My wonderful time killer, stumbleupon.com, sent me to a site for "9 Easy Money Earning Tips"
I wanted to add my own rebuttal to their tips for those who have not become educated themselves.
#1: swagbucks: call me lazy if you'd like, but this site requies you to do a lot and receive in return very little. My suggestion is to pass on this.
#2: Take surveys. I will agree with this one, but this is as bad as #1. You spend a L-O-T of time on here for very little. If you have time to kill, anyway- why not, but frankly I'd rather spend my free time doing something more enjoyable. This is NOT an extra source of income. I spent every free moment for MONTHS doing surveys to get $40. Still, it's $40 that hubby & I used to go out, but the prospect of doing all that work for such a little reward again makes me shudder. If you are intent on doing it, I recommend OpinionOutpost.com (I don't receive a reward for referring you or anything, it's just a site I trust & use)
#3: Shop & Earn Rewards: This is a great idea in theory, but 90% of people who attempt this will end up with more credit card debt than the rewards add up to make it worth while. I ONLY recommend this to those who do all their shopping online AND can promptly (as in the next day) pay their credit card down after purchase. The interest charges your credit card gives you on the purchase will take away any reward you would receive otherwise.
#4: High interest savings account: Chances are you need this kind of site because you are struggling to make ends meet and looking for ideas to cut corners. Changes are further if you are struggling to make ends meet, you're getting to your limit on your credit cards and don't have a lot of free flowing cash. This adds up to a lower credit score, which means you do not qualify for a "high interest savings account". If it's not a matter of qualification, it's a matter of you simply don't have that kind of money floating around. Not such a useful tip. What you CAN do is start small: My bank lets me open up a CD for as little as $50. I add into it little by little. It's my "safety" savings account. I can't touch the savings for a year; it's safe. By adding extra money into it each month I'll have earned an extra $50 when the year is up, which I can then roll over & continue or take it out. It's small, but it's a start at savings in an unstable economy- sounds smart to me.
#5: call to lower your interest rates: Yes, I do recommend this, but don't get your hopes up. When economy is rough, everyone is looking to pinch pennies- even big bad credit card companies. They're looking to keep every penny that's coming in, and add growth somehow. How do they do that? Well it ain't by lowering everyone's interest rates...
#6: Transfer balances from credit cards to 0% interest rates...
God, where do I begin?
First: READ THE FINE PRINT!! 0% interest rates are never forever ( I spent 2 years working behind the scenes)
Second: double check, then triple check how much the fee is for the balance transfer. Industry standard was $75 or 5% of the amount you transfer, whichever is greater. That fee accrues interest at the account "standard" APR (typically in the 14-19% rate depending on credit) until you've paid down the entire balance transfer.
Third: Have you Ever missed a payment? Either set up automatic payments the MOMENT you do this, or just don't do it. You accidentally miss the payment date by a minute, by an hour, the mail delivers late- they do not care. You will loose the promotional rate and it usually defaults to a 29.99% interest rate.
Fourth: Calculate how long your promotional period is, and make sure your payments are DONE by then. Some credit cards will do past interest when they finally start charging you interest. Example: I transfer $3,000 at a promotional rate in January 2013. I will make payments of $250 (or more) monthly. Otherwise, come January 2014 I will be charged interest from the moment they paid that balance in January 2013 through the rest of the year, plus what's on the account now. And guess what? Interest can accrue interest! After a month cycles, it's not interest anymore, it's a balance! Loopholes!
Bottom line: this is a VERY tough thing to get right, and often people end up worse than when they started by attempting to save money. If you really can manage yourself, your payments, double-check your payments, verify the fine print, and CALCULATE the savings (transfer fee included) then you might actually find yourself a deal to be had, but it's slim.
#7: Rent your home... Ok, I'm not even touching this one...
#8: Use Coupons. why wasn't this #1? This is a very true, very useful tool. HOWEVER (always something) do the math. I have often found buying the generic brand of XYZ is cheaper than buying the authentic brand of xyz- that's what coupons do, they sucker you in. I am a big fan of safeway.com/ vons.com if you have them in your area. They have great items; generic and name brand, and their online coupon site gives me the best deals. I save on average $30 off my order with their in-store and personalized coupons.
#9: Store Loyalty cards. Again, this is like the shopping online scam. Using your Kohls card to get a discount on things is great, but you best make sure you're going to pay that balance off the next day or the interest they just charged you makes your purchase more expensive than if you'd not used your Kohls card at all.
Here's to being smart about saving. Maybe I need to make my own tips.
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