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April 18, 2011, at 6:00 am If you're new to BFS, please subscribe to my RSS feed. It shows me a vote of support and keeps me motivated to keep your attention. If you have any questions or comments for me, please contact me and I'll get back to you asap. Thanks for visiting! I was taking a look around our house and realized that we have spent a lot of freaking money…but at least we only seem to enjoy spending on the things we use the most. 
Spending on the Most Used Items
Here’s a quick list of the most expensive items in our home:
1. Appliances – Refrigerator, washer, dryer, dishwasher, and the stove/oven combo. Each of those cost between $275-$700 each but were gifts and are all used at least twice a week. They are all 4 years old as well.
2. Tempurpedic mattress – $3000 but used at least 355 nights a year.
3. Bedroom set – $3000 but also used at least 355 days a year.
4. 47″ LCD TV – $1200 in 2007 and used at least 350 days a year.
5. Laptops – $450-$550 each and we use them at least 360 days a year.
6. Gaming Desktop Computer – $1100 and used at least 275 days a year. It also is only completely rebuilt by Mr. BFS every 5-8 years.
7. Sprint Samsung Epic Cell Phones – $225 each but it has enabled me to close advertising deals for Budgeting in the Fun Stuff from anywhere and they are used every single day.
8. Propane Grill – It was a gift but I know it cost $350. We use it at least twice a week and it is cheap to operate.
Looking at that list, I only question the value of the gaming computer and that is from hubby’s fun money so I shouldn’t even care, lol.
Why I Don’t Mind Spending in What We Use
If I have to sleep every night, it makes sense to me to sleep on the most comfortable mattress we can easily afford without hurting our long-term financial goals. Is $3000 a lot to spend for a bed? Heck yes. Do I regret it? Nope. Mr. BFS no longer has any back pains and I fall asleep faster. It’s been a year and it’s still a great bed. That’s simply a winner in my book.
In short, like many other personal finance bloggers, I have no problem spending on quality IF you can actually afford it and ALSO afford to save for your future. Like everything else, it’s about balance and prioritization (and personal opinion). If you don’t get back pains from a basic mattress, than spending a small fortune on a special one probably doesn’t make sense for you. Maybe you drive more than me, so my cheap and rickety Chevy Aveo would be a bad idea for you. I, on the other hand, only drive 7000-9000 miles a year, so a cheaply made car isn’t really that big of a deal.
Do you mind spending on what you use the most? What pricier items have you splurged on in the name of overall value?
April 17, 2011, at 6:00 pm
The following is a post on behalf of a company.
Credit card debt is a problem for people all around the world. They provide cardholders with immediate access to capital, but credit cards have incredibly high interest rates. If someone starts building up credit card debt, it can be difficult to pay it off.
There are number of solutions for people with massive credit card debt – including debt settlement, debt consolidation, and bankruptcy.
Debt Settlement
Debt settlement is a way of getting creditors to settle an outstanding debt for a cost that is below the true amount owed. Settling a debt clears up old financial obligations and can often be a winning proposition for the debtor and the debt collector. The debtor is able to satisfy their old debt and the debt collector is able to receive some form of payment for a debt that may have been uncollectible otherwise.
When my husband and I made our biggest financial mistake and invested in a friend’s failing business, I found out there were several unpaid debts including one to Dell for the computer. It had been so long since a payment had been made that Dell had sold the debt to a debt collector. We were able to settle with them for $1700 instead of $2700. I assume the debt collection agency made a nice profit and it allowed the business to have one fewer person to owe. It ended up not mattering in the end, but it did feel like a small victory at the time.
Debt Consolidation
Debt consolidation is a way of putting all of your debts together so they exist in a form that is a lot easier for you to manage. A single loan is taken out to pay off all of your existing debts. The result is a much lighter debt load with a reduce interest rate. Debt consolidation loans can get rid of annoying credit card bills that keep arriving month after month. The new loan payment is easier to pay each month since the payment is lower than the combined total of the old bills.
Bankruptcy
Another option to get rid of debts that you just cannot afford to pay is bankruptcy. Bankruptcy involves going through a legal process to have your finances either reorganized or all of your debts dissolved. Bankruptcy has gotten a lot more difficult to declare in recent years. You need to seek the help of a professional company like Payplan if you would like to consider bankruptcy as an option.
All of these are viable solutions if you have gotten in over your head with credit card debt. I’d also consider other ways to make money like renting out a spare room for extra cash, getting a roommate, or looking into other debt repayment methods as well.
April 17, 2011, at 6:00 am
Since I do plan on blogging full time by 2012 and even came up with my target number, this is the year for a HUGE push. These are the new goals to keep us on the right track!
Here are my Goals for July 4th, 2011:
Here is what we are shooting for by July 4th, 2011:
Alexa – Maintain a Ranking at or around 37,500
Visits – 60,000 total visits (I started BFS on February 20th, 2010)
Feedburner Subscribers – 500
Twitter Followers – 500
MozRank – 5.5
Today’s Update
Alexa – 32,052 (WOOT!)
Visits – 54,421 (5,579 to go!)
Feedburner Subscribers – 448 (52 to go)
Twitter Followers – 483 (17 to go, woot!)
MozRank – 5.05 (0.45 to go)
As always, thank you so much for being my supporters! I could not do any of this without you and I really never forget that!!!
The Saved Quarter Challenge Update
I joined The Saved Quarter Challenge this year and am aiming to save at least $21,000 by the end of 2011! That would be a tiny bit more than 25% of our GROSS pay from our two full time jobs.
Here’s how I’ve done this week for the Saved Quarter Challenge ($21,000 Goal):
I have better updates after the 13th of every month since that is when our billing periods end, so here is where we funnelled away money this past week:
- Roth IRA – $300
- 401(k) – $80
- Emergency Fund / Savings – $495
- Auto and Home Maintenance Account – $500
- Extra Cash for Investments – $203
We used our vacation account to buy our summer vacation plane tickets and hotel stay for $875, but that isn’t effecting our savings since we took it out of our vacation account. The $133 for AAA was also taken out of our vacation account so it wouldn’t set us back.
My husband also bought some Curling supplies, a video game, and a board game, but we took the extra out of his fun money account so it also wouldn’t effect our overall savings amount. Remember, we don’t count our fun accounts when we squirrel money away into them, so we also don’t count them when we spend from them.
The $21,000 goal is hopefully going to be reached solely through 100% true savings – 401(k), Roth IRA, emergency fund/savings, home and auto maintenance account, and extra cash for investments.
Total This Week: $1578
We can save what we do because we live off of a little more than my husband’s salary as a school librarian ($38,000 take home pay), which means we save most of what I make ($26,000 take home pay) and all of our hobby job incomes (reffing for Mr. BFS and blogging for me). Reffing usually brings in $2000-$3000 a year and blogging is bringing in $10,000 or more a year (we’ve already hit more than $6000 for January-March 2011).
Total to date: $11,628 guaranteed, $9372 to go.
Additonal Info
I will continue posting monthly and yearly blog statistics and income updates from here on out, so stay tuned at the beginning of every month!
In case you didn’t know, Alexa traffic rankings are determined by the numbers of hits a site gets by people with the Alexa toolbar. If you want to be part of this ranking community, you can download the Alexa toolbar here.
If you don’t already, you can follow me via RSS or Twitter by following those links.
To learn more about the Yakezie, the blogging group that has helped me in SO many ways, check out my Yakezie page! Feel free to email me if you are a Yakezie member or challenger and don’t see yourself on the list!
If you are interested in seeing how I went from an 8 million plus Alexa rank to about 50,000 in less than 8 months, you can see My Blogging Schedule, which breaks down everything I do related to blogging. If you want to see how I brought in $6000 in less than 10 months, you can check out How I Make Money Blogging.
THANK YOU ALL FOR BEING THE BEST READERS EVER!!!
April 16, 2011, at 6:00 am
Also, check out my other blog, Crystal Clear Thoughts,
for my Weight Watchers Updates! I’m down 22 pounds and shooting for 4 more by July 4th!!!
My Favorite Posts this Week
Guest Post from BFS
Thank you so much for having me over for the day!
Guest Posts at BFS
Thank you for a day off!
If you would like to guest post on BFS, please contact me with your idea or post and I’d love to have you over for the day! If you are a business, please contact me here for more details. Thanks!
Giveaways and Other Info
Blog Carnivals
My carnival – Totally Money Blog Carnival -
was at Thousandaire!
Please check out the last edition and submit here every week!
If you are hosting a carnival that includes Budgeting in the Fun Stuff, please email me so I can include it in my roundup. Also, please email me if you’d like to host Totally Money. Thanks!
Top 5 Referring Sites to BFS within the Last Week:
(I list the top 25 on the first Saturday of every month)
- Free Money Finance
- Get Rich Slowly
- Yakezie
- The Saved Quarter
- Move to Portugal
Feel free to contact me if you have any suggestions. I’d love to add a few more blogs to my regular reading list or at least give a shout-out for great posts or contests.
As always, thanks to all the bloggers that teach me something new every day. Thanks to all my commenters for making this blog the community I want it to be. Thanks to all my “lurkers” too.  I hope everybody is enjoying this as much as me!
And please use About Life Insurance as a resource for everything life insurance!!!
Let me know if you do help out and I will be sure to return the favor!
April 15, 2011, at 9:56 pm
Hey guys! The Love Drop team is at it again! Last month they gave over $5,000 worth of cash and goods to their recipient, Katie, who had been battling a couple of brain tumors over the years, and it culminated with a surprise gift of 15+ friends showing up at her house to celebrate with her. It was awesome. You can watch how it all went down here.
This month they start all over again and grow support for the Kahlen’s – a family who has been hit hard by the economy, and by their daughter’s serious medical condition, tuberous sclerosis. In addition to financial assistance, they’re planning to unite the artistic community to help support Kent’s glassmaking work.
Want to help? Here are two ways you can participate:
- Give $1.00 – This is the best way to help out and join their team at the same time.
- Donate a piece of art – They will be hosting an auction this month, and would love to feature your artwork in it. Proceeds go to help the Kahlen’s this month, and is a great way to promote your work
We’ll let you know how it goes! Thanks everyone.
April 15, 2011, at 6:00 am
This is just a quick note to let people know that I am for hire! You may have noticed the tab above…
I have learned a lot in the last year about blogging, monetizing, and writing. A great way to pursue my full time blogging goals and to help others is to sell those skills!
Services
Do you need a quality staff writer for your personal finance blog?
I’ve been staff writing weekly for Sweating the Big Stuff since July 2010 and joined the weekly staff at Stupid Cents and Passive Family Income in March 2011 as well. I would love to join your team too!
My rates vary based on post length, how often you will need me, and subject matter, but we can work out a fair price together.
Are you looking for a webmaster – someone to run your site for you so you can simply sit back and reap the rewards?
I would love to be your webmaster! I would manage your posts including SEO, staff writers if you have any, advertiser requests, and your entire email inbox for a percentage of your site’s monthly profits. Based on the amount of work your site will need, we can work out a customized deal. Even if there is only one part of the duties you rather not handle, shoot an email my way!
Do you need a ghost writer – quality posts with no name attached?
I started ghost writing in January 2011. If you need a great post but you’d like to attach your own name, ghost writing help may be for you. My rates vary based on length and subject matter, and all of my customers have been happy with the results!
Do you want someone to walk you through the first steps of building a bigger blog?
I have grown Budgeting in the Fun Stuff to where it is now (Alexa 33,000, Moz 5, PR3, and more than $12,000 in revenue) from February 20, 2010 to March 31, 2011 and would love to walk you through the process! Of course, my quick advice will still be completely free, but if you were looking for very thorough or time-consuming paid help as well, I’m your girl!
I do offer a 100% money back guarantee on all of my services.
If you may be interested, please contact me using this form or by sending me an email at budgetingfunstuff *at* gmail *dot* com!
April 14, 2011, at 6:00 am
The following is a guest post about daily deal websites from Kevin at DebtEye. You can read more about DebtEye below the post.
Daily deal websites similar to Groupon and Living Social have taken over the web by storm. Every time you log into Facebook, it’s almost a guarantee that you’ll see an advertisement similar to Groupon Deals. With the recent overnight success of these sites, it’s no surprise that many companies will try to mimic their business model.
With more and more sites emerging, one of their marketing tactics is to have you subscribe to their daily deal by offering you a “deal too good to pass up.” For example, Living Social sold approximately 1.4 million $20 Amazon vouchers for $10. Who am I kidding, I signed up for this deal along with the others!
Daily Deal Sites – What’s the True Value?
As you subscribe to all the daily deal sites, it’s important to be cautious about what you’re purchasing. Even though you can save 50% at a retailer, the end cost can be well over 66%.
I remember there was a deal in Chicago for a local clothing boutique store. It was a $15 off $30 deal. Not too shabby of a deal if you can find a single item that costs $30…
I recall most items in the store being $50+ and the coupon didn’t even work on sale items. So if you bought an item @ the store for $50, the total cost for you is $35 ($15 for the coupon and $20 paid at the register). Total savings = 30%.
Daily Deal Sites – Come one, Come All!
Many fun service oriented businesses such as spas, salons, fitness classes, and even pole dancing classes often find the influx of customers extremely overwhelming. There are only so many customers a business can service in a short period of time.
For example, if a hair salon has 10 employees and each employee can cut 8 people per day, they are limited to 80 customers a day. This doesn’t even include their regular customers. It can be difficult to schedule an appointment at a time that’s convenient for you.
Which brings me to this question: When will you ever use the coupon?
Daily Deal Sites – I Feel Adventurous!
According to this consumer report, approximately 27% of last year’s gift cards went unused. This report focuses on gift cards (not coupons), but is’ indicative of how many coupons can go unused.
Unused coupons can be attributed to buyer’s remorse or the consumer just not having time. At the time of purchase, that skydiving experience sure sounded like a great idea! Wait, on second thoughts, I think I’ll pass.
Daily Deal Sites – My Take
I’m not stating that these group coupon sites are a waste of money. In fact, I’ve saved a ton of money purchasing some of these coupons. As obvious as it may sound, the best way to go about purchasing these coupons is to purchase items that you KNOW you will use.
I would suggest unsubscribing from the sites you rarely visit and only subscribe to a few of these sites. This will limit the exposure you get from these sites and help prevent impulse shopping.
Crystal’s Comments: I haven’t used Groupon yet but I will keep these things to look out for in mind if I do.
Have you had experience with daily deal sites like Groupon? What’s your take?
Debteye is a place where you can get unbiased opinions on anything related to personal finance. Kevin previously owned a debt settlement company prior to joining the DebtEye team. He is a certified debt specialist and also works with credit counselors across the nation.
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DISCLAIMER I am not a professional or a financial advisor. BFS posts are informational opinions only. Please make your own financial decisions based on personal research or see a financial advisor.
Also, there are paid links on this site. There is no obligation on your part to purchase any products advertised on this website.
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