Buying a car, whether it’s your first or fifth, is always a big investment. This is why it’s important to plan and save instead of jumping right into buying a new car. Fortunately, a PwC forecast shows that there will about 107 million vehicles manufactured globally in 2020, so you’ll have plenty of vehicle options. But before you start looking at vehicles, it’s important to ensure you save up enough money. And to help you save for a new vehicle, we’ve compiled a few simple tips.
First and foremost, it’s important to decide on how much you’re looking to spend on a car. This will help determine how much you need to save. When you have this number, you can figure out how soon you want to save up the money and how much you need to save monthly. Breaking down the expense into smaller amounts makes it seem easier and more attainable. And if money is pretty tight, don’t be afraid to look into used cars. With the average vehicle having three owners throughout its life, there are plenty of used cars that will be more affordable.
If you’re planning on selling your home in the near future, then you may be planning some home improvements. In today’s post, we’re going to talk about how your floor plan can influence your home’s value.
Specifically, we’re going to talk about the pros and cons of open floor plans.
Open floor plans utilize large, open spaces and minimize the use of small, enclosed rooms such as private offices. In residential design, open floor plans typically eliminate walls and doors being used as barriers in order to bring together functional areas that would otherwise be separated. For example, an open floor home would combine the kitchen, dining room, and living room into a single great room.
Some people love open floor plans, but there are plenty of problems associated with this architectural layout. Here are some of the noted disadvantages of open floor plans:
Less privacy — With open floor plans, there isn’t all that much privacy. Though the new owners of your home will likely be a family, privacy is still important inside the home and becomes a rarity when every area is wide open and in someone’s sight line.
Food odors — The smell of ginger and other spices can be nice in the kitchen, but when it spreads throughout the entire home — not so much. Open floor plans don’t protect odors from traveling throughout every inch of the home, which isn’t the best for the family that enjoys a weekly fried fish!
Conversely, there are a few advantages, as well. Here are some benefits of open floor plans:
Entertaining — Entertaining guests in a home with an open floor plan is much easier than other layouts. Guests won’t have to all be corralled into a single room. Instead, everyone can roam freely because there are no walls or separate areas, making everyone feel like cramped.
Safety — For families that have young children, open floor plans are great in terms of safety. You don’t want your child (or hte children of whoever moves in after you) to be one of the 110 million ER patients in a given year. Open floor plans allow parents to keep an eye on their young children when cooking, folding laundry, or performing other household tasks.
Total flooring sales in 2017 covered . That’s because upgrading your home’s flooring material can provide serious ROI. However, if increasing your home’s value is your goal, then selecting the right floor plan is essential.
You have to keep in mind that every home is different and every homebuyer prefers their own individual style and layout. Try and find the best floor plan to get the highest resale value, but don’t worry if potential buyers would prefer a different kind of floor plan. Try to have a little fun during this process and good luck!
According to a survey by the AARP, 74% of older Americans would want work flexibility and 34% would like to work from home. If you’re one of the lucky individuals who has secured a remote opportunity for yourself, the best thing you can do is get your home set up with a workspace that puts you on the path to productivity and success each and every day. With that in mind, here are some modern tips to help you find the best office setup for your everyday needs.
Prioritize Comfort
Above all, comfort should be a main priority when selecting office furniture and decor. The comfort level of your office furniture actually has a big impact on how long you’re able to work each day before becoming physically fatigued. Even though U.S. e-commerce revenue is about $423.3 billion and steadily climbing, shopping online and buying the cheapest office chair you can find in hopes of saving money may not be the best route. Spending a bit more on high-end office furniture up front can really make your remote transition easier in the long run:
“When you’re setting up your home office it’s critical not to look past your furniture needs. Instead, give your furniture decisions the due diligence they deserve. Office furniture is — after all — a matter of long-term health and safety…this means that your furniture choices should be dictated by ergonomic design. Is that chair or desk fundamentally designed to support you? That’s the first question you need to ask, and if the answer if “yes” you can move on from there,” writes Scott Morris on SkillCrush.
Take Advantage of Natural Light
It’s true that everyone is different regarding best work and productivity habits, but in most cases, working in a space with more natural light increases productivity — it’s simply human nature. Knowing this, it makes sense to set up your desk in a position that best allows natural light to enter the room and brighten the place up. Don’t hesitate to hang a few mirrors to make the most of the natural sunlight you have at your disposal.
Don’t Neglect Potential Distractions
Finally, don’t forget to think about the ways that you may become easily distracted in the midst of everyday work. For example, if you have a habit of indulging in a bit too much television, make sure to keep your designated workspace away from your main entertainment setup. If you’re easily distracted by noise, invest in something to drown out sound pollution — a white noise machine or a simple oscillating fan will often do the trick. Take the time to think about your distractions and actively set your workspace up in a way that limits their risk in throwing you off your ‘A’ game.
Ultimately, setting up your home office will likely be a trial-and-error experience. Don’t hesitate to switch around the setup until you find a design that works best for you.
It’s easy to tell when your bathroom needs a facelift, but not quite as easy to successfully do it while keeping to a tight budget. Every year, homeowners remodel more than 14.2 million bathrooms, and many of these ambitious re-doers have done so in creatively penny-pinching ways.
Don’t Touch The Plumbing
When you’re remodeling your bathroom on a budget, the smartest thing to do is leave plumbing fixtures where they are. It can cost about $5,000 every time you move a sink, shower, or toilet in your bathroom. Use the existing piping and work the rest of your remodel around it. If you are determined to switch the fixtures around, make sure you consult with a designer first. While there will be a cost to hiring a professional, you’ll likely save money in the long run by avoiding issues of which you wouldn’t be aware.
Search Online For Leftovers
The millions of homeowners who have remodeled their bathrooms before you could actually help save you money. Many people buy more material than they need for a remodel but can’t return it. They will then try to sell it on websites like Craiglist and eBay for steep discounts. Before you buy pricey tiles, fixtures, or wood at your local home improvement store, look online first. If you find something you like and need to buy more if it, you can then go to the store and match it to what is in their stock.
Modernize The Mirror
Older homes tend to have huge mirrors with dressing room lights lining the top of it. Rather than spending big bucks on a brand new mirror, add a modern frame to it. This will completely transform the look of the mirror and bring that feature of the bathroom into the modern age. The mirror also works to hide the flaking that often happens around its edges. You can turn the frame into a DIY project by finding the frame at a salvage yard or thrift store and then slapping a new layer of paint on it to match your bathroom.
Choose the Right Flooring Materials
There are certain materials that just don’t belong in a bathroom. While there are carpets that can stand up to moisture, such as snap-in or glue-down boat carpeting, your average carpet simply isn’t suited for the bathroom. The same goes for your typical hardwood. Fortunately, there are lots of affordable tile and ceramic options that can be used to beautify your bathroom. If you’re attached to the hardwood look, then opt for laminate flooring that mimics the look of hardwood without the wear and tear.
You want your bathroom to be your personal spa, but you don’t have to pay spa prices in order to achieve that. Find these little ways to save on your bathroom remodel and you’ll get your dream bathroom on an affordable budget.
According to the National Association of Realtors, 52% of home buyers cited finding the right property as the most difficult part of buying a home. But don’t be mistaken, the process doesn’t end when you’ve found the picture perfect property — in fact, that’s where it’s just beginning. Buying a home requires due diligence and financial responsibility. Here’s what you may not know about the real estate purchasing process:
At any age, money management can prove challenging. Emergencies and unexpected costs can arise without warning, wreaking havoc on savings. Of course, saving money is particularly challenging when your car breaks down, you catch the flu, and you drop your phone in the toilet in the space of a week.
Young adults just starting their careers can have even greater difficulty pulling together their finances. Student loans, early-career salaries, and inexperience with money management can all scramble a budget for those just starting out.
Still, many financial experts agree that getting your finances under control at an early age is essential to a lifetime of fiscal responsibility. Here are five tips for the young wage earner to stay afloat:
Pay Off Credit Card Debt One of the biggest struggles for young earners is learning to manage debt. Student debt is often hulking and will require years to pay off, but other debts can be reduced more quickly. Under 30 CEO recommends paying off credit cards on-time and chipping away at big debts to avoid spending too much on interest rates. Most Americans spend about 26% of their annual income paying down debts, but with diligent planning, young people can reduce this percentage to spend money more wisely on other necessities.
Construct a Budget Another essential step for young people is actively keeping track of their spending. Though U.S. News and World Report admits that budgets can feel restrictive, remaining conscious of where your money goes each month can help young consumers make better choices. Using a budget might also help young people find room for more fun spending after they’ve accounted for other essential bills.
Start Saving Now Finally, U.S. News insists that young people must begin saving as much and as early as possible. Saving before you have a mortgage or kids will carve a smoother path for those later-in-life expenses. Specifically, saving for emergencies and for retirement will help new wage earners climb out of financial insecurity quickly. Though retirement may seem distant, U.S. News reminds young workers that many companies will match retirement contributions, so starting early can help them reap rewards for decades.
By following these tips, any twenty-something can go from getting by to getting ahead. Start early for a lifetime of relatively stress-free financial stability.
Are you one diagnosis away from bankruptcy? Then imagine how you’ll feel in retirement. To save on health costs in retirement, you need to start planning now.
With rising health care costs a very scary reality, people who are soon entering retirement need to be thinking about how they can save on their health care expenses. While the average age of retirement is 63, people enter retirement at all ages and at all levels of financial stability. And without a normal income, it’s important for retirees to be smart about their health care expenses. So with that in mind, let’s take a look at a few ways you can save on health care costs in retirement.
Take Preventative Measures
One of the easiest ways to save on health care costs is to stay healthy so you don’t need to visit the doctor more often than necessary. So if you do have any health issues, you should address them before they escalate. And even if you aren’t sick right now, it’s still important to take precautions. By visiting the doctor and dentist regularly, you can ensure any problems that do arise are noticed sooner rather than later. You can even take advantage of opportunities like dental school cleanings — and with dentistry being considered one of the 10 most trusted professions, you can get a free cleaning and help students reach their goals. But overall, it’s important to truly take care of yourself. You should try to have a regular sleep schedule, eat healthy foods, and get regular exercise. While this may be a new adjustment for some people, treating your body better now will save you money in the long run. So be precautious and stay as healthy as possible.
Think Long-Term
When you’re thinking about your health care needs, it’s important to not only think about what you need now, but what you may need in the future. Thinking about your long-term health care needs is one of the best ways to reduce health care costs. While it isn’t always pleasant to think about the medical needs we may have in the future, it’s an important step to take. You should consider aspects of health care like hiring a home aid, medical equipment, prescriptions, and other medical care. Already, it’s estimated that 65% of people over the age of 60 experience dizziness or loss of balance on a daily basis. You never know what medical issues may come up, so it’s best to be as prepared as possible. This can also include taking steps like installing handrails in your home and ramps next to stairs. This can help prevent falls, which in turn can prevent expensive medical bills. It’s also important to consider establishing a health care proxy and getting your legal forms in place in case an accident does occur. All in all, considering your long-term health care needs can be a simple way to reduce health care costs.
Know Your Health Care Plan
And last but not least, it’s absolutely crucial to fully understand your health care plan. This is important for a few reasons. First, it’s important to ensure you’re not getting overcharged in any way. You should frequently check your bank statements to ensure you’re paying the same amount — this can also help you ensure your payment information is stolen, like the 15.4 million U.S. consumers who were victims of identity theft in 2016, according to Javelin Strategy and Research. Secondly, it’s important to know which medical expenses you’re covered for. This is beneficial when you have an unplanned doctor visit and need to know how much you’re going to have to pay out of pocket. And lastly, it’s important to know if you’re getting the right coverage or not. Remember that not all health care policies are the same, and you may need a different one than what you currently have. Knowing your health care plan can help you ensure you’re getting the right coverage at the right costs.
Entering retirement is an exciting time, but there is still work to be done. So make sure to keep these tips in mind and always revisit your health care plans to ensure you’re saving as much money on health care costs as possible.
Not too long ago, a young couple living together would be socially condemned in suburban America as “living in sin.” People often married young and started having kids without a second thought. Today, 5.5 million unmarried couples live together in the United States. Many young people think of marrying someone before living together. They also believe that being intimate to be an archaic — and sometimes dangerous — notion.
Waiting Longer To Get Married
Even when young people do get married, they’re waiting longer to do so. In the 1950s, the median age for women to get married was just 20 years old (for men it was 23). As of 2004, those numbers rose to 26 and 27, respectively.
Researchers are pointing out that divorce rates have dropped significantly since millennials came of marrying age. From 2008 to 2016, the overall national divorce rate dropped by 18%. You may say “well that’s because fewer young people are getting married in the first place!” And you’d be partially right. But researchers also adjusted the numbers to account for the drop in marriages taking place and demographic changes. Yet, they still concluded that an 8% drop in divorces has happened in the United States.
Marriage and Divorce
In this particular study, the reasons cited for a drop in having children are because marriage and divorce are familiar to many millennials. More of them are going to college and starting careers. They feel that path is expected of them by family and society. Being busy with building a career and bogged down by college debt means less time for worrying about marriage. It also means more caution about making the right choice in partner. Divorces increased over the past 200 or so years because societal stigma against divorce lessened. Has marriage decreased because stigma against being unmarried has lessened?
Of course, the fact that young people are currently laboring under a combined $1 trillion in student loans probably doesn’t help, either.
It’s not just U.S. millennials who feel this way. Young people worldwide are becoming increasingly connected by the internet and other forms of media, forming progressive views in the process. The result? Young adults worldwide are choosing to delay marriage and delay having children, or skip these life events altogether.
Japan, for example, has the third lowest birth rate in the world at only 7.7 per 1,000 people. Their population is actually in a slow decline because of this birth rate issue, causing a lot of controversy amongst the Japanese.
Poverty, Birth Control and Family Planning
Although you’d imagine that poverty would be a factor in low birth rate (kids are expensive), the opposite is true. When populations overcome poverty, birth rates decrease. There are several reasons for this. For one, mortality rates decrease with decreased poverty. When more of your children will live to adulthood, you can afford to have fewer. Second, birth control and family planning education are more readily available in a growing or wealthy country. Third, cultural values can change with a movement of wealth and technology. People tend to take on some Westernized ideas (like smaller families) when supplied with Western-dominated media. Fun fact: more children around the world aged two to five know how to use a smartphone app (19%) more than tie their shoes (9%).
Overpopulation
The world is slowly but surely working its way out of the deepest kinds of poverties. Some experts are estimating that high birth rates in Africa, the Middle East, India, and island nations worldwide could decrease in the next couple of decades as birth control and other resources are more easily accessible. Is this a good thing? Some would argue no, the preservation of culture is at risk. Others would say yes, overpopulation is going to become an urgent issue for our planet soon. What do you think?
Moving long distance, whether across the nation or across an ocean, is an expensive venture and a way different experience compared to moving in-state. Intrastate state moves can cost just $1,170 on average; inter-state moves can cost $4,000 or more. During this stressful process, car shipping is often one of the biggest moving expenses. So what’s the cheapest way to ship your car long distance when moving?
If you’re under the age of 30, then technology has probably been a part of your romantic life since you hit puberty. In middle school, it was awkward, flirty chats on AIM, then stalking your cyber crush on Facebook, followed by modern dating apps like Tinder or OKCupid. Of course, that’s not the only part of our relationships that have shifted to the online space.
Buying a car, whether it’s your first or fifth, is always a big investment. This is why it’s important to plan and save instead of jumping right into buying a new car. Fortunately, a PwC forecast shows that there will about 107 million vehicles manufactured globally in 2020, so you’ll have plenty of vehicle options. But before you start looking at vehicles, it’s important to ensure you save up enough money. And to help you save for a new vehicle, we’ve compiled a few simple tips.
