Free From Broke

What is Renter’s Insurance and Why You Need It

While most people know how important it is to have homeowner’s insurance, many never stop to consider whether renters also need to protect themselves.

Renter’s insurance is a type of insurance that protects the renter, as well as their property.

Just like other forms of insurance, customers will choose their amount of coverage and deductible, and be then required to pay a monthly premium based on these, as well as a few other, factors.

The amount of coverage that a renter chooses should account for the value of their belongings and offer enough coverage that they are adequately protected in case of an emergency.

What is Renter’s Insurance?

Planning on Buying a House? Put in the Legwork First!

Written by Glen Craig 13 Comments

So you want to buy a house? That’s awesome! Congratulations. But are you ready to buy a house? Have you done your research and legwork to find out the best house in the best neighborhood for you? I’m talking about all the other little things that influence your buying decision and the neighborhood you pick. Read on to see what I’m talking about.

Here are steps you need to take to put in the legwork of buying a house (in no particular order):

Choice Privileges Hotel Reward Program – A Review

Written by Melissa 18 Comments

We are all familiar with travel rewards credit cards, but there are also reward programs offered by hotels themselves. If you are going to have to stay in a hotel, why not earn rewards for doing so? Recently I joined Choice Privileges.

Where Points Are Earned

Choice Privileges rewards are accrued at 10 points per dollar spent at Comfort Inn, Comfort Suites, Quality, Sleep Inn, Clarion, Ascend Collection and Cambria Suites hotel. Choice Privileges are accrued at 5 points per dollar spent at MainStay Suites, Suburban Extended Stay, Econo Lodge and Rodeway Inn hotels.

Qualifying hotels are found in the U.S. including Hawaii, Canada, Caribbean/Mexico, Central/South America, Europe, Asia & Pacific.

Signing up for Choice Privileges can be done in less than five minutes. You are required to give basic information such as your name, address, and e-mail address. You can optionally give more information such as your birthday, phone number and credit card information.
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What is Income Investing?

Written by Miranda 1 Comment

One of the ways you can improve your financial stability and freedom is by cultivating income diversity. Income diversity means that, rather than relying on a single source of income, you actually develop different income streams. One way that you can increase your income streams is through income investing.

Income Investing: The Basics

How To Prosper With Peer to Peer Lending – A review of Prosper.com

Written by Glen Craig 10 Comments

Prosper.com is a personal loan and investing site with over one million members and over two hundred fifteen million dollars in personal loans funded since 2006. Using a unique person to person lending model, prosper.com connects borrowers and lenders and allows them to establish a mutually beneficial financial relationship. Prosper offers borrowers rates as low as 5.9% and lender returns as high as 10.1% (this varies, of course based on your borrowing and lending situation).

What is Person to Person or Peer Lending?

Ways a Bigger House is More Expensive (Besides the Mortgage)

Written by Glen Craig 17 Comments

There’s been a movement the past couple of years to move to a smaller home in order to save money. It’s understandable with the economy the way it is and all. Still, many people look to the time when they can get a bigger home. Sometimes you just need more space. Some just want the bigger place. I still see homes being torn down and re-built into much larger houses. Thing is, when you buy a bigger house you aren’t just paying a bigger mortgage. With a bigger house comes some other expenses and costs that increase.

Some Ways You Will Pay More With a Bigger House:

Tax Year 2010: Time to Begin Repaying the 2008 First-Time Homebuyer Tax Credit

Written by Miranda 2 Comments

Here in America, we view the housing market as one of the main pillars of the economy. As a result, when the real estate market moves slowly, our leaders are concerned about what could happen to the economy. This was a big concern in late 2007 and early 2008 as signs of a housing meltdown really began manifesting. Even before the financial crisis, leaders were trying to prevent a real estate market collapse, and they began offering a first-time homebuyer tax credit to encourage citizens to buy homes.

Homebuyer Tax Credit 2008: Not a True Tax Credit

I Bought A NOOKcolor from Barnes and Noble – Review

Written by Glen Craig 13 Comments

So a couple of weeks ago I splurged and bought an eReader – The Barnes & Noble NOOKcolor. I never thought I’d be one for electronic books but so far I’m loving it!

How Did I Come About Buying an eReader?

I always thought the idea of eReaders were kinda neat but I liked the romanticism of turning the actual pages. As I said, I never thought I’d get into an eReader.

I had seen the Amazon Kindle, both on the Amazon site and in Staples a few times. It looked really cool but I couldn’t justify the cost.

What changed? I started the school semester, late January, with an economics class. The professor required us to buy this online package so we could submit our homework online (this was required) and it also included the online edition of the book. There was no option for just the homework submission. Not wanting to buy a physical copy (there weren’t any used copies of the book out there to get) and not wanting to read it all on my laptop (I sit in from of it all day already) I started to look into eReaders. Note: I could have also printed out the book but I didn’t want to blow up my printer. Bringing a file to a printing store was also an option too (but I kinda got myself psyched up for an eReader).
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Crush It by Gary Vaynerchuck – Review

Written by Glen Craig 11 Comments

I just finished reading Crush It! by Gary Vaynerchuck. The full title of the book is actually Why NOW is the Time To Crush It! Cash In On Your Passion. I kept hearing about this Gary Vaynerchuck guy all over the place and hearing about this book (Inc. listed it as one of the top books for business owners in 2009). I would also hear people talk about how they “crush” this or that. I figured if I can get a copy at the library then I’ll give it a read. Glad I did. Awesome read!

This book is a primer on how to build your own personal brand and why you have to. It’s a quick and inspiring read that is well worth you time, whether you aren’t happy with the work you are doing or you are looking for ways to really grow what you are about.
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When is it Best to Itemize Your Taxes?

Written by Contributor 4 Comments

When life becomes more complicated, so do your taxes. As you claim dependents, purchase a home, or are involved in a major loss or theft you can claim specific items on your taxes that will reduce your tax burden. Other reasons such as owning your own small business, earning money in more than one state, or if you have investments or property that can be claimed as a loss then your taxes become slightly more difficult to file. Most single people will file a Form 1040-EZ, but if you have any type of deduction that is greater than the standard deduction it may be best to file using a Form 1040. So when should you itemize on your taxes? The following will provide some major reasons for itemizing.
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