Archive for the 'Frugal Living' Category
Monday, June 15th, 2009
You’ve probably heard about the new “Cash for Clunkers” bill that is offering up to $4,500 towards the purchase of a new car. The idea is to stimulate demand for new cars as well as raise overall fuel efficiency by promoting the trade-in of “clunkers” for new and more efficient vehicles. It is officially part of the Consumer Assistance to Recycle and Save (CARS) Act, which recently passed the House and is currently in the Senate.
It’s not finalized or sent to the President yet (don’t buy anything yet!), so there is still room for changes. However, here are the requirements in the House Bill:
Old Trade-In Vehicle Requirements
- Must be in drivable condition.
- Have been continuously insured to the same owner for at least one year immediately prior to trade-in. (You can’t just buy a $500 beater for the $4,500 voucher)
- Manufactured in model year 1984 or later. (mostly due to EPA mpg data not going back that far), and
- Have a combined fuel economy of 18 mpg or less. You can find your car’s combined EPA fuel economy at FuelEconomy.gov.
If you are trading in a “Work Truck”, defined as having a 8,500-10,000 pounds GVWR (gross vehicle weight rating), then your vehicle must be from model year 2001 or older.
Obviously, another common sense requirement would be that your car should be worth less than the $3,500 or $4,500 you qualify for, or else you could simply sell it yourself instead of going for the voucher.
Let’s check out our cars:
1995 Nissan Maxima
The first car I ever owned, which came to me in excellent condition in 2000. Besides the usual oil changes and stuff, I’ve replaced the starter and 3 out of the 4 power windows motors (annoying common flaw in this model). It is nearly 15 years old now and runs great. Edmunds says my car is worth about $2,500 (sold to a private party). $4,500 for it might tempt me.
My combined fuel economy is 21 mpg. Not quite gas-guzzly enough.
2002 Pontiac Grand Prix
Yes, I have a sad little orphan Pontiac. But I took advantage of its horrendous resale value and picked it up when it came off-lease at 3 years old at my workplace for cheap. The interior is really cheap-feeling, but you know what, it hasn’t run into any mechanical problems at all. The only thing that broke so far was a plastic air conditioner knob.
Edmunds says it is now worth about $5,000 Private Party, which means has depreciated less than $1,000 per year since purchase. My combined fuel economy is 21 mpg.
So I guess neither of our cars qualify, which makes me think that most “beater” cars won’t either. Think of the VWs, Hondas, and Toyotas out there. A 1985 Honda Civic gets over 30 miles per gallon! This law is mostly for SUV and truck owners, and you can qualify for a voucher with as little as 1 mpg improvement (for large trucks) to 4 mpg (for passenger cars). I don’t quite get it.
Indeed, just because you qualify, doesn’t mean you should necessarily go for it. You’ll get some fuel cost savings, but unless you pay cash you’ll also have a monthly auto loan payment. A new car also has higher insurance rates, and you’ll have to carry collision/comprehensive coverage.
Posted in Deals & Offers, Frugal Living | 73 Comments »
Friday, June 12th, 2009
I recently received a review copy of Jean Chatzky’s The Difference: How Anyone Can Prosper in Even The Toughest Times, where she attempts to understand why some people easily move from barely getting by into a life of comfort and/or wealth, while others get stuck or even fall backwards. What are the attributes that set them apart?
From her research, she divided people into four groups: The wealthy, which have on average assets of $2 million, not including home equity. The financially comfortable, who save regularly and have a financial cushion. The paycheck-to-paycheck, who are getting by but are one unexpected expense away from stumbling into the last group, which are the further-in-debtors. Here’s how the population breaks down:
20 Factors
As you can see, plenty of people are living paycheck-to-paycheck. But what about those who only used to live that way? She found that 75% of the wealthy and nearly 100% of the upper-middle class originally came from middle class backgrounds.
Here are what Chatzky says are the twenty key elements of those people who improved their situations. You don’t need to have them all, but she says that you need, on average, ten factors to make your way to financial comfort.
Financial Attitudes
- feel stocks are worth the risk
- devote money to savings
- save regularly for emergencies
- invest for retirement
- reduced debt
Goals
- want to retire comfortably
- want to be financially comfortable during working years too
- always knew what they wanted to do for a career
- made it a goal to accumulate $1 million
- want to own a home
Personality
- are confident
- happy
- optimistic
- competitive
- leaders
Nonfinancial Behaviors
- have a college degree
- socialize with friends at least once a week
- exercise at least 2-3 times a week
- read newspapers regularly
- are married
Sounds simple enough, eh? I call some of these “duh” factors. The rest of the book tries to explore these factors and ways to actually get yourself to really believe and/or achieve them, since simple doesn’t mean easy. For one, there are many levels of “wanting” - do you have the resolve to make it happen? Or, how is exercise related to wealth?
Posted in Book Reviews, Career, Frugal Living | 32 Comments »
Thursday, May 28th, 2009
I apologize for the recent lack of posts, I’ve been having some computer issues. I’ve been experiencing the usual sluggishness that happens after you’ve had Windows for a while, but recently it had been unbearably slow. Even after running multiple anti-virus and anti-malware software, defrag utilities, registry cleaners, I just gave up and had to re-install the operating system. Of course, I’m bad and only make sporadic backups so it took me a while to organize my files and make proper backups.
Although not directly related to finances, I found that re-installing a fresh copy of Windows on your computer can make a huge difference in speed and usability, so much so that you can delay buying a new computer for a while (within reason). This post is somewhat specific to Dell laptops since that is what I have, but much of it is still applicable to all Windows PCs.
According to this How To Restore or Reinstall Microsoft Windows page at Dell, I had a few choices after backing up all my data:
System Restore
This is a Windows OS feature, so it should available across all PC laptop brands. It allows you to revert back to certain setpoints in your system’s past, hopefully back to a date in which everything was running smoothly. But I had been experiencing a slow and gradual decline, and none of the dates I picked improved my situation. It might work better for other folks. The good news is that you can also switch back to your original state.
Restore From Hidden Partition
Most recent Dell laptops have a hidden partition on the hard drive that contains a backup copy of your computer’s original factory software. The official name is Dell PC Restore by Symantec. You just have to hold Ctrl+F11 during start-up. I’m sure this would be great for most people. Unfortunately, my attempt failed. “Your installation was unsuccessful. Please call Dell Support”. Grrr.
Most other companies have a similar setup. For example, I did a successful factory reset on a family member’s Acer computer with Alt+F10. All I had to do was backup their pictures, and I was done in under an hour.
Restore from Recovery OS Disc
I was then left with the final option of manually re-installing the operating system with my Windows XP CD. Two houses and three years ago, I probably had it. Now, it’s nowhere to be found. (Side note: Some computer have you make the recovery CDs yourself. Do it before it crashes!) Luckily, I found that you can request a new recovery CD from Dell:
Dell Customers can now request a set of backup discs containing the factory-installed operating system as well as the device drivers and utilities specific to your system. Requests are limited to one (1) set of backup discs per system purchased.
There was no mention of needing a warranty, which made me hopeful since mine had already expired. After submitting my request, I received an e-mail saying that they would send me a Recovery CD for free, though they did make it very clear they didn’t have to since my warranty had expired. Still, they did FedEx it to me overnight at no charge, so I was very pleased with the service in this situation. Other brands may charge a nominal fee.
Final Result: Laptop that feels like new. Total Cost: $0. 
I am now back up and running, and it is amazing how much difference a fresh install makes. The cobwebs and grimy buildup is gone! I did spend hours on the backup and everything, but even if I bought a new laptop, I’d still have to spend hours reinstalling new apps and transferring files.
More Links
HP Notebook PCs - Repairing or Reinstalling The Operating System
Posted in Frugal Living | 41 Comments »
Friday, May 22nd, 2009
There was a recent post on how much savings one should have at age 30 over at the Bogleheads forum. Being 30 myself, I was intrigued, but I am in the camp that believes that there is no right answer at 30. You’re still so young that you could just be out of school for a few years, and at that time it’s mostly up to how much student loan debt you racked up. Most important might be your ability to live under your means, and that you’re learning a valuable skill of some sort.
However, there was mention of a paper the the FPA Journal called Personal Financial Ratios: An Elegant Road Map to Financial Health and Retirement, where the author presents a variety of ratios as a rough benchmark to help clients determine whether they are on track to retire by age 65. These include Savings-to-Income, Debt-to-Income, and Savings Rate-to-Income.
The actual numbers depend on how you believe your investments will perform annually after inflation. (5% on the left table, 4% on the right.) Definitions below.
Savings include the current value of one’s investments, such as a 401(k), IRAs, brokerage accounts, investment real estate, and the value of any private business interests. The home is excluded as an investment. Debt comprises all debt, including mortgage, student loans, car, and consumer debt. Savings rate refers to the percentage of pre-tax income an investor is saving each year out of their total income.
A Hypothetical Example
Let’s take a look at a hypothetical 45-year-old individual to see how he might use the ratios to assess his financial circumstances. This person has the following financial statistics:
Salary $110,000
Mortgage $125,000
Auto Loan $25,000
Investments $260,000
Annual Savings $10,000
Employer 401(k) Match $3,000
Based on these statistics, the hypothetical individual ratios are as follows:
Savings to Earnings: $260,000 / $110,000 = 2.36
Debt to Earnings: ($125,000 + $25,000) / $110,000 = 1.36
Savings Rate to Earnings: ($10,000 + $3,000) / $110,000 = 11.8 %
As for us, we’re doing okay according to the table for age 30 regarding the savings-to-income ratios (0.5) and savings rate-to-income ratios (50%+). Our debt-to-income ratio is a bit high though, at around 2. Of course, this is highly dependent on our income number, which might change if we downshift with kids. I guess that’s another reason to wait until we’re a bit older to really start benchmarking like this.
One thing I don’t like about the ratios is that home equity is never included, because the author says that it’s hard to extract home equity. Okay, I agree on that point, but there is no mention of compensating for renters in the analysis. If I have no debt at age 65 + a paid-off house, that’s a lot different than no debt at 65 + still paying rent forever. My largest expense by far is housing (greater than all other expenses combined), and having that taken care of changes my retirement outlook drastically.
So… should we be using these ratios as a benchmark?
Posted in Frugal Living, Investing, Retirement | 24 Comments »
Friday, May 15th, 2009
During World War II, victory gardens were small gardens in civilian homes started in order to support the war effort. Now it looks like the new term is “recession gardens”, as people try to reduce costs and increase their green factor. So many trendy names for a backyard garden!
We started out with rosemary, oregano, and thyme growing in a little planter that came with the house, which basically grows wild without any help from us. In addition, my wife started a little container garden on the back porch, and we’ve been eating the tasty results for the last month.
According to this CNN article on recession gardens, we are not alone:
W. Atlee Burpee & Co., the largest seed and gardening supply store in the country, says it has seen a 25 to 30 percent spike in vegetable seed and plant sales this spring compared with last.
The National Gardening Association expects 43 million American households to grow their own fruits, vegetables, herbs and berries this year. That’s up 19 percent over last year, according to a 2,559-household survey the group conducted in January.
How much money can you really save with a garden?
Last year, Burpee released a report saying a family will get an average 25-to-1 return on its investment in a garden. So, by that count, a family that spends about $200 on a medium-to-large garden, as Michelle Obama reportedly did, will save $5,000 in grocery bills over the course of a year.
That statistic is inflated, said Mike Metallo, spokesman for the National Gardening Association. Metallo’s group says a $70 investment in a garden will yield $600 in produce for the year. To get those savings, a gardener has to know what to plant, when to plant it, where to plant it, how to deal with different soil types and how to care for the garden.
Keeping It Simple: Basil and Tomatoes
I don’t know about all that, but we started small by only devoting one old medium-sized pot to this effort. We thought about our favorite vegetables, and I figured that the most expensive ones were always tomatoes and fresh sweet basil. We love making our own pesto, caprese salad, and bruschetta topped with olive oil, tomato, and fresh basil.
At the supermarket, one tiny little packet of fresh basil (0.66 ounces) cost $2. Instead, we went to a local nursery and bought an entire basil plant for $2. Add another $10 for some potting soil and some recommended chicken manure as “organic” fertilizer that may last us years, and we were all set. A few months later, and I was amazed at the results. We just ate most of our (small) tomatoes, but here is our basil plant:
The neat thing is that this could be done inside, or on the patio of a small apartment. The savings won’t be enormous, but neither was our effort. Most importantly, the basil is both fresher and better tasting. Now we can expand our garden-inspired menu beyond rosemary roasted chicken and potatoes. All the credit goes to Mrs. MMB, who did all the work and also discovered that you can crumble in some egg shells for added nutrients and to keep out slugs (that’s the white stuff).
Update: Salon.com also has an article on recession gardens.
Posted in Frugal Living | 25 Comments »
Thursday, May 14th, 2009
I am happy to be able to offer special Costco membership certificates to MyMoneyBlog readers. They are $50 each with free shipping, and are good towards new Gold memberships and also upgrades to Executive Membership. This is exactly how much it would cost normally from Costco, but they include a special Costco coupon booklet ($35 value), including:
- a free rotisserie chicken (3 meals in 1
)
- a free 2lb. bag of Kirkland Signature™ coffee (roasted by Starbucks)
- free photo processing (50 free digital prints - 1 hour photo)
- and more…
The rest of the coupons can vary, but they might be something like $3 off a Food Court pizza or case of water. This offer is not available through Costco locations.
Really, if you’re going to purchase a membership anyways, this is a no-brainer. You pay the same price, and get free stuff. Simply order the certificate online and bring it in to Costco to redeem. Would also make a good gift idea as you can purchase multiple certificates. (To buy a new Executive membership, buy two certificates. You will also receive two coupon booklets.)
I am an Executive Member myself, and enjoy the 2% cash back plus savings in a variety of other ways (Sharebuilder bonuses + 25% commission rebate, check printing discount, etc.). But for many people the regular Gold membership is plenty. See Is Costco Executive Membership worth it?
Posted in Deals & Offers, Frugal Living | 26 Comments »
Monday, March 30th, 2009
Speaking of internal frugality, I’d say one of the most basic ways to save on rent or mortgage payments is to… live in a smaller place. No, wait, really. Let’s think about it.
Even though it’s easy to make fun of 10,000 square feet McMansions, they are only a side effect of an overall trend towards larger houses. According to this 2006 NPR article, the size of new houses has more than doubled since the 1950s. The average new home sold in 2007 was a whopping 2,629 square feet.
Maybe as a whole we’re getting fatter and need a bit more space to move around, but not by that much! In fact, the average family size has actually been decreasing over time. Here are some stats I pulled from the U.S. Census:
Source: U.S. Census BureauFrom 1970 to 2004, the average household shrunk by 27%, but the average square footage grew by 66%. Using median numbers gave similar results.
There are several theories as to why this is happening. For starters, we may simply want a higher standard of living. (Sharing bathrooms? That’s for people in 3rd-world countries!) Perhaps it’s from us continually one-upping our neighbors. Maybe builders are pushing bigger homes through marketing. Or it may be a result of the breaking up of the American family, and how we don’t like spending time together anymore.
Most importantly, we don’t need the extra space. If a family of four could live well in 1,500 square feet back in 1950, there is no real reason they can’t do so today. It’s just a choice like any other, and we have to examine whether it is really worth the price.
Finally, it doesn’t stop with the bigger sticker price. There’s the higher property taxes and insurance rates. A bigger home costs more to heat, cool, maintain, and repair. More rooms means more furniture, more wall decorations, more room for clothes, and just more stuff in general. More appliances mean more electricity used. The list goes on and on.
In my opinion, many people don’t even notice that they are stretching to buy homes that just keep getting bigger and bigger. They just follow the crowd. This unconscious choice may partially explain why many of us feel so much more stressed financially than our parents.
Posted in Frugal Living, Real Estate | 48 Comments »
Sunday, March 29th, 2009
So I am trying to kick off one of my planned 2009 projects, which is to methodically go through each major expense area and explore ways to save money there. I started out last week with on housing costs (here and here), and still have a few ideas left. But while brainstorming an outline of future posts, I noticed that there seemed to be a divide in the types of strategies out there.
One set of ideas usually has to do with reducing the amount paid for a specific item or service. I call this external frugality, because you aren’t changing anything about yourself, just the price tag. For example, to save on what you pay for your house, you could look for a buyer’s agent rebate to save something like 1.5% of the purchase price, or carefully shop for mortgages with the lowest combination of closing costs and interest rate.
Another set of ideas usually involves either changing the type, amount, or quality of something. I call this internal frugality, because you are changing your consumption habits. An example of this would be realizing that you don’t necessarily need to same house as everyone else. You could look in more “up-and-coming” neighborhoods, or live in an older house with less square footage.
There are plenty of other examples out there:
External: Calling a cable company and asking for a lower rate.
Internal: You cancel cable completely. You could read more, watch episodes on your computer, or use a low-cost Netflix plan.
External: You find a cheaper long-distance plan, or switch to VoIP.
Internal: You get rid of your landline completely.
External: Learn ways to haggle down the price of a car.
Internal: Don’t own a car. Use public transportation.
I don’t think either or worse, but they are different. In general, it would seem like external frugality is at least initially easier to implement, as you don’t have to actually change your habits. However, I can also imagine that in many situations using internal frugality would lead to both greater absolute savings and also more enduring lifelong savings. But changing habits is really tough.
Next time you think you’re being frugal, examine if you’re doing it externally or internally.
Posted in Frugal Living | 19 Comments »
Wednesday, March 25th, 2009
As you may know, I own a house in an expensive area of the country. I love my house, and I love where I live, but I also admit that I occasionally daydream about moving somewhere with a lower cost of living.
In my experience, many people don’t like the idea of moving elsewhere because it involves something unknown and unfamiliar. However, if you ask people to think back to the places they have been, they’ll speak fondly of those places. Specifically, I think about moving back to a place that I spent several childhood years in - Austin, Texas.
Now, there are many things to consider before moving besides costs. These may include:
- Can you find a job there? If so, how will the pay change? Will it offset the change in cost of living?
- Do you enjoy the local culture? Can you easily participate in your hobbies and interests?
- Love, family, weather, traffic, nightlife, cultural diversity, etc.
I think a lot of people who haven’t lived in Texas (and most other areas) may have a misconception or stereotype of what it’s like to live there, and that is especially true of Austin. What I like about the area includes the relatively temperature weather, a large university center, a strong tech industry, and of course a low cost of living and tax burden. As for the financial details, I grabbed some graphs from the Austin Chamber of Commerce website, which were based on independent data.
Cost of Living Index, 4 Quarters Ending Q2 2007
The index takes into account the combined costs of housing, utilities, transportation, healthcare, and other factors. According to this CNN calculator based on the same index, if you are earning $100,000.00 after tax in San Jose (CA), the comparable after-tax income in Austin is 61,217.
Average Home Price, Middle Management Housing, 2007
(For the chart, a “middle management house” is a single-family dwelling model with approximately 2,200 sq.ft., 4 bedrooms, 2 1/2 baths, family room, and 2-car garage.)
These might have changed a lot since 2007, but the median home price in Austin is still a shade under $200,000. If a house in California costs $600,000 that only costs $200,000 in Austin - how many more years of work would it take to pay for an extra $400,000 plus mortgage interest? Would you move to Texas if it meant you could retire an entire decade earlier? Hmmm…
Tax Burden: State & Local Taxes Per Capita, 2005
So not only do things cost less, but I can also earn a lower salary and still get the same after-tax results. In general, Texas ranks 45th out of the 50 states in terms of total taxes per $1,000 of income. With no personal income tax, the primary taxes in Taxes are property and sales tax. In Austin, property taxes are about 2.2% of appraised value per year.
Quick Summary
Going by the numbers, moving somewhere else can certainly seem attractive. For me, not only do things cost less as a whole, but my income would take much less of a tax haircut as well. Now, I don’t think everyone should move, and I have no plans currently to do so myself. But if you are re-examining your financial situation, it can be worthwhile to keep an open mind and consider the possibilities. Everything is a trade-off, and what you gain may be worth more than what you lose.
Posted in Frugal Living, Real Estate | 50 Comments »
Monday, March 23rd, 2009
If you are are a renter in this market, you may be able to lower your monthly housing costs with a little research and courage. Mary Pilon of the WSJ Wallet Blog recently showed how she reduced her rent by 11% by writing a convincing letter to her building manager’s office. She even shares a form letter that people can use themselves. I reverse-engineered some of it to see what types of ammunition might be useful when negotiating with your landlord:
Provide local statistics. A quick Google News Search with the keyword of your city and “average rent” or “rental vacancy rate” should bring up some useful stats. For example, according to Forbes, Atlanta is the nations 3rd most empty city, with rental vacancy rate of 16.1%.
Provide concrete, real examples. Use rent-comparison tools like Rentometer or Zilpy to find out how your rent compares with local properties. (Zilpy also provides rental trends by zip code, as shown below.) Try to find places that are very similar or better than yours, but which are renting for less than you pay now. You could even provide the exact Craigslist page.
Of course, the best comparison is with another person in your complex. Ask what your neighbors what they are paying. That’s how Pilon found out her neighbors were paying $300 a month less than her. If you’re not that close to them, perhaps start up a conversation with “Hey, how’s it going. Isn’t it a bummer that our rents are going up?”. You might get a “Yours too?” or a “Really, mine’s still $XXX…” I don’t see people being overly uptight about sharing rents.
Show why you are attractive renters. Some landlords try to squeeze out every last penny of rent, and deal with the resulting turnover, but 99% of the casual landlords I know would gladly give a discount to low-maintenance tenants. I know some who literally haven’t raise rent in a decade because the renter pays rent like clockwork, takes care of the house, and never bugs them unless it’s really important. You’ll want to show why you should get a discount too.
Remind them that you have a solid rent payment history. Perhaps you have excellent credit scores, or maybe it has greatly improved since you first moved in. Point out any minor repairs or maintenance that you have done on the house, or offer to do some in exchange for a rent reduction. Provide reasons why you want to become a long-term renter, or even agree to extend your lease.
These tactics may not work in all areas of the country, but in lots of places it should at least be worth a shot. The worst thing they can say is no.
Posted in Frugal Living, Real Estate | 33 Comments »
Monday, March 16th, 2009
We’re still in the middle of slowly landscaping our yard ourselves, but we decided to go ahead and start a small container garden on the porch. (Okay, dear wife did. Even weeds die when I touch them.) While doing research for this, I stumbled across the concept of “victory gardens” from World War II, where private citizens were asked to grow some of their own food in order to support the war effort.
During World War I and World War II, the United States government asked its citizens to plant gardens in order to support the war effort. Millions of people planted gardens. In 1943, Americans planted over 20 million Victory Gardens, and the harvest accounted for nearly a third of all the vegetables consumed in the country that year. Emphasis was placed on making gardening a family or community effort — not a drudgery, but a pastime, and a national duty.
The above was taken from ReviveVictoryGarden.org, which is one of many organizations which are trying to bring back victory gardens. There are many potential benefits, including:
- Financial relief from high food prices. (My favorite crops are basil and tomatoes).
- Healthier eating through less pesticides, chemicals, and preservatives.
- Environmental benefits from less energy spent on packaging and transportation.
- Physical benefits from getting more exercise, sunshine, and fresh air.
- Mental and patriotic benefits from being more self-sufficient.
The city of San Francisco has a Victory Garden 2008+ project with a goal of urban sustainability. There is even a campaign to convince the White House to plant a large Victory Garden on the First Lawn, with the produce going to the White House kitchen and to local food pantries..
Being a visual person, the motivational posters used at the time really caught my eye. I kind of want to make a large print and frame one. Here is one I found from the World War II poster collection at the New Hampshire State Library website:
And here are some more, click to see the full-sized poster:
“This poster was part of the publicity for a brilliantly mounted campaign to encourage the use of homegrown foods. Because commercially canned goods were rationed, the Victory Garden became an indispensable source of food for the home front. The Victory Garden was a household activity during the war and one of the most well received of all home front chores. At its peak, it is estimated that nearly 20,000,000 gardens were grown and about 40 percent of all vegetables produced in the U.S. came from Victory Gardens. By the end of the war the Department of Agriculture estimated total home front production of over one million tons of vegetables valued at 85 million dollars.
The Victory Gardens of WWII remain a vivid memory for many Americans who experienced them. Across the nation, home canning and preserving of farm produce flourished so that more supplies would be made available for our troops. The idea was simple in conception and inexpensive for the individual American at home to carry out. Of all the advertising techniques used to make Americans feel a part of the war effort, this was perhaps the most successful. The Victory Garden fulfilled the requirements of a good advertising campaign: that it attracts a broad and sympathetic audience at a reasonable price.”
Posted in Frugal Living | 24 Comments »
Wednesday, March 4th, 2009
If you aren’t familiar with them, Redbox and DVDPlay are little DVD rental kiosks that only cost $1 per day to rent. Redbox can be found in many McDonald’s, and DVDPlay’s tend to be in Safeway grocery stores. Limited selection, but not bad for some cheap entertainment. Just hope there isn’t a huge line or a broken kiosk when you want to return.
Redbox Free Coupon Codes
Every Wednesday in March, you can visit the Redbox Blog and get a free rental code. The code for March 4th is 75EA16 (tonight!) and is only good that day until Midnight central time. If you sign up for SMS alerts you can also get another free code every Monday.
DVDPlay Discount Coupon
You can get a 75 cent rental with the coupon code WOW75. One use per credit card. Expiration unknown.
Posted in Deals & Offers, Frugal Living | 6 Comments »
Sunday, March 1st, 2009
Some foodies may turn up their noses, but say hello to my new lunch buddy! It’s a sandwich maker, which apparently have been around for decades. My wife introduced me to them originally in college, but we had to throw it away a few years ago because the cord was fraying and I thought it was a fire hazard. A few weeks ago I saw one on sale at Wal-mart for $9 and picked one up. I can’t find it online, but here is a close example. There is even a Hello Kitty version.
If you’re not familiar with them, they are similar to George Foreman grills. Plug them in, throw in two slices of bread and some filling, and in 3-5 minutes you have a hot, toasted sandwich. They’re non-stick, and you can clean it with a damp paper towel. It’s so compact (and cheap) that you can leave one at work and just bring it to the office kitchen when you use it. (You might even make a few new friends…)
For an easy and cheap lunch, simply bring a bag with bread, meat, cheese, or veggies. Here are several recipe ideas:
- Classic grilled cheese
- Ham and swiss, or turkey and swiss
- Roast beef and cheddar
- Tuna melt
- Cheesesteak - bring leftover steak, sliced thin and add cheese and peppers.
- Veggie - Add any of following to cheese: tomatoes, mushrooms
- Pizza pocket - Mozzarella cheese, pepperoni or salami, and bit of leftover pasta sauce.
- Italian Margherita - Basil, fresh mozzarella, tomato.
- Breakfast - Make an egg omelet w/ fixings on one side, make waffle mix or toast bread on the other.
Hot, melty, and delicious! Perfect for cold days. Throw in a $1 can of soup.
To reduce fat, you can cut down on the cheese to what is needed to keep the sandwich together. Shredded cheese seems to work better than slices in my opinion. Or pack some veggies like carrots and broccoli, or fresh fruit to round things out.
Posted in Frugal Living | 32 Comments »
Tuesday, January 27th, 2009
Several months ago my “check engine” light went on. I went to my local mechanic, who plugged in a code scanner and found my error. Since it didn’t re-appear after resetting, he said he could try to fix it ($$$) or I could just leave it and it might never come back on. He said he normally charges $50 just do do the diagnostic, but this time it’d be free. A week ago, it came back on, and of course I wasn’t eager to go through all this hassle again.
I decided to try and buy my own error code scanner. If you search for “OBDII”, “OBD II”, or “OBD 2″ code readers, these devices will plug into your 1996 or newer model year car and read the diagnostic code from your car computer. In addition, they can erase or reset the code so that you can see if it is an ongoing problem.
Luckily, while searching I ran across a post on Fatwallet that had this CodeKey OBD II code reader on clearance for $23.90. There are nicer scanners out there, but they usually start at $60+. From the CodeKey site:
Simply put, CodeKey™ is an easy to use device designed to unlock the mystery of why your vehicle’s Check Engine Light is on. The Check Engine Light can ignite for something as simple as a loose gas cap, or as serious as a fuel leak. A flashing Check Engine Light can be serious, and continued driving can cause permanent damage to the vehicle. Until now, you would need to rely on a mechanic to determine what problem caused the light to go on
When you know the source of the problem you can:
* Decide if you should go to the garage immediately.
* Determine if the problem is something you can fix yourself.
* Know what to expect when you bring your car to a garage.
Other options
If you go to a dealership and have them read this code, it’ll cost you $100 just for the “diagnostic check”. Some people report that your local Autozone may lend these out for free at the store. I have also read that some Jiffy Lubes let you use theirs if you pay for some service like a oil change. I’d call first.
The old-school method is to simply disconnect your car battery and wait for the computer to reset itself. But for cars newer than 1996, this site reports that wiping out the computer’s memory can affect the operation of the transmission, climate control system and other functions. You can also trigger your alarm system or anti-theft car radio into lock-down mode. However, you won’t know the actual cause of the problem.
In the end, at less than $25 I just bought the tool. Just avoiding the gas to/from the mechanic and having to arrange a carpool for pickup/dropoff would be worth it. And sure enough, after resetting the light it has not come back on again.
It turns out, buying this tool could be the start of a new side business. Check out this Craiglist ad where a guy will come over and reset your light for $25. Learn how to do common repairs, and there you go. I think I’ll pass, but don’t forget to deduct business mileage if you go this route!
Posted in Deals & Offers, Frugal Living | 51 Comments »
Wednesday, December 24th, 2008
Time to pay the price for being healthy, and try to use up the rest of the balance in my Flexible Spending Account. First up, here is my list of usual suspects:
Starter Checklist of FSA-Elgible Items
- Advance refill of prescriptions
- Eye exams
- Contact lenses and lens solution
- Pain killers
- Cold and flu medicines
- First aid supplies for emergency kits
- Condoms and other birth control items
- Ear plugs
- Acne medication
Big Lists, More Ideas
The most authoritative resource is probably this list of eligible medical deductions from the IRS. Then there are some nicely organized lists from health insurers like Aetna or third-party FSA administrators like Conexis.
You can also search for inspiration at the special FSA-eligible sections of Drugstore.com, CVS, and Walgreens.
Finally, check the final date allowed on your specific plan. If yours is like mine and ends on 12/31, make sure that you have a receipt dated in 2008. Certain plans may allow you to spend your money up until March of next year. This may give you more time to line up a doctor’s appointment and get some care you’ve been putting off.
When will they fix this broken system? For one, if you are desperate you can always buy some junk, fax in the receipts, and then return the items. Unethical and illegal? You bet. But why are we forced to estimate our unpredictable expenses in a use-it or lose-it format?
Posted in Frugal Living, Taxes | 34 Comments »
