It’s Not ALL Bad News…

You’d never guess there was any good news in the economy based on the gloomy headlines and the lack of consumer confidence.  The economy is definitely in turmoil right now, but I’ve always felt that the media focused on the negative news and buried any good news.

So I was thrilled to see ‘10 Things That Are Going Right’ on Kiplinger.com today.

According to the guys at Kiplinger, there are a few reasons to be optimistic about after all:

1.  Oil prices have dropped 50% in the last three months.  I have definitely noticed this at the gas pumps as gas prices have dropped from over $4 per gallon to $2.33 per gall earlier this week.    This will definitely help the old pocket book each time we fill up.

2.  Deals on new cars are abundant as carmakers have suffered double digit decline in sales.  This is good news for consumers in the market for a new car.  In addition, carmakers have finally started developing hybrid and alternative fuel vehicles which should have long-lasting benefits.

3.  Interest rates are low and are expected to go lower.  So again, consumers in the market for a new car or house should benefit.

4.  Home prices are down significantly, which is good news for first time home buyers who were previously priced out of the market.

Continue Reading It’s Not ALL Bad News…

Bailout Plan Includes Tax Breaks Too

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve probably heard about the $700 billion bailout plan that was passed recently in an attempt to rescue the housing market.  What you may not know is that there were several tax relief provisions included in this bill.

Included in the bill were some new tax credits, and some other tax bills that were set to expire were extended.

Here’s a quick summary of the tax breaks found in the bailout bill:

Mortgage debt forgiveness – under previous tax law, if you had any debt forgiven, the cancelled debt was taxable income to you.  The new law temporarily stops homeowners from owing tax on cancelled debt up to $2 million.  The debt has to be related to your primary residence.  This is actually an extension on a law that was set to expire; the new law will extend this provision until 2012.

Lower property taxes – homeowners who don’t itemize their deductions will be able to deduct up to $500 ($1,000 for joint taxpayers) of personal property taxes in addition to the standard deduction.  This is effective for 2008 and 2009.

Continue Reading Bailout Plan Includes Tax Breaks Too

How to Save Money with Meal Planning

Here are some more articles on how to save money with meal planning:

Quick Ways To Save and Be Frugal With Meals – Make a list. Always keep a list on hand for what you need and what’s on sale. This will also help with your meal planning. Plan your meals around sales. If pork is on sale that week add it to your menu for the week. …

7 ways to save money at the grocery store – Fresh, frozen or dried, fruit makes a satisfying, sweet end to any meal. It will add vitamins, minerals and fiber that aren’t found in cakes or candy. Working some small changes into your grocery shopping habits will not only save money …

Money Saving Tips – A Roundup Post

The recent volatility in the stock market and economy has finally got people asking how they can save money.

Well, I’m not the most frugal person in the world, so I decided to search some of my favorite personal finance blogs to find the best “money saving” tips I could find.

• How-To: Save Money on Heating This Winter – Recently, heating expert Chris Cooper shared some advice for thrifty Winter heating. Check out these ideas for reducing your Winter heating bill with these tips, which may surprise you. Even small adjustments in everyday life and habits …

Final Deadline for Filing Taxes and Receiving Rebate Check Approaching Quickly

Don’t forget that October 15 is the final deadline for filing your 2007 tax return. In addition, it’s your last chance to file for the economic stimulus rebate check.

As a reminder, if you file a 2007 federal income tax return, and have $3,000 or more of qualifying income (including amounts received from Social Security and certain veterans benefits) you may be eligible for a stimulus payment. Other criteria that you must meet: you must have a valid Social Security number and you can’t be claimed as a dependent by someone else.

Get Your Free Credit Score at CreditKarma.com

I’m always nagging at you to check your credit report, which you can request for free at AnnualCreditReport.com.  But up until now you always had to pay for your credit score.

Well, I recently discovered a website called CreditKarma.com, where you can request your credit score (the actual 3-digit FICO score) for free.

I was concerned that there might be strings attached, so I had to check it out for myself.

The registration process was very quick and easy, and the application to retrieve your credit score was much easier than the process to request your credit report from one of the three reporting agencies.