It's easy to bury your head in the sand by ignoring your financial situation. The following article ...

1. Fantastic Guidance On Caring for Your Finances
It's easy to bury your head in the sand by ignoring your financial situation. The following article will
show you many great tips for budgeting and being financially responsible. Get back in control of
your financial situation right now.
Get a rewards credit card. No-fee reward cards are the best if you need a credit card. Reward cards
give you rewards on various things that you typically use such as hotel rooms, airline tickets and
store rewards. Be sure you pay the card off every month and pay on time to avoid interest and late
fees.
Manage your career as if it was an investment.
Your job and the skills you develop are the most
important asset you have. Always work to learn
more, attend conferences on your career field
and read books and newspapers in your area of
expertise. The more you know, the higher your
earning potential will be.
Manage your career as if it was an investment.
Your job and the skills you develop are the most
important asset you have. Always work to learn
more, attend conferences on your career field and read books and newspapers in your area of
expertise. The more you know, the higher your earning potential will be.
Write your budget down if you want to stick to it. There is something very concrete about writing
something down. It makes your income versus spending very real and helps you to see the benefits
of saving money. Evaluate your budget monthly to make sure it's working for you and that you really
are sticking to it.
Instead of going to a car dealership and signing a lease for a new car, take a look at all of the used
cars in the lot. Sometimes it is better to purchase a used car, as you will pay a much lower price and
have resale value in the end.
If you wish to have a credit card and are under 21, you need to realize that the rules changed.
Traditionally, credit cards were provided for students who are college aged for free. Now credit card
companies want you to have a verifiable income or to get a cosigner. The requirements for each card
should be researched prior to applying.
As a college student, you will want to reduce the amount that you spend on books and supplies.
Instead of purchasing books at the campus bookstore, which is usually at retail price, make friends
with upperclassman who can give you these books at a discount. This can save you hundreds of
dollars per semester.
Radio talk show host Neal Boortz once advised when it comes to saving money that you should never
spend a one dollar bill. You should put that dollar bill in a coffee can and never spend it, and every
time you get one, put it in there. You would http://careers.ohio.gov/ be surprised at how many one

2. dollar bills you save by not getting this little item or that.
Find out if you will get a discount for making your payments automatically. Many times if you mail
your payment you will be charged as much as $5.00 per month. You may find that there is a nice
discount for you if you set up an automatic payment through your checking account or credit card.
Discuss financial goals with your partner. This
is especially important if you are thinking
about getting married. Do you need to have a
prenuptial agreement? This may be the case if
one of you enters the marriage with a lot of
prior assets. What are your mutual financial
goals? Should you keep separate bank
accounts or pool your funds? What are your
retirement goals? These questions should be
addressed prior to marriage, so you don't find
out at a later date that the two of you have
completely different ideas about finances.
For large purchases, such as home
renovations, one way to get a better loan is to borrow against the value of your home, also called a
home equity loan or a second mortgage. Because of the security provided by your home's equity,
these loans often have better rates than a normal loan.
Carry at least ten dollars in cash or a debit card. The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer
Protection Act lets merchants set a minimum amount for credit card transactions. The minimum
amount cannot be more than ten dollars and does crystal umbrella not apply to debit cards.
Previously, some merchants inflicted minimums in violation of credit card agreements.
Make sure that you're never purchasing an item you cannot afford, even if you do have a high credit
limit. There is no reason that you cannot make do with a 32-inch TV instead of that 60-inch mega-
screen. Why spend the extra $1,000 on luxury when you know you'll have to pay back $2,000-plus
with interest?
Every month, make an attempt to put a few extra dollars toward the principal on your loans. In the
end, this means you are paying much less interest to the lender and ultimately are saving yourself a
lot of time and money. A one hundred dollar extra principal payment on your very first mortgage
payment can knock off three months of payments at the end!
Don't fall for the refund anticipation loan scam. Refund anticipation loans are marketed by tax
preparers and loan a person money for the approximately two-week period between e-filing and
receiving a tax refund. The "gotcha" here is the huge fee the tax preparer charges for this service,
which can represent an effective interest rate of 50% or more.
If you are thinking about getting a mortgage, compare interest rates as well as other expenses. For

3. instance, you can pay discount points for your mortgage payments to become cheaper over time.
Take in consideration how long you will live in your house to find the best type of mortgage.
Make sure to keep an eye on your credit reports. Each credit reporting agency offers a free report to
all consumers once, yearly. Get all three of them and review them very carefully to make sure they
are accurate. It is important to get all three, since they may have differing information.
You've reached the end of this article and are now better equipped to handle your hard earned
money. Keep this knowledge on the top of your mind when weighing financial options that could
greatly impact your quality of life, and you are sure to make smart decisions for your future.