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Insights on money, career and trading

My Dabble Into Emergency Loans

Posted on May 20, 2015 by Daniel at 5:37 am

In this day and age, loans have become pretty essential. As a professional who makes enough for a comfortable living, I know that sometimes an emergency looms around the next corner and will really rustle up your funds if you aren’t prepared. On the other hand, there may be pricey things that you may want to purchase, where you are not comfortable enough to touch your savings.

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An Easy Guide to the UK Budget

Posted on May 19, 2015 by Daniel at 12:03 pm

If you’re anything like me, a lot of the time politics will go a little over your head. It’s tricky to make a decision as to which party deserves your vote because they all promise the earth, so how do you know who can deliver?

To me, it all seems to hinge on who can do what with the UK budget. All us working people in the UK pay taxes, so we should, in theory, all care enough and make an effort to find our what our money is being spent on – after all, we have enough taken from our wages each month!

If you do decide to make the effort to research into what each party promises to prioritise and spend the budget on, you need to remember that they can’t please everyone all the time.

My girlfriend’s an English teacher in a large comprehensive school and she HATES the fact nearly every party promises to reduce class sizes and, every year, they’re just getting bigger in he school. But, in order to reduce class sizes, more money would nee to be pumped into every comprehensive school to employ more teachers. If the money is spent on more teachers, what are we cutting back on? Or should taxes be raised in order to achieve this?

That’s basically the type of questions the government has to ask all the time. It’s like an epic-scale juggling act!

Obviously, if you’re a party making a promise to spend more on the NHS, you’re going to have to spend less elsewhere – so where will you make a cutback?

Budgets are tricky things to get your head around on a small scale, but I’ve found this really great infographic from Buddy Loans that gives a simple but thorough breakdown of where the UK budget goes – might make it a little easier to understand each party’s priorities!

The UK Budget

 

 

How much can you save by going through a debt consolidation exercise?

Posted on May 13, 2015 by Daniel at 1:03 pm

Anyone that has  felt the  debts  creeping up had  probably looked into debt consolidation; even if  they  didn’t  know  that  was  what they  were doing  when  they  were  looking  around  for  loans. Before  we get  into  this article  it is probably a good idea to define what debt consolidation is and what it isn’t.

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Car Sales Rise amid Affordable Motoring

Posted on April 29, 2015 by Daniel at 6:55 am

In budgeting terms, the cost of car purchases must be viewed in two distinct ways. Not only should the purchase price and financing terms be carefully considered, but the ongoing monthly cost of motoring must also be factored-in, as a share of your total household income. According to data recently compiled by the Office of National Statistics, each motorist spends about 55 weekly, to stay on the road. The figure does not include insurance, which pushes the real cost of motoring toward 70 per week, on average.

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Quick Ways to Make Some Cold, Hard Cash

Posted on April 28, 2015 by Daniel at 2:09 am

You can spend much of your life trying to work out your long-term financial plan, but sometimes you have to think about the here and now. Everyone has had times in their life when they need to come up with some cold hard cash as soon as possible. It’s no use making lifestyle changes, drawing up a budget or making a five-year plan. You need money right away, whether it’s to fix your roof or to buy a suit for a job interview. But what can you do to raise that cash, without breaking the law or resorting to dastardly payday loans? Don’t worry, there’s plenty of things you can do.

Sell Stuff

If you have any possessions, you could make money from selling them. Even if you don’t think they’re worth anything, you could still pick up some extra cash. Just be clever about what you sell, and make sure you don’t get rid of anything that’s more useful than the money. For example, don’t sell your laptop if you need it to find a job. As well as selling clothes, electronics and other obvious items, there are some surprising things you can sell too. For example, you might find somewhere to sell medical paraphernalia. Here’s a question you might never have thought to ask yourself: where can I sell diabetic test strips? But you can sell them and other medical items on many markets around the web. Other things you could sell include your hair, and things like corks and cans that crafters use.

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401(k) 2012

Rent Stuff

If you don’t want to say goodbye to your stuff forever, try renting it out instead of selling it. You’ll get the most money from renting things like your home for holidaymakers, your garage and even your driveway. But there are other things people can borrow from you too, and some of them might surprise you. You could try renting out a wedding dress or tuxedo, a games console, a lawn mower and even a sewing machine. You don’t have to part with your things if you don’t want to. Just get them back at the end of the day.

Offer Your Services

If you have no physical items to offer, give your time instead. There are all sorts of odd jobs you can do for people to earn some quick cash. Some of them might seem a bit juvenile at first, but anything that gets you money is good. Try offering to mow your neighbour’s lawn, walk dogs or babysit. It can take a while to find clients, so the fastest way is to ask friends and family if they want any help.

Return Unused Items

There’s no point in unused clothes and other things sitting in your house. If you have anything you don’t use that’s still in returnable condition, take it back to where you bought it. Check the returns policy first to make sure you can still take it back. Make sure you know the consumer law too, in case you need to fight your position.

It can be very stressful when you need to come up with some money quickly. But if you use your head to get creative, you’ll be able to find the right methods for you.

 

Essential Guide To Starting A Non-Profit Organization

Posted on April 25, 2015 by Daniel at 3:15 am

Starting your own non-profit organization is a great way to give something back to your community – and a lot further beyond. However, there is a lot to think about before you get started. In this simple guide, we will take you through the basics of starting a non-profit, and help point you in the right direction to kickstart your idea in the best possible way. Ready to get started? Let’s take a look at everything you need to know.

Have An Idea

You can start a non-profit organization for almost anything you can think of. Perhaps you want to start a charity helping deprived kids learn music or create a sports club in your area. However, what you decide on should be relevant to you. This will help give you the drive you need to succeed. There are many barriers to starting a successful operation, but having a cause to champion loudly can help you through the rough times.

Research

You will need to undergo a long period of research if you want to start a non-profit. You will need to be an expert in your field if you want to drum up enough interest in what you are doing. A great way to prepare yourself is by trying to get some sort of work experience in the area you want to work in. Let’s say you want to start an association that lays on things to do for the elderly, for example. Doing some volunteer work at a local retirement home could benefit you when it comes to getting funding.

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(picture credit)

Get Help

If you are inexperienced with the process of charities and non-profits, you would be wise to look at getting help. You might need an accountant who can help with doing the figures for your business plan, for example. Firms such as Brown Smith Wallace LLC could offer you the expertise that you lack to cement your non-profit into your community. There is so much to think about that getting help from those with the right experience is the only way you will make sense of what needs doing.

Hiring Staff

In many ways, employing people for a non-profit organization is like hiring them for a normal company. But there are differences. For example, you might hire someone to do some marketing, but they end up doing a lot of administration tasks because you can’t afford a full-time administrator. You will also have to offer a benefit to them because non-profits just don’t have the budgets to compete with profit-making companies. Although you might have a nice cause to work for, they will be paid less – so make up for it by giving them a more flexible working pattern, for example.

Hopefully, this guide has given you some food for thought. Starting a non-profit takes a lot of hard work, and there will be certain points where you feel like you are banging your head against a brick wall. However, if you can make it work, they are incredibly fulfilling.

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Insights on money, career and trading