1) Sales Taxes

States with No Sales Taxes:

• Alaska
• Delaware
• Montana
• New Hampshire
• Oregon

Some states possess only a base rate and allow counties to add additions to the base rate as needed. These states are called single rate states. States with single rates include the following:

• Connecticut
• Hawaii
• Indiana
• Kentucky
• Maine
• Maryland
• Massachusetts
• Michigan
• Mississippi
• New Jersey
• Rhode Island
• Vermont
• Virginia
• West Virginia

States with the Highest Sales Tax

California – 8.75%
Indiana – 7%
Mississippi – 7%
New Jersey – 7%
Rhode Island – 7%
Tennessee – 7%
Minnesota – 6.875%
Nevada – 6.85%
Washington – 6.5%
Texas – 6.25%
Illinois – 6.25%

2) State Income Taxes

Currently, only seven states waive taxes on personal income. The seven states are listed below:

• Alaska
• Florida
• Nevada
• South Dakota
• Texas
• Washington
• Wyoming

Tennessee and New Hampshire only apply income taxes to interest and dividends. The remaining 41 states impose income taxes on personal income. Thirty-five of the 41 states base their taxes on federal returns. These states only take a portion of what is paid to the federal IRS and request taxes based upon this amount.

3) Cigarette Tax

States are allowed to determine how much taxes they charge on their tobacco products. Some states charge remarkably more taxes than others. Some of the cigarette taxes are listed below:

• New York City: $4.25
• Rhode Island: $3.46
• Connecticut: $3.00
• New Jersey: $2.70
• Hawaii: $2.60
• Wisconsin: $2.52
• Massachusetts: $2.51
• Vermont: $2.24
• Washington: $2.025
• Alaska: $2.00
• Arizona: $2.00
• Connecticut: $2.00
• District of Columbia: $2.00
• Maine: $2.00
• Maryland: $2.00
• Michigan: $2.00

Currently, the majority of the cost of cigarettes is taxes. In fact, 82 percent of the cost of cigarettes is taxes.

4) Retirement Income Taxes

Some states exclude Social Security retirement benefits from taxation. The following states are excluded from paying income taxes:

• Alabama
• Arizona
• Arkansas
• California
• Delaware
• Georgia
• Hawaii
• Idaho
• Illinois
• Indiana
• Kentucky
• Louisiana
• Maine
• Maryland
• Massachusetts
• Michigan
• Mississippi
• New Jersey
• New York
• North Carolina
• Ohio
• Oklahoma
• Oregon
• Pennsylvania
• South Carolina
• Virginia
• Wisconsin

By law, citizens are required to pay taxes on their Social Security benefits. Social Security benefits are subject to personal income tax unless the state allows tax exemptions for benefits.

5) Counties with the Lowest Real Estate Taxes

De Soto Parish: $129
Evangeline Parish: $127
Jefferson Davis Parish: $127
Webster Parish: $125
Sabine Parish: $124
Richland Parish: $122
Avoyelles Parish: $120
Vernon Parish: $120
Allen Parish: $119
Franklin Parish: $117

In order to rank states according to their tax friendliness, one Forbes study created rated the states according to region. The states were rated based upon, Federal Bureau of Investigations crime rate, unemployment rate, average salary, cultural opportunity, and the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Some of the cheapest places to live in the United States based on the aforementioned criteria are listed below:

• Spokane, Washington
• Modesto, California
• Ogden-Clearfield, Utah
• Fort Collins-Loveland, Colorado
• Greeley, Colorado
• Minneapolis, Minnesota
• Omaha, Nebraska
• St. Louis, Missouri
• Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
• Tulsa, Oklahoma
• Ann Arbor, Michigan
• Knoxville, Tennessee
• Chattanooga, Tennessee
• Louisville, Kentucky
• Albany, New York
• Pittsburg, Pennsylvania
• Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
• Charlotte, North Carolina
• Gastonia, South Carolina
• Atlanta, Georgia
• Worchester, Massachusetts
• Springfield, Massachusetts

Summary

Prior to finding a cheap place to live, individuals should review the list above. This will allow individuals to find a home state that best accommodates your financial needs.

Imagine you are standing in line at the grocery store and the lady in front of you has a whole cart full of groceries. You are thinking to yourself that you are glad that you do not have to pay her grocery bill. She then pulls out a stack of manufacturer coupons and hands them to the cashier. Her grocery bill, instead of going up, is now being reduced rapidly by the coupons. Where did she get all of those manufacturer coupons, you ask?
There are many types of manufacturer coupons available and they can save a lot of money on your grocery bill and other household expenses. These coupons can be obtained in a variety of ways.

• Purchasing the local Sunday newspaper-Many Sunday newspapers carry coupon inserts that contain many money saving coupons for some of your favorite products.

• Magazines-A lot of magazines will have coupons that you can clip. Most women’s magazines, as well as home and garden magazines carry coupons every now and then.

• Coupon Swap Clubs-Check locally to see if there are any local groups that exchange coupons. This enables you to exchange the coupons that you are not going to use for coupons on products that you normally buy. Be aware that a most manufacturer coupons have the statement that they are not valid if sold or exchanged.

• Manufacturer websites-Many manufacturers are now putting printable coupons on their websites. They even have newsletters you can sign up to get by email. These newsletters often include links to coupons for the company’s products. In some cases, you can even contact the company, either through their website or via snail mail, and they will send coupons in the mail.

• Coupon websites-These companies make it possible to print coupons at home for use at the local store. Websites such as Coupons.com are great places to print coupons. You can usually print 2 of each coupon.

• Recycling centers-You can find unwanted coupon inserts at some newspaper recycling facilities.

• Newspaper carriers-Check with your newspaper carrier to see what he does with the unsold Sunday newspapers. Chances are that the unsold papers get thrown in the dumpster.

• Social networking websites-Websites such as Facebook and Twitter are great ways to find coupons. A lot of manufacturers will post coupons on their Facebook page or even tweet a link to a coupon. Some of these coupons may even be for free items.

• Word of Mouth Marketing Companies-Companies such as BzzAgent, Vocalpoint, and Kraft First Taste exist to get opinions on new products, as well as getting the word out about the new items. These companies will often send a coupon for a free product or even send the product itself in the mail. You are then asked to try the product and give your feedback. It is also requested that you share your experience with the product with others in order to spread the word about the new product. These companies will sometimes send extra coupons for you to share with friends and family.
• Ask family and friends if they have any coupons they are not going to be using.

These are just some of the ways to find manufacturer coupons. There are many couponing websites out there that are dedicated to the coupon shopper. This makes manufacturer coupons easier to find. One thing to remember is that if a coupon sounds too good to be true, then it probably is. Most legitimate coupons come from well known websites such as Coupons.com or are linked directly from the manufacturer’s website. Fraudulent coupons abound on the internet. When in doubt, contact the company and they will verify whether it is legitimate or not. Keep in mind that some stores do not take printed internet coupons. Check with your store to verify acceptance.

Scores vary between credit bureaus because each agency may have slightly different information on the consumer. Lenders offering a credit card or auto loan will most likely make a decision on extending credit based on a single agency’s score, while lenders offering more extensive lines of credit, such as a mortgage, will look at all three of the agency’s scores.

In order to determine a credit scores, companies look at five different things and calculate them at certain percentages to come up with a score. Thirty five percent of a credit score is based on how well the person pays bills on time. Thirty percent of a credit score looks at how much available credit a person has and how much of it they have used. For example, if a consumer has a total credit limit of $5,000 and has utilized only $500 of their credit limit that is considered a good debt load. Financial advisors recommended that consumers never use more than 50% of their credit limit, as this can lower their FICO score. Fifteen percent of a credit score is based on the amount of time a consumer has had credit available to them, or the length of their credit history. If two people have a good history of paying on a credit card, the person who has had the card longer will have a slightly higher score. The final twenty percent of a credit score is based on requests for new accounts, recent applications for financing and the mix of types of credit available to the consumer. Together, all of these aspects determine one’s credit score.

The first step to improving a credit score is to pay down revolving debt, such as credit cards or lines of credit. As long as the consumer does not close the account after paying off the debt, this can dramatically improve the percentage of credit available verses credit used, which as previously stated, accounts for 30% of one’s score. When working to improve a credit score, consumers often make the mistake of forgoing credit all together after paying off their debt. As 45% of a credit score is based on how well one pays their bills and how long they have had their credit, without using credit there is no way to improve those numbers. However, using credit does not need to equal paying interest or finance charges. Every credit card and many lines of credit have grace periods in which a consumer can pay within a certain timeframe without also paying interest. Doing this will not only improve the credit score, but also not cost the usual extra money associated with utilizing credit.

The most important part of working towards the perfect credit score of 850 is to have a workable debt management plan and to stick to it, pay bills on time every time and only take on new debt if absolutely necessary. Rebuilding a credit score can take many years, but the accomplishment of doing so is not only emotionally satisfying, but financially responsible as well.

Plan Shopping Trips
Whether it is grocery shopping, clothes shopping or electronics shopping, planning the trip before making it is beneficial in more than one way. Planning can include either or all of the following: creating a list, setting a budget and deciding which stores to visit. Creating a shopping list for the grocery store, for instance, and sticking to it will ensure that no unnecessary items are picked up. A set budget decreases overspending, like at a clothing store, where it is very easy to overspend on the latest fashions and accessories. Deciding which specific stores to visit is mainly beneficial to saving money on gas. Visits to stores that are in opposite direction of each other can be horrible for gas mileage, which means more money is spent on gas. Go on shopping trips to stores that are in the same area to conserve both gas and time. Also, visiting more stores may increase the desire to spend more money. Reduce the chance of that happening. Have a plan set before venturing out on a shopping trip.

Get Information Before Spending Money
This tip goes beyond simple grocery shopping, but does not completely exclude it. When making a larger purchase, like a car or electronic product, do not buy what is cheapest, but do not buy the most popular brand. Just because money may be tight and it is tempting to buy what costs the least, does not mean that is the best thing to do. Do some research about different brands and companies. Read consumer reviews as well as expert reviews and, if possible, ask an expert some questions about the product before making a decision. Consider warranties and return policies. Quality is something that should always be taken into consideration. A poor quality product could mean having to buy another product and adding stress. Where grocery shopping is concerned, try buying generic products. Many of them are of the same quality as name brands. A name brand does not mean the best bang for a buck.

Shop Around
After gathering information about a future purchase, compare different store prices. The same item may be for sale online for a much cheaper price than in a store. Most stores have competitive prices, but some may offer special discounts or rebates that others do not. Checking with more than one merchant and scanning classified ads for a specific item could ensure a good deal for both buyer and seller. When shopping for groceries, scan the circulars and see what is on sale and what is not. Look at more than one store circular. Do not be afraid to try shopping at different stores.

Clip Coupons
With financial times being more difficult now than before, more people are clipping coupons. Many stay-at-home mothers and bloggers have created websites and classes dedicated to the art of coupon clipping. Many report cutting their grocery bills in half and some even report actually getting money from the grocery store. About an hour every week dedicated to coupon clipping combined with a shopping plan can equal a substantial amount of money being saved. It works best, however, to clip coupons for items that will actually be used. If coupons are used for products that are not typically part of the shopping list, then more money can be spent rather than saved, which defeats the purpose of clipping coupons.

Following this advice will help repurpose a budget and create more room for financial freedom. None of it is time-consuming, but all of it is beneficial. Save more money.

Withdrawal of the current tax year’s contribution can be done without penalty if it is withdrawn before the due date for the tax return. The contributions with their net earnings can be withdrawn as long as the deduction for the contributions was not applied on the tax return. The IRA custodian will determine the net income to be included with the contribution. If the IRA had a loss for the year there will be a negative net income amount.

People who become disabled before the age of 59 1/2 do not have to pay the 10 percent penalty. The IRS defines disability as the inability to perform substantial gainful activity, which is the same definition Social Security uses. The disability will either result in death or last for at least 12 months. A doctor’s statement verifying this should be furnished with the tax return.

The costs of purchasing a home for a first time home buyer are not subject to the early withdrawal penalty. The IRS defines a first time home buyer as an individual who had no ownership interest in a home for the 24 month period prior to the purchase of the home which is being funded with the IRA withdrawals. For married people, both husband and wife need to meet the definition of first time home buyer. The IRS limits the penalty-free withdrawals to $10,000.00 for an individual. Married couples can each withdraw $10,000.00.

Individuals who lose their jobs do not have to pay the 10 percent penalty if it is used to purchase medical insurance. The individual needs to have received either state or federal unemployment insurance benefits for 12 consecutive weeks. The withdrawal must be done in the year the unemployment benefits were received or the next year. The IRS also requires taxpayers to receive the withdrawal within 60 days of starting another job.

The early withdrawal penalty does not apply to payments made to cover costs of higher education. The payments can be made for the taxpayer or the spouse, their children or grandchildren. Any expenses paid by an employer, pell grants, tax free scholarships and fellowships or Veterans educational benefits cannot be used for this exemption. The IRS considers any institution of higher learning qualified for this exemption if the institution is eligible for funds from the Department of Education.

Taxpayers who set up annuity payments from their IRA do not pay the early withdrawal penalty. The payments must be based on the account holder’s life expectancy or a joint life expectancy of the taxpayer and the spouse. The payments must be made at least once a year until the IRA is paid out or the account holder dies.

People who inherit an IRA from anyone who dies before age 59 1/2 can receive the assets without a penalty. If the beneficiary is the spouse of the IRA owner and treats it as his/her own IRA could receive the penalty if they take distributions before 59 1/2. The IRS considers contributions to the inherited IRA as a sign the spouse considers the IRA as their own IRA.

People who receive IRA distributions as the result of a qualified domestic relations order (qdro) do not receive the penalty. These orders are usually part of the distribution of marital assets in a divorce.