Posts Tagged ‘goals’

Your Money Bus is Coming to Colorado Springs

Wednesday, July 7th, 2010

Your Money Bus is coming to Colorado Springs.

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Re: Free Non-profit Financial Education Event - Please share with friends, family and business associates.

All of us have family; friends and colleagues who are struggling to save money, eliminate debt and find jobs. Please share with them the opportunity to meet for a free one-on-one with local independent financial advisors when the national Your Money Bus Tour rolls into Colorado Springs on July 8th and 9th. Pinnacle Financial Concepts, Inc. is coordinating the Colorado Springs stop of this non-profit tour, visiting more that 25 cities. We will be volunteering at this event along with several other fee-only financial planning firms in town. The Your Money Bus Tour is sponsored by The National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA) Consumer Education Foundation, TD AMERITRADE, Kiplinger’s Personal Finance magazine and FiLife.com.

The Your Money Bus Tour will stop in Colorado Springs at the Penrose Library (downtown) on July 8th from 12:00 - 7:00 and at UCCS, Lot 1 on July 9th from 12:00 - 5:00. At each stop, consumers can sit down with locally-based volunteer financial advisors to ask pressing financial questions. All Money Bus visitors will receive a free financial education kit, including a Kiplinger magazine and a budgetary workbook.

Forty percent of American families spend more than they earn and the average American with a credit file has more than $16,000 in debt, not including mortgages. We encourage people to stop byYour Money Bus to learn how to better save, eliminate debt and develop personal financial sustainability habits that will get them through and beyond these tough times.

The NAPFA Consumer Education Foundation is a 501c (3) organization committed to educating Americans on personal finance. Consumers need easy to understand information without any bias, sales, or conflicts of interest. All volunteer financial advisors are fee-only fiduciaries; nothing is being sold or promoted. This is strictly educational and free information for the public. The public is welcome to just stop by or make an appointment ahead of time.

For more information, visit www.YourMoneyBus.com and for up-to-date schedule information contact Krist Allnutt,krista.allnutt@perceptiononline.com.

Warmest Regards,

Jane M. Young, CFP, EA

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My New Year’s Resolution Challenge to You!

Tuesday, December 29th, 2009

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Jane M. Young, CFP, EA

I am a huge fan of short and long term goal setting and the use of to-do lists. We can be much more productive if we organize our objectives and our time. I wouldn’t set out on a major vacation without an itinerary nor would I try to cook a complicated dish without a recipe. Without goals or to-do lists we are too easily distracted. We waste a lot of time and end up going down the wrong path.

I encourage everyone to start with a list of about 20-30 long term goals. From this list identify about 10 things you would like to achieve this year. Then develop a to-do list of things you need to accomplish this week or month. You are way ahead of the game just by writing down some goals and priorities. This forces you to think about your values, desires and objectives for the year. This will serve as your personal strategic plan to make sure you are on the right track.

I know everyone comes up with a list of New Year’s resolutions and we seldom stick to them. So why bother? I think the process itself is good because you have given some thought to what you want to accomplish. You may not reach all of your goals but some of your effort will come to fruition.

I have a special challenge for you in 2010. Think about all the things you would like to accomplish or change in 2010. Select just ONE thing that you must accomplish or change this year and write it down. Make a vow to yourself to do whatever it takes to accomplish this one goal. Create an action plan to reach your objective. Share your goal with at least one other person who will hold you accountable. Be sure to monitor and reward your progress.

If you want to share, I would love to hear about your “One Goal” for 2010 and how you are progressing.

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10 Great Money Saving Ideas for the Holidays

Tuesday, December 1st, 2009

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Jane M. Young, CFP, EA

1. Make a plan – who will receive a gift and how much do you plan to spend. Stick to your plan, keep track of your spending, and don’t spend on impulse.

2. Start early and give yourself plenty of time to select gifts and compare prices. We always over buy and spend too much when pressed for time.

3. Find creative ways to reduce the number of people for whom you plan to give gifts. Instead of buying gifts for friends make arrangements to make each other dinner or meet for an inexpensive happy hour. Remember that receiving a gift can be stressful and a nice a card or gesture may be more appropriate

4. Suggest that your family or group of friends draw names instead of buying gifts for everyone. It is difficult and expensive to buy gifts for a large number of people who already have everything.

5. Exchange white elephant gifts or favorite used books instead of expensive Christmas gifts. This is especially fun in conjunction with a Chinese gift exchange where everyone gets a chance to steal a gift from the other participants.

6. Gift a homemade present such as a homemade sauce, stew or soup, a painting, a knitted scarf, cookies, or a pie. You can capture a special moment by framing a photo or post card or you can create a calendar with some sentimental photographs.

7. If you have more time than money gift your services such as babysitting, home maintenance, faux painting, cooking a meal, house cleaning, shoveling snow, decorating advice, cooking lessons, a musical performance, or computer instruction.

8. Rather than providing all the food for your holiday party, ask your friends to bring a dish and a bottle of wine. Co-host a party with a few friends and share the cost. If you are planning a neighborhood party, consider a progressive party where each course is served at a different home.

9. Avoid purchasing expensive new holiday clothes. Make your existing wardrobe more festive through the use of inexpensive accessories and scarves. If you really need a new outfit check out your local consignment stores. Holiday and formal attire isn’t worn very often and is usually in good shape at consignment stores.

10. Lower the cost of Christmas cards and postage by using post cards, e-cards, e-mail or a simple phone call. It’s the thought that counts.

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Ten Things You Can Do Now To Save Taxes in 2009

Saturday, May 2nd, 2009

Jane M. Young, CFP, EA

Whew!! The 2008 tax season is finally over and we can relax. Well not exactly; this is a great time to prepare for 2009 taxes. A little effort now can help you save in 2009 and will make the process a whole lot smoother. Below are some ideas to help save taxes in 2009.

1. Create a folder for your 2009 tax documents and receipts. Create a file right now, and keep it somewhere convenient, to keep track of all those expenses and donations as they occur.

2. Start going through your old clothes and junk in the garage and donate it to a charity of your choice, if you itemize this can provide a sizable deduction. Remember, keep a log of everything you donate and get a receipt!

3. If you anticipate a substantial change in your 2009 income or if you owed a lot in 2008, now is the time to adjust your withholdings or your estimated payments. There is nothing worse than owing an unexpected $5000 at the end of the year.

4. Maximize your contribution to tax deferred retirement plans. Limits on the 401k, Simple and SEP have all increased this year. If you turned 50 this year you can now make catch-up contributions to your retirement plans including your IRA (assuming you are otherwise qualified).

5. Do you anticipate a decrease in income this year? You may be eligible to contribute to a Roth IRA or for a conversion from a Roth IRA to a traditional IRA. The recent drop in the stock market has made conversion to a Roth IRA very appealing. You can pay income taxes on your account now, while the balance is low. Then during retirement, when the market has recovered, you can take tax free withdrawals. In 2009 your AGI must be less than $100,000 to be eligible for a conversion.

6. Will you be paying college expenses sometime soon? If you live in Colorado you can invest the money you will be spending on college expenses in a 529 plan and deduct the contribution from your state income tax. If you have a couple kids in college this can be significant. Don’t worry; you can invest the money in something very safe within the 529 if you are worried about market volatility.

7. If you are a first time homeowner you may be eligible for a 10% credit up to $8000 if you buy a home by December 1, 2009. This is really more like an interest free loan because it must be paid back over 15 years. Additionally, it is subject to income limits. The credit begins to phase-out for joint filers with modified adjusted gross income of $150,000 or more.

8. Are you thinking about buying a new car? You may be able to deduct the sales and local tax if you buy the car this year. This is subject to an income phase out if your adjusted gross income exceeds $125,000. I know they take all the good stuff away from middle class wage earners.

9. If you own a business or work as a consultant, be sure to keep accurate and complete records. Don’t forget to track your mileage, the current deduction for business mileage is $.55 per mile. This is frequently overlooked or understated due to poor record keeping. Additionally, if you work in your home and have a dedicated work area you may want to claim a home office deduction.

10. Take advantage of the drop in the stock market to do some tax harvesting. Tax harvesting is taking advantage of a market decline to sell some of the dogs in your investment portfolio while taking a capital loss or reduced capital gain. Prior to the market drop, the sale of a particular security may have been prohibitive due to capital gains. Now you can take advantage of the drop in the market to clean up your portfolio or do some re-balancing of your asset allocation.

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10 Ways to Save Money on Food

Tuesday, April 28th, 2009

Jane M. Young, CFP, EA

1. When grocery shopping, select items from the lower shelves, the more expensive items are usually placed at eye level.

2. Stock up when durable goods that you always need go on sale. Don’t buy something you wouldn’t otherwise buy just because it’s on sale.

3. Reduce impulse purchases at the grocery store – go less frequently, make a list and eat before you go. I know, I know, those strawberry shortcake cookies, with the cream filling and chocolate swirls looked so good. But a few days later …… what was I thinking??

4. When comparing prices check the unit price not the total price. You may pay less but you are probably getting less for your money.

5. Eat smaller portions of meat – you might even lose a little weight. Meat is very expensive, use more vegetables and less meat in you recipes.

6. When eating out, eat half of your meal at the restaurant and take the rest home with you. Most restaurants serve very large portions.

7. When eating out limit yourself to one glass of wine or drink tap water instead of coffee, tea or soda. Beverages can be very expensive relative to the cost your food.

8. If you are having an entrée avoid ordering appetizers or desert at the restaurant. Have drinks and appetizers at home before you leave or coffee and desert at home after dinner.

9. Eat something at home before you go out to meet friends. Limit your order to an appetizer or a side salad to be sociable.

10. Rather than celebrating at a restaurant, organize a potluck or take turns hosting a dinner party.

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Painless Money Saving Ideas

Tuesday, April 21st, 2009

I am starting a new on-going feature that will provide money saving ideas.   My goal is to contribute something on saving money about once a month. In the current economy we need all the help we can get. If you have any money saving ideas please send them to me and I’ll include them in the blog. I’ll start with a few ideas that have worked for me.

• Start shopping for clothing at consignment stores. I love good quality clothing but hate to pay the price. For years I’ve been meaning to stop by this cute little boutique on the west side of town and I finally did. Three hours later and two hundred dollars poorer, I walked out with what would have cost me at least $1000 in a regular retail store.

• Save your change. Do you have loose change all over your house and car? I started putting all my loose change in a jar and I had over a hundred dollars saved up in no time!

• Identify and focus on one or two problem areas. We all have areas in our lives where we spend too much. Mine is spending too much eating out. I am trying to focus on this area by keeping groceries in the house, taking breakfast and lunch to work, going to restaurants when they have special deals, sharing a meal and going to a nice restaurant and eating at the bar (same chef ).

• Lengthen the time between personal care appointments such as hair-cuts and manicures. I used to get my hair cut every 4-5 weeks. I found I could go about 6-8 weeks without any problem. Do some of your own personal care and limit that professional manicure or pedicure to once a month or to special occasions.

• Take the time to really shop around for airline tickets. We recently saved $400 per ticket by shopping around and checking numerous different possibilities. Take advantage of opportunities to get airline miles on your credit card. I have two cards that give me airline miles and I make a point to put all of my large purchases on a credit card to get the mileage credit.

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