My New Blog is Up!

My new blog on my very first domain is now up! You can find it at www.independentbeginnings.com. I have moved several of the posts from this site to that one, but I have not yet added any new posts. You can see the theme and layout of the blog. Make sure to fill out the contact form if you have any suggestions for me. I will be continuing to work on the site throughout the week, but you can at least see it now. Yay!

University-Sponsored Survey Sites

Since my new domain is not up and running yet, I decided to post this here. Nicole from Nicole's Nickels has posted a great article with links to University-Sponsored survey sites. These sites will pay you (often through Amazon gift cards) to take surveys for them online. Though they may say that they are experiments, most are just surveys. Make sure to check out each site individually to see the rules for the surveys. To see the article and the links, follow this link.

IndependentBeginnings is Moving!

Hey everyone, this is just to let you know that I have purchased my own domain name and this blog will be moving to www.independentbeginnings.com. The site is not yet up and running, but I will let you know when it is!

In the mean time, this blog will become my personal blog where I will talk about what is going on in my life. Feel free to check in often to see what I have to say about all sorts of different topics.

IHOP National Pancake Day--Free Pancakes!!!

Many of you may already know, but on Tuesday, February 24th 2009, IHOP will be giving away a free stack of three pancakes in celebration of National Pancake Day. The pancakes are completely free, but they ask that you consider making a donation to the Children's Miracle Network. Make sure to check it out!

Tax Breaks that Every Student Needs to Know About

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This past weekend, I had the wonderful opportunity of filing my taxes for the first time on my own. Although this could have been a very frustrating and stressful process, I actually enjoyed it quite a bit. It was a little difficult to pick which software program to use. In the end, though, I chose TaxSlayer. The program was easy to use and cost me a grand total of $10 (that includes my federal return and two state returns!). Needless to say, that is way cheaper than the $60 I would have had to pay to file two state returns with H&R Block's TaxCut. I also tried TaxAct, but the program showed my receiving less money and owing more money than the other programs did. Anyway, when it was all said and done, I ended up with a $3100 refund that ought to arrive within the next week or so! That is not a bad deal.

The biggest reason for my large refund this year came from the education credit I claimed. It turns out that there are actually several tax incentives for students, and knowing about them can save you big time. Though there may be others I am unaware of, the following list includes the most common tax incentives for students and some basic eligibility requirements for them. Make sure that you check the IRS website, especially this IRS publication for students, to be certain that you qualify for the particular credit you are looking at. Remember, you can only claim one credit, and if you do claim a credit you are not eligible for the tuition deducation. The credits, however, will typically give you more money than the deduction will. Finally, remember that these credits are only given to the person who paid the tuition, so if your parents are claiming you as a dependent, they will receive the credit and not you.

1) The Hope Credit--The Hope Credit is offered to students enrolled at last half time in a degree or credential-seeking program. The students, however, must be in the first two years of post-secondary study to claim this credit. Students qualifying for the Hope Credit will receive 100% of their first $1200 of qualifying college expenses and 50% of their next $1200 of qualifying expenses, for a total of up to $1800. If you live in a Midwestern Disaster Area, you may be eligible for a larger credit, but if you make $58,000 a year or more or your filing status is married filing separately, you may not be eligible for the credit. If you are eligible for this credit, the Hope Credit will probably be your best bet.

2) The Lifetime Learning Credit--This is the credit I was eligible for this year. This credit is available to anyone enrolled in any classes at a qualifying postsecondary institution. This credit is available for any year of study. The Lifetime Learning Credit pays 20% of tuition and fees up to $10,000. Therefore, you can receive a maximum of $2000 from this credit. If you make $58,000 or more, you may not be eligible for this credit. You are also ineligible if you filing status is married filing separately. You could be eligible for a higher credit, though, if you are a student in a Midwestern Disaster Area.

3) Tuition and Fees Deduction--If you make too much money to claim the Hope or Lifetime Learning Credits, you can still claim the tuition and fees deduction. This deduction will allow you to reduce your taxable income by up to $4000. Remember, though, that a $4000 does not actually decrease the amount of taxes you pay by $4000 like a credit would. Instead, it reduces the amount of income you made that can be taxed. So, if you are in the 10% tax bracket, your taxes would be decreased by $400 dollars. For this reason, you should really make sure you are not eligible for an education credit before you claim the deduction.

4) Student Loan Interest Deduction--This deduction allows you to reduce the amount of your taxable income by up to $2500 based on how much interest you paid toward a qualifying student loan. To claim this deduction, you must have been enrolled at least half-time at a qualifying post-secondary institution. You are not eligible for this credit if you make more than $70,000 a year (or $145,000 per couple filing jointly). I believe that this deduction CAN be combined with the education credits or deduction.

Comments? Additions? Feel free to leave a comment.

How to Save Money on Groceries

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With the worsening state of the economy, more and more people are looking for ways to cut back on spending. It turns out that one of the largest expenses families have each month is food. The amount you spend on groceries, however, does not have to be enormous. Following these steps below can help anyone significantly reduce the amount spent on groceries.

1) Buy Generic Brands--Many grocery stores, such as Kroger and Albertsons, offer their own generic items. These items are usually priced at a fraction of the name brand price. Also, generic brands such as Western Family and Malt-o-Meal offer very competitive prices. Oftentimes, you will be better off buying a generic store brand than you would be using coupons on a name brand. Make sure you do the math to see which option is better before you buy.

2) Use Coupons from the Sunday Paper--The majority of manufacturers coupons come from inserts in the Sunday paper. However, you do not have to have a subscription to the Sunday paper to get these coupons. One way you can get them is by purchasing them online. Ebay usually has coupons for sale. I have seen them as low as about $1 for 100 coupons, but usually they are around $2 to $3 for 100. Also, on The Coupon Clippers and other related websites, you can pick out exactly which coupons you want and purchase them for a small handling fee. An even better way to obtain these coupons is to get them for free! You can ask friends who get the Sunday paper if they will give you the coupons they will not use. I personally put an wanted ad on my local Freecycle and Craigslist sites asking for coupons and got several responses back! You could also check with your local grocery stores to see if they will give you the inserts from papers they do not sell. Remember to check to see if any grocery stores in your area double or even triple coupons. If they do, you can really get great bargains!

3) Use Coupons from the Internet--There are many websites that offer printable coupons.
Coupons.com offers a wide variety of them and so does BettyCrocker.com and Procter and Gamble. Some sites, such as Shortcuts.com, even allow you to load coupons onto your grocery store's card. There are many sites that offer coupons, not just these. Do a simple web search to find them. I would also recommend setting up an email address just for coupons. Then, sign up for the newsletters for all of your favorite brands. They will often send you coupons in their newsletters.

4) Write Your Grocery List Out Beforehand-- There is nothing worse than going to the grocery store hungry and without a plan. The best way to control your spending at the grocery store is to plan out what you will buy before you get there. There is no need for impulse shopping!

5) When Possible, Go Shopping With Your Parents--Okay, so this one isn't going to happen for most people, but a lot of college students have parents who are very willing to pay for groceries if you just ask. I know my inlaws give us a large freezer bag full of meat whenever we come and visit. Don't miss out on this one just because of pride.

Comments? Suggestions? Let us know!

Dave Ramsey's Cash Envelope System: What It Is, Why to Use It, and How to Modify It

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Need help setting up and enforcing your budget? A great way to get started is to use Dave Ramsey's cash envelope system. The envelope system designates an envelope for each category of your budget, such as food, gas, clothing, entertainment, etc. On the outside of the envelope, you write down a limit to the amount you will spend in that category. Then, when you receive your paycheck, you cash it and put the amount you wrote on each envelope into that envelope. Whenever you make a purchase from a certain category, you use the cash in that envelope and write the amount of the purchase on the outside of the envelope. When the cash in the envelope is gone, you cannot spend any more on that category for the rest of the month.

My husband and I started using this method after we read Dave Ramsey's book, Total Money Makeover, and it has really helped us keep our budget. Since we don't have very many expenses, we only used three envelopes: food, entertainment, and miscellaneous. The envelope system really helped us think ahead for the rest of the month and control our spending.
The only disadvantage of the envelope system is the hassle of cashing your paycheck and carrying around large amounts of cash on you. If this seems inconvenient to you, you can modify the envelope system so that you still use your debit or credit card (responsibly, of course). You still designate an envelope for each category of your budget and write the monthly limit on the envelope. Then, whenever you make a purchase in that category, you write the amount of the purchase on the outside of the envelope and subtract it from the total, then you put your receipt for that purchase in the envelope. Using this modified method, you can include expenses that you always pay with a debit or credit card, such as utilities.

Do you have a positive or negative experience with Dave Ramsey's cash envelope system? Let us know!