Guest Post Archives - Personal Finance (MB)

Summer Break: Protect Yourself Before You Travel

May 8, 2019May 2, 2018 by Money Beagle

It’s that time of year when the kids are off school, and families travel to their favorite destinations. It’s Summer Break!

So while you’re planning the trip of a lifetime for the whole family, make sure you have all your bases covered. That includes protection in case the unthinkable, such as an accident or severe illness, were to happen.

Keep yourself prepared by purchasing insurance. There are many different ways to ensure your family’s protection whether you’re traveling in the US or abroad. Here are a few common types of insurance to consider before you step out the door.

Travel Insurance

Travellers insurance covers a wide range of “what ifs,” from lost luggage to injury-related incidences. Here is a basic summary of what travel insurance can include:

8 Unusual But Effective Ways To Stretch Your Paycheck

May 6, 2019January 17, 2017 by Money Beagle

Today we have a guest post from Jon at Money Smart Guides. Jon will be providing some unusual but effective ways to stretch your paycheck.

Those of us old enough to know, love to sigh in frustration that money ain’t worth what it used to be.

Horrible grammar aside, it is true that the value of the dollar has diminished over the years, mostly due to natural inflation, and partly due to other economic and fiscal factors (which seems to depend on which side of the ideological scale you sit). No matter the cause, the reality is that we all know our money doesn’t go as far as we think it should, and that usually means sometimes we have to take some steps to stretch our money a little farther.

And that usually means some kind of sacrifice.

Planning For Retirement

May 6, 2019October 17, 2014 by Money Beagle

You can start planning for retirement at any age and take advantage of long-term investment options. Your investment-planning strategy can help you protect your assets and live comfortably during retirement. It begins by evaluating your current financial situation and setting future goals, including the steps to achieve these objectives. While planning for retirement, most people want to establish living arrangements with minimal debts and financial obligations. Because social security income is usually less than what an individual earned while working, it may not provide enough protection and funds to allow for the standard of living that many people desire to have during retirement. Additionally, the shifting economy may not afford every person an opportunity to build their social security income to a desired amount. Therefore, it is beneficial to consider investment choices that will lead to a better quality of living as you age. To gain more information about the investment opportunities that are available to you, speak to an insurance agent near you.

5 Ways to Save Money on POS Equipment Purchase

May 7, 2019February 12, 2014 by Money Beagle

POS equipment is expensive, sometimes very expensive. Good in-premises point of sale systems can cost over $10,000. If you’re new to the retail business and trying to make ends meet while getting your first outlet started, that’s a scary amount of money. It’s all very well to know that you’ll get a return on the investment over time, but wouldn’t it be great not to pay out so much in the first place?

Good news. There are ways in which you can reduce your initial equipment expenditure. This article explores the five possibilities to save some money:

1. Buying a hardware bundle
2. Buying budget equipment
3. Buying used POS equipment
4. Signing an agreement with a credit card processing service
5. Using a SaaS provider

Stock In Obituaries: Enhancing Your Life By Insuring Someone Else’s

May 7, 2019December 22, 2013 by Money Beagle

Life insurance is intended to provide for the income lost by a person’s dependents at the time of their death or incapacitation. Typically, responsible family leaders and heads of household obtain life insurance policies for themselves to safeguard the stability of loved ones should their ability to earn an income ever be lost. Life insurance policies can help those going through the most difficult transitions in life endure the process more comfortably and ensure that the crippling loss is not economic as well as emotional.

Having typed that, if you look at it the right way, it’s a bit like hitting the jackpot under the right circumstances. Yes, it is a tragedy when a close family member passes away even with the financial impact of a large life insurance payout, but if a distant, eccentric uncle that you last saw when he was gazing into your bassinet ends up kicking the bucket and leaving you with a pile of cash, it’s not so bad, is it? What if you could take it one step further and simulate the effect yourself? What if…you could take out a life insurance policy on someone you barely know without their knowledge?

Taking the Risk Out of Trading

May 7, 2019December 19, 2013 by Money Beagle

Many people believe that being financial independent and in control means that you have to play it safe and not take any risks. However, this can mean that your money will remain safe without ever accruing much wealth. With banks accounts offering little or no real interest nowadays, it is impossible to get rich putting your savings into a bank account. Investing might seem like the better option although it is fraught with risk and, as such, many people are put off. Here are our top tips to take the risk out of trading and investing:

Plan, Plan, Plan

You can never be too careful when you’re investing your own money. There are so many different guides available on investing and trading that you can take advantage of for free. The more you can plan and learn, the lower the level of risk that you are taking. Once you’ve learned the basics, you can begin to look at trading strategies and trading styles. There really is a wealth of material available and, the more you read, the more educated your decisions will become, eliminating much of the risk involved.

Holiday Gift Giving Is About Creativity, Not Made For TV Moments

May 7, 2019November 25, 2013 by Money Beagle

Today I am proud to present a guest post by Brock, who writes at Clever Dude, one of my favorite personal finance blogs. Brock has done a great job of writing about clever ways to save, spend, and budget, all while keeping a personal spin on his topics. I hope you enjoy his post.

If you haven’t seen one yet, I’m sure they’ll be popping up during commercial breaks everywhere before you know it. You know what I mean, those commercials where a person opens their front door to find a luxury SUV sitting in their driveway with a big red bow draped across the hood. Or how about the scene where a woman holds a hand over her mouth in complete surprise as she opens a jewelry box to find a ring with a diamond big enough to use as a piece of sidewalk chalk?

Do these things really happen?

Get The Best Software For An Online Store

May 8, 2019November 8, 2013 by Money Beagle

The following is a guest post.

Often when you set up a store online, you have different expenses than a local brick-and-mortar store might have. You have no building that you must pay rent or taxes on, no electric bills, and often you don’t have employees you must pay if you run the site by yourself. However, this doesn’t mean you don’t still have expenses. When you run a business online, it’s best to make sure you have electronic software that can help make your job easier.

There are many factors you need to consider before purchasing software like whether you want to keep track of sales, the number of hits to your website, if you need to order more product, or to keep track of invoices. Knowing what you need and how much you should pay for it can make or break your business, and must be thought about carefully.

What You Need to Secure Your Golden Years

May 8, 2019October 2, 2013 by Money Beagle

How is your retirement looking? Could you add more to the pot?

I’m a firm believer that you can never have too much stashed. For this reason, I also feel it’s important to plan for multiple income sources in retirement. Of course, everyone has their own ideas of what is a good amount of income. But one thing’s for sure: once you are retired, you can’t go back in time and undo mistakes.

Right now, the goal should be securing your golden years. How can you achieve this?

1. Build your liquid savings. Although a regular savings account doesn’t earn much interest, this type of account should be included in retirement planning. Having liquid funds on hand can be a godsend if you deal with emergencies, such as car and home repairs or medical expenses. Most retirees live on a fixed income and without a liquid savings account, meeting certain expenses can be challenging.

Saving Money with Seasonal Lifestyle Deflation

May 17, 2019November 1, 2012 by Money Beagle

This is a guest post from Edward Antrobus. Edward is a construction worker, blogger, tinkerer and a househusband. He writes about frugality and occasionally rants about what he thinks the personal finance community gets wrong.

Recently, I embarked on a quest. Instead of getting ideas from other personal finance bloggers, I wanted to get the opinions of average people on the topic of frugality. I started asking friends and coworkers one simple question: what is your favorite way of saving money? When I asked Peggy, her answer was cutting back on quality.

At first glance, that seems like a bad thing. Skimping on quality; doesn’t that mean it will break or wear out sooner and have to be replaced more often? That should make things more expensive in the long run. But that’s not what Peggy meant. What she was actually referring to would be lifestyle deflation.