Breaking Even, Inc.

Breaking The Circuit AKA How To Get A Random Check From The State Of Maine

I just thought I'd share a great money-saving program for those who have lived in Maine all of 2007 and feel at least a little burdened with their rent or property taxes. (Though if you live someplace else, you may want to ask around to see if something like this exists where your live.)

The Circuit Breaker program is for people who pay 20% or more of their income in rent or 4% of their income in property taxes. (Being from the government, there are also about two pages of exceptions of additional people who qualify so it's worth looking at the guidelines whether you meet the initial ones or not).

The application is about 2 pages long and last year, it took me approximately an hour to fill out (including the information gathering, which was mostly findning my previous year's tax information and bank account number). I mailed it off, not thinking to calculate my refund (though I don't think that was as easy to access in the booklet last year as it is this year). Essentially last year I made about $28,000 and was paying $600 in rent a month including heat (which is actually an inexpensive year-round rent on Vinalhaven). I was also going to take any money I could get for free.

A month later, I was opening a random white envelope from the state of Maine and found a $500 check in there. I had to really think awhile to figure out where that had come from, as the application was just a small event in my life. Point being for about an hour of work, you can make several hundred dollars at the very least.

Here is the booklet with the application. There is a deadline so do it soon so you don't forget in the new year. Break a circuit!

Getting Fit

So I've thought long and hard about this whole car issue, even though I haven't been writing about it. The Honda Fit hatchback seems to be a good fit for my situation. It's one of the cheapest cars to own over five years (all expenses included, like insurance).

As far as gas mileage, no matter how I slice it, a hybrid is too much. The Fit gets 35ish miles a gallon (my Subaru gets 25ish at best) and Consumer Reports and Car and Driver both agree that it's a great deal with great features. I'm sold!

Thing is I can't really afford a new one... and there are no used ones in Maine! What is a girl to do? I'll have to consider this more carefully I guess.

End Of The Year Tax Tips

Like most people in our great country, I thought that I make so little money that it didn't really matter whether I would itemize my deductions for tax time ('tis the season for charitable contributions after all). Apparently it does matter. If you own property or a house, have a home office, pay for childcare, have had some medical bills this year other than standard checkups, have a retirement account, are involved in education, pay student loans, have your own business, or travel for business, you can save money. Check out this site for what you can legally deduct.

A little more about charitable contributions: as of recently (in the last few years), if you donate goods you need a receipt verifying your donation. This year, for example, I really cleaned out my closet, taking care to write down everything I got rid of. I have a receipt for all my donations (and, on a side note, I thought it was kind of cool that one of my shirts made the front window display of the thrift store). Goodwill has a good way to approximate how much your donations are worth if you go on this page and check out the pdfs on the lower, right part of the screen. Donating 5 shirts and a couple pairs of jeans? That's worth $56 and I'm just going with the middle range on the value scale!

So for a few hours some weekend in December, I'm going to make myself some hot chocolate and go through the ver comprehensive-seeming tax tips recommended in this blog to make sure Uncle Sam doesn't get a huge chunk of change from me this year like he did when I did my taxes last year. And you should too because, let's face it, going through financial records is actually just as important, if not more so, than wrapping presents this holiday season. Believe it or not, you may actually thank me in April... and have more money for presents next year!

A New Idea For A Yankee Swap

I was reading in a magazine today about hosting a Yankee Swap where people had to bring in something that was already in their house. I thought this was a fabulous idea because I think everyone has at least a few things they could easily part with and no one enjoys buying some cheap under $10 to bring to a company party. We all have enough to think about (and spend money on) this time of year.

After I read this article, I was invited to a party with a Yankee Swap of exactly this brand. And knowing who may be there, I am actually excited/intrigued at the prospect of what I may come home with.

So if you're hosting this sort of thing, whether it's a work party or a low pressure way for your family to buy presents, consider a Yankee Swap with used things only. It'll save everyone some money and if you go home with something you hate, you've lost no funds in the process.

Gone Daddy Gone

I haven't written in awhile because the impossible happened last week. My father died, suddenly and tragically. I got the phone call at 9:30 pm. Five minutes later, my boyfriend was driving me the five hours to my hometown.

Before leaving the house, I emailed my boss immediately (I don't have his phone number) and spent a week with my family. When I got back to work yesterday, I found that I will only get paid for twelve hours of the forty hour week I missed because that's how much leave time I had saved up.

Needless to say, there are some times in your life where you just have to get through without thinking of the money. But then you have to remember there are other times when you actually have to deal with it. Hello, reality. I'm ready to deal, and not just financially.

Getting Ready for Winter

A couple of years ago, my friend Ally and I volunteered (via our jobs) for the Keep ME Warm campaign. The idea was that the program provided window insulation kits, outlet insulation kits, caulking, foam tubes to put around pipes, and wool blankets to needy families to help cut down on winter heating costs. Volunteers like myself showed up at the families homes and did the winterizing for them with these materials.

Because Ally and I are wimpy and aren't so good at telling things like where cracks in foundation are and which pipes are the hot water pipes (no sense using the foam insulators to insulate the cold pipes, right?), we were in charge of outlets and windows which are done from inside the house. I felt sorry for the first couple of houses we did together (not because the windows looked bad but because we were fighting a bit about being the alpha insulator) but by the end of our day, we had it down to a science. We went home with some new found knowledge and a free wool blanket.

Since heat has always been included in my rent, I've never worried about heating costs. That's not to say I don't put on a sweater and slippers when things get cooler rather than turning up the heat but I've never used my skills in winterizing my own house.

I suggested to my boyfriend yesterday over our diner breakfast that we buy window insulation supplies and outlet insulators, since he is paying the heating bill and hasn't yet indicated to me that he is loaded enough to have money to throw away. I argued that the inital investment would decrease our overall heating costs substaintially. He agreed...after I agreed to buy the supplies.

After plastifying our draftiest window, he got my point. He installed all the outlet and switch insulators himself. "Wow, there was quite a draft coming from that one!" he'd say. I pointed out the wind slightly moving our window plastic, unable to come into the house. I had convinced him to cover his pipes last year with foam tubing so that was already done. It felt like a pretty productive afternoon after we were done our work yesterday. Apparently, you can save upwards of 50% of evergy costs from doing some very simple things like these.

If you're worried that the window plastic will diminish the look of your house, please don't. It's very clear and you can't even tell it's there until you get fairly close to it. And the outlet insulators disappear under the covers. For about $50 (including the pipe covers bought last year), our house is winterized. And the best part is that even renters can do the changes we did because you can always take things down once winter is over with no damage. Now if only I can convince Sean that we should get a programmable thermostat...

So you can go to any hardware store and they have a whole aisle dedicated to this stuff. The toughest part is sticking the double stick tape to your windows (step one in the insulation process), as it is some pretty flimsy stuff. I suggest working with shorter pieces of tape and being patient. Doing one window will teach you a lot. Everything else is much less labor intensive, I promise. And the directions on the box are actually pretty good, which is great considering I couldn't find a good enough web site online to show technique.

Stay warm and find $50 to do this if you are paying a heating bill. It'll more than pay you back.

Traveling On The Cheap

I was in Boston for a long weekend visiting one of my friends. Boston may not seem like a big deal to most anyone but I think it is good to get out of town every so often, even when one is on a budget. I thought as an entry I would include some of the ways I keep control of my travel expenses.

Ten Tips For A Thrifty Trip

1) This may seem obvious but go directly to the tourist information center upon arriving (or order an info packet beforehand if you know way ahead of time that you are going somewhere). Ask for all the free stuff you can handle. Ask for any specials they know about or coupons they have. I happened upon a $10 off coupon for a tour once at one of these stands which made me wonder what other good deals I've missed in my life. 

2) Groceries can be used for two meals a day. I try to look on the bright side of having to grocery shop in some strange city by telling myself it is a good way to better understand and appreciate local culture. I also use it as a lisence to try things that I wouldn't normally try at home. I am, after all, on vacation. And going out one meal a day still makes it feel like a vacation, which brings me to...

3) Cheap meals to eat on vacation: breakfast and most things ethnic. You can also save money by not ordering a drink (except water) with your meal. You can also be really obnoxious and eat just bread and salad bar for one meal and take the entree home with you for a second meal. Now that's what I call a two-for-one deal!

4) Look into mass transit deals. Look online before you go. Sometimes you can buy a week of travel (or even a pass for a couple of days) in a city for much less than buying individual tickets. Plus, everytime you go the wrong way, you won't feel like you're paying some kind of stupidity toll. This depends on the city you are going to of course (and Boston has nothing like this) but it's worth checking into.

5) Check the local newspapers and college campuses for free events. This is how my friend Ally and I ended up at the Harvard Outlaw party with free drinks and drag queens Saturday night. I won't say free events are often this inherently interesting but they will almost never be what you are expecting, which does make for some fun memories. Even if events aren't free, usually you can find at least some inexpensive events on local web sites.

6) To decide which events are worth seeing, read online reviews. Think about it, if someone has taken the time to log onto a web site and say something, they take the time because the love love loved it or they hate hate hated it. If there are enough reviews, it'll give you an idea whether that attraction is worth taking a $20 cab for or not. If you want, invest in your own Let's Go, Lonely Planet, or other guide. The advice in them will save you at least that.

7) Avoid shopping. All the bright lights and pretty things you see will make you want to buy. Someone made sure of that when they designed the displays you are looking at. If you can, leave your money somewhere else. Bring a set amount that you can afford to spend with you. Spend only that. If you are not to be trusted, you can instead bring a camera and notebook with you and document what pretty things you see. If someone gives you a hard time, just say you are collecting information in hopes to write an article about shopping in the city. People love free publicity so they shouldn't give you a hard time as you take a picture of your friend wearing a ridiculous hat.

8) Visit your friends where they live. You'll save a ton on lodging and get to catch up. You do, however, have to bring them a great host gift for putting up with your broke butt sleeping on their couch.

9) Travel light and with a bag partially empty. This indirectly saves you money by not having to mail stuff home. Plus you won't use half of what you bring anyway.

10) Keep your driving to under 60 mph, and use cruise control when possible. I increased my normal gas mileage by 25% by doing this. You can also save gas money by doing some other things, as suggested in this article.

And above all...

11) Know when to splurge. If you really want to do something, you should make it happen. It may mean missing a dinner out or not going to the pub one night but you'll be glad you made a little sacrifice. I am forever regretting not paying $10 to go into the Coleseum in Rome. I was told it was overrated but I decided much too late that I wanted to find that out for myself. Remember: it is your vacation and if you're like me, you don't get many days like this. Enjoy!

As the holidays approach, please feel free to share your own money saving travel tips with other readers by commenting below. Happy travels, wherever they take you!

Picture of flier from http://www.hlslambda.com/OutLaw/index.htm

I Heart My Clothes

Those who know me know I am a clothes horse. I love clothes. Not just any clothes, nice clothes. (This picture is from an 80s party but clearly, even for themed events, I take dressing serioulsy). I like cashmere sweaters, dry clean only pants, and designer synthetics. (I buy mostly second hand clothes but that is for another post). I like to dress like I can afford to take things to a dry cleaner.

Truth is I hate dry cleaners. The chemicals they use are horrid and I think it's expensive for what it is. Something with a huge stain will go to the dry cleaners (ie a whole cup of coffee spilling on my down comforter), otherwise I do things myself. I hand wash a good portion of my clothes, not just my dry clean only ones.

Here's an article about how to hand wash clothes. Some additional recommendations: I use Woolite which I find works well. Also, unless something is fairly rugged, I place my hand washed things to dry on towels. (Racks have a way of distorting the shapes of more delicate fabrics.) If I just want something to smell nice and feel a little too lazy to hand wash, I use Dryell and put several like-colored items in the bag with one Dryell cloth. It ends up costing about 25 cents a garment rather than the $7-10 the cleaners would charge.

I also almost never put anything in the dryer. I think I was trained to do this in college when the industrial dryers in my dorm ruined a few of my favorite clothes but the practice serves me well now. To get out the wrinkles after something that has dried on the rack, I just "fluff" it in the dryer for five minutes.

My boyfriend made the comment the other day that my clothes don't seem to wear out as quickly as his do. I think this is another added benefit of  giving my higher maintenance clothes a little t.l.c:  I don't have to replace them as often.

Because looking like a million bucks shouldn't have to cost nearly that. Happy laundering!