We have less than a month until Christmas and you’re probably not thinking about how to save money this time of the year. You are not the same. Regular folks or rich people are all planning to splurge on Christmas gifts and New Year’s Eve parties, fancy clothing and a lot of fun. The problem is that most of these people will start 2019 in even bigger financial mess, since they’ll max out their credit cards, get high-interest loans and forget about their money saving goals. Christmas doesn’t have to be this expensive. And you can still have a great time together with your family, while keeping your money safe and starting the new year properly. Here are 5 tips on how to save money during the holidays Consider giving fewer gifts Is it really necessary to gift all your family members, friends and neighbors? When you have many people on your list, it’s easy to get carried away and over spend. Right now we only buy gifts for our daughter, since she’s the young one and still believes in Santa Claus. We, parents, share kisses and hugs, plus a great time together with our little one. We already have a lot of stuff, not to mention we can always go shop for what’s missing. There’s no reason to spend money on useless gifts, when they really don’t mean this much to us anyway. Create a budget and stick to it Now you know exactly who’ll get presents, so make a list, just like Santa does. Then write a number for your total budget and how much you are willing to allocate for each person who’s getting a gift. Don’t go over your budget and keep yourself from overspending. Start shopping earlier Waiting for Christmas Eve to do your holiday […]

Not having an emergency fund leaves you vulnerable against unexpected expenses: medical bills, car repairs, bigger taxes than budgeted and so on. If you also…

Braces, can’t stand them, can’t live without them, if you want a perfect smile for your kids or yourself. The bad news with the orthodontic treatment is that, while the results are awesome, the costs are really steep, especially for some modern types (Incognito, Invisalign etc.) The good news is that not all treatments are as expensive and not all orthodontists charge an arm and a leg for your braces, so there are ways to cut costs and save money. IMPORTANT: Before we go into details, please be careful with your saving goals. While trying to get a good cost for your orthodontic treatment is a good idea, don’t skimp on quality or on your doctor’s experience. If you are being treated by someone who is not as experienced, you stand the chance to re-do your treatment so your savings won’t matter anymore. So, if we are now clear that you will try and find THE BEST doctor for your case and a good brace system, there are still ways to save money and get an excellent service. Start saving money as soon as possible If you have a kid, chances are he or she will need braces one day. This is why, starting saving some money early would be a good idea. Orthodontic treatment for your kid can go up to $ 5,000 or similar, if you saved 50 bucks/month just for this, in 10 years you’d have 6 thousand bucks ready for the treatment. Avoid fancy treatments I started out with Damon braces, a self-ligating type that’s fast and effective. Afterwards, not wanting to show a ‘metal mouth’, I decided to go with Invisalign. Big mistake, since in my case Invisalign wasn’t the best idea. It’s more suitable for simple cases, my dental issues were pretty complex, so […]

I had my first cell phone at 20. That’s more than 20 years ago. Since cell phone plans were expensive and the customer service a…

Everybody knows the basics of saving energy. You already know, for instance, that shorter showers are important for reducing your power and water usage. You…