Urban FrugalUrban FrugalWhat kind of relationship do you have with money? Urban Frugal offers practical tips on frugality for those who live, work and play in the city. Articles
Stretch Your Food Budget
2008-03-17 19:01:00 Cheap, quick food doesn?t have to be unhealthy. When you do a little planning and preparation, you can make your food preparation a lot easier and more interesting. More About: Food , Budget , Stretch
Plan Your Meals
2008-03-14 18:11:00 When you are planning your meals for the week, you probably won?t be thinking prime rib or petit filet mignon each week. But if they are on sale and you want to treat yourself, instead of having a fancy meal out, make a reservation for yourself at home. More About: Plan , Meals
Mortgage Woes
2008-03-13 18:11:00 The horses have already run out of the corral and now the Fed says mortgage lenders should have more stringent rules for mortgages. More About: Mortgage
Wealth Building
2008-03-12 18:06:00 Saving money on items that you buy is not enough. In order to prolong the money that you have you need to work to create wealth. Wealth building is not just for the rich. Retirement accounts are for wealth building. The problem is that with many people having difficulty making ends meet, wealth building seems to be the last thing on their minds. Ask yourself… “Why do I put money in the bank or invest it in a CD?” Because I want to make more money. So if you want to make more money you are working to try to do something more than put your cash under your mattress or in a jar. If you start early then you will have a greater return on the amount that you saved. Save early and regularly and you will have compounding interest and growth on your side. Also, do not use the money that you are saving or investing for wealth creation. Consider that a pariah and untouchable source of money. How will you create wealth if you are always using the money? Put it on automatic. No... More About: Building
Tax Time
2008-03-11 19:09:00 Want to save some money and make sure you get all of the deductions you are entitled to? More About: Time
Raiding your 401(k)
2008-03-10 19:03:00 Just say no to debt if you can. The tax benefits of socking away money for a time when you have lower taxes only to pay higher penalties and fees is ludicrous.
Mortgage Rates Rising
2008-03-08 01:25:00 Somewhere, somehow mortgage rates are climbing again. When I forked over the cash this month to the mortgage company, I noticed that interest rates really haven’t dropped as precipitously as the Fed has lowered rates. The rates are lower than about a year ago and this is the only week that they have dropped. Average mortgage rates have been increasing. To me that doesn’t make any sense… until you think about the risk that lenders are now considering. Home buyers are no longer the “easy marks.” Banks and other companies are feeling the pinch of foreclosures because they are the ones that lose the profit. For predatory lenders, it serves them right, taking advantage of people but the increase in rates so quickly while the mortgage industry is in crisis is shocking. What’s even worse is that corporation directors have been earning more money while their companies have to endure write offs is appalling. More About: Mortgage , Rates
American Nightmare
2008-03-07 19:26:00 Owning a home is part of the American Dream. The housing crisis has turned the American Dream into a never-ending nightmare. Since housing prices have steadily increased for decades, even the recent decrease in property values in some communities is still much higher than the value was a decade or so ago. The value of a home and the amount of equity that Americans have in their homes has decreased. The availability of credit to take out a home equity loan has made a difference in this situation. Since housing prices have increased that means that more people have had to take out a loan in order to afford a home. So people own less of their slice of the pie. Owing more than you own in equity in your home is not as much of a problem if the price of the home doesn’t decrease below the amount that you owe and that you are not using your home as a cash cow. Having negative equity in your home is worse than having no equity in your home. If you borrowed 100% of your home’s cost and st... More About: Nightmare
Save $
2008-03-06 19:12:00 Even though America Save s Week is over, there is still time to save some money and earn interest.
Little Things Add Up Fast
2008-03-05 19:40:00 With the economic downturn, cutting back has become the norm whether we like it or not. More About: Things , Fast
Learn from Mistakes
2008-03-04 19:09:00 I hope the world learns from the US about easy credit and its follies. Unfortunately, I think that some may be learning as we are... after the fact or too late. More About: Learn
Rethinking
2008-02-29 20:12:00 Money is tight, so now is the time to rethink some things, not just spending.
Catching Up
2008-02-28 16:10:00 The general population has finally gotten around to realizing that people are giving up little luxuries, which were believed to be necessities by some, because of the price of gasoline and the uncertainty of the economy.
Napkins, Filters and Bags
2008-02-27 20:14:00 When you use cloth in place of paper or something that can be reused several times before discarding it, you consider how much you consume and the amount of energy or resources that could be saved. More About: Bags , Filters
America Saves Week
2008-02-26 20:48:00 It is never too late to start saving, sometime this week, check out America Saves and try to put away something extra, if you can. More About: Week
Social Personal Finance
2008-02-25 20:14:00 You may not tell someone exactly how much you make but online there is always someone out there who has a similar problem so if you search for a solution you can usually find it. More About: Personal , Social , Personal Finance , Finance
Pinching Hurts
2008-02-22 20:29:00 People who rely on a regular customer base for services are suffering as other people cut back.
Dryer Lint and Pennies
2008-02-21 20:33:00 Pennies are not fashionable and people just throw them away because you can?t buy anything with just one penny anymore. More About: Dryer
Changes to Your Credit Score
2008-02-20 19:59:00 Your credit score may improve under the new rules outlined by the Fair Isaac Corporation. More About: Credit , Score
Travel Money
2008-02-19 16:54:00 The same old frugal rule applies... don?t spend all of your money and have some in reserve if you need to use it. More About: Travel , Money
Apologize to your Money
2008-02-15 19:20:00 As a child, most people were told to apologize for whatever the infraction was. Can you do that to your bank account, your investments, or wallet? Here are some things you might apologize for … To your bank accounts: I’m sorry I’m overdrawn again this week, but I really “needed” that pair of designer shoes. To a checking account, sorry I thought you would be ok just living a cushy life in the bank. I know you get no exercise and it would be better if you could run around with other money to earn some interest. To your investments: Hey 401k, I really did think that the micro-widget would catch on. It was a great deal at only 15¢ a share when it went public. Really, I thought it would be the next big thing. I didn’t forget about you 401k, it was just that I have been spending a lot more time with my credit cards and I have been giving them more of my money. To your wallet: I thought you understood, I don’t like to carry around a lot of cash so I use my ... More About: Money , Apologize
Spend, spend, spend
2008-02-14 20:29:00 Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke isn?t giving us any hope for a fatter wallet anytime soon. Spend, spend, spend is the current economic plan and it?s not working.
Planned Consumption
2008-02-13 20:11:00 The consumer index grew by .3 percent last month. Why? Because of things that people couldn?t do without: food and gasoline. More About: Consumption
Struggling Homeowners
2008-02-12 19:51:00 Homeowners will be given some assistance if they are close to foreclosure. "Project Lifeline" is an opportunity for those who are in the last stages of foreclosure to save their home. More About: Homeowners
Be Mine
2008-02-11 20:27:00 You may be inclined to make something this Valentine’s Day if finances are tight. In that case do not skimp on the ingredients. Be thoughtful and choose to do something with your valentine or offer a coupon that you could use to make something special. Cheap is not always the best way to go when it comes to expressing your affection. If finances are tight, then let your sweetie know that you would spend the world on him but you could go broke showering your love with gifts. Gifts are only material things but giving someone your time or a well-planned gift that a person would use would be better than the traditional flowers and candy. If your sweetie likes coffee more than candy, then take some cash and get a gift card for his favorite coffee shop or buy a pound or his favorite blend. Generally, women do not have difficulty buying gifts, its men who are suckered into buying what stores are pushing. For more on this topic, see “Decoding Valentine’s Day Gifts.” More About: Mine , Be Mine
Dollar Boost
2008-02-08 20:14:00 If you saved a dollar a day and invested it or saved it at the end of each week you would have compounding interest on your side at the end of the year and your nest egg would be larger. More About: Dollar , Boost
Points and Rewards
2008-02-07 20:33:00 ...use your points to treat yourself to some things and also make donations to others. More About: Points , Rewards
Cheap or frugal?
More articles from this author:2008-02-07 00:16:00 ...use a coupon but don?t stiff your delivery person. If you do, you are being cheap, not frugal. More About: Cheap , Frugal 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 |
|
 |
|
 |
