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Financial Question Of The Day #5

by Erik Folgate

I hope all of you had a great Christmas, and I hope it wasn’t as busy as mine! We had about 25 to 30 people at my mother-in-law’s house, and it was insane. But, no one got hurt, everyone was excited about their gifts, and most important, family and friends were able to be together.

Here’s the financial question of the day:

What one spending habit would you like to change in 2008?

I really don’t spend money in excess on one particular thing. But, there is one spending habit that I can foresee myself needing to keep in check in 2008. I bought an Xbox 360 a couple months ago, and I received a couple of games for Christmas as gifts. I have already bought another game and another wireless controller with gift money and gift cards, so I need to make sure that I don’t keep up the trend of buying a new game or accessory every time I have the thought. I am sure my wife will help me out in this area!

So, what spending habit do you have that you’d like to change this coming year? Maybe you want to spend MORE on something that you should be spending on, but most of you will think of something you should be spending less on in 2008.

Categories: FAQs


Erik and his wife, Lindzee, live in Orlando, Florida with a baby boy on the way. Erik works as an account manager for a marketing company, and considers counseling friends, family and the readers of Money Crashers his personal ministry to others. Erik became passionate about personal finance and helping others make wise financial decisions after racking up over $20k in credit card and student loan debt within the first two years of college. Another one of Erik's projects is the site, Stuff We Google.

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Comments

  • http://chieffamilyofficer.blogspot.com Chief Family Officer

    I want to stop buying things just because they’re a great deal. Yesterday, it was all I could do to keep from buying a rice cooker on Amazon, simply because it was a lightning deal that was about 2/3 off list price and it has a timer, a feature I’ve been thinking would be nice. But I definitely don’t NEED a new rice cooker, so I managed to not buy it.

  • Cherish

    Eating out because it is convenient or just because I feel like getting out. It’s expensive and can be unhealthy. I think it takes no more than 15 minutes to prepare and eat a breakfast and even less to prepare a healthy lunch. However, I don’t do it. Just drinks with your meal alone can add up. The average price of a drink is $1.50X20days=$30X12monhts=$360 a year. That’s insane. Especially when I need to be drinking more water anyway.

  • Jacquelyn Hart-McCoy

    I guess its not a spending habit but I want to try and get a handle on my tax situation this year. I guess I am just not savy in that area. We owe every year and we don’t make THAT much money. I guess I just am not withholding enough. grrrrrrr.

  • author

    Yeah, it’s most likely a problem with how much you are withholding. I have been able to figure mine out the last couple of years on my own, but I don’t think it would hurt to spend $50 to $75 bucks to get someone to help you. But beware of some of the advice they give you. Don’t do that stupid thing where you borrow money against your tax return in order to get it quicker. Some tax people are helpful though, and they can show you some credits and deductions that you might not have known that you were eligible for.

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