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Mention the word “budget,” and people’s eyes tend to glaze over. Budgeting isn’t the most exciting activity in the world, and on the surface it is extremely limiting. We don’t like it when other people try to tell us how to spend our money, and even setting parameters of our own may seem too much.
What many of us do not realize is that a budget is the ticket to financial freedom. It restricts what we spend each month, but in the long run it allows us to get more out of our money. Instead of frittering funds away on things we could comfortably do without, we can save up for emergencies as well as things we enjoy.
Here are ten tips for creating a budget, … continue reading.
Credit and debit cards are the ultimate in spending convenience. They make it easy for us to buy online, by phone or by mail. They help us reserve cars, hotel rooms, plane tickets and more. They eliminate the need to carry large amounts of cash. And when we need cash but don’t have it, we can take them to the ATM and withdraw money in a snap.
Credit and debit card issuers institute certain security measures to prevent cards from unauthorized use. One of the most important of these measures is the personal identification number, or PIN. Cardholders are required to select a PIN number when their cards are issued. They must enter this number when withdrawing cash from an ATM. With debit cards, it … continue reading.
When it comes to finances, few things are as unnerving as losing a credit card or having it stolen. By the time you realize it’s gone, someone could be living the good life and charging it to you. But by taking action quickly, you can avoid most, if not all, liability for unauthorized charges.
When their cards go missing, cardholders are protected by the Fair Credit Billing Act (FCBA). This law mandates that as long as you report your card missing or stolen in a timely manner, you can be held liable for no more than $50 in unauthorized charges. And if you report it before the card is used, you can’t be held responsible for any charges made.
If you find that one or more … continue reading.
Maybe you’ve carefully crafted a budget that accounts for every penny that comes in each month. Or maybe a budget seems like a waste of time to you. Either way, impulse buying can have a negative effect on your financial picture.
There’s nothing wrong with buying something we want every now and then if we have the money. If you work hard for your money, you should be able to spend some of it on things that make you happy. But when we don’t carefully consider our discretionary spending, we may end up doing too much of it. This can leave us saddled with debt, scrambling to pay bills or skimping on the savings.
There’s a simple rule that can help us avoid impulse spending. Instead … continue reading.
