The confusion of choosing between a 15 year mortgage and 30 year has been a common one prevailing among borrowers. Today i am going to throw some light on why a 15 year mortgage is better even if you have to increase your monthly installments and suffer for a few years.

When we have 30 years to pay a loan why should we take the trouble of paying it off in 15 years by increasing our monthly interest and suffering to make the ends meet every month? Well here is the reason.

One of the major advantages of opting for a 15 year mortgage is the lesser amount of total interest paid apart from its rate of interest being typically lower compared to the 30 year mortgage.Initially the money you pay is accounted only for the interest. As years go by the interest you pay on a monthly basis is allotted to compensate for the principal.

Imagine a person has taken a FRM for 15 years at the rate of 5% and another person for 30 years at the rate of 5.25% for a principal of  $200,000, lets see what happens:

15 year    30 year

Monthly Payment                     $1581        $1104

Interest Paid                               $84,686       $197,587

Total                                                $284,686     $397,587

With a 15 year mortgage you save about $112,901 which can be used for a constructive purpose.

You might be thinking that it is a very common dish you have heard of, but before that hang in for a while and read the recipe.

Scoop a small quantity of chilli at the bottom of a baking dish. Top it up with some shredded cheese. Cover it all with corn bread mix. At 400 degree bake it until the corn bread is set. Pop them out with muffin cups by scooping or keep them upside down on the plate. Now you get absolutely delicious Chilli  stretcher.

Try this one and let us know how you liked it.

There are lots of questions and doubts surrounding the COBRA, hence here is an attempt to eliminate the doubts and provide clarification. Here are few common questions that people would like to know answers for regarding this Act.

COBRA Continuation Health Coverage- What is it ?

The government passed COBRA in the year 1986. This law amends the Internal Revenue Code,Public Health Service Act and the Employee Retirement Income Security Act , in order to offer continuous group health coverage, which otherwise would have been terminated.

What does COBRA perform?

It provides the right to temporary continuation of insurance (health) coverage at group rates to former employees, spouses, retirees, former spouses and dependent children.

When is this coverage available?

It is only available when the coverage is lost due to a particular reason.

To be Continued….

For more information click here

Who says that to enjoy a tasty , delicious meal, you have to spend a lot? Who says every time you need to treat your tongue, you have to run to the nearby restaurant? Here is a recipe that is tasty, delicious, loved by millions around the world as well as comes well within your budget. Cook this one within half hour and give an unforgettable treat to your palate.

Mexican Rice:

Ingredients:

Olive Oil- 1 T

Brown Rice- 1 Cup

Frozen Organic Corn- 1 cup

Frozen Peas- 1 Cup

Garlic Cloves- 3

Ground Cumin-  1 Teaspoon

Dried Oregano- 1/2 Teaspoon

Tomato Paste – 2 T

Step 1 :

Heat the olive oil in a deep saucepan, add the brown rice and fry till the rice turns darker and gives out a nutty aroma.Pour two cups of water and tomato paste. Cook for 20 minutes on low.

Step 2:

Add the seasoning mix, corn and peas to the rice and mix thoroughly. Continue cooking till the rice is done.

Step 3:

Fluff prior to serving.

Today i was browsing through recommendations for personal finance books for my own use, and i found that almost every website recommended these books. So i thought why not share it with my readers.

Books have the incredible power to feed knowledge and sometimes they do just more than that. They inspire you to do something that you have always wanted to. They provide the right start. So here are few books that i think(based on my internet research) could give a kick start to managing your money.

1 The Millionaire Next Door

2 Your Money or Your Life

3 Rich Dad Poor Dad

4 The Automatic Millionaire

5 Iwillteachyoutoberich

Do you have a list? Let us know what it is.

Somehow frugality has always been linked with giving up pleasures of  life. According to me it is a very wrong notion. You could enjoy all the small and big pleasures of life while still saving money.

Here is a list of things you could do to reduce your spending:

Sell the Items you don’t Use Anymore:

Find out the items that you have not been using for a long time and sell them. It might be your old books, CDs or even a home appliance. Sell them, create some more space at your home and enjoy the free space and money that comes out of selling.

Save on Energy:

Replace light bulbls by CFLs and LEDs .

Unplug aplliances when they are not working.

Switch off lights and fans when you leave the room.

Seal the air leaks in your home.

Do a regular maintenance check on all appliances.

Save on Cell Phone:

Unless you have a valid reason to use cell phone heavily, replace your plan to pay as you go. Try using Skype whenever possible and reduce the frequency of using your cell phone.

Buy the Regular Stuff in Bulk:

Be it oil, soaps or even your body spray, if you are something regularly, buy it in bulk for it comes cheap.

Make use of a Library:

The next time you want to watch a  movies or read a book, think of signing up for a library membership.

I am a huge fan of  finance blogs and never fail to update myself time and again with what experts have to save. So i thought why not share with my readers 5 blogs i think that would be useful for them to save money?

So here we go

My Good Cents

For those who want to be informed of shopping offers, deals, best buys, coupons and give aways, this blog is just perfect and has a lot to offer.

Simple Dollar Truth

This is one of my most favorite Personal Finance blogs and i simply love their content.

Frugal Dad

This is another favorite personal finance blog with a lot of useful information, interesting and humorous articles.

Lower My Energy Bill

If your looking for ways to save money on your utility bills then this is the right place to see.

Hillbilly Housewife

If you are looking for delicious recipes to be made at a cheap cost then there are many mouthwatering frugal recipes here.

This is my list. What about yours?

Bored of searching for properties from the endless amount of listings on newspapers and websites? Fed up of not finding your dream home in spite of investing a lot of time and money? Then i have a solution for you.

Applying the concept of dating websites, Sellmestraight.com has come up with a fabulous idea where you can list your requirements and a list of homes and contact info of the sellers matching your criteria would appear. You can contact the seller and start the process of buying your dream home.

Doesn’t this sound simple? The system doesn’t not only benefit the buyers but also the sellers by saving them the cost of middle men. I think its a revolutionary idea that is going to save a lot of trouble as well as time for many.

If you have used this service, or if you are going to use it, tell us how you liked it.

This is the second part of our Home energy audit basics series , our first part in this section dealt with an introduction to Home Energy Audit. Now we are going to see how to save money by performing a home energy audit yourself.

Home energy audit not only makes you familiar about the energy consumption of your home but also paves way to minimize the cost of utilities for a life time. While the process would lead you to a money saving path, you can save some more money by adoption ‘ Do it Yourself’ Home energy Audit. Here is how you perform it.

Continue Reading

Tomorrow is a big day for Microsoft as its new OS Windows 7 is hitting the floor. If you are wondering apart from big events being organized in many countries and customer hosted launch parties, what is in store for commoners like us?

Well there are a few attractive offers for people like us. Here they go!!!

Best Bundle: HP Net book, Laptop and PC with Monitor, a wireless router and a set up performed by geek squad all for $1199.

Save a minimum of $100 with Dell Studio XPS13

Acer Gateway All-in-one ZX6800 23” – $880

Buy a PC with any version of windows 7 and get a discount for purchasing another Windows 7 pack

Apart from these there are also offers like Windows 7 family pack and Windows 7 students offer.

As the offers are valid for a limited period you might want to rush.