Economics Finance

It is hard to manage your financial obligations if you are a single parent. This is because the entire financial burden is on your meager shoulders and there are too many bills to pay for. In addition, you have to provide for your children’s educational expenses and their lunches and extra curricular activities so that they do not feel left out.

As much as you want to provide for your children, you cannot.

Now you do not need to worry. This is because the American government is providing special grants for single parents that will help you pay for your child’s lunch, your household spending, your medical insurance and your housing.

However, it is not easy to avail these grants. The reason is that these grants are provided to those who prove to return productively to the economy. Therefore, if you think you can either return to college on a scholarship, set up a new business, or do hospital services in exchange of medical aid, you can surely avail any of these grants. Continue reading ‘Government Grants For Single Parents – Find Out All There is to Know’ »

The Christmas wreaths hanging in the store window say “Noel”, “Peace”, and “Joy”. Yet you are rushing out of that store and on to the next one feeling completely stressed out. You need to buy more Christmas gifts, but your running out of money, time, and ideas. You thought Christmas was to be a time of celebration, but as you pass through more and more check out lines you are getting further away from a festive holiday mood.

Christmas gifts for family or anyone else are nice but should never make you stressed or depressed. With all the self applied pressure to give great Christmas gifts it is easy to end up in debt and unsatisfied.

Is it possible to have peace and happiness in addition to frugality and saving time? Yes. I propose the following 12 new ways of looking at Christmas that will save your time and your money and make this Christmas more meaningful than ever before.

The two most important things you can do are to be aware of what is important and meaningful to the people you care about and plan ahead. Knowing what is important to your loved ones will allow you to find better ways to make their Christmas special without worrying about your bank account and credit cards. Knowing how, when, and where to find those special things will make Christmas gift shopping an exciting experience rather than an unpleasant one.

1st Day of Christmas

Refer to this year’s gift game plan.

What is it: A gift game plan is a list you keep during the year that notes the things that you’ve learned are important and meaningful to the people close to you.

Why: When you give something from your gift game plan you and the receiver of the gift do better because your gift has a value that is much higher than just the purchase price.

Example: Christmas is coming, you have little money, and you want to give your sister a gift that is inexpensive, but will be meaningful to her. You see a note on your gift giving game plan that she mentioned back in May that she loved a particular bowling ball in the public use racks at the bowling alley. It is transparent, has blue sprinkles throughout it, and has just the right finger hole sizes. She tries to hide it every time she is done bowling so she can find it easily next time she comes in. You are a regular customer at the alley and approach owner. It turned out that she is willing to sell you this ball because she wants to buy new balls for the alley anyway. She takes your offer of $10 for this used ball and even has the pro shop polish it and engrave your sister’s name onto it for an additional $5. You didn’t have to spend much money, but your sister is thrilled by the effort you made and that she now owns the “sprinkle ball”!

Action Plan: As a gift giver a better way to ensure that your gift will be appreciated is to make sure you know what is important to the gift receiver. During the year keep a holiday gift list. Every time someone important to you mentions something that is meaningful to them write that down on your holiday gift list. Same goes if they mention something they would really like to own or a problem they would really like to have solved. If you keep this list current you will have lots of ideas on what to get as momentous gifts for Christmas. You will find that often the best gifts / the things that mean the most to your family and friends don’t cost as much as the things you would have bought instead just so you had something to put under the tree.

2nd Day of Christmas

Create beautiful memories instead of ugly debt.

What is it: While there are people who create debt for themselves during the holidays by giving gifts you can inexpensively create a unique memento to a special memory from the past year.

Why: Ever hear that a picture is worth a thousand words? A creatively documented memory could be worth thousands of dollars to the person receiving it!

Example: Want a meaningful gift that will not put you in debt? Think about recreating a special moment from the year with pictures. I once took a picture of a friend who was bowling with her 4 year old daughter who had never bowled before. The picture showed my friend at the bowling line with her daughter while assisting her with her very first roll. I had the picture enlarged to an 8×10 shot and put it in a nice frame I bought on sale during the fall clearance. My total investment in this gift which memorialized this special moment was about $8.00.

Action Plan: Be on the lookout throughout the year for ways to memorialize special events. Collect new and old pictures, video or audio clips, certificates, ticket stubs, and other objects that you can use to remember a special day. Create a collage of pictures. Give a video of the “big game” to the soccer star in your family. Scan an old picture and have it printed as a poster.

3rd Day of Christmas

Write a letter not a card.

What it is: A short, handwritten note or letter that you include with a gift where you would have typically put a greeting card.

Why: When you receive a handwritten letter from someone there is a message you receive before even reading it. It says that the writer cares. Only people that care enough about you, the message, or both take the time to actually handwrite a letter.

Example: You were laid off for almost 8 months this year and are not in a financial position to buy a gift for your friend Chad. Chad helped you find your new job, however, and you want show him that you are grateful for his help this year. You hand write a letter to Chad and tell him that he is the example of what a true friend is, that you appreciate him, and that you will be there for him if he ever needs help as well. You include a picture of yourself sitting at your new work area and write “Thanks for getting me here Chad!”. Chad feels special and important. You acknowledged his effort and documented your gratitude in special way. Continue reading ‘The 12 Better Days of Christmas’ »

Let’s face it. You’ve worked hard and saved when and where you could. To most Canadians, this is a part of everyday life. Well now finally, let some of the money you have worked for do some work for you.

In 1992, the Canadian Customs and Revenue Agency (CCRA) introduced the Home Buyers’ Plan (HBP). The HBP plan allows for Canadian consumers to withdraw up to $20,000 from their RRSP, to use in assistance of purchasing their first home. In the case of a couple if they are both eligible, the number is doubled up to a total of $40,000. For 2009, the individual amounts have been raised to $25,000 each. So for an eligible couple, it means a total of $ 50,000.

Most people use this RRSP withdrawal to add to any down payment they have already amassed to put down against the purchase price of their home, to either lower the amount of mortgage they will require, or increase the amount of the mortgage they can carry.

Sound too good to be true? Not exactly. Any amount that you may have deducted must be repaid back into your RRSP account in annual payments. You have 15 years to repay this amount, or if you don’t it will be added to your taxable income for the year and you will be taxed accordingly. Continue reading ‘Letting Your Savings Work For You’ »

Everyone uses the new year to start new goals. But anytime is a good time to get your finances in order. Here are 10 personal finance basics to help you get your financial house in order now.

Become a tither: It is more blessed to give than to receive. Start this year off the right way by giving God His 10%. Let Him show you that He can bless you far beyond the money you give Him.

Set goals: Many of us get upset when things don’t work out as we would have liked. The only problem is that most people don’t even know what they want. Sit back over the next few days and figure out what you would like to see happen in your life this year. Then, write it down. Oftentimes, we don’t reach our goals because we forgot what they were. If the goals are written out, you can now hold yourself accountable to finding ways to get yourself closer to that goal every day.

Create a budget: Financial ruin can loom in the household that doesn’t know where money goes. Create a financial game plan. Track all of your expenditures and find areas that need improvement. Then work on cutting back on the unnecessary expenses so that you can use the money on things you really want. Continue reading ‘10 Quick Money Resolutions’ »

The Federal government allocates millions of dollars as grant money every year. This money is distributed to the Departments of Health and Human Services present in each of the states.

The money is then granted to the financially struggling mothers to cater for their needs. However, one has to keep in mind that this money is only granted to those who apply for it and are selected for the grant. The selection criterion is not easy since these grants are only given to people who are deserving and those who can prove to be productive for the economy. Continue reading ‘How to Avail Government Grants For Single Mothers’ »

It is very hard to pay your living expenses, buy a house or cater for the diverse needs of your household when you are a single mother. This is usually because of the financial suffering caused by the weight of all expenses falling on their ever-constricting income.

To cater for the needs of single mothers, the US government has devised method to provide them with a second income source. The money the federal government sets aside to help millions of needy Americans helps in achieving this objective. This money is distributed to Non-governmental organizations, states or city administrations or to grant agencies like the Department of Housing and Urban Development or the Department of Health and Human Services.

The grants vary in types and serve different purposes. There are grants to pay for medical care known as the medical aid grants. Other than this, since, inflation has hit the masses rapidly, more and more people have started relying on food stamps. Food stamps are the free food tokens that the government is providing for people who cannot afford it themselves. Continue reading ‘Learn All You Can About the Government Grants For Single Mothers’ »

If you are a single mother and are desperately trying to make ends meet, your struggle is over. The United States government has introduced special grants to help single mothers during the tough financial period.

Every year the United States government allocates millions of dollars for grant money to be distributed amongst the deserving Americans. These grants are of different types, designed to support people from diverse lifestyles. A very important program amongst these is the grant program for single mothers. Through it, women can set up their new businesses, pay off their debts, bills, or obtain degrees.

The educational grants make it possible for women to continue their education and in return are given money to cater for their expenses. There are similar grant for students as well. In addition, programs to pay for your kids educational expenses are also introduced to relieve the mothers from financial woes. Continue reading ‘Enjoy Being a Single Mother & Live a Peaceful Life Utilizing the Government Grants’ »

It’s commonly accepted that during anybody’s life, there is a time when they started to think about their financial goals, and most of people thought that money is important thing in their lives. Perhaps many people say that having money is not the main purpose of their lives, but for sure we can’t deny that money has significant role in the process to achieve other important goals in our lives.

For example, may be our main purpose is to get happiness by helping each other, having a harmonious family, having many friends, and the other noble purposes. We can do those things in our daily life, either with or without money. But just try to imagine, how you can do it in convenience way if you are still heavily burdened to fulfill daily basic necessity, hardly thinking about how to pay your child’s school, or other urgent needs. On the other side, situation will be different if today you’ve been able to regularly allocate some sufficient amount of money to cover your daily lives, make saving for your future lives, or even if you have passive income which can cover all of your needs. I think your life will be seems easier and comfortable to do other important things, don’t you ?

As different person has different perception about word rich, I try to categorize the people into three types in accordance with their concern to financial freedom:

First, people who already known what’s their own financial purposes, have enough knowledge to implement personal finance management in their life, and do implement their knowledge in daily life. This kind of people is used to become successful in their financial and social life.

Second, people who don’t care enough about financial freedom. For them, financial freedom is just another slogan, and doesn’t so important as well. They tend to entertain their today’s life with almost of their earnings. This kind of people are usually stuck in their lifestyle and as a consequence they must work hard just to pay their current lifestyle. Continue reading ‘Start Your Step to Implement Personal Finances’ »

One of the most common questions asked by someone considering retirement to the Philippines is “how do I send my retirement money into the Philippines after I relocate there?” Most people retiring to the Philippines have their ongoing income (pension, annuity, investment income, etc) generated in their home country, but need to get it to their retirement home in the Philippines. With the advent of the internet, combined by an ever increasing number of people retiring to overseas, moving money into the Philippines is no longer a difficult matter. Of all the methods to transfer money, I have found the following to be the best ways:

1. Bank Wire Transfer

You need to set up a US dollar account at a bank in the Philippines and then wire transfer funds from your home country bank to your Philippines’ account. You wire transfer money from your home country bank by signing up with their procedures for sending wire transfers while out of the country. One you have signed up with your bank’s procedures to do this, it is a quick way to send money to the Philippines. However, it is expensive. Depending on the amount being transferred, the wire can cost as much as $75. Clearly, you would not want to transfer money more than once monthly.

2. Use a Philippine National Bank Transfer Facility.

If you are in your home country at the time of wanting to make a transfer, and there is a Philippine National Bank transfer facility nearby, a wire transfer of funds to a Philippine bank is relatively inexpensive. The fees are based on a sliding scale: the more money you transfer the bigger the fee, but the fee decreases as a percentage of the transfer as the amount of the transfer increases. Continue reading ‘Sending Money to the Philippines – 7 Ways to Send Money to the Philippines’ »

To begin this journey and use these grocery savings tips, be sure that you include nutritionally-dense and lower-cost foods on your grocery shopping list. This creates a “lavish cheapskate’s” win/win to fit your household budget, your grocery savings, and your health.

We’ve kept this very simple with frugal footsteps so you can overcome all the typical “money traps” that can lure you into spending more than you need to.

Simply use these grocery shopping tips and you will automatically avoid these spending pitfalls… Continue reading ‘Grocery Shopping Tips to Save in Everyday Spending’ »