Don't believe everything you hear about taxes. Here are six of what the IRS considers the most common tax filing myths debunked.
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الثلاثاء، 27 فبراير 2018
Twenty Frugal Ways to Get Yourself Out of a Bad Place
I’m kind of a cyclical person. I’ll go for a month or two where I just feel great and happy all the time, and then I’ll hit a rough spot where I’m frustrated and unhappy with myself. I find myself being far less productive, and I end up wasting a lot of time not doing anything of value at all.
When I’m in that kind of state, it isn’t fun. I’m not happy with myself. I often feel like I’m putting on a mask of happiness when interacting with people around me. I sleep more, and find I often get sick more, too. I often find myself overspending via online shopping, too.
There are several things that I do to shake myself out of this bad state, none of which involve spending any money. I usually find that a few days of filling my time with these things really helps and I’m back to my typical demeanor.
Please note that I am not a doctor or a therapist, just someone who gets a mild case of the blues sometimes and has found some good ways to get himself out of them. If you feel listless and sad on a frequent basis, you should talk to a doctor.
Go for a walk outside. Get up from whatever it is you’re doing, put on appropriate clothing, and go for a walk around the block. Let some sunshine hit your skin. The combination of those little pieces – simply moving around, getting some vitamin D from the sunshine, changing your environment a little, allowing the sunshine to affect your serotonin levels – will naturally lift you up a little, especially if you’ve spent a lot of time inside lately. I have a “mile walk” that I often take even on cold days; I can complete it in fifteen to twenty minutes depending on my pace and I almost always end up feeling better afterwards.
Visit a natural area, preferably one with trees. You can easily do this in conjunction with a walk if you live near a park. If not, drive to a park somewhere and go on a walk in that park. Just wander around in a natural environment for a while, which gives you all of the benefits of a normal walk, plus there’s a little something extra that one finds in a natural environment, particularly a wooded one. There’s a ton of historical and scientific evidence that “forest bathing” offers some nice mental health benefits. I know that, for myself, a slow walk in the woods almost always leaves me feeling more “together” than before.
Get some mild exercise – anything that you enjoy doing that gets your heart pumping and your breath elevated for a while. This is another thing that you can combine with a walk if you so choose. Just raise your walking pace until you’re at the point where you’re breathing heavier and your heart rate is up and you’re maybe sweating a little bit. If there’s a different exercise you prefer, do that instead – maybe it’s squats or planks or push-ups. The goal is to simply convince your body to release a big pile of endorphins, which feel really good.
Call a friend or family member and have an actual conversation. Don’t just text them or like their social media posts. Call that person up and have an actual conversation with them. Simply say that you wanted to hear their voice, or perhaps reference something they shared, or simply ask how they’re doing. Listen. Ask questions. You’ll get off the phone and feel a lot better about yourself and about the world in general.
Invite a friend over to do something at your house. It really doesn’t matter what you do. It’s simply an opportunity to have some face to face social time with someone, where you positively interact with each other. Invite that person over for a simple dinner or to plan for some future event or to work on crafts or to work on a home repair or home improvement project. Whatever it is you choose to do, the key thing is to do it with someone else. That basic social interaction will do wonders for lifting your spirits.
Change a few elements of your daily routine. Instead of listening to the same radio station on your commute, listen to something different. Have something unusual for lunch. Instead of just watching television in the evening, do something else with that free time. Make something a bit unusual for supper. Just change up some of the elements of your ordinary workday and see how it makes you feel.
If you have a pet, curl up with that pet. Spend some quality time with your pet. Encourage your dog to climb up next to you and take a nap by your side while you pet him or her. Do the same with your cat. If you have another type of pet, spend some time with it, simply talking to it and taking care of it in some fashion. The act of caring for and bonding with a pet releases a lot of positive chemicals inside of people.
Focus on just the big three, and don’t worry about the rest. Identify the three big things you want to achieve today and simply don’t worry about anything else. Just focus on getting those done, then recognize that today was a pretty big success and just fill the rest of your hours with whatever comes to mind, knowing that you’ve taken care of the big things in your day.
Do a mindful meditation or prayer, and repeat it every day. This is one of those things that might help a little when you do it, but the benefit comes from making it a daily practice. Just spend five or ten minutes in a comfortable place with your eyes closed, focusing on your breathing or on a simple phrase or short prayer. Whenever you notice your attention wandering, bring it back to your breathing or to that phrase or prayer. That’s it. Over time, you’ll find that it brings you a great deal of peace, but it’s not something that happens overnight.
Eat some fruits and vegetables. It is so easy in this modern world to get into a routine of eating convenient foods that don’t contain many fruits and vegetables at all. Making an effort to include fruits and vegetables in your diet can go a long way toward balancing your food intake and leaving you feeling healthier and more naturally balanced.
Fill up a couple pages in a journal with whatever comes to mind. This is a common journaling practice that I’ve found incredibly valuable in my own life. You just sit down in the morning with an open journal before you and try to fill up three pages with your thoughts. Just write whatever comes to mind. You can also set a timer instead and just strive to write for that length of time. What this does is it forces you to address whatever is on the top of your mind at a slower and more well considered rate. As you write down thoughts by hand, you have to think them through a little more, and because of that you often find yourself reaching deeper conclusions than you otherwise would. Again, this is a great daily practice.
List five things you’re grateful for, and do it every day. This is another practice that gets better and better if you do it every day. Simply make a short list of five things that you’re truly grateful for. They can be small things, like the smell of freshly-poured coffee or the feel of warm sunlight on your skin, or they can be big things, like the love of your life. Just think of five things that make your life better and write them down. Then do it again tomorrow. And the next day. And the day after that.
Get a good night of sleep – not too little, not too much. Many Americans sleep too little, getting five or fewer hours of sleep a night. Others sleep too much, getting ten or twelve or more hours per night. The best balance for virtually all people is somewhere in the middle – seven to nine hours of sleep in a given night is pretty healthy. Start striving for that. If you’re sleeping far more than that, start using alarms to awaken yourself earlier. If you’re sleeping less than that, stop setting an alarm altogether and start going to bed earlier.
Watch your favorite movie, or re-read your favorite book. This is a comfort thing. Re-watching your favorite movie or re-reading your favorite book allows you to go through charted territory again, but it’s joyous territory. You know that media will make you think and lift your mood, so let that happen. Explore those familiar stories and ideas again and let them bolster you again.
Sign up for a volunteer shift at a local charity. While volunteering is all about helping others, there’s also an undeniable benefit that comes along with it – you feel good about yourself, too. It’s not so much a pride thing, but a sense that you’re truly making the world a better place. Volunteer Match is a great place to start this process, as the tool will help you find volunteer opportunities near you.
Help out someone in your life that you know could use a helping hand right now. You can take the same volunteerism approach but apply it to the people in your own life. Who in your life could really use a helping hand? Do you have an elderly relative or friend who is having difficulty getting things done? Perhaps you have another friend who is struggling with the blues even more than you are. Maybe you know some new parents who are burning the candle at both ends. Whatever the case, put some of your time aside and give those people the help they need. Help an elderly relative with some household chores. Visit a lonely friend. Help a new parent by running some errands for them or watching their new infant for a while. You’ll make a real difference, and it’ll feel pretty good.
Take a break from social media. Social media is often filled with people showing off the highlight reels of their life, mixed in with very negative political vitriol. Neither one is particularly good for a personal sense of happiness and well being. So, take a break from it. Log out of social media, delete the apps, and simply stop checking it for a while. You may just find some happier results in your life.
Take a long, warm shower, then brush your teeth and com your hair and put on some deodorant. Sometimes, the simple process of cleaning yourself up, putting on fresh clothes, and making yourself a little more presentable to the world can leave you feeling quite good about yourself and those around you. A shower and a bit of hygiene can really liven a person up.
Clean a room in your home. Choose a room in your home that’s a bit messy and put in the effort to clean it up. Put things away, vacuum the carpet, wipe markings off the walls, dust, change some of the wall decorations, you get the idea. Your goal should be to make the room feel fresh and alive instead of dreary and stale. That simple practice can really go a long way toward improving the state of your home.
If you’re in a relationship, hold onto your partner for a while. Even her hand. Just grab your partner’s hand and hold it for a while, or put your arm around your partner, or rest on your partner’s shoulder or lap. Just be close to your partner in whatever way works the best for you and your partner. That type of closeness unlocks a number of positive psychological and physical effects that can go a long way toward lifting your mood.
These strategies offer a repertoire of tactics that can help you get out of a sad phase in your life. They’re not foolproof and they certainly won’t work for everyone, but they often work for me.
Again, as I stated earlier in this article: Please note that I am not a doctor or a therapist, just someone who gets a mild case of the blues sometimes and has found some good ways to get himself out of them. If you feel listless and sad on a frequent basis, you should talk to a doctor.
Good luck!
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A HUGE List of Free Resources to Help Run Your Home-Based Business
By Holly Reisem Hanna Leaving the security of a steady paying job to launch a new business can be a scary endeavor. Even if you've planned and saved six months worth of living expenses, often it takes months to start generating income from your business. And guess what? Even if you don't have money coming […]
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The Tooth Fairy Is a Little Stingier This Year. Here’s What She’s Paying
A quarter? Fifty cents? A dollar?
That’s nothing compared to what children are getting these days.
According to the most recent results of the Original Tooth Fairy Poll, parents are leaving an average of $4.13 per tooth under their kids’ pillows.
The payout actually declined from the previous year’s average of $4.66 — an all-time high for the annual poll conducted by Delta Dental.
If your kid is losing his or her first tooth, be prepared to pay more. The current average first-tooth rate is $5.70 — down slightly from the previous year’s average of $5.72.
Tooth-fairy rates also vary from region to region. The poll found parents in the West give the most: an average of $4.85 per tooth, with a premium of $6.76 for children losing their first tooth.
Parents in the Northeast paid an average of $4.35 a tooth, or $6.45 for a first tooth. Those in the South paid $4.12 per tooth or $5.68 for a first tooth. Midwest tooth fairies left an average of $3.44 a tooth, or $4.37 for a first tooth.
Some parents decide to go a little overboard, keeping the lie magic of the tooth fairy alive. The Original Tooth Fairy Poll found 47% of parents leave a small toy or game, and 35% pen a letter from the fairy herself (a lost-tooth certificate might be a nice accompaniment) .
Thirty-one percent gift a new toothbrush — a great way to promote dental hygiene.
Most (95%) of parents posing as the tooth fairy leave these extras in addition to leaving money. But that doesn’t mean everybody leaves tooth-fairy money and goodies under their child’s pillow.
If you’re on a tight budget (or just don’t feel like lying to your kid about yet another mythical being who sneaks into your home in the middle of the night), don’t feel guilty forgoing tooth-fairy activities. Sixteen percent of poll respondents with kids ages 6 to 12 do not make tooth-fairy visits.
Nicole Dow is a staff writer at The Penny Hoarder. She enjoys writing about parenting and money.
This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, which helps millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. The Inc. 5000 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the fastest-growing private media company in the U.S. in 2017.
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Use a Credit Freeze to Stop Identity Thieves Cold
It’s been just over six months since the now infamous Equifax data breach of 2017. To refresh your memory, this massive data breach potentially exposed the personal information of some 145.5 million U.S. consumers. The exposed data included names, addresses, Social Security numbers, and dates of birth.
Of course, the Equifax data breach is not the only reason you need to be concerned about the security of your personal information. While Equifax’s massive hack was understandably upsetting to consumers, it’s certainly not the only data breach that may have put your personal information at risk. The disturbing truth is that nearly 1,600 data breaches were announced publicly in 2017 alone, according to the Identity Theft Resource Center.
The need to protect your credit from identity thieves only becomes more important with each passing year. Thankfully there are a number of actions you can and should take to protect your personal information and your credit from bad guys. And of all the credit protection strategies out there, the most effective one by far is a credit freeze — especially when you suspect your personal data has been compromised.
How a Credit Freeze Protects You
According to the Fair Credit Reporting Act, your credit reports can be accessed by anyone who’s deemed to have a “permissible purpose” to request them — that includes lenders who wish to view your reports as part of an application for new credit. The trouble for lenders is that they can’t easily tell if it’s you who’s applying for a new loan or credit card — or a crook who’s fraudulently applying for financing in your name.
A credit freeze, also called a security freeze, can help to solve this problem. When you place a freeze on your credit reports, you essentially lock your reports so that new lenders cannot access them without your consent. Unlike a fraud alert, which lasts for 90 days and simply requires businesses to verify your identity before issuing new credit to you, a credit freeze essentially takes your credit reports out of circulation until you say otherwise.
If you’ve placed a freeze on your three credit reports and an identity thief tries to open a fraudulent account in your name, the lender who attempts to process the phony application wouldn’t be able to access your credit report; they’ll get a message back that your report has been frozen.
As a result, the application will be denied, preventing the fraudulent account from being opened. The thief may still be in possession of your personal data, but your credit freeze will prevent them from using that data against you to open unauthorized accounts.
How to Freeze Your Credit
Placing a freeze on your credit reports is simple and inexpensive. The quickest way to request a freeze is online, though you have the option to freeze your reports over the phone or via mail as well.
If you do opt to freeze your credit reports, it’s also important that you do so separately at each of the three major credit reporting agencies: Equifax, TransUnion, and Experian. If you neglect to freeze your credit with all three bureaus, you’ll still be vulnerable.
Below are some links to help you get started putting your credit reports on ice at each credit bureau:
Equifax Credit Freeze
- You can freeze your credit with Equifax here. In the wake of their massive data breach, Equifax is waiving any fees on credit freezes through June 2018.
TransUnion Credit Freeze
- To freeze your credit with TransUnion, start here. TransUnion also allows a less intensive credit lock, which you can turn on and off in real time online.
Experian Credit Freeze
- Freeze or thaw your Experian credit reports here.
Once you place a freeze on your credit reports, you’ll be issued or be asked to choose a PIN. Remember to save all three of your PINs, because you will need them in the future to “thaw” your reports when you wish to apply for credit yourself — or in any other situation where someone will need to access your credit reports. In some states, a credit freeze expires after seven years, but in most cases, it lasts until you request the freeze to be lifted.
Depending on your situation, you may be required to pay a fee to both place AND lift a credit freeze. Fees can vary per state, but they generally fall between $3 and $10.
That’s a small price to pay to avoid identity theft, especially if you believe your data has been compromised. And if you’ve already been a victim of identity theft (and have a police report to prove it), then placing and lifting a credit freeze can be done free of charge.
Related Articles:
- The Other Big Data Hacks Nobody’s Talking About
- Identity Theft Basics
- Why You Need to Check Your Credit Report With All Three Credit Bureaus
John Ulzheimer is an expert on credit reporting, credit scoring, and identity theft. He has written four books on the topic and has been interviewed and quoted thousands of times over the past 10 years. With time spent at Equifax and FICO, Ulzheimer is the only credit expert who actually comes from the credit industry. He has been an expert witness in over 230 credit related lawsuits and has been qualified to testify in both federal and state courts on the topic of consumer credit.
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Do Low-Fat Diets Work Better Than Low-Carb Diets? New Study Has The Answer
People often turn to low-carb diets, but that requires giving up tasty bread and pasta.
Low-fat diets are another popular choice, but that means relinquishing your stash of delicious cheese (yes, low-fat cheese exists but usually tastes like spackle).
If you’re on the fence about which diet choice leads to the most effective weight loss, new research from Stanford University School of Medicine may make the decision easier.
A study of 609 men and women between ages 18 and 50 revealed that dieters can lose roughly the same amount of weight eating a healthy low-carb or low-fat diet.
Researchers acknowledge there was a wide variety of results among the study’s participants. The average weight loss was an average of 13 pounds at the end of one year, but some participants lost 60 or more pounds, while others gained 15 to 20.
But Dr. Christopher Gardner, the lead author of the study, says the basic weight-loss strategy is the same for low-fat and low-carb diets. For the best results, people should eat loads of vegetables and cut back on sugar and refined flour.
“On both sides, we heard from people who had lost the most weight that we had helped them change their relationship to food, and that now they were more thoughtful about how they ate,” Gardner said in a news release.
Low-Fat and Low-Carb Diets Don’t Have to Be a Drag
Since your weight loss results are likely to be the same no matter which of the two diet plans you choose, pick the one that shrinks your waistline, not your pocketbook.
These money-saving tips will get you started.
- Packing vegetables into your diet doesn’t have to be a chore. In fact, YouTube is filled with videos on how to make vegetarian and vegan fare that will make you forget cheeseburgers and bacon exist (well, almost).
- Sugar-sweetened sodas are often among the first thing to go when people start a low-carb diet. Fortunately, there are plenty of yummy alternatives to regular and diet soda you can make right at home.
- We all need comfort food from time to time. These four budget-friendly low-carb alternatives to indulgences like pizza and nachos are a perfect go-to when the cravings kick in.
- If you’re searching the internet for meal ideas, be sure to take a look at other types of dietary programs. Some Paleo, Whole 30 and DASH Diet recipes are naturally low-fat or low-carb and use ingredients you probably already have on hand.
Whichever diet plan you choose, check with your doctor to make sure it’s a good fit for your long-term health goals.
Lisa McGreevy is a staff writer at The Penny Hoarder. She loves telling readers about affordable ways to stay healthy, so look her up on Twitter (@lisah) if you’ve got a tip to share.
This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, which helps millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. The Inc. 5000 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the fastest-growing private media company in the U.S. in 2017.
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Best ways to supplement your pension
If you are banking on the state pension to fund your retirement, the ever-rising state pension age is cause for concern. Last year the government sped up the plan to increase the state pension age – it will rise to 68 by 2039, five years earlier than originally planned.
As the government struggles to come up with a solution to the problem of paying for an ageing population there is always a risk that it will increase the state pension age again, or even cut how much pensioners receive.
So, what can you do to supplement your state pension, or provide yourself with an income if you want to retire before you reach state pension age?
You have several options; which one is right for you will depend on how much risk you are prepared to take with your savings.
Risk averse people choose to keep their savings in cash and pay themselves a monthly income from the interest they earn.
“You can simply choose the best accounts that pay a regular income into your bank account – but you need to tread carefully as not all accounts offer this facility,” says Anna Bowes, director at independent savings website Savings Champion.
“The good news is that many of the best buy accounts on the market offer a monthly income facility, so savers do not need to miss out.”
RCI Bank tops the tables for easy access savings paying 1.29% monthly gross. On a balance of £20,000 that should provide an income of around £21.50 a month. If you don’t need instant access to the cash then Atom Bank has a one-year fixed rate bond paying 1.95%AER, that falls to 1.93% if you want the monthly income facility, but on a £20,000 balance that would give around £32 a month in gross interest.
Unfortunately, with interest rates so low you would need to have almost £400,000 invested in the Atom Bank bond to get a monthly income that matched the full state pension of £159.55 a week in the 2017/18 tax year.
For ideas on how to beat the banks and earn more interest on your savings, visit the Moneywise model savings portfolios.
However, if you want your money to earn more then you will have to take on some risk.
“Many investors have to make difficult decisions in terms of the level of income they want or need and the amount of risk they’re prepared to take to achieve it,” says Patrick Connolly, a certified financial planner at Chase de Vere.
Graham Wellesley founder of alternative property finance firm Wellesley & Co says: “Leaving your money in the bank with very low interest rates has risks of its own as inflation eats away at the capital values too.”
One option to supplement your basic statement pension is making contributions to an additional private pension plan with a pension provider. However, Mr Wellesley says: “For many people the issue is do you wish to lock up your savings to provide this income in retirement? In particular for those who wish to retire before the state pension age one would need to tie up a substantial amount of capital to produce sufficient income and that can only be accessed at 55.”
Nevertheless, investing in a private pension such as a self-invested personal pension is the most tax-efficient way of saving for retirement, as your contributions are topped up by tax relief. Plus, at retirement, you can withdraw 25% of the fund tax free.
Peer to peer (P2P) investments are an increasingly popular way to increase the amount of income. But they come with extra risks and shouldn’t be compared directly with savings.
P2P platforms allow investors to lend money directly to individuals and businesses. In return, they receive an attractive yield - provided the borrower does not default.
Investing in P2P loans is not the same as putting your money in a savings account. There is no guarantee that the cash will be repaid and it is not covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.
Other investments that Moneywise readers have asked about because they often have eye-catching headline rates of interest are retail mini bonds. With these, you lend your money to a company and they pay you interest on that loan, which can be paid as a monthly income.
If you buy company debt via bonds like these, the money you make back depends on the firms issuing them not going bust. The risk here is that mini-bonds are not covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme, so you are dependent on the company not going bust before the bond matures so that you get your money back. Also, this type of bond isn’t traded on the stock market so you can’t sell your bond.
Alternatively, you could opt for a retail bond. These are traded on the stock market so you could sell your bond before it matures if you need to access your money.
Inexperienced investors who are unsure about how retail or mini-bonds bonds work or their potential tax liabilities should seek independent financial advice. We certainly wouldn’t recommend them unless you’re a sophisticated investor who understands the risks.
If you want to allocate some of your portfolio to bonds it would probably be better to invest in a bond fund, which offers you diversification by spreading your money between debt from lots of different companies and a professional manager to do all the hard work selecting which bonds are best. You could try Fidelity MoneyBuilder Income or Jupiter Strategic Bond funds which are both members of the Moneywise First 50 Funds list for beginner investors.
Another way to supplement your pension is to invest in a range of income-producing investments in the stock market.
The obvious choice in this scenario is to invest in equity income funds that focus on investing in companies that pay a healthy dividend.
Invest your money here and you can hope to get a better monthly income than you would from cash. For example, Mr Connolly recommends the Threadneedle UK Equity Income fund which has a historic yield of 3.92%, that would give you a monthly income of around £65 on a £20,000 investment, before fees. Just bear in mind that you would receive your money quarterly, from dividends rather than a monthly payment.
However, don’t assume by spreading your money across a few different UK equity income funds you are spreading your risk. “In the UK around 80% of all dividend income is produced by 15 companies and 50% by just five companies,” says Mr Connolly.
“This means that there can be a high crossover of stocks between one UK equity fund and another and so those who invest in a number of equity income funds may not be achieving the level of diversification they might expect.”
Mr Connolly recommends that income hunters spread their money across equity income funds, fixed interest investments and commercial property to build a truly diversified income portfolio. His tips include the Rathbone Income fund, Schroder’s Income Maximiser fund, the Henderson Strategic Bond fund, and Henderson’s UK property fund.
You can find more recommendations for equity income funds – both ones that invest in the UK and those that invest overseas, and commercial property funds in the Moneywise First 50 Funds.
If you do choose to supplement your pension income via the stock market using bond or equity income funds then you also need to consider the tax implications. Invest via a Stocks and Shares Isa and any capital growth or income you receive will be tax-free.
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