Sometimes people are too close to their own situation to make rational decisions about how to cut costs or how to make some extra money to make ends meet. Unless you paid a lot of attention during tougher economic times – or watched your Depression-era parents save everything for recycling and reuse while watching every penny – you may not know how to make better use of your money.
For many, the obvious expenses have been reduced. More and more families are eating at home; many of them are having to …

Being smart about your taxes involves deciding early how you are going to minimize your tax liability.  Much of this is deciding which deductions will reduce your taxable income.
Medical Expenses
Medical costs are one of the tax deductions you can itemize.  However, many people ignore this deduction since the total medical expenses have to be a minimum of 7.5% of their adjusted gross income.  There are many ways, other than the obvious, that you can contribute to this deduction and perhaps reach the minimum threshold.  For example, insurance payments made from …

Developing and maintaining a budget plan can be daunting for many people, especially if you have never done it. Many people are simply not inclined to use spreadsheets, balance checkbooks or lay out a formal budget. Whether by nature, or as a result of a reaction to public school mathematics training, some people don’t consider themselves to be “number people.”

However, everyone will find it in their self-interest to make the effort to outline their expenses against income even if it requires getting someone else to help undertake the task. The …

Society tells us that we should live a certain way.  It seems like the media is the scapegoat for many of society’s bad habits, but many people imitate what they see on television whether it’s conscious or unconscious.  If your favorite television star is wearing the latest pair of Manolo Blahniks or driving BMW’s newest addition to the 7 series, you tend to want to do it to.
The problem with imitating what we see on television and in magazines is that most people can’t afford to live that kind of …