Buying A Home - The Most Important Step

Contrary to popular belief, getting a pre-approval is not the first and most important step in the homebuying process. When buying a home, especially if you are a first time homebuyer, there are many items that you need to pay particular attention to. However, there is one step that is of the utmost importance and is usually neglected by most homebuyers. Rarely, will a consumer ever buy anything that is more expensive than a home, therefore, special attention should be given to every aspect of the homebuying process. The most important step in the homebuying process is preparing a monthly budget.

Preparing a budget with your spouse before you even begin looking at homes or trying to see how much of a home you will qualify for should be done before anything else is even considered. Proper budgeting will allow you to figure out how much YOU and YOUR SPOUSE can comfortably afford each month for your mortgage payment. Everything needs to be considered in your monthly budget: mortgage, taxes, insurance, utilities, investments, other monthly debts, car payments, vacations, holiday spending, etc...

The reason as to why this is so important is simple. First off, when you get pre-approved for a mortgage loan, the lender does not take into consideration many personal aspects and factors to your finances. For example if you and your family like to take family vacations every year, if you like to run your air conditioning all year, if you like to invest 25% of your income into savings, retirement and investment accounts, if you have any health issues in your family that cost a considerable amount of money, and many other factors are not taken into consideration by a lender when they are pre-approving you for a mortgage.

The lender does not make your mortgage payment, you do. Just because you get approved for a certain amount does not mean you need to buy a home that is that much. Buy a home based on how much you want to spend, not on how much you are pre-approved for. Buying a home should not mean having to change your lifestyle and the way you prefer to live life. Way too many people end up buying too much home, with too high of a mortgage payment and they end up living paycheck to paycheck, stressed out, and in financial distress. Don't let this happen to you. Buying a home is an important and big part of a person's life and should be treated just as importantly.

Therefore, buy a home that is within your monthly means. Do not get caught up in stretching yourself too thin and living paycheck to paycheck. Anything can happen in life, loss of a job, serious illness, declining real estate market, significantly increased interest rates, etc... Stay in control of your finances, and budget your finances from the beginning to limit any potential future problems from ruining your finances and causing a lot of heartache and added stress.

The author of this article, Dave Zwierecki, is the President of First Security Financial Service and has over 10 years of experience in the credit, mortgage lending, and home improvement fields. He is the owner of http://www.GoFirstSecurity.com and http://www.TheMortgageU.com which are sites devoted to the education of consumers regarding real estate, mortgage, credit, and home improvement related material.

Top Five Home Improvement Considerations

Before you start your next home improvement project, there are five major considerations you must take into account. These include budget, skills, labor, foundations, and design. So, prior to your first trip to the hardware store and long before you even pick up a hammer, go over in detail each of these five considerations one-by-one. Keep reading to learn how to evaluate the five critical home improvement project factors.

Budget

Before you begin planning, set out a budget for yourself. Once you have a set amount in your mind, then start generating ideas and getting price quotes. When you're drawing up your final budget and cost estimates, always add at least 10-20%. This "slush" will cover most of your unexpected expenses including extra labor, weather delays and additional materials. Almost every project goes over budget, so it's best to accept and plan for it from the start.

Skills

If you're planning a do-it-yourself home improvement venture, take an honest inventory of your skills ahead of time. Make sure you understand what you're doing and know the work involved. Little is worse on a home project than wasted materials and a job that has to be redone by a professional because a do-it-yourselfer got in over his head.

Labor

If you think the project is more involved than your level of competence, give serious consideration to hiring labor. Before bringing on a contractor or even a day laborer who is simply there to help you paint or pour concrete, check the person's references. Also, conduct a brief interview to make sure you're working with someone you can trust. When hiring labor, try to be on-site as much as possible. It keeps the work moving forward and makes you accessible to answer questions or solve problems. Your presence also provides additional motivation and accountability for the worker you hire.

Foundation

There is the actual foundation of your house, which for most homes is the underground, concrete foundation that holds your home in place. However, there are also foundational, or core, functions that go into a house - structural, plumbing, electrical and ventilation. When starting a major home renovation, that is a good time to look into revamping or updating those four areas. For example, while you're ripping down walls anyway, consider this an opportunity to install better insulation and tight-seal windows.

Design

Before you begin a home improvement project, especially one that's going to be done in stages, verify that all your pieces fit together. If you're updating the kitchen in a modern and contemporary style, for example, check whether it will fit with your country barn plans for the living room. If you're stuck for ideas, one option is to hire an interior designer for a consulting session and ask that individual to come in for an hour or two to provide ideas about the best way to use your space. Interior designers are not normally cheap, but in the end their expertise is well worth the cost.

To help meet your home improvement needs, such as for beautiful replacement windows, great flooring options, home improvement loans, and much more, please visit http://www.home-improvement-needs.com for insightful information.

Use What You Have Decorating : Transform Your Home in One Hour With Ten Simple Design Principles -- Using the Space You Have, the Things You Like, the Budget You Choose

Finally, finally, a practical home-decorating book for the reader who is not a millionaire! Rather than call in a professional design consultant to tell you which walls "must go" and throwing out everything you own in favor of new and expensive designer fabrics, furniture, and fixtures, Ward starts with what you already have and makes dramatic transformations by arrangement, use of color, and a few inexpensive additions of objects or materials. Her idea is to use what you already have and like, and operate on a budget you can afford to make your home more satisfying and aesthetically pleasing to you without being a slave to passing trends, fads, and radical transformations that end up making you feel like a stranger in your own home.

Among the many tips and guidelines, Ward starts with the top 10 decorating mistakes that professionals all know about, but that anyone can recognize and fix. She covers diagnosing problems that jar the eyes, offers suggestions on items to banish and others to borrow from elsewhere in the home to create more visual appeal, talks about how to shop for furniture that will work with what you already own, offers tips for new homeowners and people just starting out to make older furniture work in new spaces, and covers the kinds of dramatic improvements possible through the use of the right artwork, accessories, and lighting. This is a great gift book for newlyweds, new homeowners, or anyone interested in creative, lively home decorating without breaking the bank. --Mark A. Hetts

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Follow These Ten Tips on Budgeting and Be in Command of Your Finances

The most effective way to fix your financial problems is to be aware of exactly where you stand with money. These ten tips on budgeting will show you how to take command.

Tips On Budgeting 1 - Why You Need A Budget

The main reason to construct and monitor a budget is to put you in control. This will also help to reduce all the stresses you have about your money and where it goes. A further benefit is that it will help you control and reduce your debts if you have them, plan for the future and save money.

Tips On Budgeting Two - How To Plan Your Budget

To start off your budget plan don't just concentrate on your current income and outgoings. You need to plan for your future and budget for savings plans or other interest generating activities that will look after you in the longer term.

Tips On Budgeting 3 - Getting Your Budget Started

Your budget must record monthly income and costs and set it up so that you can plan for the months ahead. Knowing exactly how much income you get every month is often a lot easier to record than all of your monthly outgoings. Before you create your budget lay your hands on your check account statements for the last year as well as your credit card records. You need to do this so that you don't omit sporadic expenditure (every three months or yearly).

Tips On Budgeting Four - Now Make Your Budget

Use the first column of your worksheet to record your income at the top and then below list all of your regular expenditure. As well as the most obvious payments such as mortgage, electric and gas bills, loan repayments and so on list all of the cash payments that you make regularly like commuting, coffee and lunches, eating out and mobile phone top ups.

Tips On Budgeting 5 - Positive Or Negative?

After you are sure you have recorded everything then you are ready to tally up everything and calculate if you have a positive cash result at the end or a negative one. Many of you will end up with a negative balance which shows you are spending more than you earn. If you find yourself in this situation don't worry. The truth will set you free.

Tips On Budgeting Six - Examine Your Expenditure

Carefully look at all areas of your expenditure. Do you think there are items you can eliminate or reduce your spending on? Without a doubt there will be. Dining out, buying newspapers, coffee everyday, extravagant purchases, too many cell phone calls, using cabs where you should have used the bus or subway, hopping in the car for short journeys when you should have walked or used cheaper means to get there, the hundreds of cable or satellite channels that you subscribe to and rarely watch - the list is endless. Set yourself a target to drive out all unnecessary spending - don't go for 30% go for 100%. Even if you don't meet this target you will be surprised at how much you will save over time.

Tips On Budgeting Seven - Keep It Up To Date

There is no point in creating a budget for one time use. You must update it regularly with items you have forgotten, unplanned expenditure, increases in income and so on. You can also use it to control future spending. Try this technique - work out what your weekly expenditure needs to be in terms of groceries, commuting and cash payments and then withdraw exactly that amount of cash at the start of the week and use it. You will likely find that you will eliminate even more unnecessary items as it will be really painful to part with the cash.

Tips On Budgeting Eight - Plan For The Longer Term

Another advantage of having a budget is planning for your future. You can schedule expenditure for savings, retirement plans, future vacations, next car purchase, next home purchase, putting your kids through college and even a second honeymoon. Whatever your dreams for the future are you can plan for them with a well thought out budget.

Tips On Budgeting 9 - Why Not Improve Your Income?

Don't only concentrate on reducing expenditure, but consider how to improve your income. There are a multitude of ways that you can achieve this - work overtime, another part time job, have a yard sale, sell all the items you no longer require or need on eBay or start a home business. By concentrating on increasing your income then you will become so busy that time will not be available to visit the mall and waste your money on things that are not really needed.

Tips On Budgeting 10 - Start Right Now

You will experience an enormous feeling of relief and pride after you have constructed your budget and finally have control over your finances. Don't be like the majority of people who are not in control and have no idea where their money is being spent. It doesn't matter if your budget is negative, you now have the power to change the situation. These tips on budgeting will help you if you take action - so use them now!

Crystal Graham is a financially savvy writer who has a passion for helping people save more of their money. You can learn additional tips on budgeting and a lot of other saving money advice at her blog=> http://www.savingcashnow.com

Making A Budget Plan - Why Should You Budget Your Money?

Do you dream of financial security? Working a 9-5 job and bringing home money supports you and your family but do you have dreams you are not realizing?

Making a budget plan is the only way that you can secure your financial future and realize your dreams. Whether you are barely making ends meet or you are making a decent amount of money, making a budget plan is the only way to harness the power of your money and put it to work for you.

Before you set about making a budget plan, what is it you want? You can't craft a vision of your future if you don't know what it is that you want. What are your dreams and goals? Do you want to take a nice vacation? Do you want to buy a new car? Do you just want to pay off your debt and not struggle every month?

Your dreams don't have to be grandiose but you need to identify them and write them down. Then you can decide the best way to get there by making a budget plan and getting a grip on your money. No matter how much money you make, the extra money can tend to slip away from you without a plan.

Figure out how much money you bring in every month and then figure out what your expenses are. Usually the income part is easy but the expenses part can get complicated. Start with your fixed expenses like your mortgage / rent, car payment, insurance and anything else that is the same every month. Then move on to figuring your variable expenses but be sure and plan high rather than low.

After you know what you make and what you spend, subtract your expenses from your income. The number left over will either leave you money at the end of the month, show that you are breaking even or that you are overspending. If you are overspending or breaking even, something has to change. Some solutions are to cut your expenses, find cheaper housing or maybe even get another job in order to not spend more than you make. You will have to decide what works for you.

The bottom line is that in order to realize your goals, you have to be able to save money each and every month. If you have to, put your savings toward getting out of debt at first. Then as your debt is paid off, you will have even more money to put towards saving for your dreams and goals.

Making a budget plan shouldn't make you anxious and shouldn't make you feel like you are never going to have any fun ever again. It's the best way to actually have more fun in your life and less anxiety. Click Here to get more information on how to plan a household budget and download a FREE budget spreadsheet. You can also use a FREE calculator tool.

How to Budget For Your New Timber Frame Home

One of the first things people think about before building a new timber frame home is "how much can I afford?" Many things affect the budget including site work, the design of your new home, the wood species you choose for the timber frame, choice of windows, and what materials you choose to finish your house.

There are a few big budget items that people do not typically think about when planning for their new timber frame home. One of the biggest factors people do not think about is their site. It can be very costly to prepare the site for your new home, however, it all depends on the complexity of the site. Does your property have a lot of boulders and trees to be removed? Or is your site already cleared?

The design of your new home can also impact your budget. The more complex the timber frame structure is, the more expensive it will be. For example, a Hammer Beam Truss timber frame system frame is more expensive principal purlin frame.

Also the more windows, gables, dormers and corners in your new homes design will have an impact on the overall cost. For example, a colonial style home with no dormers will cost less than a custom two story home with multiple dormers and extensions. Another thing to consider when budgeting for your new home is deciding on whether or not you want a finished basement. Using the finished basement as living space can lower your cost per square foot.

A typical timber frame package includes the exterior shell of the home (timber frame, Structural Insulated Panels, windows, doors, siding, roofing, and trim), and is only one part of the house, the exterior shell. The following are some other factors you will have to consider:

? What kind of heating system do I want?

? What kind of siding will we have?

? Will there be a fireplace?

? What kind of flooring will be used and where?

? What type of kitchen cabinets and appliances do I want?

? Am I going to build a garage right away?

How do you go about establishing costs that fit into your budget? First, interview local custom builders. Begin by consulting acquaintances who have built custom homes or check with your local chapter of the National Home Builders Association. Your builder will help you establish costs for all areas of the house.

Next, prioritize the rooms according to your main focus. For instance, most timber frame homes highlight the Great Room. And, if you're an aspiring Chef or plan to do a lot of entertaining, the kitchen will also be a big focus. Look at those areas first and choose a timber frame system that enhances those areas but stays within your allowance for those rooms. Next work with your builder to establish a budget to work within. Then you can determine how the rest of the house can be finished to stay within your budget.

If your budget is tight, consider a hybrid system, combining timber framing with conventional stick frame construction for other areas of the house. Your builder can also recommend appliances, flooring, and finish materials to help you stay within budget.

Contact Davis Frame today by calling 1-800-636-0993 to receive our construction budget worksheet to help you get started! We are happy to answer your questions in regards to budgeting and costs for your new timber frame home.

2010 Copyright of Davis Frame Company
http://www.davisframe.com

Best Money Tips: Strange Ways to Make Money

Welcome to Wise Bread's Best Money Tips roundup! Today, we give you an unconventional idea for a side business, a survivor's list of edible plants, and tips to save money on kids' winter wear!.

Scoop the Poop: Strange Ways to Make Money — According to this post, a poop-scooping business is pretty simple to set up. Extra income is always good! SavingAdvice

Surviving in the Wild: 19 Common Edible Plants — On the list are burdock, cattail, dandelion, fireweed, and others. Plus: This guide comes with pictures! The Art of Manliness

Tips for Saving on Children's Winter Clothing — Don't store away the summer clothes just yet! Layer them with long-sleeved shirts and jackets for the mild days. Not Made of Money

How To Develop Sticky Ideas — As the story of the Post-It note shows, you need to let your mind wander and explore an idea before you reject it. The Skinny On

Get Organized Fast: 7 Things You Can Do This Weekend — Organize your mind by making a list, journal entry, spreadsheet, whatever it takes to get the to-dos, worries, and chaotic ideas spinning in your head out. Get Organized Wizard

Ask These 4 Questions In An Interview To Get The Job — Don't leave the interview wondering how you did. Ask your interviewer if they have any doubts about you; if they do, here's your chance to address them! Business Insider

6 Ways to Change the Impact of Food on your Budget — Grocery delivery can be worth the extra $20 a month if it means you're making meals at home. My Dollar Plan

Are You Prepared to File Taxes Yet? — When it comes to filing your taxes, prep what you can over the course of the year (or these upcoming months) to avoid the mad dash when deadlines approach. Money Crashers via Currency

How to Cut Your Meetings in Half — The first step is to schedule the meeting for half the time. (The pressure is on!) Time Management Ninja

Eight Steps to Early Semi-Retirement — Semi-retirement might just hit that sweet spot between work and full-time retirement. Free Money Finance

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The Home Drop Ship Guide

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Which Home Based Business?

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`SleepDri Budget Reuse Quilted Underpad 32" x 36" w/o Flaps

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Home Exchange Academy

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25,000 Reasons to Pamper Your Credit

Would you take good care of your credit score if you knew someday it could save you $25,000? What if you wouldn't see the savings immediately, if you had to wait a year or two? How about if you had to wait 10 years — could you keep your credit score healthy if you knew it would pay off big time?

I'm sure you've heard many cautionary tales of families that ruined their credit and couldn't get a loan when they needed it most. How would you like to hear something a little different? Rather than keeping you up at night worrying about all the bad things that can happen financially when you have bad credit, what if I could tell you a story that might get you excited about the opportunities that come from good credit?

Just a few months ago, we were a family whose credit score didn't really make much difference in our daily lives. It had been 10 years since we'd bought a house and eight years since we borrowed money for a car. We hadn't really needed our credit score for its primary purpose — to help us get a loan.

Then suddenly, in two short weeks, our credit score went from relative obscurity to one of the most important numbers in our life. For a variety of reasons, we were looking to buy a house but we couldn't afford all the criteria we were looking for in a new home.

That all changed one Friday afternoon when our realtor called me with some good news and some bad news. We had made an unbelievably low offer on a short sale, for $25,000 less than their already discounted asking price. Good news was that the bank had accepted our offer, but the bad news was we had to close on the new house by the following Friday.

If you've ever applied for a home loan, you know that you can't just go out and borrow hundreds of thousands of dollars in one week's time. The only thing that stood between us and an amazing deal on a house was the bank underwriting process.

Thanks to some skillful maneuvering by our realtor to buy us a little more time and the fast-tracking of our loan by our bank, we ended up closing on the house five hours before the deadline. None of that would have been possible if it weren't for a good credit history and excellent credit score.

Your credit is one of those things that you can ignore for a long time but when the moment comes, you'll wish you hadn't. It's kind of like ignoring a major health condition: You can get by for a while and feel just fine but eventually it will come back to bite you big time.

If we had ignored our credit for the last 10 years, there's no way we would have gotten the deal we just did. Not only that — your credit score impacts your interest rate, which can end up saving or costing you thousands of dollars over the life of a home mortgage.

So, how do you pamper your credit?

Make your payments on time.Keep your balances low.Don't close old accounts.Keep your credit utilization low (used credit vs. available credit).

Taking care of your credit basically means showing future potential lenders that you don't borrow more than you can afford and that you regularly pay back what you owe. Stick to those principles and you might have a chance to save a lot of money in the future. It could be less than $25K, or maybe more. The thing is, you'll never know unless you pamper your credit score!

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6 Secrets Restaurants Don't Want You to Know

Americans love eating out, and they do it often too. It's not unheard of for someone to eat out more than 10 times every week. Yet, this is one area where practice doesn't always make perfect. Below are five secrets that even the typical "eat-out junkie" probably doesn't know.

It is a well-known statistic that whatever is on the "recommended list" boosts popularity by another 30%. If the waiters/waitresses push for them, the number goes even higher. Sometimes, we want you to order them because that's the tastiest dish so you will leave a bigger tip. Other times, we push certain dishes because the ingredients are able to expire, or that our profit margin are the highest. We might try different combinations to up sell you more food so you will end up paying more, too.

We want you to come in and get out so the next customer can sit down. In order to do that, we have to prepare as much as possible in advance. Sometimes, it includes preparing salads and putting everything in the fridge. Other times, it means cooking your food for half the time in the morning so we can finish the rest when you order it at night. If you can't tell, we won't tell.

Not many fishermen would go out on Sundays, so forget fresh seafood on Mondays. Then there's the head chef, dictating everything around the kitchen until he's off that day, of course. Eat at the restaurant on that particular day of the week, and you have the best chance of trying out how great our microwave is out back.

A secret to getting rid of steak gone bad is to serve it to customers who order their meat fully cooked. Since the flavor is just about all gone by the time the steak is well done, no one will know the steak was bad in the first place.

We offer free refills on these, and when you leave, we just fill the bowl up and serve it to the next customer without washing the bowl. As we can't control who washes their hands after a bathroom visit, you are on your own if you love the free food we give you.

You know that guy over there? He paid less than half you did because he used a Restaurant.com coupon. You will never know, though, and we'd be happy to charge you full price every time you come in, even if you are one of our loyal customers.

If you read all of the above and still become a regular at our restaurant, I know you probably have no other choice but to come, in which case I will probably raise the prices on the menu, too.

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Why Should You Plan, and Why Budget?

It is amazing how many people are barely making ends meet. It is even more amazing how many people are taking their finances for granted by failing to plan and budget. People assume that planning and budgeting is for the other guy, or some large corporation.

I personally believe that it is a shame that our society has not focused on teaching these basic, and yes I say basic, life skills. Planning and budgeting focus on creating short and long-term life goals, and creating controls and measures by which we can discipline ourselves to meet and achieve those objectives. Some people cringe when they hear "controls and measures", but we must remember that knowledge is power. Controls and measures provide you with the knowledge to know when adjustments must be made to keep the course. You must not be afraid of what a budget plan will disclose, instead use that information and everything at your disposal to change a potentially bad situation into something positive. The idea is to not bury your head in the sand, but with open eyes plot an expected end.

Everyone should have goals and a vision for their lives. It is not enough to just want something; you must consider and learn what it takes to get that thing you desire. A critical and base part of knowing how to get something, is knowing what you currently have. When you think of navigation, whether it is for boating or airplanes, they both must know the starting and ending points before they can plot the best track to the destination; you must also have a realistic understanding of your starting point. Your financial starting point comprises, but is not limited to your current cash flow, and other resources at your disposal.

In order to reach and achieve your goals and thusly realize your vision, you must plot a course and direction that will guide you to the destination (goal). Budgets provide the financial roadmap (navigational plan) to achieving your goals. At its best the budget should be living, and adjustable, consistently providing a view to the prize (the goal). When I say adjustable, I mean it must provide the visibility to be able to change upcoming discretionary debt sources to accommodate current day unexpected expenditures; these changes will in effect balance the budget. With regards to view, your ability to follow-through with the budget will greatly depend on your ability to keep the goal in sight.

To be successful you must plan and budget. Every small, medium, and large business including corporations plans and uses budgets. Budgets provide the roadmap for their fiscal success by ensuring that the money is applied to items that will help the company meet its goals. We than as everyday people should do no less, and use budgets as a means of achieving our goals.

Given the times in which we live, budgets are more of a requirement than an option. Look for a budgeting program that provides visibility, changeability, and maintainability. Visibility is the ability to consistently see the goal; your vision and goals will provide the continued motivation to follow-though with the plan. Changeability is the ease at which you can make changes that are rolled out through the entire budget. The ability to be able to easily create, edit, and delete income and debt sources will determine the ease at which you will be able to tailor a budget the meets your requirements. And lastly, the budget must be maintainable, it must be living and not rigid; you will need the ability to see where a current expenditure has caused the budget to go negative in the future, so you can adjust an upcoming discretionary expenditure to balance the budget.

Charles Blake writes on personal finance, budgeting, and planning. Lean more by visiting my blog, Personal Finances and Planning
http://www.livingbudgetpro.com

Home Energy Efficiency Manual /Tips And Advices To Save Money At Home

Tips and advices on things you can do that will not cost money and will save up to 50% on the energy demand in your home. Written by a Home Energy Efficiency Consultant

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Minka-Aire Fans F565-WH 52" Mesa Traditional Indoor Flush Mount White Ceiling Fan

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Easy Budget for Feature Films (Windows)

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ACME Cherry Swivel Bar Stool, 29"H

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Buying Your First Home: Setup A Realistic Budget

With mortgage rates still low, and a number of flexible loan programs available, it has never been easier to buy your first home. You have some money saved, and being pre-qualified by a lender, you feel you are ready to find that dream home. But you need to set time aside to review your household budget to see the real financial impact of home ownership before you shop. By doing this you will have a much easier transition to home ownership and at the same time get a handle on the amount it costs you to live each month.

When you are pre-qualified for a mortgage loan by a lender there are key debt to income factors that are taken into account. First your gross qualifying income is calculated. This is your paycheck before anything is taken out for federal tax, state tax, and SSI. You may have additional deductions for group health or retirement contribution. What you have left over is what is generally termed as "take home pay." This is the amount that needs to be looked at closely to get a realistic consideration as to how much you are willing to pay each month for a house payment.

The second factor that the lender takes into consideration is your monthly debt. But the debt that is counted is mostly restricted to what the new mortgage payment will be which includes property taxes and homeowners insurance, installment loans, revolving charge cards and child support or alimony that currently appear on the credit bureau. This gives the lender a debt to income ratio in which to determine if the buyer qualifies for a particular loan program. There are other aspects that will decide whether the loan is ultimately granted. What we are looking at here is the debt to income consideration only.

So this leaves it up to you to take the extra step in really figuring what it will mean to you to own a home with the take home pay you have. What you are looking at is not only the increase from rent payment to mortgage payment, but also the increase in such things as utilities, cable and garbage service. These may be included in your rent and completely overlooked.

You can make your own personal list and break it down as follows:

· House payment- it is the full amount of principle, interest, taxes, homeowner's insurance & if any mortgage insurance. If you were given the choice of paying your own taxes & insurance instead of the lender collecting the payment then plan to put 1/12 of the amounts away each month to meet the billings when they are due.

· Utilities- Gas, electric, water, garbage and cable. Several of these can have wide swings month-to-month depending on seasonal usage. The utility companies have plans where you can pay a level monthly payment thereby having control of these particular expenses.

· Household expenses- Food, household items, clothes are ongoing outlays. Look at your checks and receipts for the last 12 months and come up with an average monthly amount spent for each of these items.

· Charge cards, car loans, other installment loans, medical & dental bills- make sure that if you are only paying the minimum it is only for the purpose of budgeting for a home otherwise eliminate as much as possible.

· Car expense- Average the gas & repairs on the vehicles for the last 12 months. Car insurance is another expense that can be prorated over 12 months rather than a large lump sum each year.

· Other expenses- these are the ones you may totally eliminate, but do you really want to? These are the fun things to do like eating out, movies, recreation, hobbies and vacations that round out your life. You want to feel good about owning your home and not feel trapped in it watching television as your only source of entertainment.

It is very likely that as a first time homebuyer that your housing expense will go up noticeably from what you were used to with renting. Don't let it overwhelm you. By taking the time to see where your money goes you get a realistic perspective on what you can afford. If homeownership appears out of range then perhaps cutting back some expenses, or if possible totally eliminating some, will get you into that first home.

Bill Wehr publishes mortgage articles at [http://www.mortgagejourney.com]. Bill has an MBA and is the owner of Great Pacific Northwest Mortgage http://www.billwehr.com serving Oregon and Washington. For loans please complete a secure on-line application at http://www.portlandoregonmortgages.com.

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Travel and Money: Passport Carrying Tips

Traveling safely and managing your money along the way is an exercise in balancing multiple risks: theft, loss, high surcharges, and confusing discrepancies. This Travel and Money series discusses various ways to address money and security issues while you are abroad.

Today, we're talking about ways to carry your passport. Although carrying your passport doesn't directly pertain to your money, losing it (or having it stolen) can be a costly disaster to contend with that could throw an unwanted curve ball into your vacation.

Here are some techniques to help you reduce the chances of your passport going missing, and to make the recovery process much easier for you if it does.

You need your original passport for border crossings and navigating airports. In most other cases (such as checking into accommodation) you can use either your original or a copy (we'll get to that in a minute). So the only time you need to have your original passport on your person is when you're actively traveling.

I keep my passport in a slim passport wallet that I wear around my waist which fits underneath my clothing. I can access it subtly in a pinch, and keep it relatively hidden and secure when I don't need it — thus reducing the chance of it being stolen from my purse or pocket.

When I'm settled in to my accommodation, I leave my original passport in the room. Keeping it in a safe within the room is my first preference; otherwise I lock it up in my suitcase while I'm out of the room. Some hotels and hostels also offer secure storage at reception, which is an option.

Aside from clearing official security checkpoints and borders, you can usually present a photocopy when your passport is requested. A simple copy of the photo and signature page will do, as it contains all the information necessary for somebody checking your identity.

The reality is, the less you need to handle your passport in public, the less the chances are that your passport will go missing or get stolen. So whenever you can use a photocopy of your passport, you should.

I keep a photocopy of my passport with me at all times, in my purse. That way, I have viable identification when needed, and if something happens to the original, I have a backup copy that I can march into my consulate with to start the recovery process.

I'm all about double and triple backups since I travel full-time, so I also have a scan (picture) of my passport's picture and signature page. I keep a copy of this on my computer, as well as on an encrypted USB stick that is kept underneath my clothing at all times. Some people also like to email themselves a scan of their passport so they can access it electronically if necessary.

With this extra level of backup and security, I know that even if everything I own goes missing, I can still walk into my consulate with the USB stick and get the help I need.

And as a last (last) resort, it never hurts to leave a copy of your passport with somebody at home. You never know if or when it will be necessary, and when you travel, it's always better to be safe than sorry.

If you're applying for your passport, check out this article on getting passport pictures on the cheap.

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10 Financial Perks of Marriage

Have you heard the stories about how finances are one of the leading causes of divorce? What exactly are people arguing about? Being married actually has some pretty good financial perks!

I don't mean to downplay the financial challenges of married life. We've had our share of heated discussions over money; but there are some definite benefits to pooling together your resources in marriage. Here are ten ways that you and your spouse are hooking each other up.

If you're both working, you have access to each other's employee benefit plans. You can mix and match between the two to pick the best fit for your family. If one spouse loses their job, they can fall back on the other's benefits. If only one spouse is working, then the obvious benefit is that the non-working spouse has access to benefits.

As a married couple, you have the added benefit of being able to add multiple cars to one insurance policy. This multi-car discount can help you save money on car insurance.

For those who live separately before getting married, the notion of combining homes or apartments is one of the best financial perks of marriage. By consolidating to a single mortgage or rent payment you can save hundreds of dollars each month.

Similar to making only one rent or mortgage payment, married couples enjoy the added advantage of having to only make a single payment for their utility bill. When you take away a whole set of water, gas, electric, and trash bills you'll definitely save money each month.

See a pattern here? Consolidating to one set of bills can really make a difference. Not only are you getting rid of an insurance bill, now you're covering all the same stuff with only one deductible instead of two.

When married couples move in together, they often downsize their furniture and appliances to only one set. Not only does this mean less to take care of and maintain, you can also make decent money by selling your furniture and appliances.

This one only applies if you owned a house or apartment before getting married. Since marriage usually means moving in together, you only have to pay property taxes on a single property instead of two.

Filing your taxes can cost a chunk of change if you hire an accountant. If you file jointly, suddenly you have one tax prep bill instead of two. It won't save you as much if you're just using tax prep software, but it still saves you at least an e-file.

If you use a rewards credit card with a tiered reward structure, having both spouses using the same account can boost you into the higher tier of rewards more quickly. For example, we use the Blue Cash card where the higher tier means 5% cash back instead of 1% — a big difference.

While everyone likes to splurge on purchases every once in a while, doing so too often can put a big dent in your bank account. If you know your spouse is going to see a big charge on your card or debit from your bank account you may be less likely to spend money on something you don't really need.

It's not just the fear of being quizzed by your spouse about a big bill that keeps you honest with your money. Having to share the same financial resources means you're more likely to discuss spending ahead of time and make shared decisions. That other voice of reason can sometimes help save you from bad money choices.

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Living Within Your Budget

Having a budget in place and living within it are not the same. You will always find you want something that is not budgeted for and you will always be tempted to buy on credit.

In order to develop great budgetary habits, first try and figure out why you need a budget. Unless you have a good reason, you will not feel motivated enough to stick to your budget. Whatever your reason - to clear out your credit card debt or take a vacation - write it down and display it in a place where you are likely to see it everyday.

The second step is to evaluate your expenses. Unless you examine your expenses everyday, you will have no idea of where your money is coming from and where it is going. Take a few minutes at the end of each week to update your records and save yourself the extra effort at the end of the month. You will actually find it takes lesser time if you do this exercise weekly instead of all at one go.

The next step is to identify the exact areas where you are spending too much. If you find you have had some unforeseen expense which has thrown your budget haywire, set up a short term savings fund to take care of emergency expenses such as medical bills.

You can use a variety of methods to cut down on your expenses in general. You could compare car insurance rates and take the cheapest deal. You could conserve your usage of utilities. Instead of renting a house, buy one. You get tax benefits on your home loan interest which actually makes it cheaper to own rather than rent out a place. Avoid eating out too often. Carry your own lunch to work. If you do eat out, find out places that are not so expensive. Instead of going out to watch a movie, rent it out. Use less gas by consolidating your errands such as doing your groceries in one shot on a particular day of the week.

Eventually you may find that you have reduced your expenses as much as possible and that you need to earn more. You can do this by investing wisely so you can earn dividends. You can even work towards getting a degree that will help you get a promotion or even a new job that pays you more. You can also think of setting up a home-based business that will entitle you to several tax deductions.

Allan enjoys writing up on a variety of subjects. Other than the above topic, he also likes to set up sites on different topics. Do check out his new site which covers useful information on bad breath cure and get rid of bad breath.

5 Steps to an Air Tight Budget

If you aim for nothing you'll hit it. Creating a plan and outlining your financial goals is crucial to tracking and sticking to a budget. Without one, you have no way of establishing and regulating funds. You have no way to track any financial objectives you've set, nor do you have the ability to see when you'll be able to meet said objectives. The basic idea behind creating a budget is to put aside fixed amounts of money for both expected and unexpected results.

When creating a budget, there is an order in which one must go about establishing finances. When you've sat down to plan out your week, month, year, or whatever, I have found the following steps to be most efficient:

1. Establish Your Income

The first thing to do is figure out how much money you bring home after taxes. That means whatever number is on your check and actually ends up in your bank account is how much you have to spend. It's better to establish this based on how often you're paid. If you're paid once a month, you should write your monthly salary, but if you're paid bi-weekly you should write what you take home bi-weekly.

If you're paid bi-weekly and you're planning for the entire month, write down how much you make bi-weekly. Then, in another set space, take your biweekly check and multiply it by 2.16 to adjust for the entire month.

2. Define Fixed Expenses

Your first deductions of your income should be your fixed expenses. This means things like car payments, mortgage payments, insurance, groceries, and etc. Include anything you pay regularly, even if it's bi-monthly. Don't forget to include things that are paid once every 6 months or once a year.

3. Set Aside Money For Rainy Days

An effective plan for accidents is to have 6 months of income set aside in case you lose your job. However, in this economy it's not always realistic to have half a years worth of money sitting in the bank. Still, every month you should give an estimation as to something that may go wrong. Have your breaks been acting up? Is that chip in your windshield looking better? Have you had any toothaches lately? Better safe than sorry.

4. Give Yourself Some Spending Money!

Never forget to give yourself some money to play with. Even if it's as small as 5% of your pay check, that extra $20 could go to eating out one night, or catching a movie with some friends. Everyone deserves a bit of fun every now and then, and it's still important to track that money is being spent -- even if it's not on necessities.

5. Write Down Your Savings

Now take what you have leftover and write down how much you'd like to save. If you have $512 leftover, you might as well just put the $500 away and put the $12 towards paying of debt or doing something fun. Same goes if you have $78 or $13. Take away an increment and put the rest towards something else. It will make budgeting that much easier.

Are you ready to budget but having trouble getting everything in order? The 20-Minute Finance Fixer is a great way to get the ball rolling.

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Home Office Budget Decorating Ideas

Working from home is becoming more common today than ever before. For this reason, more people are transforming a room or part of their home into a mini home office. Creating a home office can be expensive but there are ways that you can reduce the cost and still have everything you need. Below are some great ideas to help you get started.

Ideas for decorating your home office:

Choose the place where you want your office to be. If you don't have a room that you can use, then choose a space that is the most secluded in the home where you will have the least amount of interruptions.

After choosing your spot, figure out just how much room you have to work with. This will help you to determine what options you'll have when it comes to furniture, shelves, storage bins and so forth.

Take the time to paint or put up wallpaper to define your area and to make it more comfortable to work in. Both options are affordable and something you can do yourself.

Start with the main piece of furniture you'll need, which will be the computer desk. If you don't already have a desk you can build one or take your time and look around for a great deal. You can search for used furniture at consignment stores, discount stores, flea markets, garage sales and so forth.

Use stackable drawers to save space and still have the storage space needed to keep all of your files and paperwork.

Add plants, pictures and other things that can help to inspire you to work better and more efficiently.

Stand up lamps are in-expensive and a great way to add the light you need to work comfortably.

Don't be afraid to be creative and try different things. This is how you come up with great ideas that truly work. The ideas listed above can help you get started creating the perfect home office on a budget. This way, you can have everything you need to create a comfortable work environment without spending over your budget.

Lisa Mason, Professional wordsmith for hire: gamer, wife, mother, entrepreneur, published poet, co-owner of game guides company, public speaker and Internet business consultant. You can learn more or follow Lisa's blog from her website: http://www.freelancewriter4hire.com.

This article is part of an exciting collection at Unique Decor Online. You can see more articles like this at: http://giftsanddecor.wordpress.com/.

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Digital - At Home With Hebrew

Digital - At Home With Hebrew is a condensed version of At Home With Hebrew. We offer the same high quality of instruction and content, but in a convenient package of 1 PDF combined with 14 MP3 files and a bonus offer for Lesson 1 of Hebrew Kindergarten.

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Oktoberfest Money-Saving Secrets Revealed - Budget Travel Guide

Growing Niche. Oktoberfest Veteran Shares His Secrets To Make The Most Out Of The Once-In-A-Lifetime Trip To Munich's Octoberfest, And How To Save Thousands Of Dollars On Airfare, Hotel, Tours & More. 75% Commissions!

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How to Have a Successful Garage Sale

I recently had my first garage sale ever as an adult. It was a wild success, if I do say so myself. In dollar terms, let's just say we made enough to go out to at least four gourmet dinners, which is completely worth the effort in my book. How'd I do it? Here are some things I did that might be helpful when you plan your own sale:

Letting people know you're having a sale is, of course, one of the most important parts of the equation. I put a posting on Craigslist on the Monday before the sale describing the location, time, and some of the better items for sale. I noticed that others who were posting about garage sales were including pictures and descriptions of some of their priciest items — a good idea, in my opinion, because people will email you ahead of the sale to purchase those items at full price. I also purchased a Friday ad in my local paper ($14), only because I assume professional garage sale shoppers scour these ahead of the weekend.

Finally, I made numerous signs to be put up at major intersections near my home and in my neighborhood to guide people to the sale. Be sure to check your local ordinances and neighborhood covenants for stipulations about signs, though, and always remember to take them down after the sale.

The two most important things to keep in mind when setting up your garage sale are money and time. As far as cost, keep it low by borrowing everything you need, including tables and clothing racks. For these, I called on friends and family. All told, I'd say I borrowed about six long folding tables, a shelving unit, and a clothing rack, which was perfect for my modest two-car garage.

I say to keep time, as well as cost, in mind because I failed to do just that. Apparently, lugging tables and clothing racks, setting them up, arranging items and pricing them takes some time. Who knew? I assumed (wrongly) that it was something I could knock out on the Friday evening before the sale. Give yourself several days to collect items, set up, and price items. And, speaking of pricing items, I erred on the high side. That way, people will bargain and feel like they're getting a great deal.

I also recommend pricing items either by table (as in, "all items on this table $2") or by type (as in, "all pants $2"). This is MUCH easier than pricing individual items. On the other hand, people don't like to look around, decide what category an item fits in, and try to guess price. So put prices on items that aren't clearly in one category or the other. Lastly, I'd only price in one-quarter increments — who wants to deal with making change in pennies, nickels, and dimes?

Have a cash box ready with plenty of bills and change. Despite the 20 or so $1 bills I had before the sale, I somehow found myself running short by 9 a.m.! Luckily, my parents stopped by (a consequence of living in the same town, I guess), and I hit them up for some change for a $10 bill. Problem solved, but you might not have that luxury. Prepare accordingly. Also be sure to keep the cash box on you at all times. It might seem like a no-brainer, but it bears mentioning.

Here is a hodgepodge of tidbits to keep in mind during the actual sale:

The majority of people will be in and out of your sale within the first half hour, since the serious garage sale shoppers know that you have to go early to get the good stuff! After that, it's a pretty consistent (though sparse) stream until near the end of your sale. Mine was from 7 to 11 a.m.
Don't be afraid to tell people to leave. This is your home, and you should feel safe. I doubt this is the norm, but I had to do it after a strange man decided that it would be appropriate to shout expletives at his wife/girlfriend via cell phone at the end of my driveway. He wasn't buying anything, anyway.
Consider selling other items. In my case, we sold brand-new tailgating chairs (a long story relating to a failed chair store endeavor some years back), but you could also sell baked goods or coffee.
Do something with your barky dog. I thought about it beforehand, but couldn't think of a good solution to keep my giant Boxer from greeting people loudly when they approached. Perhaps you can come up with a solution for your own sale.

The work of a garage sale doesn't end at closing time, unfortunately. After the sale, you might consider selling some of your better unsold items on Craigslist (none of the shipping hassle that comes with eBay). You might also consider leaving some of your larger unwanted items on the curb and creating a "for free" post on Craigslist. Chances are, the item will be gone before the evening, no further hassle on your part required! Other items can be donated to your local Goodwill or Salvation Army, or you might consider posting an ad on The Freecycle Network.

In addition to taking care of unsold items, don't forget to return any borrowed tables or clothing racks to friends and family in a timely manner. And, after all is said and done, consider doing something worthwhile with the money you've earned from the sale. Although I said I made enough at my sale to pay for four gourmet dinners, I think my money will be better served in a high interest-rate checking account. Well, maybe whatever is left after just one gourmet dinner.

What about you? What experiences have you had that led to a successful garage sale? Share your thoughts!

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Men in Black (+ BD Live) [Blu-ray]

This imaginative summer comedy from director Barry Sonnenfeld (Get Shorty) is a lot of fun, largely on the strength of Will Smith's engaging performance as the rookie partner of a secret agent (Tommy Lee Jones) assigned to keep tabs on Earth-dwelling extraterrestrials. There's lots of comedy to spare in this bright film, some of the funniest stuff found in the margins of the major action. (A scene with Smith's character being trounced in the distance by a huge alien while Jones questions a witness is a riot.) The inventiveness never lets up, and the cast--including Vincent D'Onofrio doing frighteningly convincing work as an alien occupying a decaying human--hold up their end splendidly. --Tom Keogh

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You're In The Driver's Seat With An Online Budgeting Program

If you've tried using personal finance software to take control of your household budget only to find yourself with more questions than answers, take a look and seriously consider an innovative online budgeting tool.

An online budgeting program takes an old-fashioned money management concept and updates it for the world of online financing. Remember when all of your transactions involved cash? When the cash was gone, you couldn't spend anymore. Your personal budget was broken down into categories such as rent, groceries, utilities, and leisure. Many people would split the cash into marked envelopes dedicated to each category. When the envelope was empty, that was the end of spending.

With ATMs, credit cards, and automatic withdrawals, we've lost the hands-on money handling skills that once defined household budgets. With that in mind, online budgeting was born. Now, you can create virtual envelopes to help you manage your money online.

While traditional budgeting tools analyze your spending after the money's been spent, an online budgeting program takes a hands-on, proactive approach to help you manage your spending before the next purchase. With a powerful personal budget tool in your hands, you are in the driver's seat as you navigate the complexities of managing your household finances.

The old analytical approach points out where you went wrong whereas an online budgeting program steers you in the right direction so that you avoid the common spending pitfalls that will tempt you along the way. End result: spending is curbed and your household budget stays on track.

What would you prefer - endless reports at month end telling you where you blew it or helpful reports along the way showing you the financial hazards that will throw you off course?

An online budgeting program compiles all of your personal and household finances into one place and allows you to set up a spending plan. As you progress through the month, you'll have up-to-date information from all of your accounts as well as detailed reports showing your progress. With this key information available 24/7 from any internet-connected computer, you'll be able to make an informed decision before you spend your next dime.

Awareness is a key concept in financial planning. Are you aware of what you're really spending? Many financial planners will have you keep a diary of all expenditures in order to help you see where your money goes each month. With a proactive approach to your spending, you can set up categories and delegate acceptable spending limits beforehand. Whereas an online budgeting program will let you know if you're in the danger zone so that you can adjust your finances as you go - long before you go over budget.

Traditional budgeting is a bust. You won't know you've exceeded your personal budget until the money's already gone. Catch those frivolous expenses before they happen by becoming more aware of your spending on a day-to-day basis.

Creating a household budget doesn't mean doing without; in fact, you set up what you are willing to live with. If you simply won't give up your daily latte, that's fine. Allocate the appropriate amount of money to your latte category and the software will let you know if you're going overboard. For example, if you're willing to spend $15 per week on lattes and each one costs $5, you can indulge three days per week. Your online budgeting software will keep track and alert you if you are going over or under budget. Because of the alerts, you'll know exactly where you stand and be able to make an appropriate choice.

By creating your envelopes, you'll be able to spend within your limits without the guilt. If you've carefully planned your household budget and have covered all of your necessities, you'll be able to manage your budget according to your standards. Helpful tools will keep you on track and prevent you from going overboard. By uncovering hidden spending - before you spend it - you'll come out ahead of the pack!

Gust A. Lenglet is an accomplished author and financial advisor in the field of personal finance and creating a personal budget. He is President and CEO of Crown Financial Concepts, Ltd. and offers online budgeting software as well as articles and information for creating a budget and debt reduction.

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Live Your Road Trip Dream: Travel for a Year for the Cost of Staying Home

Boomers, Gen-Xers, Seniors and more everyone has a dream of that long trip that they ve had in the back of their mind. If so many dream it, why do so few do it?

Authors Phil and Carol White believe it is not only fear of the unknown, but more importantly, inertia. It takes a fair amount of thinking and planning to take off for an extended period says Carol, but the rewards of working through your issues and actually getting out of town to see our country or another place, will be with you forever. Don t wait for some other time start planning now.

The White s award-winning, how-to book, Live Your Road Trip Dream is now released in its second edition after a very successful three printings of the first edition. Due to the popularity of road tripping, but not just amongst the retired set, the White s have included expanded coverage of topics of interest to the younger generation.

Today s younger generations aren t waiting until retirement to hit the road says Phil, they want to do it now if they can figure out how. With our expanded sections on sabbaticals, working on the road and road-schooling for children, we ve covered many of the topics that we get asked about frequently.

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Home Buyer Defense Guide

Real Estate Insider Advice To Help Homebuyers Avoid Common Mistakes When Buying A Home.

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Budget Decorating Ideas When Selling Your Home

During my interview with Interior Designer, Kathy Wilson, she provided a number of great ideas for getting your house ready to sell even if you have a small budget.

Griffiths

Friends of mine from the Atlanta suburbs recently sold their 3000 foot home. They committed to living a simpler life and downshifted to a 2 bedroom, 2 bath townhome in the city. This significantly reduced their commute, the time they spend cleaning house, and best of all (they tell me) they aren't spending their weekends doing yard work.

Fortunately, my friends had great luck selling half of their home's furniture on Craigslist. They are convinced that they really received far more value for their furniture by listing it there instead of putting the furniture on consignment or by selling it at their garage sale. How would you recommend going about the interior design decorating when downshifting your lifestyle?

Kathy Wilson

When downsizing the most important thing to remember is you will have to get rid of a lot more than you think! Keep only what you need, and if you can't stand the idea of selling some precious furnishings, consider gifting them to a family member to keep them in the family. That last thing your new digs needs is to be packed so tight with "stuff" you can't enjoy your new home! Be ruthless!

Griffiths

What interests me most is the idea of using the furniture you already have to create a new look without spending any money. This is the ultimate in budget decorating while transforming your home!

What decorating ideas can you give to maximize a home's interior design without spending any money?

Kathy Wilson

This one is free...rearrange! Remember there is almost always more than one way to arrange a room, and the change can make a major difference in the rooms design. Try the whole room on the diagonal, or just the area rug. Pull the furniture away from the wall and make a comfortable grouping near the focal point. Tuck in a little reading corner. Search out the rest of your home for furniture and accessories that might fit better in the room you are transforming. Just because that recliner has always been in the corner of the bedroom, doesn't mean it has to stay there! Try several different groupings on graph paper. Use small pieces of graph paper cut to represent your furniture at 1 sq=1Ft. Keep moving things until you find an arrangement you love, it can transform a room for no money at all!

The author, Kimberly A. Griffiths, has been through the vicious cycle of debt herself, and provides a no-nonsense system to managing your money paycheck to paycheck. Visit the One Paycheck at a Time Web site for articles and tools to budget your household:

http://www.OnePaycheckataTime.com

Five Star Luxury at Budget Prices

Staying in a poor accommodation can turn any good vacation into a nightmare. Many people think they have to spend a lot of money to get great accommodation but that really isn't the case. More and more people are falling in love with the concept of staying in a vacation rental home as the five star luxury at budgetprices is simply an unbeatable value. Of course, there are many more benefits of renting a vacation home than just saving money.

The basic difference between a five star hotel/resort and a vacation home:

Size & cost: usually, a hotel room is about 30-40 sqm or 300 to 400 sq ft, and even a very basic 1 bedroom vacation rental home can be as much as double the size. Naturally, 3 or 4 bedroom vacation rental homes are even larger and are typically three or four times the size of a basic hotel room. Overall, a vacation home is simply better value for money as a hotel room usually costs about the same.

Services: vacation homes also include a full sized kitchen and personal dining space and this can save you a small fortune by eating in rather than going out to extravagant restaurants all the time. Many hotels don't even have a small kitchen in their rooms as their goal is to get you to spend more at their dining facilities.

Facilities: when you have a personal swimming pool attached to your vacation home, then who needs a pool that has to be shared with all guests staying at the hotel and with restricted hours of usage? Most vacation rental homes also have a yard that allows you to spend a night under the open skies or an activity or games room which can include a pool or fuss ball tables at no extra cost as they are all included in your vacation home price!

Vacation rental homes provide you with 5 star luxury at budget prices. These homes take you away from group dwelling like hotels or resorts and are independent facilities. You do not have to worry about noisy next room neighbors or service workers disturbing you from time to time. Most vacation homes have book or comic libraries with popular titles and some even have popular DVD titles that you can watch on the big screen TV. While staying at a hotel, you would have to pay supplementary charges for all these extras whereas at a vacation home, these are all covered in the overall cost you pay.

Another great feature of a vacation rental is that you can even host a private party with all expenses under control and no hidden costs involved. If you compare the cost of lodging a similar number of people in a hotel against housing them in a vacation rental, you will find that the vacation home wins hands down.

Finally, another great money saver is the fact there is "no tipping" at a vacation home rental. Essentially there is no staff expense with bell men or waiters to tip. That doesn't mean that service is neglected however as most vacation rental homes have such services such as cleaning, cooking or even a driver or concierge available to you.

If you are looking for 5 star luxury at budget prices then a vacation home rental, as you can see above, is the only way to go.

About Nigel Worrall:
Nigel Worrall is President / CEO of Florida Leisure Vacation Homes & Total Real Estate Solutions. He is regularly sought by the media as a vacation home and real estate expert and has featured on NBC, ABC, Fox, CBS. He has also featured in The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, New York Times, Newsweek, Chicago Sun Times, Washington Post, Orlando Sentinel, Orlando Business Journal and several other publications. Nigel is also the best selling author of "Big Ideas For Your Business" (Advantage Media).
Nigel serves many clients around the world as a Realtor?, Real Estate Broker, Real Estate Investor, Mortgage Broker and Real Estate Trainer.

About Florida Leisure:
Florida Leisure Vacation Homes is the leading vacation home company in the Orlando, Fla. - Disney area, offering 3-7 bedroom private vacation homes near to all the Orlando area attractions. Each home has it's own fully equipped kitchen, 3-7 bedrooms, lounge, dining room, laundry, 2 car garage and best of all, private swimming pool. http://www.FloridaLeisure.com

How to Make a Budget

What is the best way to start a budget? The first thing to do when starting to make a budget is to compare their income versus their expenses. The good thing is that it is quite easy to do.

It's too bad most of us never learned this in school and had to figure it out on our own - so here is the lesson that we should have been taught in 3rd grade:

If Expenses > Income = Bad, but if Expenses

And honestly, as simple as it sounds, that is the key to wealth. Anyone, and I mean anyone, who IS wealthy (I emphasize IS because I am not talking about people who appear to be wealthy, but who are actually in debt up to their eyeballs) spends LESS money than they earn.

The great news about this is that anyone can do this - no matter what their income level. If you can do it on a small income, then you can do it on a large income. If you can not do it on a small income, then you will not be able to do it on a large one either. Trust me!

If you really don't believe me, just ask all of the lottery winners who went bankrupt within years of winning millions of dollars.

Regardless of how your expenses and income compare right now - get excited, because you can easily change it!! If it is bad you can make it so much better!! If it is good, you can still make it even better!! I will show you how later, but for now...

How to make a budget

If you calculate your monthly expenses and income and your expenses are less than your income, then you are a rare breed who is in great shape, so just sit tight for a minute.

For everyone else, whose expenses exceeded your income - you are not alone. You actually have a lot of company. The problem is that it is not good company to be in! Most of the U.S has way too much household debt!

So, if your income is $900 and your expenses are $1000, that means you spend an extra $100 each month that YOU DO NOT HAVE!! What your job is now is to find out what you can get rid of or quit buying each month to save that $100. I know, I know - this is the part that hurts. Just like pruning a bush - cutting back hurts, but ultimately you are going to yield so MUCH more fruit because of it!

The goal here is to get your expenses and income to AT LEAST be equal. Once that is accomplished we can work on eliminating wasteful spending or cut other costs to bring the expenses below the income.

Now that you have calculated what your monthly income and expenses are we can start designing our budget. We will first discuss the less effective, but easier method for budgeting

The world's easiest budget

There are 2 simple rules to do a simple budget:

You can not spend more money than you earn - carrying a balance on a credit card is not allowed.
Money must go to the budgeted categories as soon you get your paycheck.

The way it works:

Rather than having 10-20 different categories of items to be budgeted for you only focus on the 1-3 most important ones and let the rest of the chips fall where they will.

So, to do this you take your paycheck of say $900 and right off the top you put the money to your main priorities. For many people this is tithing to their church, retirement savings, and college savings for children, etc...

A sample of this would be:

$900 (paycheck)

-$100 (tithe)

-$100 (retirement savings)

= $700 (for the rest of the bills and everything else)

It is extremely important that the money gets taken out FIRST for these few budgeted items. If not, I can guarantee that the full amount will not make it as intended.

I highly recommend making this process automatic by using direct deposit from your paycheck or some other form of automatic withdrawal. There is just something about human nature that has a hard time staying consistent with things like this.

Why do you think the U.S. government takes our taxes directly out of our paycheck, rather than coming to collect the full sum at the end of the year? It is the same principle - use it to your advantage.

Easy budget, but not very efficient

I think this budget is perfect for people who don't want to budget. It is simple, does not require too much time, and will help you reach some savings goals. That said, it is still inefficient and leaves the door wide open for inefficient and foolish spending. And we all know where foolish spending takes us - deeper into debt

I think it should be considered the "lazy man's" budget - and you are not LAZY, you are willing to work to get your finances in order!! I know this because you are still reading this article. So, since you are NOT lazy and are hungry for more of a challenge, let's look at how the pros budget.

The money saving budgeting method

Yes, this method takes a little bit more time and energy, but it also will provide you will long-term financial benefits if followed.

To do this we are just going to expand on the "lazy man's" budget mentioned above. Rather than having just 1-3 categories of items budgeted for, we are going to create as many as we need to put a limit on our spending in all areas.

You can use the mentioned budget spreadsheet as a guide for tracking your progress. Try to account for every possible expense that you could run into. You will never be able to budget for every possible scenario, but the goal is to minimize surprise expenses. Inevitably, there will still be surprises from time to time - so I suggest creating a category for these surprises (or you can just use your emergency fund).

How to stick with your budget and make it fun!

The almost sure-fire way to make a budget that fails is to NOT budget for any fun stuff. Budgeting should be fun and actually fun is a necessary ingredient for success. You need to budget for clothing, entertainment, going out to dinner, or whatever else it is you love to do! The key is to do it in moderation and to set limits and abide by them.

The amazing thing is that by budgeting for fun stuff, it actually liberates you to spend money on these items. When you have money budgeted each month to buy clothes, the money is now sitting there waiting to be used for that assigned purpose. Suddenly you can go clothes shopping without feeling guilty!

This is how budgeting truly becomes fun. It is a great feeling when you have money sitting in the bank waiting to be spent. Or, even better: if you start budgeting for vacation and after a little while you have hundreds of dollars just begging to be spent on a vacation!! You go on your trip and come back home and don't owe any money to any credit card companies. Now that is how a budget becomes fun!

Interested in downloading a free household budget spreadsheet or free budgeting software? Bob writes regularly about budgeting and saving money and other personal finance topics at ChristianPF.com.

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The Expiring Bush Tax Cuts: What’s the Fuss?

Back in the good 'ole days of budget surpluses (i.e., 2001 and 2003), the Bush administration was concerned that if surpluses grew too large, they would stifle the economy's growth. In an effort to reduce the surpluses, Congress enacted significant tax cuts for all tax brackets that would be effective until the end of 2010.

Given the continually fragile state of the economy and enormous budget deficits, should the tax cuts be extended or should they be permitted to expire? The answer to that question is very complicated and requires a little background information.

From the most simplistic point of view, most economists advocate that in order to restart the economy, we need to stimulate consumption, which should cause employers to hire additional workers, which should reduce unemployment, which should further stimulate consumption, and so on and so forth. Because of this generally accepted premise, the issue at the heart of the debate surrounding the Bush tax cuts is whether the cuts will efficiently stimulate consumption and aid the economic recovery.

Even if the tax cuts do effectively add to the economic recovery, they will very likely continue to add to the budget deficit over the next 10 years to the tune of $3.7 trillion, according to the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center. Although Republicans may argue that the costs of the tax cuts will be netted out by increases in taxable earnings, there is little evidence to suggest that this will occur, at least in the short-term.

Surprisingly, many Democrats and Republicans agree that the tax cuts should be extended, at least temporarily, for 97% of Americans, i.e., all but the top two tax brackets. In terms of income, this means the cuts will be extended for those individuals that make less than $200,000 per year and those families that make less than $250,000.

Republicans argue that the cuts should be extended to all tax brackets because of the tenuous economic recovery and because of a possible "double dip," — a worsening of the economy caused by too little consumption. They argue that increasing the tax rates on the wealthy will discourage business owners from hiring new employees or reinvesting profits in their businesses. A relatively small group of Democrats also support this premise.

Democrats contend that the taxpayers in the top two tax brackets will not allow increases in their tax liabilities to affect personal spending, business spending, or hiring new personnel. They claim that business owners will hire additional employees if it is a good idea, regardless. Democrats also claim that the wealthy are much more likely to simply save their money than spend it, but that those lower-income taxpayers are much more likely to spend the money and increase consumption immediately.

According to the Tax Policy Center, if the tax cuts are allowed to lapse for the top two tax brackets, it will shave $700 billion off the budget deficits over the next 10 years. However, if all the cuts are extended, the majority of that $700 billion will go to the wealthiest 1/10 of 1% of Americans, who earn more than $7 million per year, on average, and will result in an average tax savings of $3 million over a 10-year period for those taxpayers.

Although many Democrats and Republicans do think the tax cuts should be at least partially extended, there are those that think the cuts should be allowed to lapse completely, including former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan. During an Interview on NBC's Meet the Press, Greenspan said: "[t]he problem we've gotten into in recent years is spending programs with borrowed money, tax cuts with borrowed money, and at the end of the day, that proves disastrous."

Because this is an election year, members of Congress are loathe to increase taxes on constituents and may not act until after the November elections, at the earliest, and possibly not until next year. If the tax cuts are allowed to expire, taxpayers in most tax brackets will see a 3% to 5% increase in their tax liabilities. The marriage penalty will return, meaning the standard deduction for married couples will be less than the standard deduction for two unmarried people. The child tax credit will be reduced from $1,000 to $500. The long-term capital gains tax will increase from a maximum of 15% to 20%. Qualified dividend plans, which are now taxed at 15%, will be taxed at the same marginal rate as the taxpayer.

What do you think? Do you support allowing the cuts to expire? Why or why not?

This is a guest post by Steve Cook. Steve is an associate with a Phoenix, AZ-area law firm that specializes in taxation. He is also a bit of an economics, web design, and software engineering nerd. Read more articles from Steve's firm:

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Best Money Tips: How to Care for Your Shoes

Welcome to Wise Bread's Best Money Tips roundup. Today, we give you expert tips for taking care of your shoes, how to make money as a lab rat, and which bloggers on Twitter can save you some cash!

The Proper Care and Feeding of Your Shoes — Many of us take them for granted, and yet a little TLC can help them last a lifetime. Get tips for cleaning, storage, and repair so that you can get every penny out of every pair! Jezebel

7 Things You Should Know About Groupons — This hot trend in shopping isn’t your typical coupon-clipping experience. Find out more to save big where you live! Smart Spending

How to Make a (Good) Living as a Human Lab Rat — Want insider tips on how to do medical tests for extra cash? You could even make enough for it to replace a real job! Asylum via Consumerist

Delicious Autumn Dinner Recipes — These mouth-watering dishes are perfect for the cool fall evenings that are about to come about. They use butternut squash and other seasonal fresh goodies! Personal Dividends

Personal Finance Bloggers You Should Follow on Twitter — I like how this list is actually a few shorter lists broken down by genre. Get the top college, Christian, and debt bloggers that are active on Twitter. Fair Loan Rate

iPhone Users Way Into Sex, Chicken, Fish Food — This interesting study shows the buying habits of users of each kind of smart phone (as well as some tawdry bits). We’re not sure how useful it is, but it sure it interesting! Fast Company

What Does Student Loan Consolidation Even Mean? If you’re making one monthly payment for your student loan debt, you’re consolidated. But why is that good, and what is the big deal? Currency

The Value of Project Magazines — Just rip out what you’ll use and toss the rest. Get the some additional valuable tips from Trent, too! The Simple Dollar

10 Ways the 2020 Workplace Will Work for You — The rise of technology and more accountability could actually lead to a kinder, gentler workplace. Do you agree that this will make things better? MSN Careers

Hidden Costs of Small Town Life — I can really relate to this post! Those of you living in a small town can expect a few unique hassles that city living doesn’t impose. Living Well on Less

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