financial – Page 3 – Luv Saving Money

3 Money Management Tips

Many people can find themselves in a financial situation they did not expect to face. Dealing with personal finances can be intimidating for people, especially if they were not taught good money management skills while they were growing up. That does not mean that it is impossible for people to take control of their finances. By taking an honest look at their finances, creating a monthly budget, establishing goals and taking actions to reduce expenses, people may be able to improve their situation.

1. Budget

One of the best ways to take control of a financial situation is to create a budget. Calculate all of the monthly, quarterly and yearly expenses to figure out how much money needs to be paid or put aside each month for bills. Do not forget to include things like oil changes, holiday expenses or yearly subscription fees. Write out all of the expenses that will happen each month and compare it to the household income.

2. Reduce Expenses

Look over the expenses and wean out anything that is not necessary. Cancel subscriptions or look for bargains for needed purchases. Call up credit card companies and ask about interest rate reductions. Consolidate debt if possible, check out payday loans in Ontario to pay for something that the cash is not yet in hand for. Make sure to pay off any loans quickly to avoid fees and high interest rates. Get quotes on lower insurance rates and better cell phone and internet deals.

3. Evaluate Income Options

Sometimes people can reduce their expenses as much as possible and still not have as much money left over at the end of the month to suit their needs. Consider the available options to increase income. Perhaps asking for a raise or seeking out a promotion at a current job is a solution. Taking on a second job or picking up small gigs can be helpful in filling any income gaps. Investigate passive income streams like investing, blogging and affiliate marketing. They will take some initial investment to begin, but once started they can be a great source of extra money.

Having a messy financial situation can be stressful. Making a plan and taking active control over all aspects of the financial plan can reduce stress in a person’s life. Take control and try to account for all of the expenses that come up during the year to be ready for them. Talk to a professional financial advisor if needed in order to ensure the best results.

Earn Gift Cards In Your Down Time with Dabbl

I feel like, with current conditions, everyone could use a few extra bucks right? Imagine being able to interact with ads, take surveys, and more from your phone while waiting for the bus, sitting in the waiting room of your doctor’s office, or while sitting on your couch and earning free gift cards for doing it!

This time of year is the perfect time to start earning too. In my experience starting by this time or sooner in the year usually produces at least one gift card for the holidays. A gift card that can be used for holiday shopping, to gift, or used to buy donations. If you could earn gift cards to Walmart, Disney, Target or hundreds of other stores for FREE, would you try it?

Dabbl is a reward app that offers everything I just mentioned. Simply download the app, for free, and start earning your way towards free gift cards.

Dabbl is available in the apple app store and Google Play. So if you’re phone or tablet uses either of those options for app downloads, you’re good to go.

Dabbl has paid out over $2 million in gift cards since 2017. If you find yourself having just a little extra time on your hands with this pandemic this is a great way to spend your relaxation time. Doesn’t hurt that you’ll earn some free gift cards either.

I was looking at the list. Some of the gift cards that caught my eye include:

Spotify
TJ Maxx
Amazon
Ulta
Lowes

That’s just a sampling. 100s of gift cards to choose from for your efforts. Start earning now and maybe earn some extra scratch by the end of the year!

Download Dabble now

This post does contain affiliate links. I will earn a commission from downloads through my links.

Why Join AARP Before Age 50? Here’s Why

There’s been a number of times when signing up for a service, buying tickets, or other times where I was asked if I was an AARP member. I kind of scoffed and said no. I’ll be honest I thought AARP was only for those 50+ yrs of age. I mean, at those times I was late 30s then 40. I couldn’t join AARP right? And, even if I did what would the benefit be to me? Turns out, I was wrong, I can join before I’m 50 and yes there are benefits to joining AARP before 50.

When did I really take a look at it. Well I’d say it was about April of this year. We were switching our cell phone carrier over to Consumer Cellular. They asked me if I was an AARP member. I said no. She said I only ask because we give a 5% discount off your monthly service for AARP members. I thought, she has my information. She can see that I’m not 50 yet right? So I go onto the AARP website and do a little more research and find out that yes I can join and yes I can get the 5% discount on my mobile bill. We already saved BIG by switching to Consumer Cellular (which is in another post I wrote) but an etra 5%? Why not? It was only $16/yr for AARP the cell phone saving alone would still save us $60/yr even after the membership was deducted. It pretty much paid for itself!

As I explored the site more I found they also have a rewards program. As you read articles on the site, complete exercises, link up my fitbit, and more I can earn reward points that can be cashed in for things like discount gift cards, enter sweepstakes, health assessments, and more.

You can also get local discounts. While they have national discounts like Consumer Cellular you can also search your local area code for discounts. I found 63 in my little area!

The articles on the site are very informative. I can honestly say I’ve learned a few things from reading the articles. There are also recipe and exercise videos that I enjoy trying. I’ve done several of the yoga videos.

Now not ALL benefits are available to people under 50 years of age. Certain benefits that apply to medicare or are strictly for senior citizens do not apply. I attempted to get a quote through the link on their site for life insurance but it said it was only available for those 50+ yrs of age.

Honestly though its so affordable at $16/yr. My cell plan savings made it worth it alone but I’ve gotten so much more out of it. You can even link your Exxon Mobil rewards to earn points. 20% discount on Allstate Roadside insurance, WW (formerly Weight Watchers) discounts, and so much more.

Ready to sign up? It’s easy to sign up. Join AARP here.

This post does contain affiliate links. I will get a small commission from registrations through my link. This does NOT affect the cost to you.

Steps To Take When Looking for Scholarships for College

I have 4 kids. My oldest of which is heading to college in the fall. It’s been a whirlwind experience trying to navigate the whole application process for college and for scholarships. Even though he’s already been accepted and we put money down already we’re still having to take more steps that need completed before he actually starts. Guys he has new student orientation on the 19th! He still has to do some kinds of counseling session in regard to his student loans he qualified for. The whole pandemic thing made this process a little weirder too.

When I thought of the whole scholarship process I thought of it as filling out scholarship application after scholarship application hoping to get just one. Don’t get me wrong, there still plenty you can apply for on your own but the one he got was already applied for when we filled out the FAFSA. Let me explain.

Every year before starting college until college is finished you need to fill out the FAFSA. It’s important to fill it out completely and honestly. This helps schools make decisions on awarding scholarships and financial aid (among other things).

My son actually got a decent yearly scholarship from his college thanks to the FAFSA. As long as he keeps his GPA decent he’ll have the scholarship all 4 years.

My son’s high school also had their own form to fill out for scholarships specific to his school and the area. Colleges will sometimes offers scholarship awards to high school graduates for specific majors too. This was one form to fill out to determine scholarships for many.

In both of these scenarios only one form was needed to throw his name in the hat for many scholarship opportunities. These are the two major things to do . But, it doesn’t have to stop there. You can seek out and apply for individual scholarships as well. There are scholarship specific to majors, hobbies, religion, heritage, geographic area and more.

The David Ebrahimzadeh scholarship, for example, is a scholarship to recognize students seeking a degree in real estate! They’re accepting applications now. So don’t discount your career path in regard to scholarship opportunities.

Also local businesses, clubs, and even your own workplace may offer scholarships. My son applied for a scholarship through my husband’s place of work.

This post is sponsored by Diamond Links. Any opinions expressed are my own.

A Surprising Alternative to Education Funding

A good friend of mine is an insurance agent. She happened to mention one day about using whole life insurance to help pay for college. My ears perked up. Wait, what? I can use whole life insurance to help pay for college. But why would I used that instead of loans, 529 plan, or any of the other options out there? Turns out there’s a few reasons. I was eager to learn more and thought maybe my readers would like to know more too. So, I asked her to write up this article. I’m so glad she did.

Providing protection to your loved ones is primarily what whole life insurance is known for, but gone are the days when it’s used solely for the death benefit. One surprising way that life insurance can be used is
to pay for higher education costs, specifically as an alternative to using a 529 plan. If you’re unfamiliar with what a 529 plan is, it’s a tax-advantaged investment vehicle in the U.S. designed to encourage saving for future higher education expenses of a designated beneficiary. However, there are several disadvantages to a 529 plan. They vary from state to state and balances in a 529 plan may reduce your beneficiary’s ability to receive financial aid. Also, in the event that your beneficiary doesn’t want to
pursue higher education, the earnings may be subject to income tax plus a 10% penalty tax.

A whole life insurance policy can help you accomplish your college savings goals similar to a 529 plan and for some, an insurance policy may actually be a more suitable option because of the additional benefits, added flexibility, and guarantees not tied to the market. However, it’s best to use this option when the child is young, that way your policy can build up enough cash value to properly cover college expenses. You can also use what’s called an optional Paid-Up Additions (PUA) rider to significantly add
to the early build-up of cash values in your policy. While the two have similar contribution, accumulation, and distribution tax features, there are some differences between the two that might make whole life insurance a more suitable option for you:

Income tax-free college loans. You can use the accumulated cash value in your whole life policy to take out tax-free loans to help pay for college expenses without having to worry whether they’re qualified education expenses or not. If the time comes and your child decides not to pursue higher education, you could use this money for other things. For instance, you could use this money to help them purchase a vehicle, pay for living expenses if they choose to go out on their own, or pay for travel expenses so they could see the world.

Get guarantees without market volatility. A 529 plan likely has funds tied to market returns. While that can allow your college fund to grow over time, a down market could have the opposite effect. Imagine a downward spiraling market right before your child starts college. That would be a disaster. Alternatively, a whole life insurance policy provides you with guaranteed premiums along with a death benefit should the unthinkable happen and an accumulated cash value that won’t decrease based on the financial market performance.

Have options in case of disability. What if you became disabled while trying to build up savings for college education? No worries. With whole life, you have an optional waiver of premium rider to guarantee your college funding goals stay on track.

Benefit from savings that may not affect financial aid considerations. Unfortunately, a 529 plan is considered an asset by FAFSA. However, FAFSA financial aid guidelines currently don’t count your life insurance policy’s cash value as an asset, which means you could qualify for a higher
level of aid. (Note: Some colleges do view life insurance as an asset in determining financial aid).

Fund an education should the unthinkable happen. Life insurance provides an income tax-free benefit to your named beneficiary, which could in turn fund an education if they wished.

However, it doesn’t have to be one or the other. If you could afford it, a whole life policy could simply be used as a solution that supplements funds alongside your 529 plan contributions. If the grandparents are highly involved in your child’s life, you could even consider asking them if they’d like to start a 529 plan for your child (as currently 529 plans owned by grandparents or third parties generally do not affect
financial aid of beneficiaries under the current guidelines), while you start a whole life insurance policy. I encourage you to compare the two and talk to a financial professional to see if using whole life insurance is the right college savings solution for you.

If you’re ready to start with whole life insurance, get in touch with my friend Angie Bailey.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AFGBurgAngela/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/angela-angie-bailey-b1545025/

*Disclosure: This article is not intended to provide investment, insurance, or tax advice. Please consult
your own tax advisors regarding the comparative tax benefits of 529 plans, as well as the potential taxation of distributions from both 529 plans and whole life insurance policies