Buy new, buy used, or lease? These are just a few of the many decisions you’ll need to make before happily driving away with a vehicle. While shopping for a car or truck is exciting, it’s also no simple matter. You can avoid buyer’s remorse by making important financial and practical decisions before signing on the dotted line.
Topics: Seasonal
It's that time of year again; W2s are rolling in, tax professionals are gearing up, and your mind is already swirling with ways to spend your tax refund check. Before getting too excited and seeing dollar signs, check out this BALANCE blog post for common tax blunders you should try to avoid.
Topics: Seasonal
The freshness of spring motivates a lot of people to throw open the windows and doors, and do a thorough spring cleaning. It’s a great way to take stock of what you have, organize it so everything’s more accessible, and ditch the clutter that’s keeping you from enjoying your space. While you’re at it, why not dive into a bit of spring cleaning for your finances, too?
Topics: Personal Finance, Seasonal
Many of us might be overspending unknowingly, with our hard-earned money slipping away in areas we seldom scrutinize. While it seems impossible to escape these inflated costs, plenty of alternatives and discounted rates are readily available.
Topics: Personal Finance, Seasonal
As a child, I always loved Valentine's Day. My favorite part of celebrating was going to the store and picking out a box of Valentine's Day cards to give the other kids in my class. It always took me forever to address my cards because I wanted each card's phrase to match its recipient perfectly. And let's face it, it's a tough decision to decide who gets "Be Mine" when you're in the fourth grade. Honestly, that card probably got tossed in the trash.
I'm not sure that finding the right card for my loved ones has gotten any easier as an adult. Although there are isles and isles of cards with both funny and mushy sayings, nothing ever really seems to perfectly suit my friends and family, which is why I've resorted to making my own.
While I sat down to make my own cards, I began thinking of all those who could use a little extra love this Valentine's Day, so I researched a list of places that I could send additional cards.
Topics: Seasonal
I recently found myself on the hunt for a new vehicle, meaning I needed to find a new car loan as well. I used some of the tips from the BALANCE blog below to help me find the best vehicle financing deal and figured they might be a good resource for someone else in the same boat.
Topics: Personal Finance, Seasonal
Winter has abundant opportunities for outdoor family fun. But with limited daylight and stretches of severe weather, how do you keep your kiddos entertained when going outside isn’t an option? It’s a tricky question for parents on a budget—you can’t just take your little ones to the movies day after day.
Fortunately, children have an unlimited imagination that can fuel a full day of fun. So flex your creative muscle, and keep them occupied indoors with these activities:
Kids love to build, so encourage them to take the cushions from your couch and create their special fortress. They can build different rooms for each person in your family and even reinforce the perimeter against all enemies with extra pillows from their beds!
Do your children bounce off the walls after being cooped inside on a snow day? A dance party is an excellent way for them to burn excess energy. Designate one area as the dance floor, and have them pick some kid-friendly upbeat music. For a twist, they can even challenge each other to dance-offs.
Puzzles are perfect for kids on days when they’re stranded inside. Depending on their age, they may even be able to stay focused on large puzzles, potentially keeping them busy for hours.
While children may be more familiar with online videos than feature films these days, they can easily pass the time by making their own movies. Using your phone or another camera with video capability, encourage them to write a script, choose costumes, and act out the characters. Most smartphones even have basic editing tools as well.
If you have a knack for creating sweets from scratch and need to keep your kids occupied, baking can take a bite out of a long winter afternoon. First, have them choose a treat (Cookies? Brownies? Cake?). Then, visit the store together to pick out the low-cost ingredients. Finally, incorporate them in every step of the baking process. It’s a great bonding experience, and you get to enjoy a sweet reward for your efforts when it’s over.
Not really, just pretend like you’re on one. So shut the curtains and crank up the heat; it’s summer in January! Time to pull out your swimsuits, beach towels, and sunglasses. Watch a summer movie, toss a beach ball, play island music, or have a beach towel picnic. For added fun, have a limbo contest. How low can you go?
Here’s how it works: Draw a graph, like a BINGO card, and then color each square a different color. Next, the kids have to search the house, looking for something in each color category they can add to the BINGO sheet. First, one to five in a row wins!
The blog post above was shared from BALANCE. For more information and similar resources, click here .
Topics: Personal Finance, Seasonal
Giving gifts to the ones I love is one of my favorite things about the holiday season. However, as someone who sticks to a strict monthly budget, forking out additional money for gifts during December always makes me a bit anxious. It's hard enough deciding what to get everyone, but then trying to stay within my budget while doing it adds a whole other layer to the cake.
Below are a few tips I've been using this holiday season while shopping for gifts for others, which have helped me stay within my budget and less anxious about spending.
Topics: Personal Finance, Seasonal
There’s no denying it: the season of giving is an emotional time. In fact, for most people, it’s probably the most emotional time of the year. And when kids are involved, those feelings tend to go into overdrive. Just about any expense can be rationalized because it’s being done in the spirit of creating an amazing holiday experience for the young ones.
Topics: Personal Finance, Seasonal
With the holiday season right around the corner, you'll be asked to give more than ever.. giving to charity, giving of your time, giving gifts to love ones, etc.
Topics: Seasonal
Check out recent blog posts by our Brand Ambassador, August, for tips on achieving financial success in the bag.
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