Editor’s note: This guest post was written by Jon Dulin of PennyThots.com

We are not afraid to admit that there are thousands of ways to make money on the side that can help you with your budgeting and getting out of debt. But we are also not afraid to admit that a number of these money-making schemes are not on the up-and-up.

While there are some very legitimate ways to make money (delivering pizzas or newspapers, doing some freelance work online, starting a small business), there are some that are illegal (prostitution, selling drugs, robbing banks), and there are those which kind of toe the line between legit and not-so-much.

We all know that just because some scheme is legal doesn’t always mean it’s right. Working a business and making money can and should have an ethical and moral component to it. But there are times when the love of money overrules ethics, morality and common decency. Even if legally the person can get away with it.

This is why we always say if something seems too good to be true, you should always ask questions and do research before getting involved in something that might be a little loose with ethics if not the law.

Now, to be clear, while we advocate finding ways to make extra money to help get your financial house in order, we are not writing about unethical money-makers as an encouragement to you. This is more for educational and informational purposes that there are some unethical things out there, and you should be aware of these so you can decide for yourself if doing something similar will work for you or not. If you have ethics, then you will pass and not get involved in anything like these. However, are any of these things truly wrong, in your view?

1. Domain Market

There are literally trillions of website domain names out there, many of which have yet to be bought. A couple of schemes in this area involve buying up similar domains as popular brands (or perhaps trending brands that haven’t caught fire yet), holding them and selling them either to the company or someone else for a profit.

A major brand tries to buy as many related domain names as possible, and if you get in first with the brand name, the actor’s name, or maybe the title of a blockbuster movie, you may get a letter from an attorney representing that entity, and there may be an offer on the table for your domain name, which you might have paid $10 or $20 a year to hold but make multiples of that at the end of the day.

You can also look up some popular misspellings of major website addresses and build a domain name there. There were a couple of old porn sites that took advantage of misspellings of “espn.com,” for example.

You could make money by generating a lot of traffic through these misspellings (or even mistypings, such as when a “dot” is left out of an address or there is an extra letter or number in the intended domain) and you can either create a page with a bunch of ads on it – relevant or not to the intended domain – or you can create a page with tips or advice related to the subject matter of the domain.

For example, if you have a site related to purchasing a car, such as a misspelling of “Chevrolet” or “AutoNation,” you could provide advice about negotiating a good car deal or knowing which optional features should be standard for your car, or how to pick the right insurance policy for your new purchase.

2. The Life Settlement

Now, there are a couple legitimate companies in this area, but this is a growing industry that is becoming riddled with unethical actors. This scheme involves buying a person’s life insurance policy for the cash value or less. The buyer then continues to pay the premiums, and then collects on the insurance policy when the seller dies.

On the one hand, this is capitalism. There is a product being sold, and there is a market for those products. But what makes it a tad unethical is the fact that usually a person will only sell the life insurance policy because he or she can’t afford the premiums anymore, or he or she gets cash-strapped and would rather use the cash value from the policy. Ethics don’t usually put you in a position to take advantage of someone in desperation.

3. Payday Loans

I am not referring to the actual payday loan industry, which is legitimized loan-sharking (though several states have outlawed it or great regulated its terms). What I am referring to is similar in nature except it’s done with you as the lender.

For example, let’s say you have a friend who has a very important job interview, but asks to borrow $100 from you to buy a new suit for the interview. You agree to loan him the money, and you charge him $4 interest every week. You are charging a 208 percent annualized interest rate, which is payday-loan-esque. However, if your friend gets the job and is making decent money, he won’t complain about paying you back $132 after two months.

4. Amazon.com Reviews

Amazon.com is a very large online marketplace, which offers many different items in the same subject area. Oftentimes, consumers rely on the customer reviews for each product to decide which one to buy.

And it turns out many product sellers who use the Amazon.com Marketplace to sell their wares also rely on reviews to get consumers to buy their products. So the sellers (or an agency they hire) will pay people money to write fake Amazon.com reviews and post them on the site.

There are freelancer websites out there where people will promote jobs writing product reviews on Amazon.com, paying people a couple dollars apiece to write 100-200 words promoting a product, and there might be 100 or more products to be written about. Even if you won’t buy them or use them yourself. It is estimated that one-third of all product reviews are fake. You can make some money writing these reviews, and if the seller gets better sales from your work, he or she may hire you back again to do more.

5. Emergency Relief

Now this scheme can be illegal, but there are ways to toe the line and “only” be unethical. Let’s say you had a major weather event and you are cleaning up. You sometimes cut tree branches as a freelance landscaper around town, and you are being asked to “pitch in” and help with the cleanup around the neighborhood. Though you normally charge $25 per hour to cut branches from trees, because of the “emergency” situation, you charge your neighbors $50 per hour for the work.

Again, this isn’t anything inherently illegal, since the weather event has created a very high demand for the service you provide, and you have a limited amount of time in order to meet everyone’s needs.  However, you can admit that it’s a little unethical to take advantage of a crisis or emergency situation to justify a rate increase.

Think long-term and don’t unethical

In the end, there are ways to make extra money that are legal but toe the line when it comes to ethics. And since each of us has his or her own moral code, it is up to you to ultimately decide on what you consider to be ethical or not.

But we all can agree that there are some shady ways to make a quick buck. Unfortunately many times, these options for making money dry up fast and we are left with needing to find new ways to bring in some money. If you want to increase the chances that you can bring in extra money for the long term, look for a legal way to make money that doesn’t toe the line ethically.

Jon Dulin blogs at Penny Thots, a personal finance blog that helps readers improve their finances one day at a time.

5 Unethical Ways to Make Money is a post from: When Life Gives You Lemons. Did you like the post? Follow me on Twitter, like me on Facebook, or hop on over to my blog and leave me your feedback.

We are gathered here today to say farewell to the Bed Bath & Beyond 20% discount coupons, whose passing came on suddenly this week.

Oh, dear 20% off coupon, you touched so many lives in so many different ways. You’ve been the perfect companion through all of life’s biggest moments, including my own.

Your presence was always a welcome one — I’d see your blue and white amidst the bills and magazines, and it was like seeing an old friend. Your reliability provided a strong sense of comfort, whether you knew it or not.

I grew up with you and shared the big life-altering moments with you. I remember taking stacks of you to the store so I could load up on shower totes, laundry baskets and extra long sheets in the fall before starting college.

This is back when you didn’t expire and they let us use several we’d saved in preparation for this shopping experience. As Mom took them out of her purse, we felt such pride in having you there with us.

And then, when I moved several states away, you were there again, helping me stock up my first apartment with pillows, kitchenware and a good reading chair. And, when Mom headed back home and left me entirely on my own, I found she’d left you there to support me again — including a note saying I had you just in case I needed anything.

You remained steadfast through the end, dear 20% coupon. It is a sad moment for us to say goodbye. Sure, you’ll be replaced with the Beyond+ loyalty program, which will include free shipping and 20% off each entire purchase, but no one could replace you. (Especially because this will include a $29 annual fee).

We never got to tell you just how important you were while you were here, using you every time you came along, but maybe you knew your value all along. That’s why you kept showing up. I’ll probably forever sift through the weekly ads looking for you, just on the off chance you changed your mind and came back to me. But, even if I don’t see you, you will live on in my memory, forever and beyond.

More from Credit.com

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This article originally appeared on Credit.com.

Goodbye Bed Bath & Beyond 20% Off Coupon is a post from: When Life Gives You Lemons. Did you like the post? Follow me on Twitter, like me on Facebook, or hop on over to my blog and leave me your feedback.

If you’ve never volunteered before and are intimidated by where to begin there are a number of organizations that are looking for the following types of help:

• Financial. Many organizations run fundraising drives at this time. Take time to figure out what causes are important to you and work on your budget to see what you can donate comfortably.

• Your time. There are a number of clothing/food drives that can’t happen without volunteer hours. Volunteer at one of these events so that they can successfully meet their organization’s goals. According to The Nonprofit Times a volunteer hour is now averaging around $23.07 an hour. Volunteers save organization huge amounts of money on wages, tax contributions, and health care that they don’t have to pay for paid employees. This savings allows organizations to remain focused on the organization’s mission.

• In-kind donations. There is an organization for everything. Find the organization that resonates with you as a good volunteer: hunger, animals, kids, clothes, or shelter and then find the items needed for those organizations. Items include: canned food, dried beans, animal food (for animal shelters), toys, cold-weather clothing, or even housing stipends.

Be a good volunteer

Now that you know the types of help organizations are looking for here are a couple of reasons why you should add volunteering to your holiday plans and how to be a good volunteer:

• Volunteering keeps what is going on in your life into perspective. Your life may have some difficulties but you may find encouragement, or encourage others by spending time with people who are in need.

• People need help. If you have the capacity to help someone else, why wouldn’t you help them as a good volunteer?

• It feels great! Helping other people feels great. Studies have shown that people who help others also receive a benefit from the act of helping other people. Ask your friends to join in.

• Be one of the “Good Guys.” There are a ton of good people out in the world making a difference. Counter the daily barrage of negativity by being one of the people out there who is making a difference in the world. What you do as a good volunteer does matter.

• Practice gratitude. Volunteering helps people to tap into gratitude. When you’re dealing with other people who are in need, hungry, homeless, friendless or without family you become very aware of the things in your life that you are grateful for.

Volunteering during the holidays doesn’t have to be a painful process. It can be done in one hour, a day, over a course of days over a month. It’s up to you and howe you want to help as a good volunteer. 

Finally, begin looking for volunteering opportunities before the holidays begin. You will be amazed by how many people will be volunteering during the holidays as well. Don’t miss out on an opportunity to help others and make yourself feel good at the same time because you waited too long.

Start with the following types of organizations: Food pantries, Salvation Army, Homeless Shelters, animal shelters, or even your child’s school.

This post was written by Michelle Jackson, a personal finance and lifestyle blogger sharing her story at The Shop My Closet Project. Her goal is to help people cultivate their best life. When she’s not blogging or podcasting for Girl Gone Frugal you can find her riding her bike, going for coffee, or hiking in the mountains.

How to Be a Good Volunteer is a post from: When Life Gives You Lemons. Did you like the post? Follow me on Twitter, like me on Facebook, or hop on over to my blog and leave me your feedback.

Pinterest might be responsible for the uptick in interest in homemade gifts. Gorgeous photos with detailed instructions reassure the uncrafty that they too can produce fabulous homemade or sort-of-homemade gifts for their friends and family.

If you’re not a naturally crafty person the key is to pick an easy gift that looks classy and has very few steps to it.

Here are 10 fun and easy homemade gifts to create projects straight from Pinterest.

1. Limoncello

A fantastic drink that you make with vodka, sugar, water, and lemons, limoncello is easy to put together but you will have to plan the different steps because it’s an easy multiple day process.

The key to managing the process is to put reminders in your cell phone. Or, schedule the steps on your Google calendar.

2. Infused olive oils

Infused olive oils are super easy! The trick is to figure out the types of food or flavors your friend or family member doesn’t like. Once that’s figured out you can begin with creating a simple infused olive oil. Make sure to include a cute ribbon or twine with a cute cardboard label to “tie” it together.

3. Homemade bath salts

For those of you who have family members who enjoy a nice soak in the tub or need a nice soak in the tub, homemade bath salts are the gift for them.

4. Sugar scrubs

You usually just need sugar, oil, and a scent to make sugar scrubs for the skin.  A super recipe and all you will need is a measuring cup and a cute container.

5. Body butter

Body butter might seem a little frightening because most people think where should we begin? Body butter is actually a little easier to put together. You might get messy but it will be great when you’re finished.

6. Cookies

Get a cute box with lovely tissue paper and bake two or three types of cookies! They will be fresh and delicious without you having to do all of the hard work.

7. Pre-made mixes

You’ve probably seen them already premade mixes in a cute glass jar.

You just have to make sure you’re measuring everything out properly and putting everything in the jar carefully so that it looks cute.

8. Fancy toffee

Toffee dipped in chocolate with sea salt sprinkled on it is easy to make. You can purchase the toffee and then melt down the chocolate and sprinkle a little bit of sea salt on the bar. After the chocolate cools off then wrap it in brown paper wrap and top it with twine or a cute ribbon.

9. Mason jar plants

Mason jars are all the rage and they are easy to find to use to make mason jar plants. You can pick up jars from thrift stores or Ball jars from your local grocers. Put nice rocks in the jar and then place a succulent or other plant on top.

10. Everything bag of homemade gifts

A bag with a little bit of everything is my favorite among homemade gifts! Get a cute basket, bag, or box and collect a number of cute little items that the one you love would enjoy. Socks, shaving cream, chocolate, a favorite beer, and the list goes on. Be creative and have fun!

If you’re trying to be frugal, or are a lover of homemade gifts this list is a great place to start. You may spend a little time to put these gifts together, but people will love the perceived time and energy you put into the gift.

This post on homemade gifts was written by Michelle Jackson, a personal finance and lifestyle blogger sharing her story at The Shop My Closet Project. Her goal is to help people cultivate their best life. When she’s not blogging or podcasting for Girl Gone Frugal you can find her riding her bike, going for coffee, or hiking in the mountains.

10 Homemade Gifts for the Uncrafty is a post from: When Life Gives You Lemons. Did you like the post? Follow me on Twitter, like me on Facebook, or hop on over to my blog and leave me your feedback.

Thanksgiving is just around the corner and many people are looking for ways to have a fabulous family meal without going broke.

During Thanksgiving hosts are usually busy cooking an extremely large meal, entertaining a large number of people, hosting people in their home, and then going out for Black Friday shopping.

Thanksgiving weekend is a veritable money leak extravaganza. If you are working hard to manage your money, spend time creating a plan that will keep you from going broke Thanksgiving weekend.

Here are six components of Thanksgiving weekend to consider changing to make it more enjoyable for the host and guests:

Transportation

Do you have guests who are coming in from out of town? Do you plan on picking them up or is there an inexpensive transportation option that will get them to you?

Also, once your guests are in town will you drive them around or are they self-sufficient enough to get around on their own? Will they bring a car or need tickets for public transportation?

Thanksgiving food

The food that you will serve is a big consideration. Surprisingly, not everyone serves turkey on Thanksgiving.  There are a ton of regional variations that may serve as an inspiration for your family’s meal that you may not have considered.

Go through your kitchen cabinets to see which meal components you already have on hand so you can avoid purchasing duplicate items. Then, pick up a couple a couple of items early and the fresh items at the beginning of Thanksgiving week.

The average cost of a Thanksgiving meal in 2014 was $49.41 according to Business Insider. Keep that in mind as you plan your festivities.

Food allergies

Ask about legitimate food allergies so that you can prepare dishes for people who deal with food related allergies.

These dishes take some time to plan if they aren’t a part of your normal rotation of meals. Pre-planning this part of your Thanksgiving meal will make things easier for you.

Number of guests

How many people you would like to have over? Will they bring a plus one?

And who is staying over? If people are staying over then you have to factor in breakfast, what should you feed your guests?

Black Friday

Do you participate in the shopping madness after this family holiday? That’s absolutely fine, but are you going in with a plan or do you have a list for your purchases?

Do you having a savings account for your purchases? Or, can you plan another activity that is fun but doesn’t cost money?

If you are in a warm weather state and live near a beach can you go to the beach for the day? Do you live near the mountains and can spend a day in the mountains? Are there free events being held around town? Or, is there a nice park nearby where you can play some corn hole and BBQ? Black Friday doesn’t have to be a day of shopping.

Use apps

Use apps to save money and time. Make sure to redeem what purchases you can using iBotta.  Share your affiliate links for AirBnB and Uber and first time users will be given a small credit toward their AirBnB accommodation or their first Uber ride.

Spend some time creating an action plan for Thanksgiving weekend and work that plan. Thanksgiving doesn’t have to be a budget killer even if you didn’t get a chance to plan until now. 

This post was written by Michelle Jackson, a personal finance and lifestyle blogger sharing her story at The Shop My Closet Project. Her goal is to help people cultivate their best life. When she’s not blogging or podcasting for Girl Gone Frugal you can find her riding her bike, going for coffee, or hiking in the mountains.

6 Ways to Have a Magical Thanksgiving for Less is a post from: When Life Gives You Lemons. Did you like the post? Follow me on Twitter, like me on Facebook, or hop on over to my blog and leave me your feedback.

This guest post on motherhood is from Catherine Alford at Budget Blonde. After you read her post, head over to her website, where I’m guest posting today.

Having and raising children is expensive, and I should know because I got a two for one special with my adorable boy-girl twins. In fact, by some counts the cost of raising a child to adulthood can be around $245,000 not including college! That’s insane!

Even though I don’t feel that raising a child actually costs that much for most families, mine included, having children is still a big financial burden if you aren’t adequately prepared for motherhood.

Because I’m a planner by nature and like to have things as organized as possible before I make any big, life-altering decisions, I approached motherhood with that same attitude.

I asked everyone I knew how to get prepared financially for motherhood and now that I’ve been through it myself, here are my top 4 ways to do so:

Research, Research, Research

As I said before, I like to be organized and prepared for any big decision in life. When I first found out I was pregnant, I did a lot of research about how much money I needed to set aside before the arrival of our twins and motherhood.

I asked my mom, my mother-in-law, and my friends who were already mothers to weigh in on this important topic. What I heard from them varied quite a bit, but it gave a good basis to get started prepping financially for motherhood. All in all I decided to save $10,000 before the twins came, $5,000 for each.

Set Up a Targeted Savings Account

Once I had a number in mind, I set up a targeted savings account and started socking money away. I set up my “baby fund” with Smarty Pig, but there are other banking institutions that allow you to create several targeted savings funds too.

A targeted savings account is key to save up for motherhood because it keeps this money separate from your other savings, like your emergency fund, a vacation fund, or whatever other savings you have set up.

This really reduces the temptation to raid the fund to pay for something else besides baby purchases. After all, if your savings account says “baby” on it, you’re much less likely to take away from it. (If you have questions about Smarty Pig feel free to e-mail me, and I can send you an invite!)

Consider Life Insurance

If you haven’t already thought about life insurance before getting pregnant, now is the time to do it. It might a bit morbid to think like this, but it’s especially important to have life insurance for yourself and your child’s father in case something were to happen to either of you.

As mentioned earlier, raising a child is very expensive and it would be all the more difficult to do it alone if something were to happen to either of the baby’s parents. Life insurance can help ease that burden at least a little bit, so it’s worth checking into if you haven’t already.

Get a Will

Again, a little morbid I know, but having legal documentation in place is all the more important once you have a child. Having a basic will drawn up on your behalf is fairly inexpensive and will provide a lot of peace of mind in case you or your child ever has to deal with a death in the family. During that time of grieving, the last thing you want to deal with are complicated estate laws, so a will help simplify that process.

How did you prep financially for motherhood?

Catherine Alford is the go-to personal finance expert for educated, aspirational moms who want to recapture their life passions, earn more, reach their goals, and take on a more active financial role in their families. She is also founder of www.BudgetBlonde.com and the innovator behind the web’s most comprehensive course on how to Get Paid to Write for Blogs.

4 Ways to Prepare Financially for Motherhood is a post from: When Life Gives You Lemons. Did you like the post? Follow me on Twitter, like me on Facebook, or hop on over to my blog and leave me your feedback.

Do you smoke? Or maybe you’re trying to quit? Both of these cases can impact shopping for life insurance. Whether you smoke or not, life insurance is extremely important especially if you have dependents counting on you for financial support.

These dependents could include your spouse, your children, relatives you help take care of, or even someone who may have helped you out in the past by co-signing a loan for you. Each of these individuals would be financially impacted if you died. Term life insurance can financially help those you leave behind if you died prematurely. For young, healthy, non-smoking individuals, term life insurance is very affordable.

But what about for those who use tobacco, nicotine, or marijuana products? Let’s talk about that.

Who does the life insurance industry consider a “smoker”?

You may already assume that those who smoke are going to have higher premiums than those who don’t, but non-smokers versus smokers is not always so clear. For example, if you are a tobacco chewer, some life insurance carriers may still classify you as a smoker.

These products are considered by insurance carriers when you apply for life insurance:

• Cigarettes
• Cigars
• Pipes
• Chewing Tobacco
• Electronic cigarettes
• Nicotine gum and patches
• Marijuana

When you apply for life insurance, questions are asked about tobacco and drug use. Whatever answers you give will be confirmed with a medical exam. An insurance medical exam includes both a urine and blood test, both of which can reveal traces of nicotine and THC (the chemical in marijuana.)

Price difference between smoker and non-smoker?

The life insurance price difference when comparing smoker rates to non-smoker rates is pretty significant. For the average 40-year old male who does not smoke and is in good health, a 20-year $200,000 term life insurance policy is about $22 per month. This same policy for a 40-year old male in good health but does smoke is about $54 per month. While that is still a reasonable cost to protect your loved ones, it is more than double that of a non-smoker.

Whether you smoke and how much you smoke puts you into a “risk class” that determines your premium amount. Risk classes are determined during the underwriting process.   Underwriting is when the life insurance company assesses the risk of insuring you.

Risk classes for non-smokers applying for life insurance are typically:

• Preferred Best: Applicants are in excellent health and do not participate in high-risk activities, and have a clean family medical history.
• Preferred: Applicants are in very good health with a few minor health issues.
• Standard: Applicants are in good health but have some issues whether they are health, lifestyle, or family history related.
• Sub-Standard (normally categorized into “Table” classes): Applicants are in a state of health with one or more chronic illness or they regularly participate in high-risk activities.

Risk classes for smokers applying for life insurance are typically:

• Preferred Smoker: Applicant uses tobacco products, but otherwise is in excellent health.
• Standard Smoker: Applicant is in less than perfect health and regularly smokes or uses a tobacco product.

While it’s next to impossible to obtain non-smoker rates if you smoke cigarettes, there are instances in which you can get non-smoker rates if you use the other products.

Cigars

If you are an occasional cigar smoker, which most insurance companies consider this to be one cigar a month or less, you may qualify for non-smoker insurance rates. You may also qualify for non-smoker rates if you don’t inhale when you smoke cigars, which is typical. In both these cases, the urine samples you give during your medical exam would need to come back with little to no trace of nicotine. If you are the one-cigar-a-month-or-less user, it is important to schedule your medical exam thoughtfully. You may not want to schedule your exam for the morning after the annual poker party.

Pipes

Some life insurance companies feel that smoking a pipe does not carry the same health risks as other tobacco use and will rate applicants as non-smokers no matter how often you smoke a pipe. Other life insurance companies will give you non-smoker rates if you pipe smoke only as long as no nicotine is detected in your urine test, which means you aren’t a daily smoker since cotinine usually takes 1-3 days to leave your system. And then there are the life insurance companies that will automatically give you smoker rates if you smoke a pipe. It really varies by company, so it’s important to work with a life insurance agency that is familiar with the workings of different life insurance carriers.

Chewing Tobacco

While some insurance carriers will issue smoker rates for chewing tobacco use, there are some that do not have any problem with it. The qualifications for non-smoker rates for chewing tobacco use vary by carrier. While some will issue non-smoker rates for chew use as long as no cotinine shows up in the urine test, others will issue even if it does test positive.

E-Cigarettes

The FDA has not formally endorsed e-cigarettes as a safer alternative to cigarettes, but they are generally considered safer than tobacco products because they don’t burn and it’s the tobacco smoke that is most harmful. However, the product has not been around long enough for in-depth research on the long-term effects and the life insurance industry rates the usage accordingly.

If the life insurance company sees nicotine in the medical exam findings, the applicant typically will be classified as a tobacco user. There are nicotine-free e-cigarettes cartridges, but at this time the life insurance industry is still hesitant on ruling them out of the smoker class. Because of insufficient evidence, the industry does not know if vapor inhalation from e-cigarettes causes health problems or not. However, some insurance companies will give non-smoking rates to those who use vapor-based e-cigarettes versus heat-based.

If you have been using e-cigarettes to quit smoking and no longer smoke regular cigarettes and also rarely use e-cigarettes, disclose in your application that you seldom use them. If no traces of nicotine show up in your urine sample, there is a chance you would be qualified for non-smoker life insurance rates.

If you have quit smoking altogether, including using e-cigarettes, after you have already purchased life insurance, you should inform your insurance carrier. If you have been smoke-free for at least 12 months, there is a good chance your premium costs would decrease. Your age does come into play when you reapply though so the sooner you quit the better your chances of cheaper life insurance.

Nicotine Gum and Patches

Are you using cessation products to quit smoking? These products may include gum, lozenges, patches, and e-cigarettes. Because there is nicotine in these products, some life insurance companies will still classify you as a smoker even if you don’t actually smoke anything. The use of these products will cause cotinine to show up in your urine test which would be enough for the carrier to issue you smoker rates.

To be offered non-smoker rates, you have to be cigarette-free for at least 12 months. Let’s say you have been using a cessation gum to quit smoking, but you have only been cigarette-free for 5 months. Even though you currently do not smoke, you will still get the smoker-rate because it has not yet been at least 12 months. However, if you have been cigarette-free for at least a year and still, for example, chew Nicorette Gum daily there are insurance carriers who will offer you non-smoker pricing.

While one company may give non-smoker rates to gum and e-cigarettes, another company may only give non-smoker rates to gum. These examples are why it is very important for you to be very detailed about your tobacco and nicotine product use on your life insurance application.

Marijuana

Now, marijuana use is a horse of a different color. Right now, how insurance companies rate marijuana use is all over the map. Some carriers will outright deny you coverage because they consider marijuana a serious drug and your regular use puts you at risk. Others are more than willing to offer coverage, depending on certain qualifications. If you smoke marijuana only once or twice a year, it is possible that a carrier would offer you their best non-smoker rating. Others may give you a smoker-rate for this. Regular marijuana use is typically given a smoker-rate, but you can definitely still get life insurance coverage.

The reason you use marijuana can also affect how the insurers rate you. Most will rate differently for medical versus recreational use. For medical marijuana use, there are some carriers that will even narrow it down to serious versus not-so-serious conditions, such as marijuana for glaucoma versus marijuana for back pain. In the serious medical condition cases, the company may just underwrite the condition and not the marijuana use. It really varies per company.

As you can see, working with a life insurance agency is really the surefire way to get the best coverage possible. Using an online life insurance company like Quotacy ensures your case is being taken on by professionals who know the little idiosyncrasies of each life insurance carrier. They will know the right carriers to shop your application at. Life insurance will provide you with peace of mind knowing that your family will be financially secure in the event of your death. See how little it will cost by getting a free and anonymous term life insurance quote today.

Do you have a term life insurance policy in place? Did tobacco use affect your rate?

Natasha is the Marketing and Social Media Coordinator for Quotacy, an online life insurance agency for the modern consumer. When not at work, you can typically find her volunteering at the local Animal Humane Society or curled up on her couch watching Netflix… unless it’s football season, then the Packers game will be on. You can connect with Natasha on LinkedIn.

How Tobacco and Marijuana Use Affects Life Insurance Rates is a post from: When Life Gives You Lemons. Did you like the post? Follow me on Twitter, like me on Facebook, or hop on over to my blog and leave me your feedback.

A Scratch Aide is a must have in every home, especially if you are hoping to make your furniture last as long as possible to help you save money.

A Scratch Aide repairs scratches on various wood surfaces. For example, if you have old pieces of furniture that you have put away in your garage because of unsightly cracks or scratches, this product can help you restore them. The best part is that it’s available in an easy to use bottle. All you have to do is apply the product directly on the affected wood surface.

How it Works

Scratch Aide is a clear solution that absorbs the color of the piece of wood you want to repair. The fluid will dry up inside the crack, making the surface look as good as new. This means that it will only take a few seconds for the scratches on the surface to disappear.

One of the best things about this product is that it can work on gouged, cracked or cut surfaces. When you purchase Scratch Aide, you get two products, a scratch mender and wood butter. The wood butter is used first on the affected surface if it has some deep damage.

Benefits of a Scratch Aide

• One of the main advantages of using this product is that it will not stain your wooden surfaces. This is a significant concern when you are trying to repair wooden items. It will take up the natural color of the surface you are repairing.
• This easy to use fluid comes in a squeezable container.
• It also comes with a spatula, to make it easy for you to spread the wood butter on damaged surfaces.
• You get a microfiber mitt as well and this allows you to handle the substance without creating a mess. You will not need gloves when using this substance.
• This product offers an instant solution. All the gouges and scratches will be removed instantly.
• This versatile solution can be used on various surfaces including wood panels, shelves, furniture, doors, and floors. It works on coarse and fine grain and light and dark woods.
• It is easily available and you can make a purchase through the manufacturer’s official site.
• Scratch Aide offers an affordable way for you to carry out repairs around your home. You can save significant amounts because you do not have to call in a professional to renovate your wooden items and surfaces.
• You will also get a guarantee when you make a purchase. This demonstrates that the product can be trusted to work.

Disadvantages

This scratch repair solution only works on wood and it will not be effective on other materials including glass, metal, and plastic. Other than that, there are not really any downsides to using Scratch Aide.

Scratches and cuts on wood items and surfaces can be very frustrating and replacing your wooden furniture or floor can be expensive and time consuming. Scratch Aide offers a simple and cost effective solution. You will not have to wait for several days to see the results and you can continue to use the floor or furniture immediately after the repairs. You will only need to purchase one product for all surfaces and wood colors and this makes it convenient. It also comes with clear directions that will leave your wooden items looking great for years to come!

Have you ever used Scratch Aide or a similar product to restore your wooden furniture?

Saving Money by Using a Scratch Aide is a post from: When Life Gives You Lemons. Did you like the post? Follow me on Twitter, like me on Facebook, or hop on over to my blog and leave me your feedback.

This post is written by Chris Huntley, who is a licensed life insurance agent in 48 states.  He is director of marketing at JRC Insurance Group and blogs about life insurance at www.InsuranceBlogByChris.com. 

Life insurance is without a doubt the most important financial safety net that every American household should buy.

The sudden loss of the main income earner could leave such a devastating financial hole that many households may not be able to cope.

Jeff Rose from Good Financial Cents points out that a staggering “35 million households don’t have any life insurance” AND, that “58 million households don’t have enough.”

If you fall into either of these vulnerable categories, and don’t know anything or very little about life insurance I’m going to give you a brief life insurance primer so you can financially protect your family.

Types of Life Insurance

There are two types of life insurance that you can buy:

• Term Insurance
• Permanent Insurance

Let’s look at each of these life insurance formats in more detail.

Term Insurance

Term insurance is the most common type of life insurance purchased today in the U.S. and is the most basic type of life insurance available. It is also the most affordable form of life insurance.

Although term insurance covers you for life, you buy it in periods of time such as 10, 15 or 30 years. Some companies sell policies which are age specific such as age 65, for example.

Term insurance pays out death benefits only. You select the amount of death benefits you need such as $500,000. You then choose the length of the term or period of time that you want the insurance to cover.

Most people don’t know that there are three types of term insurance available:

Level Term – The most common type of policy that you see advertised. You pay a specific premium for a specific period of time and amount of coverage (death benefits).

Decreasing Term – This simply means that your premiums remain the same but the amount of coverage will diminish at various time increments throughout the term of the policy. This is an ideal policy to buy to cover your mortgage.

Increasing Term — With this type of policy, both your death benefits and your premium will increase at certain time increments during the life of the term. This can be a good policy for young families starting out and who are on a budget.

Permanent Insurance

This form insurance is more complicated and more expensive to buy. These types of policies cover you for your entire lifespan. They provide not only death benefits like term insurance, but also provide a cash value accumulation feature which grows through the life of the policy.

The types of permanent policies available include:

• Universal Life
• Indexed Universal Life
• Whole Life
• Variable Life

These polices should only be discussed in more detail with an experienced independent insurance agent and can be ideal for those with complex estates, tax issues or are earning higher incomes.

How Much Does Life Insurance Cost?

First, let me point out that life insurance becomes increasingly more expensive to buy as you age. Along with advanced age you may also incur health issues that can also affect the cost of what you pay.

Here’s a few sample quotes for a 30 Year Term Life Insurance Policy — “Preferred — Non-Smoker” – $500,000 Death Benefits.

Age 25 – $40.18 / Month

Age 35 – $39.25 / Month

Age 45 – $107.50 / Month

Age 55 – $301.20 / Month

Tips on Buying Life Insurance

Here are a few handy money saving tips to keep in mind when buying life insurance.

Tip 1 – Always Use an Independent Agent

Although you can buy direct from a life insurance company or a company agent, your best bet to get the best coverage at the most affordable rates is through an independent life insurance agent.

Why?

The reason is because independent agents have access to dozens of life insurers so they can not only perform the comparison shopping for you, they also know which companies are more lenient when it comes to certain health issues.

Tip 2 – Don’t Buy Life Insurance through your Employer

If you are healthy, you are better off buying through an independent agent because you will get a better rate. Also, keep in mind that when you leave your employ, your life insurance coverage is terminated.

If you have health issues, group insurance through an employer can be a good route to go as you will almost certainly be approved for coverage.

Tip 3 – Avoid No Exam Policies if you are Healthy

You see these advertisements everywhere. They are convenient but one thing the advertisers fail to mention is that these policies are considerably more expensive than those which do require a medical exam.

These policies are more commonly known as “Guaranteed Issue.” They can be useful if you hate needles, have health issues, or need a policy fast such as if you need life insurance to cover a business loan.

Whatever you decide, start the life insurance process today and don’t leave you family vulnerable.

Life Insurance 101 — Cost, Types and Helpful Tips is a post from: When Life Gives You Lemons. Did you like the post? Follow me on Twitter, like me on Facebook, or hop on over to my blog and leave me your feedback.

What does your to-do list look like?

Nice and long?

Mine too.

It’s got laundry and dishes and filing and getting rid of a bunch of old clothes on it.  There’s people to email and trips to plan (fun parts!), and on and on.  On top of those regular tasks, there are a myriad of side hustle to-dos.  My side hustle is blogging.

The problem I find with blogging is that the list grows at a faster rate than I can get through it.  There are side bar image buttons to create, posts to write, advertisements to tweak, people to email, new projects to start, virtual assistants to pay, pages to update, images to make, links to add, social media to schedule, and more and more.  As soon as one little project gets crossed off of the list, I have identified or thought of a dozen more!

Other Side Hustles

With many side hustles, AKA ways to bring in extra dough beyond your main job, there is a very clear “X for X dollars” relationship.

Deliver pizzas?  You will be paid an hourly rate plus tips.

Work as a brand ambassador?  There’s an hourly rate or an event rate. 

Sell Tupperware?  You get a set commission.

Mystery shop?  Your experience is reimbursed and sometimes you make more beyond that.

Write freelance articles?  The terms are established; you provide a piece of work and in return receive payment.

That’s where freelance writing differs substantially from blogging – you know what and when you’re going to get paid!  With blogging, you have no idea what any particular piece of writing will bring in.  Unless, of course, it is a review or sponsored post. 

Heartbreaking Side Hustling

It is frustratingly common to pour your heart into a piece only for it to receive minimal love, as measured in page views and comments.  There are also posts you write that provide awesome content, beautifully packaged with affiliate links to products you love, and no one bites.  Other times, the thing you threw together in half an hour takes off. 

It often feels like rolling the dice for this side hustle.  No matter your superstitions, the blowing on the dice, the prep work, it’s all a matter of luck.  That is a stretch, of course, but it certainly feels that way some days!

All of this is to say, that the idea of “pump out a blog and get rich from the Internet” is a big ‘ol mirage. So, why do I persist with blogging as a side hustle?  It’s a tough side hustle.

Why Persist with a Tough Side Hustle?

For the words! For the chance to put my story and my ideas out there and find out that others relate to me.  For the reader emails, rare as they may be, saying that something touched them or caused them to take action, or they are relieved to know that someone else has experienced the same thing.

There is also the ability to go to any computer and pull up your site and know that you made it. There is a pride in that, having a finished product to call your own.  Getting to that point is a challenge, even if it is for a side hustle.

Pushing Yourself

Therein lies another benefit to persisting with blogging, the skills.  If we were to rewind two and a half years, I knew nearly nothing about the online world. Sure, I understood that there was writing to do and that some people had sites that looked better than others. There were people who were obviously more successful at this whole blogging thing than others, that was apparent enough.

But good golly was there a lot to learn, and there is still a ton to learn!  Just like with the to-do list, the to-learn list grows at a rapid pace.  I should know more about Google Adsense, Google Analytics, CSS, Facebook marketing, eStores, and a host of other platforms, plugins and programs.

Back to the beginning, though, I had to learn about cPanels, installing wordpress, choosing a host, changing nameservers, setting up social profiles I had never had before, how to drive traffic, how to network with other bloggers, how to add a tracking code to the HTML header of my site, SEO, pick logos, and more and more and more. 

Unfortunately, with blogging as a side hustle, a large portion of the learning is right at the beginning, making the whole process rather intimidating. After the first site, you have a vague idea of how to get things up and going, but there are certain things that you never touch again. 

Blogging for a Second Time

That’s where I ran into difficulties with Money Propeller, my personal finance site.  Sure, I “knew what I was doing” but boy oh boy did I go about it in an inefficient manner!  I started off alright, sure, but I kept discovering that I was missing steps.  It got to a point that I was so frustrated, I thought to myself, “I really need a start up checklist, of all of the steps, in the right order.” 

That thought stuck with me, especially when I went to make more sites, for non-profit groups I am in, for my brother’s Christmas present, and for future projects that I have up my sleeve.  So, I started to write them down.

Then, I asked a blogging friend of mine, Kathleen, if she wanted to help me write a book around this checklist and side hustle.  Kathleen also has a penchant for buying new domain names and had faced the same challenges.  In fact, between the two of us, we have started up 20 different sites, and counting!  We knew there was a faster way to do it, than bumbling through and fixing things as we went.  With both of us, and some test sites, we wrote everything down, to share it with the world.  That’s how we came to write our first book, called On Your Mark, Get Set, Blog!

It’s a road map to staking your brand quickly and efficiently, whether it’s your first blog or your 101st.

Get your blog and your brand set up, in order, so that you have a solid foundation, with no scrambling around for accounts.  AKA, benefit from our bumbling, and get yourself off to the blogging races with a sprint start in your side hustle.

Why I Persist Even Though Blogging is a Tough Side Hustle

Why do I do this, even though it takes a ton of time and sometimes money?  Even though there are emotional upsets and stress I bring on myself?

For the words!  For the chance to put my story out there.  For all the skills I’ve developed and friends I have made along the way.

Anne dreams of financial independence and is working her way toward it, whilst still enjoying life. She also loves money (who doesn’t?) and needed an outlet to discuss it, so she started blogging at Money Propeller. Getting that site up and running was an adventure that caused her to coauthor On Your Mark, Get Set, Blog! so that others would be off to the races with a side hustle a lot more quickly than her.

How Blogging is a Tough Side Hustle is a post from: When Life Gives You Lemons. Did you like the post? Follow me on Twitter, like me on Facebook, or hop on over to my blog and leave me your feedback.