• Embed Doc
  • Copy Link
  • Readcast
  • Collections
  • CommentGo Back
Download
 
 Volume 4 #3
Frugal Green Tips • FDR Client Reminders Renting Tips • Make a Credit Comeback Fun Online Money Games • Spare Change 
1-800-655-6303
 Welcome to the Freedom Debt Relief monthly newsletter! As part of ourongoing goal to enhance our services, we will be sending you a monthly newsletter filled with interesting articles and helpful financial tips andadvice. We hope you enjoy this issue, and that you find the enclosedinformation helpful as you continue on the road to financial freedom.
“Green”
is a word that refers to somuch more than the colorof grass or money. It hasbecome a recent buzzwordin modern society that defines products,lifestyles, and tasks thatare environmentally conscious. Becomingmore “green” usually involves consuming fewerresources and can result insaving money on typicalhousehold expenses. Tetips below list some simple ways that you can “green”your life while puttingmore “green” in your wallet.
Clean green.
Many popular householdcleaning products soldin stores contain harshchemicals that pollute theearth and are hazardousto humans. Naturalalternatives such as bakingsoda, white vinegar, andlemon juice are very inexpensive and clean justas well as many brandname cleansers. Visit thislink on the Greenpeace web (www.greenpeace.org/usa/news/green-living-guide/basic-recipes-for-green-cleani) for recipesusing natural products.
Conserve water.
 According to the Rocky Mountain Institute(RMI), an organizationthat focuses on energy policy, a six-minuteshower uses 20 gallonsof water. aking shortshowers can reduce water consumption andyour water bill. For lessthan $10, RMI alsorecommends installingan on/off valve betweenthe shower arm andshowerhead. Tistemporarily shuts off theflow while maintainingthe temperature. It canbe useful when latheringup. For more waterconservation tips, visit www.rmi.org and www. wateruseitwisely.com.
Recycle.
Many localmunicipalities requirecitizens to follow mandatory recyclingordinances. Some stateshave even given incentivesto recycle throughRecycleBank. Tisprogram gives participantsa recyclebinequipped with auniquebuilt-inRFID tag. At pick up, thebins arescannedand userscan receive reward pointsbased on how muchthey recycle. Visit www.recyclebank.com to findout if this program isavailable in your localarea.
Conserve energy.
Simple tasks suchas turning off lights when you leave theroom and installing aprogrammable thermostatcan reduce your utility bills and overall energy consumption. When itcomes time to buy new appliances, you may consider Energy Starmodels, which use 10–50% less energy and waterthan standard models,according to the Energy Star website. Youcan visitthis siteat www.energystar.gov formoretips onconservingenergy.
Drive greener.
Most green articles urgeconsumers to purchase ahybrid car. As you strive tosettle your debts, buying anew vehicle may not be anoption. However, there areother ways that you can“green” your car and savemoney on transportationcosts. For example, you will burn less fuel if youroll down your windowsin the summer instead of using air conditioning.Performing routinemaintenance on yourcar may also reducegas consumption andprevent costly car repairs. According to reehugger.com, if every driver’s tires were properly inflated,approximately 2 billiongallons of gas would besaved each year. You may also consider relyingon your vehicle less by  walking short distancesor carpooling. Sites suchas www.erideshare.comallows you to search forfellow carpoolers that want to travel in the samedirection as you.
 
Living a “green”lifestyle will help theenvironment and put more“green” in your wallet
Some people may associateliving green with abandoningall personal possessions andmodern technologies to live ona commune. In actuality, sometechnological advancements canactually help reduce the amountof waste that ends up in landfills.Consider the options below.Keep in mind that the followingtips are meant to help you getthe most use out of items that you may already own; we are notencouraging you to purchasebrand new equipment.Go paperless! You can pay bills online, use electronicscheduling software, and sendfree electronic cards. Before youprint, ask yourself if you really need to have a paper copy.Take advantage of organizingimportant documents usingemail programs or documentfolders in your computer systemsoftware. You will use less paperand will not have to purchaseexpensive ink cartridges as often.MP3 players come in allprice ranges and allow users to download single songsinstead of buying expensiveindividual CDs. You may considertransferring your CD library toMP3 format and resell your CDson sites such as www.ebay.comand www.craigslist.org. Resellstores such as CD Warehousemay also give you cash for yourCDs. Visit www.cdwarehouse.com for a location near you.Remember to properly dispose of your electronicequipment, also known as e-waste. If you can not use it, sellor donate the item. You can alsovisit www.earth911.org for arecycling or donation center in your area.
 
Tax Debt?
If you owe money tothe IRS and would like informationon how to reduce your tax debts,please contact our sister company,Freedom ax Relief at 1-800-455-6AX. Our tax attorneys and taxspecialists are eager to immediately start helping you resolve your taxtroubles. In addition, existing FDR clients are eligible for a $100 referralbonus if they refer someone toFreedom ax Relief.
 American Consumers Union
 We have recently partnered withthe consumer advocacy group, American Consumers Union,in order to provide additionalsupport to our clients with respectto creditor harassment. All FDR clients are automatically givenmembership into the AmericanConsumers Union, and are giventhe full use and support of theadvocacy group, at no additionalcharge. Tis is a terrific benefit forour clients, and we are happy to beable to provide this service to ourclients at our expense. You can visitthem online at www.myacu.org.
***
Customer ServicePhone Number:1-800-655-6303Hours of Operation:6:00 AM – 6:00 PM PSTE-mail:
support@freedomdebtrelief.com
Client Reminders
D
espitedifficultfinancialtimes, the NationalMulti HousingCouncil reports thatthe apartment industry is not affected. Infact, affordable rentalunits will be comingavailable as desperatesellers try to rent outunits that are just notselling in the currentmarket, accordingto Bankrate.com,an online financialresource. Terefore,the number of rentersis expected to increase.If you are currently renting or expect tosign a lease in the nearfuture, below are sometips that you may wantto keep in mind.
Renting may bea good financialmove.
Tere aremany benefits of buying a home.Homeownership hasoften been equated with the Americandream. However, thisdream can easily turninto a nightmare forconsumers that arenot prepared for allof the costs associated with owning a home.In addition to amortgage, purchasinga home also involvesmany other expensessuch as maintenance,insurance, andproperty taxes. As arenter, your landlordor property manager isresponsible for fixingmajor repairs like abroken furnace or aleaky roof. Expensessuch as these couldreally break yourbudget, especially  while you are focusingon settling your debts.
Read the lease.
If you are required tosign a lease beforemoving in to anapartment, make sureyou read it. Leasesusually include quitea few pages of smallprint and it can betedious to read. But,keep in mind thatyou are signing a legaland binding contractand it is beneficialto understand theagreement. Pay closeattention to the rentdue date, late fees,and the contactinformation forrepairs. You also wantto review the policieson terminating a lease.Most property ownersdo not make it easy for renters. Makesure you understandthe provisions in casecircumstances arisethat do not allow youto fulfill the terms of the lease.
Don’t alter theproperty.
Te leaseshould also state whatthe landlord’s rules areon making alterationsto the property. Oneof the downfalls of renting is that mostproperty mangers donot allow tenants topaint walls or makepermanent changesto rental property  without writtenpermission. Even if you do receive writtenpermission to paint,for example, you willusually have to changethe color back to theoriginal before youmove out, which canbe a hassle. Before youmake improvementssuch as install anair conditioner or adishwasher, considerthe fact that you may not be able to takethese items with you when you move. Tiscan be an especially costly endeavor if youdo not plan to live atthe property very long.
Take care of yourproperty.
Whenmoving in, note any damage that is already visible on the property so you do not getcharged for the repair when you move out.Upon moving out,make sure you leavethe rental property inthe same condition as when you moved in.For example, clean,vacuum, and fill smallholes in the wall with spackle. Many apartment complexesalso require thatyou have the carpetsprofessionally cleanedbefore moving out. You are more likely toreceive the majority of your security deposit, which is usually equivalent to onemonth’s rent, if youfollow the move-outinstructions.
Rental  Links  
•Search commercial web sites such as www.rent.com, www.apartments.com,and www.rentnet.com. All landlordsdo not place ads forapartments. You may  want to drive throughyour town and look for “For Rent” signson various properties.•enants review apartmentcomplexes on websites such as www.apartmentreviews.net and www.apartmentratings.com.
 
M
any classictrends andfashionsseem to be reinventedthroughout generations.Fabulous fads from thepast suddenly resurface andbecome popular amongconsumers. At one time,you may have thoughtthat a wallet full of creditcards with high creditlines exemplified style. But when minimum paymentsskyrocketed or youexperienced an emergency,the allure of credit quickly became a fad that you wish would have been buried ina time capsule.Once you havecompleted your debtsettlement program, you will be one step closer tofinancial freedom. At thistime, you can begin tore-establish your credit andmake a credit comeback! Although your rating willnot improve overnight,consider the following ideasto rebuild your credit.
Revolving debt isnot in style.
Many consumers realize thatfashion and trends arefickle because they canchange from month tomonth. Credit cards makeit easy to charge all of thelatest gadgets and just pay a low monthly minimumpayment. Making thisa habit can create costly unwanted debt becauseof compounding interest. Also, consider the fact thatyou may still be payingon merchandise that waspurchased years ago orthat is no longer used.Do you really want topay for holiday giftsthree years from now or clothes that willeventually wear out orbecome outdated? Youcan discover the true costof paying the minimum with this online calculatorprovided by Bankrate.com: http://www.bankrate.com/aff/calc/MinPayment.asp. When you begin tore-establish your credit, useyour credit card so you canshow creditors that youcan make timely payments.However, only charge itemsthat you can afford to pay in full each month.
Less is more.
Stuffingyour wallet with a deck of credit cards is not very impressive or fashionable.Upon completion of yourprogram, apply for one ortwo credit cards, perhapsone major card and onedepartment store card.Remember that inquiriesappear on your creditreport every time youcomplete a credit cardapplication. Having many recent credit inquiries willusually not improve yourcredit rating.
Start slow.
 With somefads, you may be unsure if you want to jump on thebandwagon right away. Inorder to gradually makeyour credit comeback,you may also want toconsider a secured creditcard. Te credit limit onthis card is based on thedeposit that you make.For example, if you put$300 on your creditcard account, you willreceive a line of credit for$300. Since a secured cardis considered a credit card,maintaining this account with moderate charges andon-time payments may boost your credit rating.
Some offers only look good on paper.
Did you ever buy a productthat looked wonderful inthe store, but once youbrought it home, it didnot perform as well as you would have liked? Tisidea could also be true of sub-prime credit cards.Upon completion of yourdebt settlement program,be aware of credit cardoffers that seem too good tobe true. Sub-prime issuersmay have lenient approvalguidelines, but prey uponindividuals with previouscredit problems by chargingastronomical approvaland annual fees. Tesecompanies commonly apply these fees to yourcard. Terefore, you acquirea balance before you makeany significant purchases.
Educate yourself.
Knowledge and educationnever goes out of style. Become aneducated consumerby understandingyour credit cardagreement. Tismay involvereading thetedious fine print,but it is beneficialto know yourannual percentagerate, due date, latefees, etc. According to arecent survey conductedby NS, a market researchfirm, in partnership withprofessors from DartmouthCollege and HarvardBusiness School, high levelsof debt may be correlatedto financial illiteracy. Tesurvey revealed that only 35% of respondents wereable to correctly estimatehow interest compoundsover time and more thanhalf of respondents did notunderstand how minimumpayments are calculatedand applied to a principalbalance. Te AmericanBankers Association(ABA) has developed a freeresource to help consumersmake informed choicesabout credit cards. “Guideto Credit Cards” is availableon ABA’s ConsumerConnection web page at www.aba.com. Make surethat you also check yourcredit report frequently. You are entitled to receive afree credit report every year.For more information, visit www.annualcreditreport.com.
Become a trendsetter.
 As a preludeto your comeback, youcan become a trendsetterby practicing sensiblebudgeting techniques whileyou strive to settle yourdebts. Your friends andfamily will hopefully follow you in your footsteps.Discuss with your family members various waysto save money and visitsites for frugal tips such as www.Bargainist.com/tips, www.101waystosavemoney.com/, and www.mommysavers.com.
After Before
 
Make a Credit
Fun OnlineMoney Games
 A.G. Edwards, adivision of WachoviaSecurities, LLC, offersa variety of interestingfinancial games on their web site. Visit www.agedwards.com, click onthe “Investor Education”tab, and then choose“Kids Games” from thebar on the left hand sideof the page. You willthen see links for severalgames. Te SavingsQuest game teaches kidsabout the importance of budgeting, saving, andearning a pay check. Although it is classified asa children’s game, many adults may also find thisgame interesting. TeStar rader game is forages 10-adult and givesusers the opportunity tochoose stocks and play the market. As part of theirSchwab MoneyWiseinitiative, Schwab givesteens and young adultsan opportunity to seehow major life decisions will affect their finances with the “It’s Your Life”online game. Visit www.schwabmoneywise.comand then click the “It’s Your Life” link.Planet Orange, anaward-winning onlinegame brought to you by ING Direct, educateskids about spending, sav-ing, and investing. Visit www.orangekids.com andexperience a whole new planet.
Below are someinteresting online gamesthat will help introducekids to the world of money.
of 00

Leave a Comment

You must be to leave a comment.
Submit
Characters: ...
You must be to leave a comment.
Submit
Characters: ...