Champ Money

As the economy slows and the majority of American households look for areas to cut costs, gym memberships are an obvious “luxury” that can face the axe.

But, that’s no need to neglect your health.

With very affordable exercise bikes, weight and resistance equipment, you can easily replicate the workout that you’re paying for at the gym, in the privacy of your own home.

Look to make a longer term inevestment by purchasing your own exercise equipment, and rid yourself of those monthly dues.

There are still some contact lens wearers who have not made the switch to online “discount” contact lens retailers. These consumers are wasting money every time they open up a new pair of lenses.

While a certain amount of discretion should always be used when ordering any product online, all of the major online-only contact lens companies have earned a reputation over the years with their reliable cost-saving services. The lenses available from these companies are the exact same lenses available at local retailers and optometrists, but at significant cost savings.

If there’s one thing we love around here, it’s “free”. If something is free, we’re going to try it out, and we’re going to share it.

Another thing we love around here is our music.

So, as you might imagine – anything that’s free, and related to music, will get instant attention.

One such free music related service is from mSnack mobile video.

With mSnack, you can have free hip hop news videos delivered directly to your mobile phone, using SMS and MMS.

This is a great way to get all of the latest info and news about your favorite hip hop artists. It’s quick, it’s convenient, it’s easy, and best of all… It’s free!

The exciting news from the U.S Treasury Secretary this morning regarding steps that will soon be taken to combat the current financial crisis in the United States is a huge step in the right direction.

Even without all of the details of the plan, world markets surged on the news.

While there will be high monetary costs associated with this plan, the net result will be beneficial to markets around the world, American consumers, businesses, banks, and homeowners.

There will be many details to come in the following days, but there is a lot of positive energy with this plan to be excited about.

There are some current reports indicating that auto loans are becoming more difficult to get.

We don’t view this as a bad thing, but rather something that all consumers should be aware of, and prepared for.

Requiring car buyers to provide more money down, and that they have a better credit score, will protect the lenders as well as all consumers – as they will be less likely to have to pay for the unpaid loans of others.

Computer data is one of the most valuable assets of any business. Property, machinery, and even employees can be replaced with relative ease. But data which has been accumulated over vast amounts of time is irreplaceable.

As such, a proper disaster recovery plan is essential. The most trusted backups are done with quality tape drives, after which the tapes are stored offsite.

Tape backups have a proven history, and a much better track record than alternative backup methods.

Remember, panic selling is the worst possible scenario for your investments.

While it’s prudent to keep a close eye on your invested targets, if bankruptcy isn’t probable during their downward trend, then you’ll most likely be better off holding the stock long and waiting for recovery.

It’s no secret that many mortgage companies and banks have failed over the past year. It should also be no secret that there will likely be more before this crisis is over.

Don’t assume that your mortgage lender is above the fray. While there’s no need to panic, you absolutely should be saving all of your mortgage statements from this point forward. In the (hopefully) unlikely event that your mortgage company fails, you will want easy access to these records as your mortgage is transferred over to a new lender.

Most homes have multiple computers today, and they also have high speed internet access – usually either cable or DSL.

You can easily share that single Internet connection to all of your computers by setting up a simple home network. This is much easier than non-techies might think, starting with an inexpensive Linksys router and building outward, you’ll have a solid network with surprisingly little work.

It’s easy to find “how to” information for setting up home networks online, and this information is free. Pay special attention to information regarding security setup though – especially if you decide to set up a wireless network.

With the recent failures and near failures of major financial players, such as Merrill Lynch and Lehman Brothers, many people might be asking themselves if this might be an opportunity for some bottom dwelling of stocks.

Washington Mutual and AIG are a couple that come to mind – both stocks are in the dollar range at the time of this writing.

If either of these stocks bounce back, the investor could make a large amount of money. On the other hand, if they fail, everything will be lost.

Champ Money wont suggest that such high risk investments are a good move, but it’s time for a gut check. Are you willing to risk and all or nothing investment?