Being a Military wife for many, many years it was an absolute necessity to pinch pennies. The Military does not make very much and if you are in the Military or the wife/husband of a Military person, you know I am not telling any stories out of school.

Now I do it because we are retired and live on a fixed income. But, I also enjoy it.

I love going to thrift shops and finding bargains. The one thrill is finding an outfit I love and it fits, but it is also brand new, at a very reduced price. Some people I know think I spend a lot of money for my clothes, if they only knew!!

When it comes to penny-pinching, I like to think I can pinch a penny as tight as anyone. I like getting unexpected checks from the consignment store where I take my no longer used clothes. I always balance bottles of shampoo upside down to get the last drop out. I remember my mother telling me when I was young, “a penny saved is a penny earned”, and those pennies turn into dollars.

Penny pinching is not about how much or how little you have. You can have all the stuff you want and still pinch pennies. That’s the key, though–the stuff you want. Saving money is about having more of what you want and less of the things that get in your way. So what if you’re not keeping up with the Jones’!!!

Penny pinching is using what we have and re-using, if possible. Not being fooled by fancy packaging and glitzy advertising but being able to appreciate value and usefulness.

We have countless appliances that will do every task imaginable. We seek out the latest convenience foods so we can spend less time in the kitchen; we streamline so we can accomplish more and more each day. To me dinner is not from a box; it is a home cooked pot of soup and homemade bread. To me saving money is not a cake mix, but a cake made from scratch. To me life is not always wanting more stuff, but learning how to enjoy and appreciate what I have.

Using our time and money wisely so that what inspires, and brings enjoyment can be achieved. Being penny pinching in daily life only brings abundance in the important areas of who we are and what we are all about.
It is living the lifestyle you choose, without envying what others have chosen. It is being where you want to be, placing your priorities exactly where you want them.

If you have a hard time finding the motivation to be penny pinching or save money, consider challenging yourself to tuck away what you save. It can be very motivating to watch your money grow. Set a bowl or jar up on a top shelf, to make weekly deposits of what you have saved from your money saving efforts. If in one week you bought yourself an outfit at a thrift store for $10 that would cost $30 at a retail store, put the $20 you saved into your bowl or jar. You may need to keep record in a notebook of what you saved before making your deposit so you won’t forget. With that thought, just keeping a record of what you save can be motivation enough to start saving money. If you look at it like a job, maybe you’ll be more likely to put effort into it.

Who wouldn’t like to keep a few more of your dollars in the bank? Chances are you could be saving more by using a few penny pinching tips. Check out my web site and see which ideas can help you get a little more bang for your buck. - http://www.pennypinching-grandma.com

Cal Bolton is the webmaster for Grandma who is the actual content provider of: http://www.pennypinching-grandma.com

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One of the most efficient ways to invest in residential real estate is to do a lease/purchase. The reason a lease/purchase is so effective, is because it provides a win-win situation for both the seller/landlord and the buyer/tenant. For the owner, it provides a potential buyer and a tenant that will be willing to take care of the home. For the buyer, it provides the right to purchase the home for a fixed price, and time to save money and improve their credit. Here is how it works.

The owner and the buyer enter into a contract whereby the potential buyer agrees to lease the home for a set amount of time. At the end of the lease, the buyer then has the option of buying the home for the price agreed upon in the contract. In order to secure that price, the buyer pays an option fee up front. If the buyer chooses to buy the home at the end of the lease, he can apply the option fee and any other money saved toward the down payment. If they choose not to purchase the home, the owner keeps the option fee.

For the owner, the lease/purchase offers several different ways to make money from the home:

- The goal is to buy the home for 10-20% below market value.

- The monthly rent you collect will exceed your mortgage payment.

- You can right off mortgage interest and other expenses on your taxes.

- You pay down the principle on your mortgage and build equity in the house.

- The price of the home will appreciate.

- If the potential buyer decides not to buy, you keep the option fee.

This is just a basic outline of how a lease/purchase works and the opportunities it presents. It is still a real estate investment strategy that is unknown by many and discussed by too few. For more detailed information, a recommended read is “Buy Low, Rent Smart, Sell High” by Scott Frank and Andy Heller.

To apply this investment strategy in a growing real estate market, visit http://www.buyandsellnorthtexas.com.

Michael A. Stazko is a real estate assistant and founder of http://www.buyandsellnorthtexas.com a website that provides realtor, mortgage, new home, and real estate investing information for North Texas.

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You probably spent a good bit of time getting disciplined to save money for your home purchase. You need to carry this financial discipline through the escrow period or you could run into problems.

Budget for Closing Costs - Property Taxes, Legal Fees and Such

When you decided it was time to purchase a home, you went through a number of steps to get your finances in order. You probably reviewed your credit report, cut down on credit card balances and reigned in your spending. A monthly budget was probably also an item you stuck to, probably with some aggravation. Once you have an offer for a home accepted, it is important that you keep budgeting for the closing costs associated with the purchase. Here are a couple of odd little fees that can show up and drive you nuts if you are not careful.

Being required to pay property taxes can be a nasty little surprise. After all, you do not even own the home yet! The requirement, however, comes because of the nature of how property taxes are paid. They are not paid every month, so the seller has prepaid the taxes beyond the period they will own the home. They will want that money back! You can negotiate this point as part of the purchase, but you need to be aware it is out there.

In some states, it is a legal requirement that you have a lawyer represent you in a real estate transaction. This requirement primarily exists in the East. Regardless, attorneys are expensive and you need to have money set aside to pay their fees. In truth, retaining a lawyer is a good idea since they tend to sniff out any questionable issues in the transaction. Fees can run you from a couple hundred bucks to thousands of dollars.

In addition to the above, there are a lot of small fees associated with closing. They can run from several hundred dollars paid to the escrow company to $20 or so for notary fees and so on. If you do not keep an eye out, they can add up quickly to a few thousand dollars.

Closing on a home can be aggravating with all the costs you have to pay. It will all be worth it when you walk into your new home the first time.

Sergio Haros is with Great Western Mortgage - San Diego home loans provided by San Diego Mortgage Brokers. Great Western Mortgage is a San Diego mortgage company providing San Diego mortgages, San Diego home equity loan and San Diego mortgage solutions.

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