By Sheryl Smolkin

I was noodling around the internet today when I came upon Rock Finance, which scans 200+ articles about money and daily and links to the best ones they think will motivate and inspire readers. Cait Flanders who formerly blogged as “Blonde on a Budget” has partnered with j.money (Budgets are $exy) to populate this site.

Here are a few of the “best money blogs” they have featured recently:
In Revisiting the Latte Factor: The Power of Daily Routine Trent Hamm says giving up your latte and bagel once and saving $8 isn’t a big deal. However, if you cut out 250 purchases, it adds up to $2,000. That’s why he says examining your regular routine and finding ways to save on recurring purchases is important.

Is it ethical to return stuff to the store like the dress you only wore once to the prom or unopened packages of food? When J. Money was a student he gave a used boombox back to Walmart several months after he bought it because he was flat broke and the store had a 90 day return policy. Nevertheless he was very embarrassed and made a vow not to return goods he purchases in future unless he immediately realizes he made a mistake or the goods are damaged.

Mrs. Frugalwoods has WAY more willpower than I do. She says she hasn’t purchased any clothes in 2.5 years and counting. Her initial reasons for enacting a ban on clothes-buying were financial, But then she realized she frequently used to buy clothes more for fun than anything else. And the unexpected benefit of her continuing decision not to buy clothes is that she is increasingly less concerned with her appearance. “I’d much rather save money than buy into the notion that I need to fix my appearance,” she writes .

Mr. Money Mustache offers wealth advice that should be obvious. Some of his colourful suggestions are:

• Don’t try to gamble your way to wealth.
• When you get a windfall, it should go straight to your highest interest debt.
• Don’t buy stuff you can’t afford and don’t need.
• Don’t pay to have stuff stored.
• Don’t look at restaurants as an ongoing source of food.
• Stock up on reasonable amounts of things you use when they go on sale.

And the Financial Samurai writes about slicing through money’s mysteries. He questions why Vacation Money Is Crazy Money. After discussing why his frugal habits fell apart on a recent trip to Paris, he offers some interesting suggestions for controlling vacation spending.

• Create a budget in Excel.
• Spend cash for food and entertainment
• Don’t forget exchange rates
• Where possible combine business travel and personal travel.

Do you follow blogs with terrific ideas for saving money that haven’t been mentioned in our weekly “Best from the blogosphere?” Share the information on http://wp.me/P1YR2T-JR and your name will be entered in a quarterly draw for a gift card and

 

By Sheryl Smolkin

I like a bargain as much as the next person, but I must confess I have a long way to go when it comes to browsing flyers for competitive prices and making sure I am in the right place at the right time to pay the lowest price for the groceries and household items we use regularly.

I never had the time to carefully peruse every sale supplement that is stuffed into my mailbox and since we cancelled print copies of the newspaper and signed up for the Toronto Star Replica Edition and Globe2Go Digital Replica Edition, I don’t even see most of them regularly.

That’s why I was intrigued by the reference by Squawkfox, one of my favourite bloggers to the Flipp app which allows users to browse the brands they love, clip items straight to their shopping list, and highlight top deals across flyers. The app is available for Apple (The App Store), Android (Google play) and BlackBerry (BlackBerry World) phones and tablets and can be downloaded for free.

I recently added the app to both my BlackBerry and my iPad. I was asked to enter my postal code and to give the app permission to update regularly even when I am not using Flipp. This ensures that the online flyers displayed relate to places in my geographical area where I might typically shop.

Just for fun, I put in the Saskatchewan Pension Plan’s postal code, SOL 1S0. This sent me to a screen with thumbprints of 62 current flyers. In the top right hand corner it noted that the list was updated 26 minutes ago. You can open any flyer to full screen size to see exactly the same pictures and information as in the flyers stuffed in your daily newspaper.

The first thing I noticed was that the majority of the stores were familiar national chains such as Toys ‘R Us, Hudson’s Bay, The Source, Pet Smart and M&M meats. Since SPP is located in Kindersley Saskatchewan, anyone living there would have to drive about 200 km to Saskatoon to take advantage of specials at Hudson’s Bay or Pet Smart, but The Source does have an outlet in Kindersley. Also Hudson’s Bay has online shopping for some sale items.

When it comes to groceries, there is a Walmart, Extra Foods and a Co-op in Kindersley, but again to shop at the Real Canadian Superstore consumers would have to hit the road. And the IGA in Leader, Saskatchewan about an hour away isn’t currently listed at all. But I was able to request that it be added to my list.

In order to create a list of items you want to buy, all you have to do is open a flyer, press on the item which will then be circled in yellow. When you go back to the flyers screen and touch “clippings,” it will send you to a screen where your clippings appear under the name of each store.

You can edit the list by tapping “edit” on the top right hand corner of the screen and then a “trash can” will appear on your clipping and by touching it, the item will disappear. You can even ask to be notified when clippings will expire soon and when you are near a store with specials you have clipped.

Although I originally downloaded Flipp to my BlackBerry, I much prefer using it on the iPad because it has a much bigger screen. However, that means in order to effectively take advantage of the app I would have to carry the iPad around with me most of the time. That’s not really convenient because it doesn’t fit in my purse, it is breakable and it can easily be stolen. Also, I don’t have an iPad data plan, so unless there is free wifi where I shop, I’m out of luck.

Nevertheless, I think Flipp on a smartphone could be very useful for people in larger urban centres where there are a broad range of stores that regularly send out flyers. For example, I put in my Toronto area code and my two favourite grocery stores Longos and Sobeys were listed along with other major chain and specialty stores.

Whether you use Flipp occasionally when you are looking for particular items at a good price or when you make your weekly grocery list, it is an easy to use, practical app. Of course if your perennial favourite is Costco (which is not on the list), you can check their website, sign up for emails or enjoy an old-fashioned stroll around the store munching on free samples while you compare prices.

By Sheryl Smolkin

By now we have all taken the leap from the old year to the new, but during the transition, some of our favourite bloggers analyzed the year gone by and offered suggestions for the days and months ahead.

In 2014, Mark Seed at My Own Advisor made some financial predictions. In  2014 Financial Predictions Final Update he revisits these predictions as compared to how things actually played out. He forecasted that the Dow Jones Industrial Average would finish the year at 16,700 but in fact it rose to 17,823.07. He also suggested that the Canadian Dollar would end the year at $0.90 compared to the US Dollar but by December 31^st it had dropped to $0.86. But he did correctly anticipate dividend increases from Fortis, Telus, Walmart and AT&T.

On Boomer and Echo, Robb Engen asks What Will It Take For You To Save More This Year? He suggests the 52-week money saving challenge that was all the rage in 2014. Save $1 in week one, $2 in week two, $3 in week three, and so on until you have about $1,400 saved by the end of the year. Or, increase the degree of difficulty and try to put away $10 in week one, $20 in week two, $30 in week three, and so on until you’ve saved nearly $14,000.

Adam on Modest Money offers 3 Reasons to Start Small with Online Investing. By starting small you can get comfortable with both your broker and the investment tools offered and also decrease your risk.

Retire Happy blogger Sarah Milton proposes boosting your financial fitness by creating a positive relationship with money, making good money management a habit and cutting yourself some slack.

And finally, as part of the Masters of Money series on Get Smarter about Money, Rob Carrick asks Dividend stocks for retirement income – can you handle it? A well-chosen portfolio of dividend stocks can reasonably be expected to give you a far more generous annual cost of living increase than even an indexed pension, while also delivering solid long-term capital gains. But the bottom line is that they are still equities and if the bottom falls out of the stock market it could take your investment portfolio with it.

Do you follow blogs with terrific ideas for saving money that haven’t been mentioned in our weekly “Best from the blogosphere?” Share the information with us on http://wp.me/P1YR2T-JR and your name will be entered in a quarterly draw for a gift card.

By Sheryl Smolkin

Black Friday (imported from the U.S.) will have come and gone when you read this, but if you haven’t already started your holiday shopping, the beginning of December means the pressure is on to get it done without breaking the bank.

Kerry K. Taylor says on Squawkfox that using the Flipp app on your Android, BlackBerry or IPhone is the easiest way to browse flyers/weekly ads and save money. With more than 80 of your favorite Canadian stores at your fingertips, you can quickly search for the items you need, highlight the best deals and clip items straight to your shopping list.  Some retail stores found on Flipp include: Target, Walmart, Best Buy, IKEA, Macy’s, Sports Authority, Big Lots, Kroger, Sears and many more.

In Easy ways to save money this holiday season Jill Buchner from Canadian Living suggests creating a photo book through a site like picaboo.com, where albums start at about $10. Or, enlarge a special photograph for just a few dollars and frame it to make a personal piece of art.

Mike Collins on Debtroundup also discusses several  Simple Holiday Shopping Tips to Save You Money. Agreeing to a spending cap with friends and family and setting a gift budget and sticking to it are two valuable pieces of advice.

The Christmas break is prime time for Canadians to travel near and far, particularly if you have teachers or students in the family. On Moneyning, David Ning offers 50 Budget Travel Tips and Ways to Save Money on Vacations. For example, taking a train at night can save you the cost of accommodation and tons of prime daytime hours when you would rather be doing anything else except traveling from A to B.

And finally, Christmas is not just a time to give gifts but to give the gift of your time to those who are less fortunate. Brighter Life blogger Joanna Marie Nicholson writes about Giving back: How to find time to be a volunteer.

Do you follow blogs with terrific ideas for saving money that haven’t been mentioned in our weekly “Best from the blogosphere?” Share the information with us on http://wp.me/P1YR2T-JR and your name will be entered in a quarterly draw for a gift card.

By Sheryl Smolkin

After two weeks away, my inbox is chock full of great new blogs.

For sheer entertainment, you can’t beat Kerry K. Taylor’s account of how she got evicted from WalMart while taking pictures for her latest Squawkfox blog Target vs. Walmart: Where’s the best deal?

It turns out the answer depends on what you are buying, but Kerry preferred the shopping experience at Target including designer-style fashions and Starbucks coffee on tap.

If you are working hard to save for an early retirement, check out Tim Stobbs’ blog Know Thyself on Canadian Dream: Free at 45 to find out what personality traits may help you to meet your financial goals.

Many people believe downsizing in retirement will free up capital needed for travel and everyday living expenses. However, on Brighter Life, Dave Dineen explains why downsizing in retirement doesn’t always work.

Other financial decisions like taking on a super-sized mortgage, a second job or going out of your way for a bargain also may not make good financial sense, according to Boomer.

And if you do have savings but you don’t like the investment returns you are getting, on RetireHappy.ca Jim Yih shares some ideas on how to be a better investor.

Do you follow blogs with terrific ideas for saving money that haven’t been mentioned in our weekly “Best from the blogosphere. Share the information on http://wp.me/P1YR2T-JR and your name will be entered in a quarterly draw for a gift card.