Check out the 5 financial tips for the first week of August 2012.

Tip no 1 - When in college, avoid non-academic debt.

Tuition fees are expensive. You have to take out student loans to meet the education cost. You have to pay off the student loan debt within a certain time period. So, don't increase your debt load on non-academic activities. Try to avoid unnecessary expenses on food, lodging, parties, etc. Rather, make attempts to curtail your expenses on non-academic activities. Save as much money as possible and use it to pay off your student loan. This may help you lead a debt free life after graduating from college.

Tip no 2 - Buy things only what you require and do not waste money by purchasing anything extra.

It is easy to be tempted to buy all the things from the departmental store. You can just whip your credit card and even purchase all the things. This may give you short-term mental satisfaction, but in the long term you'll face financial problems. First of all, you won't be using all the items. This means that it will be a total waste of money. Secondly, you'll be getting huge credit card bill at the end of the month. You'll have to pay the bill at the end of the month. If you're unable to repay the bill by any chance, then the credit card company will impose additional interest rate and fee upon you.

Tip no 3 - Take full advantage of Extended Payment Plans (EPPs) offered by some short term lenders.

Extended payment plans are offered by payday loan lenders in certain states. These plans are especially available to the people who can't repay loans within the due date. In an extended payment plan, you'll be allowed to pay off your payday loans in 4 installments. You'll not be required to pay additional interests or fees. Keep it mind that you can take advantage of this plan only if the payday loan lender is an active member of Community Financial Services Association.

Tip no 4 - Teach children about money matters from childhood so that they understand the importance of money and spend it wisely.

Childhood is best time to inculcate good money habits. It is the time to teach the art of giving, saving and spending. Explain why they should save and spend money. Teach them the importance of donating money to charities. You can relate practical examples to them if required. This may help them to understand the value of money in a better way. Give them monthly allowance so that they learn to manage money gradually. They'll make mistake but you can help them to rectify it. This will prevent them from making bigger mistakes in life.

Tip no 5 - Use the budgeting tool to increase the value of the life you live, not to deprive yourself of the good things in life.

Life is precious. Use a personal budgeting tool to raise the value of your life. It is true that you have to curtail your expenditures when you're following a budget. However, this doesn't mean that you've to give up all the good things in life. All you need to do is reduce your expenses on the unnecessary things in life. You can buy what you need. You just need to stop spending on the things which are useless.

In fact, if you're able to follow budget in a specific month, reward yourself with something which you cherish in life. For instance, you can buy a thing which you've always desired in life.