Separate Accounts or Separate Finances Entirely-

Many couples flourish by maintaining their money separately. Others use a hybrid approach by splitting responsibilities. I once knew a couple who had quite an interesting dichotomy-The man was an attorney, the woman, a Human Resources associate at a retail location. Needless to say, the attorney’s salary dwarfed the HR woman. They had been married for a few years when I met them. What is unusual to me is that despite her small salary (in comparison to his), the only bills they shared were the mortgage, utilities, cable and food. Everything else they took responsibility for on their own. While he was out writing checks to Ameritrade for tens of thousands of dollars, she was irritated that she only had $5 for lunch.

Even though she struggled and he thrived, both were fine with the arrangement. If one was in trouble, I’m sure the other would gladly step in and take care of things. But they found what worked for them and carried it out how they saw fit.

Keep a Dialogue-

If you are (or have been) fighting about money, I’m willing to bet that you haven’t been talking about money. There have been times in my own home that if I felt “out of the loop”, I have gotten angry. If we are short somewhere and will need money for something, I would rather know far in advance so I can prepare for it.

Talking about money (while keeping it civil) is the best way for couples to avoid a brawl. Even if it is “bad” news, deliver it calmly. Then discuss how you can overcome the problem. A solution is the goal, not bachelorhood.

Know (and prepare for) Your Partner’s Financial Shortcomings-

As I stated in the intro, I know my partner’s habits. I also realize where her financial weaknesses are and do my best to be able to counter them with good habits on my part. For a couple with both members who have financial issues, it will be even harder. But not impossible. Prepare for and expect financial speed-bumps, because they will happen. If you know that your partner may stumble through certain financial issues, be there to help them out. It will make you look like superman (or woman) and could even strengthen your relationship.

Help Each Other Out-

In addition to knowing your partner’s potential weaknesses, willingness to help will go a loooooong way. There will be times in life when your partner will not be making as much as you. There could be times when they are without a job at all. Everyone needs money to survive. So be willing and able to help your partner when they have fallen on tough times. Ideally, this should work both ways.

Have (and Stick to) a Budget-

By far the easiest (and most important) way to make a couple’s finances work without killing each other is to follow a budget. And it doesn’t even have to be a strict one. Not all budgets are stringent and confining. Even if you relegate certain responsibilities to each other as opposed to a written-out budget it can work wonders for avoiding a big battle.

Aren’t you much more efficient at work if you know what is expected of you? The same works for money matters at home. If you know what you are responsible for and cab properly prepare, problems are much easier to see coming and avoid.

Did you know that you can receive all of the articles here at Financial Methods for free using a reader? Click HERE to subscribe using a reader. You can also get Financial Methods content delivered to your Email, also for free! Click HERE to subscribe through Email. You can also follow me on Twitter by clicking HERE.

Photo: echoforsberg

Related posts:

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2. Do You Follow a “Financial Task Schedule”?
3. Planning Meals to Save Time and Money

While I did not really learn much from the book, there is a wealth of information contained within. Some of which I did not know. A bit of which actually surprised me. Here are the highlights:

Dealing With Debt:

-Within five days after a debt collector first contacts you, the collector must send you a notice that tells you the name of the creditor, how much you owe, and what action to take if you believe you do not owe the money.

I’m sure there are plenty of companies who do not follow this.

Home Improvement and Repairs:

-Get the names of suppliers and ask if your perspective contractor makes timely payments.

To tell you the truth, I would have never though of doing this, but their answer can tell you volumes about their reputation.

-Some state laws allow unpaid subcontractors and suppliers to put a lien on your home for bills the contractor failed to pay.

-With most home improvements, federal law gives you three business days to cancel without penalty.

This is actually true of many transaction types, not just home improvement related purchases. You can consult the handbook to find out more information about the “3-day, cooling off rule”.

Homeowner/Renter’s Insurance:

-Insure your house, NOT the land under it. After a disaster, the land is still there. If you don’t subcontract the value of the land when deciding how much homeowner’s insurance to buy, you will pay more than you should.

Travel:

-Ask about cancellation policies. You may want to look into trip insurance for added protection. www.insuremytrip.com offers pricing and policy information on plans from different companies and describes the different forms of policies available.

-Selling more tickets than there are available seats on a flight is not illegal. Most airlines overbook their flights to compensate for “no-shows”. If there are more passengers than seats just before a plane is scheduled to depart, you can be “bumped” or left behind against your will.

While there are rules that protect you and assure you will get where you are going, the inconvenience is (unfortunately) perfectly legal.

Wills & Funerals:

-It is not necessary to notarize or record your will, but these can safeguard any claims that your will is invalid. To be valid, you must sign a will in the presence of at least two witnesses.

-The funeral provider may not refuse, or charge a fee, to handle a casket that you bought elsewhere.

-A funeral provider who offers cremations must make alternative containers available.

As I said, this book is a great resource for all consumers. You can get one by following this link. All you have to provide is your name and address and the book will arrive (free of charge) in about 2 weeks. The above information is just the tip of the iceberg. There is plenty of information and resources that you may need, whether you realize it or not. So just go get one already.

Related posts:

1. 11 Invaluable Templates and Calculators For Free!
2. 5 Ways to Help You Get the Best Deals on Insurance
3. A Step in the Right Direction: Schools Offering Free Textbooks

This is a guest post by Kris Bickell. Kris owns debt-tips.com, a site that offers many methods of debt elimination and simple tips for getting out of debt faster.

Nobody plans to grow up and live a life ruled by credit card bills.  Most of us dream about living a life of luxury with all the money we’ll ever need.

Unfortunately for many of us, those dreams sometimes turn into nightmares.  And then the only dream worth thinking about becomes winning the lottery.

If that sounds like you, then you need to come to grips with reality and start changing your financial habits.  As with many goals that are hard to achieve, the first step is the most difficult – and that first step is to simply acknowledge that there is a problem!

So, if you no longer answer the phone because you’re afraid it might be a bill collector, and it’s hard to sleep at night because it’s difficult to pay the bills, it’s time to consider these “5 Warning Signs That You’ve Got Way Too Much Debt” and get help managing your debt:

1) You buy everyday items (like groceries) with a credit card.

This is one of the most telling signs of a big problem.  Yes, you need to do what you have to do to feed your family.  But if you use credit cards as your savings account, then you are heading for big trouble.

2) You have to keep opening up new credit card accounts so you have money to spend.

There is nothing wrong with having more than one credit card, especially if you have a rewards card, or a store card that offers you special discounts.  But when things get tight, it’s hard to resist the temptation to keep using the cards if you have them.

3) You pay as much as you can but your balances still keep rising.

Paying the minimum balance will only mean one thing – you’ll be stuck in debt seemingly forever.  But if you are able to pay more, and your balances still keep going up, then things are bound to get even worse, fast!

4) You have no idea how much debt or how many cards you have.

No, you don’t need to know your balances down to the last penny.  But if you don’t know how much you owe because it’s too painful to look, then that’s not good.

5) You have no plan for getting out of debt and no hope that you’ll ever be debt free.

Sure, it’s only money.  But those who have never struggled have no idea how painful it is to live with debt.  No matter how bad things seem, you need to come up with a plan – and realize that there is a way out of credit card debt!

If one or 2 of these signs are true for you, then you’re on your way towards financial trouble.  If 3 or more of these are true, then you must get professional help dealing with your credit card debt!

For tips on getting out of debt and turning around your financial situation, visit www.debt-tips.com.  You’ll learn how to get the help you need to pay off your credit card bills, including how to settle your own debts.

Photo: Andrew Toons

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I have been enjoying my “staycation” this week, and it has been relatively productive and greatly relaxing. I’m sure as the holidays approach, my stress and annoyance levels will be tested as they are every year…so this was a much needed “rest”.

Posts of the Week:

• Savings Not Shoes-Falling in Love (But Not Back Into Debt!!)
• Suburban Dollar-Create a Home Inventory and Save Your Stuff
• My Life ROI-9 Weekend Home Projects That will Save You Money
• Len Penzo-A Primer to Help You Unravel the True Meaning of a Dollar
• Wise Bread-Are Americans Experiencing Frugality Fatigue?

Random Knowledge:

• Drinking beer and liquor while working was considered a right and a privilege by the working men of the 1700′s.
• On Sesame Street in France, Bert and Ernie are known as Bart and Ernest.
• In 1999, Popular Science recognized the Sega Dreamcast system as one of the most important and innovative products of the year. (I do miss that system)!
• Mount Everest grows about 4 millimeters every year.
• Epistemophobia is the fear of knowledge. If you have this, do not read random knowledge.

Photo: gochie*

Related posts:

1. Weekly Links: 8/29/9 With Reduced Random Knowledge
2. Weekly Links: 9/12/9 – With Random Knowledge
3. Weekly Links: 9/26/9 With Random Knowledge

Inevitably, you will have at least one or two people on your list that are impossible to shop for. But what to do? You can get them the same tired old gifts that you always end up resorting to, or you can start early (like right now) and find something that will wow them. Since I’m all about the strange, interesting and hard to find items, here are a few places you can look around to wow that person who has everything they ever wanted.

Elsewares-

Elsewares specializes in interesting gift ideas. These are the kind of items that are great conversation pieces. If you want a gift that will make someone take notice, try elsewares.

Taylor Gifts-

Want to discretely buy all the awesome stuff you see on infomercials? Taylor gifts has tons of that stuff! But that’s not all. Novelties and household items make this store a great place to find gifts that will make people take notice.

Mookie Gifts-

While Mookie gifts slogan is “giftables and collectibles”, only one really fits. I know plenty of people who would enjoy a good number of these items as gifts, but collectibles does not really fit here. If you have a woman in your life that you want to impress with a unique gift, make this your first stop.

X-treme Geek-

Got someone on your list that loves gadgets? X-treme Geek will definitely have something for them! Whether you’re looking for something original, funny, or just want to be noticed by your geek, X-treme Geek will take care of you.

Stupid.com-

Okay, if you’re looking for novelties, here’s your one stop shop. I have ordered from stupid before, and have never been disappointed. The name says more than enough to back up what it sells.

Things You Never Knew Existed-

Like stupid.com, this is exactly what is sounds like. This store has a bunch of interesting and distinctive potential gifts. If you can’t find something here for that impossible to buy for friend or family member, just stop looking.

Coolest Gadgets-

You can not buy directly from this website, but if ideas are what you are looking for, Coolest Gadgets has plenty. This is actually a blog that discusses and announces the gadgets we all love and enjoy. If you do decide to check it out (and like it), head over to their sister site, Foolish Gadgets. After about 2 minutes on the site, I immediately bookmarked it. Some of this stuff is just too idiotic to not talk about.

Well, there is a bit of a start for ya. Please feel free to add other sites you have found that carry weird, interesting, or even gross gift ideas. I love that stuff. Happy shopping!

Photo: pheezy

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1. DISCIPLINE WHILE SHOPPING
2. Feel Like You Can’t Budget? Start Small-Make a Daily Spending List
3. Shop For Gift Cards and Save!

Google Templates:

In case you did not know (or have never played around at Google docs), in addition to their documents and spreadsheets, Google offers templates for thousands of uses. Among others, you can browse through templates for your business, student use, scrapbooks, photo albums, calculators, and even for personal finance. All of these templates are available for your use at no charge. And some of them could prove invaluable.

Personal Finance Templates:

As I mentioned, there are countless free templates available for you to use at your leisure. Here are some free personal finance templates that you can try out for yourself.

• Personal Monthly Budget-

This is a simple, yet pretty comprehensive budget tool. It is designed to fit on a single page when printed, so if you prefer rockin’ the paper, try this one out.

• Simple Budget Planner-

Another budgeting template, based on percentages of income. This is more of a “pre-planning” tool than an ongoing budgeting assistant. But it may be eye-opening to see how much you are spending in certain areas.

• Loan Amortization Schedule-

This will be best used for a mortgage or another multi-year loan. Enter your loan amount, length, interest rate, and compounding information. You will get your payment schedule laid out very nicely for yourself.

• Bank Account Ledger-

Some people may not want to use software that “intrudes” upon their accounts and can cost you some cash. While this is very basic and you will have to do all of the work yourself, this tool can help you keep tabs on your account without letting the bank be the only one who is tracking it.

• Medical Expenses Template-

If you visit the doctor a lot, or your family as a whole has a lot of medical expenses to cover, track the expenses to see how much it is really costing you. It can be very simple to save your bills and enter them here, and a year’s worth of medical expenses may end up being a lot more than you would think.

• Credit Card Payoff Calculator-

This is by far one of my favorite templates on google docs. Do you want to be able to track and view your progress when paying off your credit cards? Use this template!

Calculators:

Yes, I realize that the credit card payoff calculator could easily be here, but I believe it is more fitting in the personal finance section than here.

• Dave Ramsey Budget-

Yes, even a Dave Ramsey budget/calculator is available for free in the templates.

• Savings Account Segregation-

Whether you have multiple savings accounts for different goals, or just one for all of them, you can use this calculator to keep it all separate.

• Grade Tracker-

Anyone who has been to college knows all too well that some professors have a complicated system in place to compile grades. This tool will help you easily figure out your grade by doing the confusing math for you! (If you like this tool, also check out the GPA tracker by the same author of the grade tracker).

• Gas Spreadsheet With Form and Graphs-

This tool is amazing! Personally, I can easily figure out my MPG…what I can not do is put it together like this spreadsheet does. Try it for yourself.

• Car Payment Template-

Like the mortgage payment tool (above), a few simple inputs get you the perfect car loan repayment schedule. You can even tweak the numbers to see how fast an early payment can save you in interest.

These templates are just the tip of the iceberg. There are literally thousands of templates here for free to try out. Business, statistics, calendars…you name it and there is likely a template here for you to try out. All of these are especially great for those of us (like myself) who are not so good with spreadsheet creation. I hope you can use these and maybe you can create even better ones so I can write a post about all the new and great templates that have popped up lately!

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1. Online Calculators
2. Why Don’t I Have a Principal Payment Option Online?
3. Do You Know How Much You Pay in Interest?

Before receiving this book, I had heard of Loral Langemeier, but did not really know much about her. So I decided that before reading, I would like to know a bit about the author. Basically, Loral (often known as “the millionaire maker”) offers programs and seminars that help build and expand businesses to make more money. As always, her methods come with mixed results. But if Put More Cash in Your Pocket is any indication, Loral’s advice and ideas may be worth the price tag of her other endeavors.

What It’s Not:

I feel that it is necessary to explain what this book is not before I go into detail about what it is so if you are disinterested, I can spare you the reading. You’re welcome.

The subtitle: “turn what you know into dough” rings very true. But Put More Cash in Your Pocket does not focus on the “little things” that many would suggest to make some extra cash. That means you will not sit down to read this and be confused by or annoyed with suggestions of surveys, selling items that you do not need, selling garage sale items, freelance writing, or any other ways to pick up a few bucks.

What it Is:

It is very clear from the beginning, that Ms. Langemeier’s intention is to teach you, step by step, how to put an extra $500-$1000 in your pocket every month. I found it a bit farfetched at first, but as I read, it became more and more apparent that this is very possible. But it does not come easy.

How is this even possible? You start a business.

Take what skills or talents you already have, and turn them into a business that you can promote and carry out with little to no startup costs. Loral even offers plenty of ideas herself that you can probably turn into a profitable business quickly and easily.

My favorite aspect of Put More Cash in Your Pocket is that the author really does take you through the entire process from beginning to end. Since the goal here is not to create a fortune 500 company, but to get you some quick cash, everything is put in a very simplistic form. You will not have to burden yourself with a long-winded business plan or look for investors. All of the inception steps that “larger” businesses require are either simplified or removed completely with this plan. The goal is to get money quickly, after all.

Another huge plus to Put More Cash in Your Pocket are the case studies. From the very beginning, the experiences of four volunteers that worked directly with Loral are shared. For those who actually try this and feel doomed to fail, the case studies may be the psychological “push” that proves to be the difference between success and failure. I believe that the intentions of sharing the case studies are two-fold. 1) To show that this can easily be done. 2) To excite and motivate readers to succeed with this “program”.

Look, this book is a good read. There are plenty of ideas that can and will make you money. But keep in mind before reading that it is not intended for those who want to get some cash and get out. This is starting your own business, so if you are someone who can stay on top of and build something from the ground up, this book is for you. If you are looking for a quick, “in and out”, don’t bother. This project will require staying power and drive. If you have these two tools, the author provides the rest.

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2. Book Review: To Pay or Not to Pay-Insider Secrets to Beating Credit Card Debt and Creditors
3. Book Review: The Power of Less

A "Licensed and Bonded" Insurer, Get it?

This is a guest post submitted by Hannah, a reader who represents a number of writers in the financial community.

Whether it’s health insurance, life insurance or home insurance – we might all need it at some stage in our lives, so it’s best to know what will help you get the best deal.

There are so many factors that can affect the price of your insurance, so these 5 killer tips should help you get the best deal when it comes round to buying.

1. Take out your health/life insurance when you are young

Health/life insurance can be a very costly expense, particularly if you leave it until later on in life. So, make sure you take out your health/life insurance policy while you are young and healthy. It should be cheaper and will still cover you if something was to happen.

It is understandable that the younger generation probably don’t want to think about taking insurance out, but it is definitely worth considering.

In 2008, almost 47 million Americans (more than 20% of the population) under 65 didn’t have health insurance – if one of them was you, have a think about how you could have afforded expensive medical costs if something had gone wrong.

2. Protect your home… and lower your insurance costs

By installing security alarms and other security measures (such as certain types of roofing materials, certain sidings), you can drastically lower your home insurance premiums.

The theory is simple. If you have a home with no alarms, no locks and a broken door – there is more chance your belongings will get stolen. However, if your home is always locked, has an alarm and is very hard to break into, you are less likely to have your possessions stolen.

3. Consider how your lifestyle could increase insurance premiums

Do you smoke? Do you drink a lot? Do you take part in a lot of ‘extreme sports’? If so, have a think about how this may increase the cost of your insurance premiums.

For example, if you smoke, your health/life insurance premiums are more likely to be high – and the same applies if you drink a lot of alcohol. This is because you are personally putting your health at risk.

Again, the same applies if you participate in a lot of ‘extreme sports’. Some insurance companies will charge you more for your insurance because you are more likely to have an accident than someone who doesn’t participate in extreme sports.

4. Choose the right amount of excess

By choosing the right amount of excess, you may be able to lower the premiums. Someone with a high excess could have lower premiums because the insurer is technically covering less of the overall cost.

However, it is important to understand that by having a high excess, you will have to pay more if you do claim.

5. Finally, be honest and precise

Many of us skip details or aren’t detailed enough when it comes to our insurance policies – and we pay for it, because without full detail, the insurer(s) can’t get a clear picture of your situation, and this may lead to them charging you more.

For example, if you only give a rough estimate of the value of the possessions in your home rather than really thinking about it and working it out, you may not get the cover you actually require – and that’s not the insurer’s fault, it would be your fault for not giving enough detail and may land you in some serious debt (for more information on debt visit GregoryPennington.com).

So, to avoid any problems and to make sure you get the right deal when you apply for insurance, you should take your time filling out the paperwork and make sure you give all the details required.

Photo: cogdogblog

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I have been doing everything I can to rectify the problem, but it is a very slow process when you have to rely on busy (or lazy) techs who take over a day to return one simple email. There will be no weekly links this weekend, but Monday will begin with a great guest post about insurance.

Look forward to a FULL week of posts starting Monday. I will be on staycation, and (hopefully) writing like a madman.

Have a Happy Halloween!

Photo: Joe Shlabotnik

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3. Weekly Links: 8/15/9-Now With Random Knowledge!

If you have ever visited Hulu, you are aware of the service they provide (currently for free). You can visit the site with no membership required (for now, anyway) and watch many television shows completely free of charge. You can even catch new programs! The other night I missed the Office (a very unusual occurrence for me) and had to catch it online. Luckily, it was up the next day which allowed me to live a happy and normal life once again.

Questions:

With the announcement of a subscription service fee and no specifics announced yet, it leaves me with a few questions about how this will work, such as:

• There are currently commercials included in the free programming offered by Hulu. If customers are paying subscription fees or paying per episode, will this eliminate the commercials? Or at least give the customer the option to speed through the commercials?

• How much will this cost?

Depending on how it is structured, this could be a big mistake. If Hulu intends to charge a Monthly subscription fee, the “heavier” users of the service are the only ones who will benefit from continued use of the service. Conversely, if they employ a pay-per-use structure, they will be competing directly with Itunes, who already offer many TV shows for about $2 per episode. If they do decide on the pay-per-use option, Hulu may decide to offer downloadable content to compete with Apple.

• What would you pay?

With cable and a DVR at home, I do not often use Hulu. But if I did, rest assured that I would not be happy with this announcement. I know many people who swear by Hulu and would gladly continue to suffer through the commercials to forgo any charges. If you wish to continue to watch your favorite shows on demand, how much is it worth to you? $5/month, $10/month, $20/month?

• How do you feel about this announcement?

Is it warranted? Do you feel that Hulu’s services are worth paying a “cable-type” premium for?

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