Recently I saved $600 by making my own slipcovers. However, I needed to borrow a sewing machine in order to do that. That got me to thinking – what other ways could people save money by sharing community resources? Here are a few areas where I think people could start sharing resources. Household/Gardening Tools Although …
Now that we’ve moved into our house, it’s time to update the budget yet again. I’m excluding our new home purchases because those come out of a separate fund from our other household expenses. We cut back our spending for the first half of the year, partly because we spent all of our time looking …
So, my vacation happened to coincide with the one-year anniversary of buying my house. It’s been quite a year. Here’s a quick review of my first year: Boxes Moved: 80 Rooms painted: 9 Rooms left to plant: 1 Ceilings painted: 2 Ceilings I will paint in the future: 0 Thanksgivings Hosted: 1 (my first) Refinances: …
Along with colder weather and a new school year, the fall brings the return of most TV shows. Once the shows premiere, it’s easy to waste hours you could otherwise be using. Here are my strategies for enjoying the shows I like without getting sucked into stuff I have no interest in watching. Choose Your …
As soon as we started looking for a home with a real estate agent, she advised me to get preliminary quotes from several insurance companies so we would be able to move quickly once we went into escrow. If you’re getting a loan, you can’t close the loan without insurance in place, and the first …
First-Time Buyers: Shop for Homeowners Insurance in Advance Read More »
It’s mid-February and my taxes are already done. Not only are they done, but I’m actually getting money back, which came as a surprise. Part of that is because I used free online software to prepare my taxes. The services found deductions that I might have missed. This year, it took me twice as long …
I entered what I call “bad news fatigue” a few weeks ago. That means I no longer slap my forehead quite as hard when I see news of more financial idiocy. I just shake my head when I hear news of government screw-ups or rate cuts. If you haven’t yet reached the point where you …
I’ll admit that I gave up on flying for holidays nearly a decade ago. My family lives six hours away, and I eventually found that it’s cheaper and easier to drive. I did fly for several years, however, and picked up a few tips for saving money on holiday travel. These tips may even save …
When people talk about “going green,” they’re usually talking about buying new environmentally friendly appliances, products, and clothes. All of those things cost big bucks, or at least a lot more than they should. Is that eco detergent really worth an extra $3? I doubt it, especially if you have an older dishwasher or washing …
After a few days of tousling over a much larger package, the Senate has passed the economic stimulus bill passed by the House. There are a few differences that will be ironed out over the next few days and then the bill will be sent to the President for his signature. He’s already said he’ll …
