Bidsauce is just one of many sites where bidders are winning products at only fractions of the cost.  All products start at a price of $0 and rise by only a few cents with each bid.  Bidders do not put a price on how much they will pay, but simply state that they want to bid and the price rises by an arbitrary amount.

Many people are asking themselves if they should start in on the craze or if this is another “too good to be true” fad.  The only real way of finding out if you enjoy it in this case is to give it a try.

Bid packs are typically low in cost and are reasonable for anyone not sure if they really want to go all in.

I guess we will see how long it takes for more people to start using penny auction sites like Bidsauce.

1. Use coupons and frequent customer punch cards. If you are frequently shopping at a certain store or business, odds are you will pay for the “tenth” meal and you might as well get the next one free. No need to pay for the eleven when punch cards work in your favor. Also, many companies offer rewards cards or bonuses. If you pay a certain amount of money, you get a certain amount of points which will benefit you in the long run by allowing you to receive other items for free or at a cheaper price. Just be sure not to buy anything for the sole purpose of gaining more punches on a card or more rewards points. This will only hurt you as you begin spending more money than you would have without the rewards card or bonus points.
2. Another tip would be to only eat until you are full when you go out to eat. This way, you not only avoid stuffing yourself until you feel sick, but you save enough for leftovers. It’s like getting two meals for one. Think of the money you can save!
3. Bargain shop. You may prefer brand names simply because you know them more or have grown up seeing them in most stores and in many commercials. Truth is, you may like the less expensive brands more or they might taste the exact same. It is better to save money on a less known brand than to continue to pay lots of money for something you can get for cheaper. Besides it’s just food after all. Try saving some of your grocery money by bargain shopping, and then you will be able to buy other things, or simply add to your savings account.

These deductions will lower your taxable income, and all earnings are tax-deferred until distributions are received after your retirement. If your employer offers a matching contribution, you will have a tax-deferred return on the investment, as well as a reduction of your wages with your W-2.

The money in your 401(k) account is protected by law against creditors, so if you ever had to file bankruptcy for any reason, your money will be safe. Be aware that IRAs do not have this same protection.

Next, convert your non-deductible interest expenses such as interest on credit cards and car loans into deductible home mortgage interest. The interest on your home equity loan is deductible no matter how you used the loan money.

However, if your home equity loan is over $100,000, the deductible interest expense is limited to the interest on the first $100,000 of your loan. Just conduct your own research to see if this would make sense for you to do.

Donate stock instead of cash to your favorite charity. If you have publicly traded stock that has appreciated in value, you can get a charitable deduction for the full value of the donation, without having to pay any capital gain tax.

This only works, however, if you give the stock directly to the charity. Don’t try to sell your stock and give the money to charity.

Another rule to note, is that you are allowed to deduct mortgage interest on your primary residence, and one other residence. This means that you could legitimately deduct the loan interest on your RV, camper, or ever your boat.

Your boat or RV can qualify as a resistance as long as they have cooking, sleeping, and toilet facilities. This is a great way to save a few dollars!

If you are getting a divorce, timing the finalization can save you on taxes. If both you and your spouse earn about the same amount of money, getting a divorce before the year ends will save taxes by eliminating the marriage penalty.

If one spouse earns more than the other, waiting until January will save taxes by taking advantage of the marriage bonus for one last year. As long as you are going through the divorce anyways, you may as well benefit from it, right?

Try to invest in growth stocks and growth mutual funds. You will keep your money invested in the market instead of having to use part to pay taxes, if you limit the number of times you sell and reinvest.

Pay careful attention to making sure that your tax return numbers match the 1099s you receive from your broker, employer, or your investment company.

If you are starting your own personal business, an LLC may be the right choice for you. LLCs offer the advantages of limited liability and partnership taxation.

There are many benefits to choosing to operate your business as a C corporation, S corporation, or sole proprietorship, but LLCs are often the best choice. This only applies if you are starting your own business, though.

Lastly, there is a tax advantage to participating in qualified state tuition programs. There are great programs for high-income tax payers and people who want to invest large amount of money for their child or grandchild’s education.

State such as New Hampshire and Utah allow residents and nonresidents alive to participate in their program and attend college anywhere in the United States. This will allow you to receive tax benefits even from out of state, while allowing your child or grandchild to attend college in whatever state they want.

As you can see, with a little internet research, there are many ways to find your way through tax season with minimal damage. All you need is a little advice and some creativity.

However, often times, even with a clear knowledge of our limited resources we find ourselves living luxury’s we cannot afford. Thank you credit cards! The purpose of this post is to give you three basic tips on how to limit your credit-card debt.

Fun Fact: The average American household has at least ONE credit card with approximately $11,000 in credit-card debt.

1. Borrow only for those things which are MOST essential. Borrowing for college, a home, or a reasonable car is OK. Just remember, don’t ever get into so much debt that you can’t afford to pay it back.

2. DO NOT purchase with credit those things that you consume quickly. If you can’t go out to eat this month, that’s ok! If you can’t go to the movies this month, that’s ok! There’s no easier way to swamp yourself with debt than to use your credit card to purchase your day-to-day items. If eating out or going to the movies is something you love but can’t afford right now, save a little each month until you can (there’s no movie worth paying interest on for the next few months!)

3. Control your spending. Write down everything you purchase on a daily basis and at the end of the month weed out those things which are not essential. Believe me, this will put a few extra bucks in your pocket. There’s nothing worse than not knowing where or when your money has been spent (and even worse if you realize too late that somebody else has been spending it for you…).

Examples from the 1965 menu:

-small cheese pizza: 80 cents

-large deluxe pizza: $2.50

-giant sandwhich: 50 cents for half

-spaghetti with sauce: $1

-beverages: 25 cents

What a deal!

What amazed me was that for $5 I could’ve gotten (if it had been 9:00) a pizza of equal or better taste to domino’s from Little Caesars.

What hit me is how much I spend on random food all the time. I have recently gone grocery shopping so of course I had food at home, yet I paid (we split it) $7 for two slices of pizza (my friend took the rest home).

This is an area where I need to start learning how to conserve.

It is almost like this is a bad marketing stunt by water bottle companies which know we are going to get thirsty but take our water bottles away from us.

This is where the good news comes in. I figured it out. They have no problem with the bottles themselves, just the water inside them. So I bring empty water bottles to airports and games and fill them up once I get inside. This way save myself a couple bucks each time.

1- Schedule time for things that need to get done everyday. These are most often your priorities- making time for family, going to the gym, reading a good book, etc.

2- Write down a list of things that need to be done. Depending on individual needs, make a yearly to-do list, monthly, and/or daily.

3-Put “must do’s” before “can do’s” on your list. Get the most important things done first.

4-Stay away from “analysis paralysis,” which is spending to much time thinking about what to accomplish or how to achieve goals. When this happens move forward remembering that the greatest lessons are learned from mistakes.

If we throw them in the hamper we do not have to hang them up or fold them and put them away. This seems great so we give in.

The problem with doing this though is we will actually lose money. When you wash your clothes it breaks down the fibers in the material thus decreasing its lifespan. This means we will have to go buy more clothes once ours is dead. We can remedy this by waiting to wash our clothes until after a couple wears and thus extending our clothes and our finances.