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I know the price of gas has forced many of us to make changes and while there’s some grumbling involved at the inflated price of oil, I’m going to look at the bright side and show you 3 (beneficial) things high gas prices can do for you:

1. Make you take trips closer to home. For many families, summertime is the season to gas up the SUV or minivan and take it on the road. People will drive hundreds of miles to Disney World and try to pack a month-long of fun into a week. Sure, it’s fun, but it’s usually pretty exhausting, too. But what about all those attractions that are closer to you that you never checked out because the kids wanted to see Mickey Mouse? Every year, my family drove past several attractions because we were headed straight for Disney. Sure, there aren’t the same rides or characters and some of them are even more — gasp — educational than FUNFUNFUN, but I think a trip that involves some quiet time where the kids can fish, cook out in the open and actually talk to their parents can be just as memorable as one that involves thousands of flashing lights.

2. Make you healthy. I see a lot more people bicycling everywhere these days. It doesn’t matter if high gas costs are what motivated it, the fact is cycling is a great way to get where you’re going as well as get yourself into better shape. While everyone who cycles won’t change their entire lifestyle, many people who begin to take care of themselves with exercise also take this healthy approach to their eating habits. They lose weight, they feel better. If you walk to take public transportation, you’re putting one less car or truck out there on the road, which is a good thing for the environment and for you.      

3. Makes you money-aware. How many of us, back in the good ole days when gas was under $3/gallon, just filled up our tanks without much thought? Gas was necessary to get us where we needed to go and the price, though quite a bit higher than it was when I first started driving back in 1987, didn’t seem too outrageous. Fast-forward to an era when $5/gallon isn’t far-fetched anymore and many people have had to make changes. Change isn’t always bad in a situation like this. When people have to decide whether they’re going to get gas or get food, it forces you to sit back and look at the price of things. It makes you think. Many of us may not have given much thought to how we spent money on seemingly “necessary” items like gas, but today, we probably do. I’ve had to re-do my budget due to high gas prices; I’ve had to adjust my schedule to get my kids to their activities, but you know what? It’s made me more conscious of how I spend my time and money. And that’s a good thing. 

As a Floridian, I’m about as embarrassed by this as I was the 2000 election results, but anyway…

The Sunshine State accounts for “nearly a quarter of all mortgage fraud incidents” according to the Mortgage Asset Research Institute.

Misrepresentation of income, job history, debt and assets are all factors contributing to the most common fraud cases. It’s a pretty big deal because “mortgage fraud has represented about $1 billion in losses over the last decade.” Since Florida and California are two states with a high number of speculators, it’s no wonder they figure number one and number two on this list.

This is for the blamers, the people who will not take responsibility for their irresponsible spending habits, but instead, choose to blame anyone and anything that’s reasonable. They’ll say “It’s the government,” or “It’s the media.” Yes, they’ll even blame Hollywood for their overspending.

Back in the day, Robin Leach guided us through Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous. You could either view the show as motivation, as in, I’m going to work hard and save and maybe I’ll be a millionaire one day. Or you could view it with a bunch of sour grapes in your mouth and feel jealous and hate the fact that anyone could be that rich while you had to eat Ramen noodles.

Today, there’s no shortage of TV shows and magazines that show the big divide between the rich and the not-rich. Besides MTV’s Cribs — where you get to tour celebrity’s homes and see that there really are uses for 24K gold sinks! — there are all of the reality shows based on the rich and famous and how they live their day-to-day lives. Except that a celeb’s day-to-day hardly resembles the regular guy’s day.

When kids — and even adults — see how the other half lives, they can begin to want that, especially if they don’t have good impulse control. Instead of thinking about how someone came into money (while Bill Gates certainly worked for his, I’m not sure that Paris Hilton works for anything, but hey, she’s still loaded), they only see the end to the means. So they buy and buy and buy to look affluent, put themselves into debt and never end up saving and for what? It’s worse than trying to keep up with the Joneses; it’s like trying to keep up with Tommy Lee Jones.    

If you’re surrounded by luxury magazines and your TiVo is set to every reality show that features a down-and-out celeb who parades around a mansion because that lifestyle appeals to you, ask yourself if this is motivation for you to work hard and save or if you’re blindsided with all the jewelry and expensive cars. If you charge a pair of $180 jeans that you can ill-afford just because you saw them on some starlet’s butt, maybe it’s time to rethink your priorities and see if you’re taking full responsibility for your spending habits or if you’re too busy looking through rose-colored designer shades to see the real picture.     

You need some extra money, but you don’t know how to get it. You can’t get a raise right now and you can’t work another full-time job. But there are side gigs you can take on to keep your head above water until your financial situation improves. Here I’ll show you five side gigs you can do for extra cash.

How do you know which gig is right for you? Ideally, your side job should be something you enjoy, even a hobby if you can parlay it into a money maker. If you love animals, maybe dog walking can be your side hustle. Like transporting people? Then a limo service could be your thing. A lot of what you choose to do on the side depends on your regular job’s hours, so keep that in mind.

1. Baker: Yes, you have to love to cook and know how to do it well for this one. I have a friend who began an on-the-side bakery business out of her kitchen and has turned it into a lucrative cake baking service which she hopes to eventually become her sole money maker.  

2. Party entertainment: You don’t have to dress up like a clown if you don’t want to, but if you’re outgoing and energetic and can perform simple magic tricks or juggle or sing (bonus if you do all three!), you can hire yourself out for kids’ parties and even corporate events.  

3. Tutor: If you’re exceptionally good in a subject, chances are there’s a kid out there who needs your tutoring. This is generally more true for math and science, but I’ve tutored kids on SAT tests as well. You can even do this online, so it doesn’t require travel.  

4. CPR instructor: You’ll have to take a class and become certified, but once you do, you can market yourself out to hospitals, public pools and YMCAs. Figure out what to charge and this is something you can do strictly in the evenings and on the weekends. 

5. Photographer: If you have a good camera and you know how to use it, you can become a freelance photographer. This is not for you if you only have a point-and-shoot, but if you enjoy photography, you can sell yourself for animal and family portraits. People who live with animals and kids are always looking for someone to take their photos.   

The best part about having a side gig is that if you love it, it could turn into your only gig, potentially your own business. You might be able to leave your full-time job and become your own boss, all from exploring your options of a side hustle. 

File this under Weird News, but it is finance related so there you go: Madonna’s bra and Eric Clapton’s guitar attract investors.

This ties into people who’ve amassed mementos and paraphernalia, especially anything rock-and-roll related. Auctioneers say that “investors are exploring alternative markets as stocks decline, economies stall and banks sack workers.” The companies listed, Marquee Capital Ltd. and Anchorage Capital Partners Ltd., are based in London, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see American investment companies capitalizing on this trend.

Clearly, the next time some rocker tosses his sweaty T-shirt my way, I’ll be sure to fight tooth and nail to nab it. 

Source: Bloomberg.com  

I thought Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac may have had a chance to recover, but the news is looking grim for both mortgage-finance companies. So many people have used Fannie and Freddie to buy homes — nearly half of U.S. home owners — but with the housing market only getting worse, stock shares plummeted, both losing “a quarter of their value.”

If you’re already into budgeting and have drawn up a monthly plan that tallies up regular expenses, good for you. If you’ve also figured in miscellaneous items like entertainment, even better (saving is hard, but you should still be allowed a treat now and then). But are you tallying up everything?

Sometimes, we forget about these expenses that don’t occur every month. They may occur only every few months or once a year. If they regularly recur, however, they need to be figured into the monthly budget. These aren’t “surprise” expenses — you already know about them and not counting them can seriously mess up your finance plan.

Any of these can fall into recurring expenses:

• Termite bonding and inspection for homes
• Beauty salon treatments
• Oil changes for the car/truck
• Buying start-of-school supplies
• Pet checkups/grooming
• Dental visits

There’s plenty more out there that may apply to you individually, but the point is, many of us don’t factor these in to our monthly budgets because they don’t happen every month. Here’s where it can hurt you:

Say you haven’t factored in any of the above expenses. Using what I typically spend on these, here are my figures:

• Termite bonding and inspection for the year: $500
• Hair cut and color: $80; five times a year: $400 
• Oil changes plus tire rotation: $50; four times a year: $200
• School supplies for two kids: $150
• Pet shots once a year: $100
• Pet grooming six times per year $45 each; over a year: $270
• Dental visit: $30 office fee (with insurance coverage); twice a year: $60

That’s $1680 over the course of a year or $140/month. If you’re on a strict budget that leaves no room for errors, $140 is a lot of money. Worse, what if an emergency happens and although you have some savings set aside, you’ve factored this money into that savings instead of factoring it into your monthly budget?

If you really want to know how much you spend every month, it’s important to figure in your recurring expenses. This way, you won’t end up one month wondering why you’re $60 “short.”

In case you didn’t already know this due to all of the foreign cars on the roads, U.S. car buyers “are growing less satisfied with their purchases from domestic automakers.”

Lexus, BMW, Toyota and Honda lead the pack in a customer satisfaction survey — no American makers in sight.

At some point and time, I think we’ve all spent money on something and thought later that it was a stupid way to spend it. But what about all the money we waste without thinking about it? We don’t even get to regret it because it’s almost like it unconsciously floats out of our accounts. Are you wasting money in any of these 3 dumb ways?

1. Unnecessary bank fees: In my next life, I’d love to come back as a bank. Goodness knows, I’d be rich just from collecting fees from my customers. These fees can come from:

• Writing more checks than you’re “allowed” that month
• Using ATMs outside of your bank’s network
• Not maintaining a minimum balance
• Arbitrary maintenance

I’m sorry, but I think it’s crazy to have an account at any bank that charges you fees for these things! Because all banks do not do this. There actually exist some banks who don’t nickel and dime you and trust that you’re adult enough to write the number of checks you want to each month. Loyalty is one thing, but handing over money when you don’t have to is reason enough to break up. 

2. Credit card fees: If you’re with a credit card company who charges you an annual fee, ask yourself why. Why? When there are other companies practically jumping up and down to lure you in give you a card with no annual fee? I know that a lot of secured credit cards come that way; if you’ve had credit trouble in the past and this is one way you’re trying to rebuild your rating, you may only be able to get a secured card. Do your homework and find a card with a low fee, but that also comes from a reputable institution, such as a Top 10 credit card issuer. And above all, don’t make late payments. That’s usually $30-$40 you’re handing over, even if you’re a day late.

3. Avoiding coupons: Some businesses are actually trying to help you save money these days, so why would you avoid them? It may take a little more time to take advantage of coupons, but it’s worth it. In the Sunday newspaper, in your mailbox, online – coupons are readily available. If you still don’t want to take the time to cut them or print them out, at least sign up for a grocery store card. They’re almost always free, you can get a keytag version to clip onto your keychain instead of digging it out of your wallet and the store sends you flyers to alert you to upcoming specials.   

No one said saving money was easy; sometimes you really have to research and do the legwork to figure out how to do it. But keeping your hard-earned money instead of wasting it in one of these three ways should be way more satisfying than being “convenienced” out of it.