Live Debt Free

Pay off debt. Save. Give. Live your mission.

  • Blog
  • Contact Us
  • Credit Scores
  • Spending
  • Investing
  • Earn Money

Helpful and Free Online Calculators

02.24.2012 by Guest Author //

When it comes to improving your finances, free tools and resources should never be turned down. Especially when they’re available online and can be accessed 24 hours a day from anywhere on Earth. Here are a few free online calculators that will help you in many different areas of your financial life. Whether provided by the federal government, nonprofits, or privately owned entities, online calculators are particularly useful when it comes to finding ways to eliminate wasteful spending and figuring out ways in which you can keep extra cash in your pocket.

While countless online calculators exist, the following six are some of the most useful out there. Check them out and see if you can cut spending and increase your debt repayment and/or your investments for retirement.

Bloomberg Retirement Calculator: Whether you’re planning on living independently until the day you die or expect to utilize the services of Brookdale Senior Living or other nationwide retirement communities, you need to make sure you’re putting enough away to ensure you can make your particular plan actually happen. Use this retirement calculator to run your numbers and see if you’re really doing enough today to guarantee a satisfying life tomorrow.

IRS Withholding Calculator: While the springtime refund from Uncle Sam is an awesome injection of much-needed cash, there’s never a guarantee that you’re getting everything back you deserve. If you’re withholding more than necessary you are giving the government an interest free loan while shorting yourself throughout most of the year. While you want to always make sure you are withholding enough to avoid owing an enormous amount of money to the government, use the withholding calculator to avoid paying too much and losing the use of that extra cash.

Federal Reserve Credit Card Repayment Calculator: Whenever the day comes when you finally pay that credit card off, how much interest will you have paid thanks to months and years of low monthly payments? To look into the future and find out, put your monthly payment, the amount you owe, and the APR into a credit card repayment calculator. If you receive slap in the face, use it to rethink your current payment plan and to devise another. The more you pay each month the quicker you’ll pay them off and the more you’ll save in the long run.

FinAid.org Student Loan Calculator: Going back to school is one way to increase your ability to make more money in the long-run. But avoid recklessly taking out student loans without first stopping to see how much you’ll be paying upon graduation. There’s no point in getting educated to make more money if you’ll be swamped by student loans while beginning your new career. Use a loan calculator to get a good idea of the realities of borrowing for school and to do it responsibly. Always remember, you’ll have to pay those loans off someday so be careful.

Department of Energy Fuel Economy Finder: There’s no doubt about the long-term fate of fuel prices. Gasoline will continue to get more and more expensive, and as a result more and more of your money will go toward transportation costs. Before buying your next automobile, use a fuel economy calculator to determine which vehicle in your price range will be most fuel efficient. Apart from the safety of a particular make and model, this is the most important aspect of buying a new car.

Department of Energy Home Energy Saver: As unbelievable as it sounds, it’s estimated that more than half of the energy Americans use annually is wasted. This is on account of poor energy efficiency in the home. To limit the amount of money wasted every year on energy, use this incredibly detailed energy saving calculator built to be used for free by any American with an Internet connection.

Again, anyone serious about saving money and better managing their personal finances can benefit from the use of these free online calculators. These useful tools can make the difference between thousands wasted annually and thousands saved in the same amount of time. Indeed, you have nothing to lose by at least giving them a try. Despite how much of a personal finance guru you consider yourself to be, you’ll never know if you could be doing better until you take a look.

Categories // Debt, Expenses, Money Management Tags // calculators

15 Ways to Reduce Core Expenses and Debt

02.08.2012 by Guest Author //

Being in debt can often feel like living in an inescapable hole. Unless you’re pursuing medical or law careers or a high-paying business idea it’s often difficult to insure your earnings will match or exceed your expenses and debt. As a result, the debt isn’t paid off and the interest keeps on accumulating. The hole grows deeper and deeper.

Of course, reducing your expenses is always a prudent way to put more money toward debt payments. However, many times when people look to reduce expenses they focus on peripheral costs: forgo vacations, stop going to the movies, eschew coffee or alcohol, and/or try to spend more responsibly on their children. There is nothing wrong with making such cuts, but no expense-reduction strategy is fully effective without a concerted effort to lessen one’s core costs. Core expenses include food, shelter, and transportation – the necessities of modern life.

When I was struggling to emerge from debt, I focused primarily on cutting my core expenses and was able to pay off debt far faster as a result.

Here are the 15 main tips and techniques that I used to save money and pay off debt:

Save on Food

  1. Eat out only for special occasions.
  2. Buy store-brand products.
  3. Plan out all meals beforehand, and then buy only the necessary ingredients when shopping at the store.
  4. Eat meals high in low cost products that contain high nutritional value (rice, beans, eggs, tuna).
  5. Buy non-perishable items in bulk.
  6. Become a vegetarian.

Save on Shelter

  1. Install energy-efficient lights and a smart thermostat to reduce utilities costs.
  2. Insulate the walls and attic of your home to make it more energy-efficient.
  3. Take in subletters or find a roommate.
  4. If possible, downgrade to a cheaper home or apartment.

Save on Transportation

  1. Run or bike to work instead of taking the car.
  2. Use public transit whenever possible.
  3. Utilize websites like gasbuddy.com to find the lowest gas costs in your area.
  4. Plan out trips and errands so as to minimize the amount of driving required.
  5. Downgrade to a cheaper insurance plan that offers basic coverage

These are fifteen main ways I cut my core expenses while in debt. It wasn’t easy at times – many of these cuts certainly required a sacrifice on my part – but it was worthwhile in the end. If you’re looking to emerge from debt quickly, sacrifice is the quickest way to get there.

Use these tips along with other creative ideas you come up with and you’ll be able to reduce your expenses and your debt!

*******

Categories // Debt, Expenses, Money Management Tags // Reduce Expenses

My Testimony to the Tithe

01.25.2012 by Matt Jabs //

My Testimony to the Tithe“Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.”  Malachi 3:10

God’s promises

Those are strong promises the Lord gives us if only we are obedient to His commandment to tithe to His church.  Please join me today in the sharing of my testimony to the faithfulness of God’s Word regarding these promises made.

In 1999 I bent the knee of my will to the Lord Jesus Christ and was born again!

“Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”  John 3:3 – Jesus to Nicodemus, a man of the Pharisees, and a ruler of the Jews.

Thanks be to God for His mercy, grace, long suffering and especially His death on the cross for my sin.  Since 1999 I have been walking this earth as an alien no longer feeling at home in this world, but longing to be home with my Lord in heaven.  My purpose on this earth is now solely to yield my body a vessel of honor to the Lord for the work of His church.

Part of my duty as a Christian is to give of my first fruits back to the Lord’s church in the form of a tithe. That is, I am to give 10% of my earnings to the church in obedience to God’s Word.  First fruits meaning we are to give 10% of our gross income, not net income.  This tithing by God’s people is one of the ways the Lord funds his ministry here on earth.  Does the Lord need our money?  No, He can do anything He wishes any time He wishes, however the tithing of His people is the system He chose to implement and work through, so as Christians we need to faithfully give in this manner.

Have I tithed faithfully since my salvation in 1999?  No, regrettably I have not.  At times I have been a faithful giver, and at other times have been disobedient to my Lord and withheld my tithe for one reason or another.  Today I want to give my readers a journal entry of my experience of both giving in obedience, and not giving in disobedience.

Looking back over the 9 years of my Christian life I can now see that the times of my greatest financially stability, regardless of how much money I was bringing in, were in direct correlation to when I was giving of my tithe to my local new testament church.  Likewise, the times when I seem to have struggled financially were always in the midst of a titheless period in my life.  Though I have always known I should tithe, the Lord has just recently revealed the utter and imminent importance of these things to me in all clarity of mind.  I began faithfully tithing again at the first of this year (January 2009) and intend to never go another month of my life without giving to the Lord in this respect.  Over these last two months I have been witness to Gods direct financial intervention in my life.  To me it is both a blessing and a miracle.  Before tithing I always seemed to be living paycheck to paycheck (sound familiar?), seemed to be slowly getting into more credit card debt, all while being unable to save much of anything. Why was this happening?  My wife & I don’t have any kids.  We don’t buy new cars.  We don’t buy expensive toys.  We don’t blow a lot of our money on frivolous purchases…so why was this happening to us?

In the Old Testament, when God’s people were not obedient in the giving of their tithe, one way or another He always seemed to part them with the money they were withholding from Him.  In my life, while disobedient, it always seemed like random things were happening that would consume any extra money I had left over leaving me wanting again until my next paycheck.  Now that the Lord has granted me repentance and has again turned me toward Him these things have changed drastically.  Before tithing I would pay my bills on the last possible day they were due, sometimes even having to pay late fees, simply because I had to wait for my next check to be deposited before I could pay the bill.  Now that I have been tithing, I am able to pay all my bills the day I get them in the mail.  To summarize, let me give you some of my financial drawbacks I experienced before tithing, and what I am realizing now that I’m giving faithfully.

Before I was giving my tithe:

  • I was living paycheck to paycheck
  • I waited until the due date of my bills before I paid them
  • Every single month I seemed to incur random expenses that consumed all my extra money and even pushed me more into debt
  • Always broke even on my tax return or owed money to the government
  • Bank fees: be they credit card over the limit, over-drawn checking account, late payments fees…you name it I paid it
  • A guilty conscience
  • A heavy heart

Now that I’m tithing, though no increase in salary this has been my experience:

  • I’m able to save at least $200 every month
  • I pay every bill the day it comes in the mail
  • Random expenses have not been a part of my life for the last few months
  • For the first time since we filed taxes Married Filing Jointly, my wife & I are receiving a sizable return of over $1,200
  • No more bank fees
  • A clear conscience and a happy countenance
  • A peace that passes all understanding – Philippians 4:7

Please believe that the things listed above are just the tip of the iceberg.  My obedience to God in my tithe opens the door to other areas of obedience and therefore more blessings of a peaceful spirit and fellowship with my God!

If you are a Christian, I strongly urge you to consider my experience and use it to transform your view upon Christ, His Church, and your tithe.  Please give joyfully and liberally and experience the blessings of the Lord!  He is challenging you today to prove Him now, how will you respond?  If you are not born again, please consider Christ and His death on the cross for your sin.  Look to Him and live.

“For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.  For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die.  But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.  For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.  And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement.”  Romans 5:6-11

What is your giving testimony?

Share your experience with giving in the comments below. God bless.

*******

Categories // Debt, Expenses, Giving, Investing, Spirituality Tags // gross, net, offerings, Spirituality, testimony, tithe

  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • …
  • 14
  • Next Page »

Popular Posts

  • Understanding & Improving your Cash Flow
  • Credit Card Debt Reduction Handbook
  • Our Monthly Debt Reduction and Savings Statements
  • Pay off Credit Cards VS Build Emergency Fund Savings - Me VS Suze Orman
  • Credit Cards - Close 'em Shred 'em & Forget 'em!
  • More Reasons to Pay Off Credit Card Debt
  • Wise Use of Paid off Credit Cards? You Decide.
  • The Whole Armor of Personal Finance
  • One World Currency - New World Order
  • Debt Testimonials - Encouraging Success Stories!

Disclaimer

Content on Debt Free Adventure is for entertainment purposes only. Rates & offers from advertisers shown on this website may change without notice: please visit referenced sites for current information. Per FTC guidelines, this website may be compensated by companies mentioned through advertising, affiliate programs or otherwise. We respect your privacy. Privacy policy.

Copyright © 2021 · Modern Studio Pro on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in