“Quite often, I feel frugality is detaching me from the society. And every night, started this since past couple of weeks, I ask my self “Is frugality depleting my social life?” With days, I find myself not being interested in the mainstream society. I have disconnected my TV cable, so I can’t really tell if who won the American Idol, or is it still on. Daily headlines, too, is just a glance on the internet. So, I don’t know much beyond the headline. I don’t eat out much, though I have perfected cooking, I haven’t had a look at the local menus since many months. I don’t remember what they offer.

On the positive side, I have learnt to fix up many things. Not going out much and not spending hours switching TV channels saves a lot of time that I utilize to learn new things. If I don’t know how to cook a dish, I search the recipe on the internet and cook it. After a couple of tries, it’s edible.

Every night, therefore, I content myself with a calm answer – I am not depended much on the society for my needs, though there are something’s that I will have to procure from the market forever.

I do go to malls and cinema theaters, when my budget permits that is. However, I don’t really enjoy out there – the fast pace, the glimmer, the commotion; it’s better at home. Having lived simply for so many years has transformed me into a quiet man, and there is nothing much outside that appeals me.

Hence, coming at a conclusion every night, I have come to believe, detaching from the society, though not completely, is a good thing. If I am not depended much on the outside people for pleasure, entertainment, and pastime activities, I am less affected with its changes. And I am saving money too. If the economy collapses, or there is a natural calamity, I can do most of my things. If my phone line, or internet is disconnected for a while, or for few days, I am not disappointed.

Though this is definitely reducing the number of friends and acquaintance I used to have, I am finding myself being drawn by a different category of people these days – the frugal ones like me. I have started respecting and befriending people who believe in budgeting, reusing, borrowing, bartering, etc. So, I can say, I am not really being cut off by the society, I have found a ‘niche’ to be with and with whom I can share similar thoughts and actions.

I hope you will be a part of my society.”

I read his email over and over again. In the society where we all are striving to learn a few frugal-living techniques, Chris has attained perfection. Yet, he is simple. Though I haven’t created such a ‘niche’ society yet, I definitely feel he is a good (frugal-est) friend to be with.

Professional advice helps you to avoid this confusion and chaos to much extent. This, however, is a big decision and must be taken only if one is pretty sure what he needs. Hence, before you hire professional service or personal financial advisor, I would suggest you to do some homework. It’s important to understand, quite clearly, your current financial status and what is it going to be in the next few years. A full self-financial-assessment is needed. I know you are about to hire an expert and he would help to get your finances right, but he cannot help you to do your assessment.

This financial assessment will help you to know why you need an expert service. Some people hire these services t repay their debts, some want to make a huge investment, and few wants to review retirement plans. The latter one can be done without such professional help.

After you are done with the assessment and reviewed your goals, it’s time to determine how a financial planner will be able to help you. Not every individual working in a financial company, and claims to be an expert, is an expert. The government, however, knows your dilemma and has listed certain guidelines for such expert services. You can check this information on the official website of US Securities and Exchange Commission.

If you are able to choose the right service, that is the one that fits your needs, it can eventually prove to be quite helpful and you can achieve your financial goals much earlier than anticipated. This is because a genuine financial planner with discuss your goals, your dreams, and your current situation in dept, which will be followed by derivation and implementation system plan to achieve the goal. It becomes their core responsibility to help you attain success.

Many people, however, don’t see a reason why they should hire such services. And they are right, if they are able to manage their finances. But not everyone has the time and knowledge to manage their funds and assets. And people like to control and manage everything they come across, even trivial things. That’s human behavior. Finance is one of the most important things they care about, I mean, we all care about. Hence, they need a planner, who can manage their finance when they are busy working. And due to the knowledge and experience of the financial expert, we all can gain a lot, financially.

You want me to suggest a financial planner? I would say, it’s not possible. Your needs, our goals, and our preferences differ. Hence, choosing a financial planner depends on what you are looking for. I can, however, suggest you an idea to choose a service. Ask everyone. I know you will get many suggestions, but at least you will know the options. Ask your friends who have used these services, ask your accountants, ask people at your workplace. Eventually, you will find a good planner.

In conclusion, you don’t necessarily have to hire such services if you don’t need them. But for those who are quite busy and are bothered about their wealth, this is a good option. They are plenty of good ones out there, you just need to take a closer look.

If you have, however, decided to refinance your mortgage, I would recommend you to pay attention to few factors mentioned below.

Interest Rates

Ask your self, what is the interest rate you are paying now? What would it change to, if you consider refinancing it? Is the difference quite considerable? Is the interest rate expected to rise in near future? However, it should be noted that even 1% of change in rate can affect your payment quite radically.

Type of Loan

One of the factors that have the power to influence your decision to refinance your mortgage is the type of your loan. Are you planning to switch from an adjustable rate mortgage (ARM) to a fixed one? Are you planning to switch from a short-term loan to a long-term, or a long-term to a short-term?

Closing cost

It’s important to consider the amount you will need to refinance your loan. In short, before refinancing, learn how much cost would be incurred and arrange for this amount. Also, many financial institutions are open to negotiations; check if you can reduce this cost. Many times, you can pay this cost by opting for higher interest rate or by including this amount in the new credit balance.

Credit Rating

If you have a good credit score, or recently it has improved, chances are you might be offered a good deal, lower interest rate that is.

Your Budget

Refinancing can help you to save a bit every month, if you opt for a long-term plan. However, a short-term loan means paying more amounts every month (obviously lower interest rate). So, saving is quite difficult. Hence, it is important to consider or redesign your budget before you go for refinancing.

Calculation

It is also important to calculate the new loan payment. You can find several calculators on the web. But, my suggestion is go for the one provided by Bankrate.com. You will need to feed in the following things:

• Existing Loan Amount:
  This is the total amount that your borrowed to purchase your home.
• Existing Interest rate:
  The interest rate that you’re paying now.
• Tenure:
  The total number of years your mortgage is for.
• Existing balance:
  How much you still owe on the mortgage?
• New Interest rate:
  This is the interest rate you are planning to switch to, that is refinance rate.
• New Tenure:
  What would be your refinance tenure?
• Pre-Payment Penalty:
  Many creditors charge you a pre-payment penalty. This means, they charge you a fee if you repay the loan amount a bit early. Quite strange but it’s implemented. Hence, it’s better to check with your lender.
• Closing costs:
  This includes appraisal fee, taxes, survey, credit report charges, loan origination fees, insurance, title search, and other charges. These tiny costs usually sum up to 2-6% of the total new mortgage amount.
• Points:
  This is the extra amount you pay, if any, to avail better rates.

Do not take your decision just because your relative or your neighbor suggested you. Find out more about refinancing.

However, the decision of switching a bank or a bank account is influenced by number of factors.

• Higher Interest Rates
  This doesn’t necessarily mean only interest rates. I am talking about general monetary benefits offered by a bank. Though interest rate given by banks, which is 0.5% currently, is governed by the Fed to a larger extent, other benefits are not. Frugal people select a bank that offers $100 with every new account, or something like that. However, monetary benefits remain to be the most influential factor in switching a bank.
• Service level
  Most of us love exceptional customer service and are also ready to pay a bit extra for it. In my case, I despise calling up Chase (don’t believe me? Try calling them up someday). However, I simply love to contact my local branch bank because I know the manager quite well, and they greet me by my last name, always. So, I prefer it over Chase. However, in addition to calling by last names, a customer service encompasses many other services that provides ease and value-for-money. Hence, it affects the decision of selecting or despising a company.
• Accessibility
  This is one of the most important reasons affecting the choice of bank. And quite obviously, I would choose a local bank that’s near my house instead of Chase, which is around 3 miles away. Ease to access one’s own money is what we pay for, right?
• Security
  With lots of giants being bankrupt recently, people have started being more cautious choosing their banking services. Hence, a minor error or rumor that mentions instability of bank immediately affects its business; people start switching their account to other banks. Hence, security is one of the important reasons now, more than ever.

I have accounts in a couple of banks. However, I haven’t been compelled to switch to other banks because all the above factors are taken care of quite satisfactorily.

Although the answer to this question isn’t quite difficult, it’s requires some basic explanation. Or rather, the answer to this question depends on the answers of many other interrelated questions, such as: What is the kind of lifestyle you want you family to live after you are gone? How will your death impact your family, financially? Is there any other earning member in your family? Do you want them to be extremely rich? Or, would they be financially impacted if you pass away?

However, along with these preferences, the right amount of life insurance you need also depends on your existing financial standing.

Most of the people, commonly, want their debts to be cleared off with the insurance amount when they pass away. This is because they don’t want their spouse to be under any financial stress later. Hence, the amount of insurance they pay for depends on the amount they expect back.

However, people who plan their finances quite efficiently don’t really want their spouse and kids to be financially broken. Or they want their kids and spouse to enjoy their life instead of slogging till the end. Hence, they plan their insurance that can provide a steady flow of income to their dependents.

However, to plan this, you will need to do a lot of calculations, which will include the following amounts: repayment of debts, inflation, monthly needs of their family, expenses, their savings, etc. Also, your retirement expense would be counted.

In short, don’t depend on any expert advice or don’t be influenced by any sales person. None of them knows your needs as well and precisely as you do. So, sit down and start calculating your future insurance amount.

The amount you or your spouse will needs can be determined either by calculating by above given methods, or by picking up an amount and applying it to your situation. If you or your spouse receives $800,000, for instance, as insurance, would that be sufficient to spend the rest of your life without facing any hardships?

Don’t go much into details because no matter how accurate you try to be, things will differ in price. Hence, try to pick up a rough estimate every time. Also, remember, paying large amount for a very long time would, in reality, cost you much more than you actually receive.

Hotel Bookings

The first industry to see an increased business during a big sporting event is the hotel industry. The players, celebrity guests and outstation spectators will all need places to food and lodge and they book hotels and guest houses for that. This is the time, the hotel industry sees increased business. The hosting country cleverly holds the events in tourist locations so that the visitors also would like to stay back for a longer time for sight seeing after watching the event. For example, Super Bowl XLIV is expected to be held in sunny Miami, Florida. Even a one day event can spin a lot of money towards the hosting cities and if it’s a series like the World Series, one can expect the profits to simply rock !

Hotels make a lot of money by hiking up the rental charges of their rooms. After all, visitors who’ve traveled long to watch an event will not hesitate to pay a bit more, if within reasonable limits.

Restaurants and bars are the next lot that are going to benefit a lot from sporting events. The bigger the sporting events, the greater the profits. People love to revel with food and drinks during an event and they literally depend on restaurant food and bars for their party requirements. The food industry professionals make the best of this and increase the prices of menu items and drinks. This is how they make profits during any big event like the world cup. Sports bars and pubs are also going to benefit well because people who cannot actually make it to the stadiums will want to watch the event on big television screens of sports bars and pubs.

Gentlemen’s Clubs

Gentlemen’s Clubs are the next place which make good profits from sporting events. Who doesn’t know that most men go crazy over soccer or any other sporting event? Super Bowl  draws huge crowds who visit the Gentlemen’s clubs which prepare themselves for entertaining the guests who come for attending the event.

Location of a sporting event is of utmost importance. The events pump millions of dollars into the local economy of the hosting town or city. now I understood why most places compete for hosting events. So if there is a big event to be considered a suitable venue for its hosting would you like it to be your city or town?

For those who still like to stick to investing, this article is definitely not for you because I am going to discuss few important tips on budgeting. Probably there are millions of methods of budgeting available on the web. And there are millions of formulas. However, you don’t really have to master all of them. In fact, you don’t have to consider even one because the basics are quite simple. And if you know the basics I don’t think you really need any methods or formulas.

First thing you need to do is determine the amount you pay on your bills. This will take some time. Hence, I would ask you to do this on a holiday. Sit down and go through all your bills. Jot down what and how much do you pay every month. Which are recurring and which are one-time costs. While doing this, I am sure you will be surprised how much you spend – or rather waste – every month.

After you determine a monthly amount, look closer and find out what is your weekly cost of living. This would include utilities, gas, groceries, etc. Don’t bother to get an exact amount. Just an approximate one. Now, think about additional expenses, money spent on entertainment.

Once you have a proper idea of your expense and spending habits, it’s time to start off with a simple budget. Again, you don’t really need a formula or great tips on budgeting. It’s this simple: Jot down what your net salary is. Take a small amount as your saving. Then, assign amounts to your necessities first and entertainment later. However, make sure this amount is less than what it was earlier (in the bills).

First month, it would be quite difficult as you aren’t habituated to a budget and frugal living. However, once you get the feel, start reducing the amount assigned to each category and gradually increase the savings. Living with a budget isn’t difficult if you are disciplined and dedicated. Also, don’t try to push too hard to repay all your debts at once. It’s a slow and gradual process. Instead of adopting a quick change, try to adopt a behavioral change.

Unlike investments, if you live with a budget, no global crisis or any type of credit crunch can affect you way of living. Try to start today with these simple tips on budgeting and achieve financial immunity.

Personal Budgeting Myth #1

Budgeting is suffering

And how is that? In fact, you are always on a budget, whether or not you have planned it. However, the current budget is not saving you any dollars and not helping you in any way. Budget isn’t suffering. In fact, it is an end to your suffering as it helps you to avoid being buried under debts, save for more important things, and be independent.

Personal Budgeting Myth #2

Budgets are for poor people

This is another misconception people have. They believe budgets are adopted by people who are facing some financial problems or essentially poor people. It is farthest from truth. Budgets are for everyone. Even the richest person on earth has a budget.

Personal Budgeting Myth #3

Budgeting involves lot of paperwork and wastes time

This is more of a fear than a myth. People generally don’t like spending a few minutes towards their budget. With time, this laziness turns into fear. And to be precise, it isn’t waste of time, it is an investment.

Personal Budgeting Myth #4

Budget will deprive you

Budget doesn’t mean spending very little or making oneself feel guilty of every purchase. The main purpose of having a budget is trying to save little every month. And this doesn’t necessarily mean being deprived.

Personal Budgeting Myth #5

I don’t need a budget for my survival

You don’t need a spouse as well for your survival. And many other things except food, water, and air. Would you give up everything? And budget isn’t as difficult as you think. Once you get started, it’s very simple to go on. And you will start liking it as soon as you see your money is being saved. Hence, only the start is difficult.

Budgets would never harm people. All it will endow you with is benefit, financial benefit.

Have a budget

Young adults don’t have much responsibility as most of them aren’t married and don’t have kids to take care of. This is probably the best time to inculcate the habit of living with a budget. It’s quite simple to start with. At the beginning of every month, determine the amount of money that will be flowing in. Then, deduct the amount you will be spending as necessary expenses and think about how you will invest the left over amount. Gradually, start reducing the amount you spend on various things.

Start saving early

Probably there isn’t any right age to start saving. However, starting early is definitely beneficial. Even if you are able to save around 15-20% a week, it’s a good start. You will enjoy the benefits of compound interest. Gradually, as your pay increases, you can increase the amount you save. Probably during the retirement, you will have saved a fortune. That’s the wonder of saving.

Automatic deductions

One of the most effective tips on saving money is automatic deductions. Contact your bank and ask them to deduct money from your checking account every month. This money will directly go to into your retirement plan or savings plan. This works quite effectively with people who aren’t able to save money on their own. Money is directly deducted from the account. Hence, they don’t have the opportunity to withdraw and splurge.

Start planning for your retirement now

Mentioned by many experts while discussing tips on saving money, retirement is something that cannot be avoided. Procrastination will never help you to save enough for your retirement. Many companies, today, offers 401(k) plans. If your company doesn’t offer such plans, don’t wait for it. Start investing in it today. The more you invest, the more you will receive later.

These tips on saving money for adults will definitely help them to achieve financial stability in long-term, avoiding them from being caught by the debt web.

However, I created a live-saving, or rather electricity-saving list that helped me regain my health and my heart. Let’s have a look at few best ways to save money on electricity bills.

1. CFL Bulbs
   Also known as Compact Fluorescent Bulbs, these bulbs are quite useful as they save loads of energy. I have replaced all the bulbs, including the one in my refrigerator, and have successfully cut down my bills. My bathroom used to have four bulbs. However, one CFL bulb is enough to light up the room. Similarly, I have reduced the number of bulbs, and energy-consumption as well, in all the rooms. It is one of the best ways to save money, try it.
2. Natural Light
   All right, switching to a CFL bulb was quite a frugal. However, I don’t want to attacks to re-attack me. So, I am being frugal-est now. I make use of natural light whenever possible. Instead of covering the windows and switching on the lights during day time, I simply open the window and let the natural light replace CFL. Even when I am in bathroom, I keep the door open (I live alone, so don’t explore your imagination).
3. Usage of Candles
   When I need a very dim light, I light up candles. These are very cheap sources of energy, you see. And because these electricity bills have ruined my health, I have bought many scented candles. Aromatherapy might heal my heart.
4. Unplug all the appliances if not in use
   I am not pretty sure about it, but unplugging all the appliances when not in use does save money. Yes, even when it is turned off. Heat your food in the microwave, unplug it. Watch your favorite show, then unplug the TV. According to my neighbor, this is one of the best ways to save money on electricity. As it is, I am trying everything to reduce my electricity bill.
5. Use Fans
   No, I ain’t asking you to get a hand-fan and exercise whole day to get a bit of air. C’mon, I am not such a miser. The point I am trying to say is replace usage of fan instead of mighty-power-consuming air conditions. AC’s and heaters consume lots of energy if used on a regular basis. Instead, use ceiling and table fans with remote controls.

Of course, there are many other methods to save money like switching off everything when not in use, stay out of house most of the time, or watch your favorite program at your neighbors. However, these are the best ways to save money on electricity while you are at home and your neighbor is more suspicious than ever.