Your2Cents is another of the many legitimate paid survey panels that I joined last year. Their website is simple and intuitive. After signing up, you get the option of completing profiles for $1 each, which is added to the compensation from your completed surveys. That’s like $10 right there!

There are survey opportunities a few times every week and they usually pay $1 to $5 dollars each. I think that showing the dollar compensation is better than using the points system since I don’t have to go wondering how much I’m being paid. Plus, I get entered into sweepstakes whether I qualify for a survey or not.

My check for $55 arrived just yesterday while I requested it about 2 months ago. This is slow but Your2Cents is still a good paid survey panel.

• Frequency of surveys: Several times a week
• Qualifying frequency rating: Medium
• Reward type: Cash
• Minimum payout: $20
• Payment method: check

OVERALL RATING: GOOD

Related posts:

1. GlobalTestMarket: Paid Survey Review I’ve joined GlobalTestMarket about a year ago while I was...
2. Opinion Outpost: Paid Survey Review It has almost been a year since I joined Opinion...
3. American Consumer Opinion Panel: Paid Survey Review The American Consumer Opinion Panel is a legitimate survey company...

In June, HSBC Direct increased their rate to 3.50% APY until August 15 and then further extended it until Septemeber 15, 2008. It seemed like they would extend that “promotional” rate but it just so happens that AIG shakes up the financial markets that very day.

Followed by the may other financial woes and an anticipated rate cut by the Fed. I was doubtful that HSBC Direct would continue to offer 3.50%. As expected, here is part of the email I received from them:

For your Online Savings Account balances, you’ll continue to get one of the highest savings rates anywhere. As of September 16, 2008, you will earn 3.25% APY*, which is 8x the national statement savings average± and 0.20% above the everyday rate we were offering you prior to our summer promotion.

Nonetheless, it is still a great rate. I just hope the banks would stop causing all this ruckus.

Related posts:

1. When Will This Stop? – HSBC Direct Reduces Rates Deja vu? As predicted in my earlier post, HSBC Direct...
2. HSBC Direct Reduces Interest Rate AGAIN Today, I received an email regarding my savings account that...
3. Hiding The Loan Money: Should I Close HSBC Direct or No? Finally, I collected my student loan refund check today. Even...

Over the weekend, my friend had his wallet stolen from a communal locker at work. He was on his way to the mall when he stopped by to pick up his wallet and he calls me in a hurry. He needed the bank phone numbers so that he could cancel all his cards.

It seems like a typical “I lost my wallet” routine but he noted to me that he had a copy of his Social Security card in his wallet along with his driver’s permit.

What a perfect recipe for a financial disaster, right?

When he called to cancel the cards, he also asked if any charges were made. It was a good 12-13 hours since he last saw his wallet. I’d expect there to be some charges but fortunately, there were zero charges.

It is odd that the person did not intend on purchasing items with a stolen credit card, but that person still has the option to entirely take over my friend’s identity.

Bankrate suggests these four steps after losing your wallet:

1. Cancel lost credit, ATM and debit cards.
2. Report the theft to credit bureaus.
3. File a police report.
4. Provide details to the FTC.

Hopely, someone just found it and put it in the university’s ‘lost and found’.

Related posts:

1. Prepare Yourself With My Lost Wallet Protocol First off, the graph above is obviously false (hopefully). But...
2. Is Your Wallet Worth More Than The Cash In It? The wallet is an accessory, that over the years, has...
3. The Search For My First Credit Card So as I have said in an earlier post, I’ve...

As you can tell from the title, the budget that I set up earlier this week seemed to work pretty well.

I followed all the tips and it worked great:

1. My Post-It note had a small list but it was suffice and exactly what I needed. It served its purpose: buy those items and ONLY those items.
2. I checked the online ads at Waldbaums.com and the only savings I found were for the chips.
3. A few of my items were by generic brands. The milk and spaghetti were from America’s Choice, a generic brand common in Waldbaums.
4. I was set to complete my shopping trip in 15 minutes. It turns out I totally overestimated the required time to pick up all the items on the list. I was actually done in 5 minutes. It helped to know the aisles of the store (and the list was short).

I actually bought something that wasn’t on the list. A box of frozen taquitos was the extra item but I still didn’t go over my budget.

In fact, if you take a look at the receipt, the shopping trip cost me $24.99. I guess I missed my budget by just one penny. I don’t know why I didn’t have to pay tax but I guess it is best not to argue about that.

Plus, with cash back from my credit card, I guess I’m becoming a smarter shopper.

Budgeting rocks?!

More information about credit cards at instant approval.

Related posts:

1. Setting Up The Grocery Budget For The Semester Two weeks into the school semester and I haven’t gone...
2. The Great Grocery Shopping Tip That I Never Knew In a typical trip to Waldbaum’s, Pathmark, or any other...
3. The Post-Holidays Shopping Spree After Christmas, bargain shopping is a given. Normally, my family...

This week, Realm of Prosperity was featured in a few personal finance carnivals. Check them out for some other great reads.

• Seventy-Sixth Carnival of Money Stories
• Money Hacks Carnival #29: Food Heaven
• Finance Fiesta #15~The Patriot Day Edition
• Carnival of Financial Learning #16 – Ike Addition

Related posts:

1. Links to Carnivals 8/28/08 This week was quite a gathering! Realm of Prosperity was...
2. Links to Carnivals 9/26/08 + EC Contest Last week, Realm of Prosperity participated in a few carnivals....
3. Links to Carnivals: Week of 6/16/08 Here are some links back to some carnivals in which...

Two weeks into the school semester and I haven’t gone grocery shopping yet. Last year, I spent about $30 per week on groceries. Compared to a campus meal plan, that is CHEAP!

But, I feel that I can do better with a little less. Before my return to school this year, my (loving) parents bought boxes of cereal, two large bags of rice, ramen noodles, and packs of water and soda. My mom also prepared food that I can quickly reheat. So, I’ve been able to survive for the last two weeks.

As I told you in an earlier post, I’m having some financial obstacles. That’s why I’d like to cut the expenses somewhat.

Goal
I feel that $25 can cover what I need. Plus, I think that is quite a reasonable goal that can still be achieved with the proper methods.

From reading many other personal finance blogs, I’ve picked up some tips I’ll try out:

• Make a list. Although this is a fundamental part of grocery shopping, many people don’t stick to it nor do they take the time to make one. I always make one but I tend to forget to bring it. This weekend, it’s going to be a Post-It note on my laptop.
• Check weekly ads online. Many supermarkets release their weekly paper ads online. So, why not check out the prices before I shop? I actually found some good savings on the items I was going to buy.
• Try generic or store brands. I forgot where I read it but there was a contest on who could save the most on purchasing generic brand goods instead of the name brands. Just compare the ingredients and see if it matches those of the popular brands.
• Set a time limit. This is a fun one. I remember those competition shows to see who could find the right items the fastest. If I had a list, I should be able to go from the picking up the shopping cart to the cashier in 15 minutes. The point is to reduce the time spent on buying things I don’t need.

I’m confident that I can stick to my budget and it seems this weekend would be a fun grocery shopping trip.

Any readers got some other really fun and useful grocery shopping tips?

Photo credit: CJ Sorg

Related posts:

1. Grocery Shopping: A Success! As you can tell from the title, the budget that...
2. The Great Grocery Shopping Tip That I Never Knew In a typical trip to Waldbaum’s, Pathmark, or any other...
3. A Better, Healthier Diet For The Same Cost Ever since I began working out, my diet has changed...

I’ve joined GlobalTestMarket about a year ago while I was searching the net for some legitimate paid survey companies and they came up as a very popular one. I finally received my first check from them since I knew I’d need some cash before school.

I hit the 1000-point payout mark after around 9 months but I didn’t redeem the money just yet because the payout seemed to take a while to reach. The check for $82.50 came within the time frame they said it would. I completed a little over 70 surveys while there was an abundance of surveys everyday.

• Frequency of surveys: Daily
• Qualifying frequency rating: Medium
• Reward type: Points converted to cash
• Minimum payout: 1000 points = $50
• Payment method: check

OVERALL RATING: GOOD

Related posts:

1. Opinion Outpost: Paid Survey Review It has almost been a year since I joined Opinion...
2. American Consumer Opinion Panel: Paid Survey Review The American Consumer Opinion Panel is a legitimate survey company...
3. Your2Cents: Paid Survey Review Your2Cents is another of the many legitimate paid survey panels...

I just heard this story from a friend of a college student, lets name him John, who made quite the gutsy financial decision that ended up to work well for him.

Eight years ago in the fall of 2000, John was an entering freshman at the State University of New York at Buffalo. As he might have learned from other college students, it is cheaper to rent off campus than to pay for school housing. So, he intended on looking around the school’s area for a place he could rent.

He found a home that fits his needs where one room was $600 rent. The home was not very big and it was snug after three or four students lived in it. John thought that since he was going to be living there for 4 years, why not think about buying the house if there was a chance he could profit from it. He contacted the owner and the owner asked for close to $40,000. John jumped on the offer and bought it with loans co-signed by his parents.

Through the years, John has been renting rooms out to fellow students while repaying his loans and he has continued to do so even after graduating. He is now 3 years from paying off the loans. He will soon be collecting rent for profits and be awarded for a great real estate investment.

This feat may be a great way for anyone get ahead on the real estate game during college but it is rare to find someone willing to sell their homes. John was quite fortunate to find someone willing to do so. I would definitely like to be in his shoes but there is a ton of factors towards finding the right house.

Nowadays, it may be hard for a college student to pull off something like this but the deteriorating housing market may open some doors. Real estate isn’t as cheap compared to 8 years ago and people are smarter now with management of their properties.

Nonetheless, maybe someday, another young fellow could wreak the benefits of making a similar financial decision.

Photo credit: rustytanton

Related posts:

1. How I Was Able To Build Good Credit As A College Student In the minds of most young college students, the word...
2. College Students: Take Care of Your Dorm Paying for a college education is a financial burden that...
3. Stretching Student Discounts Even After Graduating Yes, I graduated. And yes, I receive student discounts despite...

Ever looked at a tuition bill and see all these numbers but you only care about the total amount? Well, if you do go over those numbers, you’ll see that there are many fees. For example: I have to pay an Undergraduate Activity fee, Transportation fee, Technology fee, and Athletic fee. It is just a whole bunch of stuff that I have to pay for even if I don’t use them. So… let’s use them! Here are some things I do at my school:

Transportation
Almost all large universities have some form of transportation, most likely buses. There are buses all throughout my campus. Whenever I can, which is pretty much every day, I’ll take the bus. I’ll get around faster and it saves me some energy. Also, the bus goes to the mall and the supermarket on weekends.

Another cool thing is that I can purchase railroad tickets for 50% which I use to visit home once in a while.

Library
Just like public libraries, you can borrow books and magazines and have access to many educational resources. Students should also have printing privileges. I print from the library computers often, even if the documents aren’t for school work.

Athletics
The university’s sports center is huge. I frequent the basketball courts and the swimming pool. Also, there are several fitness gyms spread out across campus. Even though I don’t like lifting weights, I do take a run on the treadmill from time to time.

Campus Events
There is always something happening on campus. It could be a fair, an event, program, or a show. Whenever there is such a gathering there are numerous activities where a student can score some freebies.

• Free food or refreshments
• Free/discounted tickets to all forms of entertainment
• Free goodies such as t-shirts and school supplies

My university has “Bingo for Books” where students can win gift cards for the bookstore. I wasn’t lucky enough to win anything though. Another things is that the school offers a free semester’s tuition to a random audience member during halftime of a football game.

As you can see there are many options to make good use of what I paid.

Photo credit: JeffChristiansen

Related posts:

1. New York State Universities Increases Tuition Higher education is getting more and more expensive and in...
2. The Last Undergrad Tuition Bill Is Here Finally, I hold the last of many tuition statements in...
3. The Dreaded Tuition Bill Arrives School starts soon but not before I pay for it....

Senior year doesn’t seem to be much of a difficult ride… so far. But, I am struggling for some income while expenses are rushing at me.

Jobs
I’ve kept my previous volunteering position in my university’s dental school but since my schedule seems to be quite lenient, I’m squandering for some part-time work in school. I went ahead and updated my resume and applied for several job openings but there are no responses yet. I’d be glad if I can even get a job that’ll provide just $50 per week.

Books
Even though I practice frugality when buying textbooks, there are times when it is not possible to do so. For example, today, one of my professors required the newest edition of a book with a publication year of 2009! Plus, there is a homework assignment due next week and I can’t get it for a lower price through Amazon.com because it won’t be delivered in time for me to complete the reading. Sadly, I had previously expected to be able to use the books from a friend, who took the same courses last year. Now, its seems improbable to have zero textbook expenses.

Related posts:

1. Frugal Textbook Buying Tips Classes start next week for me and it is time...
2. The Selling Frenzy Begins School is about to start and it seems like the...
3. Public Libraries: The Free Book Shopping Experience Step back Barnes & Noble and Amazon, you can never...