Which Saves More: Shopping Online or Shopping in the Store?

Are you more likely to overspend or save a bunch when you shop online? Is physically being in the store more or less likely to make you spend? There are a number of factors that can affect your shopping habits in both of these situations. Let us take a look at how the shopping method you choose could affect your bottom line. Adding on to Your Order Marketers love add ons. These are the products or services that you buy in addition to the item or items that you actually set out to purchase, raising the amount that you spend … Continue reading →

IKEA Bargains

IKEA is a well-loved store. It’s simple, affordable furniture designs make it very popular with everyone from college students to retirees. There are different lines of furniture in different styles and price points. You can even get a whole kitchen designed and installed through the store. While the IKEA furniture and decor certainly are less expensive than many other brands, that doesn’t mean that you should pay the full price for any of it. Not when there are many ways to get a bargain at IKEA. Before you shop, check out the following savings ideas. IKEA Family IKEA has launched … Continue reading →

New Baby? Eight Ways to Save Money

Your little bundle of joy can wind up costing you big money. Here are eight different ways to trim costs without sacrificing all of the cuteness. Consider giving up the private room after the first day of your hospital stay. Private rooms can wind up costing you up to $500 extra a day, and most insurance companies will not pay for this privilege. If you have a c-section or complications, your stay could be up to five days long, and the costs will add up. Check into the fees and then make your decision. When you consider the parade of … Continue reading →

Nine Fun (and Free) Ways to Have Fun This Summer

Have fun with the family this summer without forking over a dime. There is a whole world of entertainment out there that you can get for free. All it takes is knowing where to find it. Library programs. Sure, you can take out books, movies and CDS, but did you know that you may also be able to take a free painting class, dig for fossils, learn how to play chess, make a kite, create an animated short, make a puppet, do science experiments, watch a magician and more? Libraries are getting very creative with their free programs, especially in … Continue reading →

Eleven Ways to Save on a Child’s Birthday Party

How can you throw a great kids birthday party on a budget? Keep in mind the following 11 ways to save. Take an inventory When you are just starting to plan your child’s birthday party, first take inventory of what you may already have on hand. This can help you avoid unnecessary purchases and save money. Combine the craft with the take away Set up a craft that goes with your birthday party theme. Let the kids create or decorate it and then take it home. This way you can skip the goodie bags. Some ideas include sand art, photo … Continue reading →

How to Budget on a Variable Income

Budgeting when your income varies from month to month can be difficult, but with the right formula, you can learn how to do it without all of the headaches that an irregular income can bring. Every family should have a working budget that is zero balanced based. This means that every bit of income is accounted for, whether it goes toward a bill or a savings account. The income going out must match the income coming in. It is when that income is different each month that things can get a little tricky. Variable income may be more common than … Continue reading →

Don’t Become House Poor

Home ownership is a good thing, but becoming house poor can have some serious financial repercussions on a family budget, from not having enough money left over to enjoy life, all the way to bankruptcy and losing the home itself. House Poor is a term that is used to describe those who spend so much on house payments and home maintenance that there is little money left over for anything else, such as furniture or an emergency savings account. The standard advice out there, at least from real estate agents, is to buy as much house as you can afford. … Continue reading →

Pay for Your Vacation in Cash

There are many merits to paying for your vacation in cash. For one thing, you can have more fun, knowing that you won’t be faced with tough bills when you return home, knowing that everything is taken care of completely. After all, you go on vacation to relax and spend time with the ones you love, not get stressed over the cost of every meal or t-shirt, or being overly focused on getting your money’s worth out of the trip. Paying in cash for your vacation may also have other benefits beside the mental and emotional ones. There can be … Continue reading →

Cheap Summer Snack Ideas

School is out and the living is easy. Days are filled with fun in the sun, adventures in the yard, camp, amusement parks and more. All of that activity makes kids hungry but reluctant to slow down. Here come the summer snacks to the rescue. Kids can fill up on nutritious high energy snacks without adding additional money to the grocery budget. The secret is all in how you play it. So, while the kids get excited about all of their accomplishments this summer, mom can earn a few extra points with the following cheap snack ideas. Popcorn Homemade popcorn … Continue reading →

Three Things to Stock Pile For Savings

Stockpiling is a secret of the best money-saving families. Buying items when they are at their lowest prices and holding on to them until you need them just makes sense. After all, why should you pay more for the things that your family needs? To really save money though, you can’t just stock up on everything. After all, certain things expire or go bad, and there is only so much space for storage. The last thing you need is a bunch of canned goods falling on a guest head when they open the hall closet. So, stock up to save … Continue reading →