PREPARE YOURSELF FOR BECOMING DEBT FREE

07/05/10 0 COMMENTS

Prepare Yourself for Becoming Debt Free

Ask yourself these questions …

    How long could you survive if you lost your job today or a family member was struck down with a life-threatening illness?

    Do you have the financial resources to deal with a routine, but unexpected, auto repair?

    Could your budget handle the aftermath of forgetting to enter a couple debits into your bank register?

Any one of these scenarios could spell financial disaster — even for someone already on the path to becoming debt free. We all live in fear of these things happening to us as individuals and to our extended families. But are you prepared?

If you’re on a debt-reduction program, you might not have thought about the wealth part of the puzzle — accumulating cash and other resources for the future. Think about this for a minute … if you have $500 in savings, then you’ve only got $500 protecting you from the cold, cruel outside world. Scary, huh?

Look at your monthly expense budget and multiply it times three. That’s how much money you’d need to live for three months if your source of income suddenly ran dry. We’re not talking about available credit levels on credit cards or lines of credit to come up with the three month total — it needs to be cash savings accumulating interest in case of an emergency.

Beyond food and shelter expenses, think about your car’s license plates expiring during an emergency, registering the kids for school during a layoff, or recurring prescriptions that need filling during a spouse’s reduction in income. Do you have a three-month emergency fund in savings? No? Then start saving TODAY and find a program designed to not only make you debt free, but build wealth too.

NEED MORE MONEY, YOU SAY?

04/05/10 0 COMMENTS

Need More Money, You Say?

There’s nobody on the planet that will tell you they have too much money, would turn down a pay raise, or donate their entire inheritance to charity. Most of us are actually thinking up ingenious ways to make our last $20 stretch until payday. If your job has already announced “pay freezes” for the next fiscal year, there is still something you can do about needing additional income — get a job.

Even if you’re already on a tight schedule and feel there aren’t any hours left on the clock for a part-time job — everyone has something to offer. Plus, you can do want you like to do to make money. In particular, working from home is the perfect supplement to your get-out-of-debt efforts! Here are a few traditional and home-based ideas that can add up to money in your pocket.

Pizza Delivery
Don’t laugh, if you know your neighborhood then the tips (and sometimes free pizza) can make this job seem more like fun.

Garage/Yard Sales
You’d be hard-pressed to find a home that didn’t have knickknacks, furniture, collectibles, and other goodies the owners couldn’t live without (this means your house, too). Larger items can be sold in local newspaper ads.

Lawn Care
If getting outside and breaking a sweat is more your speed, then mowing and watering lawns could bring some well-needed exercise and cash for your wallet. Even better, the equipment you need is probably already sitting in your garage.

Day Job
What better way to make money than to keep doing what you’re already doing. But this time, you’re the boss! For example, if you’re a carpenter/builder then look for the small jobs on the weekends that most construction companies bypass. Plus, the training will be minimal because you’re already trained!