June 2009 Unemployment Figures Spike Up Again in US
When will The Recession End?
Just when we thought things were getting a bit better, the US economy is showing some alarming symptoms of staying in the pits! After almost half a million jobs were cut in June, 2009, the jobless rate is at 9.5 percent. Folks, that is getting really close to 10 percent, and that number probably does not take into account many millions of people who are underemployed or who have just given up on the job hunt for right now.
The Worst May Still Be To Come
Many economists do predict that the unemployment rate will hit 10 percent this year, and perhaps peak out at 11 percent, until companies are certain that the nation’s economy is stable and they can begin hiring more people again.
And the grim jobs data has also started pulling the stock market back down. Bad news does that. This is a time for people to hang on.
Online Work For Jobless People
Meanwhile, as desperate job seekers lurk on the internet, make sure you keep an eye out of online job scams. That is not to say you cannot find plenty of legitimate online work though.
Look at some online freelancing ideas.
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How to Be a Millionaire (or Think Like a Millionaire!)
Millionaires are, of course, a diverse lot. While some were born to money, others slogged through the corporate grind for years, while some came up with that one great idea - and had the stamina and guts to make it work. But rich people may have some common traits that the rest of us should consider.
Independent Thinkers - While most people spend a lot of energy trying to conform, people who make their fortunes tend to forge their own paths.
Visionairies with an Optimistic Outlook - Millionaires like to look ahead, see the big picture, and also keep a positive attitude about their own chances of reaching their goals.
Passion - People who make a lot of money tend to love what they do! And they don’t just like their jobs because they are well paid. Rather, it would seem, they make a lot of money because they love to get to work in the morning - even Monday mornings.
Investment - Millionaires are willing to invest in their ideas and themselves. They canand forgo other pleasures because they need the money to grow their enterprise.
Salesmanship - Millionaires tend to have good social skills, not want to take “no” for an answer, and have an ability to promote their ideas. In fact, experts believe that social skills were more important than IQ for people who wanted to forge ahead with a million dollar idea. That doesn’t mean that introverts cannot become wealthy, or that rich people are always nice guys. But it does mean that they have ways of convincing others to work with them.
Do you have a millionaire mindset? Most of them forged ahead despite problems, did not expect to get rich overnight, and were willing to delay some things for a bigger return later.
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Why is Renters Insurance Good for Tenants and Landlords
What is Renters Insurance?
Many of you are familiar with homeowners insurance, which is coverage that people buy to protect the home they own. You may think that renters, who do not actually own the building or property, do not need any coverage. But I believe that a renters insurance policy is good for both tenants and renters.
So why do I, on a frugal living website, believe that it is worth it to pick up another bill?
Renters policies are usually pretty cheap. Since they do not actually cover the building or property, these policies do not cost all that much. You may be able to find adequate coverage for $20 a month!
Contents Insurance
These policies provide home contents insurance. In other words, the personal property of the renter will be covered in case of loss or damage. In some cases, they will even cover that property if it is taken from the home. For instance, a laptop may be taken out on business, but could still be protected against loss, theft, or damage.
Relocation Money
Policies can provide relocation insurance in case damage forces the tenant to evacuate. An example would be the money to pay for a hotel room for 30 days (or whatever is specified in the policy) until repairs are made or another home can be found.
Liability Protection
Policies may also provide liability insurance. If a visitor claims injury or damage in a home, the tenant will be covered.
You can also see why this coverage would be good for landlords. The renter will have this coverage to turn to rather than trying to sue the owner for damages.
Find Renters Insurance Quotes Online
You can get quotes for renters insurance with fast, safe, and free online forms that pull competitive rates and policies in your local area.
Many landlords require renters insurance these days, but I really believe this coverage is good for the tenant too!
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Big Car Insurance Savings Tips
Do you need some tips to help you save real money on car insurance?
I know you can find lots of articles that promise to help you, but many of those are directed at promoting one particular insurer or another. The point is, no one insurer is the best one for everybody!
Compare Insurers for Yourself!
Cheap Car Insurance Quotes Online - You can save lots of time and money by using an internet auto insurance quote form. Simply fill in your information one time, and then sit back as the most competitive companies return quotes.
Higher Risk Drivers Like Young People Need Help
Got a kid to insure? It can be very tough to find cheap under 25 car insurance, and your best bet will probably be to bundle that young person with other policies your family has.
Beware of Coverage Cutting, and not Cost Cutting!
Beware of cutting any coverage you now have. You may save a few bucks today, but it could cost you a lot more in the future. If you are cutting coverage to save money, take a few minutes to analyze the risk you are taking. You may be able to buy all of the coverage you have now for less money by simply finding the best car insurance quotes.
If you take these steps, though, you should be able to cut your rates. Many online shoppers report a $500 a year price difference just because they took the time to find out which company really offers their better rates to drivers with their own situation. This is doing the real work that will help you save money, and not just buying into the hype that is paid for by one particular company or another.
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Vinyl Swimming Pool Stains Could be Metals!
If you’re a cheapskate like me, you may have opted for a large vinyl above ground pool instead of an inground pool. I did buy a good one - a Splash Pool - because they are warrantied for 30 years, and not just expected to last a year or two like the cheap ones you buy at a discount store. And yes, I am a frugal person with a pool - but I live in the Shouth, and hey - it gets hot here! OK?
Stains Could Be Metals and Not Algae
OK, so here’s the story. After I uncovered my pool for the summer it was a greyish-green horror. I did my best to scoop out gunk, balance the water, and start treating for algae - which I surely did have! However, even when the water tested within normal parameters, looked clear enough to see the bottom, and had plenty of chlorine, it was still an ugly greenish-gunky looking pond.
On the advice of the guy at the pool store, I dumped in more algicide, which was a big mistake. See, algae killers contain copper, and more copper may have been coming into the pool from my old pipes which supplied fresh water! Do you see the problem? The ugly greenish mucky color did not come from the water, which was crystal clear when it came out of the pump in a backwash or rinse. The color came from staining on the sides of the vinyl pool, and these were caused by metal in the water!
I found a solution that worked for me, and that was to get ascorbinc acid (vitamin C). You can find it at some pool stores, but some people buy it from vitamin stores too. You need to let the chlorine levels go down to very close to 0. But before you do that, test to make sure this is the problem.
Step 1 - Shake some of the ascorbic acid in a white sock, and throw the sock in the pool. Push the sock around the bottom with your pool net and see if it erases the state. It did the trick for me right away! Another test would be to take a vitamin C tablet and rub it against the stain if that is possible. If that erases the stain, then you know ascorbic acid will help!
Step 2 - Let your Chlorine levels go way down. You can usually just wait a day or two, or else you can buy another chemical for this. Being a cheapskate, I just waited. The ascorbic acid will work a lot better with little or no chlorine in the pool.
Step 3 - Add the Ascorbic acid according to directions, if you bought it at a pool store. My bottle said to add 1/2 pound per 10,000 gallons of water. Keep runnning your pump and filter, and you should see an improvement very soon. You can also follow up with some product like Metal Magic - but metal magic did not do the trick for me without the ascorbic acid.
When your pool is nice and crystal clear, like mine is, you can backwash and rinse your filter, and then make sure you get your PH balanced before adding chlorine back in.
I hope this works for you as well as it did for me. Have a great summer!
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Fundraising Tips — Casino Parties
Raising Money During Down Times?
An economic recession is certainly a tough time to try to raise money for good causes. Many big givers have to cut back because they have less savings or income than they did several months ago. Just when schools, charities, religious institutions, and other groups really need to raise more cash they find that lots of supporters have closed their wallets!
Why Do Casino Parties Work So Well for Fundraising?
- Many people love the excitement of casino gambling, but have to cut back on trips to places like Vegas or Atlantic City as their budgets shrink.
- You may be able to find people willing to donate prizes, especially if they can help them promote a business, where they may not want to give cash. You can certainly find some great donated prizes like day spa visits, weekend getaways at local hotels, car washes, or gift baskets.
- You can also get group members to donate snacks and drinks.
Here’s how you hold a private casino party fundraiser.
People pay an admission fee which buys them some chips for gambling. You can also sell extra chips! In addition, you may want to use some of the donated prizes for a silent auction. Non-gamblers will enjoy browsing the prizes as they try to get a good deal.
At the end of the gambling session, you can let the gamblers “cash” in their chips for fake money. This can be used to auction off the donated prizes. It is a good idea to have a few big and attractive prizes like week-end getaways or more expensive housewares. But also have some smaller prizes so lots of people can win!
Try to plan your fundraiser so the proceeds can cover hiring some professional dealers to really give your casino party an authentic feel. Of course, the idea here is to make sure you have money left over to donate to your organization!
You will find that your casino party fundraiser will be a lot more fun than going around and asking people to give more money!
Get more information on Casino Gambling Parties!
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Cheap Pool Supplies (Chemicals) From The Grocery Store!
Can You Use Grocery Store Pool Supplies?
I purchased a good quality above ground pool because it seemed like the sensible and affordable solution. While I admit I went for quality, I also opted out of digging a giant hole in my backyard. Living where I do, in the sunbelt, a private pool is a great luxury, but I took the frugal approach. Note that a very cheap above ground pool may not be worth the headache, but a good quality above ground pool, pump, and filter can give you decades of pleasure for a fraction of the cost of an inground pool!
Now in my quest to save money I have found that many orginary grocery store staples can replace expensive pool store chemicals to keep water balanced. If your pool has gotten very bad, it may be in your best interest to visit a pool store because they can give you expert recomendations. But if you just want to maintain your water balance, you have no reason to overpay for pool supplies!
Do Balance Your Water PH with Test Strips - A bottle of test strips or a pool testing kit is one investment you probably need to make. I have found that water balance is key to having sparkling clear and safe pool water. Most of the time, a pool should test with a PH between 7.2 and 7.8. Follow the directions on your pool test kit to determine what your pool lacks.
How Many Gallons of Water Does Your Pool Have? - It is also important to know how much water your pool has. Simply google a formula for this, or even an online form that can tell you. For instance, I have a rectangular pool that is 17′ by 9′. It is 4′ deep. By searching for a ’swimming pool volume in gallons calculator’, I found a simple formula to tell me I have a little about 4,600 gallons of water. This number isn’t exact but it will be close enough. You can find similar calculators or formulas if you have a round pool too!
Err On The Side of Caution - You are, of course, using your own judgement here. Add a bit time and wait. Then test. Then add a bit more. The most common problem people have is adding too much. Besides you never want to directly mix chemicals. Most chemicals should be added while your pump is circulating the water too.
Common Grocery Store Items to Replace Pool Chemicals
Chlorine Bleach is Cholrine. Baking soda can work like ‘Alkalinity Increaser’. Borax is a PH increaser.
Now be sure to only use the supplies mentioned above, AND NOT any detergent with those ingredients. Imagine the mess if you add sudsy soap to your pool.
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Cheap Ways To Promote a Sales Business
Are you Losing Customers to your Competition?
Why are you working so hard to generate prospects, leads, and sales, while totally ignoring the wonder of internet automation? If you understood the sales conversion process, you know that you need to filter out buyers from lookers. The internet can really help you perform this process. As experienced internet consultants and marketers, we have mapped out a simple strategy to generate internet sales leads without spending a lot of money or having high tech skills.
Generate Online Sales Leads Cheaply
You can create your own good internet sales leads with your own inexpensive online network and promotion strategy. Visitors may view a link to your website, visit your website, become interested in what your website says about your business, and then take the next step to fill out a lead form, call you, or email you! You are generating a stream of very qualified business prospects without having to talk to, or chase after, any of them!
Take Your Business Online!
Now wouldn’t a strategy to have potential leads call you make you more productive? Would’t it make your job more fun? I know it really made my sales business a pleasure! I hated to cold call or knock on doors, but I love engaging my potential customers when they take the trouble to contact me for more information!
Make Sales Fun Again
Any job that is fun and rewarding will be more likely to engage you! You will probably find yourself working harder than every before, and you will probably love it!
Get Cheap Internet Sales Leads ! You can learn to generate your own free or cheap leads online with simple tools and strategies that we use on with our own online cliets.
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Home Renting vs. Buying
Is The American Dream A Good Idea Right Now?
I guess almost everybody thinks about the day when they can buy their first home, or if a family already owns a home, they think about upgrading to a different home. But right now many people are looking at the realities of home ownership and asking themselves if it is really a good idea. Sure, people will argue that paying rent is just like throwing away money. You pay, get a place to live, and then next month, you pay again. But I would argue that people always pay rent, even when they own a home.
How Do Homeowners Pay Rent?
- Taxes - If you own a home, you probably pay a couple of percentage points, or more, of your home value in taxes every year.
- Repairs - When you rent, you call the landlord to fix most things. When you own a home, you have to fix things yourself.
- Interest on A Mortgage - Talk about money down the drain! If you carry a home mortgage, and most homeowners do, a large chunk of your payment goes for interest.
- Home Value - Traditionally, homeowners could count on an increase in the value of their home. These days, that home value could decrease. If a home has to be sold, unhappy homeowners may actually have to write a check in order to close a deal.
- Homeowner’s Insurance Premiums - Sure, renters buy renters insurance, but it is really cheap! Homeowners insurance costs more.
Do I Own or Rent My Home?
Now let me be honest. There are also advantages to owning a home, and I must tell you that I did purchase a modest home after renting for a while. I got tired of waiting for the landlord to do a mediocre job of fixing things, and not being able to tile or paint the way I wanted to. But sometimes, especially after paying for large repair bills, I long for the days when I could just call the landlord or move when things were not right with my home!
And I did buy a modest home because I wanted to make sure I had money left over to pay for things like taxes and repairs. But believe me, I often succumb to the American dream of moving up!
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How To Cope With Varying Incomes
Do You Deal With A Fluctuationg or Seasonal Income That Varies From Month To Month?
Many people, like salesmen or contract workers, are used to dealing with a fluctuating income. Others, because of these rough financial times, are only beginning to have to manage their finances without knowing how much money they will make over the next several months. Of course, it is much easier to plan when you can predict how much money you will make next week, next month, or next year. But many people who are used to dealing with fluctuating incomes have some great tips!
- The advice that your parents gave you about paying yourself first is especially relevant. During fat times make sure you discipline yourself to set aside cash for lean times. If you need to come up with cash to tide you over, pay for an emergency, or even loan to your cousin George, it will be good to have the assurance of having a savings account to fall back on.
- Try to keep your monthly required bills as low as possible. For instance, if you need a new car loan, it may be prudent to extend the term of the loan in order to reduce monthly payments. Sometimes 0% car financing offers will not work out if the shorter term forces higher payments. If you anticipate an income reduction, this would be a good time to cut out extras like gym memberships. Walking is geat exercise, and it is basically free!
- Try to take some practical steps to reduce monthly bills that you cannot eliminate. For instance, this may be a great time to consider transferring high credit card interest rates to lower or 0% offers.
These basic suggestions may seem like common sense, but you’d be surprised by how many people do not follow them. When big money comes in, big money goes out, and when the windfall ends, little is saved for rougher times. We may not be able to control everything, like emergencies or dropping stock markets, but we can control some very important parts of our basic finances!
Look for 0% Balance Transfer Offers Now!
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