Sticking to a budget can be difficult, but with so many demands on your finances you have to be extra cautious. TV ads are constantly bombarding the airwaves with messages that you need to buy this or you must have that. Usually, if you just wait a week or two, the urge to buy that new gadget will pass. But, what should you do if you have already spent more than you have? The following are several real world ideas that can help you save real dollars.

First of all, consider refinancing high interest-rate loans and credit cards. Obviously you would like to pay as little interest as possible, sometimes by shopping around and transferring a balance to a low-interest rate card, you can save hundreds of dollars. Even better, if you can find a lower rate on your mortgage, you will be savings thousands of dollars. Just make sure to get your debts paid down as quickly as possible.

Secondly, change the deductible on your auto insurance to $500 or $1,000. This change can save you up to 40%. The insurance company will make money no matter what. If you file a claim they are likely to raise your rates to make up the difference so you end up paying no matter what. It makes sense to cover the first $500 or $1,000 yourself and enjoy a lower monthly premium in the meantime.

Another idea is to trim some small expenses. For example, if you get your haircut every 6 weeks, see if you can go 7 or 8 weeks instead. This will save you the cost of 1-2 cuts per year. Check out that book from the library instead of buying it. Try renting a video instead of going out to the movies. Purchase a ready-made meal at the grocery store instead of going out to eat. Be creative and see what little expenses you can trim that will add up to big savings over time.

Other ideas include clipping coupons, taking your lunch to work, carpooling (or walking, biking, or taking the bus), stop smoking, and finally just don't even open up that catalog. Toss them out immediately. If you peek inside you're bound to find something you like.

In order to make sure that you stay on track with your budget, it is important to know where you stand. To get an idea of how your spending compares to a typical budget and see where your money is going each month, take a minute to use the free budgeting tools available at 1. Review Your Credit Report For Errors.

After you have received a copy of your credit report, you need to look through it very closely. If you do not yet have a copy, TrimYourDebt.com has negotiated with one of the credit bureaus to offer consumers a free look at their credit report and credit score. It is a 30-day free trial offer, so you get the information right up-front and you can cancel free of charge within 30-days. To check your credit report for free, visit http://www.TrimYourDebt.com/GetYourCreditScore.aspx?src=art to find out now.

It is important to first review all the personal identifying information in your credit report such as name, address, social security number, birth date, and so on.

You should then evaluate each account that is reported about you to the credit bureau. Determine whether any of this information is in any way inaccurate, incorrect, erroneous, misleading, or outdated. If you find that any of the information in incorrect, then you should move on to the next step.

2. Dispute the errors with the credit bureaus and your creditors.

You should dispute inaccurate information with both the consumer credit reporting agency and the furnisher (creditor). Disputing with both allows you to cover all of your bases to ensure that the corrections are consistently made by both sources.

You should follow up with these companies to ensure that the inaccurate or incomplete information is removed in a timely manner. You should then continue to monitor your credit information on a regular basis by ordering and reviewing your consumer credit reports from the major credit reporting agencies on a regular basis.

3. Repeat until satisfied.

It is very important that each questionable item, except for erroneous personal data, is dealt with individually. If you attempt to have the credit reporting agency correct several items at once, it will be easier for the agency to claim that your request is frivolous or irrelevant. If they make this determination, then your requests to correct inaccuracies will be discarded.

Make sure that you use a clear and concise statement indicating that the accuracy or completeness of a specific item is "disputed" or "challenged". Remember that explanations of why an item might be derogatory will not help you, only actual disputes of specific items will get the results you need.

As soon as the credit reporting agency provides you with an updated credit report indicating that the disputed item has been removed from your report, you should send another letter challenging the next most damaging item. Repeat this process, until each and every disputed item has been deleted from your credit report.

If you would like more detailed information about repairing your credit history including sample dispute letters to send to the credit reporting agencies, you will find more details available at http://www.TrimYourDebt.com/CreditRepairGuide.aspx?src=art

Copyright © 2005 Don Blackhurst

About Don: Don Blackhurst has been working in the banking and finance industries for over 15 years and has an MBA with an emphasis in Finance. He is the co-founder of TrimYourDebt.com (http://www.TrimYourDebt.com), which provides free budgeting tools, debt planning, and credit help.