Blog by Patience

Several months back I stopped posting… it wasn’t because of lack of commitment.

Sometimes life doesn’t cooperate with our plans…. that is universal, and not just a challenge to the target audience of these blogs. When multiple things go haywire at once, well, it can take some time to get back to business….

I am grateful that I had the opportunity to participate in blogging. And the comments and email and subject requests let me know that I was accomplishing more than just my own enjoyment. I discovered a new source of joy and connection.

The opportunity to blog has inspired me to seek out a place to blog about my journey into self employment. I’ll be incorporating a business, and will also have the opportunity to make use of the different Work Incentives, so perhaps my experiences will be helpful to those wanting to increase income, as well as those wanting to increase income and fear the prospect because of possible loss of benefits prematurely if the plan is not structured with eyes open.

If you see “Patience” writing about those topics, it is likely me…

Thank you REI Tour for the opportunity. And thank you all for your attention, comments, and support.

And congratulations to the Blog Champions!

Warm regards,

Patience

I have been struggling to convert from my dying computer, and so have not been able to log on.

I have a few posts for you, which I’ll post before the end of the week…

Thanks for your….well…patience…!

Warm regards,

Patience

I’ve been careful to leave out company names and links in my posts, yet I feel strongly about including this:   www.AnnualCreditReport.com

This IS NOT the company with the ads with the catchy song ….. which charges you for services. And be aware: if you misspell this address, you will ALSO end up at a non-free site.

No, www.AnnualCreditReport.com is the only authorized free site which provides an easy way to got free copies of all three credit reports once a year. See Federal Trade Commission web site for details.  www.ftc.gov/freereports

The reports are maintained by credit bureaus – Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax. These bureaus only present information reported about you by companies you have financial business with.

It is important to look at all three reports; some items (positive or negative history) have not been reported to all three services. Some items reported could belong to someone else, and need to be corrected.

If you have been turned down for credit/loan based on credit reports, you generally can get a free copy of the report they used to turn you down.  HOPEFULLY, you are making use of your free copies to check for accuracy and discover any problems BEFORE you apply for credit or loans!!

So, where can we get good information about credit reports, credit scores, and the like?

I’ll soon post some NON-commercial sources of good information on understanding, correcting, and improving credit reports, credit score, and therefore our ability to qualify for a good car loan or mortgage, if those are part of your financial goals….

Warm regards,
Patience   

Yesterday, I experienced a perfect example of why it is important to have credit AVAILABLE for emergencies….

Over the last months, my laptop has had sudden loss of capabilities. Until yesterday, the problems have been annoying, but nothing that I couldn’t find some way to work around. For instance, my battery died and will neither accept nor hold a charge. So now I just have to keep it plugged in. Now the monitor is tinged with faint red and flickering in the left lower corner. On Sunday night, the flickering spread to cover 75% of the screen.

So, a functioning laptop is a necessity right now. And, I do not have that kind of money set aside right now.

So, I started researching models. The good thing is computers have more capabilities and cost less than 4 years ago. The bad news is that the current credit limit on my store card was not enough to cover purchase.

I went to customer service, they checked on my credit report electronically, and doubled my previous credit limit. This allows me to purchase a *needed* replacement, now, and without resorting to more expensive options. I will have no finance charges for 6 months; and already have a plan to pay it off, or nearly off, in that time.

I have not “maxed out” the new limit; there was no NEED for that….

Credit MUST be used with discipline, and for needs, not wants. Having credit AVAILABLE for emergencies is a good thing. Misuse and an unmanageable debt burden is how we cause ourselves problems.

Next, let’s talk about credit reports….

Warm regards,
Patience

On January 20, I pledged to spend a tiny bit less on coffee to-go. I calculated saving around $4 per week by just changing the size coffee I bought, and not altering the frequency of buying coffee.

Today – a mere 14 days later – I have $20 in my emergency fund jar.  That is 2.5 times larger than expected for 14 days.

So, why has my fund grown so fast?

Even though I am buying medium rather than the pledged small coffees, I am ahead in my savings. A few times, I was a few blocks from home and made a CONSCIOUS choice to wait a few more minutes and have a hot cup of tea at home rather than buy coffee out right then. I tucked away $3 each time.

Another day, I emptied my wallet of small bills, which I would have usually spent on or given to a friend if we had gotten together that day. I figured that if I’d normally have ended up with an empty wallet helping someone else, I could just as easily have an empty wallet tucking those same unused bills in my emergency fund.

Saving money can be a game — fun AND rewarding!

How is your fund growing…?

Warm regards,
Patience

Avoid impulsive purchases: The best way I know to do this is to routinely leave the card at home.

Another way I resist impulses is to tell myself that I cannot buy until I have researched that this item will in fact work the way I need it to work. This research involves reading and comparing features, and trying out the equipment. When I bought my laptop, I tested all the display models to see if the spacing between keys was comfortable for my small hands. I eliminated many “great sales” by actually testing BEFORE I purchased.

Still another reality check I give myself is articulating a logical, convincing reason as to why I need this item NOW. Right now, I am *drooling* over a digital camera. I am doing research; I am comparing models; I can even rightly say I *need* a digital camera for marketing brochures for my upcoming business. What I can’t yet do is justify that the *need* is *now*.  So, for now, buying a digital camera (with cash or credit) is not going to happen.

And while I am waiting for the right time to buy that camera, I am saving money so that when I do buy, I can pay the balance off when the credit card statement first arrives.

This is one strategy for using credit responsibly….

Do you have any tips to share…?

Warm regards,
Patience

So, last blog entry left off with my purchase of a needed laptop, and taking on debt on a credit card only usable at that store. The important parts of the story are that the item purchased was *needed*, was not impulsive, was well researched, and would ultimately cost me the same as if I had handed over cash for the total price on the day I bought it.

Credit cards are *not* inherently evil. Impulsive purchases, not paying in full before we incur finance charges, being late with payments…..these are the thing which can lead to bad credit ratings/history, and the “credit card debt” that all the financial articles rightly tell us we should avoid.

Having my credit card at this store allows me to build a recent credit history. Because of how I approach using the card, I am not getting into debt.

Credit card debt which we incur impulsively for non-essentials, and which we cannot repay with little or no finance charges IS what we need to avoid.

Responsible use of credit can build a credit history which says to any lender that we can manage loans or lines of credit they grant us.

If you want to be a homeowner someday, you have to have good credit history to get a loan, and get the best interest rates. Same for car loans; And in some situations, for certain student loans too….

So, credit is not bad. *Misuse* of credit hurts our fiscal health. So, how do we avoid misuse…?

Warm regards,
Patience

Several years ago, I needed a computer for online classes towards finally finishing my Bachelor’s degree in business. I went to the big electronics store near the mall, and asked for recommendations. The clerk was great, and showed me three laptops which met the technology needs I described. His highest recommendation turned out to NOT be the most expensive, so I felt confident between my prior research and his recommendations that my selection was a good one.

One problem: The computer was *slightly* more than I had in my checking account earmarked for the purchase.  School was starting in less than two weeks, and if I waited, I would lose the rebate which made it affordable.  Also, I needed to get any technical problems solved BEFORE class actually started.

The clerk offered to open a store credit card for me…..  Yikes (I thought) I haven’t had any credit cards of any kind since 1997. I’ve lived with only my debit card with the Visa logo. I probably won’t get approved. I have an old dispute issue with a large evil cell phone provider, and I figured it would show and I’d be turned down….

Well, I was approved for $500!! Financing at that time was no interest for 12 months.

Wow, I could have my *needed* computer now, and begin to build credit history, AND pay no interest if I paid off the purchase in 12 months?!?

So begins my adventure in establishing good recent credit history….

Warm regards,
Patience

Food and diet have been central to most posts to date. This is a financial blog, so why is that so….?

Besides my love of cooking and good food (no matter whether I have either in my life at any given time….), there really is a fundamental connection between the two – beyond just a good analogy.

Think about it: our physical health comes from the choices we make daily regarding food as well as our level of physical activity.

Financial health relates back to our daily choices as well. And the types of choices we make around feeding ourselves and family have positive and negative consequences in our physical and financial health.

Small daily choices lead us towards health. Small daily choices can lead us away from health — both fiscal and physical.

I am certain this relationship will keep showing up in posts. For now, I am shifting topic to my adventures in establishing credit. It might take me some time to find an appropriate food analogy to illustrate that topic!

UPDATE on coffee resolution: Wednesday is my long day, requiring mental sharpness. I started my day buying a *medium* coffee rather than a small. This was a conscious choice, and I made adjustments in my usual spending to make up for it. So, I did have $1.50 savings to put in my emergency fund jar, as resolved.

Improvements come in balancing our conscious choices to keep us moving towards our goal overall.  It is about planning and persistence, not perfection.

Warm regards,
Patience

Today was my first day of buying a small rather than an extra-large coffee.

I learned two things; the caffeine in a small coffee was sufficient to help me wake up/focus. The other revelation was that a small coffee spills when you “swirl” it to dissolve the sweetener!! I never spilled the extra-large when I “swirled”….

I put the dollar and change saved in a jar.

Remember, that dollar and change is the first step to roughly $4 saved per week, $20 saved per month, and in the vicinity of $150 to $200 saved by the end of the year….

So, today, I kept one of my financial resolutions leading to an increased emergency fund….

How was your day…?

Warm regards,
Patience