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Budget Dial Communications Living on a Budget in a Non Budget World
Issue Date February 15th
Money Saving Tips
Featured Article Top 10 Tips to Assist in Tax Preparation
Money Blog Spotlight
Top Conversations on the Money Saving Forums
Freebie and Contest Alerts
The Frugal Five
Frugal Meal Planning Layer Beef Crockpot Casserole
We had our first big snowstorm of the season last weekend! A time to relax and just enjoy the day . Of course shoveling came later and a long weekend for the kids.
Money Saving Tips:
Compare costs per ounce
on packages. Usually smaller and individually wrapped packages cost more
per ounce. However, on perishable goods, sometimes I find it is cheaper to
buy smaller quantities rather than buying large packages where some of the
food will go to waste. Also some larger packages are actually more
expensive per ounce.
Share your money saving tips
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Do your taxes for free!
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Featured Article
Top 10 Tips to Assist in Tax
Preparation
1. Throughout the Year, Keep Your Tax Records Organized. The time it takes to prepare your taxes is dramatically reduced for those who develop a system for organizing their documents, receipts and records. A good theme around which I use to organize my materials is, unsurprisingly, the income, deduction or tax credit items I listed on last year's return.
2. Don't Wait 'Til the Last Minute! A wise Ben Franklin once said, "Don't put off 'til tomorrow that which can be done today"! I think it was him who said that. Anyway, I'd like to think he was talking about taxes, because your haste to meet the filing deadline could cause you to not only risk making a real error but, more importantly, it could cause you to overlook some potential sources of tax savings.
3. Visit The IRS Online. If you haven't already, you would do well to follow the lead of millions of other taxpayers who've visited the IRS website in calendar years 2004 and 2005. Together, they've already downloaded nearly 600 million forms, publications and a wide variety of tax-related information. But, don't worry -- there's always more where that came from.
4. Coffee, Tea or Free Tax Assistance? They're not just a bunch of 'big meanies' taking our hard-earned dollars -- the IRS actually does its fair share of giving. They provide, as a matter of fact, free pre-recorded tax messages on about 150 tax topics. Don't believe me? Just call the toll-free TeleTax service at 1 (800) 829-4477. Or, if you prefer speaking with humans, call the free, IRS staff helpline at 1 (800) 829-1040 (for individuals) or 1 (800) 829-4933 (for small businesses).
5. More Personalized Assistance. Speaking of 'doing its fair share of giving' -- the IRS also provides free personalized help with your taxes at IRS offices nationwide. So, there! For this service, you will probably want to check with your local newspaper or local IRS office to find locations for what they call their 'Volunteer Income Tax Assistance' or their 'Tax Counseling' sites.
6. Electronic Returns -- Faster Than a Speeding Bullet! Now, this shouldn't be a surprise to anyone, but just in case -- IRS e-file is the fastest, most accurate way to file your tax return, bar none! And yes, if you're fortunate enough to be due a tax refund -- the waiting time for e-filers is about half that of paper filers!
7. Double-Check Your Math for Errors! Once all is said and done, it's the little things that matter. So, make sure you double-check your math and make sure you have correctly provided and legibly written the names and Social Security numbers, or other identifying info for your self, your spouse and your dependents.
8. Direct-Deposit All The Way! Another way to speed up your refund and reduce chances of theft, is to have your refund deposited directly into your bank account.
9. Can't Pay? Take a Deep Breath! Exhale! And, Consider Your Alternatives. If you find that you just can't immediately pay taxes you might owe, consider these less-stressed-out alternatives. (A) Apply for an IRS installment agreement; (b) get a reduced late-penalty rate; or, (c) charge your balance to a credit card -- either as part of an electronic return, or directly through a processing agent. Remember: there are more ways than one to skin a cat.
10. If All Else
Fails -- Request an Extension of Time to File! Then too, if the
clock just runs out, you can always get an automatic four-month extension
of time to file, to August 15th. Just keep in mind that, just because they
may give you an extension of time to file -- that doesn't translate as an
extension of time to pay! If you get an extension of time to file, just
make sure you pay on time!
Dr. Steven A. Maclin,
Professor of Public Administration and Public Affairs (Virginia Tech,
1994).
Dr. Maclin has been a university professor since 1994, and has taught
American military personnel on American air bases/ posts across mainland
Japan, Okinawa, and South Korea. He has edited and published dozens of
articles in professional administrative journals while building websites
and publishing materials for graduate students and other professionals
online.
He's now stateside, and is quietly teaching graduate students, writing
articles and publishing online from his home office in Ohio (see, for
instance, Free
cell phone reverse lookup and
Discover niche products and affiliate programs to represent).
Dr. Maclin can be reached for comment at
info@buyfromart.com.
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Money Blog Spotlight
Boston Gal's Open Wallet Speaking publicly about your personal finances has always been a no-no in my family. The result of this is that I often felt unprepared and uneducated about financial matters. I am now in my mid-30's, single, with a fairly well established professional career. Because I live alone I make all the financial decisions in my life - good or bad. This site is meant to be a tool for me to tackle and hopefully accomplish various financial goals while along the way hopefully educating and preparing other woman and men who read this for their financial lives. If your parents and peers can't or won't show you the way hopefully sites like this on the web will.
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Top Discussions on the Money Saving Forums
What frugal thing did you do today? This site has inspired me to
start doing things more frugally. I would like for you to post a frugal
thing that you did today.
Two days ago, I was looking at chicken breasts but they were $8. Normally
I would have just bought them, but I put them back. Yesterday, they were
marked down to $3.20, so I saved $4.80!!
Frugal fast food The nutritious value aside, fast food is sometimes a convenient choice when I'm in a real hurry. When I purchase it, I don't by a drink since I usually have my own from home. I also try to buy the "specials" they are advertising that month since these seem to be the cheapest. Are there other ticks that you use to keep fast food meals at a reasonable price. Would you consider fast food frugal at any time?
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Freebies Free Samples
PediaSure® Complete, Balanced Nutrition. Get a rebate for the cost.
Contests
Arm & Hammer Instant Winner must have a container of arm and hammer around
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The Frugal Five
Laney is a frugal mom of 3 from Georgia
What is your financial life?
I am a stay at home mom but I work several work
at home jobs doing inbound call for infomercial for about 10 hrs a week to
give me spending and grocery money. My husband is in sales and
he makes decent money but not enough for us to save for retirement and
life comfortably today. I don't believe in debt and we only have a
mortgage. We have 3 kids.
What is your budget buster?
We send the kids to private school. I pay $850 a month for 10 months
for the tuition It is one of the things I feel that is
important.
What is your favorite money saving tip?
I would have to say living within your means. Don't buy it if you can't
afford it.
If you had an extra $1000 what would you do with it?
I would put to towards an emergency fund. Right now we only have
about $2k saved in cash.
What is your best resource for frugal living?
I read everything on the web. Lots of great resources out there. I
especially enjoy the frugal yahoo groups that come to my email.
Thanks Laney for sharing all of your story! Let us know if you would like to be profiled in the Frugal Five
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Frugal Meal Planning
Layered Beef
Crockpot Dinner
1 lb lean ground beef (or ground turkey)
2 tablespoons imitation bacon bits
1 small onion, chopped
15 oz can tomato sauce
1/2 cup water
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
2/3 cup brown rice
1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
Crumble ground beef evenly over bottom of a slow cooker. Sprinkle with
bacon
bits, then onion. In a medium bowl, combine tomato sauce, water, chili
powder,
salt, and black pepper; pour half over beef and onion layers. Sprinkle
rice
evenly over top, then top with remaining tomato sauce mixture, then bell
pepper. Cover and cook on LOW about 5 hours or until rice is tender.
You can stretch this by
adding more rice.
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Bark Talk Looking to save $$$ on your pet food, pet supplies, and pet medication? Check out BarkTalk.com for great discounts, plus links to merchants that also offer FREE SHIPPING!
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and the boys living on a budget
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