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Up today, down tomorrow? The fortunes of the euro are swinging widely depending on the news from Greece.

It might seem like the international political equivalent of a soap opera. Updates from Greece emerge as regularly as episodes of Eastenders, in which there is a new twist on whether the heavily indebted nation is set to receive its latest EU loan, implement crucial reforms, or just plan give up the ghost and default, abandoning the euro and returning to the drachma. Furthermore these nightly episodes have a lot of viewers, as international investors incorporate events in Greece into their decisions whether to sell the euro. It is not exaggerating things to say the future of the currency hangs on Greece in this sense! Why then is it so important? And how can you use the situation to help you?

The Musketeers of Foreign Exchange

The situation in Greece matters because the members of the euro are a little like the three musketeers: they go ahead shouting “All for one and one for all!” In this sense, the euro lives or dies according to the health of its members. If Greece or Portugal look a bit green about the gills, that has a knock-on impact on larger economies like France and Germany. In fact, it is not exaggerating to say that, though Greece is only a small country, its defaulting could plunge both Europe and the world into crisis! Commentators describe that scenario as comparable to the collapse of Lehman Brothers in 2008.

Turning to the present, right now the Greek situation has hurt the euro against its rivals, because Greece and the EU are at blows regarding its second bailout. For Europe, it is no longer certain Greece can be trusted, following months in which it has promised reforms and failed to deliver. This has reached the point that German finance minister Wolfgang Schlaueble is calling for Greece to give up control of its own finances, and hand them to Brussels! For Greece meanwhile, this is of course a huge insult. Hence the impasse – and the Euro weakness.

How Might The Foreign Exchange Rate Change In Future?

Turning to the future, the state of the euro depends on awful lot on the solution that emerges. For me at least, there is no serious threat of Greece leaving the euro right now. The reports in the newspapers are spats between partners, but do not represent a permanent divide. In that sense, it seems certain to me that the euro will eventually gain as Greece makes progress. But I could be wrong! And before that agreement emerges, there could yet be more ups and downs prompting euro weakness.

Money. Our world revolves around it and so does all of the entertainment within it. In fact, some of the best films ever made purely been a cinematic expression of what we all feel and experience every day, the desire or need to have money and then how it affects us when we do or do not have it.

All films take us on a different route or view, some gory, some tactical, some glamorous and others damn action packed, but in the end, the majority all lead to a closing scene with someone clutching a filthy stinking huge wad of cash. We either feel infuriated by it, or elated, but as long as we feel something, we’re happy to part with our own cold hard cash.

So with this in mind, let’s take a look at four of the very best films about money:

Scarface

“First you get the money, then you get the power, then you get the women”. If ever there were a ruthlessly honest outlook which described an outlaw’s view of America, it’s that of Tony Montana. Scarface is one of the best told ‘rise and fall’ stories in history, an embodiment of just how twisted the pursuit of money can affect someone’s life. In reality this film shows just what Notorious B.I.G spoke about so vividly, mo’ money, mo’ problems.

Glengarry Glen Ross

Another Pacino classic and another film which shows the ruthless world of businessman. Not just any type of businessman, more notably a group of real estate salesman. The film depicts a group of salesmen at various stages in their life and careers, all with one common goal, to make the most sales in an attempt to avoid getting fired. Desperate times call for desperate measures and one salesman goes just that little too f’in far.

Casino

A Martin Scorsese classic, in collaboration with writer Nicholas Pileggi and featuring actors Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci. Based on a true story, the film follows ‘Ace’ (De Niro) who is one of America’s best handicap gamblers and is left in charge of a Las Vega Casino. The film follows both the street mobs and real business world intertwining in the constant hunt for more money, before the film turns full circle and ends with a much older ‘Ace’ never really being able to escape the game.

Wall Street

If ever you wanted to know how Charlie Sheen for famous, this 1987 classic is pretty much where it all started. The film shows the classic tale of a young man Bud Fox (Charlie Sheen) entering the alluring but cut throat world of stock broking. In his pursuit to get to the top he soon finds himself working with notorious broker and corporate raider Gordon Gekko (Michael Douglas). It’s the classic tale of a young guy learning from the elder, seasoned, hardened veteran and moral conflicts this can cause.

Scott is a writer who imagines what it would have been like if Tony Montana dealt in credit card transfers rather than cash. Dealing with credit cards or Paypal isn’t quite as gangster, is it?

New York has begun doing what any major city does when it runs out of real estate, but with great success. It has started increasing the rent for up to $5000 for a single bedroom apartment, not a better deal for an average family earning $100K a year. And to date there are no witnesses of slowing in the growth of the rental prices in this city.

The ever-taller high rises, extremely profitable to the owners relative to the forecasted construction costs, provide homes for escalating population. While single family homes that are put up for rent are typically larger, with private yards, the condos are barely 1000 sq. ft. but with views of the city and scenery to die for. Extra features such as gym, playgrounds, club house and concierges provide an interesting alternative to living here.

A two bedroom single family home in the heart of the city can cost around $6000 and as low as $750 in a suburban area outside the city, almost double the cost of what it was two decades ago. The downtown part has a rent of anywhere from $1500 to $2200 for a studio, and $3000 for a 2 bedroom, while upper east side-the affluent area where most skyscrapers are-can go as high as $10,000. Although the outskirts have seen a slight decrease in the influx of people after the recession, the very wealthy area have done very well in maintaining this price over the last ten years.

Reasons for Rent Increases :
There are various theories behind what is really causing the rental prices to increase in New York. And most prices are driven by owners and their agents convincing people to rent while justifying that they are seeing a completely rational price in comparison with the cost of owning a home. One can note that the recent rental boom has not been limited to New York but has been in full swing in other states such as California, Washington and North Carolina. The wealthiest cities and neighborhoods have experienced the greatest home appreciation recently, and these increases have outstripped rental growth in such markets.

Let us look at some of the theories that is driving the rental price here:

Theory 1: Demand and Supply:
People who are on an edge of buying houses in NY are seeing that housing and mortgage markets are imperfect, with real estate agents not representing the buyers interest and appraisers being paid to justify exorbitant prices. They are realizing that homes under this scenario are not worth what they were worth previously. Land is scarcer in the most exclusive communities and people renting would pay large premium for living in such communities.

Theory 2: Renting is Cheaper than Owning:
Renting is one way of showing that home prices cannot escape the fundamental forces that drive them in the long term-income. The housing prices have grown exponentially with respect to renting, and in this massive economy people are unable to pay large portion of their paycheck toward their house. People fearing the real trouble meeting their obligations in the future such as divorce, job loss and medical emergencies, want to post-phone buying and just rent for a while.

Theory 3: Population Growth and Immigration:

Probably the most popular reason as to why rent prices has seen an increase in recent years. Most new immigrants are renters and prefer to rent as long as they could save money to buy a home, resulting in more demand for rental properties.

Theory 4: Escalating Construction Cost:
Even though home builders are on the sell side of the market, they are unable to fair given the high cost of construction, compelling them to increase the price of houses to a level not reachable by an average middle class family- another economic reason that people are renting rather than buying. More so, builders claim that it is the zoning and building restrictions that are the culprit in higher rental prices.

Where The Current Rental Market is Heading:
Even homeowners with less leverage in their homes are now feeling relatively safe renting the houses given the current trend. Considering the shaky economy and no real income growth, people are beginning to dedicate their resources and attention to rent in an attempt to avert a real disaster from buying a house.

David Haynes is a writer who searched for the Lettings Bristol had to offer when choosing his home.

There are many benefits to save money while traveling. Among them, people can often go on trips that otherwise would strain the budget, by reducing the trip’s cost. Here are seven strategies to save money on travel.

Go Off-season

Most travel destinations have two distinct seasons: the peak season and the offseason. During a destination’s peak season, prices everywhere will be much higher than the rest of the year. Hotel rates can double, even triple. Many restaurants will require reservations, and deals will be hard to find. By traveling during the off season, people will face much smaller crowds and lower costs. Prices across the board will be lower. Yet, these savings do have a cost. During the offseason, weather conditions might be harsh or major attractions might be absent.

Some people do not want to travel during the offseason, but would like to save money while traveling. For this demographic, the shoulder season can be perfect. The shoulder season is just before and after the peak season. During it, crowds start to dwindle. Prices reflect the reduced demand. At the same time, most businesses are still open during this period. The shoulder season typically lasts for a couple weeks, but varies by destination

Pack Light

Packing light, especially when flying, is essential. Airlines are continually raising rates for checked bags on both domestic and international flights. To avoid these fees, try to bring only carry-ons along for the trip. Reducing your luggage by a single checked bag will save you at least $50.00, in most cases.

While travelers who are flying will save the most by packing light, everyone will save a little money. Extra luggage in cars will reduce gas mileage. The added cost at the pump likely will not be $50.00, unless you are going on a cross-country road trip. Yet, every little bit saved helps.

Leave Room

Leaving room in your luggage for purchases will save you money on the return journey. Anything bought or received as a gift will have to come home, somehow. These items can either be added to the luggage or shipped. Whether bringing an extra suitcase along for souvenirs and gifts, or shipping everything back in a box is cheaper, varies. If there is room in a suitcase, the most cost-effective way is to pack purchases in a suitcase that needed to be brought anyway.

Fly Weekdays

Airfare is one of the major costs of many trips. It also has one of the greatest opportunities to save money. Airfares differ greatly. Some factors that determine their prices are subject to when the ticket is purchased, when the flight is and the cities being flowing between. Generally, purchasing tickets in advance and flying during the off-season will save people money.

Travelers will find that the lowest airfares are often on weekdays, specifically Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. By flying on these days, people can save anywhere from a few dollars to hundreds. The exception to this rule is holidays. When flying for a holiday, typically the holiday itself is cheapest. Outside of that, airfares will be oriented around when the holiday occurs in the week.

Call the Hotel

By calling hotels individually, people can often get the best rates on hotel rooms. These rates often beat any deals found online, and they certainly will be lower than those offered by the reservations line. Call specific hotels and ask to make a reservation with them. If you are referred to a reservations line, call the hotel back and talk with an employee of that hotel again.

Eat In

Eating out becomes expensive very quickly. The solution is simple: eat in while traveling. Sometimes, purchasing an upgraded room, which has a kitchenette, will pay for itself. The easiest meal to eat in is breakfast. Look for accommodations that offer a free breakfast. If you cannot find any with breakfast included, stop by the local grocery store for a pack of muffins or donuts.

Public Transportation

Renting a car is not always wise. In large cities, it can become a burden to find parking, and drivers can get lost easily. In addition to the rental costs, you must pay for fuel and parking. In big cities, relying on public transit can save travelers money. Become familiar with the public transportation system, before departing.

There are many ways to save money while traveling. A savvy traveler can save hundreds or thousands, depending on the extravagance of the trip, with these tips.

Author Bio: Zach Daniel writes for Morocco Tours, a travel company that provides private Morocco tours that allow people to fully experience Morocco.

The average household would probably say that food is the biggest expense they have.  This is why you have enter the grocery store with a plan.  The advice below will put you well on your way to saving big and spending less!

1. Create a List
Many people mess up by not creating a list.  They may have a couple of things in mind, but they really may not know where all of this stuff is located.  This means they have to go down aisle after aisle looking for what they need, picking up more along the way. Another, even safer, form of insurance is sticking to a budget. And I don’t mean “I’m only going to spend $50.” I mean only taking $50 in cash and leaving your wallet in the car. Or better yet, at home!

2. (Double) Coupons
Many stores offer double coupon discounts (usually during the middle of the week) on their products.  Please don’t let this opportunity pass you by.  A store that offers double coupon discounts can help you cut your grocery bill literally in half. There are all types coupons, which you can find in newspapers and on the internet.  Do a google search for anything and everything + the word “coupon” “deal” “promo” or “discount.”

3.  Brands
There’s no need to spend all your money on name brands.  Generic brands of many products are very similar.  Sometimes you won’t even know the difference.  The only difference is that the name brand might look a little fancier. Don’t get caught up in the pretty packaging though!

4. Sales
Don’t overlook sales! You may be missing out if you are totally in your own world and never branch out.  Sometimes a bigger box of cereal may cost less than the smaller box that you usually buy, and who knows, you might like it more too! It’s hard to explain why sales like this exist, but forget about the rationale behind this.  Just buy it! But don’t also buy the product you normally buy, or that’ll defeat the whole purpose.

5, Stay Strong
Many people have heard of impulse buys at the checkout lane. This includes things like magazines, gum and candy bars.  Consumers should avoid these, but they are not the only things that throw your grocery store budget off track.  There are many things throughout the grocery store that can make you spend much more than you anticipated. To avoid this, stay out of places like the snack aisles or the bakery, unless you need something specific from there.

6. Try a New Item
New items pop up all the time.  Companies make it their business to drive consumers towards these products with discounts.  Take advantage of it.  They may cost much more once they have become established items, but for now,  ride the wave and get them while they are cheap.  You don’t always have to buy the same beverage or brand of chicken!