Erratic vacation home real estate market staggers upward

Lakefront properties continue to be the leading market for real estate offices as well as homebuilders, but how much better are they than other properties?Jeff and wife Heather Rickert are having a grand opening from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. next Sunday, Oct. 25, of their new RE/MAX office at Liberty Plaza at 960 Route 940, Suites 102 & 103, in Pocono Pines, their first venture as office managers after 20 years combined experience. They’ve enhanced their business they say by [...]

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Grads' success in employment, earnings seals high national ranking

East Stroudsburg University has earned a Best Value Top College standing by Educate to Career Inc., a California-based nonprofit organization founded in 2013 by persons with distinguished careers in academic administration, human resources and business management.According to Educate to Career, ESU is ranked in the top third of the annual outcomes-based, ETC College Rankings Index for 2016. The index, produced by ETC, ranks 1,182 schools. This index is unique as it places major [...]

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Deeds, Sunday, Oct. 18, 2015

Barrett TownshipMichael L. and Patricia Crowl to Eric M. Reinert and Ellen Riccobene, Lots 130, 131 and 132, Plotting No. 2, Buck Hill Falls Company, $540,000Chestnuthill TownshipJurgen and Linda Kreckel to Petro and Ella Holyk, Lot 14, Ridgeview Estates, $225,000Coolbaugh TownshipWarren R. Vroom and Syed Abid and Andrea Rizvi, Lot 2, Section 4, Timber Trails, $525,000Scott M. and Lisa Japko to [...]

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Building an opportunistic business plan to survive

Home construction company executives agree that the industry, which plunged locally during the recession, has stabilized but the upswing is slow, much like the overall economic recovery.“The recovery is unique, gradual and episodic,” said Pennsylvania Builders Association CEO Daniel Durden, meaning some areas are better off than others, at Thursday’s Pocono Builders Association awards banquet at the Stroudsmoor. “This is more of a second home and vacation [...]

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Should You Continue Investing in a Bear Market?

Photo: Tambako the Jaguar

She’s up. She’s down. And according to many industry experts, she’s spiraling into a bear market, or what many would call an ongoing decline in stock prices of 20% or more.

We’re talking about the stock market, of course. And if you’ve been paying attention to your retirement or brokerage accounts at all, you’re probably already painfully aware of emerging trends. According to Bloomberg, recent stock market antics look strikingly similar to periods leading up to the last two bear markets.

Notes Bloomberg: “The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index has seen its average price over 12 months fall for two straight months, data compiled by Bloomberg and MKM Partners LLC show. In the past two decades, declines in the average measure lasting two months or longer had only occurred twice, in the dot-com crash and the 2007-2009 bear market.”

A Lesson on Not Timing the Market

As we all know, people lost enormous sums of money during the last two bear markets and the periods that followed.

Wait — let me rephrase that: People who sold their investments at the bottom of the market lost a lot of money. Meanwhile, many who held onto their investments and rode the wave clawed back all of their earnings and then some.

That’s a generalization, of course, since individual investors’ results don’t always jibe with national trends. But it’s safe to say that’s how the results panned out for many people.

Take the popular Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund (VTSAX), for example. A sum of $10,000 invested in 2005 was worth only $6,512 in late 2008, yet ballooned to $20,609.31 as of this writing. Imagine being the sucker who sold his shares in 2008 and took that loss, knowing now he would have earned it back and then some if he had just waited?

• Related: And the Stock Market Outlook Is… Who Cares?!

Should You Keep Investing in a Bear Market?

While selling in a panic locks in your losses, there are other ways a bear market can cost you. According to New York City financial planner Shannon McLay of The Financial Gym, one way people lose money during a bear market is when they stop investing altogether — either out of fear, confusion, or because they just don’t know what to do.

The bottom line: People see falling prices and their intuition tells them to stop buying. But that can be a huge mistake, says McLay.

“No one really knows how long any market cycle will last,” she says. “And if you stay on the sidelines, you run the risk of the market experiencing a huge rally that you will not get to take advantage of because you weren’t buying all along.”

We all wish we had a crystal ball, laments McLay. “But since we don’t, it’s best to commit to participating in the markets year-round and know that commitment will pay off over time.”

Dollar Cost Averaging, FTW

Investing the same amount of money into certain investments on a regular basis is commonly referred to as “dollar-cost averaging.” By investing a consistent amount of money in any kind of market — whether you truly feel like it or not — you may be able to grasp the best average returns over time and even out fluctuations.

The strategy goes like this: If you consistently invest, say, $100 a week, you’ll automatically buy fewer shares at high prices and more shares when they’re at a discount. For example, if a stock or fund’s price falls to $50 one week, you’ll buy two shares; if it rises to $100 the next week, you’ll only buy one share.

“This is a great strategy because it can be automated and it saves you from attempting to time the market,” notes Katie Brewer, Certified Financial Planner and owner of Your Richest Life Planning.

Brewer also notes that individuals who do the bulk of their investing through their work-sponsored retirement accounts are already dollar-cost averaging by default.

“When you put money into a 401(k) or an investment account on an automated basis, you are already dollar-cost averaging,” says Brewer.

And if you’re mostly invested in mutual funds, investing automatically every month is an even easier decision.

Since mutual funds charge the same expense ratio as a percentage on each investment no matter how great or small, you’ll pay the same amount of fees no matter how often you invest your money. Investing in individual stocks, on the other hand, usually means paying a commission or fee for each purchase or trade.

These opposing fee structures could make dollar cost averaging with mutual funds an especially good investment, which is something to consider.

• Related: What Is Index Fund Investing and Why Does It Work? 

Bear Markets: Stock Sales in Disguise

When the stock market rallies, we all feel rich and merry. But when it tanks, many want to cut their losses and move on. That’s another rookie blunder, says McLay. When prices drop, she suggests thinking of it as more of a sale than a death knell.

“Bear markets give investors a great opportunity to buy stocks that are on sale,” says McLay. “Yes, you run the risk of the stock price going down after you buy it; however, if it’s something you want to own over a longer period of time, the temporary setback shouldn’t concern you.”

We’ve all heard it a million times: When it comes to investing, we’re supposed to “buy low and sell high.” On the same vein, many suggest using those low points as opportunities to stock up.

The Bottom Line

Should you continue investing in a bear market? At the end of the day, the choice is yours. But for many disciplined investors, the choice to continue investing through a bear market and beyond is an easy one. Because the ups and downs don’t matter nearly as much as average returns over time.

And on the advice of famous investor Warren Buffett, they know that consistency often pays off — but that following the herd usually doesn’t.

“Be fearful when others are greedy, and greedy when others are fearful.” — Warren Buffett

Do you invest every month no matter what? Are you afraid to continue investing in a bear market?

The post Should You Continue Investing in a Bear Market? appeared first on The Simple Dollar.

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The First Time You Spend Less Than You Earn… and How to Handle It

In my eyes, the fundamental rule of personal finance is spend less than you earn. Do that each month and each year and you’re going to be in good financial shape. You can really dig deep, make that gap between your income and spending big, and hit your financial goals quickly, or you can take it slowly and build just a small gap that will still take you where you want to go.

No matter what, you’ve got to start somewhere.

One of the first really sweet milestones for me was the first time I realized I had actually spent significantly less than I earned over the course of a month. It was during May 2006 and I had noted that during that month, I had paid all of my bills and even made a large payment on one of my credit cards and still had more in my checking account at the end of the month than at the start without any of my credit card balances going up at all.

It felt fantastic. It was truly one of the first times where I had really seen my day-to-day frugality efforts add up to anything. I had spent almost every day that month trying to cut back on unnecessary spending, but I hadn’t really seen the big results of it yet. That day, when I had several hundred more dollars in my checking account than I did at the start of the month, I saw it plain and clear.

The problem was that my initial response to having that money was to want to celebrate. Although I had been making good choices for several weeks in a row, my bad spending tendencies were still present. My instinctive reaction to this positive personal news was to go out and buy something – some drinks, a meal at a restaurant, an item or two that I had denied to myself during that month.

Celebrating in that way would directly undo at least some of the effort and some of the positive results. It would be akin to celebrating two weeks of careful dieting by eating an entire large pizza and a bucket of ice cream, or celebrating a month of an exercise routine with a week of complete vegetation. Sure, you’re celebrating a good result, but you’re actually undoing at least some of your good efforts.

So, what do you do? How do you celebrate? How do you intelligently channel those proceeds? Let’s tackle those questions individually.

Celebrating Your First Financial Successes Sensibly

Almost everyone who finds themselves in a situation where they need a financial turnaround also finds themselves with some pretty terrible spending habits. In their past, they’ve spent a lot of money foolishly, which has resulted in a pile of debts and some life patterns that aren’t headed in a good direction.

I know that certainly describes me. My spending habits in 2004, 2005, and early 2006 were atrocious. I would find reasons to celebrate things constantly, and that celebration meant buying stuff – books, video games, DVDs, food, and so on. If something – anything – good happened in my life, I celebrated with purchases.

It was pretty obvious that I needed to unlink spending choices from my desire to celebrate personal achievements. Celebrating everything with a bunch of spending was really hindering my financial state, and this was obviously going to be particularly true if the celebration was in honor of being responsible with my spending. I needed to unlink celebrating and spending in general, and this was never more true than with my desire to celebrate my better financial choices.

So, how does one celebrate financial success in a more sensible fashion? Here’s how I do it.

I celebrate with time. My typical method of celebrating some kind of success in my life is to wall off a block of time – usually a full day on a weekend – for some sort of activity that’s completely for my own enjoyment or enrichment, without any guilt for doing so.

For example, whenever I complete a professional project or goal, it’s really tempting to celebrate. Instead of opening up my wallet, though, I open up my time. I give myself the personal freedom to just enjoy an afternoon or a day without facing the often-endless list of home maintenance and other household tasks or professional tasks or community obligations.

It truly is the best gift that I give myself. I enjoy my “free” Saturdays a lot, as it’s my time to get lost in a project.

I celebrate with an adventure (usually with my kids, but sometimes without them). Often, this is a shorter excursion than the full day I mention above – usually, it’s an afternoon starting with a picnic lunch and ending with a return home for a meal already prepared in the slow cooker – but it’s an afternoon spent doing something outside, exploring someplace new.

Usually, it’s a trip to a nearby state park. One of my goals is to spend time exploring every state park in Iowa, but we often wind up exploring the areas of some of the central Iowa parks, like Big Creek or Ledges.

We’ll just pick a trail and start wandering. Sometimes, if it’s okay, we’ll just leave the trail and start exploring cross country. We’ll go up hills and down hills. We’ll look for beautiful lookout points or interesting trees. We’ll listen for bird sounds. We’ll get out of breath going up and down hills. Sometimes, we’ll slip in some loose dirt or mud and wind up going home caked in dirt.

Yet, somehow, it’s incredibly relaxing. I go home from these trips feeling great every single time. The best part? It doesn’t cost much at all.

I celebrate with my wife. We’ve been married for twelve years and have three children, yet there’s still no one I’d rather hold close and share my thoughts and secrets with. Her humor, grace, and beauty are simply unparalleled in my eyes, and there’s just no better way to celebrate a big event than to do almost anything with her by my side. Spend time with the people you enjoy and love the most and it will always feel celebratory.

Channeling Your Money Smartly

So, you’ve got that extra money and it feels good. Even better, you’ve become smart enough to realize that you don’t need to use any of that money to celebrate your success.

But, still…

You have money sitting there in that account. It’s more than you had at the start of the month. What do you do with it? What’s the smartest move?

First of all, don’t get caught up very much on what the “smartest” move is. That’s a fool’s errand, because most of the reasonably good things you could do with that money could end up being the “smartest” thing, but it all relies on factors that still lie in the future. What you should always focus on is doing something good with your extra money and don’t worry about what the best move is, because the “best” move relies on future events, on your own risk tolerance, and on a bunch of additional factors that are basically irrelevant.

You’re always better off pulling the trigger on a good financial choice than getting locked down in analysis paralysis while searching for the best financial choice.

So, what are some of the good choice? It turns out there’s actually a lot of them. Here are fifteen smart things to do with that extra money in your checking account at the end of your first month of smart financial choices. All of these are good ideas, though some might be better ideas for specific people in specific situations.

1. Build an emergency fund. Simply transfer the extra money you didn’t spend this month into your savings account, leaving your checking account at the same level it was at the start of the month. That way, if an emergency occurs in the future – like identity theft or a car problem or something else – you have cash you can tap to just take care of the problem without some kind of personal or financial crisis. This is probably my default recommendation for most people, so if nothing else here really makes perfect sense for you, go for an emergency fund.

2. Make an extra payment on your highest interest debt. Got debts? Use that extra money to make an additional payment on your high interest debt. The next time you go to make a payment on that debt, add your extra money to that payment. If your regular bill is $50, for example, and you have $200 extra in your account, make a $250 payment that month. You’ll knock off some of the principal, which means that you’ll have a smaller balance and thus less interest to pay in future months.

3. Make a few bulk purchases of your most frequently used nonperishable items. One of the things that people often do when they’re struggling to make ends meet is that they buy small packages of items that they use all the time, like garbage bags or toilet paper. The small package is cheaper, don’t get me wrong, but the larger package is almost always cheaper per use. Take the cost of the package and divide it by the number of bags or the number of rolls enclosed and you’ll quickly see that the big package is almost always cheaper over the long haul. So, take that extra money and splurge for some of the big packages. You won’t have the consistent need to buy things like trash bags or paper towels, plus you’ll actually spend less on them over the long haul.

4. Replace some of your home light bulbs with LEDs. Another really smart frugal item that many people skip when they’re financially tight are LED light bulbs. LED bulbs have far longer lifespans than ordinary incandescent bulbs and they gobble far less electricity per hour of use, which means that they will cut back on your energy bill as well. LEDs typically save more than $100 per bulb over their lifetime compared to the number of incandescent bulbs and the electricity they’ll eat over the same period. The catch? LEDs have a higher up-front cost. Of course, with a little extra money in your account, you can now cover that up-front cost, which will reduce your energy bills moving forward and also eliminate a lot of future incandescent bulb purchases.

5. Make a contribution to your Roth IRA. A Roth IRA is a way for almost anyone to save money for retirement – and it’s really easy to set up. You can do it online, in fact; most investment houses and brokerages make this quite easy, basically as easy as a savings account. Of course, a Roth IRA is useless without money to put into that account, and that’s where your extra money comes in. That cash is perfect for building up a Roth IRA and making your eventual retirement just a little bit easier.

6. Fill the tank in each of your cars. How does this save you money, you might ask? What this actually does is that it moves an expense that will occur in the next month – a fill-up – to this month, making next month have even more breathing room. That can be a very good move if you know next month might have some extra expenses or travel or other unusual features.

7. Take care of any auto maintenance that’s due or past due, like an oil change. However, if you’re looking at your car, a better move for the long term might be to take care of maintenance on it so that you can extend its lifespan. Getting regular maintenance, such as oil changes and new brake pads, is essential for extending the life of your automobile and squeezing many more miles out of it before critical parts fail. So use some of that money to take care of basic maintenance on your car. Give it an oil change or whatever else it might need – if you’re not sure, check the manual as it will tell you what’s needed at your current mileage.

8. Buy some of the holiday gifts you’re going to give this year. The holidays are always coming, and for most of us, that means buying a bunch of gifts for family members and friends. Sure, some of them can be homemade – we often do that – but you’re still going to be facing at least some costs related to the holidays. So, buy a few items now, or sock some of the money away for the holiday season. That way, you’re not stuck panicking about how you’re going to be able to afford the gifts you’re obligated to give.

9. Pay for an irregular bill, like an insurance bill or an estimated tax payment. Most of us have bills in our lives that are outside of the normal monthly billing cycle. Insurance. Property taxes. Quarterly estimated income taxes. These things pop up sometimes when you least expect them, wreaking havoc with your financial plans. Nip that in the bud right away by taking care of those expenses now, either by paying the bill immediately or by saving money for that bill in your savings account.

10. Take care of upcoming travel expenses. Do you fly somewhere for the holidays? Maybe you have a wedding you’re going to later this year or next year. Whatever the reason, you might very well have some travel expenses coming up in the future that you already know about. Take advantage of that advanced knowledge as well as the extra money you have on hand by buying the ticket now, ideally with a price guarantee involved. That way, the ticket is taken care of and you’re not facing a last minute expense.

11. Save up for an automobile or house down payment. At some point in your future, you’re likely going to need to buy a new car or move into a house (or both). In both cases, a down payment is going to make getting the loan you’ll need much easier as well as making repaying it much easier. Not only are banks going to be more likely to work with you, they’re also more likely to offer you great interest rates on your loans and your total loan will be smaller. So, if you see that kind of expense coming in your future, start saving. You’ll be glad you did.

12. Start planning and saving for future education. Many career-oriented people often consider obtaining more education down the road as a method to increase their earning potential. Of course, doing that is expensive, and it’s that expense that keeps people from pulling the trigger. Right now, you have the first little batch of money that you could use for that education. Put it away in a 529 college savings plan and keep adding to it each month. Eventually, you’ll have enough to pull that trigger.

13. Air seal your home or apartment. Air sealing your home is one of the most cost-effective ways to reduce your energy bills going forward. It keeps warm air from sneaking in during the hot summer months and keeps that same warm air from escaping during the cold winter months. In both cases, that means you can spend less on the cost of keeping your home’s temperature tolerable. Air sealing your home is just a collection of simple tasks like adding caulk to windows (see this great guide), but it does come with a number of little expenses as you’re doing it. Putting your money here will mean that your energy bills are lowered for as long as you keep living in your current residence.

14. Prepay your insurance. Many insurance companies offer a discounted rate for people who pay for the entire year at once rather than making quarterly or monthly payments. So, if you’ve got some extra money, call your insurance company and see whether or not that option is available to you. Not only does this eliminate a bill for a year, it also means you’re going to be spending less per month on that insurance, which means you’ll have more money left over when the calendar flips.

15. If nothing else has a higher priority, save it. What should you do if you already have some of these things under control and the others don’t seem very important in your current life? In that case, just hold onto the money for now. Seek to have even more in your checking at the end of next month and the end of the month after that. Eventually, your life will deal you a challenge or an opportunity to use that money and you’ll be glad that you have it.

Final Thoughts

In the end, financial success boils down to spending less than you earn. It’s all about that rule. If you can repeat it over and over, you will succeed.

Still, following that plan leaves you with leftover money, and you have the power of whether or not to do something smart with those leftovers. Are you going to use them in an intelligent way? Or in a wasteful way?

For starters, it’s pretty wasteful to use that money to celebrate your first steps of success. That’s essentially choosing to waste your efforts. There are many, many better things you can do instead.

Being mindful of your spending and working to maximize your income is just the start of the journey. You’ve also got to be smart about the money you earn but don’t spend.

Good luck.

The post The First Time You Spend Less Than You Earn… and How to Handle It appeared first on The Simple Dollar.

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Is Your Holiday Budget Looking a Little Scary? Try These 13 Halloween Side Hustles

Halloween is one of our favorite holidays around The Penny Hoarder office. We love everything about it — and we can’t wait to share our costumes (and see yours!).

Halloween is also the beginning of the winter holiday season. What better time to make some last-minute cash for your holiday shopping?

Don’t worry, it’s not a trick: Here are 13 fun ways to make money on the side this Halloween.

1. Become a Haunted House Spook

Have you ever been through a haunted house or corn maze on Halloween? You know, the ones populated by scary ghouls who sneak up on you and freak you out?

Well, someone’s gotta do the dirty work of scaring visitors.

Most of these jobs pay minimum wage or a little better, but getting paid to dress up and act spooky sounds like a pretty fun part-time job to me.

Plus, look out for jobs that double as fun, unique experiences — like this listing for a Halloween Lift Ride Cast Member in Utah. Keep your eyes peeled for similar opportunities in your area.

Or, if nothing’s coming up, you could start your own haunted house. While this one is more of a long game, haunted houses and scary theme parks are an industry on the rise. If you’re a Halloween fanatic with the capital, time and desire to run a startup, this might just be the perfect business for you!

2. Give Ghost Tours

When I was in college, I had a pretty sweet part-time job: I drove a horse and carriage around the streets of St. Augustine, Florida, giving historical tours.

But around Halloween, our traffic increased a lot. St. Augustine is the oldest town in America, and with such a long and storied history, it’s considered one of the most haunted as well.

Riders were willing to shell out top dollar for ghost-themed tours, and not just on the carriages. There’s a whole ghost tourism market in St. Augustine and other “haunted” American cities, like Savannah, Georgia, and St. Petersburg, Florida.

Check to see if your local ghost tour outlets are hiring for increased volume around Halloween — or even start your own tour if you know lots of local lore!

3. Make and Sell Costumes

Looking for something a little tamer? Something you could do at home?

If you’re a whiz with a sewing machine, try making and selling Halloween costumes. If you’re thorough, your wares can fetch quite the price tag online or in local markets.

Don’t forget pet costumes — fur-parents are notorious for their willingness to spend money on their pets!

4. Sell Other Cute Halloween Edibles or Crafts

Do you have a knack for creating adorable crafts? You could sell your Halloween-themed decorations and desserts online to time-pressed party hosts or Halloween fanatics.

Want another artsy way to earn that’s a little more interactive?

5. Become a Halloween Makeup Artist

If you’re skilled in the arts of makeup or facepainting, Halloween is a great time to put your craft to work. You can find job listings for face painting positions, or offer your services to your local community.

6. Be a Halloween Party Planner

If you’re great at event planning, offer to create awesome Halloween gatherings, from arranging food and decorations to planning activities and guest lists.

It’s a fun way to test the waters of this potential freelance business — or to explore a fun niche if you’ve already started organizing other types of events.

7. DJ a Halloween party

If you can spin a record, drop a beat and keep a party going, consider a gig as a Halloween DJ. Just make sure you’re doing more than playing “Thriller” on repeat.

8. Run a Concession Stand

For partygoers stuck in high-Halloween traffic areas or famous Halloween towns like Athens, Ohio, a bottle of water could be a godsend — and worth the $3 cost. If you stock up at a warehouse club beforehand, you could earn a serious profit.

Just make sure you check with the local powers that be to see whether you need any permits, which varies state to state. You may need to look into food handling requirements and check with parent event officials as well.

9. Work at a Pop-Up Shop or Party Store

Party outlets often hire temporary seasonal employees to help ease the burden of the extra Halloween volume.

Halloween pop-up shops are a surprisingly huge industry — so you’re bound to have one or two nearby.

10. Become a Professional Pumpkin Carver

Are you truly awesome at carving pumpkins? Does your jack-o’-lantern easily outshine the rest of the grimacing gourds on the block? You might be able to sell your creations for big bucks!

This company sells their pumpkins for between $150 and $500. When pumpkins aren’t in season, they switch to watermelon and squash, so if you’re lucky, this could turn into a year-round gig.

11. Grow a Pumpkin Patch

If you live in the country, put your land to work and grow some pumpkins! In 2012, Americans spent $113 million on pumpkins alone, not to mention other Halloween costs.

Why not rake in some of that profit? Plus, you’ll have plenty of pumpkin to nosh on for yourself.

12. Build a Corn Maze

Corn mazes are a huge source of autumn fun. This one in California charges $12 per ticket — not bad.

Add in hay rides or concessions, and you’ve started a small business. If you don’t have a cornfield of your own, see if any local farmers are interested in a partnership.

13. Be a Trick-or-Treating Chaperone or Babysitter

Bafflingly, Halloween is not (yet!) a nationally recognized holiday.

Even though Halloween falls on a Saturday this year, some parents will get stuck working.

If you love kids and want an excuse to go trick-or-treating as an adult, what better way than to offer babysitting and chaperoning services on Halloween? It’s a pretty sweet gig — you might make as much as $18 per hour.

Your Turn: Are you going to make money on the side this Halloween? Share your ideas in the comments!

Jamie Cattanach is junior writer at The Penny Hoarder and a native Floridian. Halloween is her favorite holiday.

The post Is Your Holiday Budget Looking a Little Scary? Try These 13 Halloween Side Hustles appeared first on The Penny Hoarder.

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