Jill Russo Foster

Tips for Successful Personal Finances

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Saving money daily – discounts

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I love getting a discount.  Don’t you?

When we grocery shop, we use coupons, meal plan and shop the sales.  We eat healthy with any organic products, so there aren’t as many coupons as in the past.  Yes, items do go on sale, but it can still be expensive.

Our grocery store gives us gas points.  For every dollar we spend, we get points – 100 points is 10¢ off per gallon.  Last weekend we saved 90¢ per gallon.  That certainly helps our budget and can helpful to you.

Are you getting all the rewards possible? Learn more on discounts and rewards.

Christmas Holidays in July!

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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.

 

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Do apps and emails make you spend more?

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Are you often tempted to make purchases you hadn’t planned to?  Are you tempted by a sale that you were unaware of until you received an email?  Was there an offer you couldn’t refuse?

Email is a part of our lives.  But overspending doesn’t have to be.  Take action to protect yourself from spend money that you didn’t need to.  Unsubscribe from emails, deleted apps, don’t read sales flyers etc.  Take the temptation away from your daily life and save your money for what you really want to spend it on.

Did you spend money you weren’t planning to because of an email or app?

Are you missing out on these rewards?

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                                                                                                          We saved $1.50 per gallon with our grocery store’s gas rewards program.  Didn’t buy anything special, just our usual groceries.         Paid $105.9 / gallon!

Spring Cleaning Your Finances

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Spring is a great time of year! One of my favorites, as the weather turns warmer and the days are longer. For us, it means more time outside and that can be from getting my garden planted and the thrill of fresh vegetables right in my backyard, to having meals outside; either just us or with friends and family. We can open the windows to air out the winter stale indoor air and sleep comfortably with the windows open all night. It means exploring the outdoors, maybe taking a walk in a new neighborhood or park, picnics and movies in the park.

With spring comes weddings and graduations – new beginnings. This can be true for all of us, even if we don’t have a milestone event coming up.

Traditionally, spring makes me think of spring cleaning and tackling the heavier cleaning throughout the house. We can do the same for our finances.  For the graduate, you can start them off with the gift of good finances – being able to start to plan their money and finance proactively and make planned purchases versus impulse buying. A great way to start would be the gift of my book, Cash Credit and Your Finances: The Teen Years.

For those who want to get your own finances back on track, 111 Ways to Save or Thrive In Five: Take Charge of Your Finances in 5 Minutes a Day will give you the push you need to get your finances in order.

You can order my books through my website or by order form. If you use the order form, you have the option of me personalizing the book. Just print the order form, fill out the recipient information section, and mail it to the address on the form or fax it to 203-504-7995. For the month of June 2017, we are also offering free shipping on all book sales that are ordered with the order form via mail or fax.

Click here to download the order form.

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Stretching Your Dollars With Discounts

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Are you looking to s-t-r-e-t-c-h your dollars with a discount? Here are some ideas you may not have thought about:

1.    Free food on your birthday – many restaurants offer you something on your actual birthday (some during your birthday week).

2.    Using your situation discounts – I am talking more than senior discounts. There are others such as military, memberships, student, government worker, etc. I have used my student discount for admission to museums, my senior discount to pay less for hotels and more.

3.   The day after discount – if you shop the day after a holiday you can usually receive a 50% or more discount on those items. Think more than wrapping paper and greeting cards the day after Christmas, there are other holidays throughout the year. 

4.    Double dipping your coupons – some stores will let you use multiple coupons for the same item to get an even bigger savings. I have used the case price discount and a manufactures coupon for items on sale to save even more.

5.    Don’t forget to ask for price adjustments and coupons. It never hurts to ask if there are any other discounts or coupons available at the checkout. Sometimes a sales person has that ability to give you even greater savings. If you get a coupon after the purchase, go back and ask for an adjustment for the original purchase within a certain time limit.

6.    Remember to buy off season. With the particularly warm month of December here in the northeast, winter merchandise seemed to go on sale even earlier. When you buy a snow blower in the spring or swimsuit in October you can save money.

7.    Sign up for emails (remember to use another email address) as there can be many emails to deal with. Companies offer coupons and discounts to their subscribers.This works for more than products, I have received discounts for concerts too. You can also try leaving items in the cart without checking out. Sometimes they will email you with a discount to place the order.

8.    Free Stuff – there are so many special days in a year it’s impossible to keep track of. National days such as donut day will give you a free donut, ice cream day etc. National Parks days throughout the year will waive the entrance fee. You can get some prescriptions filled at your local supermarket for free.  The list goes on and on.

Let me know what you do to get discounts and free stuff.

Holiday Credit Mistakes You Don’t Want to Make

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Getting ready for the holidays? That will put extra stress on your time and budget. Every time you shop, you’ll be facing temptations that could send your finances off the cliff.  If you want to keep away from the edge , keep listening:

  1. Every store will push their own card.  They’ll offer a 10-15% discount if you sign up at the register. With your little pile of purchases in front of you, it will sound like a good deal. Don’t do it.

Why not? Because they’ll run an inquiry on your credit report,  instantly lowering your credit score and costing you more money in the long run. Don’t forget that store credit cards charge the highest interest rates out there.  Think about the temptation you’ll face. With one purchase safely tucked away on a new credit card, you’ll find some breathing room in your checking account for more holiday purchases. Before you know it, you won’t have enough left to pay the store card in full. In the end, that discount will have cost you over 15%, putting you in the hole.

  1. You will be off your routine and forgetful. Between preparation, gatherings, and parties, something will probably slip through the cracks. You might even forget to pay a bill on time. Don’t do it.

Why not? Missing a due date will cost you a late fee – sometimes $35. If it’s a credit card payment, they could penalize you with an increased interest rate at a time you need it least. Worst of all, the late payment could end up on your credit report, lowering your credit score.

  1. You will want to spend more than you can afford. Don’t kid yourself. Holidays are a time of giving and sharing. You will get caught up in the moment and spend more than you planned. You may even spend so much, that you won’t have enough left over to pay your credit card in full when the bill arrives. Don’t do it.

Why not? It could take forever to pay off. If you have a $500 balance and only pay the minimum amount due (typically 2%) then it will take you 85 months (or 7 years plus) to pay off the balance. That is assuming you don’t make any other charges. Plus, you don’t want to start the New Year with new debt.

Plan ahead and use cash for holiday shopping to stay within your budget. That way, you can enjoy the holiday season without facing budget busting debt in January.