Even though it's geared toward people who own a home, I've found that the Not-So-Big House series by Sarah Susanka has some great ideas to encourage the small-living line of thinking.
Also, while Ikea is awesome for storage and organizational needs, be careful that you're not spending in excess of what you need! I'm very guilty of that because I go in and think "Oohhh! Neat - I need that to store this" when I already have a suitable storage solution for that item, and am just seduced by the new and pretty ideas Ikea has to offer.
ReadyMade, RealSimple, and other similar magazines can offer many inexpensive ideas for home de-cluttering. Save money and stop by your local library for back issues, or scour your local book resale shop for old copies of these magazines, usually at half price or less! Then share your copies with friends!
Having said all that, home organization can be fun and creative! Good luck!
hmmm... my kids are given up-front disclosures and hold-harmless agreements that they have to have signed and notarized prior to any "thinning" of the candy supply...
Are you kidding? If it's an issue of honesty, you could just explain to the kids prior to going out that they will be limited to the amount they are allowed to keep and eat. As a parent, I doubt it would be any different than going into your kids rooms and "stealing" something they really shouldn't have in there in the first place.
I think you would be hard-pressed to find too many parents who are against the ritual of reallocating the candy wealth. My home is not a democracy. I'm the boss, my kids know that, end of story.
I just wanted to say that you are totally right and you got a good point!
Its very important for someone not to "asslick" their bosses by saying things "I would give everything to be perfect in my job and stop living.." becouse its really annoying! Personally its really "Not MY TYPE" and I would suggest everyone not to be "such nerd" too as well! =P
I think you forgot to mention to look up how much you can deduct, for your income, to get the maximum deductability. . bonus. Not sure how to word that.
Basically, in Canada it is better to give over $200 than under:
"A donor is entitled to claim the full fair market value of any gift made to a qualified donee for tax relief. In the case of an individual, the federal level of relief consists of a tax credit of 16% of the value of the gift up to $200 of annual gifting and 29% of the value in excess of this amount.[5] The true value of the tax credit is much higher since it also comprises an addition for applicable surtaxes and for provincial taxes. The net result is that the individual tax credit is equivalent to a full deduction at the top marginal tax rate, aside and apart from the first $200." -source
I think you forgot to mention to look up how much you can deduct, for your income, to get the maximum deductability. . bonus. Not sure how to word that.
Basically, in Canada it is better to give over $200 than under:
"A donor is entitled to claim the full fair market value of any gift made to a qualified donee for tax relief. In the case of an individual, the federal level of relief consists of a tax credit of 16% of the value of the gift up to $200 of annual gifting and 29% of the value in excess of this amount.[5] The true value of the tax credit is much higher since it also comprises an addition for applicable surtaxes and for provincial taxes. The net result is that the individual tax credit is equivalent to a full deduction at the top marginal tax rate, aside and apart from the first $200." -source
There are plenty of reasons to give your name with your donation--you're recognized and thanked, you provide an example for people who know you, and it connects you with the local philanthropic community.
Having said that, it's also sometimes appropriate to donate anonymously, especially if you do not plan to donate again to that group. If you make an anonymous donation, they won't waste time and money soliciting you for further donations.
If you live in the UK try the charities aid foundation (http://www.cafonline.org/) - this is essentially a charity for charities and coordinate giving. You can even set up a special charity account, and they will sort out gift aid (i.e. tax refund) issues. There is a whole list of charities you can donate to anonymously on the site.
I came to the realization a few years ago (after getting bombarded by phone solicitors seeking donations) that giving should be a proactive part of my life. Giving money (even if it is only $10 or $15 at a time) to all the drive-by charity pitches you get is not good stewardship.
Your post is very timely, since the volume of solicitations is about to dramatically increase as we head into the holidays.
The house I live in is all full of junk and extremely overcrowded, because my dads a hoarder. Even the bathrooms so overcrowded you cant hardly move around in there! I completely agree with Tyler Durdan's quote, "the stuff you own end up owing you" but try telling my dad to get rid of everything let along try to move it, he's a loud obnoxious, force to be reckended with.
And yes, it does drain you. Being trapped by the stuff around you, zaps your energy as it does mine. When I move out into my own house, I am going to owe it to myself to have minimal stuff and everything will have its place. I would prefer a spacey room where theres room to be free and room for people, it also feels more invigorating and fresh being in a spacious room. Being in a small crowded room cluttered in junk is restricting and horrible. A double garage and, an especially built shed, and a car port especially built extension to the garage, all have the purpose of keeping JUNK. Even under the house is filled with junk. His only attempt was to have an auction where he got rid of a few things, but theres still too much stuff. And it's so much worse when your house is smaller. Narrow hallways with a bookshelf, often matress/s stacked against the wall, etc, really is senseless. It really does make you feel like a prisoner in your own home. I don't get hoarders, it's unfair on the rest of the other family members. Does all the extra stuff make you them feel 'safe' or something?
Guestimate is not a word. Please inform everyone you know and make sure that no one uses it again. This has been a polite warning from an anal retentive person who gets way too irrationally annoyed by the word guestimate.
I can't find any way to contact you on this blog and so I'm leaving this comment. Would you be willing to contact me at carmen at nunomad.com? I am an interviewer of professional nomads and would be interested in interviewing you. Hope to hear back.
This is a great interview and very similar to others at the NuNomad blog. For those of you wanting to get other ideas for nomadic lifestyles, I've learned a lot by reading them. If you go to the blog, go to the Meet the Nomads category.
This is a great interview and very similar to others at the NuNomad blog. For those of you wanting to get other ideas for nomadic lifestyle, I've learned a lot by reading them. If you go to the blog, go to the Meet the Nomads category. I
I have 5 children. I was able to buy $10,000 of TERM life insurance for all but one child at a cost of $25 a year (one child was already considered uninsurable at age 10). I can't invest $25 a year and have it add up to the cost of a funeral - which can easily run $5,000 to $10,000. When they turn 25 they can take over the policy themselves and increase the value if they need more. Or perhaps I'll just keep paying so I know I always have the money available to pay for a funeral.
I think there is something not so clear on this article. What I know is you can deduct tax up to 100% up your home value. Say, you put down $10000 for a $100000 house, you can turn around and borrow 125% of the home value meaning $12500 - $100000 = $35000; however, your house value is only $10000 more than original debt, you can only deduct $10000. Sound interesting, but you cannot do it. How can you put down $10000 to buy a house and then turn around to borrow $100000? It is not quite true.
Besides, there are all kind of costs for the equity loan to consider, including appraisal, .... Should I borrow it anyway? Maybe not. Simply too risky.
The affect was much too great on technology for this latest change brought on by these candy manufacturers. I understand why they wanted this, but the affect has disturbed technology for millions of people worldwide and the candy industry was not in dire straits, they just wanted a bigger piece of the Halloween pie. Personally, I was affected greatly at work. Now I have a reason to hate the candy industry. I hope they lose money year after year. Go Healthy!!!!!
There's a gentleman up the road from us on the next lake that will come and take away items you are ripping out or tearing down. We've given him tons of stuff as we have been paring down the cottage to have more breathing room, and he has done a few chain saw / stump grinding things for us. Win-win.
I am in a foul temper against insurance companies at the moment, but glad I pay for the better service.
I hit a piece of concrete that fell of a bridge while driving at night in the pouring rain in the middle lane of a 400-series highway while doing the speed limit. This unfortunately places me in the category of "I hit something that wasn't moving" which is an at-fault collision. I pay the collision deductible, my rates go up, and I am now a bad driver.
Fortunately, they are covering the cost of my rental car for 2+ weeks and paid for the towing to the storage lot and then to the body shop.
I've been trying to recalculate the costs of redoing my plan, and this blog really helped. I'm going to go over things in a different way. Thanks!
I don't know about negotiating with the body shops. It's hard to win on that sort of negotiation, because the consumer not only doesn't have the necessary information (or the time to get it), but he's negotiating a single instance, so there's not much incentive for the body shop to give a good deal--unless he's a very unlucky guy, he won't be back for 10 years, so there's not much customer good-will to be gained. It might well only be possible for someone with inside information (such as when one particular body shop had idle workers).
One option would be to go with a really high deductible at the insurance company--several thousand dollars, perhaps. That'd mean the insurance company was negotiating for you, but not really on the hook for much, so the premiums would be low. Probably, though, the premiums would still cost more than extra labor charges, unless you have a lot of accidents.
I would note that the body shops probably have it wrong. Car dealerships used to use the same logic: it'll be years before this guy buys another car, so there's no point in making a deal to get some customer good-will, because any payoff is so far into the future as to not matter. The fact is, though, that people looking to buy a car ask their friends and relations for suggestions, and a good buying experience plays into whether a dealership gets the nod or not. The same is very much true of bodyshops. Business owners can be just as short-sighted as the next guy, though, and things won't change until a very clever guy starts a bodyshop that competes for business on price. (Probably almost all competition between bodyshops is on quality of work, since most people have insurance paying the tab, almost like with medical care--which is how we get into the situation you describe.)
But look at how much you save in interest with the HELOC method. Although it took 4-months longer with the HELOC method, you save more money. Like I said, it depends on your situation (i.e. loan amount, rate, remaining years, etc.) and how much discretionary income (call it DI) you have.
Also, if you look at it long term and that you intend to buy real estate to rent out in the future (after you payoff your house), the software will be beneficial!
You already see that the HELOC will provide better result if you have a lot of DI. So when you buy a rental property, you will have extra cash (since you're no longer carry a mortgage on your house) as well as the rent paid by the tenant for use to quickly pay down that rental property.
Yes It's real. In my life (I live in Sicily, Italy) my family have always used to let me drink a little glass of wine since I was a child.
I know there are a lor of science evidences about wine health benefits but the only thing I can say is that my granny has 93 years, she is very alive and never had an health disease...her secret is to drink a glass od Sicilian red wine for lunch.
Even though it's geared toward people who own a home, I've found that the Not-So-Big House series by Sarah Susanka has some great ideas to encourage the small-living line of thinking.
Also, while Ikea is awesome for storage and organizational needs, be careful that you're not spending in excess of what you need! I'm very guilty of that because I go in and think "Oohhh! Neat - I need that to store this" when I already have a suitable storage solution for that item, and am just seduced by the new and pretty ideas Ikea has to offer.
ReadyMade, RealSimple, and other similar magazines can offer many inexpensive ideas for home de-cluttering. Save money and stop by your local library for back issues, or scour your local book resale shop for old copies of these magazines, usually at half price or less! Then share your copies with friends!
Having said all that, home organization can be fun and creative! Good luck!
This is a great article for small space living! Even if your space it bigger all of these ideas would be smart to try. :)
hmmm... my kids are given up-front disclosures and hold-harmless agreements that they have to have signed and notarized prior to any "thinning" of the candy supply...
Are you kidding? If it's an issue of honesty, you could just explain to the kids prior to going out that they will be limited to the amount they are allowed to keep and eat. As a parent, I doubt it would be any different than going into your kids rooms and "stealing" something they really shouldn't have in there in the first place.
I think you would be hard-pressed to find too many parents who are against the ritual of reallocating the candy wealth. My home is not a democracy. I'm the boss, my kids know that, end of story.
Great article Carrie!
I just wanted to say that you are totally right and you got a good point!
Its very important for someone not to "asslick" their bosses by saying things "I would give everything to be perfect in my job and stop living.." becouse its really annoying! Personally its really "Not MY TYPE" and I would suggest everyone not to be "such nerd" too as well! =P
So -> #23 Is here! :))
Regards,
DeeJayNio..
I think you forgot to mention to look up how much you can deduct, for your income, to get the maximum deductability. . bonus. Not sure how to word that.
Basically, in Canada it is better to give over $200 than under:
"A donor is entitled to claim the full fair market value of any gift made to a qualified donee for tax relief. In the case of an individual, the federal level of relief consists of a tax credit of 16% of the value of the gift up to $200 of annual gifting and 29% of the value in excess of this amount.[5] The true value of the tax credit is much higher since it also comprises an addition for applicable surtaxes and for provincial taxes. The net result is that the individual tax credit is equivalent to a full deduction at the top marginal tax rate, aside and apart from the first $200." -source
I think you forgot to mention to look up how much you can deduct, for your income, to get the maximum deductability. . bonus. Not sure how to word that.
Basically, in Canada it is better to give over $200 than under:
"A donor is entitled to claim the full fair market value of any gift made to a qualified donee for tax relief. In the case of an individual, the federal level of relief consists of a tax credit of 16% of the value of the gift up to $200 of annual gifting and 29% of the value in excess of this amount.[5] The true value of the tax credit is much higher since it also comprises an addition for applicable surtaxes and for provincial taxes. The net result is that the individual tax credit is equivalent to a full deduction at the top marginal tax rate, aside and apart from the first $200." -source
Thanks--I should have mentioned anonymous giving.
There are plenty of reasons to give your name with your donation--you're recognized and thanked, you provide an example for people who know you, and it connects you with the local philanthropic community.
Having said that, it's also sometimes appropriate to donate anonymously, especially if you do not plan to donate again to that group. If you make an anonymous donation, they won't waste time and money soliciting you for further donations.
Thanks, too, for the UK link.
If you live in the UK try the charities aid foundation (http://www.cafonline.org/) - this is essentially a charity for charities and coordinate giving. You can even set up a special charity account, and they will sort out gift aid (i.e. tax refund) issues. There is a whole list of charities you can donate to anonymously on the site.
Nice post, Philip.
I came to the realization a few years ago (after getting bombarded by phone solicitors seeking donations) that giving should be a proactive part of my life. Giving money (even if it is only $10 or $15 at a time) to all the drive-by charity pitches you get is not good stewardship.
Your post is very timely, since the volume of solicitations is about to dramatically increase as we head into the holidays.
Stealing candy from the kids after Halloween?
Unbelievable, so how do you hope to raise honest kids then?
The house I live in is all full of junk and extremely overcrowded, because my dads a hoarder. Even the bathrooms so overcrowded you cant hardly move around in there! I completely agree with Tyler Durdan's quote, "the stuff you own end up owing you" but try telling my dad to get rid of everything let along try to move it, he's a loud obnoxious, force to be reckended with.
And yes, it does drain you. Being trapped by the stuff around you, zaps your energy as it does mine. When I move out into my own house, I am going to owe it to myself to have minimal stuff and everything will have its place. I would prefer a spacey room where theres room to be free and room for people, it also feels more invigorating and fresh being in a spacious room. Being in a small crowded room cluttered in junk is restricting and horrible. A double garage and, an especially built shed, and a car port especially built extension to the garage, all have the purpose of keeping JUNK. Even under the house is filled with junk. His only attempt was to have an auction where he got rid of a few things, but theres still too much stuff. And it's so much worse when your house is smaller. Narrow hallways with a bookshelf, often matress/s stacked against the wall, etc, really is senseless. It really does make you feel like a prisoner in your own home. I don't get hoarders, it's unfair on the rest of the other family members. Does all the extra stuff make you them feel 'safe' or something?
Guestimate is not a word. Please inform everyone you know and make sure that no one uses it again. This has been a polite warning from an anal retentive person who gets way too irrationally annoyed by the word guestimate.
We too thin out our kids' halloween "take". We also take a little something off the top for our... troubles.
Hi Nora,
I can't find any way to contact you on this blog and so I'm leaving this comment. Would you be willing to contact me at carmen at nunomad.com? I am an interviewer of professional nomads and would be interested in interviewing you. Hope to hear back.
This is a great interview and very similar to others at the NuNomad blog. For those of you wanting to get other ideas for nomadic lifestyles, I've learned a lot by reading them. If you go to the blog, go to the Meet the Nomads category.
This is a great interview and very similar to others at the NuNomad blog. For those of you wanting to get other ideas for nomadic lifestyle, I've learned a lot by reading them. If you go to the blog, go to the Meet the Nomads category. I
Mike,
I'd like to connect with you about your lifestyle. Please email me at carmen at nunomad.com
I have 5 children. I was able to buy $10,000 of TERM life insurance for all but one child at a cost of $25 a year (one child was already considered uninsurable at age 10). I can't invest $25 a year and have it add up to the cost of a funeral - which can easily run $5,000 to $10,000. When they turn 25 they can take over the policy themselves and increase the value if they need more. Or perhaps I'll just keep paying so I know I always have the money available to pay for a funeral.
I think there is something not so clear on this article. What I know is you can deduct tax up to 100% up your home value. Say, you put down $10000 for a $100000 house, you can turn around and borrow 125% of the home value meaning $12500 - $100000 = $35000; however, your house value is only $10000 more than original debt, you can only deduct $10000. Sound interesting, but you cannot do it. How can you put down $10000 to buy a house and then turn around to borrow $100000? It is not quite true.
Besides, there are all kind of costs for the equity loan to consider, including appraisal, .... Should I borrow it anyway? Maybe not. Simply too risky.
Below is the link for your reference:
http://www.bankrate.com/brm/news/loan/19990203.asp
The affect was much too great on technology for this latest change brought on by these candy manufacturers. I understand why they wanted this, but the affect has disturbed technology for millions of people worldwide and the candy industry was not in dire straits, they just wanted a bigger piece of the Halloween pie. Personally, I was affected greatly at work. Now I have a reason to hate the candy industry. I hope they lose money year after year. Go Healthy!!!!!
There's a gentleman up the road from us on the next lake that will come and take away items you are ripping out or tearing down. We've given him tons of stuff as we have been paring down the cottage to have more breathing room, and he has done a few chain saw / stump grinding things for us. Win-win.
I am in a foul temper against insurance companies at the moment, but glad I pay for the better service.
I hit a piece of concrete that fell of a bridge while driving at night in the pouring rain in the middle lane of a 400-series highway while doing the speed limit. This unfortunately places me in the category of "I hit something that wasn't moving" which is an at-fault collision. I pay the collision deductible, my rates go up, and I am now a bad driver.
Fortunately, they are covering the cost of my rental car for 2+ weeks and paid for the towing to the storage lot and then to the body shop.
I've been trying to recalculate the costs of redoing my plan, and this blog really helped. I'm going to go over things in a different way. Thanks!
I don't know about negotiating with the body shops. It's hard to win on that sort of negotiation, because the consumer not only doesn't have the necessary information (or the time to get it), but he's negotiating a single instance, so there's not much incentive for the body shop to give a good deal--unless he's a very unlucky guy, he won't be back for 10 years, so there's not much customer good-will to be gained. It might well only be possible for someone with inside information (such as when one particular body shop had idle workers).
One option would be to go with a really high deductible at the insurance company--several thousand dollars, perhaps. That'd mean the insurance company was negotiating for you, but not really on the hook for much, so the premiums would be low. Probably, though, the premiums would still cost more than extra labor charges, unless you have a lot of accidents.
I would note that the body shops probably have it wrong. Car dealerships used to use the same logic: it'll be years before this guy buys another car, so there's no point in making a deal to get some customer good-will, because any payoff is so far into the future as to not matter. The fact is, though, that people looking to buy a car ask their friends and relations for suggestions, and a good buying experience plays into whether a dealership gets the nod or not. The same is very much true of bodyshops. Business owners can be just as short-sighted as the next guy, though, and things won't change until a very clever guy starts a bodyshop that competes for business on price. (Probably almost all competition between bodyshops is on quality of work, since most people have insurance paying the tab, almost like with medical care--which is how we get into the situation you describe.)
But look at how much you save in interest with the HELOC method. Although it took 4-months longer with the HELOC method, you save more money. Like I said, it depends on your situation (i.e. loan amount, rate, remaining years, etc.) and how much discretionary income (call it DI) you have.
Also, if you look at it long term and that you intend to buy real estate to rent out in the future (after you payoff your house), the software will be beneficial!
You already see that the HELOC will provide better result if you have a lot of DI. So when you buy a rental property, you will have extra cash (since you're no longer carry a mortgage on your house) as well as the rent paid by the tenant for use to quickly pay down that rental property.
Yes It's real. In my life (I live in Sicily, Italy) my family have always used to let me drink a little glass of wine since I was a child.
I know there are a lor of science evidences about wine health benefits but the only thing I can say is that my granny has 93 years, she is very alive and never had an health disease...her secret is to drink a glass od Sicilian red wine for lunch.