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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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When and Why I Use My Credit Card

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credit card tips, credit card advice, financial advice

visaI have a love/hate relationship with my credit card. I loved using my credit cards in the past when I needed them, I hated paying off the debt over several years, and now I love using them responsibly and watching my credit score get stronger and stronger each month.

I have definitely made my share of financial mistakes in the past and after I finally hit rock bottom I decided to become a responsible young adult and change my financial life around.  I decided that I was sick and tired of having debt and making monthly payments onto my credit cards because that money could otherwise be better spent.  I started paying off all of my credit cards with automatic payments and I set a target date to become debt free.

I know that debt can be overwhelming, but it can also be overcome.  Financial mistakes are fixable and all we have to do is want to change. The financial system does give second chances and as long as we learn from our mistakes our financial future does not have to be a repeat of our financial past.

People can rebuild their credit history by continuously paying off their debts on a regular basis, keeping their balances low relative to the overall limit, and no maintaining more credit card than they need.

The key to building a strong credit history is to know when and why to use our credit cards. I used to misuse my credit cards in the past and that is how I found myself with tens of thousands of dollars in debt at a very young age.  Now every single time that I want to use my credit card I think about my purchase and I ask myself “Would I have made this purchase in the past?” If the answer is “yes” then I don’t swipe my card.

Here are Some Financially Responsible Reasons to Use Your Credit Card:

If the store does not accept debit cards as a form of payment and we don’t have cash.  It’s ok to us our Credit Card in this situation because this is beyond our control. We just have to make sure that we make a payment to our Credit Card as soon as possible in order to avoid interest charges.

If we are a little bit short on cash for our purchase. This is a good reason to use our Credit Card because we do have the money, just not on us. We can make a payment to our Credit Card as soon as we get home.

For the Extended Warranty.  If we have saved up for a big purchase such as appliances or electronics it’s a good idea to charge the purchase on our Credit Card for the extended purchase warranty and pay off our purchase as soon as possible.  We purchase our item, we save on interest, and we still get a guarantee.

(Btw if you’re looking for a great new card check out Budgets Are Sexy’s list of great credit card offers. Maybe you’ll find one you like there.)

Here are Some Reasons Why We Should Never Use Our Credit Card:

Just because an item is on sale.  Unnecessary spending is a major reason why people accumulate debt.

If we constantly find our self short on cash.  This is a budgeting issue and using our Credit Card until we receive our next pay check is not fixing the problem, it is only a temporary solution. We need to go over our budget and make cuts in our monthly spending to make sure that we can afford our daily living necessities.

As a personal loan or cash advance.  There is no grace period on cash advances and we are charged interest as of the day we take the money.  The interest rate on cash advances is also a lot higher and therefore we should try to avoid them.

Photo by Money Blog Newz

What is your race preventing you from achieving?

Posted on by 6
racism, racial issues, racial discrimination

knit red hat

With the recent shooting of unarmed teenager Trayvon Martin in Florida by a local Neighbourhood Watch citizen, I started thinking about how some people view people of different races.  Trayvon Martin was walking home from the store and wearing a hoodie sweatshirt when he was shot to death by a Neighbourhood Watch citizen who said that Trayvon Martin looked suspicious. If our race can prevent us from walking home at night with some candy and a soft drink, what else is our race preventing us from achieving?

During the work week I have to abide by the dress code enforced by the bank where I work.  However on the weekend you will often see me running errands while wearing a hoddie sweatshirt and jeans.  If you saw me on the weekend buying groceries in my converse sneakers you may never think that I am university educated, a certified financial planner, and employed full time at a bank.  But then again why would you assume that I didn’t?

On the night that he was shot to death Trayvon Martin was not trying to achieve anything other than buy some candy at the local store and walk back home safely.  Unfortunately young Trayvon Martin did not make it home safely that night, he was shot to death by a citizen who is supposed to keep the neighbourhood safe, not cause harm. If the way we dress, the grammar that we use when we talk, and the colour of our skin provokes people to aim and shoot gunfire in our direction when we are walking home with a bag of candy in one hand and a bottle of iced tea in the other hand what other actions are our clothes, grammar, and skin colour provoking people to take against us?

– Job opportunity Discrimination.  It is very possible that we may not be offered a job because of our race, religion, or skin tone.  It is unfortunate, but it is true.  Sometimes companies have race quotas that require them to hire a certain number of “minorities” and I also think that this is unfair.  I don’t want someone to become a Fireman just because they are Latino, Caucasian, or African American. I want someone to become a Fireman because he (or she) is the best at the job and who would be able to save me if I am ever in a dangerous situation.

– Being in a Relationship and Finding True Love. In my opinion interracial relationships have become the norm, but unfortunately they have not always been accepted. I believe that everyone should have the right to fall in love, get married, and live happily ever after.  I am not only saying this because I am one half of an interracial relationship, I am saying it because I honestly believe it.  Older generations may not be as open to interracial relationships as younger generations are.  I have several friends who are currently being pressured by their parents or grandparents to find true love with someone who is from the same race and who shares the same cultural and religious beliefs as they do.

– Earning an Equal Income.  Someone’s income should be determined based on their education and experience as well as the expertise that they have to offer.  It should never be determined based on their skin colour.

– Buying Our Dream Home in the Perfect Neighbourhood.   A few years ago my boyfriend Nick and I were thinking about moving and we went to visit a gorgeous apartment in a really nice neighbourhood. During the visit the landlord told us that there were not any non Caucasians living in the building. We never heard back from the landlord regarding our tenant application even though my boyfriend and I both have stable jobs (that may be an oxymoron these days) with a combined household income of over $100,000.  It is totally ridiculous to me that we were not approved for the apartment based on the colour of my boyfriend’s skin.  We are all people and everyone pays rent on the 1st of the month, regardless of their race.

Maybe I am totally naive but do we seriously live in a world when someone can be discriminated against (or even shot) because of how they dress, how they talk, or because of the colour of their skin?

Photo by normanrack

Do You Have Financial Regrets?

Posted on by 7
financial regrets, financial advice, financial tips

financial regrets, financial advice, financial tips

Good Morning Dinks.  As you may remember I have a very unhealthy financial past and I do have some financial regrets. I don’t regret making the mistakes because learning from my mistakes has helped me become financially responsible.  However I do regret that I let my finances suffer for so long.  Eventually I made a conscious decision to turn my financial life around and get my personal finances in order.

I was the product of what I now refer to as “The Britney Spears Effect.”  This refers to the out of the control, reckless, and excessive spending behaviour that occurs in young professionals when they start earning a moderate to high salary at a relatively young age. We often see this reckless behaviour in Hollywood starlets such as Paris Hilton, Britney Spears, and Lindsey Lohan; however it also happens to regular young people who have regular day jobs.  If we don’t have someone to help us manage our money and guide us financially we could end up regretting our financial mistakes.

Make the Decision To Make Changes

I am now responsible with my money because I learned from my irresponsible mistakes in the past.  I used to enjoy my income without any conscious planning for my future wellbeing. One day I finally decided to “grow up” and I made the conscious decision to start paying off my debt, start paying my bills on time, and start saving money on a regular basis.  I now save money in both my short-term emergency savings fund as well as my long-term retirement savings account because I know what it’s like to have an emergency and not have any emergency savings funds.

I am not exactly sure which light switch went off inside my brain that made me start to clean up my financial messiness, but it had a lot to do with the fact that I was sick and tired of seeing my high credit card balances.  I was tired of making payments and not seeing my credit card balances decrease; so I decided to make a change and actively do something to change it.

Find The Root Of The Problem

It is ok to make mistakes as long as we learn from them.  Before we can make any changes in our financial lives we have to find the root of our problems. Before we can change our spending and saving habits we have to first know what we are doing wrong and how our problems started.

I don’t mind sharing my financial story because I want to help people learn from their own mistakes and (if possible) I want to help people avoid making the same mistakes that I made in the past. All financial problems are fixable, but it does take time.  It may take only a few quick months to make a devastating financial mistake, but it can take several years to totally repair our financial situation. I personally feel that if I am learning from my mistakes I can help others learn too, because if it is happening to me the odds are that it is also happening to someone else.

Share Your Financial Story. What is your biggest financial regret?

Photo by calmenda

Friday Roundup: Food, Taxes, and Tattoos

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tattoo timeGood Morning Dinks and Happy Friday. It’s the end of March and April showers will soon bring May flowers.  Next weekend my 40 days of No Chocolate is officially over and I have decided to celebrate with a mini trip to New York City.  You may remember that I absolutely love New York so I have planned a little vacation next weekend.

If I don’t go to New York next weekend I won’t have another chance for the rest of the year and that is way too long for me to be away from New York City.  At the end of April I am having eye surgery and therefore I won’t be able to travel. I have a week of vacation in June, but I plan to stay home and work on my book because I hate travelling during the summer aka tourist season.  I don’t have any vacation during the summer and in September I am attending the Financial Blogger Conference in Denver.  After that my birthday is in October and then on November 1st the bank’s fiscal year restarts and so does the busy time of the year.  So basically if I don’t go on vacation now, I won’t have another chance in 2012.

I have also been toying with the idea of getting a tattoo.  I would love to get a tattoo from Ami James the star of TLC’s hit shows Miami Ink and NY Ink.  This is (maybe) on my list of things to do during my weekend trip to New York City.  I would like to travel to other US cities but I always seem to book a trip to New York City every chance that I get. I would someday like to visit Chicago, Boston, and Philadelphia.

Check out our favourite posts from around the web this week. Have a great weekend DINKS. 

– Passive Income Now  helps us manage our time in the post “What if You Could Only Work 1 Hour Per Day?”

– Clever Dude  gives us tax advice in the post “No, YOU’RE doing your taxes wrong!”

– Budgets Are Sexy is starting a Budget Movement in the post “I’m Bringing Budgets Back” T-Shirt Now For Sale!

– Adaptu offers some financial guidance for singles who become a couple as well as DINKS who re-marry in the post “Money Management for Merging Families”

– Free From Broke helps us save money on groceries in the post “The Cost of Food Waste and How to Prevent It”

– The Financial Blogger works on his self confidence in the post “How Can You Feel So Big and So Little at the Same Time?”

– Wise Bread helps us find some extra money in the post “Surprising Charitable Tax Deductions”

Photo by Elbragon

Car Repairs That Cost You A Lot of Money?

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car repair, car costs, car maintenance

Good Morning DINKS.  Other than your home, house, or apartment what is the biggest expense that you have.  Think about all of the money that you spent last month…both fixed expenses as well as surprise emergency expenses, where did you spend the most money? It is very possible that your car was your most expensive cost.  Some people buy the car of their dreams and they don’t worry about the cost. Some other people buy the car that gives them the best value for their money including efficient gas consumption.

The main financial downfall of owning a car is the fact that it is an asset which depreciates in value.  Another main financial downfall of owing a car is the fact that we can have expensive fixed monthly costs such as insurance, finance payments, and gas.  There are also variable costs associated with owning a car such as regular maintenance fees, car wash costs, and unexpected repairs.

According to MSN here is a list of the most expensive car repairs:

1. Replacing Turbochargers and Supercharger Assemblies.  These are the parts that force air flow through our engine which helps increase both power and efficiency. Approximate cost $1600.

2. Replacing the Torque Converter Assembly.  This piece of our car acts as the link between the engine and the transmission.  It acts as a clutch in an automatic car and it allows us to come to a complete stop without hurting the engine and stalling our car. Approximate cost $1800.

3. Replacing the Catalytic Converter.  If you have ever had a smog check then you know what this is.  It is the part that detoxifies exhaust emissions and decreases our cars impact on the environment. Approximate cost $2600.

4. Replacing our Hybrid Battery.  When a hybrid battery needs to be replaced it also requires the motor assisted battery to be replaced because the motor assisted battery charges the hybrid battery. Total approximate cost $2700.

5. Replacing the Injection Pump. This is the part of our car that pumps gas into the engine and as you can imagine it is a vital part of our car.  The cost of replacing the injection pump varies depending on the labour involved.  Approximate cost $2900.

6. Replacing the Camshaft.  This car part can accumulate debris buildup over time if we use lower grade gas and if we don’t regularly change our oil.  The camshaft operates the valves that let air flow into our engine.  Approximate cost up to $3100.

7. Replace Cylinder Head Assembly. This is usually the car part with the problem when our “check engine” light comes on.  It is a problem that has to be addressed as soon as possible because it can cause our car to overheat which can hurt our engine.

8. Replacing the Transmission Assembly.  Our car couldn’t run with a transmission and unfortunately it is a part of our car that is usually neglected.  The transmission is just as important as our engine and therefore we should take care of both. Approximate cost $3600.

9. Replacing the Hybrid Inverter Assembly.  Hybrid parts are hard to come by, they aren’t yet available at every local auto store or garage.  Therefore the cost to replace hybrid parts can be very expensive.  The Hybrid Inverter changes direct current power to alternating current power. Approximate cost up to $7400.

10. Replacing the Cylinder.  If all other aspects of our car such as clean air, fuel, and sparks do not properly cooperate together then our cylinder can over heat and stop functioning.  Approximate cost up to $8000.

Photo by Megavas

If We Don’t Spend It, We Can Save It.

Posted on by 4
savings challenge, savings tips, savings advice

You may remember that I started a 6 month no spending spree back in January as one of my New Year’s Resolutions. My no spending spree has actually turned into a spending less lifestyle. Tracking my daily and weekly spending has been bitter-sweet. I like knowing where my money goes, but I don’t like seeing exactly how much money I spend every week. I especially don’t like seeing the breakdown of how I spent my money each day because most purchases could have been saved.

I told myself that each week when I spend less money than the week before I will transfer the difference into my savings account. The theory behind this is that I may have spent it anyways, so if I save it I won’t miss it. My spending has been cut down significantly, but it has not stopped. I am not sure what it is about spending money that is so addictive, but I feel like I have to spend a little bit of money each day, even if it’s only $2.

A Little Bit Can Add Up To A Lot!

Every day when I spend $2 on Tea at Starbucks or $4 on a Breakfast Sandwich I don’t even think twice about it. But, at the end of the day all of my $2 and $4 purchases can add up to over $10. My $10-ish purchases per day can add up to approximately $50 of personal spending per work week. If I eliminated at least one purchase per day I could save $25-$50 per week.  I am sure that an extra $50 per week is better saved rather than spent.

Don’t Spend It, Save It!

The theory that our daily spending can add up to a big weekly expense is definitely true, but it is also true for our personal savings. Sometimes people don’t save because they are discouraged when they don’t see their savings growing quickly. But the truth is that money takes time to add up into savings, just like it takes time to cut down our spending so that we can save more.

Saving money is always a good idea. Saving an extra $50 on a monthly basis may not seem like a lot of money in the short term, but it can add up to $600 per year plus compounded interest. Whenever we are saving or spending money we can’t only look at the present, we have to see the big picture into the future.

Finding Ways to Save Money

As I continue to monitor my daily and weekly spending I am noticing tips and tricks with my spending that could have actually saved me some money; I just wish that I had noticed them before my purchase and not after the fact. But it’s ok because the whole point of trying to live a healthier financial lifestyle is learning from our mistakes.

Each week as I track my daily spending I discover a place where I could have saved money instead of spent it.   I try to wake up 15 minutes early in the morning to make sure that I don’t grab breakfast on the go at my local coffee shop.  I try to pack my lunch for work the night before to make sure that I am not buying my lunch on a daily basis.  I think twice about buying snacks because snack spending adds up very quickly.  I always watch the cash register when I check out at the store to make sure that my items are scanning at the correct price.

What is your little savings tip?

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Smart Strategies = Financial Success

Posted on by 3
financial success, smart decisions, financial tips

financial success, smart decisions, financial tips

Good Morning DINKS. We are now well into the month of March so I want to check in and see how you are doing with you New Year’s Resolutions? If you New Year’s Resolution was to lose weight, are you still working out? If your New Year’s Resolution was to save more money, are you still living on a budget?

TD Bank recently published an article to help us achieve personal financial success in 2012.  Their helpful tips to get our personal finances on track are very similar to the everyday tips that I often provide to my clients, so I definitely also wanted to share with you.

Use these 7 helpful strategies to achieve financial success in 2012:

1. Use Online Tools.  There are many online tools which are offered by banks as well as independent financial websites that can help clients plan our budget, manage our money, track our savings, and watch our investments grow. We suggest using Adaptu.

2. Analyze Your Cash Flow. Once we have planned our budget we will know exactly how much money is coming in each month and where we are spending it.  After analyzing our cash flow if we discover that we have extra unspent money at the end of each month we can increase our savings or investments.

3. Save For a Purpose.  This is very important when trying to achieve financial success. There is no point in saving if we don’t have a purpose or a savings goal. Saving money just for the sake of saving money never works because money is easier to spend than it is earned or saved. Saving in an emergency account, an annual vacation, a lump sum mortgage prepayment, or our retirement are all great reasons to save.

4. Pay Yourself First. This is a proven successful financial strategy and it involves setting up regular automatic savings plans and investment purchases.  Before we pay our bills and spend our money we should pay our self first by investing for our future. Set up automatic payments to your savings and investment account as a form of forced savings.

5. Invest for the Long Term.  Markets will always move on a daily basis and market volatility is inevitable.  We should focus on the long term and not invest with our emotions. We have to be comfortable knowing that the value of our investments will fluctuate on a short term basis and we should always keep our long term goals in mind.

6. Pay Off Your Debts.  There is no better financial strategy in the world than to pay off our debts. Not only is being debt free a good idea for our finances because it provides freedom and the possibility for extra savings, but being debt free is also an emotional liberation.

7. Ask For Help.  If we don’t know how to budget, where to invest our money, or how to free up some extra savings each month then we should ask for help. We can read personal finance blogs or we can visit our local bank branch. We can also ask our family and friends for advice.

If you have a financial tip or strategy that has helped you start saving, get out of debt, or more efficiently manage your money please share with us.  We love to hear tips.

Photo by mansionwb

Why Do You Work So Much?

Posted on by 9
workaholic, working too much, work lifestyle

microscopeWhen I am not busy earning a secondary income as a Financial Blogger, I have a regular 9-5 job as a Financial Planner at a Bank Branch.  After I get home from my regular 9-5 job I continue working for a few hours every night as well as on the weekends.

The funny thing about working so much is that I don’t feel like I am missing out on anything. I definitely get tired but even with a long work week I still have time to socialize with friends and work out 3 times a week.  I keep my regular 9-5 job completely separate from my secondary income activities.  Unfortunately I can’t discuss my Financial Blogging activities with my co-workers.  It’s almost as if I am living 2 separate lives.

One of my closest friends recently asked me why I work so much.  I wasn’t completely sure how to answer her question except to say that this is always how my life has been.  I started working two jobs when I was 16 years old shortly after my parents announced their divorce.  I have always worked two jobs and I am really not sure what I would do with my spare time if I didn’t work so much.  I guess that I would find a new hobby, or maybe I would just watch a lot of television; I am not really sure. But the truth is that I can’t imagine my life without working so much.

The more I think about it, the more I wonder why we as young professionals focus so much on our careers.  Let me ask you a question Dinks….why do you work so much?

There are usually 3 reasons why people work so much:

1. They Have A Lot of Expenses.  Very often the reason why people work one or two jobs is because they need to support their current lifestyle. Whether we are supporting our family, paying off our debt, or trying to pay all of our monthly bills on time sometimes we work so much because it is essential to make ends meet for our day to day living.

2. They Are Obsessed with Saving. Sometimes people work a lot because they are addicted to the income.  If we have a bigger incoming cash flow then we probably have a larger disposable monthly income and therefore we can save more money on a monthly basis.  Some people enjoy watching their savings account balances grow and some people enjoy investing their extra income by buying stocks, bonds, and mutual funds.

3. They Really Love Their Job. For some people working a lot of hours each week is not about the pay check, it’s about the love of their job.  Workaholic employees want to succeed or even excel at their job because they really love what they do. It’s not about getting a promotion and it’s not about getting a pay raise, it’s about the love for their job or helping their co-workers.

Why do you work do much?

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Friday Roundup: Stocks, Spouses, and Cell Phones

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Happy Friday Everyone. I hope that you all had a great St. Patrick’s Day last weekend, I walked in our St. Patrick’s Day Parade last Sunday and it was a lot of fun.  “Be in a Parade” was on my Bucket List and now I can cross that off my list. This weekend I don’t have anything special planned other than getting my hair cut and getting a manicure. What are your plans for this weekend?

We have quite a few post links this week in our Friday Roundup because I couldn’t seem to narrow it down to only the best.  There were so many really great posts out there this week, so enjoy reading and have a great weekend DINKS.

– 50 Plus Finance tells us that it is never too late in the post “Term Life Insurance for Seniors”

– The Simple Dollar  inspires us in the post “Making Money from a Passion”

– Enemy of Debt helps us understand each other’s point of view in the post “Battle of the Sexes, Over Debt?

– Money Crashers reviews new technology in the post “Top 5 Best Cell phones of 2012”

– Financial Samurai gives us some investment advice in the post “Should I Take Profits And Sell Stocks?”

– Careful Cents asks the looming question “File Your Own Taxes or Hire a Professional?”

– Broke Gal NYC helps us plan in the post “Spending Priorities: What Are Yours And Why?”

– So Over Debt helps us start our spring cleaning in the post “What’s in Your Wallet? 5 Ways to Clear the Clutter”

 

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3 Easy Steps to Change Your Financial Life

Posted on by 5
financial advice, financial tips, personal finance

pretty flower

If your current financial situation is less than ideal, there are many ways that we can improve our personal finances.  Like any major life change we shouldn’t expect it to happen overnight, our finances will eventually change as long as we take the necessary steps to turn our financial lives around.

Getting into a financial mess is very easy, but getting out of it can be very difficult if we don’t have an action plan.  Sometimes when we are drowning in debt, not paying our bills on time, or living pay check to pay check we can’t see the bigger picture.  We don’t see the light at the end of the tunnel and therefore we don’t make any changes to our financial lives.  We don’t make changes because we don’t think that a small change can make a big difference. However the truth is that big changes usually start with a small beginning. The most important move towards a happy financial future is taking the first step now.

Poor money management, unhealthy spending habits, and loads of debt should be treated like any other type of addiction.  We have to be ready to make a change because we will never change until we want to.  Banks can deny our loans, Equifax can trash our credit score, and Amex can cancel our credit card, but we will never really make a change in our financial life until we admit that we have a problem and realize that it’s time for change.

Use these 3 steps to help change your financial life

1. Start Making Payments. Even if your debt balances seem overwhelming and it feels like your large balance will never be at zero just start making payments.  Making only the minimum monthly payments helps keep our account up to date and it can also can help our credit score increase, but it doesn’t help our balances get paid off faster. Making regular payments to our debts and paying more than the required minimum monthly payment helps our debts get paid off sooner and it will also help us save on interest costs.  This is true for making debt payments as well as paying our monthly bills.

2. Stop Getting Into Debt.  If you have revolving credit products such as Credit Cards or Lines of Credit then you are used to regaining access to your available credit balance every time you make a payment. However using our available credit is a big financial mistake and it doesn’t help us pay off our debts sooner.  We have to change our debt mentality to think that we don’t have any available credit, this way we won’t continue using our Credit Cards and our debt will get paid off faster.  Once our debts are paid off we can close unwanted Credit Cards. We can keep one or two Credit Cards open for emergency purposes and to help rebuild our credit score if our loads of debt tarnished it in the past.

3. Start Saving.  After our debts are more than half paid off we can start saving money.  Some people like to make sure that all of their debts are paid off in full before they start saving, but this is not necessary.  Once our debts are paid off by half the total amount we owe we can start saving. By this time we are well on our way to breaking our old bad financial habits.  Once our debt is paid down by half we have two choices, we can continue using our fixed monthly payments to get our debts paid off in full or we can use a portion of our regular monthly payments to start saving.  As our savings grow and our debts get paid off our Net Worth will increase and so will our credit score.

Photo by sophiea

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