Holiday Shopping Saving Secrets

During this tough time Freedom understands you may be watching you’re spending a little more closely this year in your holiday shopping. Here are some great tips to save a little cash this holiday season and better budget your money so the holidays don’t wreak havoc on bank account.  

1. Stage a Spending Strategy
Assess exactly how much you can spend on all your holiday purchases combined. Include not only the potential presents to purchase, but extra food, decorations, travel, etc. Set a limit and stick to it. This also means staying out of the mall this year, period. There are plenty of stores that have the same items the mall does at a much lower cost. Staying within the budget you establish can avoid further heartache and financial stress most people endure at the start of the New Year.

2. Make a List and Check It Twice
Who are you going to buy gifts for? Decide who’s been naughty and who’s been nice and set a dollar limit per that coincides with your budget established earlier. If your funds are limited prioritize and advise friends and family accordingly. The holidays aren’t…shouldn’t be about gifts anyway. Giving heed in advance that you may not be exchanging gifts will allow others to plan accordingly.  

3. Window Shop & Compare
Window shop surfer style, online. Every store and their sister’s salon have a website these days. Utilize these free tools to conveniently do price comparisons from the comfort of your home and discover what deals are out there. Don’t shop online while you’re at work please lol. You’re going to need that job to pay for the holidays!  For you old school shoppers check the local newspaper for catalogs and special holiday deals. Check with the stand alone stores versus the mobs at the malls and their mafia rates. Stores like Wal-Mart, Target, Ross, Marshalls, Stein Mart, Toys R Us, etc will most likely have better deals than the mall.

4. Make Cash King & Trump Your Visa
There are numerous studies online that show the average consumer spends more with credit and debit cards over cash. You’ll notice your spending more when that wad of 10s starts rapidly depleting. Most consumers have an ‘out of sight, out of mind’ demeanor when playing with plastic. Use cash as much as you can. Leave your cards at home.

5. Don’t Believe the Hype
Retailers work hard to earn your dollar and the temperature of temptation is amplified during the holidays. If the deal sounds too good to be true…well, you know the rest of this one. Don’t BUY into the media hype. Those fancy holiday commercials were designed by corporate marketing gurus who thrive off seasonal spending. The holidays make it easy for retailers to increase advertising avenues as consumers are more vulnerable during the holidays, feeling an obligation to spend and shop.

You don’t have to break the bank to enjoy the holidays or impress friends and family. Limit the financial obligations you could incur, not the joy the season brings getting together with loved ones. Make memories without money and spend time over credit for a happy holiday this season.

What Our Founding Fathers Said About Credit

The Federal Reserve Act was signed in 1913 and the public was told that the Federal Reserve System was an economic stabilizer and inflation and economic crises were thing of the past. Well, as history has shown, nothing was further from the truth.

Here are what some great leaders have said throughout history regarding Central Banks. Some were contributors who in the aftermath gave great regret to their involvement or aide in instituting such on the people of their nation and creating economic slavery.

There is something behind the throne greater than the king himself”
-Sir William Pitt, House of Lords, 1770-

“The real truth of the matter is that a financial element in the large centers has owned the government since the days of Andrew Jackson”
-Franklin D. Roosevelt, US President, 1933-

“The refusal of King George to allow the colonies to operate an honest money system, which freed the ordinary man from clutches of the money manipulators was probably the prime cause of the revolution”
-Benjamin Franklin, Founding Father

“I believe that banking institution are more dangerous than standing armies… If the American people ever allow private banks to control the issue of currency… the banks and corporations that will grow up around them will deprive the people of their property until their children wake up homeless on the continent their fathers conquered”
-Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826)

“If you want to remain slaves of the bankers and pay for the costs of your own slavery, let them continue to create money and control the nation’s credit”
-Sir Josiah Stamp (1880-1941)

“Our Great Industrial nation is controlled by its system of credit. Our system of credit is privately concentrated. The growth of the nation, therefore, and all our activities are in the hands of a few men... who necessarily, by very reason of their own limitations, chill and check and destroy genuine economic freedom.”
-Woodrow Wilson

“We have come to be one of the worst ruled, one of the most completely controlled and dominated governments in the civilized world –no government by free opinion, no longer a government by conviction and the vote of the majority, but a government by the opinion and the duress of small groups of dominant men.”
-Woodrow Wilson

“Under the Federal Reserve Act, panics are scientifically created. The present panic (1920) is the first scientifically created one, worked out as we figure a mathematical equation.”
–Charles Lindbergh

“It was a carefully contrived occurrence, international bankers sought to bring about a condition of despair, so that they might emerge the rulers of us all.”
-Louis McFadden

“Give me control of a nation’s money supply, and I care not who makes its laws”
-Mayer Amschel Rothschild, Founder of Rothschild Banking Dynasty

Build Your Credit Without Credit

Getting a decent rate on a mortgage or car loan depends on having a good credit score. Even rental applications or employment is contingent on credit. The ladder is to pay out the wazoo in down payments, security deposits, etc. While you need a good credit history to make your mark with the creditors, you don’t need plastic to do so. Start improving your credit without using credit. Take these steps in building your credit score without actually using credit and learn what to watch for in the future to avoid damaging your credit you’ve worked hard to build.

ONE: Check out a credit union for a secured loan. A secured loan, or shared-secured loan, is backed by money you place in a credit union savings account or certificate of deposit. Credit unions are usually easier to work with than the big banks as they take into account more than just your credit score when applying for a loan. They also look at things like a good checking history or that youre making an effort to deposit money into savings. Make sure the credit union you choose is reporting to all three major credit bureaus. Some credit unions only report to one of the three in an effort to save money.

TWO: Peer-to-peer loans. No, this is not about going fishing. Social lending sites like Prosper and Lending Club connect interested borrowers with individual investors. In this, investors bid on the borrowers applications and attempt to offer the lowest, most competitive interest rates to win the deal.

THREE: Getting schooled? Apply for a federal student loan. Being a student can be advantageous to your credit score if executed properly. Federal student loans do NOT require credit checks. The stipulation is that you have to be at least a part time college student and have submitted an application for Federal Student Aid. Stafford loans have a fixed interest of 6.8 percent and they do not inquire on your reason for financial need. Once the loan hits repayment mode, your on-time payments will help boost your score.

FOUR: Piggy back your partner. Become an authorized user on someone elses credit card. Once added, their history with that specific account is usually imported to yours with the 3 big bureaus. Pick someone who has decent credit or this could turn around and affect you negatively. Youll want  to choose someone who has an account that has less than 1/3 of the balance due at all times and pays on time consecutively each month. All your asking is to become an authorized user, not actually use the card or receive a duplicate of the card for purchases.

FIVE: Co-signing. Four and five depend on relying on others so don’t go burning bridges or chasing waterfalls. Make sure these are solid relationships like a parent or spouse. A co-signer can help you lock into a loan you may have been denied for applying by yourself. In a co-signee arrangement, both parties are equally responsible for the debt. Make sure payments are made timely and consecutively to ensure a positive increase to your score on a monthly basis.

SIX: Pay to play. Establishing a secured credit card is now getting into actually using credit. If youre anti plastic and just looking to build your score, opt out of this option and save yourself a paragraph. Secured cards require you to make a deposit with the bank equal to the amount of credit youre looking to deposit. Some banks will allow you to receive a secured credit card for only $200 while others require a bit more to play the game. Youre basically taking your money and creating a credit account equal to the amount invested and paying interest on purchases. Some creditors will convert the account to a regular line of credit after 9 months or a year of positive paying.

SEVEN: The Charge card cha cha. Charge cards like American Express require the account holder to pay the balance in full every cycle. If you already have good credit and are simply trying to keep it going in that direction this is a positive way to ensure youre doing just that without having to use credit cards. If you have little self control you may want to think twice about charge cards.
Using these guidelines can keep you out of the credit loop while still playing the game. If you have already incurred credit debt it’s a good idea to pay it down asap and restructure your spending habits whereas the use of credit becomes obsolete.