Uncommon Cents

We’ve discussed Internet coupon sites here in the past (and of course, we’ve had the fabulous Kyle of Rather-Be-Shopping.com do a bunch of guest posts!), so they’re not new to us. But there are other sites out there and other ways to spend less or get rebates, and I’m wondering which do you like?

For instance, DealMac.com and its affiliates like DealRam.com and DealCam.com are ones I use to either hear about new discounts or compare prices. But there’s also Shopper.com and Google Products for price comparison as well. A lot of times I’ll see if a retailer (usually a large one like Best Buy or Circuit City) offers a ShopDiscover increased rebate (like 5%). Or I may see if I can find a product I want on eBay or Amazon for less than it sells locally.

Recently I’ve been investing gift card swap sites to see if some of those cards I never use (Barnes & Noble, anyone?) could be used by someone else and I could get one I need for a holiday gift (anyone out there have a Guess gift card they want to sell or swap?). And of course, there’s blogs (including Kyle’s) like Frugal Shopping With Julie that point you to ways to spend less or get money back.

What are your favorite Internet sites for spending less? I’m sure my list is far from comprehensive, so I’d love to hear more!

With all the gloom and doom about the economy the last few weeks, perhaps the silver lining is the drop in oil prices and the subsequent easing of gas prices. Gas is not cheap, but it’s lots cheaper than it was in July.

I’ve been spending about $200 a month on gas for awhile; it’s quite possible that’ll drop to about $150 or so. That’s $50 more discretionary income a month. The question is, where will that $50 go? WIll I be willing and able to put it into savings? Or is there something else I’d like to spend the $50 a month on. While this is not a ton of money, $50 a month is $600 a year–the same as the stimulus check I received earlier this year (I hate to call it a stimulus payment, since it was really just a partial refund of the taxes I paid for the year).

Has the reduction in the price of gas made your financial picture brighter? Or is the reduction offset by other expenses or the general gloom and doom in the economy?

One of my friends is a workaholic nurse (people think I’m a workaholic, but I have days off!) who works seven days a week. She’s also one of those come-in-early-and-stay-late kind of people. Why does she do it? Besides the money (nurses get paid pretty well), she says that it makes her more frugal, because if you never walk into a store, you never spend money there.

I’ve spent a little bit of time considering that statement. I guess it’s true, although if you really need to work in order to keep yourself away from a store, I’m wondering about your discipline. But still, there’s lots of traps every time you enter a store. Just thinking about yesterday, when I stopped by Safeway to get a friend of mine who just had a baby some flowers, as I approached the cashier, I was assaulted by mints, tabloids, and gift cards.

I can understand how people will spend more with these kinds of tactics going on.

What do you think? Does just going to a store make you spend more money?

In my opinion, in a word, yes. Or at least in large part it’s replaced them. I typically peruse Craigslist using its little known RSS feed abilities for local bicycle and computer deals. However, that’s just scratching the surface. Craigslist sellers list almost anything; community events and musical gigs get announced there; business services like computer repair or legal services are available; and jobs–not just odd jobs, but jobs that careers are made of.

What’s the appeal of Craigslist? To some extent, it’s cost; Craigslist listings are almost always free for the lister; perusing is definitely free for the browser. It’s also quick–postings are up instantly–and they have a large critical mass of readers where enough people read the ads that it makes it worth it for the listers.

For what it’s worth, I’ve gotten a couple of different computer deals from Craigslist. I’ve yet to sell anything (or applied for a job or used a service), but I’m definitely thinking about it.

Have you used Craigslist yourself?

While I’ve loved my part time job over the last nine or so years, they’ve become less and less reliable over time. I’ve had numerous issues with them paying me incorrect amounts for a long, long time, and more and more often my paychecks have been late, and it’s clear that the agency has financial issues. They pay well, but they may not be a long term source of additional income.

I’ve worked for this place for quite some time, and I know the work really well, to the point that I can do it with about zero preparation. I’ve got a lot of the paperwork pretty automated and my schedule is worked out for it. The field locations I do work for them at are relatively close to home (and they pay mileage, too). I’m just not sure that they’ll be around long term.

My options are somewhat limited; since I’ve worked there as long as I have, I’m the highest paid at my position, which pays considerably more than most social service jobs. The hours work great for me and I don’t have to spend a lot of time learning new material. The locations are also ideal. While I do receive some income from this blog, it’s a fraction of what I get from this job, which is also a fraction of what I earn from my full time job. The job market is weak right now as well. If I want the extra income, I’ll have difficulty replacing this job with a comparable one.

Still, with all the positives of the job and the negatives of finding alternatives, I am concerned by the late paydays and incorrect paychecks.

What would you do?

A CNNMoney article a few days ago brought a sadly stunning thought into my head:

What if people started being thrifty?

What if people became more frugal? What if they started paying attention to their finances and spent less than they earned? What if they avoided fees and interest and late charges and paid their bills in full and on time?

What if instead of a negative savings rate the people of America actually put away 10% (or more) of what they made?

What if people actually figured out how to fend for themselves and only relied on the government in the most dire of circumstances?

What if the message people get from rising gas prices is not, “I have to find $50 more for gas this month somehow,” to, “Why am I $50 from the edge of the financial cliff every month?”–and they do something about it?

Perhaps the silver lining that is happening with the tough economy, struggling stock market, and dismal housing market is that people may be getting the message that living beyond your means and spending money you don’t have, getting mortgages you can’t afford and praying for huge increases in equity are, in the end, fool’s games and they’re not fools.

Perhaps.

I’m doubtful but hopeful.

How about you?

I’m a social worker. I’ve been employed by either a social service agency or a hospital since 1989, so we’re looking at about 20 years in the profession shortly. My colleagues and I regularly serve clients who have significant illnesses, strained relationships, mental illness, and financial problems. Often my tasks include helping people enroll into various financial assistance programs.

Concentrating on the latter population for the purposes of this post and looking at similar situations… why are those on public assistance not required to learn about personal finance?

This is not a huge stretch. At least here, those on the WIC program are required to see a nutritionist; those on financial assistance are required to work or volunteer after a certain amount of time receiving assistance (although there are waivers available depending on the situation). Considering that those on public assistance tend to have less to spend than others, would education on frugality and personal finance be most effective here?

Or perhaps requiring financial literacy as a class in high schools? While this has some appeal (and doesn’t appear to be punitive, where some might see requiring those on assistance to attend such classes might be), there’s a long way to go to get it implemented–and it totally misses those who are not in school. However, this might prepare the soon-to-be independent with some knowledge and skills that could make a difference.

We have such a financial mess in this country from the individual level to the governmental level and it appears that people only start learning about it when they’re in crisis. What do we do to make things better?

Is there a solution for our financial literacy problem in the U.S.? What do you think?

Since I’ll be heading out of town in a couple of days, I thought it would be wise to look at some of the issues of traveling and frugality. It’s tempting to throw your budget into the toilet when you’re on vacation, but unfortunately, there are always consequences. Anyone remember that old American Express commercial where a couple of stranded travelers try to get their bags off of the plane and can’t, then proceed to charge a bunch of fun? What we don’t remember–because we weren’t shown what happened–was how much less fun it looked when the bill showed up.

Traveling is tough financially and not just because of the skyrocketing price of fuel. You’re often a captive audience. Just like a movie theater, stores in the airport can charge you whatever you want because it’s about the only game in town. Same for the restaurants there; the Burger King in Honolulu International Airport tends to charge about a buck per sandwich more than one outside the airport.

You also have the challenge of getting on your plane or train, and with the airlines charging for checking bags as well as checking the weight on them very closely and charging you appropriately for “excess” weight, you have yet more opportunities to break out your wallet. Twenty five bucks for checking a bag and more for weight over 50 pounds has become almost a norm in the airline industry.

Once you’re on a plane or a train, you’re definitely captive. And it’s not just food, it’s also things like headphones. Let’s face it, being on mass transit can be horribly boring, so entertainment is also an area that can hit your pocketbook. What can you do to try to turn the odds in your favor?

~ Eat beforehand: have a meal before you head out. That’ll at last help you keep the hunger pangs at bay for awhile. Don’t make yourself uncomfortable, but try to make yourself at least a bit full before hitting the road.

~ Take a snack: Breakfast bars and string cheese are two examples of snacks that you can put in your pocket or bag to munch along the way, and of course, you can also make your own. They’re definitely cheaper and healthier than buying candy bars from the snack bar on the train or the convenience store in the airport.

~ Water is your friend: Definitely the cheapest beverage out there, and possibly the healthiest.

~ Bring something to amuse yourself: A portable DVD player, notebook computer, iPod, or Kindle are the high tech ways but books and magazines would also work. You can also get adapters for the headphone jacks on most airline seats to work with standard earphones or earbuds.

~ Be careful with your weight: Not yours, your bag’s. With more and more airlines charging fees for bags, be very careful about how much your bags weigh. Consider shipping things by postal mail to your destination if you have enough time; it could be cheaper!

~ Pockets can be your friend: Things like the Scott Evest vest or the 511 Tactical pants with tons of pockets can help you carry more onto a plane than you can imagine. This will help you with the weight restrictions on bags.

~ Rest! You’re on vacation! Take a nap on the train or plane. You’re not driving or flying!

What are some of your frugal travel tips?

My stimulus payment arrived this past week. I am not sure why it came in the form of a check rather than direct deposit when I filled out my bank information on my 1040A to have the money deposited directly into my checking account, but whatever. I can live better with $600 than I can live without it.

What to do with that money? It immediately helped replenish some of the funds used to get this MacBook that went from the want to need list as quickly as my sister’s dog pulled my iBook from the table to the floor. With that payment and my previous snowflaking efforts, I’m most, but not all of the way back to recovered.

What are other people doing with their stimulus payments? Much to my dismay, many of my friends are using them for spending rather than saving or investing. Even some people I know who are clearly struggling financially are immediately using the money to buy iPods or iPhones or other luxury items.

Now, as an Apple stockholder, I’m not opposed to people spending money on their products, and yes, the intent is for the money to be spent rather than saved–at least that’s what the government is intending. But money doesn’t have to be spent if it’s better for your situation to save it, and that’s what I’ve done with mine.

What are you doing with your stimulus?

Welcome to your Link Payday for May 20, 2008. After a really rough 10 day stretch of work, I now have a few days off to try to get ahead on the blog. Let’s take a quick look around and see what the best of the Internet has to offer us in the way of personal finance:

While not from a personal finance blog, RankingsAndReviews.com discussed hybrid payoff time–how long someone needs to own a hybrid car vs. an equivalent gasoline only car before the increase in gas milage outweighs the increased cost. Obviously, this is highly dependent on the cost of gas.

Do clotheslines make people think poverty? Given that my family has used clotheslines forever (and about never uses the dryer), that thought has never crossed my mind, but Trent over at The Simple Dollar teaches us how frugality may give the impression of poverty and the social pressures that may prevent the choice of the frugal option.

JD over at Get Rich Slowly features a reader email that asks the readers what to do when I’m doing well financially but my family is not. This is a fascinating piece that makes readers consider their personal values around money and family as well as what it really means to help people.

Be careful when buying something that says, “no interest for twelve months,” wisely warns My Two Dollars, because No Interest For 12 Months Does Not Mean No Interest At All. The best way to buy something like this is to have the cash available when you want to buy it, then put it in an insured certificate of deposit until it’s time to pay it off!

Moolanomy explains what an annuity is. I am not a fan of them, but this is a much more impartial view of this financial vehicle (and I’m still not a fan!).

And there’s your link payday for May 20, 2008!