Does Everyone Need Life Insurance?

May13

I don’t know what it is, but the past few weeks, I feel like every finance writer has been hitting me over the head with this advice: “Buy life insurance or you’re totally f*cked!!”

Here are a few examples of such articles:

7 Fictional Characters Who Could Have Used Life Insurance
How Insurance Saved These Families
Dear Mom, I Wish You Had Life Insurance
Seven Absolutely Necessary Insurance Policies
Young Adults Need Life Insurance Too

But does everyone really need life insurance at our age? Here’s a basic run-down of reasons you may or may not need it at this time:

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Vegetable Gardening for Beginners

May3

Are you thinking about starting your first vegetable garden this year? Or maybe you have tried gardening in the past with limited success? Here are a few tips for beginning vegetable gardeners:

Start small.
Choose a few basic vegetables to focus on the first year, then expand your selection as you gain more experience. Some good choices for beginners are tomatoes and peppers, since these plants are hardy and prolific. They’re also pretty difficult to kill, even if you neglect to water them for several days at a time. (Hot peppers would actually prefer it.)

Prepare your soil.
Some people have fantastic soil that’s ready to go with very little effort. However, if your soil is like ours (lots of clay), you may need to till in some top soil in order to make an area suitable for vegetable gardening. If the area is small, you can probably till it by hand. Otherwise, you may need to rent or borrow a tiller. While we’re at it, we also usually mix in some Preen, which is an amazing organic weed preventer. The less time you have to spend pulling weeds, the better… right?

Protect your harvest.
If you have a lot of small animals like rabbits in your neighborhood, you’ll probably want to put up some sort of fencing around your garden to keep your plants/vegetables from getting eaten. Deer will require a much taller fence, since they can theoretically jump as high as 6 feet. However, if you don’t like that idea (or have strict zoning laws), you could also try surrounding your garden with marigolds or clumps of human hair from the local salon in order to keep the critters away.

Note: Many garden/home improvement stores sell animal repellent sprays, which are effective but smell absolutely horrible. I got a drop on my hands once and almost threw up. So unless you plan on staying several feet away from your garden at all times, I don’t recommend this.

Monitor your garden.
The most common mistake beginning gardeners make has to do with neglect. Vegetable gardens don’t have to be super high-maintenance, but they do need some regular attention if you want a good harvest. Assuming you don’t get rain on a daily basis, make sure you’re watering the garden regularly. You should also check for weeds and remove any dead leaves/stems from your plants, as needed.

Experienced gardeners: What other advice would you offer a beginner?

2013 Resolution Update

May1

We’re officially five months into the year, and I believe it’s time to update you on how we’re doing with our New Year’s Resolutions.

I know what you’re thinking: why only five months? Wouldn’t six months be a more logical time frame to report progress? Perhaps this is true… but the truth is that I was way too excited and couldn’t wait another month. So here we go!

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Foods You Can Grow Indoors

Apr30

As the weather gets nicer, those with a reasonable amount of yard space start planting vegetable gardens.

But what about those who want to live a more sustainable, self-sufficient lifestyle but lack the yard space? Or those who want to grow their own food year-round but can’t because it snows for half the year?

There’s a simple solution: Start growing food indoors!

Don’t know where to begin? Here are a few examples of what you could grow indoors:

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New Home or Fixer-Upper?

Apr27

With home-buying season well underway, many first-time home buyers are deciding how much house they can afford – and how much of a commitment they’re willing to make to maintaining it. Here are a few things to consider when choosing between a newer home or an older home (fixer-upper):

BENEFITS OF BUYING A NEWER HOME

  • Few to no maintenance/repair costs upfront
  • Consistent monthly expenses, no “surprises”
  • Requires less time and effort to maintain
  • More modern in functionality and decor

BENEFITS OF BUYING A FIXER-UPPER

  • Significantly lower purchase price
  • May be able to afford more square footage (room to grow)
  • More likely to afford a 20% down payment and avoid PMI
  • Lower assessment = lower taxes
  • Ability to customize as you work on the house
  • DIYers can save a lot of money on maintenance/updates
  • Home value likely to increase significantly over time

In summary, if you prefer consistent expenses and are unlikely to put in the time and effort necessary to maintain a fixer-upper, your best bet is to buy something newer. On the other hand, if you enjoy DIY projects and would find satisfaction in transforming an older home to suit your needs, you may be able to save a lot of money on a fixer-upper.

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Hotels & Motels on a Budget

Apr26

With wedding season quickly approaching, it’s possible that you will be doing a lot of traveling in the next few months. Assuming the location of the wedding is too far to drive there and back in one day (or you don’t have a designated driver), you’ll probably need to find overnight accommodations for at least one night.

Let me start by saying that hotels can be ridiculously expensive. Honestly, the idea of paying $250+ per NIGHT for a single hotel room when you can rent a decent apartment for $600 per MONTH is completely mind-boggling to me. But I digress.

Often, the bride and groom will reserve a block of rooms at a group rate (a very thoughtful gesture). However, for penny-pinchers like myself, even the group rates can end up being far too costly.

So here are a few suggestions for saving money on your next hotel or motel reservation:

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Why We Chose Auto-Debit

Apr22

Today’s post is the last in our week-long series on student loans. If you would like to see any other topics featured in future posts, please feel free to make suggestions in the comments section!

Student loan consolidation is not for everyone, as evidenced by yesterday’s post. If you’re concerned about your current interest rates and/or keeping track of multiple loan payments, here is another option you might consider: auto-debit.

We currently use auto-debit for all of my husband’s student loans (both federal and private) and it has worked out really well for us. Here are a few reasons why we like it:

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Intro to Student Loan Consolidation

Apr21

If you hold several different federal or private student loans, you may be wondering if consolidating would be worthwhile. In all honesty, there’s no good answer to this question since everyone’s situation is different… but here are a few possible pros and cons to student loan consolidation:

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Student Loan Forgiveness Options

Apr20

Do you feel like you’re going to be stuck paying off student loans for the rest of your life? It doesn’t have to be that way. Here are a few ways you could get some or all of your federal student loans forgiven:

Enlist in the military.
I know, I know. Most people aren’t too keen on the idea of risking their lives to get out of debt… but there are many non-combat positions available for engineers, scientists, IT specialists, lawyers, medical staff, musicians, line cooks, clerical staff, etc. In exchange for your service, the Army or Navy may pay up to $65,000 in qualifying student loans. For more information on student loan repayment and other military benefits, click here.

Volunteer with the Peace Corps.
If the military really isn’t your thing, consider volunteering with the Peace Corps instead. The Peace Corps is a volunteer program which seeks to promote peace and bridge the gap between the US and other nations around the world. Although the Peace Corps does not offer loan repayment, volunteers may be eligible for deferment during service as well as a partial cancellation of Perkins loans.

Join AmeriCorps.
AmeriCorps is a federal program which engages members intensive community service work in education, environmentalism, public safety, homeland security, and other areas. After successfully completing a term of service, AmeriCorps members may be eligible for the Segal AmeriCorps Education Award worth up to $5,550 in student loan repayment. For more information on eligibility and limitations of the award, click here.

Work in a public service profession.
If you work full-time in a public service profession (such as education, public health services, public safety, services for people with disabilities, etc.), you may be eligible for forgiveness of Direct Loans after making 120 regular payments. Not sure if your job qualifies? Find out more information here.

Teach in a low-income/high-needs school district.
In addition to being eligible for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program described above, teachers may be entitled to as much as $17,500 in student loan forgiveness for teaching in a low-income school district for at least five years.

In addition to the options above, federal student loans can be discharged if you become permanently disabled or die. (Obviously, you don’t want either of those things to happen… but it’s still good to know.) Private lenders, on the other hand, are much less understanding in such circumstances – as evidenced by stories like this one or this one.