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Browsing posts in: Money & Relationships
Sep 28, 2023    |      1 comment

Oh Dear, We Hit a Deer

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We hit a deer

We’re careful drivers and go slowly on our country roads at night. In the three years we’ve lived out in the sticks, we’ve never hit a deer. But last night we were unlucky. A deer darted out into the road so fast that we didn’t see it coming, so we smashed right into it. Thankfully we didn’t sustain any injuries, and it didn’t seem like the deer was hurt too badly because it kept on running. 

We were only two minutes away from home, but we pulled into the nearest driveway after we heard the loud thud, expecting our bumper to be toast. Luckily the body of the car didn’t seem to be damaged. Our headlight was smashed pretty badly though, and our car started making a squeaking noise during turns. We suspect it’s either a problem with the wheel assembly or the steering column, but we won’t know until we bring it to our preferred car mechanic, who can’t see us until tomorrow. 

Our neighbors came down the driveway to make sure we were ok. Apparently, the deer had been hanging out in their yard and got spooked by their pomeranian, which is why it darted out into the road so fast. This incident has really made me think twice about driving at night. We’ve had a few close calls with deer, but we’ve always had enough warning to hit the brakes and avoid an accident. This time the deer was running so fast that I didn’t even see it and thought we had hit something on the road itself. 

The Financial Side of the Accident

We don’t know exactly what’s wrong with the car yet, but I’m anticipating that the repairs will cost at least a couple hundred dollars. We have comprehensive insurance coverage, so filing a claim for this shouldn’t cause our insurance premiums to increase. However, the deductible is pretty steep at $500, so this is going to be an expensive trip to the mechanic even though we have coverage for deer accidents. 

Although the body of the car looks okay to the naked eye, I’m sure there may be damage we aren’t seeing. After all, we aren’t car experts. If the car is totaled, my understanding is that the insurance company will pay out the cash value of the car minus our deductible. However, our car is only worth about $4,000. Luckily we have around $14,000 in savings in our car replacement fund. We were able to pad this account a bit more thanks to some bonuses my partner got after my last car replacement fund update. 

You Never Know What’s Going to Happen

This accident has shown me that you never know what’s going to happen, so you have to be financially prepared for the unexpected. Even if you plan to drive your vehicle until the wheels fall off, you can hit a deer two miles from home and total your car. We’re lucky that we weren’t injured and we’re in a decent financial position to be able to replace this car if needed. But if this accident had happened a year or two ago when we didn’t have a solid car replacement fund saved up, we would’ve been in trouble. 

I’m definitely going to make savings more of a priority going forward. This accident has hit home the importance of liquidity. If most of your money is tied up in home equity or retirement accounts where you can’t access it in an emergency, you can easily go into debt or drain your emergency fund due to incidents like this one. 

Have you ever hit a deer? How did it impact your finances? 

Read More 

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Sep 27, 2023    |      0 comments

4 Benefits of Choosing Private Education for Your Child

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Getting a good education is one of the most important things in life. It can help shape the future and make it possible to make a lot of money, therefore giving access to a comfortable lifestyle. If you’re a parent and you’re wondering whether to take your child to a private school or a public school, read on. You’ll see four of the benefits that you can offer them when you choose a private education. These benefits could end up making private education one of the most worthwhile investments you can make in your family.

1. They’ll Access More Extra-Curricular Activities

When you send your child to private school, they may have access to many more extra-curricular activities than they’d have had in public school. These will differ from one private school to another, given the fact that these details are usually decided by the founders of the school. You should therefore search for a private school that offers the activities that you feel would best suit your child. With more than 30,000 private schools in America, according to CAPE, this shouldn’t be too hard for you to do. With access to these activities, you can be sure that your child will enjoy a more enriched education in general.

2. They’ll Have a Better Chance of Going to College

Students from private schools have a higher chance of attending college than their peers from public schools. This is a great reason for you to put your child in a good private school. More incentive for you to do this is based on the fact that if they excel, they may be given a grant or scholarship and therefore save you money. Private schools are quite likely to have organizations and bodies governing them to help ensure that their students attain the best results. For instance, the NSC was founded in 1931 by the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP), reflecting the profound commitment of school leaders to student leadership development, according to the National Student Council website.

3. Parental Involvement Is Prioritized

In private schools, parental involvement is made easier, with more opportunities given to parents to take part in their children’s education. This is a positive thing since the more that a parent is involved in their child’s education, the better the chances that the student will excel. This is an important consideration to make because sometimes, a parent may have to juggle a number of things in order to play an active role in their child’s education.

This is true for all parents, but especially parents who may be going through a divorce. Speaking of divorce, note that it’s possible to get a divorce in Pennsylvania in as few as 90 days from the time that the complaint is filed and served if it’s uncontested. If you can get the chance to take part in your children’s education, you’re soon going to see the benefits of doing so.

4. The Environment in Private Schools Can be Safer

Finally, private schools offer a much safer environment. This is in part a result of the smaller student populations in private schools. The staff in private schools are also put through a rigorous process before they get hired, and this means that they’re competent in ensuring each student’s safety. If a student bullies their fellow students, they may be identified a lot faster and the appropriate action was taken on them. This means that you’re less likely to hear cases of bullying in private schools.

These benefits should motivate you to choose a private education for your child. Doing so is sure to work out well for them in the future. That said, take time to find the right private school so that you can be sure your child is in the best school environment as far as you can help it.

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