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How to Talk Yourself Out of Buying and Spending?

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It seems that I’ve come down with a case of I-want-buy-itis lately.  Even though our economy has been hampered by the lack of consumer demand, this consumer isn’t quite ready to loosen her purse strings yet.  Unfortunately, it appears that retailers are doing a very good job of turning out products that I want.  So here are some things I’ve thought of to talk myself out of shopping, and instead put the money towards saving.

Here are a few ways what I’ve come up with… what are your methods to talk yourself out of shopping?

  • The Hours Worked Required Formula: How many hours of after-tax income would it take you to make the money needed to purchase XYZ? If you make $40 per hour, then your take-home pay is probably around $30 per hour. A $3,000 couch will cost you 100 hours (or ~12 8-hour days) to pay off.
  • The Wait-Period: Self-impose a 24-hour wait before you purchase anything over $100. More stringent followers of this method might impose an additional 24-hour wait for every $100. If a purchase costs $200, then you would wait a full 48 hours before you buy it. A $300 purchase would require 72 hours of wait time.
  • The Compounding Interest Calculation: Figure out the return you can get from the money that you don’t spend and invest instead.  This works best for large-ticket items (think over $10,000), because I don’t find any motivational value from knowing that the $10 I spend on dinner tonight could grow into $43 in 30 years.
  • The Look in Your Heart and Ask Do I REALLY Need It: This only works when you are clear-headed and honest with yourself, not when you are so head over heels for that new coupe or iPad or sheath dress from Theory.
  • The Do I Have Something Similar Comparison: This works well for electronic gadgets and clothes / shoes. If you have an iPhone, a netbook, a Kindle, and a laptop, then maybe you don’t need an iPad right this moment.  Just maybe.  Or, if you have three black pencil skirts, then it’s probably not a necessity to get a fourth black pencil skirt. Even if it’s got a different waist band than the other three.
  • The Regret Factor: Will you regret this purchase in the morning? If you will feel worse about spending $$$ on an impulse buy in the morning than you do now, don’t buy it.  Or at the very least, keep the receipt so you can return it.
  • The Big Goal Factor: Can the money be better spent on one of your financial goals such as retirement, mortgage, college, etc? Maybe thinking of your 401K contributions might just be what stops you from swiping your credit card for the lovely, chocolate-brown pebbled leather bowler bag on Gilt (not that I am speaking from experience here. Not at all).

CNN Extreme Savers Returns

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Back in the heady days of 2005, 2006 and 2007, CNN had a series that profile “extreme savers” who behaved against the grain, tucking away 25%-50% of their income when most of us were spending it up. Well, it seems as if saving is back in vogue, because I just saw a new Extreme Saver slide show on CNN Money website.

The profiles are still interesting tidbits of different families and how they’ve managed to save so much (I think the saving percentage is calculated from net income instead of gross income).  The common themes of each featured family are: healthy income and financial discipline.

One story stood out to me: Nicole and Mitch of Lake Oswego, Oregon, has been saving $250 a month for their daughter since she was born. She is now 11, and they have $50,000 in her 529 college savings plan. WOW! (By the way, Don at Money Reasons is doing something similar for his kids). I hope that in the event that I become a parent, my partner and I will be in a position to and have the diligence to do the same.

These stories certainly inspire me to reexamine my own saving efforts. Granted, many of these people profiled make a higher income than I do, but they also have higher expenses (mortgage and kids are the two big ones). Still there are examples of single-earner families saving big percentages. Christin and Patrick of Williamsville, NY, live on his $75,000 a year salary, and save 38% with Christin as a stay-at-home mom and 2 kids.

I hope CNN Money continues with these Extreme Savers profiles.

Saving for Retirement: Love It? Hate It?

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Growing up, I never had personal finance as part of the curriculum. But everything I’ve learned about motivation to save for retirement, I’ve learned in high school.

Recently, TeacHer Finance wrote a post sharing her perspective – she hates saving for retirement.  I understand her reasons.. maybe that’s why I don’t really think about them – because I am afraid of mentally discouraging myself from saving!  It is difficult to balance retirement with shorter-term goals, that is for sure.  And although there are good, logical reasons to save for retirement, the motivation factor, like I mentioned at the beginning of this post, was completely from high school.

From High School to Retirement Saving

This might be a nerdy way to explain it, but here is it. When I was in high school, I’d often slack off a little at the beginning of the semester – I wouldn’t study as hard as I should have, or prepare for the occasional pop quizzes that I KNOW will come up in class.  It’ll be okay, I told myself, I will work harder for the next test, the next presentation, the next project.

Towards the second half or 2/3 of the semester, I’d look at my class progress reports, feel disappointed, and then I’d hunker down and put my nose to the grindstone. But the simple mathematical truth was that for every 80% I got in the first half of the class, I’d have to get a 100% to achieve the 90% ending score I wanted. Let’s just say that it was a rare day that I got those 100%s.

And every time before the final, when it’s 4 AM in the morning and I am still pouring over my notes on European history or statistics or macroeconomics, stressed out of my mind, I think, why didn’t I start preparing earlier? If I had JUST prepared a little more at the beginning of the term, I wouldn’t have to work so hard towards the end, I would give myself more wiggle room, and I would probably have gotten a better grade.

The lesson I learned? Put the work in early, get better results for less effort.

That’s the thought process I bring to retirement saving. I am saving as much as I can right now so that I wouldn’t have to panic and start saving 30% of my income when I’m in my 30s or 40s, when I will surely have more financial obligations.  Now, when I think of not saving for retirement, I think of high school.

Do you love saving for retirement (is love too strong a word?) Do you hate it? How do you motivate yourself to save for something that is so abstract, and so far away?

Modern Necessities: But I Need It!

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In life, there are luxuries then there are necessities. The true necessities are a certain level of food of appropriate nutritional value, health care, clothing, and shelter. But in a middle-class existence in a developed country, what we deem as “necessary” has a much broader scope than basic subsistence.

Here are several modern conveniences that have become necessities for my life:

  • High-speed internet access ($20 per month): What would I do without reliable and speedy internet access? I don’t know. The internet isn’t set up at my current apartment yet, and it’s frustrating. That’s why high-speed internet is a nonnegotiable line item in my budget. I think there is a case to be made for internet access as a necessity as much as telephone is – communicating with family and friends, researching information, doing work from home, blogging all require access to the almighty information highway. I would also consider a personal computer a necessity.
  • Cell phone @ free because on family plan: Given that my cell phone is my only phone, it’s definitely a necessity. Even if I had a land line, I wouldn’t feel comfortable venturing out without the cell phone on me. It’s funny how dependent I’ve come to be – I keep imaging what if I miss a really important call? Or what if I’m in a situation and I need help?
  • AAA membership @ $50 a year: I just feel better to know there is one number I can call for help if my car breaks down. And with a car as old as mine, breaking down is a possibility that I can’t discount. For $50 a year, I get the peace of mind (and towing, and battery jumps) that AAA provides.
  • Car and all related items (insurance, gas, maintenance) @ $400 a month: Maybe if I lived in another part of the country, I wouldn’t count a car as a necessity. But I live in Car Country, and I can’t go anywhere without a car. Public transportation is slow and unreliable, or too far away, or nonexistent. So I take good car of my Honda and hope it continues to take good car of me.

How about you? What do you look at in your budget and say, “but I need it!”

Business Insurance Experts Premierline Direct

Buy New Car vs. Keep Old Car

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Possible new car purchase?

When it comes to the buy new car vs. keep old car dilemma, the financially prudent answer seems to always lean towards the latter. Of course, a new car is a significant drain on one’s monthly cash flow, but when is the right time to finally buy a new car? I have never considered buying a new car quite as seriously as I am doing right now. This past Independence Day, I spent $350 on rest and pampering… for my car! (some recent repairs include: $120 in December 2009, $350 in May 2009, and $400 in November 2008).

The cost and headache of spending a holiday weekend on car-related issues has made me wonder: should I buy a new car? Has the time come to finally let go of my beloved Honda (who has served my Dad, then me, faithfully for 230,000 miles, and counting) and get something with side-impact air bags and a CD player?

Recently, my parents also suggested that I should buy a new car, mostly for safety reasons. I demurred, although driving 60 miles a day has made me somewhat more inclined to consider a new, more comfortable ride with updated safety features.  CB raised a good point – given that my car is so old (even though it’s still in very good condition for its age / mileage, knock on wood), I should do some research into the type and cost of car I want.

Estimated Cost of New Honda

My family has had pretty good luck with Hondas, so I pulled up the numbers on Edmunds’ Auto Loan Calculator to see how much a Honda Civic DX would cost.

Cost of New Car 1024x380 Buy New Car vs. Keep Old Car

Even with a $10,000 down payment on a 36-month loan, and at a very favorable 5.0% interest rate, I would be paying $234 a month in car payment.

New car vs. Old car in dollars

Keep Current Car: the cost of driving and maintaining my car total $400 a month, or $13.11 per day.

  • $150 – gas
  • $90-$100 for liability only
  • $150 – repairs / monthly contribution to Repair Fund

Buy New Car: if I were to buy a new car, my repair expenses would decrease, but my other car-related expenses would increase.

  • $150 – gas, maybe somewhat lower because of more efficient gas mileage? my current car gets around 29 miles per hour. I’m not sure what new Honda would get.
  • $234 – monthly payment (according to Edmunds calculator)
  • $130? – car insurance would go up because I’d be insuring a new car and I’d need comprehensive / collision coverage
  • no out-of-pocket repair costs for the first 3 years (or so I’d hope)
  • I would also be out the $10,000 for down payment

Safety concerns?

It seems that keeping my old car would be in my best financial interest. However, am I compromising my personal safety by not purchasing a new car? As cars get older, their safety features becomes outdated. Even though my Honda is rated very well for its year in terms of safety, and it has never been in a major car accident (again, knock on wood), a new model would of course have more up-to-date safety features. If I somehow end up in a match with a Hummer on the freeway (knock on wood, again, that that never happens), I will very much like to have side-impact air bags and new 2010 construction.

So, questions for readers: How did you decide to keep your old car or buy a new car? How did you reconcile the safety concerns with financial concerns when it comes to possibly buying a new car? If you were me, would you buy a new car?

Categories: Car

Joint Car Insurance Policy Between Unmarried Couples

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CB and I discussed the possibility of us combining our car insurance policies once we move in together. As it does with many unmarried couples, it took us some time and research (and discussions) to decide how we wanted to proceed. I actually couldn’t find too much information on joint car policy for unmarried couples, so I thought I’d share what I’ve learned from my insurance agent and other research here.  Disclaimer: I am not an insurance or legal professional, and everything I write here is what I’ve been told / researched on my own. I make no guarantees as to the information’s accuracy or completeness.

  • Some insurance companies will allow unmarried couples to be on a joint car insurance policy. Some won’t.  For example, in California, Progressive permits unmarried couples to go on the same policy, whereas All State does not (I don’t know if domestic partners can have a joint policy with a company that does not allow unmarried couples a joint policy – but that’s something you should check if you are in a legal domestic partnership).
  • Married couples will receive more car insurance discount than unmarried couples because they receive a “marriage discount” as well as a “multi-car discount”.  I am not sure about the financial impact of legal domestic partnership on car insurance.
  • In California, the primary holder of the insurance is the Named Insured. The person (or persons) added on to that policy are Second Named Insured.  The Named Insured can unilaterally remove Second Named Insureds from the policy without informing or receiving permission from the Second Named Insured. In other states, Second Named Insureds may need to give permission before the Named Insured can take them off the policy. Make sure you understand what the requirements are for your state. It’s easy to imagine a scenario (after an unfriendly breakup, perhaps?) that quickly turns ugly.
  • Some insurance companies may require that two people living at the same residence to be “rated drivers” on each others’ cars – i.e. that both parties can drive each other’s cars.  CB and I decided not to have a joint policy, but because we live at the same address, my insurance company will not cover CB if he drives my vehicle. CB is hence an “excluded driver” on my policy.
  • If a driver on the insurance is at fault for an accident, the insurance company will pay out the damages up to the limit of the coverage. The victims can sue for amounts beyond what the insurance company paid – they can sue for the assets of the driver, then, if they so choose, they can go after the other insured person on the joint policy.  I don’t know how common or successful these suits are usually, but just the possibility of opening myself up to such liability is disconcerting.

The last reason is why CB and I decided not to combine our insurance policy. If he causes an accident or I cause an accident, we wouldn’t want the other person’s assets to be at risk of a lawsuit.  We have separate assets, but, well, you just never know.  That’s the reason why my parents insisted I get my own car insurance as soon as I graduated college – it was unwise to open their much-more-substantial-than-my assets to the risk of ME being sued.

If we were married, we would take steps to mitigate that risk (probably through the use of a much higher coverage / umbrella coverage).  But I don’t want to open ourselves up to the risk of liability (however slight) without a structure in place to mitigate it.

6 Reasons Why the Roth IRA Rocks

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Exactly 6 months after I made my first contribution, I maxed out my Roth IRA for 2010, meeting one of my new financial goals for this year.  That makes 5 full years of maxing out, or $23,000 worth of contributions.  Of course this $23,000 will grow to $9,490,308,898 by the time I retire, right? Right?

All jokes aside, I am glad this is done. I want to give an anonymous shout-out to my middle-school science teacher, “Mr. Rob,” who explained to me both the concept of the Roth IRA and the mechanics of opening an account online over a meal of chicken salad at Appleby’s.  A more financially educational meal I’ve never had.  It’s funny, the most valuable things I’ve learned from teachers, I learned them outside of the classroom.  Thanks, Mr. Rob.

Qualified distributions and capital gains are tax-free

You put after-tax money into the Roth IRA, and then your money can grow tax-free. Qualified withdrawals are also tax-free. We don’t know what the federal tax rate will be in the future, but having a source of tax-free earnings can never hurt. Many people have traditional 401Ks (which are funded with pre-tax dollars and thus will be taxed when you withdraw in retirement), so having a Roth provides important tax diversification.

Available to all with earned income (i.e. not employer-sponsored)

You can start a Roth IRA as long as you have earned income. In other words, this option, unlike the 401K, is not dependent on employer sponsorship.  I didn’t have a 401K for 2008 and part of 2009, but I can save via Roth IRA. If parents want to encourage their teenager to save, this is also an excellent method. A 16-year-old who earns $2,000 babysitting in a year can contribute all of that $2,000 to the Roth. For added incentive, parents might provide matching funds,(say, 50 cents for every dollar saved.)

Spousal IRAs: because nonworking parents need to save too

Stay-at-home parents (SAHP) takes care of the family, but the Roth IRA gives them a way to take care of their retirement needs too. Tax law allows a working spouse to contribute $5,000 a year (the current federal IRA limit) to an IRA in the stay-at-home parent’s name, even though the SAHP may not have earned income. If you are a SAHP, insist on having a Spousal IRA set up for you so that you have a way to access tax-advantaged savings in your name.

Penalty-free withdrawal of contributions

You can withdraw your contributions (not gains) at anytime, penalty free. Ideally, you should leave your retirement bucks to work for you as long as possible, but in a pinch, money in the Roth IRA can also double as an emergency fund or a down payment.

Variety of investment options

Think of the Roth IRA as a basket, and specific investments (stocks, mutual funds, bonds, etc.) as eggs that you put in the basket. With so many firms offering Roth IRA services, it’s easy to select one that works for you. Those who wishes to invest in low-cost index funds can choose Vanguard, Fidelity, or Charles Schwab. If you want to select your own stock, brokers include Etrade and Scottrade. Many banks and investment firms also have Roth IRA options. Your 401K might be dependent on the investment choices your employer provides, but no such limitations exist with the Roth IRA.

Catch-up provision for older workers

If you are 50 or older, you can contribute an additional $1,000 in 2010. So, a 55-year-old worker can contribute a total of $6,000 in the Roth IRA. The catch-up contributions feature is a great way to accelerate savings before the retirement years.

A version of this article first appeared in BlogHer.

Best of Blogs Link Roundup: The Moving & Grooving Edition

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I sign my lease and get my keys to my brand new apartment at the end of this week. icon smile Best of Blogs Link Roundup: The Moving & Grooving Edition   Naturally, many of the posts that caught my eye have to do with housing, moving, budgeting, and talking money between partners.

Here are some posts that I found helpful from the Yakezie bloggers:

  • Want to know the secret behind emerald green lawns? See this article for details [Bargineering].
  • Ladies who are in the market for a new vehicle should take a look at car buying tips for women [Car Negotiations Coach].
  • How to save on housing costs with a roommate [Money Green Life]
  • I’m not planning a wedding anytime soon. But when I do, I know where to find a free wedding budget template to make sure my big day doesn’t turn into a big debt [Money Help for Christians].
  • If you are moving soon, like I am, these moving tips will come in handy [Free From Broke].
  • Motivation to cook at home is what I sorely need. I’ve made a pledge to cook (and save) more in my new place, and I hope these tips will help me make good on my pledge [Not Made of Money].

Low(er) Rent: How to Make it Happen

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A rule of thumb I’ve read for rent is that your total housing costs shouldn’t exceed over 30% of your gross income.  Total housing costs for us renters is the rent payment plus utilities. Personally, I also include the cost of internet access in my housing calculation because not having internet is not an option for me.

Since college graduation, I will have lived in three places: a 2-bedroom apartment shared with my college friend, a studio apartment by myself, and soon I will be moving into a 1-bedroom apartment with CB.  In each of these instances, my housing costs stayed around 15%-20% of my total gross income.  Here are some tips that helped me to keep my rent cost down:

1.Have a roomate: the more the merrier cheaper

This is probably the best and easiest way to save on rent. 2 (or 3 or 4) people living in one place means that not only your rent is decreased, but that all the utilities is shared. In addition, much of the cost of furnishing the new place is also split among the roommates.  To avoid a roommate nightmare, however, it’s best to talk through your expectations (how the rent is split, who chips in for cable, do you share groceries, etc.) so that everyone feels good about the situation. If you are moving in with a significant other, it’s even more important to have clear expectations because many times it can be more awkward to talk about money with romantic partners than with roommates (why is that?).

2. Don’t pay for amenties that you don’t use

Our current apartment is somewhat of an anomaly in our area – it doesn’t have a pool or a jaccuzi. But I don’t care – I know we won’t be using those amenities, so I am glad that we won’t be paying for them. Along a similar vein, even if you know you won’t be going to the attached gym, or playing with its pool tables in the recreation room, understand that part of your rent each month will be going towards those perks.

3. Skip the nicest complexes: who needs travertine tile anyway?

Those units with travertine tile in the bathroom and granite on the kitchen countertops? Formica will serve as a counter just as well (or that’s what I keep telling myself…) Or the glossy hardwood floors and the new stainless steel appliances?  You will be paying a premium for premium features, so make sure those features are really worth the money because you fall to a luxury apartment’s charms.

4. Trade services for a reduced rent

In some cases, it might be possible to engaging in a little bartering. If you live in someone’s house, perhaps you can babysit the landlord’s kids 3x a week for lower rent. Or if you are a gardener, maybe you can keep up the landscaping.  A barter system can work well if both parties are clear about what services are required in exchange for what amount of rent reduction.  It’s best to have everything in writing.

5. Be realistic about the market and your budget

If you are looking for a 1-bedroom in Midtown Manhattan, there’s no way you can score a place for under $2,000.  It’s important to be realistic about both (1) the going price of real estate in your location, and (2) what you can comfortably afford while having enough money left over for your other goals / desires.  CB and I found a gorgeous complex with an Apartment For Lease sign on the outside – once we found out that the price was $1,900 a month, however, we didn’t even bother to go in.  Theoretically, we could afford the place, but we both had more pressing financial goals: saving for graduate school, paying off college loans, saving for retirement, and working on our Galapagos fund. And, we knew we could find something for much cheaper. Which we did, although of course it wasn’t as nice. But for $800 less? We’ll take it!

What’s the percentage of your housing costs compared to your gross income? What’s YOUR best tip for keeping your rent cost down?