Personal Finance | StoopidSuccess.com

Is your Net Worth going up or down?

February 20, 2012 By Eugene Craig III

Is your net worth going up or going down?

There is a renewed focus on the economy and the growth and decline of people’s net worth. The largest focus is on the trillions of dollars of worth people have loss over the last couple years with the downturn of the American economy. The problem that during the housing crisis home prices took a nose dive( which have yet to recover), and with it the value of many homes in this country vanished overnight. The biggest problem is that for many people their largest asset is their home.

What is net worth?

Your net worth is simply your asset minus your liabilities (Assets – Liabilities= Net Worth). The net worth of a person can go up or can go down based on the two factors of their financial life. Your assets are everything that you own. The key here is ownership. A person can have a very high income and own almost nothing. The key to building the asset side of the equation is to buy things that increase in value, rather than things that decrease in value. Your liabilities are everything that you owe. The fact of the matter is that most people actually have very low net worth due to the fact they carry such high debt loads. Any debt that you have or owe is included in you liabilities and drags down you overall net worth.

How to build net worth

There are 2 ways to build net worth. The first is to limit or eliminate your liabilities. This method is limited because you will only have but so many liabilities before you run out. Paying off all your debt and living debt free lifestyles is the best way to secure your financial freedom. The second way is to build your assets. As previously mentioned you should be purchasing assets that grow in value over time. Most purchasing done by people has almost no true value, and will drop in value the second you purchase it. The key is to purchase asset that will grow and you are comfortable with. To achieve true financial success and maximize growth in your net worth you need to apply both of these methods.

Get You Money Right In 2012

January 2, 2012 By Eugene Craig III

2012 is finally here and with a new year comes new beginnings! The New Year is always a great chance and opportunity to get a second start on your financial life. If your financial life is dead this is your chance to rise like a phoenix. Here are some steps you should take in the new year to get your financial life in order for 2012.

Boost your savings

If you are not saving START! It is not enough to simply put some money away here and there, but on a continuing regular basis. I would recommend that you set up a separate account and have your savings automatically deducted from your paycheck and placed into your savings account by your payroll manager. You will find that when you have the financial security of a savings account your life gets a lot easier. Things that may have caused you to panic before barely faze you. I would suggest if you are not currently saving that you start out saving 5%-10% of you gross income. If you are already saving but may not be saving enough, I would suggest you boost your savings to 15%-20% of your gross income. If you would like to get very aggressive you could boost your rate of savings to 25% or more! The point is to save now so you can have the security later. If you went previous years without the security of adequate savings this is your chance to make 2012 a year that matters in your financial life!

Start investing

Investing in 2012 could very well set you for the rest of your future. There are literally thousands of opportunities and many gains to be made. I am a big fan of stocks and bonds simply because of their simplicity. Picking a stock is simply about picking a good company nothing more nothing less. If you would not be confident in own the entire company then you should not own the stock of that company. There are many different philosophies and strategies to investing, and you should find the one that works best for you. The key is to get started and don’t stop. Your investing should occur on a regular basis like your saving with the exception of capitalizing on an opportunity or two that present itself where you just happen to be at the right place at the right time.

Give more

Yes your giving can be a very valuable tool when it comes to building your financial life. With the current tax code you are allowed to deduct various charitable donations for depending on the donation and the amount from your tax bill. If you give regularly to a charitable organization you may be able to put yourself in a position where when April 15, 2013 rolls around you come to find that because of your charitable giving throughout the year you pretty much don’t owe the government anything in taxes. This could actually save you money over the long term.

2012 is about making decisions that allow for the growth that you would like to see in the various sectors of your life occur. If you would like to be more financially stable or in a better position in 2012 make the decision now !

Filed Under: Budgeting, Empowerment, Goal Setting, Personal Finance Tagged With: Giving, investing, new year, Personal Finance, savins

How to Properly Handle Black Friday!

November 25, 2011 By Eugene Craig III

Black Friday is finally here, and the crazies have been released from the asylum! Every year there are people that either have early Thanksgiving dinners to hop in line to get their hands on the best deals of the year, or skip Thanksgiving all together to camp out of their favorite store. Well while we are all surrounded by the madness, I have 2 rules of thumb that if you use them you will absolutely remain sane during this crazy day!

1. Avoid Black Friday at all cost!
That is right I am suggesting you miss out on all of the juicy sales that will be available for you. There are multiple benefits that come with avoiding Black Friday.

A. Invest the money you would have spent on items purchased on black Friday. I’m sure even the worst stock or bond bought will be worth much more than the item your planning on picking up today!

B. Shop online and get some savings without the hassle. While cyber Monday is right around the corner many retailers have hit the net with their Black Friday sales. This means that all you can avoid the madness, and get all of your shopping done from the comfort of your computer.

C. Simply save the money you were going to spend. This is a rocky economic time for everyone, and I don’t understand how anyone who is not financially secure is able to run out and spend like there is not tomorrow. Plan for tomorrow today!

2. If you must shop on Black Friday let it be to purchase something that will increase your opportunities, and put a brighter light on your future.

If you feel as though you cannot let go of the opportunity presented on Black Friday, use it to better yourself. Everyone knows about the purchase I made last year. That purchase turned out to be one of the best I made last year, but I also waited for the madness to calm down before I even attempted to go out.
What are your plans for black Friday? Will you be chasing the major sales? Do you have any Black Friday success or horror stories?

Filed Under: Budgeting, Lifestyle, Personal Finance Tagged With: Black Friday, black friday sales, save money with black friday

The Good Ole’ Fashion Jar of Savings

June 22, 2011 By Eugene Craig III

Today we are launching the series on summer savings. Today we will highlight the method that we all grew up with, but continues to be one of the most effective ways to save money. I am talking about the good ole’ fashion jar/jug of savings. Everyone at some point in time of their life had a piggy bank that they used to store away all of their loose change to someday take it to their local bank and trade in for dollars. This is such a tradition embedded in our society that it has allowed for the springing up of coinstar machines at almost every major grocery store that we shop at. I am going to add a little bit of strategy to this method. If properly applied a person could save $50- $100 a month with this method.

Instead of simply saving your loose change, step out on a limb and put your $1 bills along with your loose change into the jar. I do not recommend using a water jug for your $1 bills but an envelope. I will be hard press to guarantee you that if you are already on a cash only diet, you will only a daily basis place $2-$3 dollars in cash alone into your envelope and an average of 50 cents in change into your jar. You will find at the end of the month that on the low end with this method you could save $75 that you can then use to buff up your savings or Create Your own tax break. This is only the beginning of our journey in our summer of endless savings.

Filed Under: Personal Finance, Uncategorized Tagged With: Savings, summer savings

Here are ways to turn your summer cleaning into cold hard cash $$$$

June 20, 2011 By Eugene Craig III

Jeff Cohen is CEO of CampusBooks.com and blogger at TheTextbookGuru.com. He dishes out tips and insider advice about education, textbooks, and saving money.

“Spring Cleaning” is a term that sends many running for the hills, but when done correctly, it’s about more than Lysol and feather dusters. Just like New Year’s, but a little warmer, spring can be real opportunity to clear out the clutter in our lives. In true SustainableLife fashion, there are a couple ways to get organized, clear space and make some cash during the process, using a bit of creativity and some online tools.

1. Sell old electronics

We all have it: that drawer, box or bin of broken or outdated electronics, from cameras to cables. Electronics can be hard sort through and throw away, but before you say no, consider the last time you used them and the space that tangle of technology is taking up.

Sort through the electronics jungle and decide what can go, but don’t just toss it: you can sell even broken electronics, like cell phones, cameras, and iPods for parts on eBay. You may only get $20 for your cracked lens camera, but non-functioning iPhones can get hundreds. Either way, if you don’t want it fixed, some cash is better than nothing.

No luck selling? Your last resort should be donating, but never throwing away. The EPA can help you find out where.

2. Team up with your neighbors

Never underestimate the value of a good yard sale. Pick a day (weekends are best), spread the word to your neighbors and friends, maybe even advertise the sale on Facebook and local bulletins. Get Rich Slowly has a great checklist for getting the most out of your garage sale.

On top of increasing the odds of visitors, block yardsales also allows you to do some real neighborly bonding and maybe even have some fun. Depending on your area, you may not be ready for neighborhood watches and kumbaya barbecues, but it’s a good step in the right direction.

For the student reader, team up with a student org to host a college-wide yard sale, like the one USC is hosting this week.

Just remember that this is a chance for other to people to buy your junk, not for you to wander away and spend all the money you make on other people’s junk, so be wary!

3. Sell back your books

While some people like holding onto books for decorative value, bragging rights, or they just for get about them, they’re an easy item to sell back. Check out our tips, and make sure you’re getting a good price.

Obviously, textbooks, whether left-over from college or accrued other ways, are the high-ticket items, but a couple bucks for some well-kept paperbacks is still worth the effort, especially if you can use the space and money.

4. Take a (Tax) Break for Goodwill

Donating your clothes can be a long and painful process, especially if something has sentimental value or you wish you had ability to wear it. The good news is there are two great benefits, one being more space in the closet for new clothes, and second, you get a nice tax break directly correlated to the amount donated. They even provide a guide to give you an estimate of what you will earn here.

One important tip for donating clothes is organization, and planning from labeling boxes to delivery or drop off to the charity. The Better Business Bureau came up with some tax deduction and organizational tips for donators that can get the most out of donations without making it too complicated.

The best part of donating, instead of just throwing away, especially in this case, the donations go to supporting a good cause, like Goodwill, and they help those less fortunate in time of need.

5. Clear up your finances

Take this as an opportunity to assess your finances. Do you know where all your paperwork is? Who holds your loans and where you can be optimizing your payments?

Many of us also have credit cards, services and subscriptions we don’t use. Sit down and assess what you really need, and cut ties to the rest. The Simple Dollar debates cutting down credit cards. Really think about the impact, financially and environmentally, of your paper subscriptions, and cancel the ones you can live without. Lifehacker even posted on the best ways to ditch your cable subscription, without losing your favorite shows.

To clear clutter, you have to get organized, prioritize and be both honest and creative. Do you have your own tips? Share them, and good luck!

Filed Under: Personal Finance, Uncategorized Tagged With: campus books, make money

$5 a gallon!! No problem!!!

June 5, 2011 By Eugene Craig III

With the many crisis that are occurring around the world at the current time it is becoming a very likely reality that the cost of gasoline will reach $5 a gallon which would do drastic levels of harm to the average American consumer and the many small businesses around the country. The fact is that we as Americans are very dependent on oil and gasoline to maintain our level of productivity and the flow of goods through our economy. It does not help us at all that we as a country are lacking an overall energy policy that directs and provides solutions to our pressing energy needs. In the event that the price of gasoline does reach $5/ gallon you should be prepared with some ways to combat it. Here is a list of 3 ways to beat the battle at the pump.

1. Car pool with other going the same direction
One of the easiest and basic way you can directly trim down the cost of your fuel consumption is to car pool with other individuals that are going in the same direction that you are headed. I am sure that there is someone that lives near you that may work at your workplace or may have a commute that is in the same direction that yours is in. It would be wise of you to align 2 or more options if they are available. Another bright tip that would help with the implementation of a good car pooling team is a shared gas fund. The way this would work is that everyone would contribute on a weekly basis to the gas fund , and the fund would be used to contribute to the overall fuel cost of the commute to work. To be sure that one person is not hogging up the gas fund I would also suggest that you alternate who does the driving on a regular basis.

2. Make use of the mass transit system
I know this may not be an option for many people, but you may drastically reduce the overall cost of your daily commute if you were to take advantages of the local mass transit city for your city. I know in my case it would cost me upwards of $200/week to fund my daily commute, but gladly I have access to a commuter train that runs from Maryland to Washington D.C that actually has a stop right at my destination. The cost of a monthly pass on the commuter train for me runs $200/month. In this case I am able to save roughly 75%-80% of the cost that I ordinarily would have been spending on fuel consumption and my daily commute to school. There are some major downsides to having to depend on a mass transit system like no longer having full control of your schedule. This is probably the biggest problem I face as I am now bound by the schedule of the train rather than the schedule of my life, but I guess a little bit of freedom is the price that we pay to be able to save some good money. If you access to a mass transit system and are able to save some pretty good mullah by using it, then by all means take advantage of the opportunity. You’ll some pretty cool and interesting people along the way.

3. Just don’t drive!!!
Yes, if you don’t have to drive then don’t. The only way you will have to spend money on gasoline is if you have to drive or choose to drive. I am a firm believer in saving money, and one of the best ways to save money is to not take any action. You should consider walking to your destination if it is within reason. Another alternative to driving is getting your hands on good bicycles. For the cost of about 2 weeks of your commute you could very well purchase a good bicycle and ride your bike to work. Yes, you may face criticism from some of your co-workers, but when thinking of that consider the money you would be saving if you were able to ride your bike to work 70% of the time, and only drive your car that other 30%. I would be neglectful to not mention the health benefits that would come along with this also.

Just because the cost of gasoline is on the rise does not mean that you have to subject yourself to the rising rates. There are alternatives to the regular daily commute which can become quite costly. What alternatives do you have to fighting the punch of $5/gallon gasoline prices?

Filed Under: Personal Finance Tagged With: $5 dollar gas, gas prices

The Savers Series

May 17, 2011 By Eugene Craig III

This week I will be diving into the world of savings, and giving you all ways to save money with very little effort. These tools will help you boost your savings with the minimal amount of discipline and effort. The series will launch on Thursday so be on the look out!- Gene

Filed Under: Personal Finance Tagged With: boosting savings, developing savings, Savings

How to Dig your way out of Credit Card debt from the experts!

May 7, 2011 By Eugene Craig III

How to get out of Credit Card Debt

Credit cards are most remarkable for accruing huge interest rate on a person’s account balance.
Generally most credit cards impose 16% to 20% annual interest rate as monthly interest gets
compounded to the principal. Therefore, your little unpaid debt may wind up over the time if
not given due concern. It may turn into a gigantic figure. So, if you are not serious about your
increasing credit card debt settlement from the first, you should be ready for a financially devastating situation
in future.

Take a look at different options to get debt relief

However, it is possible to chip away your credit card debt part by part through debt consolidation
or debt settlement program. Otherwise, you can also make more than minimum payment which
helps to reduce the bulk amount of debt piled as interest. Another smart option is opening a
new account for transferring your balance to any 0% interest consolidation card. Let us see the
prospects of some of our plans.

Debt consolidation

Credit card debt consolidation is a great way of reducing your monthly debt pressure. If you have
multiple credit card debt, consolidation would allow you to make only a single payment to your
consolidation firm. This way you can better handle your situation. It sets a lengthy installment
plan after restructuring your repayment schedule. You might have paid multiple credit cards, each
having multiple interest rates. Now, you are liable to pay only one card having a single payment
model. However, by consolidation you may end up paying huge in the interest on the aggregate.
Though, initially you will feel it much more affordable to bear.

Make payment more than minimum

Making higher payment than minimum can chip your mounting interest. When you pay only the
minimum, you must know that it covers only 3% of your total balance. Following a minimum
payment strategy will only increase the interest rate that you will have to incur over a long span of
time. It is because, the more time you take , the more interest you congregate. That is way paying
more than minimum may be better for you. It saves both your time and money in the long run.

You can use your pension savings

To save yourself from impending foreclosure or wage garnishment you can drawmoney from your
401k pension plan or from any other savings account. However, for your kind information let me
tell you that default on your credit card account may sometime prove to be positive for you. If
you want to come into a debt settlement program with your creditor, he will first check the status
of your current account. If it is up to date, they may decline your proposal. They will come to a
settlement once you default on your account. However, it does not mean that you must default
deliberately.

So think about what you should do. By debt settlement one pays less than he owes. All the late fines
may be eliminated by your creditor. Even you may get reduction on your interest rate.

So these are some popular ways that help people to get out of their credit card debt.

This is a guest post written by Myrina Stein of the Oakview Law Group. Be Sure to check out some of his other work here.

Filed Under: Hot topics, Personal Finance Tagged With: credit card debt, get out of debt, oak view law group

Make Big money as a Stoopid Success Affiliate!

May 1, 2011 By Eugene Craig III

With the revamping of the Affiliate program for the “25 Principles of the Stoopidly Successful” E-Book, I am proud to announce we are offering an industry leading stunning 70% commission on all sales along with other performance bonuses. I am looking a few great people to become affiliates , and have exclusive marketing rights to this AWESOME E-Book. I am offering a stunning industry leading 70% commission on every E-book sold, with performance bonuses kicking in. You will be paid on the 1st of the following month. So If you make a sale in April, you will be paid on the 1st of May. This is a perfect opportunity for anyone looking to generate some extra income, so click the link below and lets get this ball rolling!
This will require you sign up with ejunkie(who we use to operate the program) and paypal (who we use to pay you!).

After You get your code email your code and your affiliate id to affilaites@stoopidsuccess.com and your link will be built right away so you can start making money immediately. Click the link below to get started!

Join our Affiliate Program!

Filed Under: Business, Personal Finance, successful life, Ways to make money Tagged With: Become a Stoopid Success affiliate, Become an affiliate, ways to make money

April Stoopid Success $300 cash give away

March 22, 2011 By Eugene Craig III

For the entire month of April we will be running a major contest. The stooped success family would like to thank all of you for your dedicated support with a $300 contest/give- away. That is correct we will be giving away a full $300 cold, hard cash as a thank-you to all of our loyal readers and partners. The $300 is our grand prize, but there will be other prizes ranging from gift cards to E-books. There are multiple ways to gain entries into the contest, and below you can find what kind of actions will get you entries into the contest. Hope you all enjoy!!

1. Tweet and re-tweet of an article with use of the twitter button below the articles= 1 entry

2. Sharing of article on Facebook via the button below the article = 1 entry ( you must add me on Facebook so we can verify)

3. Follow our twitter accounts on twitter ( @stoopidsuccess,@Eugenecraig1,@stoopidpols)= 5 entries for each

4. Comment on a post/article= 2 entries

5. Link to one of the sites( EugeneCraig.com,Stoopidsuccess.com,stoopidpolitics.com) or article = 10 entries

6. Write a Review of one of the blogs/sites ( Eugenecraig.com, Stoopidsuccess.com,stoopidpolitics.com)= 20 entries

7. Purchase of the e-book “25 principles of the stoopidly successful”= 35 entries

8. Review of the e-book “25 principles of the stoopidlly successful “=25 entries

9. Become an affiliate of “25 principles of the stoopidly successful” and sell 5 copies= 100 entries

10. Run a guest post on one of the sites ( EugeneCraig.com,Stoopidsuccess.com,Stoopidpolitics.com)= 50 entries

11. Run one of my guest post on your site/blog= 75 entries

12. Follow my rss feed= 10 entries

At the end of each day for verification purposes please send a friendly email to Stoopid_con@yahoo.com with a list of the actions you completed that day so that they may be added to you total of entries.
The winner will be announced on May 5th at 5p.m. Est.
If you have any questions, comments, or concerns please email me at stoopidsuccess@yahoo.com

Filed Under: Hot topics, Investment, Personal Finance Tagged With: $300, cash give away, contest, stoopid success cash give away