where to begin? It can be difficult knowing which is the best option for you with so many different types of finance available. Here are some pointers to help guide you and why the alternatives may be better.</p>::Pexels

As a driver, there will come a time where you’ll be looking at changing your vehicle for a newer one. Whether that’s because your current vehicle has become a bottomless pit of repair and running costs, or you’re starting a family a need something bigger than your current model. Unless you have the savings to cover it, it’s more than likely you’ll be looking at financial help to make this purchase easier. But where to begin? It can be difficult knowing which is the best option for you with so many different types of finance available. Here are some pointers to help guide you and why the alternatives may be better.

Older Vehicles Provide Better Deals

With a new year means many great deals on vehicles available. It was reported that 27% of all vehicles sold in October 2019 where brand new 2020 models, meaning many more people went for slightly older plates. This is because of the large drop in prices seen on models between 1-3 years old, even if they have low mileage. You should be able to take advantage of the dealerships wanting to make room for newer cars by moving on their current older stock. Based on that statistic, many people seem to agree. But to truly make the best of reduced costs on a nearly new vehicle, you need to choose your finance options carefully.

Higher Purchase Agreements or a Direct Lender Loan?

It can be easy to find understanding the various details of higher purchase motor finance agreements a little confusing. After all, they come with many different terms that you need to stick to avoid any extra charges. For example, if you were looking to lease a car, this will come with various details such as limited mileage to stay within or condition when giving the car back. For this reason, you could end up agreeing to pay a monthly amount that could end up being much more. Opting to purchase a car outright has far been the cheapest option for many years, as you’ll only pay the value of the car. Easy if you have the savings available, so how can you still do this without having the available funds? Fortunately, there are various alternative motor finance options available that will help.

There are many lenders who are willing to provide low-interest car loans that will provide you with the interest charge upfront and combine it with a flexible repayment length for low monthly repayments. This way you can avoid the dealerships and pay them outright, leaving you to pay a manageable, low rate loan instead. This also means you’ll own the vehicle, meaning you can decide to sell or keep it for as long as you want.

Credit Card

This one will depend on how great a rate you can get on a credit card. Otherwise, you could end up paying a lot more in interest than with any other option available. Credit cards are great for flexible lending, only using when you need it. But if they are not managed well, they can rack up high-interest charges and can quickly create an expensive debt. If you’re thinking of using a credit card, it’s worth looking for 0% interest-free deals that will mean you can, for a period, pay no interest on the amount you spend. The trick is to remember to move the balance to another credit card before the 0% period finishes, with ideally the new credit card having the same promotion.
The great thing about this is you can continue to do this for as long as you have the debt to pay. The only stumbling block would be your credit rating, as you’ll need to maintain the monthly payments to ensure this doesn’t drop and you can’t get approved for another credit card. If done successfully, you could pay no interest at all on your vehicle amount, apart from a balance transfer fee each time you move the funds.

Peer to Peer

This one is much less used than a loan or higher purchase agreement but can work out to be a great money-saving option. Peer to peer lending involves borrowing from other people who are willing to lend to you. This means not borrowing from a bank or car dealer or other direct lender company. Instead, you would go into an agreement with someone just like you; your peers! Now what differs this from just borrowing money from friends or family is that it is done through a peer to peer platform. By using it, you’ll be matched with other people willing to lend the money you require and will still need to undergo a credit check. Interest rates can be much lower, but this will depend on how good your credit rating currently is.

Read the Terms Carefully

Whichever option you choose to go forward with for motor finance should be carefully considered. Not all options will work for everyone and nearly all will require you to have a good level of credit. You should only enter into an agreement you can afford to maintain. This way, you can focus on enjoying your new vehicle, rather than worrying about how to pay for it and how much interest you’re paying back.

For more of our great articles, read these:

Yes, You Can Buy Someone else’s Debt

Here Are Some Handy Debt Free Charts

What Kind of Interest Will You Have On A $60,000 Loan?

The Complete Guide To Getting Out of Debt

 

Image source: GotCredit, via Flickr.

Healthcare and Payment Options for the Uninsured

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<p>I've chatted about being uninsured on the blog in the past. It can set you back if you wind up needing to go to the emergency room or require any other type of health care. For instance, last year I learned I'd need all four of my wisdom teeth out (they are still in my mouth as you read this). Many hospitals and doctor's offices require upfront payment, but there are options for the uninsured.</p>::Pexels

I’ve chatted about being uninsured on the blog in the past. It can set you back if you wind up needing to go to the emergency room or require any other type of health care. For instance, last year I learned I’d need all four of my wisdom teeth out (they are still in my mouth as you read this). Many hospitals and doctor’s offices require upfront payment, but there are options for the uninsured.

Payment Options for the Uninsured

Believe it or not, there are multiple payment options for the uninsured. I’ve come across the following ways to help resolve your medical debt.

  1. Look into a Care Credit card. Although I typically wouldn’t suggest adding any debt to your personal finances, it can be a necessary evil, especially when it comes to your health. If there is an emergency and you truly don’t have the money, a Care Credit card can provide a remedy. Best of all, if you pay it off within the designated period, you won’t have to pay interest.
  2. When you get your bill, give the office a call. Any time I get a medical bill in the mail, I call the office to verify all of the information and set up a plan to pay it off. Most billing offices will set up a payment plan for you.
  3. Ask about an in-office payment option. Before you leave the doctor, chat with the reception desk about a payment plan right away. You may even be able to put some money towards your visit right away.

Ask About a Discount

If the payment options don’t quite fit your budget, ask about a discount for uninsured patients before you receive the doctor’s services. Sometimes they will give you a discount because you don’t have insurance.

During a recent visit to the ER here in Atlanta, I asked about this. They required a $250 copay for uninsured individuals. However, once I got my bill, I also saw that (because I was uninsured) a 70% discount was applied to my visit.

Consider Going to a Clinic

Another thing for uninsured people to consider is going to a clinic. Some clinics are privately owned and able to give people more of a break when it comes to the cost of their visit.

I went to a local clinic for an emergency allergic reaction a couple months ago. The visit cost $150 upfront and they offered treatment a-la-carte. I needed two steroid shots, which cost $80 each. If I had gone to the emergency room or doctor’s office, this would have likely cost more than $1,000. Instead, I paid cash day-of and didn’t have to worry about it after that.

Be Sure to Communicate With Bill Collectors

Lastly, when all is said and done, it is important to communicate with the billing offices. This goes for medical and non-medical bills. Getting on the phone with them and discussing your payment options or what you can do to resolve your bill will be the best thing you can do for yourself. If you don’t, it will wind up in collections and killing your credit in the long-run

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The Biggest Budget Buster of All (And a Simple Tool to Make Sure it Doesn’t Blow Yours!)

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Mike and I spent almost $2,000 on gifts this year.

$1,979.24 to be exact.

And that was under budget.

That amount doesn’t include the tithes we gave to our church and other donations.

$1,979.24 only includes how much we spent on gifts for birthdays, Christmas, Father’s Day, Mother’s Day, and a few weddings. Since we have been focusing on paying off our debt, we gave gifts only to close family and friends.

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Preparing for Financial Recovery

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<p>No one has gone completely untouched by the coronavirus pandemic. Half of Americans say they've been financially affected by the virus. However, many states are beginning to reopen businesses and some folks are going back to work. What many people aren't considering is how to begin setting themselves up for their own financial recovery.</p>::Pexels

No one has gone completely untouched by the coronavirus pandemic. Half of Americans say they’ve been financially affected by the virus. However, many states are beginning to reopen businesses and some folks are going back to work. What many people aren’t considering is how to begin setting themselves up for their own financial recovery.

What Will Your Financial Recovery Look Like?

Before you can start preparing to recover from this pandemic financially, you need to consider how you’ve been impacted. Everyone’s finances are set up differently. Some individuals have been hit way harder than others during this time. Certain folks are out of work, while others haven’t been financially impacted (much).

If you’ve been out of work, the first thing you may do when you get back to your job is get caught up on your bills. Others may want to focus on revamping their emergency funds or savings accounts. Many will look at how they can mend their retirement accounts after the market crash.

Depending on how you were impacted by the global pandemic, what you focus on will be different. So, think about how you have been affected by COVID-19 and what your first steps need to be.

Our Recovery

For us, our financial recovery will focus on re-establishing our emergency fund and focusing on rebuilding our credit. We decided to take a break from a few payments during this time so our finances wouldn’t be as tight.

This will undoubtedly have an impact on our credit scores and the length of our debt freedom journey, but it was something we thought would decrease our current financial stress. (Worth it, in my book!) Once we’ve rebuilt some of those areas, we will refocus on snowballing our debt with everything we’ve got.

On top of that, we are also going to be looking into some hustles to help us earn a bit more to make these things start happening sooner. My husband is looking at becoming a delivery driver and I’ve looked at some additional hustles as well.

For now though, we are continuing to stay in and stay safe! Readers, how are you prepping for financial recovery post-COVID?

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How to Pay for College Without Going into Debt

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<p>With the cost of education skyrocketing ever upward, it’s no surprise that prospective students are looking for any and all alternatives to student loans. Who could blame them? Is any degree worth putting yourself in five or more figures of debt at the start of your career?</p>::Pexels

Image Credit: PxHere

With the cost of education skyrocketing ever upward, it’s no surprise that prospective students are looking for any and all alternatives to student loans. Who could blame them? Is any degree worth putting yourself in five or more figures of debt at the start of your career?

I certainly don’t think so. The good news is that there are alternatives! They aren’t always easy, but they beat 20 years of student loan payments every time.

Choosing the Right School

Before you take out tens of thousands of dollars in student loans to go to that one school because it’s more prestigious than the rest, know this: Employers don’t care where your degree comes from as long as it’s accredited.

All that extra debt won’t give you a leg up on the competition for employment either. There’s nothing at all wrong starting school at an affordable two-year college and transferring to a university later. The degree you end up with is the same as if you’d spent all four years there.  

Work!

Get a job, even if you’re taking a full course load. You’ve got time to work a little. Besides helping financially, previous work experience of any kind looks good on a recent graduate’s resume for multiple reasons.

It shows that you’ve got the drive. And it shows that you’re already familiar with the expectations and social intricacies that come with any job. Sure, you get a little less sleep and a little more stress, but the payoff is worth all of it.

Scholarships and Grants

There are tons and tons of scholarships and grants out there for just about every career path you could think of. You can’t get them, though, if you don’t apply for them! This is where good grades pay off.

Several states will pay for your first four years completely as long as you go to college in the state and stay above the minimum GPA they set. You’d have to be crazy not to take advantage of that! Many employers are starting to offer grants to their workers as well. It never hurts to ask!

Conclusion

The bottom line here is that there are ways around the crippling debt of student loans when it comes to pursuing higher education. They may not always be easy, but nothing worth having in life is. There is no replacement for the feeling of accomplishment you get when you do something complicated on your own.

Student loans should be a last resort instead of the norm they’ve become. Two-thirds of people who graduate with student loan debt claim that it wasn’t worth it. Don’t be them. You shouldn’t have to be stuck paying for education well into middle age. You should be someone who owns one of those beachfront Miami homes before thirty years old because you chose the more difficult path early on. You may not get everything just right, but in my experience, the path of action leaves the fewest regrets.

 

Financial Advisors: Content Marketing Opportunities

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<p>An emerging leader in the newest generation of personal finance blogs, District Media Finance LLC seeks to forge content partnerships with licensed financial professionals who want to position themselves as thought leaders online.</p>::PexelsAn emerging leader in the newest generation of personal finance blogs, District Media Finance LLC seeks to forge content partnerships with licensed financial professionals who want to position themselves as thought leaders online.

Although this is an unpaid opportunity it’s priceless as a business development channel for your financial advisory or securities brokerage work.

Our blogs provide an opportunity to boost your visibility to a larger audience than what your own firm might have for its website.

Reach Up to 11 Million Visitors

Our content is syndicated on Google News and our 58 sites have amassed over 11 million visitors since the company was founded in 2014.

Traffic is growing briskly on our blogs. We’re thinking that ones that have branding that would suit a financial advisor contributor are:

For a complete list of our blogs, please visit our website.

Our Ideal Content Partner:

  • Has several years of experience providing financial advice to clients
  • Is open to being edited for readability and cohesion
  • Has at least one of the following credentials or degrees: MBA, CFA or CFP.
  • Has at least one of the following licenses: Series 6 or 7; Series 63, 65 or 66.
  • Is either a quick study with online content management applications or already knows how to use WordPress

How To Apply:

To apply, please email a resume and cover letter to [email protected]. In your cover letter, please include a link to your LinkedIn profile, your company’s website and anything you may have published already. If you have writing samples, we would love to see them — it could be materials you created for your business or even an essay from B school.

<p>Financial advisor content partners wanted</p>::Pexels