Congress passed legislation expanding and extending the homebuyer tax credit. The President is expected to sign it November 6, 2009. Here’s an update on how the credit works and how you can take advantage of it if you haven’t already bought a home. Homebuyer Tax Credit Extension The original First-Time Buyer Tax Credit was set to expire …
My husband and I aren’t very big on anniversaries (or birthdays). We’re very open to time-shifting them, skipping gifts, or holding one combination celebration for all our anniversaries and birthdays together. That doesn’t mean we don’t want to recognize our marriage, though. So here are ten frugal yet romantic anniversary ideas you can do. 9 …
9 Frugal Anniversary Ideas (That Are Also Romantic) Read More »
A bit of an early blog round-up this week because I’m taking tomorrow off from blogging. Yay vacation! This week, we first have the Carnival of Personal Finance #211 hosted by Green Panda Treehouse. In addition to my post about tax credits motivating you to buy something, I also recommend Financial Highway’s debate about the meaning of money. Next, the Festival …
An Adventure Getting a Burn Notice in Canada – at the Carnivals Read More »
A few months ago I checked out gardening books to settle on those that are best for my local area. Now it’s time to buy a home improvement books to help solve those simple problems without having to call Dad, search the internet for a reliable solution, or call a handyman. I borrowed five potential …
Most of us are familiar with tithing. Church members pledge to give a certain percentage of their income to the church every month. Typically it’s 10%. They ascribe to the theory that if you give to God, God will give back. There’s a certain poetry in the idea. However, even if you don’t belong to …
Schedule Regular Charity Donations Instead of Waiting for a Disaster Read More »
I’ve seen several blogs encouraging people to haggle over prices and push for discounts, but there comes a point when you’ve gone too far. It’s one thing to ask for a discount. It’s another to try to cheat the person you’re dealing with. The “it’s a big company” argument doesn’t work – they still have …
Okay, you’ve set your financial goals, or fitness goals, or personal goals, for 2009. You’ve recorded the list somewhere you’ll remember to check. Now what? Here are seven easy steps to help you achieve any goal, but especially financial goals. Make Sure Your Financial Goals Are Reasonable We all have grandiose goals – I’d like to …
7 Easy-ish Steps to Achieve Your Financial Goals Read More »
Since we bought a foreclosure, we have to do more than the typical amount of maintenance a new homeowner is responsible for. Although the bank did the termite work (apparently a rarity with foreclosures), we have to trim trees, repair the roof, and fix a few other things that turned up in the inspection. While scheduling the …
If you’ve visited any store at any point since December 26, you’re no doubt aware that Valentine’s Day is coming. Even worse, this year it falls on a Sunday and a holiday weekend. The pressure will be high to go romantic and go big. But I say ignore the pressure and go small, if you …
Every few months there’s a new story about unclaimed property. News crews travel to public places armed with computers and help people find thousands of dollars of unclaimed property. Fortunately, you can find your property yourself without paying fees to anyone else or waiting for a news crew to happen by. What Is Unclaimed Property? …
