I am a CPA and I spent 20 years preparing income taxes. I completely agree with this article. I disagree with the common personal finance advice that it is poor planning to get a big tax refund. The point made in this article- that interest rates are so low that you would not have made much if you had put the money into a savings account it true. Also, many people don't have the money saved to write a check to the IRS if they underwithheld. I believe that most people, if they adjusted their withholding so they had less income tax taken out and a bigger paycheck every payday, would simply spend the money. It's easy to spend an extra $50-100 per month without thinking about it. If you end up getting a big tax refund, it is like an automatic savings plan. At least you will think about how you will spend a $2,000 refund.
Another factor, at least here in California, is that the federal and state withholding tables don't work well together. If you claim married-5 dependents that may work for your federal taxes but you could end up owing money to the state or getting a big state refund. If you get a small refund from the state you may get a big refund from the feds (or vice versa). You can file a form so that you claim a different number of dependents for state withholding than for federal withholding, but many people don't realize this.
We have 4 cats, all of whom were abandoned by their owners and came to our house. The latest one is very old, looked very unkempt, is missing teeth and was so unattractive, we knew he would never be adoptable. We aren't rich, but we try our hardest to do right by our cats. We use Frontline to keep them somewhat flea-free. I buy it online and try to get the best price. We sometimes have to get it from our vet, who will give us a few free every so often, if we buy a year's worth of Frontline at a time. Our vets are great. Their method is to present options when it comes to the extra care and they are realistic with us about what the cats may or may not have and how to treat them without being so invasive. We usually get their shots at the annual low-cost vaccination clinics.
We feed them 2x a day. The 2 old ones have lost some teeth, so we have to stay mostly with soft food for them. We cook chicken and beef liver when we can get it on sale and mash it up for them. It is very inexpensive and they love it. When we have small amounts of chicken, rice, and vegetables left over, we mash that up as well. The younger ones get alot of dry food, which they actually prefer most of the time. We don't buy the cadillac brand of dry foods, either. We buy the store brand and they like it. For canned food, we'd be lying to you if we said they eat everything we put in front of them.....they're CATS!! But the newest addition to the group, "the old one", helps us out by eating everything we put in front of him! We experiment with store brands, the larger, less expensive varieties and mixing less expensive and more expensive brands together. These last efforts have saved us alot on cat food. We enjoy our cats, two of them were around when our children were growing up. They've been sweet pets, they have a lot of personality, and give us alot of love and laughter. Our children are grown, but they love to still spend time with the cats when they come home.
This comment is not about the USA or other countries which has an official website stating clearly how a citizen can apply including age, academic preparedness , standard test scores, and recommendations requirements. No doubt the idea about UWC is noble and the program for those who are lucky enough to be enrolled is excellent in every way; it is a once in a lifetime opportunity. My concern is about the lack of transparency and about the rules that governs some countries national committee. Unlike the USA some national committee don’t not have any official website to provide information to prospective applicants about specific rules applicable to the local national committee. Local committees operate under their own rule, and without transparency. Who is to say the rules are fair or in keeping with the UWC mission? This is not to discredit the hard working volunteers who work in national committees, but to say may be UWC must ensure that information is provided officially through the official website to ensure transparency to all prospective students, regardless of the country of origin.
Wow, lots of great opinions and strategies in there. So, this appears to be as much a personal preference issue as it is a purely financial evaluation!
Keep that interest free flowing to the government instead of doing just a little math and owing as much as you possibly can without incurring penalties and putting that underpayment in your savings account or other short-term investment until tax time comes around.
I actually prefer getting a refund to trying to get it down to even or actually owing a few bucks. It's just a nice surprise no matter how many times it happens.
I have a pug- he's a 7 year old that I originally fostered through rescue and will most likely adopt. I'm a frugal-yet-broke grad student but getting a pet was a priority. Yes, the costs are high- upon intake, my pug had basic vet care that could have burned through a paycheck or two (and he wasn't even really sick or unhealthy).
I'm nervous about the cost when I finally adopt him, but is it worth it? Yes. Grad school is also expensive, but like knowledge, it's worth the commitment and cost. He brings joy to people in the neighborhood and makes them smile when we're out, and he is a great study companion for long days of writing. :) It's worth it.
This is just what I needed to read. I am looking for a way to make the ordinary a little more special. Great ideas. I am definitely the brown bagger. I think I would still bring my lunch even if I was a millionaire. Maybe the meals would change a bit.;0)
I agree that recycling is the most-emphasized of the three simply because it's an easy way to feel like you're being "green" without putting in much effort or making any major lifestyle changes. I do think, however, that reduce and reuse are much more closely linked than you give them credit for. I actually wrote yesterday about the awesome power of reusing at my blog (before finding this post through a link at Get Rich Slowly) -- the post is linked in my name if you're interested. In short, reusing is basically reducing at both ends of the product cycle (no new product and no waste), so I think it has the potential to be the most powerful of the 3 R's.
My aging pets will be requiring more and more vet care. The costs associated with this scares me quite a bit. I am 65 and just can't replace thousands in my savings if one of them gets ill.
We have 2 pets, an 8yr old cat Queen, and 10 yr old Golden Retreiver Butterscotch. I can't imagine life without them. "B" should have been named Queen, as she runs the entire neighborhood. We also have a horse but he is currently living in another state with our son. When we visit the whole neighborhood takes care of "B", she doesn't like to be outside alone so the neighbor friend stops by and lets her out and stays with her while she eats as she won't do that alone either! She has us all trained!!! She is so sweet its hard to deny her anything.
I have one dog, a cairn terrier named bailey. I have an account set aside for expenses - like flea and tick meds, yearly check up and emergencies. she is only three so there havent been too many huge expenses. she's the best pal ever, so fun!
1 cat. And he's more than enough. Back when I had a house, I also had a rodent situation.
Hence Darth Maul's entry into my life.
I feed him (I think) pretty good cat food - a little wet, mostly dry. I used the wet mostly because he really likes it, but also because it would come in handy for administering meds, as it does now. Yearly vet exam and vaccinations. He's pretty healthy, but he is getting n (13 years old, at least) and he was a rescue, so no idea what his former life and care was like. He still purrs.
Yep, we have Liz (a lab mix) and the Boyz (three rescued domestic short hair cats). We watch our pennies by feeding them all quality food, keeping up on their annual health care needs and vaccinations, making sure they get appropriate exercise and taking care of their grooming needs ourselves. The fun they add to our lives makes it all worthwhile.
Yes, yes! I have a cat. He is seriously part of the family. He's not too expensive, so I don't know what I really do to save money. After his original kitten shots, I don't go to the vet for well visits, and thankfully he's not been sick. Worth any expense!
i have two little dogs, and they're definitely my children. my parents call them "the granddogs." Because they're small, the eat less, which saves money. I feel them Trader Joe's all natural dog food -- it isn't full of crap like a lot of inexpensive commercial foods.
another way i save money is to drive a little farther to the vet. I live in Charlotte, NC, and vets are pricey. I drive 30 minutes down the road to a smaller town, and the vet prices are about half what they would be here, just because they're in the next county! my dogs still get great care and lots of attention, and i can afford to take them for regular check-ups and teeth cleaning! it pays to call around outside of your area to check prices.
We have six cats and one dog -- we recently had to have one of our dear doggies put down due to cancer. We have negotiated a "group" discount with out vet -- it means we bring in all 7 animals at once for routine visits, but it saves a bundle for us. NO WAY do the costs outweigh the benefits of our furry babies!
I am a CPA and I spent 20 years preparing income taxes. I completely agree with this article. I disagree with the common personal finance advice that it is poor planning to get a big tax refund. The point made in this article- that interest rates are so low that you would not have made much if you had put the money into a savings account it true. Also, many people don't have the money saved to write a check to the IRS if they underwithheld. I believe that most people, if they adjusted their withholding so they had less income tax taken out and a bigger paycheck every payday, would simply spend the money. It's easy to spend an extra $50-100 per month without thinking about it. If you end up getting a big tax refund, it is like an automatic savings plan. At least you will think about how you will spend a $2,000 refund.
Another factor, at least here in California, is that the federal and state withholding tables don't work well together. If you claim married-5 dependents that may work for your federal taxes but you could end up owing money to the state or getting a big state refund. If you get a small refund from the state you may get a big refund from the feds (or vice versa). You can file a form so that you claim a different number of dependents for state withholding than for federal withholding, but many people don't realize this.
We have 4 cats, all of whom were abandoned by their owners and came to our house. The latest one is very old, looked very unkempt, is missing teeth and was so unattractive, we knew he would never be adoptable. We aren't rich, but we try our hardest to do right by our cats. We use Frontline to keep them somewhat flea-free. I buy it online and try to get the best price. We sometimes have to get it from our vet, who will give us a few free every so often, if we buy a year's worth of Frontline at a time. Our vets are great. Their method is to present options when it comes to the extra care and they are realistic with us about what the cats may or may not have and how to treat them without being so invasive. We usually get their shots at the annual low-cost vaccination clinics.
We feed them 2x a day. The 2 old ones have lost some teeth, so we have to stay mostly with soft food for them. We cook chicken and beef liver when we can get it on sale and mash it up for them. It is very inexpensive and they love it. When we have small amounts of chicken, rice, and vegetables left over, we mash that up as well. The younger ones get alot of dry food, which they actually prefer most of the time. We don't buy the cadillac brand of dry foods, either. We buy the store brand and they like it. For canned food, we'd be lying to you if we said they eat everything we put in front of them.....they're CATS!! But the newest addition to the group, "the old one", helps us out by eating everything we put in front of him! We experiment with store brands, the larger, less expensive varieties and mixing less expensive and more expensive brands together. These last efforts have saved us alot on cat food. We enjoy our cats, two of them were around when our children were growing up. They've been sweet pets, they have a lot of personality, and give us alot of love and laughter. Our children are grown, but they love to still spend time with the cats when they come home.
no pets no mess ;)
Hi UWC Parent,
This comment is not about the USA or other countries which has an official website stating clearly how a citizen can apply including age, academic preparedness , standard test scores, and recommendations requirements. No doubt the idea about UWC is noble and the program for those who are lucky enough to be enrolled is excellent in every way; it is a once in a lifetime opportunity. My concern is about the lack of transparency and about the rules that governs some countries national committee. Unlike the USA some national committee don’t not have any official website to provide information to prospective applicants about specific rules applicable to the local national committee. Local committees operate under their own rule, and without transparency. Who is to say the rules are fair or in keeping with the UWC mission? This is not to discredit the hard working volunteers who work in national committees, but to say may be UWC must ensure that information is provided officially through the official website to ensure transparency to all prospective students, regardless of the country of origin.
Wow, lots of great opinions and strategies in there. So, this appears to be as much a personal preference issue as it is a purely financial evaluation!
Thanks for including us with this awesome selection of posts Ashley!
Pure propaganda.
Keep that interest free flowing to the government instead of doing just a little math and owing as much as you possibly can without incurring penalties and putting that underpayment in your savings account or other short-term investment until tax time comes around.
Yeah, that's the ticket!
I actually prefer getting a refund to trying to get it down to even or actually owing a few bucks. It's just a nice surprise no matter how many times it happens.
I have a pug- he's a 7 year old that I originally fostered through rescue and will most likely adopt. I'm a frugal-yet-broke grad student but getting a pet was a priority. Yes, the costs are high- upon intake, my pug had basic vet care that could have burned through a paycheck or two (and he wasn't even really sick or unhealthy).
I'm nervous about the cost when I finally adopt him, but is it worth it? Yes. Grad school is also expensive, but like knowledge, it's worth the commitment and cost. He brings joy to people in the neighborhood and makes them smile when we're out, and he is a great study companion for long days of writing. :) It's worth it.
This is just what I needed to read. I am looking for a way to make the ordinary a little more special. Great ideas. I am definitely the brown bagger. I think I would still bring my lunch even if I was a millionaire. Maybe the meals would change a bit.;0)
I agree that recycling is the most-emphasized of the three simply because it's an easy way to feel like you're being "green" without putting in much effort or making any major lifestyle changes. I do think, however, that reduce and reuse are much more closely linked than you give them credit for. I actually wrote yesterday about the awesome power of reusing at my blog (before finding this post through a link at Get Rich Slowly) -- the post is linked in my name if you're interested. In short, reusing is basically reducing at both ends of the product cycle (no new product and no waste), so I think it has the potential to be the most powerful of the 3 R's.
My aging pets will be requiring more and more vet care. The costs associated with this scares me quite a bit. I am 65 and just can't replace thousands in my savings if one of them gets ill.
We have 2 pets, an 8yr old cat Queen, and 10 yr old Golden Retreiver Butterscotch. I can't imagine life without them. "B" should have been named Queen, as she runs the entire neighborhood. We also have a horse but he is currently living in another state with our son. When we visit the whole neighborhood takes care of "B", she doesn't like to be outside alone so the neighbor friend stops by and lets her out and stays with her while she eats as she won't do that alone either! She has us all trained!!! She is so sweet its hard to deny her anything.
I have one dog, a cairn terrier named bailey. I have an account set aside for expenses - like flea and tick meds, yearly check up and emergencies. she is only three so there havent been too many huge expenses. she's the best pal ever, so fun!
It depends too much on unknown factors for anyone to venture a guess. If you were looking for a job at a financial firm, it might matter a lot.
Beyond that, it really depends on individual bosses. Most will be well aware of the financial meltdown and will make allowances. Some won't.
Sorry I can't be more help.
Yes I have 3 dogs and a cat (who thinks he is a dog)
I love dogs, but don't have one because I'm just not home enough. I work a lot, and am often away on weekends. I suppose I'll get one when I retire!
1 cat. And he's more than enough. Back when I had a house, I also had a rodent situation.
Hence Darth Maul's entry into my life.
I feed him (I think) pretty good cat food - a little wet, mostly dry. I used the wet mostly because he really likes it, but also because it would come in handy for administering meds, as it does now. Yearly vet exam and vaccinations. He's pretty healthy, but he is getting n (13 years old, at least) and he was a rescue, so no idea what his former life and care was like. He still purrs.
We have 1 poodle, 1 parrot and 1 pitbull. (we have a thing for pets!)
Pets are not for the parsimonious, but they are perfect partners!
I have a dog, turtle and fish.
Yep, we have Liz (a lab mix) and the Boyz (three rescued domestic short hair cats). We watch our pennies by feeding them all quality food, keeping up on their annual health care needs and vaccinations, making sure they get appropriate exercise and taking care of their grooming needs ourselves. The fun they add to our lives makes it all worthwhile.
Yes, yes! I have a cat. He is seriously part of the family. He's not too expensive, so I don't know what I really do to save money. After his original kitten shots, I don't go to the vet for well visits, and thankfully he's not been sick. Worth any expense!
i have two little dogs, and they're definitely my children. my parents call them "the granddogs." Because they're small, the eat less, which saves money. I feel them Trader Joe's all natural dog food -- it isn't full of crap like a lot of inexpensive commercial foods.
another way i save money is to drive a little farther to the vet. I live in Charlotte, NC, and vets are pricey. I drive 30 minutes down the road to a smaller town, and the vet prices are about half what they would be here, just because they're in the next county! my dogs still get great care and lots of attention, and i can afford to take them for regular check-ups and teeth cleaning! it pays to call around outside of your area to check prices.
We have six cats and one dog -- we recently had to have one of our dear doggies put down due to cancer. We have negotiated a "group" discount with out vet -- it means we bring in all 7 animals at once for routine visits, but it saves a bundle for us. NO WAY do the costs outweigh the benefits of our furry babies!
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