Save on Shaving: Dollar Shave Club

Ok I know many of you have heard of this before, but I’m just catching on. Thanks to a klout perk I was introduced to Dollar Shave Club Thoughts on the Products First a little history… I hate shaving! Some may call it lazy but I don’t shave unless I am having clients that day other wise I’ll go days with out shaving (went two weeks once). The price of razors also contributes to that. I’ll make a razor last a month sometimes (painful but true) and then buy the cheapest I can find (just [...]

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Saving Money with Rain Water

I have gone all in with growing my own food lately and doing most of it hydroponically. Growing this way it is best to use dechloronated water and the easiest way to do this is to use rain water or if from the tap let it set around for at least 24 hours. So I started doing researchIn building my own water storage system and this lead me to rain water collection. Free Water Being Wasted As I did my morning walk I was looking around at homes and all the rain gutters just flow [...]

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Do You Spend More for Convenience?

While shopping for some wood for a shelf in the greenhouse I got to thinking how much more do I spend for convenience? Let me fill you in. I needed to put in a shelf in the back of the greenhouse for buckets (which are 12″ wide). I could go one of three routes. 1. The cheapest would be to just get a 4′x8′ sheet of plywood, muscle it into the truck and cut it when I got home. This also would have given me a lot of left overs. 2. Lowes also has pre-cut [...]

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Savings on Auto Pilot

End of the year reviewing and looking at the ways I cut back and saved money this past year. Sometimes it dosent feel like I have saved or gain ground financially but looking back there have been some concrete savings made. Automating the Savings The biggest one has been automating money transfers that when I did manually (keyword here is WHEN) I would often forget to do it on schedule or not do it at all, and that caused bigger headaches. For instance a biggie is income taxes. Being self employeed I don’t have someone [...]

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Car Emergency Savings for Piece of Mind

One of the most popular posts among PF bloggers I see is preaching about the emergency fund. Everyone should have one in case something tragic happens say like you loose your job. But what about those not so emergency things that come up like car repair? Yes you can take it out of the emergency fund but is it a true emergency? I know it may seem excessive but maybe you should create a couple other savings accounts to put money aside for those other more routine emergencies like your car maintenance and repairs. Late last week I noticed [...]

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Smart and Safe Ways to Shop Online

Smart and Safe Ways to Shop Online Online shopping is quickly gaining popularity as a way to get the things we want and need. Why fight the crowds at a mall or shopping center when we can order right from our home computers, tablets, or smartphones? While using online retailers is convenient, fast, and and easy, it can also be difficult to know where to shop or what sites offer the best deals. Online shopping can also be dangerous – anytime you enter personal information, you’re at risk for identity theft or credit card fraud. [...]

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Helping with College, How Far do You Go?

This has been a hard post to write (struggled on a title for quite awhile). I write it mainly to get all my thoughts out, secondly if anyone wants to chime in that would be great. Those of us that have children always want whats best for them and we want to help whenever we can. It hurts when you can’t but sometimes you also have to draw a line and consider yourself and the rest of the family. Preface Through out my son’s last year of high school I had talks to him about [...]

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Christmas, A Nightmare for the Frugal Minded

Ok I don’t want to come off sounding like the grinch here. I like Christmas, not my favorite time of year but I like it. I enjoy spending time with the family and seeing the joy and happiness in my kids eyes on Christmas morning. BUT for those that are budget minded and trying to save or just be frugal for what ever reason it can be a tough time for you. Oh the Pretty Lights I love taking my daughter out looking at Christmas lights and see them sparkle in her eyes. It dosen’t [...]

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Cars: necessities or financial sink holes

The following is a guest post. Cars: necessities or financial sink holes Gas prices are rising higher and higher while many people are earning less and less. With that, making payments on a car finance note, parking fees, insurance premiums and the cost of maintenance, many folks are wondering if they can still afford to own a car. Most Americans have been raised to view cars as necessities in our vehicle-centered culture. But are they truly necessary? Think about it. Humans lived without cars for millions of years. Many modern people manage quite well without [...]

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Rolling the IRA: Step 1

Finally did it!! I initiate the transfer of my IRA to Vanguard by sending in the paper work earlier this week. The old busted… I was in a SIMPLE IRA from my previous employment. It was great then, I was new to this and it got me started. I should have put more in, I wasn’t taking full advantage of the employer matching. While I am entirely thankful for the my employer for the program it wasn’t without its issues. In hindsight The choice of Waddell might not of been the best (this is from [...]

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Tracking your Financial Status with Mint.com

Couple posts ago I mentioned a new service I started using to track all my debts and more. This service is mint.com now owned by intuit, yes same company that makes quicken. A lot of those in the PF community already know and use this service but incase you dont here’s the scoop. This online service is free of charge and allows you to track all your accounts, debts, investments as well as budgets and goals. Not only does it give you one place to view your financial status but it analyzes your spending and [...]

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