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Author Archives: Kristina Tahnyak

Avatar photo About Kristina Tahnyak

Tahnya is a Certified Financial Planner and former Investment Advisor turned marketing and communications professional She holds a degree from Concordia University, is debt free and currently works in the field of digital marketing.

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What is your philosophy about money?

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money philosophy, love of money, money insight

Good Morning Dinks.  Let me ask you a question, do you love money? If you answered yes, then I have a follow up question, why? Why do people love money so much?

Maybe you love money because it helps buy all of the things you want, maybe you love money because it helps you live the lifestyle you want, maybe you love money because it is a reflection of how hard you work or maybe you love money because watching your bank accounts grow makes you happy.

If you answered no to the first question then right now you may be questioning why do you hate money? Everyone’s relationship with money is different, but I’m sure at some point in our lives we have loved and hated money.

We all probably handle our money in different ways and that is most likely a direct reflection of past our relationships with money. I personally never spend money on anything that I don’t need to keep me warm, clean or full; but this is most likely because I was not always responsible with money in the past.  I have to really push myself to spend money now because I never want to go back to being broke.

Should we spend money just because we have it?

Some people love money because they love spending money, are you one of those people? One of my new coworkers believes in spending her hard earned money. She does not save for retirement and other than a small emergency savings fund; she enjoys her money while she is still young enough to earn it.

What are we saving for?

If you don’t like to spend your money then you most likely save your money, but what are you saving for?  If you have a goal then saving money can actually be fun – especially when you save enough money to achieve your goal.  But other than specific goals, what are you saving for? Maybe building your net worth makes you happy and you don’t actually need to be saving for something in particular in order to save money, but for many of us this is not the case.

Some people save unconsciously because they make more money than they need to support their lifestyle and some people have to force themselves to save.  That is definitely me – if I leave money in my bank account I will find an excuse to spend it, not on unnecessary items but on items that we need for the house.  So I set up automatic transfers from my checking to my savings accounts every two weeks with my pay.

Why do we care so much about money?

I used to hate money because it was the root of all my problems, but now that I have learned my lessons and I have grown up to be a financially responsible adult I actually love money.  I look forward to payday, not because I am broke and in need of money, but because it means that my savings account balances are growing and I love watching my little babies grow.

Photo by public domain photos

Do you have spring fever?

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spring fever, spring cleaning, spring season

Oh I love this time of the year.  It means that we can finally open our windows and let the fresh spring air in.  We can finally get outside and take a walk and we can finally enjoy more than just a few hours of sunshine.  I love spring for so many reasons, but one of the main reasons is because I can clean out my closet, rotate my shoes and get rid of all my unused/unwanted items. That’s right, it’s April and it’s time for spring cleaning.

Do you give your house a top to bottom clean during the spring time? Maybe you paint your walls a fresh new color, maybe you brighten up your rooms with new decorative pillows and new bedding or maybe you just put on your rubber gloves and get into it up to your elbows.

Do you think that spring cleaning a personal habit sparked from years of tradition or is it a personal ritual that marks the beginning of a new season and warmer things to come? Let me ask you a question, before you start cleaning your home from top to bottom you have to figure out if it is really worth your time?

Why do you love spring cleaning?

Maybe you want to rid your home of winter dust bunnies, maybe you want to redecorate or maybe you want to get rid of your unused items and donate them to those who are less fortunate. But does your home really need it or are you just getting in the mood for spring?

Chase Blueprint® recently released their time-worth calculator, check it out and you’ll quickly learn that sometimes it just doesn’t pay to do it yourself if it costs you too much time.  Just like everything in life we have to decide where we are going to spend our time and how much of an effort we are going to put into our tasks, our lives and our budgets.

At the end of the day we have to be happy and some people feel that cleaning is very therapeutic. I don’t particularly love the task of cleaning, but I absolutely love how my apartment looks after I am done. What does that say about me?

Would you let someone else come into your house to clean?

Maybe it’s better to hire outside help to get the job done rather than spend the time and make the effort to do it yourself.  This doesn’t only apply to spring cleaning; it applies to all other tasks in our lives.  It also applies to the items that we want to buy in life – the item (or the task) has to be worth the cost before we pay money to buy it.

According to a nationwide survey conducted by LearnVest and Chase Blueprint®, respondents said that they’re willing to spend $24 on a dinner entrée and $71 on a pair of shoes. Viewed through this lens, would you be willing to skip a few dinners out to hire someone else to help you sort through all those old shoes in your jam-packed closet?

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Cut your home costs with these 3 tips

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Spring is just around the corner and what does that mean in the world of banking? It means that all personal bankers – like me – are busy processing mortgage applications and approving mortgage loans.  Spring time is the time of the year when people pack up their belongings into boxes and move into their new homes.

Buying your first home is a very big step and it is also a very big financial commitment.  Many people take a spending hiatus for a few years after they purchase their first home because they are just not prepared for the financial commitment that comes with buying a home.  Purchasing your first home can be a great investment, but don’t kid yourself; it’s also a very big financial commitment and an even bigger financial constraint.

I know that I have always been the poster child for continuing to rent an apartment, but that is just for my current lifestyle.  I don’t think that homeownership is a bad idea; if it works for you and if you and your spouse can afford to make the investment then homeownership may just be exactly what you need.  As a matter of fact my job as a financial planner was to help people successfully buy their first home.

Use these tips to save money when buying your first home:

1. Check your credit before you go to the bank.  Your mortgage interest rate is based on several different factors including your personal income, your credit history, the amount of your personal savings, and your credit score.  The better (aka the higher) your credit score, the better your mortgage interest rate will be.  It’s a good idea to check your credit score at least six months before you apply for a mortgage loan because that’s how long it takes to start making changes in your financial behaviour towards improving your credit score.

2. Shop around to find the best rate. After you have found your dream home and you have made an offer to purchase it’s time to visit your local bank branch and apply for a mortgage loan.  Before you divulge all of your personal information and let your bank pull a credit check it’s a good idea to shop around to find the best interest rate.  If several banks check your credit it can actually harm your credit score. When you are talking with your personal banker don’t be afraid to ask for a lower mortgage rate, there is always some room to negotiate.

3. Save on your down payment. A common mistake made by first time homeowners is using all of their personal savings for the down payment on their first home.  Of course the bigger the down payment, the more you can save on interest charges over the course of your mortgage loan. However if you use all of your personal savings for the down payment on your first home you won’t have an emergency savings fund. It’s never a good idea to leave yourself without an emergency savings fund because we just never know what the future holds.

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Weekly Roundup: Transportation, Giveaways and Volunteering

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Happy Friday Dinks.  We are now into April and you know what they say “April showers bring May flowers”. I don’t mind the rain because it’s better than snow.  I actually like the rain, it’s almost as if it washes everything away and we can look forward to a new beginning – biblical I know, but that’s how I feel.

Then of course there is the smell of flowers.  When I was a child my bedroom window looked over our garden and when I would sleep with the window open I would always wake up to the smell of fresh flowers.  To this day the smell of fresh flowers always reminds me of my childhood.  That was a simpler time – a time before divorce and before family feuds.

What smell reminds you of your childhood?

Enjoy these giveaways and personal finance posts from around the web and have a great weekend Dinks.

– Take Our Stuff is giving away a $250 shopping spree

– My Diary Entry is giving away a $50 iTrain gift card – if you love to workout then enter this giveaway

– Money Crush – 11 Ways to Save Money on Transportation

– Money Crashers – 10 Good Places to Volunteer – Opportunities & Organizations

– Man vs Debt – Are 401k and 529 Plans a Good Idea When You’re In Debt?

– Money Cone -Does it pay to be a contrarian?

– Smart Passive Income – So THIS is What Happens When Your Server Goes Down for a Week

Photo by Coupon Audit

Why are you hating on payday loans?

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payday loans, loan programs, loan

Good morning Dinks. Today we are talking about payday loans. For some reason, and honestly I am not sure why, but the personal finance blogging community seems to hate payday loans, payday loan companies and everything they stand for.

Maybe personal finance bloggers hate payday loans because they feel they should. Maybe personal finance bloggers hate payday loan companies because one of the blogging pioneers decided not to like payday loans and everyone else just decided to fall in line, or maybe personal finance bloggers don’t like payday loans because they are a form of debt.

Maybe you are hating on payday loans because you don’t understand them

As a financial planner I don’t necessarily like payday loans as a financial product, but I absolutely understand the business.  Payday loan companies provide people with a short term loan at a high interest rate.  If someone is low on their cash flow payday loans will give them a lump sum of cash until their next payday.  Places like these are not for long term solutions to financial struggles, but they are a quick solution to a short term problem or emergency.

I had my share financial struggles in the past and I understand what it’s like to be hungry, so having a few extra bucks in your pocket until your next payday can be very helpful.  Using a payday loan service once or twice is ok, but people have to understand that it is not a long term solution to improving your cash flow and your financial state.

If you really want to stop living paycheck to paycheck then you need to cut your spending, increase your income and learn to live on a budget.  My personal budget philosophy is that if it doesn’t keep me warm, keep me clean or keep my belly full then I don’t need it.

Payday loans are not an emergency savings fund

Payday loans, just like other forms of debt such as credit cards and lines of credit, are not emergency savings – actually they are not savings at all.  We live in a world where people cannot afford their lifestyles and they force themselves to live on credit.  This is a very bad financial habit.  In my previous financial life I would use my credit card to buy basic living needs because I didn’t have the cash in my bank account, but those days are over.

Cutting my expenses and earning a second income were the best financial decisions that I ever made.  I learned to be financially responsible because I hit rock bottom when I was drowning in credit card debt.  I stay financially responsible because I don’t ever want to go back to being broke.

I save my annual bonus, I save my tax refund and I save money on a regular basis with each paycheck to make sure that I always have some cash on hand in case I ever have an emergency.  I don’t ever want to go back to living on credit and being in debt.

Now I use my credit card (my one and only credit card) a few times a month to maintain my credit score and I pay off the balance in full each month in an effort to avoid interest charges.  It’s kind of ironic, I kept a balance on my credit card and paid interest when I couldn’t afford it and now that I can afford the monthly interest charges I avoid them like the flu. Consider this my lesson learned.

Photo by tax credits

Dinks Reality: The Celebrity Apprentice

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Good morning Dinks. As you know I am a huge fan of reality TV and one of my favourite shows just started a new season.  I love The Celebrity Apprentice because it takes place in New York City, it’s full of Hollywood celebs and every week viewers get to watch celebrities tackle a different task.

Of course the highlight of The Celebrity Apprentice is that viewers and contestants get an insider look at how Mr. Donald Trump runs his business. Yes, The Celebrity Apprentice is an entertaining show, but there are also a lot of business, money and life lessons that we can learn from the mega millionaires on the show.  The Celebrity Apprentice is half a reality television show and half a lesson in how run a successful business and brand from some of the top CEOs in America.

3 business lessons that I learned from Donald Trump and The Celebrity Apprentice:

1. Your brand’s image is important. Almost every time a team loses a task on The Celebrity Apprentice it is because they didn’t properly represent the brand.  If you are self employed you have to define your brand image and the message that you want to get across to your potential audience.  Ask yourself – what are your skills and how do you want people to find you?

If you are a freelance writer, community manager or social media manager you have to remember to always keep in the brand in mind at all times.  When you are working for a company you are hired to properly represent their brand.  Don’t be afraid to ask questions, as a matter of fact brand’s encourage it.

2. Make it work within your budget. Each and every task on The Celebrity Apprentice has a set budget and contestants have to make their task successful within this budget – there is no option of going over the budget.  This is a great lesson to be learned, no matter how great you think an idea may be and no matter how much you may want to buy an item, you have to resist.  If it’s not within your budget then you can’t afford it and that’s Donald Trump’s bottom line.

3. Be different because it will pay off.  A lot of the tasks on The Celebrity Apprentice are focused on promoting new products or raising money for a good cause. In order to win a task contestants have to get the word out about their brand or fundraiser and they have to attract the public’s attention.  How can you do this? Well if you ask Gary Busey it’s by making a spectacle of himself on the streets of New York City, but the real way to gain attention for your brand is to have a unique concept.

I know that many new business owners are worried about being different because they feel that potential employers won’t take them seriously, but the truth is that you have to stand out as a business owner, as a freelancer or as a brand. Potential employers may not even visit your website or look at your business card if it’s not unique, you have to be different (and stand out) from the other thousands of businesses out there.  This is true for your website, your work, your business cards and your pitch. Make a good first impression and you will enjoy a profitable business.

Photo by Marriott

A sacrifice can be a blessing in disguise

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coffee routine, sacrificing, blessing in disguise

Good morning Dinks. Well it’s officially over, my 40 day personal sacrifice of giving up my morning coffee shop snacks and drinks is officially over – you know what? I don’t miss it.  Actually I guess what I should say is that I was not as excited to have the option to eat breakfast at my local coffee shop as I thought I would be.  Is it possible that I was only craving my morning stop at the coffee shop because I couldn’t have it?

Changing bad habits

Giving up something as small as my morning breakfast stop at the local coffee shop completely changed my life.  I know that sounds crazy, but it’s true.  I had to change my morning routine to wake up early, cut down my getting ready routine and make time to eat at home as well as find appropriate morning snacks.

I used to wake up, get ready and head out the door.  On my way to work I would stop at my local coffee shop and purchase a breakfast sandwich, an iced coffee and some days a yogurt parfait.  That can add up to $5 to $10 that I would spend every morning on breakfast and snacks. When I add in my Thursday eat out lunches with my co-workers this can add up to $50 a week in snacking and eating out.

After changing my morning routine to include a DIY breakfast I realized that $5 a day and $50 a week is way too much money to spend on snacks.

 Motivation to stay financially fit

After 40 days of waking up early to have a bowl of cereal and snacking on protein bars for my mid morning snacks I realized just how much money I was spending, actually wasting, on morning snacks.

I would love to go back to my morning routine of sleeping in late and grabbing my morning snack from the local coffee shop, but I just can’t do it.  I also gave up my weekly restaurant lunches with my co-workers, now I only eat out with them when they grab and go – no more expensive restaurant lunches for me.

I love the fact that I can leave my house on Monday morning with $20 in my pocket and come home on Friday after work still with $10 leftover.  I used to hit up the ATM at least once a week to support my cash flow and now I don’t even need to carry my bank card in my wallet.

I like seeing extra money in my bank account and I like knowing that the money is there if I need it, but I am not dependant on it.

Eating healthy is the smart choice

I no longer have to make sure that I stop at my local coffee shop in order to make it through my morning.  The main reason why I can save money on snacks and eating out is because I am never hungry.  I pack my lunch every night and put it in the fridge for the next morning.  I snack on fruits and vegetables and I make sure that I buy enough groceries to have lunch every single day of the week.

What is your secret to saving money on snacks and eating out?

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Reformed spenders sometimes relapse

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reformed spenders, spending habits, good habits

Good morning Dinks.  This year I decided to track my spending, expenses and income on a monthly basis. I usually keep all of my receipts from throughout the year in an envelope and add them all up at the end of the year when I am ready to file my taxes – this is very time consuming.

I already filed my taxes this year and I am waiting for my refund, which is very exciting because this year my entire tax refund is going to be put directly into my savings account, that’s a first. In previous years I had to decide which credit card bill I would pay with my tax refund, but those days are over. Since I turned my life around and made the decision to become a financially responsible adult I no longer have to worry about being able to afford paying my rent and my telephone bill in the same month.

I can’t believe how much money I used to waste

As I added up all of my expenses from 2012 and compared them to my tax returns over the last few years I was surprised at the amount of money I used to waste in my previous (and less responsible) life.

As you know I a reformed credit card user and over spender.  Of course I occasionally have random relapse moments when I suddenly become overwhelmed with the urge to spend money carelessly, but I try to snap out of my temporarily insanity before I can do any real damage to my financial state.

I try to pay off my credit card balance (yes, now I only have one credit card) in full each month in order to avoid costly interest charges and avoid letting my balance grow.  I never again want to be overwhelmed with debt because I never again want to spend money just because I have it, I never again want to let multiple credit card balances exceed their credit limits and I never again want to be hungry because I can’t afford to buy food.

I have learned a lot about myself, my relationship and my money over the last few years as I breast stroked my way out of my debt before I drown.  I considered bankruptcy, but decided to do it on my own. I considered asking my parents to bail me out, but I realized it wasn’t their problem to fix.  I couldn’t talk about it with my friends because I was ashamed but the truth is that a lot of my friends were experiencing the same problems and making the same mistakes.

Do you talk about money with your friends and family?

After all, if no one ever teaches us about smart money management as a child how are we supposed to learn about becoming financially responsible young adults?

The amount of money I used to spend on eating out was absolutely ridiculous.  I was too lazy and too busy to take the time to learn to cook.  I wish that I did learn how to cook when I was still living at home because it would have saved me a lot of grief (and money) as an adult.

Now at 32 years old I cook at home and limit myself to eating out only once a week at work and once a week at home.  I only spend money on items that I need for our home.  Saturday is the best day of my week because I get to go grocery shopping, the way I see it groceries are money well spent and a little grocery shopping is better than no shopping at all.

Photo by tax credits

Find a hobby that doesn’t cost a lot of money

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frugal hobby, hobby tips, cheap hobbies

Good morning Dinks.  Let me ask you a question, do you have a hobby? Some of us go stir crazy from being inside during the winter and when spring comes around we try to find any excuse to spend time outside in the sunny warm weather. Some of us just get bored and need to find new ways to spend our time and some others (like me) find a new hobby because we will use any excuse to pursue another one of our passions.

I recently started running and I plan to use my love of travel as my motivation to get fit and become the best runner that I can be.  I have body limitations with a very weak lower back so unfortunately I can’t train every day, but I plan to push my body to its limit over the next year while staying under the watchful eye of my trusted chiropractor.  I started running intervals twice a week on a treadmill and I plan to run my first 5K in Boston next year. I try to maintain a variety between my 3-4 workouts each week which includes a mixture of yoga, the treadmill and weights, but I just love running.

I usually spend all of my vacation time travelling to cities for various blogging and social media conferences, but 2013 is going to be the last year that I will do that.  In 2014 I plan to use my newfound running hobby as an excuse to travel.  Next spring I plan to be in Boston for a 5k run called Boston’s Run to Remember and next fall I hope to visit Washington D.C. for a 5k run called The Colour Run.

As I become obsessed with my newfound running hobby I have learned that new hobbies can quickly become very costly habits.  It’s easy to want to have all of the newest running gear but I won’t let my new running hobby put me into debt or tempt me to spend money that I don’t need to. Depending on your hobby you may even want to check Kijiji and Craigslist to buy equipment second hand.

3 tips to keep your new hobby cost efficient:

1. Try something new.  New hobbies are a great way to try something different and experience something new.  If there is something that you have always wanted to do but just never had the chance, think of taking it up as your new hobby.  Your hobby should be a way to try a new experience without costing you a lot of money.  I have a cousin who wanted to become an avid sky-diver but that is a very expensive hobby.

2. Get on social media.  The best way to find discounts and deals for your new hobby is to connect with people who also share the same passion. Get on Facebook, join Twitter and read blogs to meet new friends.  I have found great deals on workout gear and even had some suggestions on which new running shoes to buy from my new running friends on Twitter.

3. Recruit your friends.  If you need some motivation to stay on track with your new hobby then recruit your friends.  Whether it’s building toy train models or rock climbing you most likely have a friend who shares the same passion and also wants to try something new.

Photo by Diesel

Couples Retirement Planning – Do it together

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couples retirement, retirement planning, retirement

Good morning Dinks.  One of the main goals that we all have is to plan for retirement. We take on spending fasts, we find a second income and we live on a budget all so that we can save for retirement.  If you aren’t spending your money now then you must be saving it for later.

Do you and your spouse share the same retirement goals?

Saving money for your retirement is just not enough, it takes planning. Saving money is a good start but you have to calculate how much you have to save, what age you want to retire and how much money you need in each year during retirement to support the lifestyle that you want to have.

Maybe you and your spouse plan to retire at exactly the same time, but this is rarely the case.  When I was working as a financial planner in a bank branch very often one spouse retired before the other and that means that one spouse was at home all day while the other was still at work. If you and your spouse don’t retire at the same time, what will you do all day if you are home alone?

Retirement is a great time to have the freedom and the lifestyle that you haven’t yet experienced.  Maybe you want to take up a hobby, volunteer your time or move to a warmer climate.  It’s important to talk with your spouse about your retirement plans to make sure that you are both working (and saving) towards the same goals.

What is your secret for saving for retirement?

I am sorry to say this but it’s true; a lot of people don’t save for retirement. There are so many short term goals that people want to achieve before retirement that they don’t focus on their long term goals.

Some people don’t save for the long term because they expect their family and the government to pay for their retirement. Some people feel that they want to enjoy their hard earned money now and therefore they don’t worry about saving for retirement. But the truth is that no one will help us achieve our goals except ourselves.

How much money you need to save for retirement depends on the lifestyle that you want to have during retirement and the income that you will need to support your lifestyle.  Starting to plan for retirement at a young age allows us to save a smaller amount of money each month as we save over the long term.  If you start saving for retirement at a later age you will have to save more money each month in order to achieve the retirement that you want and some of us can’t afford to do that.

I don’t necessarily save any of my own money for retirement.  I have other goals that I want to achieve.  I take advantage of my employer pension plan and my employer stock ownership plan for my retirement savings.  I also contribute my annual bonus into my retirement savings account; this helps me save for retirement without spending any of my own money.

 

Photo by uberculture

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