frugal underground

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As a generally-overwelmed business owner, the last time I went to plan a vacation I decided to stick to the tried and true because I was overwhelmed with the number of travel websites to search. For my next vacation, I intend to pleasantly surprise my hubby by planning our trip through SideStep.

SideStep is a website that searches over 200 travel websites to find the best travel deals on the web for you. Over six million people use SideStep monthly to find travel savings. That’s because SideStep checks consolidators, agencies, hotels, airlines, rental car companies and vacation package folks to find the best deals around. They also have partnerships with major travel corporations like as Orbitz.com, Continental Airlines, JetBlue Airways, American Airlines, Best Western, Hilton Hotels, Hotels.com, Avis Rent a Car and Budget Rent a Car.

You can register for free at SideStep and you can save your travel search preferences and register your searches. By joining SideStep, you can also share your travel experiences with reviews and communicate with other members.

Using SideStep for vacation planning will save me time and money in the future. Anyone used it or found any good competitors?

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Blogging is one of the most trendy ways to make money online these days. The question is, though, is it effective? Meaning, for the time you put into it, are you getting as good of a return as you could somewhere else?

I’m not sure. That’s saying something considering that I’m a blog developer.

Don’t get me wrong; I believe that blogging is a tremendously useful marketing tool, but mostly for someone who already has something to sell. It could be a product, a book, or services, but blogging helps multiply efforts to get a reputation as an expert.

Similarly, I believe that blogging offers many benefits beyond money. One is the reality that blogging about something on a regular basis forces you to learn new things and process information in useful ways, and that’s a skill that can help anyone in any job. You could probably even argue that the benefits would be worth paying for.

It starts to get a little murky, though, when you look at blogging as a direct path to money. There are really only a few ways to make money directly from your blog (”monetize it”). There’s advertising (either working with advertisers or going through a service like AdSense). There’s affiliate programs (where you make a commission by encouraging your visitors to buy something). There’s sponsored posts (where you write about a product, service, or site in exchange for a fee). Or you can write for a network (they take care of monetizing the blog and you provide the content for a fee).

As far as I know, those are your options. So the question is, are they good options? Yes and no. Yes, because some people really do make good money with those options. No, because the vast majority of bloggers make an absolute pittance. When you consider the time put in for the money pulled out, it’s much less than minimum wage.

On the other hand, sometimes it’s worth making less than minimum wage if you get other benefits. Besides the afore-mentioned educational benefits, blogging is flexible and allows you to, say, write while staying home with the kids. Try doing that with a traditional job!

It’s really a question of comparisons: how does the effort required and money returned compare to other alternatives? If you’re single or don’t have kids, it’s probably going to make more sense to spend your time elsewhere. That doesn’t mean blogging isn’t a possibility, just that you should consider creating a full-fledged business and blogging to help promote it.

If you’re looking for a small supplementary income that can be made in short spurts of free time, blogging might be a good choice.

In closing, I’ll tell you that this isn’t just an academic question for me. I’m thinking of starting a new blog on Christian wifehood (but a little edgier than that might sound) and am having a hard time justifying the time it would take for the money it would make. That said, it’s something that I care about for reasons other than money, so I might just do it anyway. Would anyone want to write for such a blog?

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In addition to Amazon’s Black Friday sale, I’ve also come across a few more noteworthy online sales. (I’ll update this post as I come across other exceptional deals.)

If you need a new desktop computer, you’ll have a hard time beating this deal from PC Direct; I’m not going to list all the specs here, but in my semi-professional tech opinion, this is the best computer deal I’ve seen in a long time.

Knitters looking to round out their needle collections might want to consider Lion Brand’s great deal on a circular needle set. Less than $20 (plus shipping, I imagine) gets you seven 29″ circular needles from size 10.5 to 35!

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Here in the U.S., the day after Thanksgiving has picked up the moniker of “Black Friday.” Seems a little dismal, but it’s almost a holiday of its own—part frugality, part insanity. It’s a “competitive shopping” extravaganza of too many people clamoring for too little inventory.

Personally, I’m not a big Black Friday shopper. I’m usually too lazy to go buy a paper, find the good sales, and drive all over town. That said, I’ve gotten some great deals in the past, and if you have a list of Christmas present recipients but don’t know what you’re getting them, it can be a good strategy for frugal shopping.

This year, though, I was amused (and secretly delighted) to see that Amazon is doing a big Black Friday sale of their own. No doubt they’ve done this before and I just didn’t notice, but for a homebody like me, it’s good news.

They don’t have details on what’s going to be available, but they promise hourly deals from 6am to 6pm PST. It’s also worth checking out their creative “Customers Vote” deals—it’s the only place I’ve seen a chance of getting a Wii for $79.

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I’ve been reading with interest Millionaire Mommy Next Door’s recent posts on renting vs. owning. She makes some very good points that run counter to a lot of people’s emotional decisions, and honestly, if I wasn’t already committed to owning (we started buying our house before the bubble made things crazy and have an extremely low interest rate), I’d seriously consider renting instead of buying in order to make better use of the dollar difference. As it is I’m encouraging my sister and brother-in-law to think carefully about it.

Since I’ve been thinking a lot about the topic, a Springwise post this morning caught my eye; it’s about a site called Rentometer. It was originally created for property owners, to help them figure out what a reasonable rent rate is based on the basic characteristics (number of bedrooms) and neighborhood.

Naturally, the site has also found success with renters themselves who want to know if what they’re paying is reasonable. I ran it on my sister’s apartment and it said that their rent is comparable for the neighborhood.

I particularly like the visual aspects. The little gauge makes it easy to see the spread, and the Google map is specific enough that it could actually be helpful when apartment-shopping. One thing my sister and I noticed is that it doesn’t seem to take into account things like how new the rentals are or what specific features, so it’s really just a general tool, but it seems like a pretty helpful one.

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You probably have some old things that you don’t need or want anymore. You might be able to sell the items and make some money.

The older the item is, the more valuable it may be. Certain limited edition toys, for example, could be worth hundred or thousands if they are still in the packaging. Old video games, out of print books, and other discontinued items might be worth quite a bit to an eager seeker. Comic books, collectible sports cards, made special addition magazines could get you some money. Sign up for an ebay account if you have something that might be valuable.

Photo by lynnieb

You can also have a good old fashioned yard sale. One person’s trash is another person’s treasure. As long as it can still be used or fixed, you can sell it. Not only will you free up some space in your closet, but you will make some extra money, too.

When you make a sale, put the money into an interest-bearing account and reap the benefits every month.

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Photo by KRob2005

Not everyone can afford a gym membership or a personal trainer to help them get in shape. As a matter of fact, most people just don’t have the money or the time to travel to the gym before or after their full time jobs. How can a person on a budget lose weight and not lose money?

You can find basic dieting tips and health or fitness information on the web, in the library or at the book store. You can surf and skim for ideas without spending a penny. Get as much information as you can, and apply what you learn.

Here are some quick and easy money-saving weight loss tips:

• Walk as much as possible.
• Drink water instead of soft drinks.
• Use the stairs, not the elevator.
• Stand instead of sit.
• Do sit-ups, leg lifts, or arm curls while watching television.
• Eat less junk food and more fruits and vegetables.
• Eat less meat.
• Never go for seconds.
• Eat slowly, and stop before you are totally full.
• Always get a good night of rest.
• Try to find at least 30 minutes a day to relax, clear your mind and reduce stress.

These tips will help you to increase your metabolism and lower your calorie intake, without the membership fee and special food costs. If you commit to a healthier lifestyle you can lose weight while keeping your wallet fat.

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Here are some ways that people spend money unnecessarily. You can save money little by little if you watch the tiny money grubbers. You might think, a dollar here, or a dollar there, won’t matter. The truth is that a lot of little things really add up.

To illustrate, here is a typical example of allowing little money grubbers waste your money…

Photo by taylorkoa22

Jo-Ann has a full time job, and she loves to use the vending machine. Everyday on her short break, she spends $.75 on a can of soda and $.65 on her favorite snack (that’s $308 per year).

Jo-Ann also has some credit card debt. She always pays more than the minimum, but decides to put her extra money into an interest bearing account instead of paying down the debt. Although her savings will return some money, $50 per month, the interest fees on her cards add up to about $80 per month. (She will still lose $30 per month, $360 per year.)

Jo-Ann doesn’t like to use the internet too much because she is afraid of identity theft. She pays postage for all of her bills (even though she could pay them online). She has to mail six envelopes per month with a stamp. That adds up to $38.28 per year.

Jo-Ann could save more than $700 per year if she pays her bills online, brings a snack from home, and pays down her credit card bills. In five years, she would save $3,500!

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Photo by NURR

You should always have a plan when you are going to spend money. Consider just three areas where we regularly save by planning.

Groceries. Planning the meals to cover a week or two weeks will help you stick to a budget. Instead of buying food on impulse, you can plan each meal ahead and get the necessary ingredients. You should also make sure that you check the levels of household cleaners and toiletries. Avoiding an extra trip to the store will bring down the chances of an impulse purchase.

Entertainment. Everyone likes to get out and have fun. If you really need to get out once in a while, plan an inexpensive night out. Set the amount you will spend and stick to it. If you use cash only, you will be more inclined to stick to budget.

Major purchases. You can save a fortune if you explore your options. When looking for a car, furniture or major appliances, there is much room for error. Think about quality. It might not be the best choice to buy the cheapest thing out there, because it may not last as long. Check the consumer ratings on the brands you are considering. You don’t have to pay top dollar, but cheap isn’t the way to go with certain things.

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Pay your savings account like a bill. The age old method of promising to put aside whatever is left over at the end of a month just doesn’t work well. When you get paid, the first thing you should do is put money away into savings.

Photo by Aytena

Budget a specific amount of your check to put aside every time you are paid. If over time, you think you can put aside more, go for it. Just be consistent.

Make sure you are earning interest. There are several excellent savings accounts that will earn you over 5% APY. I have accounts with HSBC, and ING Direct frequently offers good deals, too. This money will be liquid, meaning you can withdraw money any time, without penalty, if you really need to (the idea is to have a fixed amount that you can afford to set aside).

You should also make a deal with yourself that if you get extra money (gifts, tax returns, a bonus, and especially a raise) that you will use it to reach savings goals.

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