Dec 01

Hi, follow me to save moeny. Our Obama just tells us to save more. If you are Americans

Three ways to increase personal savings

The government has always pushed for people to put money into personal savings. Now President Barack Obama has created ways that will actually make saving easier for workers.

Just like Personal Money store makes online payday loans easier, Obama has come up with these three ways for individuals to save money: auto-enrollment in retirement plans, issuing tax returns as savings bonds and putting unused sick or vacation days into 401k plans.

1. Auto-enrollment in retirement plans

This will not make retirement plans mandatory for employees, it will simply make it easier for employers to enroll their employees in the retirement plans. CNN Money explains:

To make it easier for smaller and medium-sized employers to automatically enroll workers into retirement plans, the administration will clear up some bureaucratic paper-work hurdles for employers to offer that option.

2. Tax returns as savings bonds

This one is pretty simple. Recently the government made it possible for tax payers to get their refunds deposited directly into their bank accounts rather than sending a paper check. Similarly, now tax payers will have the option of having their tax return issued in the form of government savings bonds.

Automatically converting your tax returns into government savings bonds means that your money will be automatically saved and it will earn a higher interest rate than it would at a normal bank. The longer you leave your money alone, the more you will make off of it.

3. Saving sick and vacation days

Many people do not use up their sick days or vacation days at work. For the vast majority, that means that they are wasted. The government now will make it easier for employers to convert their employees’ unused sick or vacation days into dollars invested in their 401k plans. Again, this isn’t a mandatory thing at all. Employers and employees have the option of whether they want to do it or not, it simply will be easier.
Why the extreme measures?

Before you start spouting off about big government and personal freedom, remember that all of these things are completely optional. No one — not employers or employees — is require to participate. However, the benefits of personal savings in relation to the economy are obvious to everyone, so as part of the effort to turn the recession around, the White House has come up with these ways to encourage and facilitate personal savings. Just in case you’re in doubt about whether this help is necessary, here are some statistics from CNN Money:

Even among those with savings in the bank, the nest egg is relatively lean.  Of workers 55 years or older, about half have less than $50,000 in savings, excluding their homes and pensions, according to the Employee Benefit Research Institute.

Some of these measures will be very lucrative for people. Unfortunately, these only help people who have jobs and qualify for tax returns. Saving money and investing wisely is very important, and I for one am glad to see that the government isn’t just talking about the fact that people should save money, but is actually taking steps to make it easier. I hope we will see more measures like this in the future, and that we can find a way to help people who don’t have 401ks and tax returns.

Obama also tells the youths to save money,  for example:  ” buy cheap casual clothing! Young man.”

Yes,  what Obama recommends is just the Cheap, casual clothing designed for the modern collegiate lifestyle.

( Photo source:  abercrombie4sale.co.uk)

If you want more tips, just follow the author’s twitter:  Twitter.com/ToSaveMore

Nov 06

The U.S. Census Bureau says about 46.6 million Americans are uninsured, accounting for about 15.9 percent of the population. Many of those are middle-class consumers who are either self-employed, work for employers who don’t offer health insurance or think the health insurance plan is too expensive for their budget. With healthcare costs increasing each year, going without health insurance is risky. A catastrophic accident or serious illness can do more damage to the family budget than paying for health insurance each month. This leaves many families searching for cheap health insurance that will take care of them should a serious injury or illness strike them.
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Before you start searching for cheap health insurance, you will want to ask yourself several questions:

* Do I want to make sure my doctor or hospital is on the plan and if he isn’t, am I willing to switch to another doctor or hospital if my choice is not covered?

* Do I want to include a prescription plan in my coverage?

* What deductible amount can I pay if I have a major health crisis?

* What am I willing to accept as a co-pay for physician office visits?

* Do I have a pre-existing condition that may affect my ability to be covered by health insurance?

* Do I want my health insurance plan to include wellness checkups?

* Do I want to include home health care, nursing home costs,  mental health counseling, drug and alcohol counseling, or other specialized services?

* How much do I want to pay each month?

Once you have answered these questions, you can begin your search. Consumers have many resources to find cheap health insurance to save money on healthcare costs. The easiest and most popular resource is the Internet. Type “cheap health insurance” into the search engine of your choice and you will find hundreds of companies offering insurance.

Many of these online companies represent several major companies, including Blue Cross Blue Shield, United HealthCare and Aetna. By providing some information about yourself and the deductibles you want, you can receive an immediate quote. You can adjust the amount of the monthly payment by choosing lower deductibles and eliminating prescription plans and wellness checks. With these companies, you can tailor a plan to meet you and your family’s needs without being bothered by an agent or salesperson.

You can also visit the insurer of your choice to purchase a cheap health insurance plan. Most of the major insurance companies have websites that can give free quotes and allow you to purchase a plan online. But often to get a cheap health insurance plan directly from the insurance company, you have to take a high deductible and high co-pay for office visits. In the long run, purchasing a cheaper health insurance plan directly from the insurer may strain your budget, particularly if you find yourself need to use the insurance often.

A local insurance agent can also help you search for cheap health insurance. An agent specializes in dealing with insurance companies and may be able to negotiate a plan on your behalf. Having a local agent also gives you someone in your neighborhood you can call if you have questions about your coverage or a claim. Dealing with someone locally gives you an advocate should a problem arise with your health insurance. You can find healthcare insurance agents in your local phone book.

Other options for finding cheap health insurance is through a membership either with an alumni, professional or some other type of organization. Often insurers will provide good health insurance plans through these membership organizations.

When shopping for cheap health insurance, beware that many offers are not actually insurance. Many consumers have purchased health discount cards, which offer savings on some procedures and prescriptions. However, many of these cards will not offer much in savings should a serious illness or injury occurs because they only pay a portion of the total bill. Many doctors, pharmacies and hospitals do not accept the discount cards.

Having good health insurance can save you thousands of dollars if you need it. Having a cheap health insurance policy can give you peace of mind without straining the family budget.

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