All Articles Tagged "bills"
Summer Savings: Ten Ways To Save On This Summer’s Utility Bills
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Summer is here, and with the rising heat, your home’s utility bills are sure to rise too. Utility bills tend to be higher in the summer because the heat compels homeowners to blast their AC, stay indoors with the electronics running, and generally not prepare properly for the season. The average consumer’s electric bill, according to The Energy Information Administration (published by CNBC), will be close to $400 between this June and August.
Don’t sweat your utility bills this summer. There’s a solution for those high energy costs that you could do yourself! Here are a few tips to save money on those summer home utility bills.
What’s Mine is Ours: Nine Ways To Handle Finances With Roommates
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Maybe you don’t have the luxury of your own apartment or home at the moment, especially with the economy’s job market and the rising living costs in many metropolitan cities. Even in college, many of us have lived in a roommate situation, where things like space, bills, and finances are shared amongst two, three or even four other people.
If you are preparing yourself to live in a roommate-style situation or already found yourself living with others, make sure you keep in mind a few tips on how to handle the finances of this tricky living situation.
Mr. Rack City Racking Up A Huge Bill!
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Perhaps all the non-entertainers of the world who manage money well should be come entertainment accountants.
According to TMZ, rapper Tyga is latest person to make news (well, entertainment news) for an unpaid bill. As per usual, Tyga has not paid rent on a mansion he signed a lease on in Malibu and is now being sued. As it stands, he owes $16,000…for ONE MONTH of unpaid rent. For $16,000 per month, he should probably have bought a house. But back to the story.
The owner or representative for the house, Gholamreza Rezai, filed the suit against Tygas and his music company for the back rent as well as unspecified damages. Rezai said Tyga just signed the one year lease in June but then told him he wanted to move out by the end of September because he had no privacy and fans kept showing up at his front door. However, Rezai wasn’t really into the idea of entertaining a discussion on lease termination and told Tyga he needed to pay September’s rent.
According to Rezai, not only did Tyga not pay September’s rent but he also didn’t move out at the end of the month and is still living there. I guess you have to love those renter’s rights, huh? If that’s the case, you have to wonder why if Tyga is just living there out of spite since he said he doesn’t feel safe.
Along with Rezai’s request for the back pay and damages, he also wants Tyga to be forced, by the courts, to move out.
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Broke As A Joke: Why We Shouldn’t Be So Quick To Judge Bankrupt Athletes
Source: guyism.com
By T. Hall
My Twitter timeline recently exploded over ESPN’s 30 for 30 “Broke” documentary. From what I can gather, the following three things were revealed: a) many athletes have questionable decision making skills when it comes to selecting baby mamas – ratchets always seem to be their first choice, b) many athletes have even questionable-er (is that a word?) investment skills, and c) people on Twitter will clown you like Bozo while watching your pain on national television. And while it’s easy to point to someone who is making big bucks and laugh at their inability to keep from blowing it, it’s a lot harder for us to do the same when it comes to keeping our own duckets in check.
I like to think of myself as a pretty normal person. I get up and go to work every day, I pay my taxes, tags and title like a good citizen, I pay my bills (mostly) on time. No checks blown on bottle service at the club, no $500 Jimmy Choos, no extravagant lacefront upkeep. Sure, there’s some student loan debt out there messing up my debt to income ratio, maybe a parking ticket or two in DC, but other than that when it comes to finances I’m pretty run of the mill. Boring even. But it dawned on me the other day, while gorging on yet another Domino’s pan pizza, that when it comes to money matters I may have a lot more in common with a multi-millionaire athlete than I would care to admit.
Let’s take inventory, shall we? While I’ll never make as much as LeBron James, I still make more than the average family of four in America. That’s all well and good, but I also live in one of the most expensive areas in the nation, northern Virginia, so a good chunk of my money goes toward housing. Then there’s the insatiable beast that is Sallie Mae, which must be fed every month, on time, lest my soul be auctioned off to the devil. All those mandatory costs make me seem a lot like Mike Vick, who has to pay out his most of his $31 million to bill, bills, bills. Still, I recognize that impulse buying is the habit that is laying bare my wallet and the wallets of lots of professional athletes.
My weakness for books means that I will find any way to finance my reading habit, even if it means spending money that could be better used cushioning my nest egg. And if I stopped eating out four to five times a week I might be a little better off. According to Complex , Eddy Curry spent $72,000 A YEAR on a chef. I may not be that bad, but Chipotle is damn sure eating up my pockets.
The sad part is that even though these purchases are made impulsively, in the long term a consistent check isn’t always guaranteed. And so, just like the playboy athlete, I’m playing myself. In this economy my job is not secure. In that way I am not so different from the young basketball player who doesn’t think his checks will ever stop or the aging footballer whose body can’t seem to support another day on the field. After my little come-to-Jesus realization and a some Bible reading I’ve come to understand that it’s not how much you make, but what you do with what you have that makes the difference. Living within and below my means is about to become my new way of life, because I don’t want to end up with my pockets turned out like the Monopoly man. Or as the laughingstock of Twitter.
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WEEKEND WRAP-UP! Alicia Keys Sets The Record Straight On ‘Hidden’ Video! Flo Rida Owes Money! + MORE!
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Hey loves! This weekend’s wrap-up has baby news, tv news, some words from Kimora Lee Simmons and more! Is there anything better than words from Lady Kimora? Check it out!
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alicia keys, beyonce, bills, Brazil, Diana Ross, money, music, new baby, secrets, Tameka Raymond, UsherHow to Eliminate Your Debt Without It Taking Forever
If you’re overloaded with debt, don’t get overwhelmed, get proactive. Don’t go another day just making minimum payments and stressing out. It’s time to tackle your debt, head on. You have to figure out which accounts you should pay, in what order you should pay them, and how much you need to pay to eliminate your debt. By attacking each of these hurdles one by one, you can tailor a plan that fits your budget and debt load. Now check out these 7 steps that will get you on the right track to eliminate your debt in 2012!
Money Over Sex? Survey Says Yes
Times are hard and it turns out there are a lot of things Americans are willing to give up in exchange for having their bills paid and sex is one of them.
A small, hypothetical survey of 1,045 people by polling firm Toluna, on behalf of bill-paying company BillFloat, found 18 percent of Americans would give up sex for six months in exchange for having someone else pay their bills for just one month.
Another 26 percent of respondents would turn off the TV for a month if their bills were paid for them; 21 percent would give up digital devices and their cell phone, and 14 percent would go without Internet access.
On the other hand, there was one thing hardly anybody was willing to do for cash and that was gain weight. Only 9 percent would add 15 pounds of body weight in exchange for not having to pay their bills this month. Overall though, 52 percent said they’d rather suck it up, pay the bills, and keep the sex, TV, and Internet.
Where do you stand? Would you give up sex for 6 months to have your bills paid for a month? What about digital devices?
Brande Victorian is a blogger and culture writer in New York City. Follower her on Twitter at @be_vic.
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9 Things I Wish I Would Have Known Before I Left College
Loved, LOVED, the story done yesterday called “9 Things I Wish I Would Have Known Before Jumping the Broom”! Loved it so much in fact that it made me think…what are other big leaps in life do I wish someone would have warned me about before I jumped? Then I thought about college. Such a sheltering place, yet and still, your first big foray into something of a “real world.” If you are paying for yourself to attend school, taking out major loans or hustling from internship to internship, then you’re already getting a taste of the struggles of adulthood. But for those who didn’t, things are going to be a lot scarier than what you’re used to. If someone would have warned me about these things, it “sho’ll” would have helped in my introduction into adulthood. For starters…
Want To Save Money On Your Car Insurance? We Got You Covered..
Pay it in full. Most insurance companies offer you two options for payments: monthly installments or paying the policy in one lump sum. If you choose to make monthly payments, the company adds a convenience fee to each payment that can range from one to five dollars. Over the years, those fees add up. Consider paying in full each policy period to avoid unnecessary charges. If that’s not possible, ask your insurance company about automatic payments from your checking account because they often waive the fees if you sign up.
Invest in your safety. Many insurance companies also offer discounts for safety features on your car. Anti-lock brakes, multiple air bags and other safety equipment can lower your bills. If you also take a driver improvement or safety class approved by your company, you can see a substantial discount. Be prepared to show verification of these things if the company requests it.
Go to liability only coverage when you can. Liability coverage is coverage for damage you and your car cause to other people or property. If your state requires automobile insurance, this is the coverage it’s looking for you to carry. Physical damage coverage covers your car in the event of claim and is generally only required if you have a loan on the car. Once your car gets old enough that the cost of insuring it for physical damage outweighs its value, it’s time to drop to liability only, bringing your policy cost down with it.
Stop switching insurance companies every year. Although it’s possible to change insurance companies as much as you’d like, you should think twice before you do. Most companies offer some sort of discount for long term customers. If you can’t stay with your company, just make sure your switch doesn’t cause any gaps in your coverage. If you have continuous insurance, you often qualify for a discount when you switch to your new insurer.
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How to Keep Money from Ruining Your Marriage
(TheLoop21) — It’s a common belief that opposites attract. An introvert may find love in a free-spirited soul while a night owl may fixate on an early bird. But does this theory work effectively when addressing household finances with a spouse? Will and Jada-Pinkett Smith may or may not be the people to consult on this, but there are formulas that work for couples.
