Susie Skog knows Lake Norman Real Estate Inside Out

Teaching children manners and how to tie their shoes is one thing, but financial lessons are often pushed to the wayside until it’s too late. Budgeting and financial planning should be a focus in every household. Whether you are passing along your lessons to your children, nieces or nephews, keeping financial sense in the family can have longstanding benefits.

Here are some financial lessons you can teach children before they leave home:

How to Budget
Whether its through a household budget that you let them become a part of, or a weekly allowance on which they have to determine how to spend and save, budgeting is a skill they will be able to use throughout their lives.

Show the younger generations how to budget for monthly expenses, such as a mortgage, groceries, utility bills and other expenses, and then show them what your monthly income is. If the expenses are higher than the income, then work together to cut expenses and live within your means.

Go Over Automatic Payments
Discuss the importance of an emergency fund, retirement account, vacation fund, college plan or other long-term expense that you save money for. Show them how you contribute to it monthly with an automatic withdrawal from your checking account or paycheck every few weeks or so.

From there, you can go over how compound interest works and how earning interest each month can pay off.

Preparing for Emergencies
Big expenses pop up in life, and its a good idea to be prepared for them financially. If you have an emergency fund, explain what its for and why its important. You may be saving to have 12 months of income in case you lose your job, for example. Or you may be saving to buy a new car in a few years because the car you drive now is having a few too many mechanical problems lately. Whatever the reason, point out how an emergency fund can save you from going into debt with a credit card to cover such expenses.

What Debt Looks Like
A credit card debt calculator is an easy way to show adolescents how credit card debt can be overwhelming.

You can use your own credit card bill as an example if you dont mind sharing the details. Show how long it takes to pay off the balance by only paying the minimum balance each month, versus how much more youd need to pay to clear the balance within a year. That may be enough incentive to get them to avoid credit card debt entirely, and to start an emergency fund soon so that they dont have to use a credit card to pay for expenses that pop up.

Published with permission from RISMedia.

Published with permission from RISMedia.

Looking to kick the caffeine? While a moderate amount of the buzzy stuff has been shown to have heart benefits, it’s easy to overdo it or find yourself addicted to that morning jolt. If you’re looking to slay your latte habit, consider the following tips.

Time it right. Quitting anything you’re addicted to is challenging, and coffee is no exception. Choose a time that will support your withdrawal. The Monday your big work project is due? Not the best time.

A long weekend is a great time to begin so that you can distract yourself or, at worst, lay down with that 3 p.m. headache.

Find a suitable substitution. If you don’t want to quit cold turkey, you can find a substitution. Some people like to guzzle tea, water, or even decaf coffee as they wean themselves off that fresh brew. A more overlooked substitution is raw cacao. Sold in many grocery stores and available online, cacao nibs pack a caffeine punch that can help wean you slowly off the java juice. Warning: They’re bitter, and some people enjoy them more than others.

Warn everyone. Make sure to tell your friends, partner, and close colleagues you’re cutting coffee. This way, they can support you by nixing that afternoon coffee invite, and they’ll understand if you’re a bit groggy or snippy for the first few days.

Interested in housing and real estate tips? Feel free to contact me directly.

Published with permission from RISMedia.

Transitioning to a new home can be hard on the furry members of your household. Here are some tips to make your next move as smooth as possible for your pets.

Board Your Pet on Moving Day

Movers can let out your pet unintentionally. Avoid this by boarding your pet or asking a trusted friend or family member to pet sit.

Keep an Essentials Box

Just as you should keep essentials with you during a move, it can be helpful to create the same essentials box for your pet. Include prescriptions, favorite toys, familiar items and their bed.

Make it Familiar

Set up a small area with your pet’s toys, food and bed. Keep routines as similar as possible. Allow your pet to get acclimated to the house.

Fill Out the Paperwork

Update their tags or microchip information to the new address and phone number and request that your previous vet transfer records to a local clinic.

Published with permission from RISMedia.

The typical credit card charges about 16 percent interest per year on balances, effectively adding $16 to each $100 in expenses that are left on a credit card. Some charge as much as 29 percent if youre late on a payment and have to pay penalty interest.

Avoiding a credit card balance by paying the bill before the due date each month is the best way to avoid such extra charges"but thats rare. For every five credit card accounts, more than three carry a balance from one month to the next, according to a Federal Reserve payments study.

Here are some ways to avoid paying credit card interest:

Know the Grace Period
Most people think they only have a month to pay off a credit card bill. By knowing their cards grace period, they can see how much more time they have. A grace period is the time allotted to pay off your credit card bill without incurring any interest. It starts on the last day of your billing cycle and runs through the due date for that cycle.

Knowing what your credit cards billing cycle is can give you about three more weeks to pay off purchases. The key, however, is not forgetting what the payment due date is and paying the full amount by that due date.

For example, a credit cards billing cycle may start on the twenty-third of one month and end on the same day a month later, such as May 23 " June 23. The payment due date could be July 17. In this case, the grace period might be June 24 to July 17"about three weeks long. Instead of having a month to pay the bill off, you now have about seven weeks.

Pay as You Buy
If you really want to be diligent about avoiding interest charges, pay off charges on your credit card as soon as you make them.

Credit card companies are happy to accept payment at any time, even multiple times in a month. So, every time you make a purchase with your credit card, immediately transfer money from your bank to the credit card company for the same amount. You can often do this through your credit cards app on your phone, or you can set up weekly payments of a certain amount if you expect to make a certain number of purchases per week.

Pay in Full Each Month
Paying off the credit card bill in full each month is the best way to avoid interest charges. Do whatever it takes to pay it by the due date. Send yourself email and other alerts, keep track of purchases to ensure you have enough money in your checking account to pay the bill, and stick to a budget.

Published with permission from RISMedia.