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Charles Brennan
Charles Brennan started Las Vegas, Nevada based Dollar Loan Center in 1998 to address a gap in short-term lending services. What started with just one store in Las Vegas, Nevada, has now grown to include 80 locations in four states. Dollar Loan Center offers signature loans to help borrowers cover emergency expenses that crop up before payday. Differentiating itself from typical payday loan centers, Charles Brennan and Dollar Loan Centers do not charge upfront or processing fees and only charge simple, daily interest until the loan is repaid, never longer. In the following interview, Charles Brennan offers simple tips for saving money.
Information Nation: Welcome and thank you for joining us today from your home in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Charles Brennan: Happy to do it.
Information Nation: Let’s get right to it; what are some steps our readers in Las Vegas, Nevada and beyond can take today to save money?
Charles Brennan: Start by not letting your money blow out the window, doors and cracks of your home. By simply covering the pesky drafts around the house, people can reduce their heating expenses by three to eighteen percent.
Information Nation: Great tip! What else?
Charles Brennan: Sign up for group discount sites, such as groupon.com or livingsocial.com, which offer regular deals on the things your family needs and enjoys. Also, shop on BOGO days at the grocery store.
Information Nation: It seems like prices fluctuate so much; how do we get a handle on these changes?
Charles Brennan: Yes, it’s true. In the coming year, healthcare, taxes, public transit, and meat and dairy products will end up costing us all more. Bloomberg and Reuters are great sources for financial news, or even 15 minutes a day online at a financial website or 2.
Information Nation: What about long-term savings?
Charles Brennan: The best advice I can give here is start today! Surround yourself with people that you want to be like financially in the future. Live confident and ask your boss for a raise if you feel you deserve it and start by saving that amount immediately.
Information Nation: Okay, but what if people don’t know where to start?
Charles Brennan: I recommend first thinking about the major goals and objectives to be accomplished with the help of money. When appropriate, talk to family members and work on the list together. If you are a leader, lead; if you are a follower, follow a good, conservative leader that will have your best interests in mind.
Information Nation: What types of goals and objectives typically end up on these lists?
Charles Brennan: Of course lists will vary for each person, but people may include a new home or second home, vacation plans, college tuition, or retirement savings, for example.
Information Nation: Then what?
Charles Brennan: Then the list should be prioritized in a meaningful way. After that, meeting with a financial advisor might be a good step or even an on-line budgeting tool.
Information Nation: What will a financial adviser do?
Charles Brennan: A financial adviser will go through the goals and objectives and help work through ways in which to accomplish them realistically.
Information Nation: This has been really helpful.
Charles Brennan: My pleasure, and happy savings! Don’t forget that where you live will have a huge impact on your bottom line. State taxes vary substantially from state to state. Every penny you can save on taxes makes that piggy bank grow!
With dual interests in finance and music, Charles Brennan has been fortunate to find success promoting concerts and musicians as well as helping people through financial crises. Currently residing in Las Vegas, Nevada, Charles Brennan recently opened the Brennan Rock ‘n Roll Academy, located in his hometown of Sioux Falls, South Dakota.