51 Smart Money Tips — How to stretch your bucks, pinch your pennies and make the most of 2006.

By Jack Gordon, Illustrations by Marie Lafrance

There are three basic things you can do with your money: Spend it, save it or share it with others. Seems simple enough. But the way you do these things can have a big impact on your bottom line.

We looked inside and outside the Thrivent Financial for Lutherans family to round up the best advice—both timely and time-tested—for successfully mastering "the big three."

1. Give It Up
Thrivent Financial's Simply Giving® program allows you to support Lutheran organizations such as your church or school via automatic deductions from your bank account. Among its many benefits, tithing "gives the church a dependable income stream instead of peaks and valleys; consistency is important in running any charity," says Thrivent Financial Consultant Nancy Murphy of Columbus, Indiana.

2. Got a Plan, Stan?
Don't give haphazardly. It's hard for your giving to match your goals when it's $10 here and $20 there. Construct an annual giving plan that maximizes the benefits for you and the causes you wish to serve.

3. Get Committed
According to The Wall Street Journal, annual savings rates for Americans have declined to less than 2 percent of disposable income, a reduction of nearly 10 percent from the 1980s. Commit to save more. Setting up an automatic deposit into a savings account is a great way to start.

4. Aim for the Black
The Wall Street Journal reports that consumer debt has increased 38 percent in the past five years. If you're in debt, see an expert. A Thrivent Financial representative can "help clients look at their goals and determine a plan to get where they want to be," says Thrivent Financial Consultant Dave Neunaber of Baltimore. And the meeting is free, to boot.

5. Don't Split Heirs
Get a will, medical directive and durable power of attorney drafted. An investment of approximately $500-$1,000 in legal fees today is a gift to your family, who won't have to face financial and emotional nightmares tomorrow.

6. Time Share
Volunteering—especially with young family members—is a strong antidote to today's consumer culture. It's a budget-friendly way to give back, and time spent helping others beats a trip to the mall any day.

7. Bread Spread
A January natural gas bill can be a budget buster. Ask your utility company about its budget plan, which typically allows consumers to pay a set monthly bill based on their median power usage. It costs nothing—and helps you avoid those "Yikes!" months.

8. Write a Fatter Check
Did you know that the annual federal gift-tax exclusion rose to $12,000 in 2006? This year, you can write a bigger check to your kids, friends or a total stranger, with no federal gift tax or estate tax implications whatsoever.

9. Sell Not
Don't sell stock and donate the proceeds to a charity. Sell an appreciated asset and capital gains and state taxes might take a whopping 25 percent, leaving less behind for charity. "If you donate the asset instead," says Thrivent Financial Consultant Dave Neunaber, "the charity gets the full value, and you get a twofold break: no capital gains tax and a charitable deduction."

10. Burn Less, Baby, Burn Less
To reduce energy consumption, consider replacing your old furnace, kitchen appliances and even light bulbs with products that bear the Energy Star label (see www.energystar.gov).

11. Fund Your Own Car Loan
Car loan paid off? Good for you. Now take the check you would be writing to that lender every month and put it in an interest-bearing account earmarked for your next car purchase.

12. Grace Under Pressure
Want to improve your fuel economy without paying a mechanic? Keep your tires inflated to the manufacturer's recommendation. It can save you several miles per gallon in fuel!

The Take-out Trap
13. Dining out should be a privilege, not a right. Take the time you would spend waiting for a table at "Mega Buffet" and go grocery shopping instead.

14. Bring coupons and buy generic, and you can slash in half what you're paying to feed your family.

15. A-new-ity
Want to donate assets to a church or charity today? Consider a charitable gift annuity established with an organization such as the Lutheran Community Foundation. In return, the organization guarantees you a certain income for life, generated from the interest (and, if necessary, the principal of your gift).

16. Don't Charge Fries
Fast food chains report that orders placed using a credit card are 50 percent higher than those placed by check or cash. Eat out with cash only. It's good for your bottom line and your waistline.

17. 'Aye' for an IRA
Are you retired with a big IRA balance, soon to be hit by income and estate taxes? Your heirs might get less than you think. Thrivent Financial Consultant Dave Neunaber recommends naming a charity as the beneficiary of the IRA and buying a wealth-replacement life insurance policy for the same amount, with your heirs as beneficiaries. Pay the premiums with distributions from the IRA. When you die, the charity gets more IRA money, and your heirs get the full death benefit of the insurance policy—tax-free if it's third-party owned.

18. Read Your Report Card
You're entitled to a free annual credit report by law. Simply visit www.annualcreditreport.com or call 877-322-8228. A quick review of this report—did we mention it's free?—could save you thousands of dollars if you find errors that are affecting your credit rating.

19. Charge for Charity
Giving doesn't get any easier: Thrivent Financial Bank offers a FundRaiser Rewards Card that lets you direct credit card rebates to any of 11 worthy organizations, including Lutheran World Relief and Habitat for Humanity.

20. Reply Not
"No reputable company will send you an e-mail asking for a password, account number or Social Security number," says Patricia Ostruszka, vice president of bank marketing at Thrivent Financial Bank.

21. Phone It In
Competition still has long-distance rates on the decline. If you haven't shopped your long-distance service in the past few years, you could save easy money by doing so today.

22. Auto Shop
Get at least three quotes before purchasing auto insurance. Recent consumer studies have shown that rates can vary dramatically for the exact same coverage.

23. Go Digital, Stat!
The cost of a digital thermostat (less than a hundred bucks) is an investment in energy savings. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, you can slash heating and cooling bills by 10 percent annually by turning your thermostat back 10 percent to 15 percent while you're sleeping.

Max Out
24. Up your 401(k) contribution by $1,000 a year, and you could net more than $100,000 over 30 years.

25. Contributing enough to get your employer's entire match? If not, you're leaving money on the table.

26. Give Life
Naming your church as the owner and 100 percent beneficiary of a life insurance policy can increase the amount of your giving. Premiums you pay are tax deductible as charitable gifts, and upon your death the church will receive a much larger gift than the sum of the premiums paid.

27. Roth It
Consider investing in a Roth IRA. Contributions are made with after-tax dollars-but the account grows tax free, there is no required distribution at age 70½ and beneficiaries also can receive qualifying distributions tax free.

28. Max n' Match
Your generosity magnifies when an organization or individual offers to match your gift to a cause. Thrivent Financial has matching and supplemental funding programs that allow you to maximize your gifts to churches, schools and charities.

29. Flexible Flyer
Online travel services such as Travelocity and Expedia often offer reduced airfare if you indicate your travel dates are flexible. Juggle your departure and return dates by a day or two, and you can save hundreds.

Stock the Freezer
30. Freezers use less electricity when full. Don't have enough food? Partially fill plastic bottles with water and stock those instead.

31. In case of a power failure, your food will stay frozen longer and you'll have a supply of emergency drinking water.

See the Principal
32. Struggling with consumer debt? Consider folding high-interest loans, such as credit card bills, into a home mortgage refinance or a home equity loan.

33. Use the money you're saving to make payments against the principal.

34. Ship Shape
That great Internet price you found becomes far less appealing when you factor in shipping charges. Shop around online—a growing list of companies offers reduced or free shipping.

35. Bye-Bye, Bottle
Americans spend $10,000 every minute on something that's available for free: good ol' H2O. Save money and reduce your use of plastics by filtering your own tap water. If you need water on the go, make a one-time investment in a cool container and refill it.

Open House
A home equity line of credit is like a home equity loan, except that it's set up as a maximum credit line against which you can draw, rather than a loan for a fixed dollar amount. This leaves you with options.

36. Consolidate debt.

37. Make judicious home improvements.

38. Save it for a rainy day, such as job loss or a medical emergency.

39. Check to see if interest payments are tax deductible.

40. Automatic for the People
Authorizing your bank to pay your mortgage, utility, credit card and other bills automatically can save you hundreds in postage, late fees and your own precious time. Thrivent Financial Bank offers free online banking and free unlimited bill pay with certain checking account products.

41. Get a Checkup
Being underinsured can be as risky as having an unbalanced investment portfolio. Your Thrivent Financial representative can help start the solution. It isn't just a question of the amount of life and long-term care insurance you carry, "but the type of insurance—term vs. permanent," says Thrivent Financial Consultant Dave Neunaber.

42. Don't Be Fuel-ish
If you get reward points for buying gasoline with a particular credit card, use it—but only if you can pay off the monthly balance when it's due. Otherwise, the amount you're paying in interest is likely exceeding your rewards savings.

43. Be a Card Shark
Don't get ripped off! If you pay an annual fee for your credit card, transfer your balance to a card, like one of Thrivent Financial Bank's credit card programs, with no annual fee. Most low-interest credit cards allow you to transfer balances at zero percent—just make sure to pay it off before interest kicks in.

44. Buy a Shredder
Protect against identity theft by shredding "anything with an account number (including carbons of checks), your Social Security number or its last four digits and anything linking your address with any of the above," says Patricia Ostruszka from Thrivent Financial Bank. (See Money Matters article).

45. Maintenance-free Funds
Asset allocation funds automatically diversify your portfolio across the broad range of U.S. and international markets with one investment choice, and provide an additional source of investment discipline that over time may produce higher returns. Match an asset allocation fund to your goals and risk tolerance.

That Used Car Smell = Savings
46. Not only is a used car less expensive than a new car, its value doesn't decline as precipitously.

47. Want to save even more? Buy a gently used car that gets better mileage than the beast you're driving now.

48. Skip Collision
Think twice about paying for collision and comprehensive coverage on an old car. Determine the replacement value of your vehicle. If that amount doesn't substantially exceed your premiums plus your deductible, then collision coverage probably isn't worth it.

Free Money
49. If you're a disciplined credit card user who pays your balance in full every month, pay monthly bills with plastic and earn rewards.

50. Use a card that rewards you by giving back to charity, such as Thrivent Financial Bank's credit card.

51. Be a Fuel Miser
Most mechanics will tell you that high-octane gas won't extend the life of your engine or improve gas mileage. But, it will cost the average driver upwards of $100 more per year than 87-octane fuel—which, contrary to rumor, won't void your warranty.

Doing It Right
In February 2005, Jennifer and Mike Langevin of Columbus, Indiana, called on local Thrivent Financial Consultant Nancy Murphy for a free consultation. "I remember being amazed when we spoke to Nancy because she was so glowing in her response to the way we managed our money," Jennifer says. "I didn't think we were that unusual."

When they married in 1992, Jennifer explains, the Langevins decided that one of them would stay home when they had children. Jennifer worked for Amoco at the time, and they began to put her entire salary into savings. When the first of their three children was born 10 years ago, they began to manage solely—and successfully—on Mike's salary as an engineer.

There is no great secret, says Jennifer, who recently began working part-time as an assistant in Murphy's office. The Langevins don't run up credit card balances that they can't pay off every month. "If we don't have the money," Jennifer says, "we don't buy it." They live in a house "that meets our needs, not the biggest one we'd qualify for." They "drive a car until it dies instead of buying a new one every three years."

What they managed to do on that single salary, even before Murphy met them, was to save for retirement, build college funds for the kids, tithe to their church and avoid credit card debt. Except for mortgage and car payments, the Langevins have no debt at all.
—J.G.

Minneapolis-based writer Jack Gordon has written for The Wall Street Journal and is a previous contributor to Thrivent magazine.

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans and its respective associates and employees cannot provide legal, accounting or tax advice or services. Work with your Thrivent Financial representative in collaboration with your attorney and/or tax professional for complete details.