Jill Russo Foster

Tips for Successful Personal Finances

You are here: Home / Archives for Every Day Finances / Budget Planning

We’re Back From Our Anniversary Trip

By

This year we celebrated our anniversary with a Pacific Northwest cruise.

Back in the early summer, I wrote two newsletters about planning our fall vacation.  We are back and wanted to share the trip with you.  Here’s the link to the two earlier newsletters – first and second issues to remind you of the details.

We took a Pacific Northwest cruise out of Seattle with stops at Astoria, Oregon, San Francisco, California and Victoria, BC and few days in Seattle too.

With all this planning and paying ahead, we spent very little on the actual vacation.  Mostly everything was paid (or paid with points / miles) in the months before as our budget permitted – hotel, cruise, airfare, attractions and some meals were included.  We selected hotels with breakfast included, bought City Pass’ (discount admission to attractions) and walked and/or public transportation.  Lots of steps – over 21,000 in San Francisco in one day!

Yes, there was a lot of research and planning, but this step saved us money and we have fun – lots of money!

Here we are at the Space Needle.  To view more photos, visit our Pinterest page.

Upcoming Workshops

By

Now that we are gearing up for the fall, I wanted to share with you some workshops I am teaching at Norwalk Community College (Norwalk, CT) in the Extended Studies Dept in the Fall term.

Take Control Of Your Finances

Welcome To The Real World: Teens and Money

Budgeting For The Fluctuating Income

For more information and/or to register click here.

Vacation Insurance

By

With vacation season underway, are you covered if something happens?

According to Wallet Hub, 1 in 6 Americans have an illness or natural disaster happen to them. Are you covered so that you don’t lose you hard earned money? Of these 1 in 6, only 22% have insurance to cover their travel costs and expenses.

Some credit cards offer you coverage for lost or delayed luggage, missed connections, trip cancellations and even death sometimes. All credit cards are different and you need to check your individual card for what your offers you. If you are covered, they offer you reimbursements. That means that you pay upfront. Do you have that money? And they come with restrictions. Remember my Microsoft Surface Pro experience from last fall?

We have one credit card that we always use to rent a car. It gives us coverage so that we can decline the optional rental car company insurances and feel comfortable. We have another credit card that gives us the travel protection of lost or delayed luggage, missed connections, etc. We have done the research for us and you should too.

You should think about what you may need and find out if you are covered with the credit card you already have. Typically, if you don’t charge the trip to that specific credit card, you don’t have the coverage. Then check with your personal insurance, such as auto insurance for rental car coverage, home owners / renter’s for loss of property, etc. Then look into travel insurance, if you need or want more or additional coverage.

You should do this process for your health insurance as well. Most insurance policies don’t cover you when you travel outside the US. All of this pre-planning could offer you the needed assistance in your time of need. So do your research and make the choices that are right for you.

Happy Travels!

Fact Checking Charities

By

Fact Checking Charities

My heart breaks with all the information and photos from hurricane Harvey and now Irma. We all want to help and these people need our help. but you want to give where your money will do the best and not go to scammers. If you choose to give, and I’m sure you do, make sure your money goes to those in need through a charity that you have researched.

Unfortunately, it’s fairly easy to set up a charity, and fundraisers can legally keep most of the money donated to the cause. Not to mention the scammers who are out there to take your money. Before you donate, find out whether the charity is legitimate. You should also find out how your money will be spent.

You can start your research at www.Give.org (associated with the Better Business Bureau). This organization researches charitable organizations to find out how they use the funds they receive.

Here are some tips to help in your research:
•  Find out if the charitable organization has a 501(c) status (IRS code for non-profit organizations). Non-profits have stricter requirements, and your donation will be deductible on your tax return.

•  Find about how much of each dollar is being used for the cause versus administration costs. The more administrative costs, the less of each dollar is being used for those in need. Look for the lowest administrative costs.

•  For cash donations, request a receipt to use as documentation on your tax returns. All donations over $500 will require additional paperwork, so speak with your tax preparer  ahead of time.

•  When donating non-cash items such as food, clothing, furniture, etc, you will need an itemized list of the items you donated and the total value. Most charities will ask you to value your own items.
Make sure you get a receipt for your donations with the charity’s information on it.

Do your research and chose the organization(s) wisely. This is a great way to help out others who are less fortunate than you during this hurricane season.

Save

Christmas Holidays in July!

By

 

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Christmas Holidays in July! You may think I am going crazy but I have a plan. Now is the time to start to think about the holidays. You are at the mid-point of the year, which means there are 21 weeks to save between now and Black Friday.

This year Black Friday is November 24, Chanukah is December 13 and Christmas is December 25.

To stop the January debt hangover, start to save now and have the money you need by automating this process! Set it up once and then you will be at your goal in no time.

First determine how much you want to save and when you get paid (weekly, every other week, etc.).  Calculate the amount you will need to save based on the paydays between now and Black Friday. Set up an automatic transfer from your checking to your savings account for the day after your direct deposit.

Do this now and you won’t be scrambling in November. You will be eating turkey for Thanksgiving knowing that you are all set with the cash for the holidays and won’t have to start January off with your holiday debt.

 

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save