Tag Archives: cash flow

Holiday gift and tipping guide Pandemic style

Posted on by

The holidays are a great time to say “thanks” and show appreciation for those who help us keep our families, homes and businesses on track, keep our homes clean, help us stay fit, and help us in other ways to get through each day throughout the year.  With that in mind, we encourage you to show your appreciation.

Gift giving etiquette may not always be obvious when considering gifts for people outside of your friends and family, so be mindful of the message you send.  Giving should show appreciation and respect.  Sometimes a smile or kind word can really make someone’s day.

Amplify Cash Flow by Maximizing Credit Card Rewards – Playing the Rewards Game

Posted on by

With a bit of planning and discipline, credit cards can provide users with real benefits.

These steps can help you maximize the available rewards:

internet-1593384_1920

1. Reward types: Before you begin your search, determine the type of reward you are looking for: cash back, travel, gift cards, etc. Once you know what you are looking for, begin your search for the best card for each type of reward.

2. Strategy: After you review available cards and select one or more for the rewards you want, develop a strategy to use your cards to get the most out of their reward terms. You may find that some cards offer different rewards for different types of purchases. For example, a card my offer 6% back for food purchases, another may offer 3% for gas, while another may offer 2% back on all purchases. Develop your “credit card portfolio” based on what is being offered. Understand the cards’ rules and be prepared to play by them.

3. Fees: You want to avoid paying any late fees, which average $34, because these fees quickly undermine any rewards you may earn. On the other hand, annual fees may be worth paying depending on the rewards being offered. For example, if you earn 6% back on purchases, then a $75 annual fee may make sense. You can always call the company and try to have the fee waived. If you signing up just for the sign-up bonus, then you will probably want to cancel the card before the fee is incurred.

4. Apply: Once you have narrowed down the cards with the best offers for you, apply for the credit cards within a two day period to minimize the number of inquiries recorded on your credit report. Multiple inquiries may damage your score.

5. Tracking: Develop a method to ensure you are using the right card for the right purchases. This can be anything from notes, to an Excel workbook to using QuickBooks.

6. Card balances: Keep your credit usage to 20% to 30% of your available credit because your credit score is affected by the amount of credit you use.

7. Payments: Pay off your balance every month. If you allow yourself to carry a balance, the interest rates you incur will diminish or wipe out any rewards you earned.

If you try any of these ideas, let me know how they worked for you!

Side Hussle Series – Declutter & Make Money

Posted on by

We all have things lying around our homes that we have no use for anymore. Instead of holding on to them, sell them to someone who wants them and who will pay you for them. Look around, if you have unwanted electronics, clothes, furniture, books or CDs and DVDs, there’s a market.

Used Electronics – Those old phones, computers and tablets sitting around your home could make you some quick cash. Companies such as www.Gazelle.com, www.BuyMyTronics.com, www.NextWorth.com and www.uSell.com want your used electronics and will pay you for them. The items don’t even need to work! The process is largely the same for all four companies. Simply go to their websites, get a quote for your unwanted electronics, ship the items and get paid. These companies all provide free shipping and some are associated with national retailers so you can get paid right away.

Clothes, Shoes & Handbags – If you’re like me, you have items in your closet that you haven’t worn in years and chances are, you will never wear them! Consignment shops are a great option for helping you free up some closet space while making a little extra dough. A quick Google search will bring up consignment shops in your area. If you don’t have one nearby, try www.thredup.com. Thredup will mail you a bag for your unwanted items, with a shipping label so you can send your goods to them at no cost to you. They review your items and pay you up to 80% of the resale value of your clothes. Items that they don’t accept are either donated to a charity, recycled or mailed back to you.

If you have luxury clothing, jewelry or bags, you can try selling them through www.therealreal.com. They pay up to 70% of the item’s sale price. Like Thredup, The RealReal will send you a bag to mail in your luxury items. Alternatively, you may schedule a “White Glove Pick-up” with your Luxury Manager.

Furniture & Home Accessories – Like selling used clothing, consignment shops may be a good solution for selling your unwanted furniture and home accessories. These shops generally charge 50% of the sale price, but there are some advantages to selling this way. Namely that the consignment shops do the marketing for you and secondly, you don’t have to worry about strangers coming to your home. If you want to cut out the middleman, try www.Craigslist.com. Craigslist allows you to list items for free and buyers come to you. 100% of the sales proceeds are yours.

CDs and DVDs – Many independent music stores sell used CDs and DVDs. Search online for local shops in your area. Depending on the number of CDs and DVDs you are wanting to sell, they can often sort through your goods and let you know how much they can offer while you wait.

Books – There are plenty of online companies that are willing to buy back your unwanted books and text books. www.BookScouter.com will simplify the work for your by scanning 40 other websites and let you know which one will offer you the best price. For text books, www.amazon.com offers the most competitive buyback prices according to www.ExtraBucks.com.

With a little effort and some “letting go” you can free up some extra space and make a few extra bucks!

Budgets? “We Don’t Need No Stinkin’ Budget”

Posted on by

Budgets rarely work. It takes tremendous effort to accurately record all transactions so that you have a valid budget. Then, frequently, after all this effort, you rarely come back to the budget. That means that the work had no payoff. Furthermore, people often claim that they had nonrecurring expenses. Doing so, they artificially understate their expenses, not realizing each year has some nonrecurring event.

A much easier way to test savings is to take a twelve-month period, look at cash and credit card balances at the beginning and end, check for any inflows from gifts or other non-salary items, and then measure the change. Did the cash accounts go up or did the credit cards go up? That is your savings/dis-savings for that year.

Rather than doing a budget to adjust behavior, force a change. You can do that by removing money from your discretionary spending by contributing the maximum to a 401(k) plan, by an auto debit that put funds into an investment account, and other auto payments. If your credit card balances go up, then you have to make a decision to alter behavior, such as cutting entertainment, or decide to delay goals (retire later, no new car now, etc.)

How does cash flow relate to debts? Managing your debt means getting the lowest after-tax interest rate so that you pay as much principle with each payment to pay off the loan as quickly as possible. You can deduct the interest paid on a mortgage and an equity line of credit debt. You can deduct up to $2,500 of student loan debt. But you cannot deduct the interest on most other debt, unless used for your business (watch for a post on side hussles).