My Dollar Plan http://www.mydollarplan.com finance. money. action. Tue, 10 Nov 2009 13:29:22 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.5 en hourly 1 Subscribe with My Yahoo!Subscribe with NewsGatorSubscribe with My AOLSubscribe with BloglinesSubscribe with NetvibesSubscribe with GoogleSubscribe with Pageflakes Understanding Health Savings Accounts http://www.mydollarplan.com/understanding-health-savings-accounts/ http://www.mydollarplan.com/understanding-health-savings-accounts/#comments Tue, 10 Nov 2009 13:29:22 +0000 Jill http://www.mydollarplan.com/?p=1022 We’re continuing to detail specific benefit options with a look at Health Savings Accounts, or HSAs. Yesterday we looked at High Deductible Health Plans. Because of its lower premiums, an HDHP makes financial sense for many people. If you have an HDHP, you are also eligible to contribute to an HSA and save even more money on medical expenses.

HSA basics

  • Definition: An HSA is a special type of savings account – a tax-advantaged way to pay for qualified medical expenses incurred while covered by an HDHP. HSAs can be held in simple interest-bearing savings accounts. Some plans will also allow you to invest in higher-earning instruments, allowing your contributions to grow significantly when invested properly.
  • Eligibility: To be eligible to open and contribute to an HSA, you must be over 18 and covered by an HDHP that conforms to IRS standards. You may not have any other kind of medical insurance plan in addition to the HDHP, including Medicare. Finally, you cannot be claimed as a dependent on someone else’s tax return. Employers that offer an HDHP usually offer and manage an HSA as well. If you have individual health insurance you can sign up for an HSA through your insurance company or many banks/credit unions.
  • Contributions: If you are an individual covered by an HDHP, you can contribute $3,050 in 2010 ($254/month). Covered families (including participant plus spouse, children, or both) can contribute $6,150. Your employer may contribute, but total contributions cannot exceed the above limits. Individuals can also contribute an additional $1,000 per year if they are 55 or over. These amounts are reduced if you do not remain covered by the plan for the entire year. You cannot contribute once you stop being covered by an HDHP due to retirement, employer changes, or plan changes, but the accumulated contributions and earnings are yours to keep.
  • Withdrawals: Withdrawals for qualified medical expenses are tax-free. Many HSAs will provide you with a debit card so that you can pay expenses directly. Others will require you to file paperwork for reimbursement. Withdrawals for non-medical expenses will be taxed as ordinary income. A 10% penalty will also apply unless you are over 65 or disabled.
  • Qualified Expenses: All normal medical expenses, including anything that your HDHP deductible would apply to, such as prescriptions, are qualified expenses. You can also pay for dental or vision expenses as well as long term care insurance premiums or expenses. Finally, Medicare premiums and COBRA premiums are qualified expenses, as are other health insurance premiums if you are unemployed. Cosmetic surgery cannot be paid for out of an HSA.

How can an HSA work for you?

An HSA is tax-advantaged in three ways:

  1. It provides an up-front tax deduction, reducing your taxable income by the amount of your contribution.
  2. It allows for contributions to grow with no taxes on earnings.
  3. You can make tax-free withdrawals for qualified medical expenses. The withdrawals can be made at any time, even if you are not covered by an HDHP at the time of the expense!

Choosing an HDHP will always save you money in premiums when compared to traditional medical plans. The only downside is meeting your higher deductible. An HSA helps you save to meet that deductible and spread medical expenses evenly throughout the year so that they do not have to impact your everyday budget. In addition, your employer may contribute to your HSA, thus paying a portion of your annual deductible. Employer contributions and tax savings are in addition to other savings you may realize by selecting an HDHP. If your employer does not offer an HDHP option, consider getting quotes on private health insurance- even without an employer subsidy, the HDHP/HSA combined savings might be enough to make it worth it!

Because there are no income limits for HSA eligibility, HSAs are a great way to plan for increased medical expenses in retirement. If you have an HDHP/HSA for multiple years, and choose to pay for medical expenses out-of-pocket instead of an HSA, you can even treat your HSA as a “super Roth” and make tax-free withdrawals later instead of in the year they are incurred – this strategy allows the money to grow tax-free as long as possible!

To open an HSA, select it during open enrollment with your employer or check with your private health insurance company, bank, or credit union. Be aware that non-employer sponsored HSAs may incur management fees. While those fees can be frustrating, they are almost certainly outweighted by the savings!

Final thoughts

If you have the option of choosing an HDHP at work, spend some time running the numbers to see how much the combination of an HDHP and HSA can save you. JP Morgan Chase provides three easy-to-use calculators, including a tax savings calculator. If you are already covered by an HDHP, there is no reason NOT to open and contribute to an HSA. HSA money never expires – the account and any incurred tax benefits are yours to keep throughout your life. Combined with HDHPs, they can save you thousands of dollars over the course of your lifetime.

For more on HSAs, check out this handy guide from The Department of the Treasury.


Written by Jill

Click here to leave a comment on this article.
© My Dollar Plan
Get free subscriptions to hundreds of popular magazines!

]]> We’re continuing to detail specific benefit options with a look at Health Savings Accounts, or HSAs. Yesterday we looked at High Deductible Health Plans. Because of its lower premiums, an HDHP makes financial sense for many people. If you have an HDHP, you are also eligible to contribute to an HSA and save even more money on medical expenses.

HSA basics

  • Definition: An HSA is a special type of savings account – a tax-advantaged way to pay for qualified medical expenses incurred while covered by an HDHP. HSAs can be held in simple interest-bearing savings accounts. Some plans will also allow you to invest in higher-earning instruments, allowing your contributions to grow significantly when invested properly.
  • Eligibility: To be eligible to open and contribute to an HSA, you must be over 18 and covered by an HDHP that conforms to IRS standards. You may not have any other kind of medical insurance plan in addition to the HDHP, including Medicare. Finally, you cannot be claimed as a dependent on someone else’s tax return. Employers that offer an HDHP usually offer and manage an HSA as well. If you have individual health insurance you can sign up for an HSA through your insurance company or many banks/credit unions.
  • Contributions: If you are an individual covered by an HDHP, you can contribute $3,050 in 2010 ($254/month). Covered families (including participant plus spouse, children, or both) can contribute $6,150. Your employer may contribute, but total contributions cannot exceed the above limits. Individuals can also contribute an additional $1,000 per year if they are 55 or over. These amounts are reduced if you do not remain covered by the plan for the entire year. You cannot contribute once you stop being covered by an HDHP due to retirement, employer changes, or plan changes, but the accumulated contributions and earnings are yours to keep.
  • Withdrawals: Withdrawals for qualified medical expenses are tax-free. Many HSAs will provide you with a debit card so that you can pay expenses directly. Others will require you to file paperwork for reimbursement. Withdrawals for non-medical expenses will be taxed as ordinary income. A 10% penalty will also apply unless you are over 65 or disabled.
  • Qualified Expenses: All normal medical expenses, including anything that your HDHP deductible would apply to, such as prescriptions, are qualified expenses. You can also pay for dental or vision expenses as well as long term care insurance premiums or expenses. Finally, Medicare premiums and COBRA premiums are qualified expenses, as are other health insurance premiums if you are unemployed. Cosmetic surgery cannot be paid for out of an HSA.

How can an HSA work for you?

An HSA is tax-advantaged in three ways:

  1. It provides an up-front tax deduction, reducing your taxable income by the amount of your contribution.
  2. It allows for contributions to grow with no taxes on earnings.
  3. You can make tax-free withdrawals for qualified medical expenses. The withdrawals can be made at any time, even if you are not covered by an HDHP at the time of the expense!

Choosing an HDHP will always save you money in premiums when compared to traditional medical plans. The only downside is meeting your higher deductible. An HSA helps you save to meet that deductible and spread medical expenses evenly throughout the year so that they do not have to impact your everyday budget. In addition, your employer may contribute to your HSA, thus paying a portion of your annual deductible. Employer contributions and tax savings are in addition to other savings you may realize by selecting an HDHP. If your employer does not offer an HDHP option, consider getting quotes on private health insurance- even without an employer subsidy, the HDHP/HSA combined savings might be enough to make it worth it!

Because there are no income limits for HSA eligibility, HSAs are a great way to plan for increased medical expenses in retirement. If you have an HDHP/HSA for multiple years, and choose to pay for medical expenses out-of-pocket instead of an HSA, you can even treat your HSA as a “super Roth” and make tax-free withdrawals later instead of in the year they are incurred – this strategy allows the money to grow tax-free as long as possible!

To open an HSA, select it during open enrollment with your employer or check with your private health insurance company, bank, or credit union. Be aware that non-employer sponsored HSAs may incur management fees. While those fees can be frustrating, they are almost certainly outweighted by the savings!

Final thoughts

If you have the option of choosing an HDHP at work, spend some time running the numbers to see how much the combination of an HDHP and HSA can save you. JP Morgan Chase provides three easy-to-use calculators, including a tax savings calculator. If you are already covered by an HDHP, there is no reason NOT to open and contribute to an HSA. HSA money never expires – the account and any incurred tax benefits are yours to keep throughout your life. Combined with HDHPs, they can save you thousands of dollars over the course of your lifetime.

For more on HSAs, check out this handy guide from The Department of the Treasury.


Written by Jill

Click here to leave a comment on this article.
© My Dollar Plan
Get free subscriptions to hundreds of popular magazines!


]]> http://www.mydollarplan.com/understanding-health-savings-accounts/feed/ 0 How to Save Money with High Deductible Health Plans http://www.mydollarplan.com/how-to-save-money-with-high-deductible-health-plans/ http://www.mydollarplan.com/how-to-save-money-with-high-deductible-health-plans/#comments Mon, 09 Nov 2009 13:29:08 +0000 Jill http://www.mydollarplan.com/?p=1021 While many of you go through open enrollment and others search for private health insurance, we thought it would be a great time to delve deeper into specific benefit options that can help you save money on health care. Today we’ll look into High Deductible Health Plans, or HDHPs.

What is a High Deductible Health Plan?

A high deductible health plan is a health insurance plan with lower premiums and a higher deductible than traditional plans. The IRS sets the minimum deductibles for plans to be considered HDHPs. For 2010, HDHP policies for individuals must have a deductible of at least $1,200. Policies for couples, individuals with children, or families must have deductibles of at least $2,400.

The IRS also limits the maximum amount that an HDHP can require you to spend out-of-pocket. In 2010 the maximum amount is $5,950 for individuals and $11,900 for all others.

An HDHP is usually offered in concert with a Health Savings Account, or HSA. I’ll talk more about these tomorrow, but the bottom line is that they allow you to save for and pay for health expenses tax-free.

How can an HDHP work for you?

High deductible health plans often cover 100% of preventative care such as annual physicals and screenings such as mammograms or prostate tests – that means you have no out of pocket costs. Your deductible will only apply to things like hospital/ER visits, prescriptions, and other physician visits. Even some percentage of these expenses may be covered by your insurer.

This means that if you stay relatively healthy over the course of the year, you could have little or no out-of-pocket expenses. Even if you have a few doctor visits and/or regular prescriptions, you could come out on top. As I said above, the HDHP limits your total out-of-pocket expenses, so the most you will pay in one year is your annual premiums plus that out-of-pocket limit. If your employer contributes to an HSA on your behalf, you will reap even more benefits from this plan!

HDHP Example

My HDHP at work this year will cost $50 less per month than a traditional in-network plan. That’s $600 per year! In addition, my employer will contribute $750 over the course of the year to my HSA. The $600 is mine to do whatever I want with. The $750 can go towards meeting my deductible.

All preventative care is 100% covered, so as long as my prescriptions, hospital visits, and other doctor visits cost less than $750, I make money by choosing an HDHP. My expenses can add up to $1350 ($750 from my HSA + $600 premium savings) and I’ll still break even with a traditional plan. Once my expenses hit the max out-of-pocket limit, all future expenses will be covered at 100% – compared to a traditional plan where I will have co-pays throughout the year, regardless of how much I spend out of pocket.

When should you avoid HDHPs?

A high deductible health plan is not right for everyone. The number one reason to avoid choosing an HDHP is if meeting the deductible places a huge burden on you. This may be the case if you do not benefit from HSA employer contributions. Depending on the terms of your HDHP and the other insurance options you might have, you also might want to avoid choosing an HDHP if:

  • You have a chronic illness that requires frequent doctor visits and/or multiple prescriptions.
  • You are older/in poor health.
  • You are pregnant or plan to become pregnant during the insurance term.

In the above situations frequent medical care means you will almost certainly need to spend your whole deductible, possibly negating any premium savings.

Making the Choice

Before you decide on an HDHP or more traditional health plan, pull out a piece of paper and a calculator and follow these steps:

  1. Write down all the medical expenses you expect to have over the course of the next year, including prescriptions. You can use this year’s expenses to estimate.
  2. Calculate how much each event/expense would cost you under both a traditional plan and an HDHP, taking into account any co-pays, deductibles, and out-of-pocket limits. If the HDHP costs are less than the traditional plan costs, an HDHP is definitely for you. If not, continue to step 3.
  3. If the HDHP costs are more than the traditional plan costs, subtract the traditional plan costs from the HDHP costs. This is the increased out-of-pocket cost with an HDHP.
  4. Subtract HDHP premiums from traditional plan premiums. This is your savings from choosing an HDHP.
  5. If your number from Step 3 is greater than the number from step 2, your savings outweigh additional expenses and you should choose an HDHP – this will be the case for most people who have limited health issues and use insurance sparingly. If not, stick to a traditional plan.

If an HDHP makes sense for you, it can be a great way to save money without compromising your health care! That’s money in your pocket that can be used for savings, dept payment, investing, or just a little breathing room in your budget.

Check back tomorrow for a more-detailed explanation of Health Savings Accounts. Employer and/or personal contributions can add even more savings when combined with an HDHP!


Written by Jill

Click here to leave a comment on this article.
© My Dollar Plan
Get free subscriptions to hundreds of popular magazines!

]]> While many of you go through open enrollment and others search for private health insurance, we thought it would be a great time to delve deeper into specific benefit options that can help you save money on health care. Today we’ll look into High Deductible Health Plans, or HDHPs.

What is a High Deductible Health Plan?

A high deductible health plan is a health insurance plan with lower premiums and a higher deductible than traditional plans. The IRS sets the minimum deductibles for plans to be considered HDHPs. For 2010, HDHP policies for individuals must have a deductible of at least $1,200. Policies for couples, individuals with children, or families must have deductibles of at least $2,400.

The IRS also limits the maximum amount that an HDHP can require you to spend out-of-pocket. In 2010 the maximum amount is $5,950 for individuals and $11,900 for all others.

An HDHP is usually offered in concert with a Health Savings Account, or HSA. I’ll talk more about these tomorrow, but the bottom line is that they allow you to save for and pay for health expenses tax-free.

How can an HDHP work for you?

High deductible health plans often cover 100% of preventative care such as annual physicals and screenings such as mammograms or prostate tests – that means you have no out of pocket costs. Your deductible will only apply to things like hospital/ER visits, prescriptions, and other physician visits. Even some percentage of these expenses may be covered by your insurer.

This means that if you stay relatively healthy over the course of the year, you could have little or no out-of-pocket expenses. Even if you have a few doctor visits and/or regular prescriptions, you could come out on top. As I said above, the HDHP limits your total out-of-pocket expenses, so the most you will pay in one year is your annual premiums plus that out-of-pocket limit. If your employer contributes to an HSA on your behalf, you will reap even more benefits from this plan!

HDHP Example

My HDHP at work this year will cost $50 less per month than a traditional in-network plan. That’s $600 per year! In addition, my employer will contribute $750 over the course of the year to my HSA. The $600 is mine to do whatever I want with. The $750 can go towards meeting my deductible.

All preventative care is 100% covered, so as long as my prescriptions, hospital visits, and other doctor visits cost less than $750, I make money by choosing an HDHP. My expenses can add up to $1350 ($750 from my HSA + $600 premium savings) and I’ll still break even with a traditional plan. Once my expenses hit the max out-of-pocket limit, all future expenses will be covered at 100% – compared to a traditional plan where I will have co-pays throughout the year, regardless of how much I spend out of pocket.

When should you avoid HDHPs?

A high deductible health plan is not right for everyone. The number one reason to avoid choosing an HDHP is if meeting the deductible places a huge burden on you. This may be the case if you do not benefit from HSA employer contributions. Depending on the terms of your HDHP and the other insurance options you might have, you also might want to avoid choosing an HDHP if:

  • You have a chronic illness that requires frequent doctor visits and/or multiple prescriptions.
  • You are older/in poor health.
  • You are pregnant or plan to become pregnant during the insurance term.

In the above situations frequent medical care means you will almost certainly need to spend your whole deductible, possibly negating any premium savings.

Making the Choice

Before you decide on an HDHP or more traditional health plan, pull out a piece of paper and a calculator and follow these steps:

  1. Write down all the medical expenses you expect to have over the course of the next year, including prescriptions. You can use this year’s expenses to estimate.
  2. Calculate how much each event/expense would cost you under both a traditional plan and an HDHP, taking into account any co-pays, deductibles, and out-of-pocket limits. If the HDHP costs are less than the traditional plan costs, an HDHP is definitely for you. If not, continue to step 3.
  3. If the HDHP costs are more than the traditional plan costs, subtract the traditional plan costs from the HDHP costs. This is the increased out-of-pocket cost with an HDHP.
  4. Subtract HDHP premiums from traditional plan premiums. This is your savings from choosing an HDHP.
  5. If your number from Step 3 is greater than the number from step 2, your savings outweigh additional expenses and you should choose an HDHP – this will be the case for most people who have limited health issues and use insurance sparingly. If not, stick to a traditional plan.

If an HDHP makes sense for you, it can be a great way to save money without compromising your health care! That’s money in your pocket that can be used for savings, dept payment, investing, or just a little breathing room in your budget.

Check back tomorrow for a more-detailed explanation of Health Savings Accounts. Employer and/or personal contributions can add even more savings when combined with an HDHP!


Written by Jill

Click here to leave a comment on this article.
© My Dollar Plan
Get free subscriptions to hundreds of popular magazines!


]]> http://www.mydollarplan.com/how-to-save-money-with-high-deductible-health-plans/feed/ 0 $6,500 Home Buyer Tax Credit for Existing Homeowners http://www.mydollarplan.com/6500-home-buyer-tax-credit-for-existing-homeowners/ http://www.mydollarplan.com/6500-home-buyer-tax-credit-for-existing-homeowners/#comments Sat, 07 Nov 2009 04:57:24 +0000 Madison http://www.mydollarplan.com/?p=1025 Good news for existing homeowners! You’ll finally be eligible to take advantage of the home buyer tax credit. When the President signed a bill today to Extend the $8,000 First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit, it also included a provision for existing homeowners, referred to as long-time residents.

To qualify as a long-time resident, you must have owned and lived in your current residence for at least five years of the previous eight years.

$6,500 Home Buyer Tax Credit

Here are the requirements for the $6,500 home buyer tax credit:

  • Your new home must have a signed contract by April 30, 2010 and you must close on the new home by June 30, 2010.
  • Income phaseouts will begin at $125,000 for single filers and $225,000 for married filing joint.
  • The credit is for primary homes that cost $800,000 or less.

For more information, see the original First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit.


Written by Madison

Click here to leave a comment on this article.
© My Dollar Plan
Get free subscriptions to hundreds of popular magazines!

]]> Good news for existing homeowners! You’ll finally be eligible to take advantage of the home buyer tax credit. When the President signed a bill today to Extend the $8,000 First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit, it also included a provision for existing homeowners, referred to as long-time residents.

To qualify as a long-time resident, you must have owned and lived in your current residence for at least five years of the previous eight years.

$6,500 Home Buyer Tax Credit

Here are the requirements for the $6,500 home buyer tax credit:

  • Your new home must have a signed contract by April 30, 2010 and you must close on the new home by June 30, 2010.
  • Income phaseouts will begin at $125,000 for single filers and $225,000 for married filing joint.
  • The credit is for primary homes that cost $800,000 or less.

For more information, see the original First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit.


Written by Madison

Click here to leave a comment on this article.
© My Dollar Plan
Get free subscriptions to hundreds of popular magazines!


]]> http://www.mydollarplan.com/6500-home-buyer-tax-credit-for-existing-homeowners/feed/ 0 $8,000 First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit Extended http://www.mydollarplan.com/8000-first-time-home-buyer-tax-credit-extended/ http://www.mydollarplan.com/8000-first-time-home-buyer-tax-credit-extended/#comments Sat, 07 Nov 2009 04:39:53 +0000 Madison http://www.mydollarplan.com/?p=1024 The $8,000 First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit that was set to expire on November 30 was extended today. The new deadline to take advantage of the first time home buyer credit is to have a signed contract by April 30, 2010 and close on the house by June 30, 2010.

First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit

As a reminder, here are some of the rules for the first time home buyer tax credit:

  • The credit is for $8,000 or 10% of the home’s value, whichever is less.
  • The credit is refundable.
  • The credit is for primary homes that cost $800,000 or less.

The income limits also went up with the extension. Original phaseouts were for incomes between $75,000 to $95,000 for single and $150,000 to $170,000 for couples. Phaseouts will now begin at $125,000 for single and $225,000 for couples.

In addition to extending the date, the bill also included a $6,500 Home Buyer Tax Credit for Existing Homeowners.


Written by Madison

Click here to leave a comment on this article.
© My Dollar Plan
Get free subscriptions to hundreds of popular magazines!

]]> The $8,000 First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit that was set to expire on November 30 was extended today. The new deadline to take advantage of the first time home buyer credit is to have a signed contract by April 30, 2010 and close on the house by June 30, 2010.

First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit

As a reminder, here are some of the rules for the first time home buyer tax credit:

  • The credit is for $8,000 or 10% of the home’s value, whichever is less.
  • The credit is refundable.
  • The credit is for primary homes that cost $800,000 or less.

The income limits also went up with the extension. Original phaseouts were for incomes between $75,000 to $95,000 for single and $150,000 to $170,000 for couples. Phaseouts will now begin at $125,000 for single and $225,000 for couples.

In addition to extending the date, the bill also included a $6,500 Home Buyer Tax Credit for Existing Homeowners.


Written by Madison

Click here to leave a comment on this article.
© My Dollar Plan
Get free subscriptions to hundreds of popular magazines!


]]> http://www.mydollarplan.com/8000-first-time-home-buyer-tax-credit-extended/feed/ 1 ING $50 Sign Up Bonus http://www.mydollarplan.com/ing-50-sign-up-bonus/ http://www.mydollarplan.com/ing-50-sign-up-bonus/#comments Fri, 06 Nov 2009 13:29:18 +0000 Kate http://www.mydollarplan.com/?p=995 This week offers a great $50 bonus to one of our favorite banks, ING Direct. ING always offers the awesome $25 sign up offer for savings accounts.

They’re back with another great opportunity to open an Electric Orange checking account. It’s our Free Money Friday offer this week!

How to Get Your Sign Up Bonus

  1. Visit ING Direct to sign up for an Electric Orange Checking Account.
  2. Activate your Electric Orange Debit Card.
  3. Use your debit card to make at least 3 signature-based purchases in the first 45 days after your account has been opened.
  4. Get your $50 bonus credited to your account 50 days after it has been opened.

ING Direct

Here’s some more info about the account that you might want to know:

Initial Deposit Requirement: None.

Interest Rates (as of the beginning of this week):

  • 0.25% on balances under $50,000
  • 1.50% on balances between $50,000 and $99,999.99
  • 1.55% on balances $100,000 or higher

Also, don’t forget to check out why we are big fans of ING Direct!


Written by Kate

Click here to leave a comment on this article.
© My Dollar Plan
Get free subscriptions to hundreds of popular magazines!

]]> This week offers a great $50 bonus to one of our favorite banks, ING Direct. ING always offers the awesome $25 sign up offer for savings accounts.

They’re back with another great opportunity to open an Electric Orange checking account. It’s our Free Money Friday offer this week!

How to Get Your Sign Up Bonus

  1. Visit ING Direct to sign up for an Electric Orange Checking Account.
  2. Activate your Electric Orange Debit Card.
  3. Use your debit card to make at least 3 signature-based purchases in the first 45 days after your account has been opened.
  4. Get your $50 bonus credited to your account 50 days after it has been opened.

ING Direct

Here’s some more info about the account that you might want to know:

Initial Deposit Requirement: None.

Interest Rates (as of the beginning of this week):

  • 0.25% on balances under $50,000
  • 1.50% on balances between $50,000 and $99,999.99
  • 1.55% on balances $100,000 or higher

Also, don’t forget to check out why we are big fans of ING Direct!


Written by Kate

Click here to leave a comment on this article.
© My Dollar Plan
Get free subscriptions to hundreds of popular magazines!


]]> http://www.mydollarplan.com/ing-50-sign-up-bonus/feed/ 2 Pay with Miles, Investing, and Credit Cards http://www.mydollarplan.com/pay-with-miles-investing-and-credit-cards/ http://www.mydollarplan.com/pay-with-miles-investing-and-credit-cards/#comments Thu, 05 Nov 2009 13:29:58 +0000 Madison http://www.mydollarplan.com/?p=1019 We’re planning a big family vacation for next summer. Scott, me, the kids, and my parents are all headed to Seattle for a friend’s wedding. We decided to make a week out of it and make it a vacation.

Gone are the days when Scott and I could book 2 tickets on Northwest with our miles in under 10 minutes. Have you ever tried to coordinate booking 7 plane tickets using frequent flier miles from 2 different accounts for 4 tickets, getting reasonable prices for the remaining tickets, getting good flight times for traveling with 3 kids ages 3 and under, and getting decent seating for traveling with a lap baby? Don’t forget to throw in the Delta/Northwest merger of our frequent flier miles, and all of a sudden, booking the flight got really complicated.

Pay with Miles

Luckily, I discovered Delta’s “Pay with Miles” program. While the conversion ratio isn’t that great, it looks like a cheaper option than using miles outright for the dates we need. You need to have one of the American Express Delta cards to use the Pay with Miles program:

We each applied for a card, since you get 25,000 bonus SkyMiles after the first purchase (good for $500 off with the Pay with Miles program for 2 cards). After we get our new cards, even after paying the annual fee, it should make booking our trip much easier… and cheaper!

Investing

Credit Cards

By the Numbers

And More!


Written by Madison

Click here to leave a comment on this article.
© My Dollar Plan
Get free subscriptions to hundreds of popular magazines!

]]> We’re planning a big family vacation for next summer. Scott, me, the kids, and my parents are all headed to Seattle for a friend’s wedding. We decided to make a week out of it and make it a vacation.

Gone are the days when Scott and I could book 2 tickets on Northwest with our miles in under 10 minutes. Have you ever tried to coordinate booking 7 plane tickets using frequent flier miles from 2 different accounts for 4 tickets, getting reasonable prices for the remaining tickets, getting good flight times for traveling with 3 kids ages 3 and under, and getting decent seating for traveling with a lap baby? Don’t forget to throw in the Delta/Northwest merger of our frequent flier miles, and all of a sudden, booking the flight got really complicated.

Pay with Miles

Luckily, I discovered Delta’s “Pay with Miles” program. While the conversion ratio isn’t that great, it looks like a cheaper option than using miles outright for the dates we need. You need to have one of the American Express Delta cards to use the Pay with Miles program:

We each applied for a card, since you get 25,000 bonus SkyMiles after the first purchase (good for $500 off with the Pay with Miles program for 2 cards). After we get our new cards, even after paying the annual fee, it should make booking our trip much easier… and cheaper!

Investing

Credit Cards

By the Numbers

And More!


Written by Madison

Click here to leave a comment on this article.
© My Dollar Plan
Get free subscriptions to hundreds of popular magazines!


]]> http://www.mydollarplan.com/pay-with-miles-investing-and-credit-cards/feed/ 4 What is a Dividend Reinvestment Plan? http://www.mydollarplan.com/what-is-a-dividend-reinvestment-plan/ http://www.mydollarplan.com/what-is-a-dividend-reinvestment-plan/#comments Wed, 04 Nov 2009 13:29:28 +0000 Brian http://www.mydollarplan.com/?p=988 Companies offer Dividend Reinvestment Plans (DRP) to allow shareholders to purchase stock on a regular basis directly from the company. In addition to share purchases, dividend reinvestment plans reinvest any dividends paid into more company stock. A dividend reinvestment plan is a convenient way to build a large stock holding in a company over time.

Dividend Reinvestment Plan Advantages

Inexpensive to start. Often you can enroll in a dividend reinvestment plan by owning one share of stock. Some companies even offer dividend reinvestment plans that allow you to buy the initial share directly from them, bypassing a broker.

Reasonable fees. Companies reinvest your dividends in additional shares and allow additional cash purchases of stock with little or no fees.

Invest automatically. Some dividend reinvestment plans offer additional investments in amounts as small as $10-$25! Many offer monthly investment plans where they will withdraw the amount you specify from your checking/savings account.

Good investment practices. Often the best investment strategy is to “buy and hold” and “dollar-cost average.” (Dollar-cost averaging is the practice of investing a set amount on a periodic basis regardless of share price to even out the highs and lows. When prices are high you buy less, when prices are low you buy more.) Reinvesting your dividends through a dividend reinvestment plan is an excellent way to dollar-cost average, and over time can result in a substantial position in a company.

Dividend Reinvestment Plan Disadvantages

Watch out for fees on small investments. A recent trend in dividend reinvestment plans is for companies to pass along more and more fees to investors. Although these fees are often very low, they can easily eat up a substantial portion of your investment if you are investing small sums of money. As an example, I own 10 shares of a stock that pays $3.20 in dividends every quarter. The fee to reinvest that $3.20 was almost $1! Obviously not a good deal, so I withdrew from the dividend reinvestment plan.

Dividends are still taxed. Dividends are treated as income by the IRS whether you receive a check or they are reinvested. At the beginning this is often not a big deal, but over time as the number of shares you own builds the dividend amount can become quite substantial.

Paperwork. If you want to invest in 10 companies through dividend reinvestment plans you have join 10 different plans. You can simplify things a bit by using Computershare (see below) or Sharebuilder. Online brokerages usually offer free dividend reinvestment plans for those who invest larger sums.

Lack of diversification. Owning shares in a single company can be risky. Mutual funds might be a better choice for the risk-averse, as they spread out the risk over hundreds of companies.

Finding a Dividend Reinvestment Plan

Computershare offers one-stop shopping for hundreds of dividend reinvestment plans. They offer a searchable list that can be filtered to easily find a dividend reinvestment plan that fits your needs.

You can also use OneShare.

Probably the best way to find out if a company offers a dividend reinvestment plan is to visit the company website. Most companies have an Investor Relations area that will highlight the various options available to shareowners. For example: Coca-Cola, Disney, and Wal-Mart.

Final Thoughts

A dividend reinvestment plan offers investors an excellent, low-cost way to invest in a company on a regular basis over time. dividend reinvestment plans are especially advantageous for investors who can only invest a small amount each month. Investing in a single company carries risks, but it can also be quite rewarding.

Do you currently invest in a company through a dividend reinvestment plan? If so, which companies?


Written by Brian

Click here to leave a comment on this article.
© My Dollar Plan
Get free subscriptions to hundreds of popular magazines!

]]> Companies offer Dividend Reinvestment Plans (DRP) to allow shareholders to purchase stock on a regular basis directly from the company. In addition to share purchases, dividend reinvestment plans reinvest any dividends paid into more company stock. A dividend reinvestment plan is a convenient way to build a large stock holding in a company over time.

Dividend Reinvestment Plan Advantages

Inexpensive to start. Often you can enroll in a dividend reinvestment plan by owning one share of stock. Some companies even offer dividend reinvestment plans that allow you to buy the initial share directly from them, bypassing a broker.

Reasonable fees. Companies reinvest your dividends in additional shares and allow additional cash purchases of stock with little or no fees.

Invest automatically. Some dividend reinvestment plans offer additional investments in amounts as small as $10-$25! Many offer monthly investment plans where they will withdraw the amount you specify from your checking/savings account.

Good investment practices. Often the best investment strategy is to “buy and hold” and “dollar-cost average.” (Dollar-cost averaging is the practice of investing a set amount on a periodic basis regardless of share price to even out the highs and lows. When prices are high you buy less, when prices are low you buy more.) Reinvesting your dividends through a dividend reinvestment plan is an excellent way to dollar-cost average, and over time can result in a substantial position in a company.

Dividend Reinvestment Plan Disadvantages

Watch out for fees on small investments. A recent trend in dividend reinvestment plans is for companies to pass along more and more fees to investors. Although these fees are often very low, they can easily eat up a substantial portion of your investment if you are investing small sums of money. As an example, I own 10 shares of a stock that pays $3.20 in dividends every quarter. The fee to reinvest that $3.20 was almost $1! Obviously not a good deal, so I withdrew from the dividend reinvestment plan.

Dividends are still taxed. Dividends are treated as income by the IRS whether you receive a check or they are reinvested. At the beginning this is often not a big deal, but over time as the number of shares you own builds the dividend amount can become quite substantial.

Paperwork. If you want to invest in 10 companies through dividend reinvestment plans you have join 10 different plans. You can simplify things a bit by using Computershare (see below) or Sharebuilder. Online brokerages usually offer free dividend reinvestment plans for those who invest larger sums.

Lack of diversification. Owning shares in a single company can be risky. Mutual funds might be a better choice for the risk-averse, as they spread out the risk over hundreds of companies.

Finding a Dividend Reinvestment Plan

Computershare offers one-stop shopping for hundreds of dividend reinvestment plans. They offer a searchable list that can be filtered to easily find a dividend reinvestment plan that fits your needs.

You can also use OneShare.

Probably the best way to find out if a company offers a dividend reinvestment plan is to visit the company website. Most companies have an Investor Relations area that will highlight the various options available to shareowners. For example: Coca-Cola, Disney, and Wal-Mart.

Final Thoughts

A dividend reinvestment plan offers investors an excellent, low-cost way to invest in a company on a regular basis over time. dividend reinvestment plans are especially advantageous for investors who can only invest a small amount each month. Investing in a single company carries risks, but it can also be quite rewarding.

Do you currently invest in a company through a dividend reinvestment plan? If so, which companies?


Written by Brian

Click here to leave a comment on this article.
© My Dollar Plan
Get free subscriptions to hundreds of popular magazines!


]]> http://www.mydollarplan.com/what-is-a-dividend-reinvestment-plan/feed/ 2 How to Save on Health Care Without Skimping on Quality http://www.mydollarplan.com/how-to-save-on-health-care-without-skimping-on-quality/ http://www.mydollarplan.com/how-to-save-on-health-care-without-skimping-on-quality/#comments Tue, 03 Nov 2009 13:29:10 +0000 Amanda http://www.mydollarplan.com/?p=992 Being frugal and saving money on everything run through my blood. I have patience, sometimes waiting years in order to score a great deal on an item I want, and I am willing to compromise on quality in some cases.

However, like many of you, health care is not an area I am willing to be patient in, or to compromise on quality. I always carry a health insurance policy, whether working and having access to a group plan during open enrollment, or in between jobs and purchasing an individual health care plan. If I need medication, I no sooner leave the doctor’s office than go straight to a drugstore and fill it. Does this mean that I must compromise on cost savings? Certainly not.

How to Save on Health Care

Here are six ways that both group-insured and self-insured people can save money on health care and medical costs:

  1. Go Hybrid. If you are purchasing your own health care plan, then raising the deductible you will have to pay to use the service will decrease your monthly premium costs. To make up for this high deductible you could potentially pay out, make sure you keep a savings account to essentially insure yourself the amount of a deductible should a medical issue arise.
  2. Use Prescription Drug Coupons. Go to websites like Internet Drug Coupons and see if there is a coupon for co-pays for your prescription medications.
  3. Make Use of MinuteClinic. Take advantage of the MinuteClinic at CVS and various drugstores/pharmacies for minor issues that on-staff nurse practitioners can diagnose such as the flu, strep throat, bladder infections, sinus problems, and wellness checkups. For example, currently Houston area CVS MinuteClinics are offering over $150 in Health Services for free on particular dates (includes screenings for blood pressure, diabetes, bone density, cholesterol, and even dental and chiropractic services are available at certain locations). Also available are doctor consultations, medication reviews, and certain referrals that you normally may have to go to a general practitioner appointment to get.  
  4. Transfer Prescriptions. Transferring prescriptions is very simple, and each time you do it, you can get a gift card for $10-$35 at many stores (CVS, Randall’s/Safeway, Walgreens, Target, etc.). Keep a look out on the internet or in Sunday newspaper circulars for coupons to transfer your prescriptions (or to fill a new prescription) and clip them to keep on hand in case you unexpectedly become ill and need medication. Just take your current prescription bottle, your insurance card, and the coupon to the pharmacy department at the store and they will do all the work for you!
  5. Generics. Always ask your doctor to prescribe generics, and also call them to see if there is a generic available for the prescriptions you are currently taking.
  6. Use Your Phone. One of the best ways to save in copays on office visits is to not go into a doctor’s office. If you feel comfortable doing so, ask the doctor if you can do your follow-up over the phone. If you have chronic conditions that require the same medications, ask for the doctor to call-in refills over the phone.

Written by Amanda

Click here to leave a comment on this article.
© My Dollar Plan
Get free subscriptions to hundreds of popular magazines!

]]> Being frugal and saving money on everything run through my blood. I have patience, sometimes waiting years in order to score a great deal on an item I want, and I am willing to compromise on quality in some cases.

However, like many of you, health care is not an area I am willing to be patient in, or to compromise on quality. I always carry a health insurance policy, whether working and having access to a group plan during open enrollment, or in between jobs and purchasing an individual health care plan. If I need medication, I no sooner leave the doctor’s office than go straight to a drugstore and fill it. Does this mean that I must compromise on cost savings? Certainly not.

How to Save on Health Care

Here are six ways that both group-insured and self-insured people can save money on health care and medical costs:

  1. Go Hybrid. If you are purchasing your own health care plan, then raising the deductible you will have to pay to use the service will decrease your monthly premium costs. To make up for this high deductible you could potentially pay out, make sure you keep a savings account to essentially insure yourself the amount of a deductible should a medical issue arise.
  2. Use Prescription Drug Coupons. Go to websites like Internet Drug Coupons and see if there is a coupon for co-pays for your prescription medications.
  3. Make Use of MinuteClinic. Take advantage of the MinuteClinic at CVS and various drugstores/pharmacies for minor issues that on-staff nurse practitioners can diagnose such as the flu, strep throat, bladder infections, sinus problems, and wellness checkups. For example, currently Houston area CVS MinuteClinics are offering over $150 in Health Services for free on particular dates (includes screenings for blood pressure, diabetes, bone density, cholesterol, and even dental and chiropractic services are available at certain locations). Also available are doctor consultations, medication reviews, and certain referrals that you normally may have to go to a general practitioner appointment to get.  
  4. Transfer Prescriptions. Transferring prescriptions is very simple, and each time you do it, you can get a gift card for $10-$35 at many stores (CVS, Randall’s/Safeway, Walgreens, Target, etc.). Keep a look out on the internet or in Sunday newspaper circulars for coupons to transfer your prescriptions (or to fill a new prescription) and clip them to keep on hand in case you unexpectedly become ill and need medication. Just take your current prescription bottle, your insurance card, and the coupon to the pharmacy department at the store and they will do all the work for you!
  5. Generics. Always ask your doctor to prescribe generics, and also call them to see if there is a generic available for the prescriptions you are currently taking.
  6. Use Your Phone. One of the best ways to save in copays on office visits is to not go into a doctor’s office. If you feel comfortable doing so, ask the doctor if you can do your follow-up over the phone. If you have chronic conditions that require the same medications, ask for the doctor to call-in refills over the phone.

Written by Amanda

Click here to leave a comment on this article.
© My Dollar Plan
Get free subscriptions to hundreds of popular magazines!


]]> http://www.mydollarplan.com/how-to-save-on-health-care-without-skimping-on-quality/feed/ 2 Make the Most of Open Enrollment http://www.mydollarplan.com/make-the-most-of-open-enrollment/ http://www.mydollarplan.com/make-the-most-of-open-enrollment/#comments Mon, 02 Nov 2009 13:29:29 +0000 Jill http://www.mydollarplan.com/?p=1018 I opened the mailbox on Friday and found a thick envelope from my employer: the 2010 Guide to Open Enrollment. During the next two weeks, employees of my company can renew our benefits selections or choose new ones for 2010.

If you find yourself in the same situation, it’s important that you take advantage of it. Barring a major life event like a marriage, birth, or death, this will be the only chance you have to elect 2010 benefits for your family.

Depending on your employer and benefit providers, your 2009 benefits may carry over if you skip open enrollment, but also could expire and leave you without benefits in 2010. Remember that different options are appropriate for different situations – that’s why you have choices!

Benefit Options

Your company may provide you with any or all of the following options: medical insurance, flexible spending accounts for dependent care, health care, or commuter spending, a health savings account, long- or short-term disability insurance, life insurance, dental or vision insurance, and more.

You also may have the option of a “cafeteria plan” where your employer gives you a certain amount of money to use to pick from various benefit options. If you haven’t used them in the past, watch for these options in 2010:

  • High Deductible Health Plans provide cheaper premiums in exchange for a higher deductible – you are responsible for a certain dollar amount of medical costs before insurance kicks in. The deductible may not apply for certain expenses — annual physicals or other “wellness” visits and routine screenings are often covered at 100%
  • Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) allow you to save tax-free (up to certain limits) for qualified health care expenses. HSAs are only allowed for employees with high deductible health plans. They allow you to save for your portion of medical payments. As an added incentive, your employer may contribute part or all of your deductible to an HSA for you. Contributions roll over from year to year, and can be accessed for medical expenses at any time or after 59 ½ for any reason. Other withdrawals before 59 ½ will result in taxation plus a penalty.
  • Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs) allow you to save tax-free (up to certain limits) for dependent care expenses (such as child or elderly care), commuter spending (parking or public transportation), and medical expenses under any type of medical plan besides a high deductible plan. Funds in these accounts expire at the end of each year or a few months after, so be sure to only contribute the amount you will actually use! That said, these accounts are a great way to save on taxes.
  • Disability Insurance replaces a certain percentage of your income if a disability prevents you from working. Disability is more likely than untimely death, but more people carry life insurance than disability insurance. If your employer offers short or long term policies and your family is dependent on your income, consider electing this benefit in 2010.

5 Steps to Picking Benefits

The five steps below will guide you through the open enrollment process and help you choose cost-effective benefits for you and your family.

  1. Consider your benefit needs: Your biggest benefit election will focus around medical insurance. What are the major medical needs of your family in 2010? Are you anticipating any major surgeries, a pregnancy, or new prescriptions? Has your family grown, or has a child graduated from college and dropped off of your insurance? For benefits besides medical insurance, consider how your family needs differ from last year – a new child/stay-at-home parent might mean a greater need for disability or life insurance. A medical condition might necessitate greater savings in an HSA or FSA.  A teenage child in need of braces might steer you toward dental insurance even if you have not had it in the past.
  2. Review current benefit selections: What benefits did you elect for 2009, and how have they worked for you? Are you going to end up losing money in an FSA, or struggling to spend it? Did you wish you had set aside more for commuter or dependent care expenses? Did your dental premiums exceed what dental care would have cost you?
  3. Understand your options: If your employer sent an enrollment guide, read it cover to cover and then read it again. Understand every option completely – if you have questions, contact HR or the benefit provider. Pay special attention to benefits that would be a change for you, specifically those outlined above – just because you haven’t used them in the past doesn’t mean they don’t make sense for you. If you and a spouse both have benefit options, understand all of the choices through both employers – some might differ in coverage, cost, or both.
  4. Break out the calculator: First, figure out what medical plan makes sense for you – calculate your estimated medical costs under multiple plans, including premiums, co-payments, prescription costs, and payments to meet your deductible. A higher premium might make sense if it staves off out-of-pocket expenses later. If your out-of-pocket expenses are generally low, a high-deductible plan probably makes sense. Next, decide how much to contribute to your HSA and/or any FSAs. Remember to figure in any tax breaks when calculating how those may affect you. If you are also considering benefits from your spouse’s employer, run through the same scenario. Where possible, pick and choose the benefits from each employer that provide the best coverage for the lowest cost. Next, add up the cost of all of your benefit elections and HSA/FSA contributions, and make sure you can still afford other expenses. If you have to, go back and reevaluate lower-cost options.  
  5. Take action: Use your employer’s process to select your benefits for 2010. If any circumstances change during the open-enrollment period, you can usually make changes before open enrollment ends.

Written by Jill

Click here to leave a comment on this article.
© My Dollar Plan
Get free subscriptions to hundreds of popular magazines!

]]> I opened the mailbox on Friday and found a thick envelope from my employer: the 2010 Guide to Open Enrollment. During the next two weeks, employees of my company can renew our benefits selections or choose new ones for 2010.

If you find yourself in the same situation, it’s important that you take advantage of it. Barring a major life event like a marriage, birth, or death, this will be the only chance you have to elect 2010 benefits for your family.

Depending on your employer and benefit providers, your 2009 benefits may carry over if you skip open enrollment, but also could expire and leave you without benefits in 2010. Remember that different options are appropriate for different situations – that’s why you have choices!

Benefit Options

Your company may provide you with any or all of the following options: medical insurance, flexible spending accounts for dependent care, health care, or commuter spending, a health savings account, long- or short-term disability insurance, life insurance, dental or vision insurance, and more.

You also may have the option of a “cafeteria plan” where your employer gives you a certain amount of money to use to pick from various benefit options. If you haven’t used them in the past, watch for these options in 2010:

  • High Deductible Health Plans provide cheaper premiums in exchange for a higher deductible – you are responsible for a certain dollar amount of medical costs before insurance kicks in. The deductible may not apply for certain expenses — annual physicals or other “wellness” visits and routine screenings are often covered at 100%
  • Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) allow you to save tax-free (up to certain limits) for qualified health care expenses. HSAs are only allowed for employees with high deductible health plans. They allow you to save for your portion of medical payments. As an added incentive, your employer may contribute part or all of your deductible to an HSA for you. Contributions roll over from year to year, and can be accessed for medical expenses at any time or after 59 ½ for any reason. Other withdrawals before 59 ½ will result in taxation plus a penalty.
  • Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs) allow you to save tax-free (up to certain limits) for dependent care expenses (such as child or elderly care), commuter spending (parking or public transportation), and medical expenses under any type of medical plan besides a high deductible plan. Funds in these accounts expire at the end of each year or a few months after, so be sure to only contribute the amount you will actually use! That said, these accounts are a great way to save on taxes.
  • Disability Insurance replaces a certain percentage of your income if a disability prevents you from working. Disability is more likely than untimely death, but more people carry life insurance than disability insurance. If your employer offers short or long term policies and your family is dependent on your income, consider electing this benefit in 2010.

5 Steps to Picking Benefits

The five steps below will guide you through the open enrollment process and help you choose cost-effective benefits for you and your family.

  1. Consider your benefit needs: Your biggest benefit election will focus around medical insurance. What are the major medical needs of your family in 2010? Are you anticipating any major surgeries, a pregnancy, or new prescriptions? Has your family grown, or has a child graduated from college and dropped off of your insurance? For benefits besides medical insurance, consider how your family needs differ from last year – a new child/stay-at-home parent might mean a greater need for disability or life insurance. A medical condition might necessitate greater savings in an HSA or FSA.  A teenage child in need of braces might steer you toward dental insurance even if you have not had it in the past.
  2. Review current benefit selections: What benefits did you elect for 2009, and how have they worked for you? Are you going to end up losing money in an FSA, or struggling to spend it? Did you wish you had set aside more for commuter or dependent care expenses? Did your dental premiums exceed what dental care would have cost you?
  3. Understand your options: If your employer sent an enrollment guide, read it cover to cover and then read it again. Understand every option completely – if you have questions, contact HR or the benefit provider. Pay special attention to benefits that would be a change for you, specifically those outlined above – just because you haven’t used them in the past doesn’t mean they don’t make sense for you. If you and a spouse both have benefit options, understand all of the choices through both employers – some might differ in coverage, cost, or both.
  4. Break out the calculator: First, figure out what medical plan makes sense for you – calculate your estimated medical costs under multiple plans, including premiums, co-payments, prescription costs, and payments to meet your deductible. A higher premium might make sense if it staves off out-of-pocket expenses later. If your out-of-pocket expenses are generally low, a high-deductible plan probably makes sense. Next, decide how much to contribute to your HSA and/or any FSAs. Remember to figure in any tax breaks when calculating how those may affect you. If you are also considering benefits from your spouse’s employer, run through the same scenario. Where possible, pick and choose the benefits from each employer that provide the best coverage for the lowest cost. Next, add up the cost of all of your benefit elections and HSA/FSA contributions, and make sure you can still afford other expenses. If you have to, go back and reevaluate lower-cost options.  
  5. Take action: Use your employer’s process to select your benefits for 2010. If any circumstances change during the open-enrollment period, you can usually make changes before open enrollment ends.

Written by Jill

Click here to leave a comment on this article.
© My Dollar Plan
Get free subscriptions to hundreds of popular magazines!


]]> http://www.mydollarplan.com/make-the-most-of-open-enrollment/feed/ 4 Prosper $50 Sign Up Bonus http://www.mydollarplan.com/prosper-50-sign-up-bonus/ http://www.mydollarplan.com/prosper-50-sign-up-bonus/#comments Fri, 30 Oct 2009 12:05:09 +0000 Madison http://www.mydollarplan.com/?p=1015 Prosper is back just in time for today’s Free Money Friday offer. Prosper is giving a $50 sign up bonus!

And it could quite possibly be the fastest $50 we’ve ever earned. I signed up my husband (because I already had an account) and it took a total of 4 minutes to get the $50!

How to Get Your $50 Sign Up Bonus

  1. Create a new lender account at Prosper.
  2. Get your $50 immediately deposited into your account.
  3. Make two $25 bids on Prosper loans by December 31, 2009.

Prosper Bonus Terms and Conditions

  • Limited time offer.
  • The $50 sign up bonus may not be immediately withdrawn.
  • The bonus will expire on December 31, 2009 if it is not invested by bidding on loan listings.

More About Prosper

Funding the Account. We did not have to fund the account with any additional money. You can use the $50 they deposit to immediately invest in the two loans.

Peer to Peer Lending. Prosper is a peer to peer lender focused on connecting borrowers and lenders by eliminating the bank in between.

Referrals. Once you are a prosper member, you can refer your friends and family. You get $100 if your friend gets a prosper loan.

Sign Up for Prosper

Written by Madison

Click here to leave a comment on this article.
© My Dollar Plan
Get free subscriptions to hundreds of popular magazines!

]]> Prosper is back just in time for today’s Free Money Friday offer. Prosper is giving a $50 sign up bonus!

And it could quite possibly be the fastest $50 we’ve ever earned. I signed up my husband (because I already had an account) and it took a total of 4 minutes to get the $50!

How to Get Your $50 Sign Up Bonus

  1. Create a new lender account at Prosper.
  2. Get your $50 immediately deposited into your account.
  3. Make two $25 bids on Prosper loans by December 31, 2009.

Prosper Bonus Terms and Conditions

  • Limited time offer.
  • The $50 sign up bonus may not be immediately withdrawn.
  • The bonus will expire on December 31, 2009 if it is not invested by bidding on loan listings.

More About Prosper

Funding the Account. We did not have to fund the account with any additional money. You can use the $50 they deposit to immediately invest in the two loans.

Peer to Peer Lending. Prosper is a peer to peer lender focused on connecting borrowers and lenders by eliminating the bank in between.

Referrals. Once you are a prosper member, you can refer your friends and family. You get $100 if your friend gets a prosper loan.

Sign Up for Prosper

Written by Madison

Click here to leave a comment on this article.
© My Dollar Plan
Get free subscriptions to hundreds of popular magazines!


]]> http://www.mydollarplan.com/prosper-50-sign-up-bonus/feed/ 1 IRS Enrolled Agents, Investing, and Housing http://www.mydollarplan.com/irs-enrolled-agents-investing-and-housing/ http://www.mydollarplan.com/irs-enrolled-agents-investing-and-housing/#comments Thu, 29 Oct 2009 13:29:42 +0000 Madison http://www.mydollarplan.com/?p=1014 To satisfy one of my crazy tax desires, I’ve decided to become an enrolled agent. Not exactly your typical free time hobby, but something I find intriguing. I’ve completed taxes for years and volunteered for VITA, so it’s really the next logical step.

As an enrolled agent, you can practice and represent taxpayers before the IRS. Sounds exciting, doesn’t it?

So I’ve been spending my time studying everything anyone ever wanted to know about taxes. I’m sure I’ll be sharing some of the topics with you in the future, as it’s reminding me of lots of great tax strategies.

Ok, back to studying…. in the meantime, you can check out the new e-book 52 Ways to Make Extra Money at PT Money. My tips are on page 24 (use Ebates) and page 32 (use Swagbucks).

Investing

Housing

By the Numbers

And More!


Written by Madison

Click here to leave a comment on this article.
© My Dollar Plan
Get free subscriptions to hundreds of popular magazines!

]]> To satisfy one of my crazy tax desires, I’ve decided to become an enrolled agent. Not exactly your typical free time hobby, but something I find intriguing. I’ve completed taxes for years and volunteered for VITA, so it’s really the next logical step.

As an enrolled agent, you can practice and represent taxpayers before the IRS. Sounds exciting, doesn’t it?

So I’ve been spending my time studying everything anyone ever wanted to know about taxes. I’m sure I’ll be sharing some of the topics with you in the future, as it’s reminding me of lots of great tax strategies.

Ok, back to studying…. in the meantime, you can check out the new e-book 52 Ways to Make Extra Money at PT Money. My tips are on page 24 (use Ebates) and page 32 (use Swagbucks).

Investing

Housing

By the Numbers

And More!


Written by Madison

Click here to leave a comment on this article.
© My Dollar Plan
Get free subscriptions to hundreds of popular magazines!


]]> http://www.mydollarplan.com/irs-enrolled-agents-investing-and-housing/feed/ 7 Earning Interest and Dividends on Someone Else’s Dime http://www.mydollarplan.com/earning-interest-and-dividends-on-someone-else%e2%80%99s-dime/ http://www.mydollarplan.com/earning-interest-and-dividends-on-someone-else%e2%80%99s-dime/#comments Wed, 28 Oct 2009 13:29:44 +0000 Amanda http://www.mydollarplan.com/?p=956 Interest is, well, quite interesting. Instead of your money accumulating in your mattress or shoe box, it can now accumulate plus earn its own money. Money earning money—what a concept.

And there are multiple ways to achieve this: you can open a savings account or purchase certificates of deposits in order to earn interest, or invest in the stock market in order to earn dividends. When the interest paid to you begins to earn its own money, called compound interest, or your stocks earn you dividends purely because you own them, it becomes even more riveting.

It is commonly known that the riskier the vehicles for earning money that you choose, the more potential you have for both reward and loss. But what if you could go with the riskiest option without shouldering any of the risk, and with reaping all of the potential rewards?

Investing in the stock market—whether for short term gains or long term income replacement (IRAs)—offers the greatest amount of potential return, but then it also makes some people’s stomachs turn. Therefore, investing someone else’s money sounds like the solution for the weak-kneed investor because it will eliminate your personal risk all together.

Where to Find Money

So where can you find other people’s money? Most households in America have extra money that trickles in during the year from sources other than their paychecks. Perhaps you receive:

  • A Christmas bonus
  • Credit card or bank card offers
  • Reward points for purchases that can be cashed in
  • Monetary gifts from relatives for various occasions
  • Online surveys that earn you money
  • Bonuses from signing up for bank offers
  • A good tax return in April that you weren’t banking on

This money is unaccounted for in your household, so it is generally a pleasant surprise. Why not make this money work for you?

How to Get Started

Open up a savings account where you can deposit all the extra cash that comes into your household throughout the year. Then choose a time frame for investing this money. Perhaps enough extra money will accumulate for you to invest it quarterly, or maybe you will have to wait until the end of the year. Remember, you can start investing at $4.00 on sites such as Sharebuilder where you can split stocks into half shares in order to afford them.  

Budget your bills with the salary that you know you can count on.  This way, you are not risking what you know you are working for, and will always have money to put food on the table. If at the end of this you lose everything (which is not likely if you choose investments with lower risks), you are not any worse for it. You have essentially taken away your investment risk. Any extra money you earn from your investments will be icing on the cake, and you can thank your boss, Uncle Sam, your relatives, or anyone else who has unknowingly contributed to your interest earnings.

This approach may not make you wealthy, or allow you to retire at your desired retirement age, but it will certainly get you in the investing game without feeling vulnerable to risk.


Written by Amanda

Click here to leave a comment on this article.
© My Dollar Plan
Get free subscriptions to hundreds of popular magazines!

]]> Interest is, well, quite interesting. Instead of your money accumulating in your mattress or shoe box, it can now accumulate plus earn its own money. Money earning money—what a concept.

And there are multiple ways to achieve this: you can open a savings account or purchase certificates of deposits in order to earn interest, or invest in the stock market in order to earn dividends. When the interest paid to you begins to earn its own money, called compound interest, or your stocks earn you dividends purely because you own them, it becomes even more riveting.

It is commonly known that the riskier the vehicles for earning money that you choose, the more potential you have for both reward and loss. But what if you could go with the riskiest option without shouldering any of the risk, and with reaping all of the potential rewards?

Investing in the stock market—whether for short term gains or long term income replacement (IRAs)—offers the greatest amount of potential return, but then it also makes some people’s stomachs turn. Therefore, investing someone else’s money sounds like the solution for the weak-kneed investor because it will eliminate your personal risk all together.

Where to Find Money

So where can you find other people’s money? Most households in America have extra money that trickles in during the year from sources other than their paychecks. Perhaps you receive:

  • A Christmas bonus
  • Credit card or bank card offers
  • Reward points for purchases that can be cashed in
  • Monetary gifts from relatives for various occasions
  • Online surveys that earn you money
  • Bonuses from signing up for bank offers
  • A good tax return in April that you weren’t banking on

This money is unaccounted for in your household, so it is generally a pleasant surprise. Why not make this money work for you?

How to Get Started

Open up a savings account where you can deposit all the extra cash that comes into your household throughout the year. Then choose a time frame for investing this money. Perhaps enough extra money will accumulate for you to invest it quarterly, or maybe you will have to wait until the end of the year. Remember, you can start investing at $4.00 on sites such as Sharebuilder where you can split stocks into half shares in order to afford them.  

Budget your bills with the salary that you know you can count on.  This way, you are not risking what you know you are working for, and will always have money to put food on the table. If at the end of this you lose everything (which is not likely if you choose investments with lower risks), you are not any worse for it. You have essentially taken away your investment risk. Any extra money you earn from your investments will be icing on the cake, and you can thank your boss, Uncle Sam, your relatives, or anyone else who has unknowingly contributed to your interest earnings.

This approach may not make you wealthy, or allow you to retire at your desired retirement age, but it will certainly get you in the investing game without feeling vulnerable to risk.


Written by Amanda

Click here to leave a comment on this article.
© My Dollar Plan
Get free subscriptions to hundreds of popular magazines!


]]> http://www.mydollarplan.com/earning-interest-and-dividends-on-someone-else%e2%80%99s-dime/feed/ 2 Finding the Value in Money http://www.mydollarplan.com/finding-the-value-in-money/ http://www.mydollarplan.com/finding-the-value-in-money/#comments Tue, 27 Oct 2009 13:29:44 +0000 Amanda http://www.mydollarplan.com/?p=947 Let’s be honest—money has no real value. When you strip away the power, the glamour and glitz, and the intrigue that is associated with owning some, it becomes nothing more than exactly what it is: a piece of green and white cotton paper with some jargon about trust, a photo of a dead president, and a few seals.

Am I in Love with Money?

One of my favorite retorts to the occasional person who feels that I am in love with money is, “I don’t love money. I love what money can do for me.” I say this with confidence because the actual value is not inherent in this piece of paper, but rather is captured in its owner’s ability to trade it for the things that do hold value for them—food, clothes, trips, jewelry, a home—all of which are tangible and gratifying.

There is nothing immediately gratifying about money. Why hang onto a green piece of paper when I can purchase a candy bar to satisfy my chocolate craving? Or a new HD television that is more pleasing to my eyes? Or a sporty car that will make me feel young and prosperous? Money cannot satisfy nor compete with any of these feelings of need and desire.

This is where the dilemma is for so many people, and perhaps one of their biggest obstacles to saving money rather than spending it. If money has no value and does not offer you gratification, whereas purchasing things with money can and has satisfied your needs and desires in the past, then each time an opportunity arises to spend money, you will. It just makes logical sense.

Give Your Money Value

If saving money seems like a futile exercise or perhaps saving money is a priority that you just cannot seem to keep, then you need to give money value. For me, money symbolizes independence and freedom. I value my personal life and my ability to live on my own and to make decisions based off of my needs and wants, not based off of others’ opinions. By saving money I can live by my own standards.

Case in point: I saved throughout college, and the week after graduation I was able to leave home and move into my own apartment. After I was laid off from my first job, I was able to move down to West Palm Beach, Florida and start a new job with the money I had saved. When it came time to move in with my fiancée in Houston, once again I paid to move me, my cat Lyla, and my belongings halfway across the country. These were my choices, and I was able to make them because of the money I had saved.

Find Clarity in Your Purchases

What are your basic values in life? Perhaps you want stability, independence, a new car, to purchase a house of your dreams, to travel the world. Whatever it is that you hold near and dear to you, attach this to your money. By giving your money value, you will find clarity and priority in the day to day purchases that you make because each dollar you spend is being taken from the blueprint of your principles and your dreams.  

Give your money value, and then bank that value. You will be amazed at how much more quickly your savings will grow.


Written by Amanda

Click here to leave a comment on this article.
© My Dollar Plan
Get free subscriptions to hundreds of popular magazines!

]]> Let’s be honest—money has no real value. When you strip away the power, the glamour and glitz, and the intrigue that is associated with owning some, it becomes nothing more than exactly what it is: a piece of green and white cotton paper with some jargon about trust, a photo of a dead president, and a few seals.

Am I in Love with Money?

One of my favorite retorts to the occasional person who feels that I am in love with money is, “I don’t love money. I love what money can do for me.” I say this with confidence because the actual value is not inherent in this piece of paper, but rather is captured in its owner’s ability to trade it for the things that do hold value for them—food, clothes, trips, jewelry, a home—all of which are tangible and gratifying.

There is nothing immediately gratifying about money. Why hang onto a green piece of paper when I can purchase a candy bar to satisfy my chocolate craving? Or a new HD television that is more pleasing to my eyes? Or a sporty car that will make me feel young and prosperous? Money cannot satisfy nor compete with any of these feelings of need and desire.

This is where the dilemma is for so many people, and perhaps one of their biggest obstacles to saving money rather than spending it. If money has no value and does not offer you gratification, whereas purchasing things with money can and has satisfied your needs and desires in the past, then each time an opportunity arises to spend money, you will. It just makes logical sense.

Give Your Money Value

If saving money seems like a futile exercise or perhaps saving money is a priority that you just cannot seem to keep, then you need to give money value. For me, money symbolizes independence and freedom. I value my personal life and my ability to live on my own and to make decisions based off of my needs and wants, not based off of others’ opinions. By saving money I can live by my own standards.

Case in point: I saved throughout college, and the week after graduation I was able to leave home and move into my own apartment. After I was laid off from my first job, I was able to move down to West Palm Beach, Florida and start a new job with the money I had saved. When it came time to move in with my fiancée in Houston, once again I paid to move me, my cat Lyla, and my belongings halfway across the country. These were my choices, and I was able to make them because of the money I had saved.

Find Clarity in Your Purchases

What are your basic values in life? Perhaps you want stability, independence, a new car, to purchase a house of your dreams, to travel the world. Whatever it is that you hold near and dear to you, attach this to your money. By giving your money value, you will find clarity and priority in the day to day purchases that you make because each dollar you spend is being taken from the blueprint of your principles and your dreams.  

Give your money value, and then bank that value. You will be amazed at how much more quickly your savings will grow.


Written by Amanda

Click here to leave a comment on this article.
© My Dollar Plan
Get free subscriptions to hundreds of popular magazines!


]]> http://www.mydollarplan.com/finding-the-value-in-money/feed/ 3 11 Ways to Save Money on Groceries http://www.mydollarplan.com/11-ways-to-save-money-on-groceries/ http://www.mydollarplan.com/11-ways-to-save-money-on-groceries/#comments Mon, 26 Oct 2009 13:29:25 +0000 Jill http://www.mydollarplan.com/?p=1012 One of the money saving tips you’ll read about most often is to eat out less and cook more. But just like you need an overall spending plan to manage your income and expenses, you might need a good grocery shopping plan to make sure that cooking is actually cheaper for you.

Over the last two years, I’ve developed some decent strategies for keeping my grocery costs as low as possible – saving as much as 50% from my first grocery store experiences! Here are some of the tips I’ve used.

How to Save Money on Groceries

  1. Shop monthly: The absolute biggest way I cut my grocery bill is by making a maximum of one major grocery trip per month – sometimes I wait as long as 6 weeks! The only thing I buy between major trips is milk and produce. The big trip may take me up to 1.5 hours and cost $100 or more – but it gets both the time and money out of the way for weeks, and cuts down on those “extra” purchases that always manage to creep into my basket. If you shop weekly and add just $10 of unplanned or unnecessary items each time, that’s $520 per year. Shop monthly instead and cut that number down to $120 – a savings of $400!
  2. Use coupons: I subscribed to the Sunday paper solely to get the coupons. The key is to cut coupons regularly (at least every week), keep them together, and pay attention to expiration dates. Only cut coupons for items you normally use or that you will substitute for items you normally buy (like one brand of toothpaste for another). Otherwise coupons will encourage you to spend more rather than save.  Many stores double coupons up to a certain amount.
  3. Stock up on sale items: Go over your grocery store’s circular, or sign up for their e-mail list. Note the items that you usually buy that are on sale, and plan to purchase them. If anything is a particularly good deal buy as much as you can reasonably store before it goes bad. If you aren’t sure how to use a particular item, visit Supercook, where you can search for recipes by ingredient. Grocery stores put items on sale at least once every 12 weeks if not more often – hold on to your coupons until you can pair them with a sale to save even more.
  4. Make a list: Before you shop, open your pantry, refrigerator, and freezer to see what you actually need. An even better way to keep a list is to leave a pad on the fridge and add to it as you run out of a certain item. Making a list and sticking to it will help you get everything you need (thus minimizing repeat trips) and also help you avoid buying extra items.
  5. Buy in bulk – strategically: Look for savings on larger packages, but beware – the larger package is not always the best deal. If your store labels do not show unit price, calculate it yourself. Also make sure that you have room to store what you buy and that you can actually eat it before it expires – otherwise you lose your savings when you throw it away.
  6. Make the freezer your friend: Buy large packs of meat (often cheaper per-pound) and freeze in meal-sized portions. You can also make a casserole or large batch of soup and freeze the excess in individual portions for an easy lunch or quick dinner. This allows you to eat a home-cooked meal even when you don’t have time to cook, and lets you buy items in larger quantities.
  7. Use less meat: If you buy ten pounds of meat, you can make 10 meals with 1 lb of meat each or 11 meals with .9 lb each – you just increased the number of meals by 10%, and probably won’t notice the very small difference. Since meat is the most expensive portion of most meals, that can be a significant savings. You can reduce your portions even more and simply increase your veggies or other (cheaper) side items to make up the volume.
  8. Purchase produce wisely: If an item is priced by the number of pieces, buy the largest/heaviest available to maximize your dollar. If an item is priced by weight, buy smaller or lighter pieces. Also remember that just because an item is packaged a certain way doesn’t mean you have to buy it that way – a former roommate taught me that you can indeed buy half a bundle of asparagus or pound of grapes! This is especially good if you live alone like I do. Get the best deals by purchasing in season – and when quality is truly lacking, turn to frozen veggies instead. Finally, recognize that different varieties of an item can vary widely in both size and price per pound. For instance, Honeycrisp apples can be as much as $2.00 per pound and weigh up to one pound each, while you can get 2-3 smaller apples per pound and pay as little as $1.00/lb. If the smaller apple will truly suffice, why pay the premium?
  9. Go generic: A grocery store’s own brand is almost always cheaper than the national brand, without noticeable difference in taste or quality. I’ve tried generic items from pasta sauce to canned soup to cheese and more. Give generic items a try – and if you truly don’t like a certain item, then it is ok to switch back. Be practical – if a sale plus coupon combo makes the name brand cheaper, go for it.
  10. Avoid convenience items – unless they make sense: If you can do it yourself, the grocery store will probably charge more to do it for you. So cook your own pinto beans instead of buying canned. Steam your own broccoli in a covered pot with an inch or two of boiling water instead of buying a microwavable package. But when it makes sense, go for the convenience: at my grocery store, pre-shredded cheese is the same price per ounce as the big block. So no hand grater for me!
  11. Love leftovers: if you are cooking for one or two it can be hard to make the exact amount you will eat for dinner – it seems like recipes always make 4-6 servings! Stretch your grocery dollar further by eating dinner leftovers for lunch – this eliminates the need for sandwich or other lunch items and also stops you from throwing away excess food. If you don’t have a full meal left, repurpose pieces of different meals to create a whole new meal.

More Grocery Saving Tips

There are also a few grocery tips that other people recommend, though I haven’t used them. If you have, I’d love to hear your thoughts!


Written by Jill

Click here to leave a comment on this article.
© My Dollar Plan
Get free subscriptions to hundreds of popular magazines!

]]> One of the money saving tips you’ll read about most often is to eat out less and cook more. But just like you need an overall spending plan to manage your income and expenses, you might need a good grocery shopping plan to make sure that cooking is actually cheaper for you.

Over the last two years, I’ve developed some decent strategies for keeping my grocery costs as low as possible – saving as much as 50% from my first grocery store experiences! Here are some of the tips I’ve used.

How to Save Money on Groceries

  1. Shop monthly: The absolute biggest way I cut my grocery bill is by making a maximum of one major grocery trip per month – sometimes I wait as long as 6 weeks! The only thing I buy between major trips is milk and produce. The big trip may take me up to 1.5 hours and cost $100 or more – but it gets both the time and money out of the way for weeks, and cuts down on those “extra” purchases that always manage to creep into my basket. If you shop weekly and add just $10 of unplanned or unnecessary items each time, that’s $520 per year. Shop monthly instead and cut that number down to $120 – a savings of $400!
  2. Use coupons: I subscribed to the Sunday paper solely to get the coupons. The key is to cut coupons regularly (at least every week), keep them together, and pay attention to expiration dates. Only cut coupons for items you normally use or that you will substitute for items you normally buy (like one brand of toothpaste for another). Otherwise coupons will encourage you to spend more rather than save.  Many stores double coupons up to a certain amount.
  3. Stock up on sale items: Go over your grocery store’s circular, or sign up for their e-mail list. Note the items that you usually buy that are on sale, and plan to purchase them. If anything is a particularly good deal buy as much as you can reasonably store before it goes bad. If you aren’t sure how to use a particular item, visit Supercook, where you can search for recipes by ingredient. Grocery stores put items on sale at least once every 12 weeks if not more often – hold on to your coupons until you can pair them with a sale to save even more.
  4. Make a list: Before you shop, open your pantry, refrigerator, and freezer to see what you actually need. An even better way to keep a list is to leave a pad on the fridge and add to it as you run out of a certain item. Making a list and sticking to it will help you get everything you need (thus minimizing repeat trips) and also help you avoid buying extra items.
  5. Buy in bulk – strategically: Look for savings on larger packages, but beware – the larger package is not always the best deal. If your store labels do not show unit price, calculate it yourself. Also make sure that you have room to store what you buy and that you can actually eat it before it expires – otherwise you lose your savings when you throw it away.
  6. Make the freezer your friend: Buy large packs of meat (often cheaper per-pound) and freeze in meal-sized portions. You can also make a casserole or large batch of soup and freeze the excess in individual portions for an easy lunch or quick dinner. This allows you to eat a home-cooked meal even when you don’t have time to cook, and lets you buy items in larger quantities.
  7. Use less meat: If you buy ten pounds of meat, you can make 10 meals with 1 lb of meat each or 11 meals with .9 lb each – you just increased the number of meals by 10%, and probably won’t notice the very small difference. Since meat is the most expensive portion of most meals, that can be a significant savings. You can reduce your portions even more and simply increase your veggies or other (cheaper) side items to make up the volume.
  8. Purchase produce wisely: If an item is priced by the number of pieces, buy the largest/heaviest available to maximize your dollar. If an item is priced by weight, buy smaller or lighter pieces. Also remember that just because an item is packaged a certain way doesn’t mean you have to buy it that way – a former roommate taught me that you can indeed buy half a bundle of asparagus or pound of grapes! This is especially good if you live alone like I do. Get the best deals by purchasing in season – and when quality is truly lacking, turn to frozen veggies instead. Finally, recognize that different varieties of an item can vary widely in both size and price per pound. For instance, Honeycrisp apples can be as much as $2.00 per pound and weigh up to one pound each, while you can get 2-3 smaller apples per pound and pay as little as $1.00/lb. If the smaller apple will truly suffice, why pay the premium?
  9. Go generic: A grocery store’s own brand is almost always cheaper than the national brand, without noticeable difference in taste or quality. I’ve tried generic items from pasta sauce to canned soup to cheese and more. Give generic items a try – and if you truly don’t like a certain item, then it is ok to switch back. Be practical – if a sale plus coupon combo makes the name brand cheaper, go for it.
  10. Avoid convenience items – unless they make sense: If you can do it yourself, the grocery store will probably charge more to do it for you. So cook your own pinto beans instead of buying canned. Steam your own broccoli in a covered pot with an inch or two of boiling water instead of buying a microwavable package. But when it makes sense, go for the convenience: at my grocery store, pre-shredded cheese is the same price per ounce as the big block. So no hand grater for me!
  11. Love leftovers: if you are cooking for one or two it can be hard to make the exact amount you will eat for dinner – it seems like recipes always make 4-6 servings! Stretch your grocery dollar further by eating dinner leftovers for lunch – this eliminates the need for sandwich or other lunch items and also stops you from throwing away excess food. If you don’t have a full meal left, repurpose pieces of different meals to create a whole new meal.

More Grocery Saving Tips

There are also a few grocery tips that other people recommend, though I haven’t used them. If you have, I’d love to hear your thoughts!


Written by Jill

Click here to leave a comment on this article.
© My Dollar Plan
Get free subscriptions to hundreds of popular magazines!


]]> http://www.mydollarplan.com/11-ways-to-save-money-on-groceries/feed/ 5 $70 Sprint Credit http://www.mydollarplan.com/70-sprint-credit/ http://www.mydollarplan.com/70-sprint-credit/#comments Fri, 23 Oct 2009 13:51:45 +0000 Madison http://www.mydollarplan.com/?p=1011 Sprint customers get to cash in on this week’s Free Money Friday offer. Sprint is giving you $70 to renew your contract.

And why would you want to renew? Well, if you are a SERO customer, it’s a no brainer! Since there aren’t any plans around like it, I figured why not take the extra $70!

How to Get Your $70 Sprint Credit

  1. Login to your account at Sprint once you are at least 22 months into your contract.
  2. Use the contact us link, and select email us.
  3. Search for renew contract to get to the web form.
  4. Submit an email to ecare saying that you heard there is a $70 credit available to renew your contract and you’d like to do so.
  5. Select Plans, features, and services for the topic and Plan inquires for the subtopic.
  6. They will email you back within 24 hours to let you know if your account is eligible.

More About Sprint

SERO Customers. Almost two years ago, we signed up for the Sprint SERO service. You know, the irresistible one with unlimited data, texts, and 500 anytime minutes for $30 per month. It’s since been discontinued, but if you have it, you can renew your contract to keep it.

Phone Discount. Taking advantage of the $70 credit did not void our $150 available to get new phones. We’re still shopping for the phone since we missed out on the $199 Touch Pro 2 that was available last week. However, some people are now reporting that you might have to choose between the credit and the phone upgrade.

Credit for Each Line. My husband and I each got the credit for a total of $140 credited to our account. We only had to send one email.

Credit to slickdeals (via My Money Blog) for saving me $140 on something I was going to do anyways!


Written by Madison

Click here to leave a comment on this article.
© My Dollar Plan
Get free subscriptions to hundreds of popular magazines!

]]> Sprint customers get to cash in on this week’s Free Money Friday offer. Sprint is giving you $70 to renew your contract.

And why would you want to renew? Well, if you are a SERO customer, it’s a no brainer! Since there aren’t any plans around like it, I figured why not take the extra $70!

How to Get Your $70 Sprint Credit

  1. Login to your account at Sprint once you are at least 22 months into your contract.
  2. Use the contact us link, and select email us.
  3. Search for renew contract to get to the web form.
  4. Submit an email to ecare saying that you heard there is a $70 credit available to renew your contract and you’d like to do so.
  5. Select Plans, features, and services for the topic and Plan inquires for the subtopic.
  6. They will email you back within 24 hours to let you know if your account is eligible.

More About Sprint

SERO Customers. Almost two years ago, we signed up for the Sprint SERO service. You know, the irresistible one with unlimited data, texts, and 500 anytime minutes for $30 per month. It’s since been discontinued, but if you have it, you can renew your contract to keep it.

Phone Discount. Taking advantage of the $70 credit did not void our $150 available to get new phones. We’re still shopping for the phone since we missed out on the $199 Touch Pro 2 that was available last week. However, some people are now reporting that you might have to choose between the credit and the phone upgrade.

Credit for Each Line. My husband and I each got the credit for a total of $140 credited to our account. We only had to send one email.

Credit to slickdeals (via My Money Blog) for saving me $140 on something I was going to do anyways!


Written by Madison

Click here to leave a comment on this article.
© My Dollar Plan
Get free subscriptions to hundreds of popular magazines!


]]> http://www.mydollarplan.com/70-sprint-credit/feed/ 2