ACCS Credit Blog

This mom has some great ideas!  Here are lots of inexpensive, or free, family activities.

59 Frugal Family Fun Ideas

By Rachel Keller

What fun activities can you do when you have neither the time nor finances to afford a vacation? Spending a week or two at Disney World or some other vacation resort may be exciting, but those getaways can drain your budget. Family fun should not require you to purchase a vacation plan or take out a second mortgage on your house.

Listed below are several dozen simple ideas that are fun yet inexpensive. Our family has tried many of these, and we hope to try many more in the future. This is only a partial list of the many things you can do as a family. Add your own ideas to the list, and you will never lack for fun recreation.

1. Take a bike ride, but remember bicycle safety. Our family of seven has been cycling for several years now (even throughout my last pregnancy). We bought a child trailer which can hold two children, or up to 100 pounds. The trailer also holds food and other items, so we can ride to the park for a picnic or stop by the store for groceries.
2. Fly a kite or a battery-operated plane. We have done this on more than one occasion–a very fun, yet inexpensive outing.
3. Play catch or Frisbee. Even if you don’t have a Frisbee, a Rubbermaid® or round plastic lid make a wonderful and fun substitute.

4. Go roller-skating or roller-blading. (Always wear protective gear.)
5. Visit a local museum. Some museums have special discounts or even free admission on a specific day of the month. In our city, the second Friday of each month is free admission to several area museums.
6. Tour a local establishment (newspaper, office, radio station, city hall).
7. Stop by the state capital. This can be both fun and educational.
8. Visit a zoo. We purchase a family pass to the zoo. Because we are a larger family, the zoo pass more than pays for itself in just two visits. The pass is also reciprocal at other zoos. (Many of which are larger and more expensive than our local zoo.)
9. Go to the airport. When I was young, our family enjoyed watching airplanes take off and land. Now, since we live close to an airport, my children can often watch planes going across the sky from our own yard.
10. Walk the mall. Some malls have seasonal decorations and activities available. (Just watch you don’t overspend at stores while you’re there.)
11. Attend a church, school or community softball game (or basketball, volleyball, soccer, etc.). You can cheer on your favorite team often at no cost to you.
12. Plant a flower and/or vegetable garden. Gardening is a fun, healthy, and educational activity for you and your family. Children learn responsibility, and your family saves money on fresh and healthy produce.
13. Take a trip on a city bus. The buses in our city are very inexpensive, and with the price of gas, this may be a viable alternative. Once my sons took a ride on the bus, and they loved it. Just be prepared to spend extra time getting to your destination.
14. Play board games or card games at home. Even better, make up your own fun games.
15. Invite a family for popcorn. They may even enjoy playing a board game with you.
16. Walk, jog, or run as a family. We live on a cul-de-sac that is great for this activity. Sometimes, we all walk, pushing the two youngest in a stroller. Other times, I’ll run and my three oldest ride their bikes. It’s a great workout for me in trying to keep up with them.
17. Surprise the family. Go on a mystery walk. Only you know the destination. Have something special waiting at the end of the walk.
18. Have a scavenger hunt either inside or outside. Children will have fund finding the items listed.
19. A variation of the scavenger hunt is the nature hike. Look for as many different varieties of a specific item, such as leaves, flowers, rocks, birds, etc. You could look for several items on one walk or look for one specific item only.
20. Feed geese or ducks. We save our stale bread to feed the birds. (Keep it in the freezer until it’s time to feed the birds.)
21. Visit a nearby playground or park. Pack a lunch and make a day of it.
22. Have a barbecue or picnic at a park.
23. If you cannot get to the park, have a picnic in your backyard.
24. Did your picnic get rained out? Do not despair. Have an indoor picnic, complete with blankets, paper plates, cups, etc. (My children and I had so much fun when our planned picnic got rained out.)
25. Take a drive in the country or in the mountains. Stop at scenic overlooks. (With the price of gas so high, you may not want to drive too far.)
26. Go fishing.
27. Take a paddle boat ride.
28. Swim in a creek or pond (Practice water safety, of course!)
29. When it snows, find a hill to toboggan or sled down.
30. Build snowmen, snow angels or snow forts. Have a snowball battle.
31. Visit the library. Many libraries have activities planned for the children, such as story time, craft activities, movies.
32. Read a book together as a family. Even older children can enjoy a younger child’s book, and you may be surprised at how much younger children comprehend reading materials beyond their reading level.
33. Take a blanket and several books outside and read under the shade of a tree.
34. Work on a word puzzle together. Have fun and make your own word puzzles or word searches.
35. Watch a family video and discuss it together afterwards. Feature Films for Families has some wholesome videos with discussion questions listed on the back cover.
36. Make homemade ice cream.
37. Make homemade finger paints, edible play dough, invisible ink.
38. Do a puppet show, charades, or act out a play.
39. Wash the car together. This can be great fun on a hot day!
40. Use a hose, squirt guns, sprinklers, and water balloons to cool down on a hot summer day.
41. Camp out in the backyard.
42. Make an indoor tents with blankets draped over tables and/or chairs. Make an outdoor tent with blankets draped over a wash line. I had fun as a child making my own tents.
43. Brush up on constellations and go for a star-gazing walk.
44. Now that you are brushed up on your constellations, visit a planetarium.
45. Clean out the garage, basement, or attic.
46. Sing songs. If you have a musical instrument, play along. I play piano, and my husband plays guitar. If you have a portable instrument like a guitar, you can take it on a camping trip.
47. Write a handwritten letter to grandparents or other relatives or to a missionary.
48. Attend a children’s play.
49. Explore a different part of town.
50. Have fun making your own pizza. (If you don’t want to make your own pizza dough, you can buy ready-made pizza dough.)
51. Find some old family albums and have fun reminiscing.
52. Learn how to preserve your memories by creating acid-free photo memory pages together.
53. Make a family journal of your fun times together.
54. Draw a mural together.
55. Bake cookies and give to the neighbors.

56. Make homemade Christmas decorations.
57. Visit a shut-in or the elderly at a retirement facility. This is a wonderful way to teach compassion to young children.
58. Do a helping project for a church or needy family.
59. Do something special for others. Children can help prepare meals for the sick or shut-in or gather items for a needy family. Buy some groceries and deliver to the family. (You can make this extra fun by putting them on the doorstep, ringing the doorbell, and hiding.) At Christmas, buy a few extra gifts for someone in need.

Family fun need not cost a family fortune, just a little time, planning, and creative thought. Yet, the memories created through family time together can last a lifetime.

http://www.betterbudgeting.com/articles/frugalfun/familyfun.htm

Are you still puzzled about interest rate rules?  You are not the only person who is.  Here’s a shortened version of the CARD Act rules.

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Interest Rate Disclosures Still Misleading Consumers

By Odysseas Papadimitriou

July 9, 2010

A credit card agreement isn’t anyone’s first choice for reading material. The language is arduous and the terms are intentionally vague. That being said, it’s still important for consumers to understand the message that they are ambiguously trying to convey. The new credit card law (Credit CARD Act) was supposed to bring clarity, but some credit card companies are using old tricks in order to keep consumers in the dark regarding their protection from interest rate increases.

It used to be that credit card companies, such as Chase, Bank of America, Citi, and American Express, could re-price your APR on your entire balance for any reason and at any time. All they had to do was give you notice and there wasn’t a lot that you could do to avoid the increase. The CARD Act has certainly made the rules around rate increases better for consumers – but that hasn’t stopped credit card companies from trying to make you think otherwise. Although the fine print is confusing, you should rest easy knowing that the consumer protection rules in the CARD Act apply to all credit cards, with the exception of business credit cards.

To investigate just how misleading the credit card companies are trying to be, CardHub.com evaluated the top 10 credit card issuers (based on outstanding balances) for the clarity of their post-CARD Act Penalty APR polices in the June 2010 Penalty APR Study. The study gave overall poor ratings to 6 of the 10 issuers because they were either lacking transparency or appeared to be utilizing the new rules to engage in “gotcha” rate practices. The fact that the majority of issuers evaluated did not clearly explain how rate increases work is not surprising, given that the study also found that the Sample Statement on the Federal Reserve’s Consumer’s Guide to Credit Cards does an equally poor job.

Long story short, the CARD Act has made things better, but if you look at the credit card companies’ disclosures it’s impossible to determine what their policy is relative to the law. Therefore, trying to make out the fine print on your credit card application is a waste of time. When it comes down to it, no matter how vague or complicated they try to make it, all credit card companies have to uniformly comply with the rules under the CARD Act.

So here is what you need to know:

Under the new law, a credit card company may not increase the APR on your existing balance (i.e. purchases you have already made) unless you are 60 days delinquent in making a minimum payment on your account. If your interest rate is increased for this reason, they are required by law to bring your interest rate back down to the regular rate after timely payments for six consecutive months.

The credit card company may not re-price any of your APRs on future or existing balances for the first 12 months unless you are 60 days delinquent. Should they change your rate for future transactions for any reason, they are required to send you a notice specifying the reason for the rate increase 45 days in advance, and the rate increase can only apply to purchases made 14 days after the notice was sent. If you feel the rate increase is unfair, you can reject the changes. You won’t be able to charge anything else to the account, but you will be able to pay down your existing balance at your own pace and at the regular APR.

http://www.walletblog.com/2010/07/interest-rate-disclosures-still-misleading-consumers/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+walletblog+%28Wallet+Blog%29

In honor of Independence Day, the offices of ACCS will be closed on Monday, July 5, 2010.  A safe holiday to all.

It’s surprising how many ways there are to save money on prescriptions.  I found this information on the WebMD website.

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Learn about safe and effective ways to save money: from generic medicine to mail order pharmacies.

By R. Morgan Griffin

Feel like the bill for your prescription drugs just keeps getting higher every time you go to the pharmacy? You could be right. Since 1990, U.S. spending for prescription drugs has increased by five times. In roughly the same period of time, retail prices of medications have risen almost 8% every year — three times higher than the rate of inflation.

If you’re trying to save on your prescription drugs, you’re hardly alone. The good news is that there are a lot of popular, safe, and effective ways to do it. The bad news is that there are a lot of popular, not-so-safe and not-so-effective ways, too. To help you sort the good ideas from the bad, WebMD got some advice from prescription drug experts.

Good Idea: Talk to Your Doctor about Switching to a Generic Medicine

One of the smartest ways to get cheap prescription drugs is to switch from a brand name to a generic. “Generic drugs can offer a huge savings to patients,” says Kevin Schulman, MD, professor of medicine and business administration at the Duke University Medical Center in Durham, N.C. On average, brand-name drugs are three times more expensive than generic drugs.

“Depending on the drugs you take, you could conceivably save hundreds of dollars a month by switching to generics,” says Richard Sagall, MD, president and co-founder of NeedyMeds, a Philadelphia nonprofit that provides information about financial assistance for drugs.

There are a lot of generic options, too. “Sixty percent of all prescriptions in the U.S. are generic,” Schulman says. More are available all the time. “Some of the generics we have now were brand name drugs just two or three years ago,” Schulman tells WebMD. So when you go to the doctor next, ask if any of your high-priced prescription medicines now have a generic equivalent.

Bad Idea: Switch to an Alternative or Herbal Medication

The magazine ads and infomercials can be pretty tempting. Why not try out an “herbal” or “natural” alternative to high-priced prescription drugs? But while they might be cheaper, they might also be completely ineffective or, worse, dangerous.

“It’s really confusing for people, because they just don’t realize that herbal products are not regulated at all,” says Schulman. Despite whatever claims are made in the ads, no one is testing these supplements to see if they work.

“Using one of these supplements to treat a serious medical condition could be life-threatening,” says Schulman. Don’t do it.

Good Idea: Get Higher-Dosage Pills and Split Them in Half

Some medications cost about the same, per pill, no matter what the dosage. An 80-milligram tablet of a drug might cost no more than a 40-milligram tablet. This quirky pricing gives you a big opportunity to save. Your doctor could write a prescription for double the dosage you actually need. Once you get the pills, you just split them in half with a pill cutter. And, presto, you’ve got two pills for the price of one — more or less.

However, not all medications can be split safely. For instance, drugs that have special coatings or are slow-release should never be cut in half: you could wind up with side effects or a dosage that’s too high. Your doctor will be very cautious in suggesting which of your pills can be cut, if any.

Bad Idea: Halve Your Dosages

This is another do-it-yourself solution to saving on prescription drug costs, and it’s a really bad idea. People try to stretch out a prescription by splitting their prescribed dose in half, or taking it every other day instead of every day. Sure, they think, it’s not ideal, but it saves money and gives them at least some of the drug’s benefit, right?

Wrong. It might have no benefit. It might even be dangerous.

“Reducing your dose, without talking to your doctor, is really one of the worst ways to save money,” says Schulman. “Some medications can be life-threatening if you don’t take them exactly as directed, or if you stop taking them abruptly.” In some cases, it might be safer not to take the medicine at all than to take half the dose, says Sagall.

You should never stop taking any medication without first talking to your doctor.

Good Idea: Use a Mail Order Pharmacy for Prescription Drugs

Getting discount prescription drugs from mail order pharmacies is another good way to save money. If you have insurance, your health plan might work with a company that provides cheaper mail order prescription drugs in bulk. Other mail order pharmacies cater to the uninsured; provided you meet the income eligibility, you can get drugs at steep discounts. Mail order pharmacies save you trips to the pharmacy, and that’s especially important for people who are homebound.

Bad Idea: Use an Internet Pharmacy Advertised in an Email

You have to be very cautious when it comes to Internet pharmacies, says Schulman. No matter how slick the site looks, it might be phony. Some fraudulent online pharmacies sell expired or counterfeit medicines. The FDA says you should never buy from an Internet pharmacy that is outside the U.S. or that does not require a prescription. And even if a pharmacy meets those requirements, you should still be wary.

Good Idea: Review with Your Doctor All of the Prescription Drugs That You Take

Over the years, it’s easy to rack up a lot of prescriptions. That’s why, every once in a while, it’s important to take stock of all the medicines you take with your doctor, Schulman says. Maybe you don’t need them all anymore.

For instance, you might be on several prescription drugs for the same condition. Your doctor might have tried one, but it didn’t work well enough. So later, he or she added a second, and then a third. You assume that you need all the pills and take them dutifully. But maybe only the third one is helping, while the other two do nothing but cost you money.

So at your next doctor’s visit, bring in a list of all the medicines you take — or the medicine bottles themselves — and have your doctor look them over. Cutting out unneeded medicines will not only save you money, but it will reduce hassle and lower the risk of drug interactions.

Bad Idea: Cut out the Prescription Drugs That You Think Are Less Important

It’s one thing to confer with your doctor about which medicines you really need and which you don’t. But deciding on your own is a terrible idea. Unfortunately, lots of people do it anyway.

“This happens all the time,” says Sagall. “People just make a decision without any input from a doctor. They might decide to treat their high blood pressure, but stop bothering with their diabetes.” Obviously, the results of not treating an illness could be dangerous or even fatal.

Good Idea: Get Low-Cost or Free Prescription Drugs From a Pharmaceutical Assistance Plan

If you have a low income, there are hundreds of different programs available that might get you cheap or free medications. One group that provides information about these programs is NeedyMeds at www.needymeds.com.

Another is the Partnership for Prescription Assistance (PPA), a national program sponsored by pharmaceutical companies at www.pparx.org. “Since the program started in 2005, the PPA has helped more than 4.2 million people in the U.S. get drugs for free or nearly free,” says Ed Belkin, a vice president at the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA.) Over 2,500 different medicines are available through the program.

Bad Idea: Get Free Prescription Drugs from a Relative’s Medicine Cabinet

“Taking other people’s medication is a really bad way to save money,” says Sagall. The dangers should be obvious. You’re not a doctor. You don’t know what you’re doing. The pills that help one person might not help you. Taking a drug that wasn’t prescribed for you could cause serious interactions with other medicines you take. Also, once a bottle has been kicking around for a while, how do you know if the pills inside it are actually what’s on the label?

There’s another problem with taking pills from a dusty old bottle found in the back of a medicine cabinet: they’re often expired. Medications tend to lose their effectiveness with time. “Usually, taking an expired drug won’t hurt you,” says Sagall. “But it may not work at all either.”

Good Idea: Work With Your Doctor

“Talking to your doctor is the most important thing you can do if you want to lower your prescription drug costs,” says Sagall.

There’s so much a doctor can do to help cut medication costs. He or she can prescribe you a prescription for similar but cheaper medications, for instance. And he or she will have access to information — about generic drugs, assistance programs, or free samples — that you may not.

Bad idea: Figure it Out on Your Own

Many people clam up when they’re in their doctor’s office. They feel intimidated and don’t like to ask questions. That’s especially true when it comes to finances. They feel awkward and embarrassed about admitting that they’re having trouble affording their medicine.

But you have to be honest, experts say. “If you don’t tell your doctor that the costs of your prescription drugs are too high, he or she might just assume that it’s not a problem for you,” says Schulman. “You shouldn’t be embarrassed, since so many other people are in the same position.”

So speak up. And don’t resort to using any of the risky ideas outlined above. There are lots of great ways to save on your prescription drug costs that don’t require you risking your life. Just ask your doctor for help.

http://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/features/saving-money-on-your-prescription-drugs-good-and-bad-ideas

There are many ways to save money when there is a job loss in your family.  Here is a story submitted by Kim to The Dollar Stretcher on how their family survived when her husband lost his job.

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What we learned with my husband’s job loss

Contributed by Kim

When my husband lost his job a year ago, we had only $1500 in the bank. Luckily, we knew the job loss was coming so we hit the ground running.

Apply for every form of assistance. Our town had a staff member that applies for Federal Aid for its citizens. I made an appointment for the first day of unemployment. She applied for food stamps and helped with my kids getting free lunches. I put my name on every utility and housing assistance program list within the state.

Inform every important person alive. I told our apartment manager about our job loss. She rewrote the lease to a lower rate and took out the first month from our deposit. That saved us from utter loss. Friends opened up their resources for us and kept their ears open for any job lead they found. Our church had five families out of 100 members unemployed at once. Prayers and support became the mainstay.

Make a budget. I used only our unemployment as income, leaving our savings untouched, and I budgeted spending less than the unemployment. I saved a little every check for concert tickets as a congrats to ourselves for making it this far intact (luckily, we didn’t need to buy the tickets).

Find the soup kitchens and food banks. I was already a regular at a supper kitchen, so when they learned about our job loss, they dug around for help looking for extra food, monies available, job resources, law assistance, etc.

Pick other people’s brains. At my supper kitchen, everyone on assistance gave me tips. The older generation gave me tips on how they survived tough times (Depression, WW2, etc). I had always listened to the stories, but hearing them again helped me see the silver linings.

Turn everything off. We unplugged everything but the fridge. Our bill dropped $70 a month.

Eat only what you have. We ate out of our pantry, not buying anything but milk, and our food bank and friends helped with that many times.

Take a vacation. When the job interviews were drying up, we took a mini vacation and visited friends. The break recharged us to continue on.

Look for a job in every way. At first, my husband used agencies, but it was an online job resume site that eventually landed him a job.

Dream of the future that is based in reality. We learned how we wasted money over the years and vowed not to do that again. I love budgeting, so I designed a budget and spending/saving plan that was more in line with our values and hard learned lessons.

Never forget about the people and agencies that helped when the good times return. I know where I will be channeling my energies in the future.

At the time, his layoff was frightening, but now we tell others that it was the best thing that happened. We now treat our life like a vine, tending the important roots and cutting away the debris. We are stronger and more focused on our goals now than ever before.

Contributed by Kim

www.stretcher.com

Despite what you might have heard, not everything is considered junk in a Dollar Store.

How to be a Smart Dollar Store Shopper

By Marlene Alexander

Not every purchase we make is entirely satisfying. Recently, I had to return a winter jacket to Sears after only two months of wear because a couple of the seams had started to fray. But dollar stores seem particularly susceptible to criticism that “everything” they sell is junk. Personally, I can’t agree with that, but I do admit that there are some things that dollar stores shouldn’t try to sell for a buck or two.

An informed shopper is a smart shopper. So, if something in the dollar store looks too good to be true, maybe it is, maybe it isn’t. How can you tell? Here are some tips that will help you to decide and become a smarter dollar store shopper.

Touch it. If something has a nice weight to it, it will probably be a good buy. For instance, I don’t buy hand towels if, when I hold them up to the light, I can see through the weave. But I’ve always found dollar store tea towels to be of excellent quality. If I heft a pair of metal pliers and they look and feel sturdy, the store has made a sale. And, I might add that I’ve been very happy with my small-tool purchases. Glass vases and candleholders are usually always good buys. You can easily tell if the glass is flawed or has ripples in it.

Test it. Always check lids. Do they come off and go on easily? If they don’t, leave that item on the shelf. My local dollar store recently started selling small, colorful wastebaskets with swinging flaps in the lids. The lids come off easily, but just try to get them fitted back on. They slide all over and refuse to snap back into place. Garbage day should not include a frustrating puzzle. On the other hand, the lids on the glass and ceramic canisters I’ve bought in recent months have performed beautifully.

Try the zipper. The zipper on a tapestry cushion cover I brought home last year would only open half way, making it impossible to use. That was, I suspect, just a fluke because when I tested the zipper on a similar cushion cover recently, it worked perfectly.

Check expiration dates on food. My personal experience with dollar store food has been favorable, but I have heard complaints of infestations in cereals and rice or stale cookies. The simple fix is to check expiration dates on packages.

Be aware of varying clothing sizes. Most dollar stores sell some clothing. I like the socks, but you need to be aware that sizes can vary from one pair to another. I’ve bought socks that were labeled size 9 in women’s sizes that were far too big for me. The sport socks, on the other hand, are a good fit and long-wearing, although foot length does vary slightly between pairs. The other thing I’ve noticed is that things like camisoles and other undergarments are often a size smaller than what’s written on the label. So a medium would actually be a small and a small would be extra small.

Learn from experience. A few months ago, I bought a flannel backed vinyl tablecloth for two bucks at the dollar store. It seemed perfectly sturdy. Turns out that it should have stayed out of the kitchen because it couldn’t take the heat. Within a few weeks, the color began to fade where hot plates had been placed and then bits of tablecloth started to flake off. It’s unlikely that a new $2 purchase would perform any differently. Same for the plastic-handled can opener I paid a buck for. It fell apart the instant pressure was applied to the lid of a can.

Sometimes, these things are only flukes, but at dollar store prices, you can’t be sure.

In my experience, “You only get what you pay for” isn’t always true. Sometimes you can get a darn good deal for a buck or two. You just have to know what to look for and what to avoid. Often, the only way to judge something is to try it.

There are so many people who would like to spend less on childcare.  This article has several helpful ways to do that.

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How to Save Money on Childcare

By Lynn B. Johnson

May 13, 2010

If you’ve had a kid recently, you’re probably torn between delight in your babykins and astonishment at the astronomical costs of childcare. Yeah, me too. Here are some tips for keeping at least part of your salary in your own pocket.

Neighborhood co-operative: If you have neighbors who are in the same boat, get everyone together to discuss ways you might be able to share the childcare burden. Taking one day off a week in exchange for two or three days of childcare can be a good deal. If you have even one neighbor who stays home with his/her kids, talk about whether they might be willing to accept a pittance in exchange for a morning/day/days of watching your own little one.

Go back to school: If you’ve thought of pursuing a Master’s degree or PhD, now might be a good time to get the ball rolling. My husband is completing his PhD and as a working student, he has been supported by the Graduate Employee Organization union. One of the perks of this has been subsidized on-campus childcare. From the time they were 18-months old, both of our boys have attended nursery school/preschool, three days a week, at no cost to us. If your local university offers such a program, you might consider returning to school — plus, as my father always says, “Time spent pursuing education is never wasted.” Especially when free childcare is involved!

3) Bring someone into your home: If you work at home, or even if you don’t, consider hiring someone to come in to watch your children. I have done this with both children to augment option #2 and it worked out very well. If you’re looking for help in the late-afternoon, consider calling your local high school’s/college’s career center and hiring a responsible local student. I also found a three-day-a-week infant sitter through my church; we paid her $10/hour ($11/hour after she earned a certification in infant CPR) and it was well worth the cost.

Nana’s nannying service: It goes without saying that if you have family nearby who are of retirement age and home a lot, tap them in to help you out.

Pre-tax savings: Check to see whether your employer offers a Dependent Care Account, which is  a type of Flexible Spending Account that allows you to save up to $5,000 of pre-tax dollars specifically for childcare or elder care. Additionally, Uncle Sam might give you a break if you spend after-tax dollars on childcare, in the form of the Dependent Care Tax Credit.

Swap your schedule: If you and your partner have any flexibility at work, see if you can change your schedules so that one of you is home with the kid(s) as much as you can afford. Do not confuse this with working at home, though — chances are, if you’re watching a child, you’re not going to get a whole lot of work done, unless it’s naptime.

The figures for convenience are mind-boggling!  Read how much it costs when you stop at your local convenience store.

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The Cost of Convenience

By: Tina Hartley

The Dollar Stretcher

In today’s fast-paced world, there is an increasing demand for convenience. Often we choose to make a quick stop at a convenience store instead of taking the time to make lunch or carry a thermos full of coffee. Many of us choose to make a quick stop at a convenience store on the way home from work for a gallon of milk or a loaf of bread.

It truly is a convenience to run into a small store versus a large grocery store. The walk from the closest parking space to the store and the walk to what will invariably be near the back of a large building can take 10 minutes. Then if you happen to be someone like me who always picks the wrong line to get in, you may stand in line for another 10 to 15 minutes. Your quick stop has turned into a half-hour and counting.

What is the price tag attached to all this convenience? I’ve done a little research at my local stores to compare prices. A gallon of 2% milk at my favorite grocery store is $3.69. The same gallon of milk at a local convenience store (which happens to be run by the very same company) is $4.11. A loaf of bread is $1.19 at the grocery store and $2.29 at the convenience store. A 20-ounce bottle of Diet Pepsi is $1.39 at the convenience store, while a six pack of 24-ounce bottles of Diet Pepsi is $3.99 at the grocery store. That works out to 60 cents per 20 ounces. I see a definite trend here.

As consumers, I think we are all well aware that we pay more for items in a convenience store. We are more than willing to sacrifice an extra 50 cents or $1 for that convenience. No one shops at a convenience store because we think we are getting the best price. The real cost of habitual convenience store shopping lies in impulse buying and our health.

I stopped in on the way to work to get gas in the car. In a rush, as usual, I didn’t have any breakfast. Isn’t it convenient how the store has breakfast sandwiches? I grab a bacon, egg and cheese bagel and a coffee while paying for my gas. My workday was hectic and I worked straight through lunch. On the way home, I remember that we’re out of milk, so I stop at the same convenience store. I grab a gallon of milk. I remember that the bread was almost gone this morning, so I grab a loaf.

Thinking about my poor choice this morning, but feeling very hungry since I missed lunch, I am determined to not buy anything loaded with sugar or fat. I proudly take an apple from the bin near the register. It’s not until the ride home that I begin thinking about my pattern of purchasing at Stop-n-Go.

Impulse buying is the boon of retail! When we stop at a store for one thing and come out with a bagful, the marketing strategists have done their jobs well. Convenience stores are mini super centers. You can buy gas for your car, get your lunch, play the lottery, and fill up your windshield washer fluid in one stop. We’re in a hurry, we often make unhealthy choices and we pay too much!

According to the National Association of Convenience Stores, sales rose more than 20% in 2005 to a whopping $474.3 billion and 69.4% of sales were fuel purchases. We just stopped to get gas and end up buying this, that and the other thing. The price we pay for convenience is a much higher price than the extra 42 cents for a gallon of milk. The marketers pay close attention to our buying patterns. The next time you stop at a convenience store notice the bin of fresh fruit in between the candy bars and the hot dog machine. Something for everyone because once we are in the door, chances are excellent that we will end up buying something we don’t really need that costs too much and most likely isn’t healthy.

Take the Next Step: Choose today to stop being one of the many people that pay too much at convenience stores. The temptation is real once you’re in the door. So, if you must go in to pay for your gas, make a beeline to the checkout, keeping intent on your goal of getting in and out without buying things that cost too much and probably aren’t the healthiest choices you could make.

This article was written by a stay at home dad. It is a great way to teach your children about managing money but in a very fun and creative way.

Teach Your Children about Money Management by Playing Shopkeeper

By Jeff Bogle in Personal Finance

Many of the best lessons in life are learned as a child, while having fun. It’s why we could always memorize lyrics to our favorite songs with ease but struggled mightily with the periodic table in science class.

Do you want to teach your young kids about budgeting and making sound fiscal decisions? Minimize the spreadsheets and play shopkeeper.

It’s important to teach kids about the value of money, not just what you can do with it, but that you must also make choices about how to wisely use what you’ve got. When I play store with my daughters, I see that it helps them prioritize and begin thinking about the consequences of foolish spending. That’s right — I dish out my best financial decision-making assignments surrounded by picture books, fancy shoes and feather boas.

Despite the volume of stuff in their toy chest, I strive to instill in my 6-year old and her nearly-3-year old sister an understanding that you cannot have it all. There is, after all, a finite amount of money most of us have at any given moment (no, Capital One, that was not an invitation to begin soliciting my children about the joys of revolving debt; credit cards and borrowing discussions are intentionally being saved for when they’re a tad older — thank you very much).

So, I set up an elaborate pretend toy store — books, necklaces, tutus, plush snuggle friends, I sell it all! Then, I give my daughters some cash and role-play through different situations. During one trip through my toy Mecca, they need to buy birthday gifts for family members. Another visit is spent shopping for something fun for themselves. Either way, they have to ask how much each item costs and decide if they have enough or if they have to come back after saving up a little longer. Sometimes, instead of yet another stuffed animal, they’ll opt to hold onto some of their dollars to use at Dad’s fictional ice-cream shop – because that’s important too, from time to time!

Real impact from fun lessons

These lessons have yielded interesting real-life results. When my oldest gal needed a pillow and blanket for school, she had a choice to make. The first pillow she picked, she adored. It cost $16. There was another, just-as-cool pillow on sale for $8. She had a firm $15-$20 budget, which she knew going into the store. If she selected the cheaper pillow, there was a very comfy matching blanket she could afford, also on sale for $8. If she went with the pricier one, her old blanket would be accompanying her to school. The choice was hers, and hers alone. She ended up walking into her 1st day of kindergarten with a crisp new pillow and blanket set.

Playing store is one of my girls’ all-time favorite games. I truly believe it’s one of the reasons they rarely ever whine for things when we shop together. After all, they know what it’s like to be short some coin, thanks to shopping in our own living room.

2010 Credit Card Fees Study credit cards

By Leslie McFadden

Bankrate.com

When the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility and Disclosure Act of 2009 was moving through Congress, many surmised that passage would mean increases in existing fees and the introduction of new fees.

To see what’s happened since many provisions of the law took effect in February; Bankrate.com surveyed the 50 largest credit card issuers and compared the fees on their most basic credit card offerings. In some cases, a platinum card was used where standard or classic cards were not available. In total, we compared 73 cards – 33 of them from credit unions, and 40 from banks. For presentation purposes in the survey results, we narrowed it down to the basic cards offered by these issuers, which came to 47 — 28 from banks and 19 from credit unions. Of the 73 cards surveyed, only 12 cards across credit union and bank issuers had a fixed interest rate.

So far, very few issuers have implemented inactivity or annual fees, two fees people feared would result from the restrictions of the Credit CARD Act. Many of the provisions of the law took effect in February, while guidelines on the reasonableness of penalty fees go into effect in August 2010.

In addition, many issuers we surveyed don’t charge over-the-limit fees, which are restricted under the CARD Act. Other fees, such as fees for balance transfers and cash advances, haven’t made dramatic increases across the board.

Here are the results of the 2010 Credit Card Fees Study.

Inactivity fees

None of the credit union cards we looked at charged an inactivity fee, though 13 had closure timetables for nonuse. For example, the Patelco Credit Union Classic card doesn’t charge a fee for nonuse, but requires one to two transactions per year to keep the account open. In some cases, the deadline comes even sooner. With a Redstone Federal Credit Union Classic card, for instance, the account may be considered dormant after just six months of no activity.

Three banks charged an inactivity fee. For example, Fifth Third Bank Platinum Card levies a $19 fee if no transactions were made during the previous year, while First National Bank of Omaha may impose a $29 to $75 fee after just six months of no activity on its platinum card.

Many banks indicated that dormant accounts could be closed after a specified period of time, which ranged from a few months to as much as three years. HSBC Platinum Card is the least tolerant of nonuse: An account may be shuttered after just three to four months of no activity.

Takeaway: The Federal Reserve may issue a final rule that restricts or even bans inactivity fees later this year as part of the CARD Act, but issuers may still close accounts for nonuse. Use cards you don’t want to see closed at least once a quarter.

Annual fees

Five credit cards out of the 73 surveyed charge annual fees. The platinum card from Intrust Bank and US Bank each impose an annual fee only in the case of year-long inactivity. The Boeing Employees Credit Union Classic card charges $25 every year to access the optional rewards program.

Takeaway: Many cards come without an annual fee. Shop around. With fee-based rewards cards, always weigh the value of the rewards against the yearly surcharge.

Over-the-limit fees

In Bankrate.com’s weekly surveys of credit card interest rates, a steady trickle of issuers have dropped the over-the-limit fee. In this study, 29 out of 73 cards have an over-the-limit fee, which ranges from $15 to $39. In our June 2009 credit card study, over-the-limit fees averaged $32.

A fee won’t actually apply unless you give the issuer permission to allow over-the-limit transactions. The CARD Act prevents issuers from charging a fee for going over the limit unless the cardholder has given prior consent.

Takeaway: Many cards don’t charge an over-the-limit fee, and even the ones that do can’t impose it unless you have agreed to over-the-limit fees. The flip side is that an issuer may deny over-the-limit transactions if you haven’t opted in, and the bank may also lower your credit limit without advance notice. Check your credit limit each month and stay well under it.

Late fees

Overall, late fees ranged from $5 to $39. In our 2009 study, late fees topped out at $38.50.

Twenty credit union cards charge a flat fee regardless of balance or degree of tardiness, ranging from $5 to $30. Some issuers allow extra time for payments to arrive before charging a fee. The $10 late fee on a San Diego County Credit Union Classic card, for instance, won’t apply unless the payment is 10 days or more past due. Pentagon Federal Credit Union Standard card is the only credit union card in our survey to have a tiered fee structure based on account balance.

Twenty-five bank cards had a tiered fee structure tied to the balance. Eleven had a flat fee ranging from $25 to $39. Only Clear from American Express doesn’t assess a late fee, and someone with a First Citizens B&T Classic card wouldn’t face the $29 late fee until the payment is 10 days late.

Takeaway: Late fees can cost as much as $39 for each offense, so make sure to pay on time. Utilize e-mail reminders and pay online to minimize processing time. But be warned, making a payment through customer service may cost you. For example, the Chase Platinum card charges $14.95 to make a payment over the phone on the due date. The CARD Act banned issuers from charging fees on this method of payment, except to expedite a payment through a representative.

Cash advance and balance transfer fees

Twenty-five out of 33 credit union cards don’t charge a balance transfer fee. Fifteen bank cards don’t charge a fee to transfer a balance, and nine other cards charge zero percent interest on balance transfers for at least six months. Six bank cards had a 4 percent fee with a minimum. Discover More charges the highest balance transfer fee, at 4 percent of the amount if the transfer occurs within 15 days of the application and 5 percent after that with no maximum.

Twenty credit union cards don’t even charge a cash advance fee, and the highest fee is 3 percent of the transaction amount. On the bank card side, cash advance fees go as high as 5 percent of the cash advance amount on the Discover More Card or the First National Bank of Omaha Platinum card.

Takeaway: Balance transfers often involve fees and low interest rates that expire. Use our balance transfer calculator to estimate the cost of moving debt. Avoid taking cash advances unless emergency strikes, since cash advances usually have no grace period. That means interest will start accruing on the debt immediately.

Service fees

Both credit unions and banks tend to charge for miscellaneous services, such as providing a copy of a statement or expediting a payment over the phone. Look for fees you expect to face based on your typical experience with credit cards. For example, if you lose your card a lot, watch out for card replacement fees, which run as high as $21 on the cards we surveyed (most cards didn’t charge for this service). The one fee-laden card in our survey, the First PREMIER Bank Centennial Card, even charges for increasing your credit limit. Fifty percent of the limit increase is assessed as a fee.

The survey was conducted by Bankrate market analyst Brooks Kelly between April 1 and April 8.