Oh No! I'm Broke! How to Get Quick Cash.

Sometimes unexpected expenses come up.  Although it is in your best interest to have a savings account for just these sorts of emergency situations, I also understand that when you are young, broke, and trying to pay for school sometimes your emergency fund is not quite big enough to cover everything.  So here are a few ways to quickly get money without digging yourself a deeper hole.

I Need A New Shirt!

Clothing can be a big money sucker.  It is tempting to spend your cash trying to look cool at some trendy store.   There are better ways to get a great look and still save some cash. 

Utility Bills: You Can't Avoid Them, But You Can Lower Them

Utility bills are tough.  You can’t negotiate the cost of water and power, but you can still save money on these things.  While other utilities (stuff I lump in with utilities) like phone service, cable, and internet can be negotiated and navigated.

Hoofin’ it! How to Cut Down on Transportation Costs.

Transportation can be quite costly if you make certain choices.  For instance, some people think that owning a car is required if you need to get around town.  This is not always the case.  For me I have to have a car because the nearest bus stop to my place of employment is 10 miles away, but most people I know don’t have those sorts of circumstances. We are going to explore how to save money by going without a car, or amending how you use your car if you choose to keep one anyway.

Saving Money On Pencils and Pickles.

Ok, school supplies are probably one of the most fun things to go shopping for each year before school starts.  Sometimes the fun can make you forget about how much money you are spending.  There are ways to reduce the cost of school supplies that don’t require much effort.

Is This a Book or a Brick of Gold?

College text books are infamous for being very expensive.  Sometimes you might wonder, “Is this a book or a brick of gold?”  There are multiple ways of saving money when getting textbooks (renting, buying from the right places, and sharing), but you need to think about a few things before you start collecting each semester’s worth of books.

Getting Something For Nothing: Lowering the Cost of Tuition and Rent

I told you I would write a post about how to cut costs. I lied.  I’m going to write multiple posts on how to cut costs in college. The first post will deal with the most expensive parts of paying for college: tuition and housing.

Under 24 and Your Parents Don't Pay? Sucks to be you!

I wanted to take you through some of my story to help you put together all of the information that I have presented so far.  As the blog progresses I will share more and report on my past, present, and future methods of paying for college.

I have heard many people, including myself, lament the plight of the under age 24 dependent student whose parents can’t (meaning they are financially overextended but FAFSA doesn’t seem to notice) or won’t help pay for college. 

Financial Aid 201

For many students financial aid is used primarily just to pay tuition, but for some students financial aid also helps to pay for some school related living expenses as well.  Let’s say you received your financial aid package and your financial aid package including grants, scholarships, work-study, and federal loans did not even add up to the cost of your tuition.   What do you do?  Well that depends.

Financial Aid 102

Loans!  They can be very confusing for some people.  First you need to learn about some basic personal finance concepts.  Interest is a fee associated with the cost of a loan.  Generally you pay a certain percentage on top of the loan.  This additional money is often added to the principal (or original loan amount) and compounded (a method where interest is then calculated based on the new total).   

There are many loan interest calculators on the internet.