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If so, you might want to take a few tips from Laura and Tom McKanna on how to do it right. I wrote about their vacation at home in this week's column. One of the things they found was that advance planning is really important. They got their chores done before the vacation even started. Feel free to add your own tips if you've had a successful home vacation.
My column this Sunday introduces readers to a great way to teach kids about money: put them in charge of the family finances on vacation. I learned about it from the Musengwa family, in which Nandi, 11 (the one in the middle) is now planning her third summer vacation. This year, Imani, 9, at left, also will get to take on a decision-making role. Little sister, Tendani, 5, will no doubt get her turn in time.
[Photo credit: St. Petersburg Times]
Could you use some help managing your money? If the answer is yes and you live in Tampa or have transportation to get there, you might want to look into classes being offered next month by Tampa Bay Saves. Dates and topics are: June 10, Developing a Financial Plan; June 17- Evaluating Credit Offers & Credit Scores; and June 24- Using Financial Institutions & Achieving Financial Goals. The classes will be held from 5:45pm – 8:00pm. Cost is $7. Location is the Family Support & Resource Center, 7520 W. Waters Ave., Tampa. Childcare and refreshments are provided. For more information, call the Hillsborough County Extension Service at 813-744-5519 x 137. Here's the registration form.
High gas prices and inflation-pinched wallets are prompting some people to cut back on their vacation plans. However, others say they'll just spend more this year, some of them taking the same trips but expecting to spend more filling up the gas tank. When I asked the question of Times readers, here are some of the responses I got. I think I'll probably spend about the same. How about you?
Maybe. But don't ask and it's highly likely that you won't get what you're looking for. My column today is about asking companies for a better deal. It was inspired by my personal experience with Internet providers Bright House and Verizon. I was paying too much for my DSL service simply because I didn't call Verizon and ask for the better deal they would have given me if only I'd asked.
What's been your experience asking for a better deal?
I've recently heard from some older homeowners, including some of Lou Pearlman's victims, who are struggling financially and wonder where to go to get help. One of the best programs for low-income people who are 65 and older is SSI, or Supplemental Security Income. One note is that to qualify you cannot have more than $3,000 in countable assets for a couple ($2,000 for a single person), not including your home or car. If you have more than that in the bank, you may be able to qualify by using your money to pay down your mortgage or other debt.
For homeowners, a little-known source of help is homestead property tax deferral. Call your local tax collector's office for information in your community. Social service organizations in the area where you live can you refer you to helping organizations. In the Tampa Bay area, call 211 for information and referral or click here.
Here's last week's question of the week:
How have higher gas prices affected you? Have you changed your driving patterns?
Here are some of the responses I received from Times readers. Feel free to add your own as a comment.
As a small business owner, it has affected me greatly. I have employees that I reimburse for gas and have noticed a significant increase in my operating costs. If this continues, I will be forced to pass these costs onto the customer.
Michael Dash, Hudson
Regardless of price fluctuations, my consumption remains very stable. I take steps to ensure the best fuel efficiency when driving, such as having proper tire inflation, keeping the engine tuned and performing all scheduled maintenance.
Michel Curi Jr., Seminole
I will definitely reconsider some longer day trips that I had wanted to make in the near future. Since everything, not just gasoline, has gone up in price in the last year or two, the rising gas prices are just about “the last straw,” making longer trips very expensive.
Margit Crowell, Spring Hill
There is not much more I can do short of buying a hybrid or similar car, but the payback period for a hybrid is still unacceptably long, even at today’s gas prices. I try to incorporate everyday errands into my daily commute and I use www.tampagasprices.com to find low prices on or near my commute route.
Chas. E. Lehnert, Riverview
The days of driving across town for a dollar coupon are over.
Marv Bachman, Clearwater
This is the time of year when retailers and economists would like to be able to figure you out. Have higher gas prices and other costs put a crimp in your holiday plans? Or is gift giving a priority for you regardless of other concerns. So tell us: Will you spend more, less or about the same this holiday season than you did last year? Why? If you include your first and last names and city, your comments will be considered for publication in the Times.
[AP Photo]
Are you interested in money? If so, we’re interested in you. The Times is once again recruiting Tampa Bay area residents willing to share their opinions and experiences on the stock market, interest rates, college and retirement planning, insurance, the economy, credit cards, student loans and other money topics. We want our Money Panel to include people of all ages, income levels and investment experience. The only requirement: You must be willing to be quoted by name in the newspaper.
Here's where to sign up online. Spouses who both want to participate should fill out two forms. Past Money Panel participants need to sign up again. To thank you for your participation, we offer a chance to win one of four great prizes: sets of four tickets to Busch Gardens, the Florida Orchestra, “Gypsy” at Ruth Eckerd Hall (Dec. 16), or a Tampa Bay Lightning game (Dec. 15). Your entry must be received by Nov. 16 to be eligible for the prize drawing, so get yours in early. Your information will not be shared with any other company or used for solicitations.
IMPORTANT: Even if you filled out the form recently, you will need to do it again. We are starting the Money Panel data base from scratch. Also, only new sign-ups be eligible for the prizes.
Has budgeting gone out of style? Do you have a budget and if so, do you follow it? Please share your experiences and tips. You are welcome to post here or, if you prefer, send me an email. If you include your first and last names and city, your comments will be considered for publication in the Times. One good source for money-saving tips is Mary Hunt's Debt-Proof Living site. If you've got a budgeting favorite site, share it.
When my husband and I went car shopping recently, the salesman joked that our 1994 Camry was getting so old we'd soon be sending it off to college. In fact, it had already been to college and come back. When our daughter graduated, I gave her my newer Corolla, took back the Camry and drove it for two more years. It had 165,450 miles on it when we passed it on to our son this month. Consumer Reports says its useful life isn't anywhere near over. The magazine, in a feature in its October issue, says if you've got a reliable car and take care of it, it should last 200,000 miles or more, saving you many thousands of dollars compared to buying a new car every five years.
What kind of car should you get? Consumer Reports says these are the best bets, based on at least three years of model reliability data: Honda Civic, CR-V or Element; Lexus ES or LS; Toyota 4Runner, Highlander, Land Cruiser, Prius or RAV4. These vehicles are rated as bad bets: BMW 7-Series; Infinit QX56; Jaguar S-Type or X-Type; Mercedes-Benz M-Class (V8) or SL; Nissan Armada or Titan; Volkswagen Touareg or Volvo XC90 (6-cyl).
The magazine's survey of readers found 6,769 who had vehicles with 200,000 or more miles on their odometers, including a 1994 Ford Ranger pickup driven 488,000 miles.
Have you driven a vehicle more than 200,000 miles? Tell about it in a comment to this post.
(Photo credit: Getty Images)
Some readers have been intrigued about an article I wrote about tax law changes, especially improvements in Health Savings Accounts. Assuming President Bush signs the law passed last weekend, IRA investors will have a one-time right to roll over an IRA to a Health Savings Account. That means withdrawals from the IRA, which would have been taxable, will be converted to tax-free withdrawals if the money is used for health care costs. However, some of the people who are most interested in doing this are not eligible. Health Savings Accounts can only be created by people who are not on Medicare. They can be set up only in conjunction with a high-deductible health insurance policy (minimum deductible in 2007: $1,100 for individuals, $2,200 for families). You may be able to get such a policy from your employer or purchase it from an agent who sells health insurance. You then can get the Health Savings Account from an agent or from some banks (BB&T is one that recently created this option.) You can keep an existing Health Savings Account after you go on Medicare, but you cannot make new contributions to it. Here's one place to read more about HSA's. Here's information on the latest tax law changes.
(Photo credit: Getty Images)
Q. Is the cost of an appraisal for insurance purposes deductible?
A. Only if the property you are appraising and insuring is business or investment property. If you are talking about your home, neither the appraisal nor the insurance is deductible.
The typical payday loan borrower pays back $793 for a $325 loan, according to a new study from the Center for Responsible Lending. It says predatory payday lending now costs $4.2-billion a year in excessive fees, $156-million of that in Florida. The problem isn't so much the initial loan as it is the fact that so many borrowers can't pay the money back when the loan comes due, usually in two weeks, which means another loan and more fees. In Florida, where there is a legal limit of one loan at a time, 89 percent of borrowers have five or more transactions a year and 57 percent have 12 or more transactions a year. The average: 8 loans a year per borrower. The average APR is 10.8% on the $1.6-billion of payday loans each year in the state.
The payday loan industry responds that its fees are cheaper that bounced check fees and late fees on credit cards.
The fact is that banks, payday lenders and all types of finance companies take advantage of people with financial problems. In many cases, what's presented as the solution (extending more credit) only leads to bigger debt and more problems. While the ultimate solution is for people to learn to manage their finances better, it is important for states to limit the damage lenders can do.
(Photo credit: Getty Images)
Q. With the cost of homeowners insurance, the maintenance fees and property taxes, we are trying to determine the best way to approach our home here. A number of friends have suggested a reverse mortgage. Is there an unbiased evalaution on a reverse mortgage that we can obtain to make our decision? We do not know enough about this type transaction and don't want to be misled by companies that could take advatage of us.
A. AARP publishes some good consumer info (here and here) on this topic. Fees are the big drawback of a reverse mortgage, so it's only something to consider if you plan to be in your home for the long haul. If you were to sell in a couple of years, it wouldn't be worth it.
Also, in case you didn't see it, here's my column about homestead tax deferral, which is basically a "mini" reverse mortgage without the fees.
Pinellas families with qualifying incomes (no more than $43,500 for a family of four) who own their homes may be eligible for help making their property better able to withstand a hurricane. Improvements such as roof bracing and garage door reinforcement will be offered, but the program is limited to 75 homeowners. To apply call Vickie Justice at (727) 538-7370, ext. 337. More information is available at My Safe Florida Home and the Florida Hurricane Fund.
(Photo credit: Getty Images)
Twenty-two percent of Americans say they have no spare cash after paying their basic living expenses. Are you one of them? ACNielsen, which studies consumer markets in 40 countries, reports that only the Portugese are more likely to say they spend every dime. On average around the globe, 13 percent have no money left over.
The big danger of not having any discretionary cash is that unexpected expenses lead to debt. Not surpisingly, the ACNielsen survey found Americans who do have extra money say their top priority is using it to pay down debt. Savings come in second. Americans are less likely than those in other countries to say they would use their extra cash for vacations, clothing or new technology.
"Perhaps because the idea of living from paycheck to paycheck is so prevalent, consumers who have a little extra cash would rather use it to shore up their finances than spend it right away," said John J. Lewis, president of ACNielsen U.S.
What's your top priority for your extra cash?
(Photo credit: Getty Images)
Q. How can I pay off debt without filing for bankruptcy and without taking a large amount of money away from the little I make now?
Estimating your expenses in retirement is one of the toughest challenges anybody planning for retirement faces. You can read how others have handled it in this story . But here's your chance to tell us what you think.
If you're already retired: Are your expenses higher or lower than when you were working? What have been the biggest cost surprises for you? What planning tips do you have to offer?
If you're planning for retirement: What are you estimating your expenses will be? How confident are you that you're on the right track?
Post your comments here (by clicking on "comments" under the date.)
(Photo credit: Getty Images; click to enlarge)
Do you have an old refrigerator, washing machine that's an energy hog but still going strong? Would the savings on electricity be worth the cost of replacement?
Consumer Reports Money Adviser asked that question, comparing typical models of 20 years ago to an energy-efficent model of 2005. The answer: Only the refrigerator would recoup its cost in a reasonable amount of time (7-8 years ). A washing machine would take 14 years and a dishwasher 20 years. Of course if they're not working properly, that's another issue entirely.
By the way, the Money Adviser is a great little publication.
I was surprised recently to read about a USA Today survey of business travelers that found that half never or only occasionally left a tip for the hotel maid. One of my colleagues, Steve Huettel, wrote about this survey and what some people had to say about it. (You can find column here.) Most travel experts suggest leaving $2 to $5 a night, but even $1 is welcome. I typically leave $2 a night, although until I read his column, I wasn't sure this was the right amount. Do you tip when you stay in a hotel? Why or why not? If you do, how much do you leave?
Cutting down on takeout meals is the top choice of most Americans, according to an ACNielsen survey I wrote about in today's Times. (Read the story here or click here for the ACNielsen press release.)
However, restaurant owners I talked to for the story were doubtful that their time-pressed customers would switch to home cooking. What about you? How often do you get takeout for dinner? (In my house it's typically once a week.) If you found your expenses rising faster than your income, would you cook at home more often? Where else would you cut back?
 St. Petersburg Times personal finance editor Helen Huntley writes about money topics and answers questions about financial planning, investments and personal income taxes.
Helen has been following the Lou Pearlman/Trans Continental investment scam since December 2006. Read more about it in this special report and on this blog. Looking for help with your income taxes? Check out this special report
E-mail questions to Helen Huntley: |
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