My biggest hope is to remain non-essential debt free..drive the same old car. Don't borrow if you don't need it, especially for material things like clothes and gadjets. Saving for unexpected.
jaimeof FL7:10AM January 23, 2012
My grandfather used to say :
"spend like a pauper, so you can live like a king"
Joziahof MA10:58PM January 10, 2012
Perhaps, the very best advice I could give someone is Dave Ramsey. "Live like no one else, so later you can live like no one else."
alysaof OK2:33AM October 11, 2011
I graduated from college in May, debt-free and with savings. Neither my parents nor family supported me financially. I went to a state school and worked three jobs while studying. I applied myself to my studies and received scholarships. I didn't take any loans, and didn't spend money I didn't have. Not everyone who has savings has a Mommy and Daddy with a big wallet.
Heatherof SD5:29PM February 16, 2011
indeed i have benefited from this
mainaof KY8:45AM January 27, 2011
Like most new graduates, I don't have savings that I can use to pay off my student loans. The average time it takes a university graduate to pay off their loans in Canada is **20 years**. I would imagine that it is much the same in the United States, where post-secondary education is much less subsidized. How about some useful advice, should any exist, for the people who actually need it. Presumably anyone who graduated from post-secondary with savings has plenty of support from Mommy and Daddy, who can always bail them out if things get really tough.
Erin10:46PM January 21, 2011
Knowing wants from needs is crucial. Other than major purchases such as a home or auto, people need to be debt free. Go back to the basics, if you don't have the money now, in the bank don't buy it, thinking you'll pay it off later. This is how people get sucked into large, mostly credit card debt.
People should have to take responsibility for their spending beyond their means, even if it means losing the house you can't afford in the first place.
Ron Segerof IL7:58AM December 02, 2010
Social security for the 21st century!
Gul Fek'lhr9:10PM November 03, 2010
"Go call your bank or credit card company if they promote a "cash back" program. Ask which rate is higher: the amount you earn in "cash back" on purchases or the basis points added on to your APR for the year. Then do the math and let me know how much cash savings you "earn"."
If you carry a balance AT ALL on your credit card then you are throwing your money away & missing the benefit of credit cards entirely. Cash back programs along with credit cards are fantastic tools as long as you pay them off every month.
Publix, numerous car dealerships, the plastic surgery centers who love to advertise their classy "buy one implant, get the other free" campaigns around the holidays in lovely South Florida.
I love the way sales campaigns are worded to appeal to consumers in a friendly, budget-sensitive way. "In these challenging economic times, you should buy that tummy tuck, new automobile or use that credit card for XY and Z. After all, it is fine to buy needless junk you can do without so long as you get a good price".
Go call your bank or credit card company if they promote a "cash back" program. Ask which rate is higher: the amount you earn in "cash back" on purchases or the basis points added on to your APR for the year. Then do the math and let me know how much cash savings you "earn".
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jaime of FL 7:10AM January 23, 2012
Joziah of MA 10:58PM January 10, 2012
alysa of OK 2:33AM October 11, 2011
Heather of SD 5:29PM February 16, 2011
maina of KY 8:45AM January 27, 2011
Erin 10:46PM January 21, 2011
Ron Seger of IL 7:58AM December 02, 2010
Gul Fek'lhr 9:10PM November 03, 2010
C Clanton of AL 8:09AM November 03, 2010
Telly Savalas of FL 8:56AM October 25, 2010