Getting out of debt and staying out of debt is an essential principle to becoming wealthy. Millionaires don’t have car payments, and they don’t carry a credit card balance. They don’t need to borrow money, because they HAVE money. If you minimize the monthly payments that you pay every month, you’ll have more money to invest and pay for large purchases. Fortunately, I have already written a debt elimination plan on Money Crashers, and I will reference those posts for you to read again or for the first time. Here are my five steps to getting and staying out of debt.
The 11 Principles Series: Do Not Believe In Money Myths
Erik Folgate
There are many myths about money and how to handle it. The key is identifying those myths and not falling into the trap that many other people fall into when it comes to money myths. I have identified four myths about money, and I will explain why I believe they are myths and how you can avoid being deceived by them.
Myth #1: Debt is a Tool, and you can use it to become wealthy
The 11 Principles Series: Always Spend Less Money Than You Make
Erik Folgate
Over the next two weeks, I’ll be writing a series based on the Money Crashers 11 Principles to guide you to personal financial fitness and success. I created these 11 financial principles to live by when I first created the Money Crashers blog. However, I never formally explained each one and my philosophy for each principle. I figured that now is as good of a time as any to do a series on my 11 principles and why I believe they are essential to follow if you want to win with money.
The 1st Principle: Always Spend Less Money Than You Make
Beware of Home Equity Lines of Credit (HELOC)
Erik Folgate
When it’s time to tap the equity in your home, you usually have two options: a home equity line of credit (HELOC) or a home equity installment loan (HEIL). Both will get you the money you want, but one may lower your credit scores, which will make everything you buy on credit more expensive – be careful.
So, which one is dangerous and which one is safe? A HELOC can potentially lower your credit scores. Here’s how. HELOC accounts can look exactly like a credit card account on your credit reports, and that can be a bad thing
Upcoming Money Crasher’s Blog Series
Erik Folgate
Starting June 20th and running until about July 6th, Money Crasher’s will be running a blog series based on the 11 principles of a money crasher to help you achieve financial success. You can view the 11 principles here to see the entire list. I put together these 11 financial principles when I first started this blog. These 11 principles serve as the thesis for this blog, and I truly believe that if you follow these principles, you WILL find yourself winning with money. You’ll enjoy life to its fullest, and you’ll be wise with your money.
Should You Pay Off a Student Loan With a 0% Interest Credit Card?
Erik Folgate
This is a question that a friend of mine asked me recently, and I thought it would be a good question to throw out there to the readers of Money Crashers. If you are in your twenties, it seems like you’re a weirdo if you DO NOT have a student loan. The reality is that college is not getting cheaper, and many of our parents did not pass along a college fund for us. I have about $18,000 in student loan debt, and my wife will have even more than that. She’s in physician assistant school right now, so her student loans will definitely be worth it in another 12 to 18 months. The National Center of Education Statistics shows that a little more than 50% of students hold student loans at an average of about $10,000.
A List of the Best Careers for 2007
Erik Folgate
U.S. News and World Report has come up with this list of the 25 best careers of 2007. There are the obvious ones like a doctor, dentist, engineer, and professor. But, there are also some surprising ones like medical scientist, librarian, urban/regional planner, and a fundraiser. The four criteria they graded the jobs on are Job Market Outlook, Attainability, Prestige, and Quality of Life.
The Difference Between an ESA and a 529 College Savings Plan
Kira Botkin
If you’ve just had a child, then it’s never too early to start thinking about their future. Sending a child to college is a huge expense, and many parents are unable to fund their children’s college expenses. By the way, it doesn’t make you a bad parent if you don’t pick up the tab for your child’s college expenses. However, if you plan early, you can help change your family tree by helping your child stay out of debt early in their life. The two most popular college savings accounts are the Coverdell Educational Savings Account (ESA) and the 529 college savings plan. Both of these savings plans act much like an Health Savings Account or retirement account, because they are invested in investments such as mutual funds and withdrawals must be used for a specific purpose or at a specific time in one’s life. I’ll give you the pros and the cons for each savings plan, and you can decide which plan will work best for you.
Great Deal: Check out the 72 hour Airtran.com Sale!
Erik Folgate
Are you thinking about doing some traveling this summer? Airlines are really churning out the deals this summer. It seems like every week I get an email from Airtran, Southwest, or Spirit Air boasting one of their online sales. You can get some great one way flights for under $100!
Check out the 72 hour Airtran.com Sale and you might come across a great deal on a flight! The sale ends Thursday, and you can book tickets up through November 7th, 2007.
Disclaimer: I do not receive any compensation for this solicitation. I just like promoting good deals and sharing them with others when I come across them!
Save Money And Get Out of Your Car Lease
Erik Folgate
It’s no secret that our wallets are really taking a hit from the astronomical gas prices. My wife and I both own small cars, so we do not get hit as hard as people with trucks and SUVs. Did you recently lease a truck, SUV, or other gas guzzling car? Are you trying to find a way out of the lease? CNN Money has a great article about how to get out of your SUV lease. Popular websites such as Lease Trader and Swap A Lease will help you transfer over your lease to someone else.
Six Money Mistakes of Newlyweds
Erik Folgate
I came across this across on Kiplinger’s website titled, Six Money Mistakes of Newlyweds. I thought that there would be a lot of advice that I disagreed with, but when I started reading the article, I realized that I agreed with most of it. Money is definitely one of the biggest issues that can cause strife in a marriage, especially new marriages. Typically, young newlyweds don’t have much money, and they need to watch what comes and what goes out more closely. Here are the three mistakes that I think are key in trying to avoid:
Alternative Settlement Options For Homeowner’s and Auto Insurance Claims
Erik Folgate
Your homeowner’s insurance and auto insurance are extremely important to staying financially healthy. Your home is one of the most important assets you own, and protecting it should be a top priority. Your automobile is an important asset as well, but the liability insurance involved is a more important coverage when it comes to protecting your financial life. Making a claim on your homeowner’s or auto insurance can be a frustrating process. You want to be compensated fairly for your damages. It is the insurance company’s responsibility to indemnify you, or in other words, put you back to a pre-loss condition. However, your definition of indemnity and the insurance company’s definition may differ. It’s fairly common for the insured to disagree with their initial settlement given by their claims adjuster, but you have the right to dispute your settlement. Typically, you have three different options when it comes to disputing an initial settlement of a homeowner’s or auto insurance claim. They are mediation, appraisal, and lawsuit. I will explain all three and the purpose they serve.
Carnival of Personal Finance #103, the 24 Edition
Erik Folgate
Go check out The #103 Carnival of Personal Finance over at Clever Dude.
This is by far the most creative Carnival of Personal Finance edition I’ve ever seen. Clever Dude has gone over the top to create a very “clever” way of presenting the links for the carnival by incorporating them into brief summaries of each hour of the episode “24″ on Fox.
Good Job Clever Dude, make sure you check out the carnival!
Save Money and Rent a Movie for $1 at McDonalds
Erik Folgate
Move over Blockbuster and Netflix, because Mcdonalds is moving into the DVD rental market. Most of you may have seen the commercials or seen the Red Box DVD rental kiosks at Mcdonald’s, but have you used it yet? My wife and I just used it tonight, and this will mark the fourth time that we’ve used the Red Box DVD rentals at Mcdonalds.
Looking Back In The Archives of June 2006
Erik Folgate
Here are some articles I wrote one year ago that may be useful to you for the coming summer:
