2019 / My Golden Mean

8 Simple Things You Can Do Today to Increase Your Savings

Wednesday, January 23, 2019

There is no doubt about it - most Americans are facing serious financial woes. And it's no wonder. In this post on budgeting tips I shared some staggering statistics related to the knowledge Americans have about finance in general - or lack thereof. Add this to the estimates that 78% of Americans live paycheck to paycheck and over 50 million Americans have no emergency savings, according to CNBC, and you have one scary picture of the collective American wallet.

Anyone that finds themselves in this position should absolutely get straight to work delving into their finances, preparing a budget, and setting some achievable money goals. You will not be able to overhaul your financial position, pay down debt or build a formidable savings overnight, but you absolutely can make some simple but effective changes today to set you on the track to financial freedom!

I am going to outline 8 things that you can start doing immediately to build your savings for retirement, emergencies, future purchases (like a home!), or simply to accumulate wealth. While these tips will not result in you becoming an overnight millionaire, they will undoubtedly save you a good chunk of change and get you thinking about additional ways to give your bank account some TLC.

#1 Contribute To Your 401(k)

Over half of Americans have access to an employer sponsored 401(k) plan to save for retirement, but of this group less than half take advantage of the program and make contributions, according to CNBC. Not only are 401(k) plans a great opportunity to sock away money for retirement, they also offer you the ability to reduce your current taxable income and may be matched by an employer contribution.

For instance, if your company matches 401(k) contributions up to 6% of your salary and you make $50,000, you are missing out on an additional $3,000/year from your employer straight into your savings! You should try to contribute at least the maximum that your employer will match to ensure you do not miss out.

In addition to this, it is a good rule of thumb to increase your contribution by 0.5 - 1% every time you receive a raise at work, if you can afford it. Since your paycheck will be increasing anyway, you won't even notice the additional contribution but it will help you big time in the future!

#2 Tweak Your Thermostat

During the first year in our home, we set our thermostat to whatever temperature we felt like - and we paid handsomely for it. During this past year, we reevaluated and kept our thermostat a few degrees higher in the summer and lower in the winter and have saved a ton. We also invested in a smart thermostat which adjusts as soon as we leave the home so we are not unnecessarily cooling or heating the home when we are not there. If I am a little chilly, I will bundle up with a throw blanket or use a small space heater before I reach for the thermostat!

#3 Use An Automatic Savings App

There are a ton of apps on the market that will help you save without even realizing it. Check out this list of 4 money saving apps on NerdWallet to get started. Many of these apps will automatically round up your purchases to the nearest dollar and deposit that spare change into a savings or investment account. Acorns, for instance, deposits the additional money into investments based on income and goals. Digit offers a 1% savings bonus every three months! Do a little reading to see which is best for you and get saving.

#4 Use Discount Apps

Once you have an app to help you squirrel away spare cash, you should download a few others to help you also save money on purchases. I love using Ebates to get discounts on all kinds of purchases that I would be making anyway. I just open the app, select the store I want to shop and go on to make my purchase. Depending on the stores and purchases, you will accumulate cash back and receive a check from Ebates every three months.

I also use apps for my local grocery stores (ShopRite and Stop & Shop) to clip coupons before heading to the store and Ibotta to save on miscellaneous purchases. Ibotta allows you to skim available offers and then share the receipt from your purchases to receive cash back.

#5 Try the $5 Plan

Clark.com has a genius idea for saving spare cash without even realizing it. Every time a $5 bill appears in your wallet, stash it away in your savings along with your spare change. If you frequently use cash, this is a great way to put away hundreds of dollars a year without a second thought!

#6 Revamp Your Weekends

It is easy to spend a ton of money over the weekend on activities, meals out and cocktails. Once or twice a month, try do a "no spend" weekend to keep you on track. Make a list of the totally free activities you can do with your partner, friends, family or solo that you will enjoy just as much as those that have a cost. You can head outdoors for a hike, picnic, walk through the park or camping trip. You can check out a free museum or concert or the library. You can even just invite some friends over for a game or movie night. The key is to make use of what you already have in your home!

#7 Reevaluate Your Subscriptions

There are so many subscription services on the market these days, it is difficult not to get sucked in. There are services for entertainment (Netflix and Hulu), meals (Blue Apron), household products (The Grove Collaborative), personal products (Quip, Lola, Dollar Shave Club), lifestyle products (FabFitFun), snacks (Nature Box), and even stationary (Cloth and Paper). Not to mention magazine and newspaper subscriptions and memberships like Amazon Prime, wholesale clubs, gyms, and website premium content. The list goes on and on!

Many of these are amazing and provide access to companies that focus on only a few products that they strive to be the absolute best at. That being said, it is easy to sign up for a bunch of these over the months without ever reconsidering if it is working for you. I recommend periodically making a list of all of the subscription services and memberships that you are paying for monthly/quarterly/annually and really think about how beneficial the service is. If you aren't reading the magazine, cancel the subscription. If you aren't using the products in a subscription box, cancel it. If you aren't really using the entertainment service, cancel it. Really challenge yourself on this one - it'll pay off!

#8 Shop Seasonally Smart

There is an ideal time of year to buy basically everything. For example, furniture companies generally restock in February and August, so you should make these purchases in January and July when they are trying to clear the floor. Winter coats will be much cheaper in stores when the season is over. Brad's Deals and Consumer Reports have awesome resources for when to buy various items - who knew that December is the time for golf clubs?!

And there you have it - 8 super simple things you can do today to start saving loads of cash. I challenge you to write down this list and make a plan to implement each item to the best of your ability. If you set a goal to fully dive in on another item from the list every 6-7 weeks, you will be in great shape by the end of the year!

Be sure to also read up on:

Your #1 Trick to Earn Thousands of Dollars Toward Travel
7 Worst Mistakes to Avoid When Creating Your Ideal Budget

Wednesday, January 16, 2019

Three years ago I completely changed the way that I book my travel plans, and this change has resulted in my being able to fly almost entirely free ever since. And I'm not talking about a few short distance flights sporadically, I'm talking about multiple flights to my home state of Florida, a cross-country flight to New Mexico and major long distance flights to London, Thailand and Bora Bora (total in-flight time for those last three locations from New York is nearly 40 hours!). The total cost of all of these flights is well over $4,000 - and I paid absolutely nothing for them.

I am sure that this sounds too good to be true, but when I first started following the plan that I am about to divulge, I did not think that it would afford me this. I figured I would get a few perks here and there and didn't give it much thought - I could not have been more wrong!

Laying the Groundwork

So what am I rambling on about you ask? That would be my trick to earn thousands of dollars toward all kinds of travel - by simply using three types of Chase credit cards to accumulate a ton of points - on purchases that I would make regardless.

I first started with my Chase Freedom credit card - which I had opened after moving to New York and had for a few years. This card has no annual fee and awards points equivalent to 5% of purchases made in the categories set for that respective quarter (e.g. gas stations and department stores for October through December).

A few years later, Chase announced that they were launching the Sapphire Reserve card which is loaded with benefits - including a card made out of metal that feels wild. You get lots of fun bonuses like access to lounges in airports, free Global Entry or TSA PreCheck, and no foreign transaction fees for when you travel. You also get award points equivalent to 3% of purchases made on food or travel and, here's the kicker - 50% more value when you redeem your points for travel. This is key as it allows you to exchange your points for dollars toward travel at a 1.5x rate. AND this conversion will work for all of the points you accumulate across Chase cards - as long as you transfer them before using them. There is a slight downside - this card comes with a $450 annual fee, however, you get a $300 statement credit for travel expenses that you spend during the year so it nets to only being $150/year out of pocket (which is more than offset by the money toward travel that you will receive as long as you use the card!).

Lastly to close the loop, I opened the Chase Freedom Unlimited card which has no annual fee and no frills other than the award points equivalent to 1.5% of purchases on anything.

Having these three cards guarantees that I will earn back between 1.5 - 5% of all purchases and be able to spend these points on travel (think flights, hotels, rental cars) at a rate of 1.5% (i.e. 50,000 = $750 toward travel).

Putting The Trick Into Practice

Every time that I make a purchase, I consider what category it falls into and use a simple decision tree to determine what card to use:

If it meets one of the bonus categories for the Freedom, I will use that
If it does not meet the bonus categories but is food or travel related, I will use the Reserve
If it does not meet either of the above, I use the Freedom Unlimited

Here's a handy guide to depict this decision process:

Easy right?! Then each month I transfer all of the points I accumulated to my Reserve account - where I book all of my travel at the 1.5x exchange rate.

Another great thing about this process is that the Chase rewards site where you book the travel is super easy to use. It functions very similar to a discount travel site where you can search for flights, hotels and rental cars across companies easily. And I have found that the dollar value on the Chase site is identical to discount travel sites so you are not losing any value by booking this way. Lastly, if you do not have enough points to book a particular reservation, you can apply the quantity of points that you would like and pay for the rest in cash - easy!

The Bonus

The other great perk with these cards are the epic sign-on bonuses. As of January 2019, signing up for these cards (if you do not already have them):

Sapphire Reserve offers 50,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening
Freedom offers $150 bonus after you spend $500 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening
Freedom Unlimited offers a $150 bonus after you spend $500 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening plus an additional $50 bonus after you spend $5,000 in the first 12 months

The Important Things to Know (Don't Skip This!)

Now that we have gone over all of the exciting bits, it is only responsible that I advise you to proceed with caution.

Firstly, opening a new credit card account is not something to be taken lightly. When you apply for a credit card, the company will run your credit, which if done too frequently can negatively impact your credit score. Keep in mind that to protect your credit, you should wait at least 3 months between opening the new credit cards. If you have several credit cards already, you may want to consider waiting six months as an additional precaution. Additionally, if you will need to have a strong credit score in the near future to purchase a home or car or take out a loan, etc, you should hold off on applying for any new credit cards.

It is also possible that you will not be accepted when applying for a credit card. Different cards have different standards for who will be accepted. If you are rejected, do not be discouraged, you can always apply again in the future when you are able to increase your credit score.

Lastly, but most importantly, if you are someone that has difficulty managing your spending with a credit card you absolutely should not try what I have outlined above. Credit cards should only be used for this purpose if you are able to treat them like debit cards - meaning you spend on the card and pay off the full amount each month to prevent any accumulation of debt. This requires that you meticulously track your spending to ensure you are not living outside of your means. This plan isn't for everyone, and if you feel that you may find yourself in this position do not attempt this.

Thursday, January 10, 2019

I love a good slow cooker meal - especially on a chilly Sunday morning. I roll into the kitchen in my PJ's, toss all of the ingredients into the pot and forget about it for hours until the amazing smell reminds me that dinner. is. already. done!

This particular slow cooker meal is one of my absolute favorites. My husband loves it, it takes only 10 ingredients in total and it results in amazing leftovers. I present to you... Mississippi pot roast with cheesy, creamy, delicious gouda grits.

When I make this pot roast for my husband & I in my slow cooker I use a 3 lb chuck roast (I've also used rump and round roasts which are also boneless and work just fine). This yields plenty for both of us and a few portions of leftovers for lunches.

Place the roast into the bottom of the cooker and sprinkle the gravy & dressing packets directly onto the roast. You can then pop 5-7 (depending on size) pepperoncini peppers around the roast and drizzle about half the juice from the jar over top.

Then all you've gotta do is pop in a stick of butter (either on top of the roast or nestled on the sides), cover and set on low for the next 8-10 hours.

After the scent has tantalized you for hours, check the roast to see if it's nice and tender. It should be nearly falling apart and juicy, juicy, juicy.

This roast is pretty much foolproof so do not worry about overcooking it. I once cooked it for 8 hours on a Sunday, put straight into the fridge (in the slow cooker pot with lid on) and cooked again on low the next day for a few hours...it still turned out amazing.

When you are happy with the tenderness, turn off the slow cooker and remove the lid so it can cool a bit. Once you can get in there without scalding yourself, shred some of the meat so it is easy to serve and soaks up more of those juuuuuices.

While the meat is cooling, take some time to whip up the perfect vehcile for this pot roast - cheesy gouda grits.

Combine the grits (I order mine on Amazon here and keep in a baggie in the freezer for freshness), chicken broth, milk (or half-and-half or cream...whatever you have) in a sauce pot with a sprinkle of salt. Bring to a boil while stirring frequently, then cover and lower the heat to simmer for about 20-25 minutes. Give this a stir occasionally and keep an eye - the milk can cause it to boil over.

Once the grits have absorbed most of the liquid, stir in the shredded gouda until it melts. Give it a taste and salt more if needed.

To serve, scoop some grits into a wide bowl and top with some of the meat and peppers. Use a laddle to add some of the cooking liquid (avoid the fat where possible) to the bowl.

Enjoy!

You may also enjoy:

Best Way to Roast A Chicken & Turn It to Broth

Your Complete Guide to Hosting An Amazing Holiday Dinner (With Menu & Timeline)

As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. This in no way impacts the products that I choose to share in my posts, it is simply a bonus (at no additional charge to you).

Monday, January 7, 2019

Talking about money makes people uncomfortable - and for good reason. We are made uncomfortable by what we do not know or understand - and the statistics surrounding the lack of financial literacy possessed by Americans are staggering. Last year I read an article in the NY Post that cited a recent study on the financial literacy of 1,000 Americans over the age of 30. This particular study found that only about one half of participants were well versed in 401(k) plans and the concepts of interest and bankruptcy. And yet, as of October 2018 Americans are carrying over $1 trillion in debt, primarily on credit cards, according to the Federal Reserve.

As an accountant and lover of all things finance, these statistics make me sad. I am 100% confident that you do not need to be one of these people, that you can become an expert on all areas of personal finance, and that you can set yourself free of money woes and live a life of financial independence. One of the first ways to set yourself on this path is to build a personal budget that is comprehensive and effective at helping you achieve your money goals.

Before getting to work on your personal budget, it is important to make yourself aware of the mistakes that are commonly made in budgeting so you can avoid them at all costs (money pun intended).

Mistake #1 Not Setting a Goal

The primary purpose of a budget is to track your spending but it will be much easier to convince yourself to spend the time on a budget if there is a reward at the end of the tunnel. When I create my annual budget, I earmark amounts for vacations, home updates, and my overall savings that will help me grow my bank account. Your budget should exist to help you meet your money goals - not torture you!

Mistake #2 Not Being Honest with Yourself

Each year when I make a budget, my starting point is what I actually spent in the previous year. You can come up with a number for what you would like to spend in any given category, but using history to plan for the future is the most rational methodology to follow when creating a budget. If you think you will only spend $100/month on entertainment but for the past 6 months have spent over $200/month, you will likely break your budget very quickly and become discouraged.

Review your expenses for the past three months across high level categories such as housing, utilities, transportation, food, household expenses, and entertainment. You can use your bank and credit card statements, electronic payment history (think Venmo and Paypal) and, of course, your memory to determine how much you spend each month. Then once you have fleshed everything out, determine where you need to make cuts in order to achieve your budget goals.

Be sure to really spend time thinking about the types of expenses you have, including those that are deducted directly from your paycheck (examples: health insurance, retirement contributions), paid with checks or via automatic payment. It is very easy to forget expenses that are infrequent (example: Amazon Prime membership), gifts, and seasonal items like Christmas trees and holiday tipping.

Mistake #3 Not Challenging Yourself

If you buy coffee everyday but can manage to reduce your dining out budget substantially by brewing at home - why not do it? Even if you already met your budget goals, challenge yourself to pinch in areas where you know you can. This will help to level out the areas that you undoubtedly go over budget in.

You should also challenge yourself to really differentiate between wants and needs. You may not be able to cut many expenses that relate to necessities (think rent/mortgage, car payment, electric bill) but you can almost always find ways to cut back on nonessentials (think dining out, expensive clothing, beauty treatments).

Mistake #4 Not Revising Your Budget

Your expenses will likely evolve during the year and your budget should follow suit. For example, if you buy a new car in July you should update your budget for the change in car payment and insurance, and account for any one-off fees and taxes that you paid. Each time you revise your budget you should ensure you are still on track to meet your goals by making cuts elsewhere where needed.

Mistake #5 Not Leaving A Buffer For Incidentals

It is inevitable that you will have unforeseen expenses during the year – or expenses that you just plain forgot about. If you leave a buffer in your budget for incidentals, you will not feel discouraged when they come up. In my budget I allocate about 5% of take home income (i.e. the total amount in my paychecks annually after taxes are withheld by my employer) for miscellaneous purchases, unforeseen medical expenses and other incidentals.

Mistake #6 Not Sticking To Your Budget

If you are not actively updating your budget or neglect to abide by it when making a purchase decision, you simply will not meet your goals. Sometimes this means making hard decisions – like not eating out over the weekend because you have already maxed out this category for the month. Updating your budget frequently is key for this reason. If you are spending without keeping track, you may find that you have already gone over budget for the month without even realizing it. I update my personal budget every Monday morning. It gives me a good handle on what I spent over the weekend and allows me to set expectations for what I can spend during the coming week.

Mistake #7 Not Giving Yourself Grace

Budgeting is tricky until you get the hang of it – so do not be hard on yourself if it takes some time to get used to. And if you absolutely must go over your budget in any category for the month, just try to balance it out by staying under budget in another category or in that same category in a subsequent month. If you stick with your budget for a few months, it will become second nature before you know it.

Wednesday, January 2, 2019

New year, new you, new goals...you know the drill. One of the best things that comes with the turning of the calendar is the undeniable reminder to try. This takes on many forms for many people, but I am sure that finding new ways to keep your space clean is near the top of your list! To help you in this venture, I am sharing the seven cleaning products I absolutely cannot live without (and neither should you!) + one bonus product that can be used in two totally unique ways!

#1 Bon Ami Powder Cleanser ($1.99)

This super cheap and effective cleanser is a go-to for keeping my stainless steel kitchen sink looking shiny and beautiful. Bon Ami, which has been around forever, uses feldspar & limestone as gentle but effective abrasives and baking soda to absorb odor. Just wet the surface, sprinkle the powder, rub with a sponge, and rinse - voilà! Bonus points for packaging made from recycled paper that can also be recycled again.

#2 Microfiber Glass Cleaning Cloth ($14 for 8 cloths)

I use these cloths to clean all of the glass in my house (windows, mirrors, shower door, etc) and love that they require ZERO cleansing product - just add water! These cloths last for ages and will completely rid your shiny surfaces of streaks and lint. Bonus points for also being environmentally friendly in their lack of chemicals and re-usability.

#3 OXO Good Grips Stainless Steel Squeegee ($14.99)

The best part of using a squeegee to keep the shower doors clean is that it never feels like I am cleaning. We keep this within reach and use it on the doors as soon as we get out of the shower without even thinking about it. It takes about 30 seconds to do this and keeps the doors shiny clean. When you use this religiously, the surface barely requires any additional cleaning. No more scrubbing at soap scum!

#4 Drill Brush Attachment Set ($10.99)

You guys…this is GENIUS. Instead of hand scrubbing tile, counters, you name it, I hook these little brushes up to ANY power drill and go to town! This product is without a doubt the fastest Amazon purchase I have ever completed ever. And when this kit came in the mail and I put it to the test (30 seconds after unboxing it) I nearly wept with joy. I hate scrubbing our shower tile...HATE IT. I dread it every time and almost never get to it because scrubbing the 3 billion miniature tiles in my shower is my own personal hell. This kit scrubs the entire shower in no time and the particular bundle that I linked also has a brush that can get into corners. This attachment is super important for me as the most filthy tiles in my shower are in the corners!

#5 Shark Genius Hard Floor Cleaning System ($120)

We are bumping up in price but also in bang for your buck with this steamer. We have outrageous amounts of tile flooring in our house (are you sensing the theme that I hate my tile?) so a system to get out the gunk and deep clean grout is non-negotiable. Of the products and gadgets that I have tried, this steamer does the best job with the dirtiest tile - all with just hot steam and a washable cleaning pad. My only hesitation is that the cleaning pad can get stained relatively quickly, making it difficult to get that "look how much dirt I got" feeling of satisfaction after each time you clean (this does not effect the actual amount of dirt you are picking up, just the ability to tell how much dirt you picked up). This complaint is mostly frivolous as one look at your floors will tell you what a great job the steamer has done!

#6 Machine Washable Microfiber Duster ($6.99)

I use this duster constantly to reach awkward areas or swipe over delicate items. Since the duster is microfiber, it does a great job holding onto the crud that it picks up as you dust. The best part is that the head easily pops off and goes straight into the washing machine - very no fuss!

#7 Roomba ($240)

I initially felt like a bit of a diva buying a robotic vacuum (especially because we lived in a condo at the time...) but in the 2+ years that we have had our Roomba I have never regretted it. We keep ours in the kitchen and set it to get to work every few days at 11 am. I love that you do not have to remember to run it and your floors appear to be *magically* cleaned while you are away at work. We also use a few battery powered "walls" to keep the vacuum from going into areas that do not require frequent cleaning (i.e. our dining room). I have found that the Roomba does a great job without destroying anything we accidentally leave around on the floor. If you are not ready to make this large investment, definitely check out some of the other brands of robot vacuums - there are many with great customer reviews with more affordable price points.

Bonus: Cutting Board Oil ($5.99)

Not only is this oil great for preventing wood cutting boards from drying out, it can be used to make a stainless steel refrigerator look brand new! I just squeeze a few drops onto a paper towel and swipe across the fridge (going with the grain) to easily remove fingerprints, smears, smudges, and drips in no time at all. If it gets too oily, just wipe over once more with the clean part of the paper towel to remove the excess.

And there you have it - the 7 cleaning products that I will never ever give up (for the foreseeable future, at least). Pretty please let me know if there are any products or gadgets that you rely on that I should add to my collection. Happy cleaning!

SLIDER