When it comes time to sell your house, you have one burning question: What is my home worth?In recent years, a proliferation of online resources has emerged to provide you with an answer before you ever consult a human. But while consumers have access to more information than they could have … [Read more...] about 7 online tools to estimate home value, and why your estimate may be wrong
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Customizable grocery shopping list for $4-a-day food budget
Earlier this year, I decided to try the $4 a day food budget. Considering my grocery bill averaged close to $12 per day, this was a drastic reduction. Eating on $4 a day is a concept popularized by Leanne Brown in her free online book, Good and Cheap (PDF). The print version of Good and Cheap is … [Read more...] about Customizable grocery shopping list for $4-a-day food budget
New ways to sell your home without an agent
Technology has made drastic changes in how Americans shop for real estate. You can see all the homes for sale in a neighborhood with the click of a mouse, and information about nearby home sale prices is easily available.But little has changed in the way real estate is actually bought and sold. … [Read more...] about New ways to sell your home without an agent
12 home maintenance chores you should do now
When you think of spring cleaning, things like scrubbing floors, sprucing up cabinets and straightening closets come to mind. But spring is also a good time to perform routine home maintenance. Ignore these crucial home upkeep tasks at your peril. Fail to clean the gutters, for example, and you … [Read more...] about 12 home maintenance chores you should do now
12 ways to save at amusement parks
Whether your local amusement park is open year-round or just for the summer, it's usually a grand place to escape with family and friends. Though these parks supply a full day of fun, it comes at a cost... sometimes substantial enough to leave you queasy before setting foot on that super-colossal … [Read more...] about 12 ways to save at amusement parks
12 tech tools to help sell your home
As the housing market has improved, so has another aspect of real estate: the tech tools available to help you sell your home.“Before the recession, agents were still marketing to other agents,” says Brian Balduf, co-founder and CEO of VHT Studios, which provides digital marketing services … [Read more...] about 12 tech tools to help sell your home
What you need to know before you buy rental property
Investing in rental property has long been a popular option for people who want to diversify their investments beyond stocks and mutual funds. But, unlike those more mainstream investments, rental properties can require significant hands-on work, including dealing with tenants and keeping up with … [Read more...] about What you need to know before you buy rental property
Free lead testing kits for home hazards
Lead is a hot topic these days with water crisis in cities across the United States. Even if your water is safe, there can be lead hazards throughout your home, especially homes built before 1960, which may have lead paint. Lead may also be in soil, jewelry, toys, furniture, cosmetics and … [Read more...] about Free lead testing kits for home hazards
Don’t let mutual fund fees eat up your savings
Now that taxes are out of the way, it’s time to think about paying yourself. Whether you are saving for retirement, a college education or just some random future item, you may well be using mutual funds.Mutual funds are investments that pool money from many individuals. A professional portfolio … [Read more...] about Don’t let mutual fund fees eat up your savings
Cheap and easy cleaning methods
I'm always on the lookout for tricks that make cleaning my house easier, but of course those tricks need to be cheap, too. If you feel the same, you're going to love this post. Who wouldn't want to clean their house in less time and with less expense? Many of these tips I've tried and use regularly, … [Read more...] about Cheap and easy cleaning methods
How to cut the cost of prom and still be cool
Time was, going to the prom meant you got a new dress (or a sister’s hand-me-down). Your date, who wore a suit and brought a corsage, picked you up in his own (or his parents’) car. You went to the dance and then he took you home. Any teenager today would laugh at such an idea.When my own kids … [Read more...] about How to cut the cost of prom and still be cool
Managing retirement plan rollovers
Retirement plans are supposed to be simple, but they are more complex than we'd like. That sometimes makes them seem so impossibly complicated that the best thing is just to do nothing. Doing nothing is precisely the wrong thing to do; the complexity isn't nearly as complicated as it is sometimes … [Read more...] about Managing retirement plan rollovers
What you need to know about energy-saving light bulbs
Recently, I discovered that I was down to one old-fashioned incandescent 60-watt light bulb. The day of reckoning had arrived. I was finally going to have to figure out the new energy-saving light bulbs.The standard Thomas Edison incandescent light bulb is extremely inefficient, wasting about … [Read more...] about What you need to know about energy-saving light bulbs
Taste top restaurants for less during restaurant weeks
For the cheapskate-gourmet, it’s better than Christmas: Restaurant Week, when some of the best — and priciest — tables offer a three-course prix fixe lunch.As a New Yorker, I look forward to this event each year, during which I can enjoy an all-star chef-prepared $25 lunch and/or a three-course … [Read more...] about Taste top restaurants for less during restaurant weeks
Which is cheaper? Cloth diapers vs. disposables
When people find out that we use cloth diapers, I get a few different reactions:“Gross! I would never want to wash dirty diapers” “Why? Disposables work so well. Don’t your utilities bills increase from the extra laundry?” “Cool. I wish I could use cloth diapers, but I don’t … [Read more...] about Which is cheaper? Cloth diapers vs. disposables
