5 Surprisingly Smart Ways to Blow $1,000 of Your Tax Refund
By Cameron Huddleston, contributing editor, Kiplinger.com
I want to share a poem my 7-year-old daughter wrote last night:
I have had no money for a while
Then for my birthday someone gave me 1,000 dollars.
Let's go buy all we want!
Oh, now we have no more money.
Plenty of you have probably received -- or will soon -- checks for that amount from Uncle Sam. In fact, the average refund has been nearly three times that amount for the past two years. It's tempting to spend on something you really want -- say a big-screen TV, tech toys or new clothes -- but you'll be better off it you put that money to work for you.
Here are five good uses of your tax refund (or birthday check, or any other small windfall). And check out our 10 Smart Uses for Your Refund slide show for more ideas.
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If you had $1,000, how would you spend it? Share your ideas in the reader comments box below. (And, in case you're wondering, I've never given my daughter $1,000 for her birthday.)
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