Department of Power Finance

The majority of us are quite eager to maintain a strict level of control over our personal finances, however not all of us are able to achieve this lofty aspiration and sadly many of us will simply fall at the first hurdle. However, this does not mean to say that you are perpetually doomed to failure: rather, you just need a little help to get you there.

The internet is full of articles, support communities and tutorials all of which are designed to help assist you with any financial issues that may arise. However, it is crucial that you take these with a grain of salt and be wary about relying too heavily on any person who professes to be some sort of financial advisory genius or expert. You have means of verifying such bold claims and if you are foolish enough to accept this without question, you leave yourself dangerously exposed.

One of the major problems with these experts on the internet is that they typically churn out a standard template answer which is then applied to everyone, irrespective of the nature of their debt, or the reasons as to why they are in debt. This means that people run the risk of relying on erroneous information, which will not and cannot help them. Ideally, you should be drafting a financial plan by yourself, for yourself. Only you will be truly aware of what your current financial situation is like, and only you can truly know the current bills you owe.

Don’t be foolish when it comes to dealing with debt. Make sure you follow your head whenever you are in doubt. Remember, common sense really is the best answer.

Maintaining your personal finance can be one of the toughest tasks that you will have to face in life. Make use of the personal finance tools to manage your personal finance effectively.

By Micheal Blue

I came across a survey sponsored by Sun Life Financial that really raised some concerns about retirement planning.

Sun Life Financial interviewed a group of people who retired involuntarily. The survey results were overwhelming.

Approximately one in five of the retirees interviewed were forced into retirement well before the age that they had anticipated retiring. The average retiree left the workforce eight years early.

The two main causes of the early retirement were 1) layoffs or downsizing and 2) illness or injury.

For 70% of these retirees, the forced retirement greatly impacted their retirement plans. Most of the retirees were funding IRAs and employer-sponsored retirement plans. Although we have considered ways to create a better retirement account, this may not be enough. They had hoped to have at least $1 million saved before retiring. However, the average retirement account only had about $500,000 when the retiree left the workforce.

Lesson learned: Stop procrastinating!

This survey prompts us to question our current preparations for retirement. Are we maximizing our retirement planning right now, or are we putting it off until later? As we can see from the survey (and as the Bible mentions to us), we aren’t promised tomorrow. Procrastination could put you and your family at risk if something happened to your current employment position.

Sure, if your company decided to layoff or downsize some departments, you may be able to find another job. But we have seen recently that, for many, this has not been as easy as it used to me. Thousands and thousands of workers have been job hunting for months. Some have been unemployed for over a year.

What about those retirees who experienced an illness or injury? What if physical limitations kept you from getting another job in any area?

Many of these retirees were too young to start drawing on Social Security to help supplement their retirement nest eggs. If we are solely or largely depending on the government for our retirement income, we may be greatly disappointed. We have to save for our own retirements so that we have access to money (without penalty) before Social Security benefits kick in.

With smaller amounts of money to draw upon, the retirees in the survey have been forced to change their lifestyles and cut back on expenses. For many people, cutting back on living expenses can be difficult.

Although I strongly recommend emergency funds that hold three to six months’ living expenses, the reality is that few people have any type of emergency money set aside. How many of us could comfortably keep up with a mortgage payment if our paychecks disappeared? Our whole lives could be turned upside down in an instant.

Retirement planning is not something to do when retirement gets close. It should be initiated as soon as we are hired on. Sure, goals may change, but it is better to have something than to be caught off-guard and left with nothing. If you’re not sure what to do or how to start, just talk to someone who can help guide you.

By Ozeme J Bonnette

There are times when you need some quick cash for bills or emergencies. While credit cards work out, at times you might not have extra credit for things and just need the cash for whatever it is. There are ways of making some money right now that will help.

Many suggest to just get a part time job on top of your normal work. While this sounds like good advice, you don’t get the money quickly enough. This is more of a long term strategy. It may take you two weeks to get paid after you start or even longer, and it may take time to find that job too.

The first thing that you can do is to sell things locally. You probably have some things you do not need or use that you can easily part with, as well as some easily sellable items that you may need to sell. A quick garage sale will get you cash in your hands so that you need.

You can also get out all your used things and sell them online fairly quickly. There are a variety of auction sites and used sites that you can take part in that will get your items sold quickly so that you can have money right now to spend on other things. You can also use local sites like Craigslist. Not only can you list items on there for sale, you can also find one day gigs. These are normally one day jobs that you can do that will help you get paid that day for what you do.

Look for freelancing opportunities that you can take part in online. If you can do web design, graphics, writing, or other online skills, there is work out there for you to do. There are many sites to consider looking at including elance.com.

Donate blood or blood plasma. This is a way of getting cash now as well as consistent cash when you need it. Many people do this, not just desperate homeless folks.

Get items in your home that you can recycle. Call up friends to see if they have anything as well. Take this to a recycling center and get some money.

Try these tips out when you need some quick cash. Hopefully you get an idea or two that will help you out. Very often you can get quick cash the same day.

By Harold Baldwin