Home Repair Budget: How to Save for Needed Expenses

Maintaining a home is often expensive. From repairing the roof to trimming the trees, there are all sorts of jobs that require professional assistance. In order to keep up with all this necessary work, you need to account for home maintenance in your budget. Here’s how you can save up for essential home repairs.

Create a Separate Account

It’s often easier to save money for a specific purpose when you set it aside in its own account. That way, you’re not as tempted to dip into your savings for other purposes. 

Try making a “home improvement” account, and put a certain portion of every paycheck into it. This physical separation of your savings will help you maintain a sense of discipline.

Eliminate Wasteful Spending

If you’re going to save up for home repairs, then you’ll need to eliminate all those needless expenses that chip away at your monthly earnings. To really bring your budgeting game to the next level, write down all your typical expenses. 

This will give you a chance to understand where your money is actually going. You’ll probably be shocked by how much of your weekly paycheck goes toward frivolous purchases. 

If you really want to pay for necessary home repairs, you’ll need to change your lifestyle and cut out these wasteful expenses.

Separate Necessary Repairs From Optional Upgrades

When you’re working on a tight budget, then you need to differentiate between home improvement projects you’d like to do and home repairs that are absolutely necessary. 

After your shingles have been damaged by a storm, an appointment with an interior designer isn’t nearly as important as a visit from residential roofers. Responsible homeownership calls for getting your priorities in order.

Plan Your Projects in Advance

It’s tough to maintain a healthy budget when you’re constantly flying by the seat of your pants. Home repairs are often expensive, so it’s easier for your budget to absorb them when you prepare for them in advance. 

Plot out potential projects for the coming year, and plan your monthly budget around these foreseen expenses. This foresight will also save you money in the long term since it’s almost always cheaper to prevent an issue than to solve it after it occurs.

No matter how nice your home is, it’s going to require repairs. Take the steps above to make sure you can afford to maintain your home.

What Can You Do if You Started Saving for Retirement Late?

Despite your best intentions, you might not have been able to save much toward retirement yet, and you might be realizing that it will be here before you know it. Fortunately, there are ways you can begin saving more for your golden years by making some fairly simple budgeting and lifestyle changes right now.

Save More

If you have a Roth IRA or another investment account for retirement, find out if you can have more deducted from your paycheck and put it into the retirement fund. If you don't already have one, it’s time to start a retirement account now. You can open a low-risk investment account that can begin building equity toward your senior years.

Additionally, review your monthly or annual budget to find expenditures that can be cut or eliminated. Then, add those funds to your retirement savings. 

For example, you can cut that morning coffee run by making coffee at home or cut a gym membership by exercising in your house or neighborhood. Then, take the money you saved and invest it. You’ll be surprised how quickly those seemingly small costs add up.

Spend Less

While reviewing your budget, look for ways to trim non-negotiable items. For example, reduce energy costs by turning down the thermostat a couple of degrees in winter and raising it slightly during the summer months. 

Use online coupons or store discounts to save money on groceries or shoes. Consider buying wholesale instead of resale when you can get quality brands. You can also find great deals on housewares and clothing at thrift stores and yard sales.

Earn Extra

If your kids are grown and you have some free time, get a second job for a few hours a week and apply that income to your retirement fund. A financial advisor can explain the amount of added income you can afford to make without negatively impacting your tax bracket. 

You don't have to give up your lifestyle pleasures and leisure time activities, but doing something you enjoy to earn an extra paycheck can be both meaningful and profitable.

Plan Ahead

Start thinking about the kind of lifestyle you want to enjoy when you retire. When you decide where and how you want to live, you can develop a tentative budget. 

Then talk to a financial advisor about how much you’ll likely need to save to enjoy that lifestyle and stick to the budget. They might recommend downsizing your current home or other cost saving measures, depending on your projected income and expenses. 

They can also help you invest and make wise money decisions as you prepare for the years ahead.

You don't need to be wealthy to enjoy retirement. But it does help to prepare now for that special time in your life. Use your current income wisely to be ready when you step down from full-time employment and begin to enjoy the full fruits of your labor.

How to Make a Realistic Budget for Your New Business

Starting a new business comes with a lot of work. One of the most important areas of planning is creating a budget that is actually realistic. If you're at this stage in your new business prep, here are a few tips to help you create a feasible budget.

Start by Assessing Your Income

No budget will work without a person first having an idea of what their monthly income will be. Take a few moments and track your business's income. You'll want to record the amount and the sources. 

If you have different categories of income, say from freelance writing and selling a writing course, then breakdown your income into these categories. This will better set you up for understanding how your income changes over the long-term and why.

Figure Up Your Fixed Costs

The next step that you'll want to take is figuring up your fixed costs. These are going to be expenses that cost the same each month. Some examples are rent, utilities, payroll, and even web hosting. 

You can easily find these expenses on your business spending management software reports or by going through your business bank statements. Once you get all of your fixed costs written down, total them up.

Record Your Variable Expenses

Variable expenses are the next section of your budget that you need to concern yourself with. These are expenses that change in amount each month or are only charged once in a while. 

Some examples of variable costs for your business may be gas, electricity, sales commission, travel costs, and shipping costs. Over time, you'll get to see how much these expenses fluctuate, and you'll be able to create a more accurate average of what your variable expenses will be monthly.

Take a Look Over All You Have

Now, we're getting into the fun part. You've done all the research work to get your numbers. It's time to put them all together and do the math. Take your income and subtract your expenses, both fixed and variable. 

This will reveal how much your business is cash flowing each month. From here, you can determine if your business can handle taking on more debt or if you need to find ways to cut down your expenses.

Creating a realistic budget for your business is all about using real numbers in your calculations. When you notate what you're paying on fixed and variable costs and reduce that total amount from your income, you can clearly see how well your business is doing in a financial sense. Budgeting can be very easy as long as you take the time to do it.

Reasons Why You Should Have Your Home Appraised

Home appraising is the process of conducting an unbiased assessment of the value of a home. It is typically done by a licensed professional who evaluates the property based on its location and physical condition. Below are some of the reasons why you should have your home appraised.

Applying for Business and Cash Loans

Commonly, when applying for loans such as business or cash loans, you may require to present your home as collateral. Due to this reason, the bank will inquire about the prevailing value of your home to make sure it supports the amount you request. 

In such a circumstance, you will have to conduct a home appraisal, which will help you decide on the amount to loan from the bank.

Refinancing Your Home

Home refinancing involves replacing an old mortgage loan with a new one. Most people conduct a refinancing when the value of the home changes. 

To refinance your home, you will need to carry out an appraisal so that you can justify the new loan to your lenders. This approval also helps you understand the financing loan you can get per the price of your home.

Applying for a Home Equity Loan

Unlike refinancing, a home equity loan acts as an additional loan to the existing house mortgage. The loan amount to receive in home equity depends on the equity left after deducting your existing mortgage from your current home value. 

Therefore, you should conduct a home appraisal to determine the amount you can get from this type of loan.

Selling Your Home

A home appraisal is also essential whenever considering selling your home because you can come up with a reasonable selling price once you understand your home's prevailing value, increasing the chances of a fast sale.

Appealing the Tax Assessment

In many states across the US, property taxes get calculated according to a home's current market value. Therefore conducting a home appraisal will inform you if your property taxes are unfair. If they are indeed unfair, the home appraisal will act as the basis of an appeal.

A home appraisal is an essential process that every homeowner should have conducted on their home. It gives homeowners the financial insight required to carry out various loan processes. It also allows them to understand and correctly assess the fairness of their property taxes.

Why Bitcoin and Other Digital Currencies Matter to Investors

If you have ever traveled to other countries, the first thing you did was pay a visit to the bank to exchange your money into the local currency. When you invest your money into cryptocurrency is the same as exchanging your money into another country’s currency. 

Bitcoin is among the example of foreign currencies that operate in a unique way within some online communities.

What is Cryptocurrency?

These are assets that you keep in the digital form used to purchase online and for investments. You buy tokens or coins of a unique cryptocurrency by exchanging real currency like dollars. The art of solving or writing a code is called cryptocurrency.

How to Buy Bitcoin

Bitcoin exchange is the most common way through which you can buy bitcoin. It where you can sell and buy bitcoin from others and the exchange controls this process. 

The exchange that provides buying and selling of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies is called CEX.IO. The steps involved in purchasing bitcoin via CEX.IO are as follows.

The 1st step is to open a digital wallet; it where you interact with others via a technology called blockchain and where you store your cryptocurrency. 

The second step is to register and open an account. Once inside the CEX.IO, you open and register an account to provide you with their services. Step three involves receiving a 2FA Code; it an authentication code and password used to access CEX.IO. 

You will receive the code via SMS after being generated by the application. Then you choose the payment method that is convenient for you.

Why Bitcoin and Cryptocurrency Matters to Investors

As an investor, you must have an interest in cryptocurrencies. Because it has soured in its value. They have become an alternative investment from just a fringe obsession that permitted coin holders to run businesses outside the financial system. 

The cost of one bitcoin is $30000. If you want to become an affluent investor, you have to take bitcoin the same way you see other high-risk assets. These assets are like venture capital and private equity shares. 

There is a consideration by trust officers, estate lawyers, and financial planners are to include bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies in trusts and portfolios that have straight penalties and rules for mistakes. 

It would be best to treat bitcoin like any other asset because it is gaining more mainstream participants and adoptions now.

Though people see it as an investment, bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies might become more popular in the future and gain more trust. 

Some online retailers have already started accepting Bitcoin, like overstock.com. If you have another person interested in tokens, you can exchange them for services and goods.

What to Do when You Think Your Stockbroker Is Cheating You

Stock markets are full of brokers whose conflict of interest may dearly cost you if you are not very keen. Such brokers are out to swindle you out of your money. You are probably wondering what to do when you think your stockbroker is cheating you. 

With all the technicalities surrounding stock trade, it is hard to tell if your stockbroker is cheating you out of your money or leading you into an inappropriate investment that will lead to massive losses. However, a stockbroker fraud lawyer from Wolper Law Firm will be in the best position to handle this for you.

With their vast experience in dealing with stockbroker fraud, their lawyers can spot fraud and help you build a case that will ensure you receive refunds for all your losses. But even before you approach your lawyer, here is a list of what to do when you think your stockbroker is cheating you.

What Are the Signs to Look for in a Cheating Broker?

1. Misrepresenting and Omitting Facts

Suppose your broker intentionally held back important information such as risks, sales-related compensation, liquidity, or other material facts. In that case, you need to be keen to ensure that your broker is not deceiving you.

2. Unauthorized Trading

Unauthorized trading is when your broker makes purchases with your account without your prior approval. The only time your broker is allowed to transact on your behalf is when you give them expressed and detailed permission or if they receive discretionary authority. If your broker transacts without these two conditions, it is possibly an investment fraud. 

3. Churning

When looking through your account, do you notice any repeated sales of the same stock? If you do, and your broker has been in control of your account, churning has occurred.

Churning is where a broker sells and resells your stock to increase their commission regardless of what is best for you. This is one of the most rampant fraudulent deals that brokers indulge in.

4. Untimely Execution

Does your broker tend to delay executing your orders on your investments, or sometimes fails to execute them at all? If he or she does this, the law considers him or her to be a fraud. There could be ulterior motives causing your broker to make these delays.

5. Illegal Accounts

Suppose your broker has ever suggested that you lie about your home or work address or that you use misleading information while making your investments. 

In that case, there is a high likelihood that they are involved in fraudulent deals that you don’t want to be dealing in. Who knows, they are probably deceiving you too.

What Action Should You Take?

Upon establishing that you are indeed a victim of a fraudulent broker, it is best to take immediate action against your broker.

1. Report the Fraudulent Broker

To start your funds recovery process, you should report your broker to the relevant authorities, like the SEC, for their cheating tendencies. Reporting them will also stop them from taking advantage of other investors.

2. Hire a Broker Fraud Lawyer

Fraudulent brokers can be very elusive people to deal with. To get the justice and compensation you deserve from your failed investment, you need a qualified lawyer to take you through the entire process.

What Does Not Count as Cheating?

You should always bear in mind that all investments, at some point, suffer losses. Yours is, therefore, no exception. It would be best if you were very keen before you make assumptions and accusations.

It may greatly help if you seek your lawyer’s guidance before suing your broker for fraud. Wrongful suing may lead to great consequences such as a defamatory lawsuit against you, which will further lead to unnecessary losses on your part.