budget – Page 11 – Luv Saving Money

How Do I Save Money On Tires?

If you’ve had to replace tires recently, you know that they’re not cheap. But are there any ways to save on tire? There’s a few options

Coupons, Rebates, and Sales

Tires stores and dealers will sometimes offer deals, coupons, or mail-in rebates. Bridgestone, for instance, currently has a $70 mail-in rebate deal on tires. I’ve seen Firestone offer buy 3 get 1 free deals. Michelin currently has an offer for a $100 reward card with the purchase of 4 new tires. Club stores like Sam’s Club also offer deals on tires frequently.

Have you considered Retread?

So you need tires but you’re not finding a good sale or deal. Have you considered retreads? You may be able to have your own tires retread or buy tires that have already been retread. This can be a cheaper option. Not all tires can be retread to so you can ask at tire supplier that offer retreading.

Extend the Life of your Tires

Your tires are good, you just want to make them last as long as possible. Proper tire care can not only extend the life of your tires but also prevent more expensive repairs. Learn about the importance of tire care and why it pays to take care of the tires you have.

This post does contain affiliate links. I will get a small commission from sales made through my links.

FREE Backpack for Back to School after Cash Back = MONEY MAKER!!

Sometimes it pays to procrastinate, literally. Choose one backpack priced at $8 or more when you go through TopCashBack and get $16.97 cash back to your TopCashBack account. This is a new member deal so if you’ve been procrastinating on signing up for TopCashBack this is an amazing back to school deal to grab. That’s a FREE backpack for back to school AND a money maker. You win twice brother!

This deal expires 8/19/19 though set grab it while the gettin’s good. Here’s how:

Step 1:
Click Here to Get Started. Join TopCashback and signup for a FREE account if you haven’t already.

Important: Check your email to confirm your email address. Click on the link in your email to authenticate your new account.

Step 2:
Click on the pink “Get Offer Now” Button

Step 3:
Add any Backpack from Walmart totaling $8.00 or more to your cart and head to checkout. You must spend at least $8.00 to get this deal.

TIP: Want to purchase more than $8.00? Make a second transaction instead of adding more to an existing cart to maximize additional cash back.
Do not close the window, open any new tabs, or use non-TopCashback approved coupons while checking out.
Free In-Store Pick Up & Free Shipping over $35+

Step 4:
Pay $8.00 or more. That’s it! The $16.97 will post to your TopCashback account within 14 days, and the amount will become payable. Cash back can be credited straight to your checking or PayPal account.

Note: Transactions must contain at least $8.00 worth of purchases to ensure the $16.97 cash back is credited to TopCashback accounts. Transactions may initially track lower, but within the 14 days after purchase it will be uplifted and turn payable at the amount of $16.97. Transactions may take up to 7 days to appear in your TopCashback account. The deal is open until 11:59pm PST on 8/19/2019 or until supplies run out; whichever happens first; applicable for purchases made directly after clicking through TopCashback. Only one TopCashback account is permitted per member.

Why You Need Renter’s Insurance

We’ve been homeowners for many years now. But there was a time when we rented. We’ve rented an affordable 2 bedroom apartment in a no-frills small apartment complex. We’ve rented a 3 bedroom apartment with lots of amenities in a large apartment complex. We’ve rented a townhouse in a cute little are in South Carolina. The one thing we always had was renter’s insurance.

For some it’s easy to dismiss renter’s insurance because most of the time you’re not required to have renter’s insurance like you are home owner’s insurance. Some people think “Why should I pay for renter’s insurance if the landlord has insurance?” The landlord’s insurance will only cover repairs to the building. It will not cover all your personal belongings. This could include things like: prescription glasses, jewelry, TVs, appliances, and other expensive items that you’d have to replace in the event of a disaster.

Renter’s insurance is often very affordable. When we had our 3 bedroom apartment we had about $25k in coverage and only paid about $18/mo. My brother had $10k in renter’s insurance and only paid about $8/mo. But he ended up finding that amount of coverage just wasn’t enough.

My brother ended up having a house fire in the duplex he was renting. The fire started from faulty wiring. They lost just about everything either from the fire itself, smoke damage, or water damage from the water to put out the fire. They’re now finding that $10k will only be able to replace appliances and some of their needs. So it’s important to really think about how much coverage you really need. What would need replaced if there was a catastrophe? If you’re ever in that moment you’ll have enough worries.

Another thing my brother learned is to make sure you update your policy regularly. The coverage might have been enough at his old place but not at the new place. Also he never took his ex’s name off the policy so now she is entitled to half of the money even though she never lived in that house or paid anything towards living in that house. This issue is currently being decided between the lawyers.

My brother does have a GoFundMe for his recovery from his house fire. If you can donate or share it would be greatly appreciated.

Now that we’ve talked about the sobering truths of renter’s insurance check out these insurance fun facts.

Benefits of Talking to an Insurance Broker

I’ll be honest, up until a few months ago I didn’t even know what an insurance broker did. I honestly thought it would be more expensive to go through an insurance broker rather than dealing with a company directly. I thought they’d get some kind of big commission which would translate into extra fees on our insurance.

When we were getting ready to add our oldest son to our insurance and saw the crazy numbers that were coming up, we figured it couldn’t hurt to talk to an insurance broker. If we didn’t like what they had to say, well, we already had our insurance with the same company we have for many years. I’m so glad we took the time to do it.

We found out that the insurance company we were with for years is one of the most expensive ones out there and they can be beat by almost any insurance company out there.

We found out that if you have a pool or one of those big outdoor trampolines it can make your house insurance go up.

They told us that the smaller regional insurance companies can be a lot cheaper than the national companies because they’re not having to compensate for payouts for things like earthquakes in California, tornadoes in Kansas, or hurricanes in Florida.

We found out that while one company had amazing rates on car insurance they’re rates were actually worse on home owners insurance so our broker helped figure out the best company to go with as a whole for our needs.

In the end we ended up saving over $1000 a year on our car insurance even with adding a new driver and a used car with liability. I’m so glad we took the time to get the quote. It really paid off.

Speaking of insurance, check out this post I wrote for Bodwell’s blog on Insurance Fun Facts.

16th Birthday Gift Ideas

16th birthdays are a big deal. For many that means they’re now allowed to get their permit and start driver’s training. But the idea of buying a car for a 16th birthday present isn’t always within reach. Here are a few other great ideas for 16th birthday gifts.

Drivers Education classes – This will not only give your child more experience with driving but also give you a nice discount when they finally get their driver’s license. We did this for our oldest son. I wrote about the benefits of drivers education classes here.
AAA membership – another sensible gift that will help with towing, road side assistance, and when they lock their keys in the car. This also gives a little more peace of mind for the parents.
Gas gift cards – with their new driving freedoms comes new expenses. Gas gift cards gets them in the habit of filling the tank when they take the vehicle especially when they’re on a tight budget.
Car Wash gift certificates – if they did happen to get a vehicle for their 16th birthday they’ll want to take care of it. Car wash gift cards will give them a little more motivation to take care of the outside
Car Safety kits -my son actually got a car safety kit for his birthday from his aunt. It contained things like flares, bandaids, road triangles, and more. He said he really appreciated that gift
Car care kits – Armor All makes car care kits to keep your car clean inside and out. My son actually said he’d like to have one because he enjoys cleaning the car. I always did too at that age.
Car oriented gift bags/gift baskets with small items like a key chain, air freshener, driving sunglasses, ice scraper, etc.
Maintenance gift cards – Places like Jiffy Lube or Pep Boys offer gift cards so your new driver can take care of an oil change, windshield wipers, tires, or whatever maintenance they need.

This post does contain some affiliate links. I will get a small commission from sales made through my post.