Hardly a day goes by without a call or direct mail piece from a charitable organization wanting money. All sound like worthy causes, but how can you really know if your money is being put to good use? The answer is to check out the Better Business Bureau, which has a list of charities and a variety of information that you can use to determine if you’d like to support the cause. Not only can you learn more about the organization, its services and history, but you can see what percentage of monies are used towards the cause, and whether or not it meets the BBB’s Standards of Charity Accountability. The BBB offers a resource library with information on make the most of your charity giving and if you’ve had a problem with a charity you can file a complaint.


To learn more, visit the Better Business Bureau’s Charity information.

If you run a small business, keeping your receipts organized and accessible helps make tax time easier. And with estimated tax payments coming up soon, now is a good time to check out Shoeboxed.com, where you can mail-in or upload your receipts to organize them and get rid of clutter. The information can then be transferred to programs such as Excel, Quickbooks, Freshbooks, Evernote, Quicken, and CSV formats. If you scan and upload your receipts yourself, there is a free option. Or if you’d like to mail your receipts for scanning or use one of the mobile photo capture and upload options, there is a fee depending on how many receipts a month you upload. There is even an option to upload business cards.

To learn more or sign up for a free trial, check out ShoeBoxed.com.  Also check out ShoeBoxed’s blog for great articles on personal finance, taxes and more.

Do you lay wake at night wondering how much you should be saving in order to pay for your child’s college education? Well you’re in luck because over at SavingForCollege.com you can use it’s World’s Simplist College Cost Calculator to find out.

Simply enter your child’s age and you’ll get results. You can modify those results based on your expected annual college costs (default is $25,000), number of years your child has left in high school, what percentage of college costs you plan to pay, and how much you already have saved.

Visit the World’s Simplist College Cost Calculator for more information.

In today’s challenging economy, any resource that can save you up to 50% is worth checking out. Most people think of gift cards as … well…gifts. But if you can get them from retailers you often shop from at a discounted price, they are a great resource for frugal shopping.

GiftCardGranny has partnered with resources such as eBay.com, Plastic Jungle, and Giftcards.com to bring you a one-stop resources for saving up to 50% off card value on gift cards. For example, today (5/10/10)  it has a $50 Wal-Mart card for only $34 (32% off). If you’re a regular Wal-Mart shopper, that’s a pretty good deal.

The list of participating retailers is extensive and includes Target, Barnes and Noble, Lowes, Kohls, Papa John’s and more.

Visit GiftCardGranny.com to learn more or get your discounted cards.

Today, you can’t be too careful about your money. While stocks haven’t done so well in the last couple of years, financial experts report that in the long run stocks are one of the best investment options.

If you want to learn about stocks and investing, check out WallStreetSurvivor.com where you can invest a fictional $100,000 to buy and trade stocks in real-time. While you won’t actually make money, you won’t lose it either. However, depending on well you do, you can earn prizes.

Its free to join and you’ll find lots of the helpful tool such as research resources, beginners’ tips, and more. Visit WallStreetSurvivor.com to learn more.

If you’re on a budget, here’s a great freebie to help you track your spending and savings. The 2010 Savings Tracker will help you:

Easily input your monthly and yearly goals

Enter data from your receipts and let my preset formulas tally your spending, savings, actual-to-budget, and more

Track and manage your rebates (NEW!)

Determine how much you saved with coupons, store sales, and rebates

Have your monthly and year-to-date savings ratio update instantly

You do need to have a basic knowledge of Excel according to the creator of the savings tracker.  She offers both Excel 2007 and Excel 1997-2003 versions.

Download the 2010 Savings Tracker here!

One of the great things about the Internet is the ability to research great deals on everything you need. The trick is to sort through thousands of resources to find the deals you want and need. Over at Wise Bread, they have made the deal finding a little bit easier. On its Deals Roundup page, Wise Bread lists the day’s best deals, coupons and freebies from the best bargain sites on the web.

Need help keeping all your account organized, understanding your money, and tips to better money management? Mint.com offers a free online budget service that will help you set up and track your budget based on  your monthly spending. It can also email you your current balances, suggestions for changes you may want to make in your budget, and bill reminders.

To learn more, visit Mint.com.