Tag Archives: Family

The Root of Our Money Problems

We finally found the root of our money problems. Want to know what it is? According to my wife, it’s me.

When she said that in the car to me the other night, I laughed it off. But as I sat there and thought about it, she was absolutely right. I brought the most debt into the marriage and I probably would still be racking it up if I wasn’t with my wife. I was the most reckless with money before we got married.

But there are still things I do today that damage our finances. For one, I always seem to suggest eating out. Actually, my wife said “I was the problem” after I suggested grabbing something quick to eat. We have a ton of food at home and yet I always seem to want to eat out no matter where we are. What the heck is wrong with me? I really want to be debt free and yet I always want to spend.

I mentioned before that we want to still enjoy some “finer things” while getting out of debt. We would like to eat out once or twice a month and go to the movies occasionally. It just helps us from going insane.  However, I have taken the eating out to an extreme. If I had to guess, I would say we ate out about a dozen times in May. Most were the fast food variety but still expensive none the least. About 90% of those occurrences were my idea.

I guess you could say that I have been a big consumer for most of my life. I grew up on a family farm and started earning fairly good money (for a kid) by the age of 10. I did what most kids would do at that age with money. I spent it and I spent it ALL. However, I earned way more than most kids my age and I got to buy the more expensive items that many other kids only dreamed about or begged their parents for. Life was good.

What I guess I am trying to say is that old habits die hard. I would imagine that many of you are having this same problem. It’s hard to go from one extreme to the next and I’m finding that out that hard way. I once spent with wreckless abandon and now I am trying to pinch every penny. Life is hard.

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What would you say has been the toughest for you? Cutting spending? Setting up a budget? Opening up the lines of communication between you and your spouse?

How to Choose Credit Cards With Rewards to Save Money – Part 2

This is the 2nd part of Mr Credit Card’s guest post. In the previous post, he focused primarily on how to choose a cash back card to save money. In this post, he is going to discuss more about reward cards that let you earn points. His site has lots of information and you can apply for a credit card there.

In this post, I am going to give a few tips on how to choose a credit card to earn reward points. The decision you have to make is what rewards you want to earn with your points. There are a few broad categories of rewards that are available with most credit cards.

Travel Rewards – These include airline tickets, hotel stays, car rentals, cruises etc.

Merchandise – Most credit card reward programs have partnered up with various retailers and brands to offer their products to their card holders who exchange them for reward points. For example, you may exchange a certain amount of points to get, say, a Nikon Digital Camera.

Gift Cards – You can also exchange points for gift cards. A typical example would be to exchange 10,000 points for a $100 Best Buy Gift Card.

Charity – Most reward programs also allow you to donate points (for cash) to charities (though I doubt that is the intention of most reward card holders).

Travel Rewards

Most people looking for a reward credit card want to redeem points for airline tickets. The decision they would have to make us whether to get an airline credit card or a credit card with reward programs.

This dilemma is probably the toughest to resolve in any credit card decision because it involves so many factors. You have to ask yourself the following :

1. How Often Do You Fly?

2. Do You Fly with Just One Airline or Many?

3. Do You Spend A Lot on Your Card?

If You Just Fly on One Airline

If you just fly on one airline, then it make sense just to get a frequent flyer credit card.

If You Have Fly on a Few Airlines

If you fly on a few airlines and are a member of a few frequent flier programs, there are a couple of alternatives. For example, the American Express Membership Rewards allows you to transfer points you earn on Amex charge cards to 17 frequent flier miles. This is very valuable and is the reason why Amex is so popular.

The starwood preferred guest program allows you to convert Starwood points to air miles on a one for one ratio for most frequent flyer programs and you even get a bonus 5,000 miles if you transfer 20,000 points. Many frequent travelers carry the Starwood credit card.

If You Are Not a Frequent Flier But Want to Use Points for Airline Tickets

For those do not travel but want to earn points for an airline ticket for a family vacation, most regular reward credit cards should work. These days, most programs allow you to book your own tickets and use points t0 cover for them. That is the advantage they have over frequent flier programs because there are fewer restrictions like blackout dates, etc. that come with regular frequent flyer programs.

Merchandise

Choosing a reward credit card for merchandise redemption is a little tough because it is very difficult to compare the breadth of products available in their catalogs as they are always changing. Furthermore, some programs require less points for certain items but more for others. But generally speaking, after much research, I’ve found the Membership Rewards from AMEX to have the best selection of merchandise in their catalog.

Gift Cards

For those who want to use points for gift cards, the best card to get is probably the Discover Card as it has over 100 partners. The Discover Cards allow you to earn cash rebates and if you redeem them for gift cards instead, you double the value of the gift cards you redeem for certain merchants.

Donating to Charity

If you are a charitable person and would like to donate to charities by your credit, most reward programs allow you to do that. Some have many partners while others have just a few. The better ones like American Express allow you to set up your card such that you automatically donate to charities every month.

Shopping With Your Credit Card

Most credit cards today have their own shopping site and partnerships with online retailers so that you can actually earn more points or get discounts when you use your card.

For example, Discover has this feature called shopdiscover.com. The way it works is that you can shop at say bestbuy.com (but going through the discover website) and you can earn 5% rebates when you use your Discover card to shop at their site. American Express has a shopping comparison site called shopamex.com, which lets you compare many items with different retailers. You can then shop at the cheapest online store and even use your reward points to shop.

Most card holders do not use this feature. But you should, since you can save quite a bit by doing so.

Other Considerations

When you are researching credit cards, other things to consider are:

1. Do reward points expire

2. Is there a cap to how many points you can earn?

3. How many points you do earn for every dollar that you spend on the card? For most, it will be one point, but many cards lets you earn more points for certain category in spending.

Final Note – While savvy frequent travelers have always used reward cards to their advantage, most credit card holders don’t. To fully take advantage of credit cards (rather than let them take advantage of you), make sure you pay in full, get a card with rewards (whether it be cash back or reward points). You will enjoy savings and perks in many interesting ways.

Carnival of Twenty Something Finances – DC Edition

Welcome to this weeks edition of the Carnival of Twenty Something Finances! Last weekend, the future Mrs and I headed down to Washington, DC to check out the famous cherry blossoms. Although it was VERY crowded, I must admit that it was an amazing time to see them. DC is a great place to see on the cheap. Most museums in the city are free and they have a great transit system. Personally, we parked outside of the city at one of the free metro stations and rode the train all day. It cost us about $5 per person and we did not have to deal with the horrendous traffic and confusing streets.

Sprinkled throughout the carnival this week are some common places to see while visiting DC. Like I mentioned before, most of these sites are free to the public. You can get away with spending very, very little compared to other cities. I advise packing a lunch for you and your family as food can be rather pricey if you purchase it from vendors. Anyway, off to the carnival!

This is a picture that we took in the midst of the trees. The cherry blossoms were at their peak this year from around March 28th through April 12th.

Editor Picks

Debt Kid shows you that getting a mortgage after foreclosure is not so simple.

Debt Ninja at Punch Debt in the Face wants to know what’s your favorite dumb but fun expense? I would have to say that mine was my iPhone. I love it with a passion but I really do not need all of the features and the added expense.

Jerry at Deal Supermarket talks about getting unplugged with frugality. This was a very creative post!

DR at The Dough Roller gives you 10 tips to declutter your finances.

The Washington Monument is the most prominent structure in DC. It was built in 1884 in honor of George Washington. It’s free to get in but make sure you get their early!

The Rest of the Field

KC Lau shows you 5 ways to take charge of your finances.

Fabulously Broke in the City shows you why a small space does not mean you put your life on hold and whine.

Bank Savings Review let’s you know about four banks that gave their TARP funds bank.

Kathryn at Out of Debt Christian has the top ways to waste money on your home.

Shaun from Learn Financial Planning shows you why being frugal is just the first step.

SVB at The Digerati Life helps you choose the best online stock brokers for cheap stock trades.

Personal Finance Analyst wants to know if saving money damages your quality of life.

Patrick at Cash Money Life tells you when you should tell your boss that you are pregnant.

The Smithsonian Institution has a ton of great free museums to see in DC. You can go to the Air and Space Museum, Museum of Natural History, Freer Gallery of Art, etc.

Mr CC at Ask Mr Credit Card let’s you know how American Express submits your credit information to the credit bureaus.

Matt at Fine-Tuned Finances compares new credit card programs for saving for college.

Ginger at Ginger Won’t Snap has some credit card fraud problems.

Peak Personal Finance has 3 smart personal finance tasks that you are probably putting off.

Diego at Bankling shares with us his top 50 economics blogs.

Big Cajun Man at Canadian Personal Finance Blog has some advice for new grads.

Patrick at Money Saving Deals gives us the lowdown on how to get up to $150 from TradeKing.

RJ at Our Financial Planner shows you the miracle of compound interest.

The Lincoln Memorial is another great (free) site to see in the city.

MoneyNing shares with your his review of Everbank.

Jeff Rose at Good Financial Cents let’s you know what to do if there is a layoff pending.

Destroy Debt shows you how to get the last drop out of many popular products.

Pinyo at Moolanomy shows you how to transfer credit card balances.

Raj at DebtGoal is cutting the bill on digital services.

Wren at True Adventures in Money Hacking shows you how to get a free car. Really!

Dan at Everyday Finance gives you the best CD yields in April.

Jim at Bargaineering shows you how to pick the best credit card.

J Money at Budgets are Sexy gives some advice on Roth IRAs vs 401ks.

Visit Arlington National Cemetery and pay your respects to the thousands of fallen soldiers. You can also view the resting place of JFK and see the Eternal Flame.

Patrick at Military Finance Network shows how the stimulus plan assists military members affrected by the mortgage meltdown.

Credit Card Assist wants to know if you have ever looked at your credit card closely.

Apply 4 Credit wants to know if credit card protection plans are really worth the added cost.

Christian Personal Finance is giving away a free subscription of Kiplinger’s personal finance.

Investing School compares Etrade, TradeKing, and Zecco.

Mike at Money TLD lets you know that some expired foods can still be edible.

Eric at Twenties Money has five pieces of advice for twenty somethings.

BillEater shows you how to avoid debt reduction scams.

Kyle at Suburban Dollar gives you his review of CashCrate.

How to Get Free Auto Insurance Quotes and Purchase Online

Every six months you can find me surfing the web for auto insurance. Call me weird, but I always need to know I am getting the best price. If I had to guess, I would say that I have changed my auto insurance carrier seven times over the past nine years. Is that bad or am I just a good shopper? Anyway, I thought I would share with you my routine for shopping for auto insurance and things to look for. Currently, I am with Progressive and I have been pleased so far. Please keep in mind that none of these companies paid me to write about this. I also do not receive anything if you visit their site, so please feel free to visit them!

Check Your Current Policy

When six months rolls around (sometimes sooner), I will double-check to make sure that the coverage is still what I would like it to be. If for some reason the company lowered my limits, I make sure to get a new quote for the coverage amounts that I like. Here are the coverage amounts that I currently carry:

Bodily Injury Protection: $100,000 per person / $300,000 per accident

Property Damage: $100,000 per accident

Uninsured Motorist: Same limits as personal protection

Medical: $2,500

Comprehensive: $50 deductible

Collision: $500 deductible

I keep the bodily injury quite high because the cost of medical care is high. It’s that plain and simple. I will never buy less than $100,000 in property damage due to the high costs of vehicles today. For example, if I were in an at-fault accident with two other SUV vehicles, I would have caused damages (considering both were totaled) of around $50,000 if I am lucky. I really do not want to have to pay for any additional amounts out of pocket. I just keep the uninsured motorist coverage the same as my personal coverage due to the same reasons above.

In regards to deductibles, I keep my comprehensive very low because it just does not cost that much more to have it close to $0. Also, why have a $500 comprehensive deductible when you will use it for mostly inexpensive things? In terms of the collision deductible, I would like to have the deductible at $1000 because I could save around 15% on my policy. However, my credit union forces me to have at-the-most a $500 deductible. Anyone else have that problem?

Before you move onto the next section, make sure you obtain a new insurance quote from your current carrier. Their pricing structures may have changed.

Time to Start the Quotes

I typically have several sites that I check every few months for auto insurance. In this section I will list the sites that I visit and my general experience (price, obtaining a quote) with them.

Progressive

As I mentioned before, Progressive is my current carrier. So, far I have had a good experience with them. They were my carrier several years ago as well but of course, they were outbid a few months later so I switched. Obtaining a quote from Progressive is very easy. All you have to do is enter a few bits of information and you are all set for an accurate quote. They even offer to show you the prices of some of their competitors. However, I have never gone off of what they said. Can you really trust another insurance company to give you a quote for another company? I would rather do the digging myself. One of the main reasons I decided to go with Progressive is their MyRate Program. This program is for conservative drivers like myself. You basically install a tracker in your car that measures your distance and time traveled as well as your braking and acceleration. It then compares your driving to others in your rate class and gives you a discount accordingly (that is if you are below the average). My discount so far is about 5% at renewal (I have only been using it for a few weeks). All in all, I would recommend Progressive to anyone.

Geico

Before Progressive, my auto insurance carrier was Geico. They are well known for their commercials with the gecko. When I first purchased a policy from them it was very easy. Their quote system is very similar to Progressive. I only switched from them because Progressive’s quote was about $100 cheaper for six months and I also wanted to try the MyRate program. If you happen to find a cheaper quote with another company, make sure you call your current company first and see if they can negotiate with you on the price. Most companies will be willing to do this with you rather than see you go.

Esurance

Esurance is a fairly new auto insurance company. They are the ones with the animated (which I think are a little corny) commercials. Since the commercials are animated, I guess it allows them to produce cheaper insurance. I used Esurance for a few months and their quotes were quite low compared to some others. However, when I moved to Texas, their rates became more expensive and I could no longer use them. I would encourage you to check them out. They are very competitive right now and it does not hurt to get a quote.

State Farm

I have heard very good things about State Farm and their service. However, every time I get a quote there, they are always way more expensive than some of the others. I am talking about 25% higher. Maybe it is because I am in a strange rate class right now (young male). You may have more luck than me so be sure to check them out as well. Even though I never get a great quote from them, I still check. If you are someone who needs personal service, you may want to purchase from them even though they may be a fraction more expensive. They have many agents that you can see in your area.

Allstate

My first insurer was Allstate. Looking back, I could have probably saved quite a bit of money had I shopped around before I went with them. However, everyone in the family used them and I figured why not. I really did not know much about auto insurance back then. As soon as I went to college and became interested in personal finance, I started shopping around and got some pretty good deals. Allstate has quite a few good features such as accident forgiveness, deductible rewards, etc., but most of them are just a gimmick and add additional costs to the policy. Every time I quote with them now, they are even more expensive than State Farm. However, your circumstances may be different so be sure to at least get a quote from them.

Those are all of the companies that I get a quote from. I know there are probable plenty of other companies, but by the time I am done with quotes for these few, I have reached my maximum utility for auto insurance. There more than likely was a quote that I was comfortable paying for.

Time to Buy!

When you find a quote/company that you like, they make it very easy to purchase. Once you receive a quote, they automatically give you the option to purchase the insurance on the spot. Many companies even give you a discount for buying online.

Other Things to Consider

I figured I would give some additional brief tips to help you save some money on auto insurance.

1. Keep all of your policies with one company. If you have your homeowners, umbrella, renters and auto policy all at the same company, you will receive a discount on all of them.

2. Increase your deductibles. If you are allowed by your finance company (if you finance), raise your deductibles in order in increase your savings.

3. Find some discounts. Many auto insurance companies offer different types of discounts. They range from being a good student to belonging to a union. Make sure you ask your company if you are getting all of the discounts you are entitled to.

4. Drive a low-profile car. Drive a fast car? Chances are you are paying more due to that fact.

Anyone else have a company that they have used in the past? Did you get some good quotes from them?

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!

6 Ways I Make More Money on eBay

There have been many articles written on how to make money on eBay. This article will not show you how to set up an eBay account or even the essential things to know. However, over time, I have realized that my items sell for more than others selling the same exact product. Recently, I sold my old Apple Macbook for $975. After doing some preliminary research, I saw that ones in similar condition to mine were going for about $900. I figured that is about the amount I would receive for mine. Turns out, after following my usual steps, I was able to get $75 more dollars out of the high bidder. I have done this countless times with a variety of items. Want to know my secrets? Well, here they are!

I Know How to Spell

Nothing irritates me more while searching on eBay than things that are misspelled. Really, how hard is it to run spellchecker? After you finish your listing, make sure you check your spelling and proofread it. There have been several instances where I did not bid on an item due to misspellings and bad grammar. If you cannot spell or write correctly, what makes you think I trust you to complete the transaction?

I Start and End My Auctions at the Appropriate Time

Now, I do not know if this is the exact appropriate time to start and end auctions, but it has always works to me. First, I always choose a 10-day auction. It is only about 30 cents extra per auction and it allows me to span the auction over two weekends. Second, I start my auctions at 10pm ET on a Friday and end them at 10pm ET on a Monday 10 days later. Having the auction end on a Monday allows more people to view your auction right before it ends (when the real bidders come). If you end it during the day or on a weekend, you are more than likely going to miss out on bidders due to them being at work or out with their family.

I Use Turbo Lister and Create Awesome Listings

Personally, I use Turbo Lister for my eBay auctions. Turbo Lister is a FREE listing tool from eBay that allows you to make your listings on your desktop even if you are not connected to the internet. Having had many problems making listings on the web via eBay, I tried Turbo Lister and really liked the results. Turbo Lister also allows me to use a template for my listings. I specifically use the Red Square eBay Stores template. It costs a few pennies to use but it is well worth it. It adds some style and professionalism to it.

I Disclose Everything About My Items, Good and Bad

First, I make sure I list everything about the product as I possibly can. If you still have the original box, use that as a guide to make sure everything is listed. This is especially important if you item is electronic. Second, I make sure I list everything I possible can about it’s defects. Believe me, if you do not list all of your items problems, it will come back to haunt you. I know people who have been in a battle with the original seller and eBay over who is to blame when an item has undisclosed defect.

I Charge My Buyers Exact Shipping Costs and Sometimes Nothing at All

Just like the title suggests, I only charge my buyers what it costs to ship the item. There are many sellers out there who have a fixed shipping cost or just “ballpark it”. I think that is wrong. Invest in a scale and find out how much your item weighs. Then you can plug that weight into Turbo Lister with the shipping company and it automatically calculates the price based on your buyers location. Personally, I have not bought a few items due to their shipping costs.

Another way to get the bidding going is to offer free shipping. I have done this several times and it worked like a charm. Not only did it sell for more, the added bids made up the difference that it cost me out of my pocket to ship the item.

I Answer Questions Promptly and Professionally

Whenever I receive a question about one of my items, I make sure I answer it within a few hours. It looks real good to the potential buyer and may possibly cause them to bid. My replies are also very articulate and grammatically correct. Basically, you are running a business and if you do not treat your customers good, they will buy somewhere else.

photo by: judybaxter