Search results for emergency fund
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Posted
Oct 25 2007, 06:47 AM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
This post comes from Sarah Winfrey at partner blog Wise Bread . Most of us have ideas we think might sell, and most of us think we'd love to work for ourselves. Is that really a good idea? Here are 10 things to consider if you're thinking about starting your own business. Do you care? You have a good idea that might make some money, and you envision yourself conducting business by cell phone while watching the waves in Fiji. But do you actually care? Do you want to make people's lives better, easier or more fulfilling through your new business? If you don't care, you'll run out of steam before the long haul of building a business even gets started. Do you have what it takes? The reality of an entrepreneur's life is, well ... craziness. Long hours. Disappointments. Patience even when the bills are piling up. You are investing all of yourself and much of your future in the public's response to a product. If you don't have the persistence, the blasted stick-with-it-ness to keep going no matter
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Posted
Nov 08 2007, 08:05 AM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
This post comes from Sarah Winfrey at partner blog Wise Bread . A lady I know of died last night. It was expected; she had been diagnosed with incurable cancer last spring. I didn't know her well. I wish I had, as her friends are going to great lengths to honor her. It's been really cool to see people coming together, comforting each other, saying meaningful things to each other. One of the things friends say has comforted them is that her family is in a secure place financially. I'm not sure what plans she had in place, but her family has been able to cover her medical care and will be able to pay for her funeral without a lot of trouble. Friends are comforted that the family won't have to worry about money as they grieve the loss of this wife and mother. This has made me think hard. You can do a lot before a crisis hits to help your family when it does. Here are things I'm glad I have and ones I intend to look into. Health insurance. I have great health insurance and will have better
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Posted
Nov 15 2007, 08:16 AM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
This post comes from Linsey Knerl at partner blog Wise Bread . My family has lived in the same house for two years, but we neither rent it nor own it. It is part of a family farming corporation with an uncertain future. We don’t know if we will be here another 10 years, or if we will need to move next spring. It seems silly to invest too much in it without it being a permanent home, but, at the same time, we really want to make it our own. It seems easy to hold your breath and wait for situations in life to become clear, determined and permanent. But what will you be missing in the meantime? Here are five steps that can help you live life while waiting to see just where it may go. Know that you are not alone. How many other honorable professions and lifestyles are temporary, nomadic , or without careful material plans? Plenty. Just ask any missionary family, military spouse, or theater troupe how it feels never to know what the next move may hold for them. Time spent at a single location
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Posted
Dec 05 2007, 08:34 AM
by
Donna Freedman
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
Heavy rain flooded half my North Seattle block on Monday. After a dozen chaotic hours -- eight of them without power -- at the apartment building I manage, I really, really did not want to sleep on a Red Cross cot.
Yet another reason to have an emergency fund: a hotel room with privacy and unlimited hot water.
Sure, I could have bunked at the emergency shelter. I chose not to do so. Choice is one of the luxuries that an EF affords us.
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Posted
Dec 10 2007, 07:43 AM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
This post comes from J.D. Roth at partner blog Get Rich Slowly. Twenty years ago I was a freshman in college. I was a poor kid from a poor family, but my roommates came from wealth. In order to fit in, I went out and picked up a department store credit card. I bought some new clothes, an electric shaver and a bottle of cologne. From that day on, I've been in debt. My debt grew slowly at first. The department store credit card had a $500 limit. I knew that I shouldn't come close to the limit, and that I should pay the card off, but within a year I'd maxed it out and was making only minimum payments. By the time I graduated from college in 1991, I had acquired two additional credit cards. I was glad I had them, too. When my job plans fell through, the credit cards became my emergency fund. I lived off them for months. I also bought a brand-new Geo Storm. Within six months of graduating from college, I was unemployed and carrying $20,000 in debt.
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Posted
Jan 11 2008, 07:43 AM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
This post comes from Trent Hamm at partner blog The Simple Dollar. Lots of people have written to me recently asking how I am preparing for an economic downturn. Take, for example, this e-mail from Arnold: A lot of major publications (The Economist being the biggest) have been predicting that the U.S. will have a recession this coming year. My question has to do with preparing and surviving during a time of recession. Also, another idea would be how to work with the dropping in value of the dollar. First of all, I think most mainstream articles on economic downturn are sensationalistic. For most people leading normal, everyday lives, a recession doesn't mean too much. Unemployment might rise some as companies trim fat. Stable companies don't fire good employees because of downturns. If you're worried about an economic downturn affecting your financial status in a significant fashion, consider the following scenarios, most of which have more to do with your own choices than the market:
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Posted
Jan 11 2008, 09:17 AM
by
Donna Freedman
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
The "locavore" concept is that we should try to eat only foods grown within 100 miles of our homes. I'd like to suggest a new challenge: the "frugalvore" movement, which suggests that we eat whatever is on sale that week.
This isn't really a new idea, of course. Your parents likely shopped that way, by looking at the food ads and planning menus around what was cheapest.
You may already do this, if only occasionally. Ever gone shopping for ground beef but changed your mind when you saw a startling deal on whole fryers? If so, you're on your way to being a frugalvore.
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Posted
Jan 28 2008, 06:46 AM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
This post comes from J.D. Roth at partner blog Get Rich Slowly. Sometimes I wonder: Have I always had personal-finance conversations all the time? I don't often initiate them, but money seems to be a constant topic, even when people are unaware that I write about it every day. For example, I met with a fellow who needs some boxes to ship his woodworking products. (By day I am the sales force for my family's small box factory.) My customer gave me a tour of his shop, showing me his doll beds and myrtle clocks with obvious pride. "When I retire in a few years, I want to spend my time doing this," he said. "I love it." After we'd measured his products and determined what kind of boxes he needed, we began to discuss payment terms. "Now, do you guys take credit cards?" he asked. "We don't," I said. "We're not set up to handle them." He sighed. "I guess I can pay by check. I should be able to pull the money together. It's probably for the best anyhow. That interest will eat you alive." "Oh, I know," I said. He took a sip of his coffee and then told me his story.
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Posted
Jan 30 2008, 08:08 AM
by
Donna Freedman
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
Last Wednesday I came down with a nasty case of what I've been calling "university crud." I assume I picked it up there because about every fifth person on campus is barking like a seal. In addition to a wracking cough, this particular crud includes headache, sore throat, and whole-body aches and pains. It started a slap fight with my asthma, too.
I stayed home from school Thursday, and I never skip school. I crawled in on Friday to take a chapter exam in Spanish, and then spent the rest of the weekend trying to recover. (Still not quite there.)
Uncomfortable? Sure. Prepared? You bet. Everyone should have an emergency fund. But how many people think of having emergency stuff?
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Posted
Feb 11 2008, 04:49 AM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
This post comes from J.D. Roth at partner blog Get Rich Slowly. During the 20 years I carried consumer debt, I made several attempts to change my habits. Every time I decided to lick the debt monster, I would follow the advice in the financial books: I'd arrange my debts in order, listing the one with the highest interest rate first. I'd pay extra on that bill for a couple of months, but then give up in frustration because I didn't seem to be making any progress. An extra $100 on a $12,000 balance doesn't make a dent. Eventually I read Dave Ramsey's "The Total Money Makeover." His debt snowball method changed my life. Ramsey writes: Personal finance is 80% behavior and 20% head knowledge. The Debt Snowball is designed the way it is because we are more concerned about modifying behavior than correct mathematics. ... Being a certified nerd, I always used to start with making the math work. I have learned the math does need to work, but sometimes motivation is more important than math. This is one of those times.
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