Is paying off the homeless people the answer? : The Saturday Weekend Review #69

FINDING A NEW PLACE TO LIVE

 

Poverty and homelessness is a huge problem around the world but paying off the homeless people might not be the answer.

Money especially in a big dose when you have none likely will be short-lived.

The problems of being homeless will not be solved because the causes for homelessness are not being tackled.

I was reading an article about the city of Albany in California who is going to give 28 homeless people $3000 to move out of living in what looks like a field to settle a lawsuit. It’s actually what used to be a landfill.

What they want to do is turn the space into a regional park but they must first have all the homeless people vacate the premises. Money is the key, so they think. Although we may think money can buy us everything not all of those homeless people may be inspired to move for $3000.

 

Poverty

 

What is poverty?

Everyone will define poverty based on personal experience, others experience or from what they read or think poverty is. The truth is poverty means that someone doesn’t have the necessities of life or the money to sustain those necessities.

They may struggle to put food on the table, pay rent, buy clothes and if they can afford it they are limited on where they can shop and how much to spend.

Poverty may mean that you wait at the soup kitchen for food or you sleep at a shelter. It really depends but overall money is the key factor and why it may be exciting to get such an offer of $3000 to move like the homeless people in the USA.

Poverty statistics differ depending on where you live but for the most part you can bet there is poverty everywhere around the world. Why are people homeless? Good question and to be honest I think it differs from person to person because each situation is unique.

I’d be lying if I could tell you all the answers because I’m not qualified but I know that when the money runs out there’s not much left to stand on but the ground you walk on.

It’s easy to point fingers at the poor like I mentioned in an earlier post “Do we ignore the poor people” but even poor children suffer because they are too young to understand what is happening. What many do know is that they are different from others but only from a monetary standpoint because we are all human.

 

Homeless people

 

Many of my fans expressed that they would rather give to charities for the poor rather than hand over money to homeless people. I can see where they are coming from because again the problem is not solved.

The homeless people who do accept the $3000 payment from the city may have to move their outdoor home to another place but that just means homelessness continues. Albany is working to place people in permanent homes and so far successfully placed 14 people, but for how long? The money will only go so far for those not accepting the help and when you have nothing it won’t last too long.

One comment I read mentioned that in L.A California they have a multi-million dollar property that accepts homeless people so they can help them get back on their feet.

There are rules that come with living at the facility and apparently many homeless people don’t want to live by any rules so they opt out. I thought it was a brilliant idea if they help them to understand finance, get a job, write a resume, etc.

The rules from what I briefly read was no alcohol, drugs etc. which is understandable. I’m sure there are plenty other rules but thus life. If you want help then take it because behind every closed-door is an opportunity if you are willing to accept it. It may not be the opportunity of a lifetime but it may be a start or a step up from where you were.

I’m not too familiar with homeless problems in Canada but my wife did tell me that she was first introduced to homeless people when she moved to a bigger city to go to school. This was a bit of a culture shock for a young lady who had only seen homeless people on TV or read about it in books.

She was scared she said when she walked downtown alone but realized there was nothing to be scared about. Most times she was never bothered but she often wondered if someone encouraged or motivated the homeless people to believe there was hope and a better life that things could be different. Sometimes many just wanted to have a conversation about life with her.

Homeless people are everywhere and although you might not be able to tell they are homeless it’s important to recognize that it does exist and that something needs to be done. Just remember one thing, we are human and all born the same way, with feelings.

Are you aware of homeless people where you live? Do you think with Albany paying the homeless people to move will solve the problem? If not what do you think should be done?

 

CBB at Home and Blog

 

Well I managed to finally get the winter tires swapped off and changed the rotors on the front tires which needed to get done. They were worse than I thought.

It’s cheaper to do the work yourself as long as you know what you are doing. I also managed to get the interior and exterior professionally cleaned which I like to do at least every other year.

The year prior the snow and salt wasn’t so bad so I cleaned the interior on my own. This year I had a coupon for $20 off but it still cost me $119.00 plus tax minus the coupon but worth it in the end as the vehicle looks and smells like new.

I also managed to get the rake through the front lawn so I could take any dead grass and other bits out. I’ve actually had to water the front lawn as it went a bit dry but with all the rain this weekend I should be good for a bit. Since I put in all new turf last fall I want to make sure I take proper care of our lawn so it’s the envy of the neighbourhood haha, no weeds and dark green. I’ll do it… I have the patience!

I have yet to tackle the back yard but I’ll get there as I also have to do a minor fence repair with the lovely free fence post I found on the curb last summer. Thanks neighbour! It still had the price tag on it as well, lol. I can’t wait to see what we find for free on the curb this year. I already spotted a bbq up the road likely because they bought a new up to date model. I bet it still works although we don’t need one.

What I did notice in the back garden was that the spring onions are well alive and kicking as well as the rhubarb which is no surprise because it gives us the best crops year after year. I also noticed our chives are sprouting like mad again and I can actually start using them they are very tall and ready to be cut.

Other than that, I’ll be working on the outside of the house as much as I can in the upcoming weeks. We also purchased new lights for our hallway and upper landing which I installed the past week. To say, finally is an understatement because we are horrible at decision-making when it comes to buying things for the house. It takes us forever but now the lights are up and we love them. We also managed to get them on sale which was a bonus!

Not too much happening at the blog although it’s nice to see more personal finance bloggers coming around to comment as well as new fans. I really do appreciate when I know that people do read the posts and take the time to comment. I know I read many blogs every day so I spread my commenting love as much as I can.

That’s all for now… have a great week everyone.

-Mr.CBB

 

Weekly CBB posts

 

If you missed any CBB posts from the week here is the list of posts you can catch up on reading!

• How to be your own money manager
• How to create flower beds for your home
• Are aftermarket accessories for your vehicle worth it?
• Why some people hate the grocery store
• Easter chick tarts
• Do you hold an Easter egg hunt?
• Would you quit your job to travel the world for free?

 

Fan deals and inspirations

 

 

Submit your Brag or Inspiration If you have a brag that you want me to share email me at canadianbudgetbinder (@) [yahoo] [.ca] or fill out my contact form by Friday each week to have your brag considered for the Saturday post.

Today Canadian Budget Binder fan Angela shares some budget saving deals she found this past week with us.  Those are some amazing deals Angela…. great find!!

Dear Mr. CBB,

Our local RCSS had an overstock of creamer. As a result, they reduced it to super clearance prices. The expiry is almost 6 weeks away! We’re big coffee drinkers and cream is a huge luxury, so this was an exciting find. We plan on freezing 2 of the cartons for smoothies as well.

 

• 5 x 500ml half and half at 25 cents a piece
• 7 x 500ml light at 25 cents a piece
• Total $3.50

 

Making a difference

 

If you know a personal finance blogger that is making a difference and want to nominate them please send me an email canadianbudgetbinder (@) yahoo.ca so I can reach out to them for a feature story.

Note: If you are a blogger who gives back and would like to be featured by all means get in touch with me as I am filling spots up for the rest of 2014 and they are going quickly.

Mr.CBB and Fans,

This week we’ll feature a different kind of money blog called Financial Debauchery.

We can say “different” because Financial Debauchery does something that most other personal finance blogs don’t do. Rather than talking about all of our accomplishments or how much side income we’re making, we talk about all the mistakes and dumb things that sometimes go wrong with money.  And we do it with humor and sarcasm.

Here’s a few of the blog post titles that describe just what we’re talking about:

• You Don’t Have Any Emergency Money? How Dare You!
• The 72 Month Auto Loan – A Great Way to Pay More For a Car Than You  Should!
• How Does It Feel to be Rich? Just Ask My Dog – He Knows!  And then some blog posts are just fun:
• Have you ever visited an ATM when you needed money and it didn’t work? How mad would you be if you visited it every day and it STILL didn’t work?
• Check out: Screw You Chase Bank ATMs! Why Do You Never Work?
• Remember Blockbuster? Yeah, they’re gone now.

If you read my blog post about the terrible customer service I used to get from them, you’ll see why I hate Blockbuster (and why they probably went out of business). Not everyone is perfect when it comes to money and we realize that.

That’s why we wanted to create a money blog where you can celebrate your mistakes in good company. So please stop by, read a post or two, and have a good laugh as we learn a thing or two about money.

 

What is a blog carnival?

 

Some fans have asked me “what is a blog carnival?” so a little explanation is due here for anyone reading for the first time or for my long-time fans.

A blog carnival is where a blog or website hosts what we call a carnival of blog posts from around the web. Most blog carnivals have a theme and certain rules for submitting which must be followed.

If you are a blogger and would like to learn what blog carnival directories I submit to each week you can find the information in a previous Saturday Weekend Review post that I wrote.

 

Carnival glory

 

A big thanks to these pages for accepting my blog posts and sharing them in the following carnivals and/or sharing my blog posts with their fans.

 

Carnivals

• Aspiring Blogger– Personal Finance Carnival
• The Value Geek– Carnival of Financial Camaraderie
• Your PFPro– Financial Carnival for Young Adults
• The Savvy Scot- Carnival of Retirement
• Reach Financial Independence– Yakeezie Carnival

Mentions

• How would a tax refund make your life brighter?– The Brighter Life
• My Own Advisor

 

Google search terms

 

Every week I get thousands of people visit Canadian Budget Binder because they did a search online and found my blog. Keep in mind any spelling errors below are because I share with you the exact way they typed their search engine query to land on my blog.

Here are a few of my favorite searches that may have even brought you here and you’re reading this, now.

• My house has been on the market for weeks and no offer– Time to lower the price or check how well the marketing of your house is according to other listings.  Ask your realtor what feedback you have got from anyone coming to open houses so you can fix any potential problems.
• I can’t afford to take any days off– Most people can’t and that’s a good reason to budget, pay down debt and have an emergency savings plan in place so you can afford to take days off.
• Be in two minds– That kind of scares me
• Boys. cooks. sexy. things– hmmm… weird thing to search.
• Why women love men with money– Do you really need to ask?
• I owe the CBB money– Bring it on! I’ll take it ha-ha!

 

That’s all for this week’s edition of The Saturday Weekend Review #69. Have a great week and catch me here again next Saturday with more updates.

-Mr.CBB

 

Are You New To Canadian Budget Binder?

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• NEW! My Ultimate Grocery Shopping Guide Canada!
• If you like FREE then click this link for my FREE Excel Budget Spreadsheet and all my Free Money Saving Lists!

 

Related articles

 

• The Saturday Weekend Review #60: How to lose your job with one dumb move
• The Saturday Weekend Review #61: Why you should teach your children respect
• The Saturday Weekend Review #62: Bounced cheque for Girl Guide cookies not so sweet
• The Saturday Weekend Review #63: What’s in your pockets?
• The Saturday Weekend Review #64: Walmart USA getting smarter with pricing
• The Saturday Weekend Review #65: Is customer service affected by the clothes you wear?
• The Saturday Weekend Review #66: What would you do if the ATM gave you extra money?
• The Saturday Weekend Review #67: Do we ignore the poor people?
• The Saturday Weekend Review #68: Do you hold an Easter egg hunt for the kids?

Photo Credit:freedigitalphotos.net/MantasRuzveltas

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