Posted on: July 13, 2009 by Matt
Over the past year or so I have been finding new and different ways to get free stuff. Some items I earn through various programs online and others are just through enrolling in certain services. Today I figured I would take a few minutes and share some of the ways that I get the occasional little item or gift card for free or with very little effort anyway:
- Swagbucks: All you do is search and earn points over time. They use a Google based engine so the results are pretty good. Over time the Swagbucks add up and you can redeem them for prizes and gift cards. So far I have managed to get $15 in iTunes for free (my girlfriend was happy about that) and now there is even a $5 PayPal option. There are also relatively inexpensive $5 gift cards for Amazon and plenty of raffle like contests going on. A pretty good deal considering I have not changed my routine all that much.
- CashCrate: When I have a bit more time to kill I sometimes complete random offers over at CashCrate. I have received payment from them in the past and know that they do pay out. The trick is that you have to get to the minimum payout ($20), know what to do with the offers and be willing to put up with some tedium.
- Live It With Charter: I just found out about this service but if you are a Charter customer then you can get signed up to earn free reward points based on how much your bill comes to. Then they hold redemption days where you can cash in your points for merchandise. A pretty cool deal for not having to do anything.
- UPromise: I have a UPromise account that I let collect money that I will hopefully apply to my Sallie Mae student loan. I have gained some cash from just going about my normal life as well as a bit from shopping online through my Upromise account.
- Credit Card Rewards: My credit card has a rewards system and I generally let the balance build up until we can get something fun. Right now I am about at the point that I could cash in and get a $50 gift certificate. When the time comes to actually cash in my points I will go through it with my girlfriend and see what she wants.
Posted on: April 13, 2009 by Matt
The Carnival of Personal Finance is up and running over at MoneyNing and one of my articles found a way in. Head on over and check the carnival out! Lots of good articles this week.
Posted on: March 5, 2009 by Matt
I have been hearing more and more stories lately about people being affected by crimes of some sort. The stories have ranged from car break ins to robberies to identity theft. Living in a small New England town I generally have not heard much going on in the past but lately it seems to be on the rise. I am guessing that these scary economic times are largely to blame and people are getting desperate but my observations are purely speculation.
Anyway – I suppose that it does not matter what the root cause is, the fact remains I have heard a lot of people noting problems. I have not actually heard or seen any statistics on an increase in crime but I still think it wise to be cautious. In order to make sure that I do not end up losing out I plan to:
- Keep a close eye on all my statements: Both for bank accounts and credit cards.
- Grab my annual copy of my credit report: Everyone gets one copy of their credit report per year. It is a good way to check for accounts opened in your name that you did not open.
- Continue checking my online banking items daily. I generally keep an eye on my primary accounts on a daily basis to make sure there are no additional charges or items pending that I did not authorize. I will keep up on this.
Has anyone else heard more crime stories recently? Are you taking any steps to protect yourself just in case?
Posted on: February 26, 2009 by Matt
My father’s political views are conservative to say the least. To qualify my statement:
- All Heinz products are banned from the house. I believe this is due to John Kerry’s marriage to Teresa Simões-Ferreira Heinz but am not sure.
- Ben & Jerry’s ice cream is fondly referred to as “Communist ice cream”. It will not pass his lips and having it in the house for anyone else is heavily frowned upon.
- I really do not want to start (trying to stay somewhat PG) getting into his opinion of Senator Bernie Sanders. The term “Pinko Communist Scumbag” was the start of a rant once though.
Oddly enough after growing up with my father I somehow turned out to have liberal points of view on most topics. I generally vote Democratic or Independent and I am generally pleased with the direction our country is going under new leadership. Sure it is not perfect but I believe we are in a much better place now than we were under the previous administration. About the only aspect of my life where I try to act conservatively is with my finances. I like to save and have money in my checking account mostly for security purposes. I have burned myself before with my finances and I am working very hard to not do so again.
So – why am I telling you all this? Well, mostly because I am curious. I have noticed my personal email has always had an influx (mostly my father’s doing) of conservative propaganda, slanderous political cartoons and right wing manifestos that all attack the left in some way. However – I do not get similar emails from my liberal friends and relatives.
Has anyone else noticed this? Am I missing something? Are there liberal attacks on the conservative camps that I have been missing along the way? Have any of you readers noticed any political slander in your mailboxes?
Posted on: February 19, 2009 by Matt
Well it is that time of year again and I believe I have all my paperwork in to file my taxes. This year should prove a bit more difficult than my previous years. In the past I have just downloaded a program and plugged my numbers in. The only items I claimed were my standard deduction and my student loan interest. Pretty basic stuff. However this year I am toying with the idea of hiring somebody to handle my taxes for me. I have moved from one state to another and continued to work for a company in Denver after moving to Vermont. I think that the state taxes are what throw me for a loop as I am not familiar with what needs to be done. I have also been considering looking into just buying one of the tax programs like:
- Turbo Tax: My father uses this program every year and seems to think it does a fair job.
- Tax Cut: I have no experience with this program but am running with the assumption that it is very similar to Turbo Tax.
- Tax Act: I have used this program in the past. It works well, does the basics and allows me to just enter the little information I have and go. Having the multiple state items makes me a little nervous about using this application though.
I know that there are plenty of people out there that work in one state but reside in another but I am a little daunted by both the extra paperwork as well as the complexity. I am fairly certain that if I applied myself to the task I would be able to get it done rigth but then again it may be easier (and just as cost effective) to have a professional take a look. Does anyone else have a similar situation? What are your tax plans for this year?
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