College Financial Aid Choices Can Be Confusing - Infographic

When making plans for paying for your college education the process can be confusing. If you have ever filled out a FASFA form you know what complicated means. But many people make it through he maze of paper work because the government grants help take some of the sting out of paying hefty college costs.

This detailed infographic depicts the many different and complicated processes you have to go through to finance your child's college education costs. Gladly for me I only have to go through this one more year.

Brought to You by SNHU.EDU Online College Programs

Start Online When Shopping For Car Insurance

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

According to a recent study by J.D. Power and Associates, 52 percent of people shopping for car insurance, start their search on the Internet. Also three-fourths of consumers visit at least one online insurers website before making a purchase.

This use of the Internet along with increasing use of smart phones and online shopping has forced the car insurance providers to have an increasing web presence. When I was young, you used to have to trudge down to the corner car insurance agent. Meeting face to face was the only way to apply for a policy. The Internet makes the whole process much easier to find cheap auto insurance rates online and you can even do it in you pajamas.

1. Before you start your online search have ready a couple of important documents. Your going to need your drivers license handy. If you have been involved in any accidents, have that information handy. Also have your address and social security number ready. You will need the year, make, model, license plate, mileage, and VIN (vehicle identification number) from your car.

2. When going online search for "car insurance" on Google. Check out companies that you have heard of before and ones you have been recommended. Find insurers that will show quotes from many car insurance companies.

3. Decide what kind of coverage you need. Depending on the state you reside in, your options for what necessary insurance you need can vary. The website will know and walk you through the specifics of your states car insurance requirements.

4. Enter your information and get your free quote. There are to many insurance companies that offer free quotes, stay away from websites that require a deposit, credit card number, or any kind of fee.

5. Compare the rates and coverage along with the costs. When you feel comfortable about your selection you can pay with a credit card. You will be able to print out a temporary insurance I.D. car and later a formal one will be mailed to you.

Buying insurance online has been streamlined and simplified for the consumers convenience. Remember if you need to talk to a person or if you have any questions an 800 number is always provided.

The New 1099-K Tax Form (Infographic)

 The new 1099-K tax form is just another confusing bit of tax law to make business do a little bit more work. As usual the Internal Revenue Service needs to make sure it gets all the revenue it can.

It seems the I.R.S. is not collecting an estimated $385 Billion dollars, this new tax form is going to cure that problem, they hope.



Brought To By Outright.com

How My Emergency Fund Kept Me Above Water

Emergency funds are nice things to have around because of the many nice things they do. The best thing they do is keep you out of debt. My emergency fund kept me out of debt today.

In my backyard I have a nice pool. It's a nice thing to have. It's pretty to look at but it's a shame no one ever uses it. The kids are to grown up and are always out, to busy, but my wife loves to lay beside it and soak up some sun on Saturdays. Last weekend, the pump finally burnt out. I have been nursing it for almost a year. The rear bushing has been making a horrible noise and I have been giving it a shot of WD-40 to make it behave. It gave up the ghost last weekend and I needed a new one. 

It Gets Worse!

Luckily my brother deals with foreclosed houses and was able to locate a nice, almost new pump. Things were looking up. An almost free new pump was going to solve my problem. I had it installed in no time and preceded to crank it up. It was running great. Better than ever, pressure was noticeably twice as much as the previous motor. As I was admiring my handy work a 8 inch crack developed on the filter tank. Water sprayed everywhere. The higher pressure from the new motor was to much for my 22 year old plastic filter tank. 

I must admit the tank was previously patched along the crack but sadly it couldn't take the increase in pressure, it was time to replace it. I was back on the phone to my brother but he had no good news for me but said he would try to hunt one down for me. 

While brother was on the job I did some searching over at the pool store. The salesman quoted me a price of $500 for a new filter tank. I was immediately depressed at this situation. I would of liked to not spend that kind of money but I had the cash in the emergency fund for things just like this. It's funny I almost forgot I had an emergency fund I haven't had to use for a few years, the last time was when the water heater went out. 

On a Mission.

I was determined to not pay $500 so I was on a mission to seek out a cheaper solution. I went on Craigslist and found many used filter tanks for sale. Most of them did look a little distressed but out of 12 filters I pick one that was the right size and the best price was $80. It was an alternative I was going to seriously consider. 

While I was online I searched the online pool stores and found they were selling the same tank as my local pool store for about $25 less. I was down to $475 for a new tank. I was determined to do better. Amazon was next. They had the same tank listed for $300. I was feeling better that I was going to save $200 on Amazon as apposed to my local store. I have an Amazon Associates account so that would knock 4% off the price plus I would have used my Chase Amazon card which would have given me another 5% off. I was down to $273 with the discount.

Lets Do Better.

Still I wanted to do better. It was on to Ebay! They had the filter I wanted at auction for less than $200. I searched Ebay's completed auctions and saw they were going for an equivalent price as Amazon. I placed the bid when the filter tank was at $175. When it finished I had won the auction at a bid of $220 with a shipping cost of $30. So I was buying a filter tank for $250, brand new, guaranteed for 1 year from a pool supply company with over 10,000 good recommendations. I felt confident in the purchase and I should have the new tank at my home by the end of the week. And I paid cash.

This whole experience was very eye opening for me. Before emergency funds I would of made the purchase of a new tank at my local pool store and I would of put it on my credit card. It was an automatic response that I had made throughout my life, and a very costly one. I never gave it a thought to shop around like I did this time. But the main reason I did shop around was I was spending real cash. Real cash makes you work for the best deal. Dave Ramsey is right when he says it hurts to spend real money. Buying with a credit card is painless and you don't even feel the need to get a better deal. At least I didn't.

Lessons Relearned

Overall the experience has retaught me that staying out of debt is something to be proud of. Having an emergency fund is something to be proud of. Taking control of your life is really something to be proud of.