Tag Archives: bills

2009 Economic Stimulus Plans Effect on Taxes Now and Beyond

As most of you know, President Obama signed the American Recovery and Reinvestement Act into law on Tuesday. Supposedly, millions of Americans will benefit from the plan in more ways than one. Here are a few highlights from the plan and how they will affect your taxes now and in the future.

Making Work Pay Credit

The making work pay credit will be heading to a paycheck near you in the coming months. The employed will get up to $400 per individual and $800 per married couple. Sounds like quite a good amount. However, you will not see all of this money at once as it will be used to reduce your weekly federal taxes on your paycheck. Every little bit helps in these economic times.

What about retirees, veterans, or people on disability? These individuals on Social Security will get a one-time $250 check in 2009. That should help give a small boost to those individuals on a strict fixed income.

What if you are unemployed? The bill has added several things to help those who are unemployed. It has exempted the first $2,400 in unemployement benefits from federal taxation. The bill has also increased the payout by $25 a week, extended the time period for benefits, and it gave a 65% break on COBRA premiums. I just hope this helps incourage individuals to seek work and not just keep them on unemployement longer.

Help For Individuals With Low Incomes

The bill also provides a larger Earned Income Credit (which is refundable) for families with 3 or more children. For those of you that fit into this category it will not affect you until you file your 2009 taxes. However, you may be able to get EIC advance payments by talking to your HR representative at work.

There was also a part of the bill that lowered the threshold for the child tax credit. This will help lower income families due to the lowering of the threshold from $8,500 to $3,000 for the current tax year.

Making Home Ownership More Affordable

The bill included the long awaited (and widely talked about) 1st time homebuyer credit. The original $7,500 credit needed to be paid back over several years. The new credit is refundable (meaning you can get the money even if you have no tax due) and does not need to be paid back. The nice thing about this credit is that you can take it on your 2008 tax return. If you have already filed your return, you may want to consider an amendment.

What are your thoughts on some of these measures? Will they work or will they come back and bite us later down the road?

Are You Living ‘Within Your Means’ or ‘Below Your Means’?

Recently, there was an article on CNNMoney that tried to define the phrases ‘living within your means’ and ‘living below your means’. I think they are two phrases that are completely different and here are my ‘definitions’ of them.

Living Within Your Means

To me, this phrase is too positive. Living within your means sounds like you are spending everything that you earn. That sounds more like living paycheck to paycheck. Which one sounds more positive to you? If I told someone I was living within my means, they would think that I am getting by just fine. However, since I am spending everything that I earn in order to pay the bills, mortgage, debt, etc., I am in no way saving any money. They wouldn’t think to ask if I am saving money because the phrase kind of implies that I am saving when I am not. However, living within your means also implies that you are taking on no additional debt. Since I am only buying things that I can afford based on my income, I would not be buying things that I cannot pay with cash.

If I told you that I am living paycheck to paycheck, you would probably feel bad for me. Living paycheck to paycheck is more negative and it definately applies that I am saving no money. I am here to tell you that these phrases are the same thing and there is no difference.

Living Below Your Means

When someone says that they are living below their means, I automatically think of clipping coupons and driving a 1993 Nissan Sentra. I don’t know why, but that is just what I picture. However, I feel that living below your means simply means that you are able to sustain your standard of living by spending less than you earn. You may be completely comfortable with the way you live your life financially. You just do not spend all of your income meaning you can save. You can save up for retirement, a car, a house, etc. Living below your means is they way to become The Millionaire Next Door. Living below your means will also help you get Beyond Paycheck to Paycheck.

What are your definitions of these phrases? Are they radically different than mine? Which category do you feel you fit in?

Money Hacks Carnival #51 – The Office Edition

Welcome to the 51st edition of the Money Hacks Carnival! My name is Adam and I am pleased to be your host this week. Please feel free to poke around the site if it is your first time visiting! You can subscribe to the blog using the links on the right or you can follow me on Twitter to stay up-to-date.

NBC’s The Office is my favorite show on TV. I just love watching the office banter and politics. Every week there is a moment that reminds you of something a co-worker did recently. For this carnival, I decided to categorize the topics by some great characters in the show.

Editor’s Picks

Michael Scott is the Regional Manager of the Scranton branch of Dunder Mifflin. If anyone has the right to pick this week’s best articles, it’s him. He is the glue that holds his team together. Did I really just say that?

Credit Shout tells us to Beware of ATM Scams. Honestly, I really had no idea about some of these. I will be thinking twice about going to the ATM now!

Living Almost Large talks about a family that is in trouble and Their Ship Is Sinking. Looking at this person’s cash flow, it’s hard to believe that they did not see the major problem.

FIRE Finance shares a great story on how Smart Refrigeration Lowers Electricity Bills. Who better to tell you about saving energy on your refrigerator than someone who works with them every day?

PF Credit Cards shows you How to Beat Priceline and Get a Winning Bid. Personally, I have been using Priceline’s Name Your Own Price for over a year now. I will never go back to paying full price again! You really have no say in the brand of your hotel, but you still get to pick the star level. I have yet to be disappointed in the hotel I end up getting.

Career

To me, no one seems more focused on their career than Dwight Schrute. He is constantly reminding everyone about his position with the company and how he is the top salesman. He is also good at sucking up to the boss. Watch the show and learn from Dwight if you are searching for a new job!

Tom at The Strump gives his opinion on How to Translate Employment Ads.

FMF at Free Money Finance lets you know How to Waste Money on a MBA.

Debt and Credit

Kelly is really into fashion and fancy things. Only working at Dunder Mifflin, I can imagine that she has some major credit card debt. Hopefully, some of these articles can help her get on the path to becoming debt free.

Jim at Bargaineering has a Review of MyFICO ScoreWatch. He says it’s perfect for credit score junkies!

Tyler from CreditCards.com talks about how Credit Card Regulation is Brewing for College Campuses Again. Personally, I have never signed up for a credit card at a table at college, sporting event , airport, etc.

Looking for a new rewards credit card? Credit Addict tells us about the Pentagon Federal Visa Rewards Card.

Shaun from Learn Financial Planning gives his 5 Principles for Getting Out of Debt. Some great insights here!

Mr. Banker at Best Interest Rate Banks gives us his review of High Interest Savings Accounts.

Studenomics Breaks Down Student Loans in a non-confrontation manner.

Chris at StumbleForward gives you some tips on Becoming a Blogger to Get Out of Debt.

Housing

Jim just recently bought a house from his parents. I bet he wishes that he could have had some of these great articles to read!

Len Penzo provides us with A Layman’s Guide to Mortgage Application Junk Fees.

Passive Family Income talks about The Recession in America and Home Foreclosures.

Frugality and Saving Money

If anyone on the show is frugal, it’s Pamela. She dresses simple, religiously watched her money while going to college, and was thrifty while planner her first wedding.

Silicon Valley Blogger at The Digerati Life has a Valentine’s Day Tip on Using Ebates to Get Cash Back.

Pete at Bible Money Matters reminds us that Small Decisions Equal Big Results.

J Money at Budgets are Sexy says The Budget is Back, Baby!

Lisa from Greener Pastures presents Economic Collapse-R-Us: 22 Lifestyle Changes of Middle Class America.

The Writer’s Coin presents Am I a Thief or an Entrepreneur? The overwhelming majority of the comments suggest a thief. Head over there and give your input. He has even written a response post to the naysayers.

Matt at Stupid Cents gives us Five Simple Ways to Buy Everything Cheaper and Save Money.

The Shark Investor gives us Strategies for Raising Savings.

Mr. Tough Money Love show us how Arming Ourselves to Save Money on Car Repairs can be a good thing.

Patrick at Money Saving Deals has some Godaddy.com Coupon Codes to share.

David at Personal Finance Analyst gives us The Best Free Budget Worksheets on the Internet.

Dana at Not Made of Money tells us How Her Family Keeps the Breaks on Spending.

The Smarter Wallet shares some delicious Cheap Meals You Can Cook at Home to Save Money.

Debt Kid shows us Why Budgets Don’t Work for Everyone.

Hank at Own The Dollar wants to know Is Three to Six Months of Expenses Enough Money For Your Emergency Fund?

Aryn at Sound Money Matters shows you The Pros and Cons of Homemade Yogurt.

Taxes

When I think of someone who would evade income taxes, I think about Creed. Hopefully some of these articles will help him file his return this year. His first return ever?

Money Tipper lets us know about TurboTax Discounts for Vanguard Customers.

Nickel at Five Cent Nickel gives us Ten Common Income Tax Credits. Head over there to make sure you are getting all the money you deserve.

Thinking of buying a new house? Madison at My Dollar Plan talks about the Possibility of a $15,000 Home Buyer Tax Credit.

Patrick at Military Finance Network answers a question about What You Need to Do If Your Stimulus Check Was Lost of Stolen.

Christian Personal Finance found some places that have Free STATE e-file Online! Living in Maryland, I know that we have free e-file for the state return. It makes it nice and easy!

Insurance

If I had to guess which employee had the greatest amount of insurance, I would say it was Andy. I’d bet he has whole life, term, universal, two health policies and a deferred annuity. He also seems to be the most likely to be a insurance salesman. He just has that way about him!

Mr. GoTo at Go To Retirement gives you an idea about Fixed Annuities and Financial Risk. I think fixed annuities are a great thing to have in retirement. It’s unfortunate that they get such a bad rep from many mainstream media types.

Junior Boomer from The Consumer Boomer talks about Women and Long-term Care Insurance.

Economy

Now honestly, who cares more about the economy than Stanley? Just look at that face!

Kathryn at Out of Debt Christian tells us about The Importance of Shopping Local.

PFR at Personal Finance Reviews tells how the FDIC Plans to Restrict Interest Rates of Troubled Banks.

Curt at Penny Jobs presents The Fiat Money System is Failing.

Money Blue Book Finance wants to know is there a Second Stimulus Check for Obama in 2009?

Investing

Toby is the head of human resources at Dunder Mifflin. If anyone was maxing out their 401(k) there, it would be him.

Sun at The Sun’s Financial Diary alerts you to a Free Stock Analysis Tool.

The Financial Blogger shows you some Options to Secure Your Investment Portfolio.

The Intelligent Speculator wants to know if Super Bowl Ads are Really Worth It?

The Investor at Monevator gives their 10 Reasons to Be Cheerful as an Investor.

Jeff from Good Financial Cents has 7 Things to Know About the 2010 Roth IRA Conversion.

Dividend Tree shows us how Everyday Life Teaches us Dividend Investing.

Other

When I was thinking about what character would be good for the category other, I thought of Ryan. He definitely had some ups and downs with Dunder Mifflin!

MoneyNing presents What Everyone Ought to Know When Applying for Free Stuff.

Patrick at Cash Money Life has some $25 Sign-up Bonuses from Lending Club. You even have 2 chances to win $100!

Mara Rodgers at Secrets for Money gives some great Tips To Teach Kids About Money.

Chris at Financial Reflections lets you know How Identiy Thieves Sell Your Data Online.

Mighty Bargain Hunter gives you Some Great Sources for Free AudioBooks.

Miss M at M is for Money shares with you Deliverance from Debt: Budget Basics.

Mike at Money TLD shares with us 10 Places to Click for Cash. There are quite a few things on this list that I have never heard of. I think I will check some of them out!

Carnival of Money Stories #93 – BCS Edition

Welcome to the 93rd edition of The Carnival of Money Stories! My name is Adam and I am pleased to be your host this week. This carnival is one of my favorites. I love reading the great personal stories every week and it’s even better hosting the carnival as I get to choose my picks as the best for the week.

Last week Florida was able to beat Oklahoma 24-14 in the College Football BCS Championship. That game (and the BCS in general) gave me an idea for a great theme this week. This week we are holding the BCS of Money Stories. In other words, the Blog Championship Series of Money Stories. I am going to mention my 2 favorite entries for this week and you can decide on your own who the champion should be. There are also different “bowl games” in which other great stories are mentioned. All I have for the winner is a picture of this amazing trophy seen above. Cherish it as best you can as you will never receive anything of its kind again in your life! Anyway, let the games begin!

BCS Championship Game

These two stories made it to the championship game. There was a unique selection process in order to earn a bid to this game. First, I added all of the numbers of the date that it was submitted with the time of day it was submitted. I then subtracted 100 because I can. I then compared their strength of schedule against those who made it to this weeks Carnival of Personal Finance.  Simple process, right? Without further ado, here are my two picks:

Curt at PennyJobs.com wants to know which pays better, popular investing or staying in front of the crowd? I think I agree with Curt on his conclusion. When people are greedy, I am afraid. When people are afraid, I am greedy.

Papa Boomer at Consumer Boomer tells his tale about almost getting hosed by Terminix and the importance of doing research before buying. I just picture the poor old ladies in my mind that the Terminix guy has already ripped off.

Shopping Bowl

The Shopping Bowl includes posts talking about shopping experiences, customer service, etc.

FMF at Free Money Finance hates getting gift cards from Macy’s (and Macy’s shopping in general). Unfortunately, someone decided to get him a card for Christmas and he let’s us know how much Macy’s rip you off!

Jim at Blueprint For Financial Prosperity is heading to Walt Disney World! A day after he booked, his wife received a better offer in an email from them. Much to his surprise, they matched the offer!

Coupon Artist over at Art of the Coupon talks about their quest to spend $0 on groceries this year. A little unrealistic, but definitely some great ways to at least try! They will spend way less than me, I can tell you that!

VH at Funny About Money went shopping for shoes that don’t hurt. Sometimes you need to spend money for quality things. They will definitely last longer!

Single Guy Money got a new car and best of all, it was free! Well, at least it was free for him.

Abby at I Pick Up Pennies gives her personal opinion on warranties and their usefulness. Personally, we bought one on my fiances laptop. Mostly because it covers accidents and spills.

Investing Bowl

The Investing Bowl shares personal experiences with investing.

Silicon Valley Blogger at The Digerati Life talks about her experience with college savings plan rewards like Upromise. I have Upromise to help pay off my loans but I have not made $4,000!

Jeff at Good Financial Cents shares a story about a man who did not utilize the match on his 401(k). A 401(k) match is one of the only things in investing where you can get a guaranteed rate of return. Make sure you are utilizing yours!

Sun at The Sun’s Financial Diary shares with you their passive income for 2009.

Mr ToughMoneyLove from Tough Money Love presents to you his year end financial performance review. He definitely made out better in the market than most!

Billy at Beginner Investing shares his story about keeping emotions out of investing.

Ryan at Uncommon Cents had a GREAT investment in 2008. Want to know what the investment was? Click to find out!

Housing Bowl

The Housing Bowl has a wide variety of posts on renovations, mortgages, etc.

LAL at Living Almost Large has basically rented his house over the past few years even though he owned it. I can imagine that there are MANY individuals in this position. Hopefully prices will rebound in the coming months.

Miss M at M is for Money needs $153,000 and your help. Miss M is in the same position as many Americans these days: upside down on her home.

Cathy at Money to Spare lets you know that one expense no homeowner should never forget. Ah, the joys of home ownership!

The Financial Blogger gives you his final thoughts on his home renovation.

Credit and Debt Bowl

The Credit and Debt Bowl showcases stories on credit and debt stories.

Mr CC from Ask Mr Credit Card was asked by his credit card company if he wanted higher rewards. His response was certainly positive!

PFR from Personal Finance Reviews shares some tips on what to do when your credit cards are closed due to inactivity. They called up the companies and to my surprise, the company actually listened!

Len from Len Penzo shows you why paying off your mortgage is a no-brainer.

Random Bowl

The Random Bowl is for those posts that just could not be placed in one of the previous bowl games. Do not let them fool you though. There are some great stories! DON’T STOP READING!

J Money from Budgets are Sexy won the lottery! Well, he isn’t the next Bill Gates, but getting closer to that cool million!

Grace from GRACEful Retirement was born without a silver spoon in her mouth. Be sure to check out this post as there is some great discussion going on!

Patrick from Cash Money Life shares with you his 2009 personal finance goals. Just the way I like them: short and sweet. It makes them much more attainable!

DD at The Happy Rock goes over their December monthly expenses. Let’s just say it was a rough month!

The Smarter Wallet gives some great tips on saving time and money with quality cookware.

Vilkri from Our Personal Finances shares with you his own personal finance story.

Z Petals shares with your her financial past.

Pete at Bible Money Matters shares a guest post from Jason at Forward Habit. Jason shares his story of how he went through a $100,000 inheritance in 6 years.

Well there you have it! Thanks for visiting my site and be sure to poke around for just a little bit. You know you want to!

10 Things to Do When You Graduate Without a Job

When I graduated in December, I did not have a job. It was one of the worst job markets for me to graduate in. You would think that a master’s degree in financial planning would help, but most firms (ones that I would want to work for) just were not hiring. I guess the losses in the market amounted to losses in their revenue.

Because of not having a job in December, I thought of some ways to help others in my position. These are just some quick tips in order for you to stay in the game. Staying in the game (or hunt) is the best advice I can give you.

Do you find yourself searching for topics such as this every day? By subscribing to this site, you can get FREE updates in your inbox daily. Why not give it a try? You can unsubscribe at any time and it’s FREE. You can subscribe via RSS or you can subscribe via email.

1. Stay Positive

It’s not the end of the world! You need to relax, be positive and focus on the long run. You may not be able to find something right this instant, but if you keep your mind to it and follow some of these tips, something is bound to open up somewhere. Hopefully, it will be the job of your dreams!

2. Get a Part-time Gig

Bills still need to be paid and you cannot just sit at home on the couch. This is especially true if you are supporting someone else. Even if it’s only temporary, you need to get some type of part-time job that keeps you from going insane. If at all possible, find a job in a field that closely relates to the one you graduated in. For example, I am working part-time at H&R Block for the tax season. It’s obviously not the career path I want, but it relates closely.

3. Set Goals and Visualize

This is where you want to firmly state your goals. If your goal is to work at a top 50 ranked hospital, write it down. Visualize yourself working there and you will work even harder at that goal. As for other goals, list them and then start off with the easier ones and work your way down the list until you have reached them all. These goals can deal with your personal life as well as your career.

4. Network, Network, Network

This is a big one. Networking is a major part of finding your dream job. Knowing people who know the right people will help you get ahead in this world. I know that sounds bad and unfair but it’s the truth. I imagine many of you can agree with that. A great way to network is to join an organization in your community. Rotary is a great place to start as many business owners in your community attend these meetings. Not that great of a speaker? Start attending a local Toastmaster’s meeting. There you can work on your public speaking skills as well as meet local entrepreneurs.

5. Go a Knocking

I will be honest with you in saying that I do not trust web-related job searches. There is something about submitting my resume online that makes me feel like I lost control of my destiny. I know many companies have now gone solely to online submissions but they are just the big companies. Most of the small businesses (where most new jobs come from) still look for people the old fashioned way. I recommend you search around for the company that you would best want to work for, even if they are not hiring. Then, you should just pop in the business and introduce yourself. Bring along your resume as well! This will surely make a great impression on the business owner and if you are qualified enough, they may even make a position for you!

6. Be Willing to Make the Move

Chances are you will not find your dream job in Localtown, USA. You need to be able to say that you are willing to go anywhere. If there is a job open in a neighboring state, go for it! I know you want to stay close to family, but believe me, your future is much more important. Your family cannot support you forever.

7. Do Something Involving Your Field of Study

Another great way to stay involved in your field of study is to volunteer. Many of you may not have that option. It depends on your career choice. For example, I doubt I am going to be able to volunteer my time at the local financial planning office. However, if you are in the medical field you can visit the local nursing home or hospital. Not only will you be around the career that you love, you will also be able to NETWORK!

8. Continue Educating Yourself

I know you just probably graduated and you thought you were done with school. WRONG! In these times, you need to be constantly educating yourself. Things change in an instant now and you should always be at the top of your game. I did this when I decided to attend graduate school. Even if you have reached your peak in terms of education, start reading things in your field of expertise. Go to your local library for a list of good books. You can also search for journals that may be of interest to you. There is no better way to read about your career choice than from the individuals that are already doing it. Those are the people who contribute to journals.

9. Find Alternative Ways to Make Money In Your Field

Have you ever had an idea about something in your field that has not been done before? I sure have. This would make a great opportunity to start a small business. If your idea is great, it could turn into something amazing. Even if you do not have financial ability to start a business, if the idea is good enough you can find some financial backers. You may even want to start a blog about it. When I started this blog I had no idea that you could make money doing it. I just wanted to do it to share my knowledge to the world. Of course my blog is to new to make money but I still love doing it. It also keeps me up-to-date with my profession as I am constantly writing and reading about things in financial planning.

10. Be Frugal

Learning to become frugal is very important when one does not have a job. My fiance and I are working very hard at that right now. Without a steady income, some things are just going to have to wait until you get the right career. Now is not the time to be buying a car, renting that big condo, getting the sports package on TV, etc. You need to learn to buckle down and only live on the necessities. You will find that it will help you later on in your life as well. You will be want to be debt free and you will ultimately have a lot of money in the bank!

What Color Is Your Parachute? 2009: A Practical Manual for Job-Hunters and Career-Changers is a great book if you are searching for a job. It’s good for new job seekers as well as the seasoned ones.

Should You Manage Your Kids Money?

Walter Updegrave, senior editor of Money Magazine, answered a readers question recently. Here is the question:

My 20-year-old daughter works two jobs and is going back to school part-time. Her father takes her paychecks and doles out money to her as needed. He thinks he’s helping her by doing this, but I think he’s hurting her. I worry that if she doesn’t start to manage her own money, she will have trouble in the future knowing how to pay bills, etc. What is your opinion?

Walter tells the reader to give her husband some credit for having an interest in their daughter’s finances. However, he also tells her that it will end up hurting their daughter in the long run when she is out on her own. I whole-heartedly agree with him on that one! When this girl gets a full-time job and it is living on her own, will her dad keep on paying her bills and taking her paychecks? I certainly hope not. If he does, she will have a hard time adjusting to life financially and personally. They need to begin to incorporate their daughter into her finances and teach her the proper way to manage her money. This is almost the same thing as one partner in a marriage managing all of the money and the other partner couldn’t tell you where their checking account is held. 

I personally know someone who’s father is like this. Every since she has had a full-time job he has taken her paycheck and paid all of her bills for her. No matter what they were. I think this seriously hurts her because one day, he is no longer going to be around. What is she going to do then? She is even married and this still goes on! 

Do you know anyone who’s parents take care of ALL of their finances? Do you know a married couple where one person knows NOTHING about their financial situation? Please share your comments.