If you haven’t checked out the Bargain buzz tab in a while, don’t miss my interview in Reader’s Digest about sacrificing my dreams of buying a home (skip the welcome screen, go to page 2).
I recently posed seven questions bloggers should ask themselves if they want to make money on the Knight News Leadership blog.
Fidelity Investor’s Quarterly profiled me in their story, Taking America’s Recession Lessons to Heart. I swear, it’s uplifting! (page 13-14)
The Washington Posts’ women’s mag Double X said my spending moratorium was like Lent—a lesson in the importance of sacrifice.
Are you a serious jet setter? Consider JetBlue’s All You Can Jet pass for $599. It lasts for one month and you can fly as much as you want between Sept. 8 and Oct. 8, 2009 to any destination JetBlue goes to, including international!
There is not a limited number of “pass” seats on the plane (like there can be for low fares). If there is an open seat on the plane, you can use the pass. The pass is on sale until Friday, Aug. 21, 2009 or until they sell out.
Caveats: you must book three days in advance. Taxes and fees are included for domestic flights, but NOT international flights or trips to Puerto Rico. If you book a flight using the pass and are a no-show you owe $100.
Read all the details here. To buy an All You Can Jet pass or ask questions, call 1-800-JETBLUE (538-2583), prompt 4. Both times I called a live person picked up within 1 minute.
Thanks, Hubby!
Commenter SpendLessTV left this great cooking tip last week on BargainBabe.com.
Another tip for preserving herbs: take an ice cube tray, chop basil and freeze in broth. When making your next sauce or soup drop in an “ice basil/broth cube”! Can do this with any herb!
I think I’m going to use this to harvest my recession garden!
Hi folks,
I’m taking the day off for some much needed R&R that extends beyond a two-day weekend.
I’ll post the reader comment of the week Monday – so you have until Sunday to leave a fabulous, eye-catching comment!
See you Monday.
~Julia
aka Bargain Babe
The recession is over in Europe and things are stabilizing in the U.S., according to the headlines.
Europe forgets recession (Forbes)
Eastern Europe sees hope in Western growth (Wall Street Journal)
Economists say recession may be over (NPR)
[poll id="34"]
The Internet has made many things free and thanks to Credit Karma that now includes credit score. I spoke to Credit Karma founder Ken Lin about how he makes money, the $6,818 credit card debt each average American carries, and failing grades.
When was Credit Karma started? Credit Karma is a site that has been around for about 15 months. We came into the business with hopefully a new take on it. Why don’t we simply sell advertising on the site and give consumers their credit score any time they want? We think fundamentally this is a better thing given the economic climate we are in.
The average consumer debt decreased by $120 in July. That seems like nothing. Well when you put it against 180 million consumers, it’s a pretty big debt load. Two percent on a monthly basis is compelling and if the trend holds, will it annualize to 24 percent? Probably not, but on a monthly basis 2 percent is meaningful if not compelling.
So people are paying down their credit card bills, their mortgage, and they are not buying much? Consumer debt has been dropping across all verticals. We think it’s a confluence of two things. One is the economy. Consumer income is down. Consumer spending is down. The second component is really a function of tighter credit markets. Two years ago…there was so much liquidity. It was easy to get credit. There’s been a major pull back of that in the past six months.
We expected that, right? The tighter credit is not the expectation. The government is trying to spur on consumer spending by encouraging mortgage lenders to be a little more free with their lending. The credit card holders bill of rights will help tighten the market. People won’t have access to credit quite as easily anymore. It used to be 650 and you could get credit. Today your score needs to be 700 or higher to get that same type of card.
What is special about Credit Karma? We boil it down to the top seven metrics that affect your credit score and we give you an A to F grade. We give you great metrics but we also put it into perspective. Everything on our site is free. We think this is a better way of doing business.
How does Credit Karma make money? We sell advertising.
The site also makes money through offers? Advertisers are willing to give you a compelling offer based on your credit score. We don’t sell consumer information so the only way companies can reach you is through advertising. As a consumer you can look at it if you want to. You can click on it if you want to. It is completely up to the consumer.
Give me an example of a typical offer. Lending Club is a P-P lender. Small loans, people to people. So both parties save by cutting out the middleman bank. An offer would be save 10 percent on registration fees.
There are a lot of sites where you can find credit cards. What I like about FindSecuredCards.com is that they tell you the pros and cons of their cards upfront.
Pros: Prepaid credit cards are for those are looking to get a flexible way to manage their money without the risks. Get a credit card today with a major logo like Visa and MasterCard.
Cons: Prepaid credit cards have different types of fees. Make sure that you pay close attention to the fees to make sure it’s the type of card you want. Prepaid cards will not build your credit but instead will help you manage your money and allow to buy things as if it were a credit card.
The site lists prepaid and secured credit cards you can apply for. For each one FindSecuredCards.com lists the annual fee, APR, monthly fees and if there is a credit check required to get the card.
The site also has helpful articles that answer basic questions like how to improve your credit score, the difference between a prepaid card and a secured card and how many credit cards you should have.
This is paid content. Interested in buying a sponsored post? Read my Advertise page.
This is a guest post by Alex, BargainBabe.com’s intern.
It’s time to head back to school, and that means it’s time to beat cost of textbooks. Whether you’re just starting college, or returning for your last year like me, here’s five tips on how to save on textbook expenses.
1. Buy Electronic
Check the distributor’s website and see if you can purchase an electronic copy of the textbook. They save on ink, paper, and transportation, so the cost goes down significantly. I once got a $115 economics textbook for $40. If you can bring it on your laptop to class, then you’re set.
ProTip: E-Book readers like Amazon’s Kindle might be worth the investment if you’re an English major where your “textbooks” are mostly novels. If you already own an iPhone or iPod Touch download the free apps Stanza and Readdle, which offer access to thousands of books typically assigned in English and drama courses. Even if you decide to purchase the physical books, you have an electronic backup.
Downside: If you need the book during tests, you probably won’t be allowed to use your electronic device to access the pages.
The other downside: Limited battery life. Physical books last forever and can take much more abuse than a laptop, though neither of them should be dropped in the water.
2. Check It Out
Your school’s library will often have a copy of the class textbook(s) for you to check out for free for a few hours. Ask your teacher to make it happen. This is a great alternative so long as you get to the library before any of your classmates.
Downside: you probably can’t bring the book to class since the checkout time frame is limited. Still, if you’re good at making friends you can always remedy that.
Middleside: Your time will likely be restricted (sometimes as little as an hour) so that others can check the books out from the library. I find this keeps me from procrastinating and I work well under short time constraints. Of course, I’m generally more efficient with my time whilst in the library where there are no distractions.
3. Buy Used
This is usually an easy task. Many campuses have used textbook stores. Just be sure to flip through the book before you buy it and make sure it’s all there and still readable. Sometimes you can find one that’s already helpfully highlighted.
Pro-Tip: Check and see if the book has been highlighted or noted throughout its entirety. If only the first couple chapters have notes and such, then they probably got distracted by those Tuesday night parties. If they’re still going strong by the end, then they were likely a good student and their markings are going to help instead of just distract you.
4. Rent
Renting your books appears to save roughly the same amount of money as buying a used book and selling it after the course is over. However, by renting you can do everything straight from your computer, and you don’t have to worry about trying to sell your books back.
Downside: The books aren’t really yours. You can’t mark them up significantly, and of course you have to pay for any lost, stolen, or significantly damaged books.
Peculiar Upside: Let’s say you’ve signed up for a course that you aren’t too sure you’re going to stick with. Renting or buying a book for that class might seem like a bad idea at first, but at Chegg.com they have a 30-day “Any Reason” return policy. So you could rent the book(s) for the class and just pay a couple dollars shipping, and then return before 30 days. If you end up keeping with the class, you have enough time to shop for the best deal, and if renting is more expensive, just return it for a full refund (they provide free return shipping which is kind of nice).
5. Beat the System
Ask your professor/lecturer if they’re going to use the same books for the following quarter/semester. If they are, then you’ll easily be able to earn some of your money back through selling to a used book store. Although even then you’re losing some money through the middle man.
Instead, try to sell directly to other students via Ebay, Craigslist, or even Facebook’s marketplace. You’ll be earning at better margins and they’ll be buying at a lower cost in all likelihood. The better the shape you’ve managed to keep the book, the better the price you’ll get.
Alternatively, there are some great book swapping sites that you can get involved with. While you’re probably only going to find novels through these online programs, it’s a great way to get them for free. Check out this post for details.
Get 80% off restaurant gift certificates at Restaurant.com through Aug. 13, 2009 with promo code PORTION. That makes a $25 gift certificate just $2 (the normal selling price is $10). Read the fine print carefully before purchasing.
Get $10 off purchases of $40 or more at Walgreens.com today and tomorrow, Aug. 13, 2009. Good for up to five uses, including contact lenses and sale items. Spend $50 or more and get free shipping on eligible items. Does not include pharmacy, photo orders, gift cards, taxes or shipping charges. Online only.
Yahoo just introduced a new coupon website that offers online promo codes, grocery coupons, discounts for local merchants, and daily deals. I saw coupons for $1 off a California Pizza Kitchen thin crust pizza, $2 off Coke products at Rite Aid, and a flat screen TV deal.
The site has a box to help you find the cheapest gas in your zip code and you can browse the weekly circulars from multiple stores. Coolio.
Yahoo built the site because of overwhelming interest in saving money. Searches for the term “printable coupons” jumped 50 percent this year compared to the same time in 2008 and up 135 percent compared to 2007, says Brandweek.
The new Yahoo Deals site faces a lot of competition, including some of my favorite places to find coupons and shopping deals:
Shopzilla – search by item
Savings.com – similar to RetailMeNot.com
Shoplocal.com - compares prices of nearby retailers
Shortcuts.com – load up grocery coupons directly onto your frequent shopper card. No clipping necessary!
Nextag.com – comparison shopping site
Disclosure: Savings.com was a Frugal Fe$tival sponsor, but I like their site nonetheless.
Here’s a new way to make money online. Buy clothes, shoes, whatever using the new search engine Bing (Microsoft’s answer to rival Google) and you earn CASH rebates. Basically, Bing earns referral fees through affiliate programs they have with merchants and they pass that referral fee onto you, similar to how eBates.com or Cashbaq.com work.
The thing is, Bing IS THE ONLY SITE THAT REFUNDS 100% OF THIS FEE BACK TO ITS USERS, according to the blog Seeking Alpha.
That’s because Bing just doubled the amount it gives back to shoppers like you and me to be up to 50% of your purchase price, including on many back to school items. Holy schmoley. The promotion runs through August unless Microsoft decides to end it earlier.
The rebates include 20% back at Drugstore.com, 15% at HP Direct, 36-40% at 1-800-Florals, and 4-32% back at Sears. For a list of all the cash rebates, go here. Start your Bing shopping here.
Get 15% off at Shoes.com with code TAKE15, good through Sept. 14, 2009. Some exclusions.
Get 20% off one item from REI-Outlet.com today through Aug. 13, 2009. Some caveats.
Get an 18.5 inch flat screen monitor for $99 from Dell, plus netbooks for $300 and up.
Get free shipping on back to school clothes, shoes,backpacks and uniforms at Sears. Jeans are up to 50% off.
Get two free Tacos from Jack in the Box today, Aug. 11 only. Print the coupon here.
Staples has a deal for a $5 fax machine, courtesy of Common Sense with Money.
Get a free roast chicken club sandwich at Arby’s tomorrow, Aug. 12, when you purchase a soft drink. No coupon needed.
AOL Consumer Advisor Regina Lewis shares five web sites to save you money (a few of which you will recognize from reading this blog).
I found it helpful and it’s only 4:21. Watch it here.
A science blog at the NY Times surveyed people about being a spendthrift v. being a tightwad and got very interesting results. (Spendthrift = person who spends recklessly, tightwad = person who doesn’t spend even when they should)
The researchers say they’re not sure just how prevalent tightwads and spendthrifts in the general population, but they did identify significant patterns among the tightwads and spendthrifts in their study:
* Men have a harder time spending money. Women are no more likely to be spendthrifts than tightwads, whereas men are nearly three times more likely to be tightwads than spendthrifts.
* Whether they find spending money painful has a much greater impact on the shopping behavior of men than of women. Women are more likely to take other factors into account when shopping, such as the extent to which spending is expected to be ‘therapeutic.’ As a result, the spending differences between male tightwads and male spendthrifts are generally much greater than the spending differences between female tightwads and female spendthrifts.
* Respondents in their 20s are more likely to be spendthrifts than any of the older age groups, and respondents over 70 are more likely to be tightwads than any younger age group. “Longitudinal research is needed,” the researchers write, “to determine whether this pattern reflects the effects of growing up in different generations, or instead whether people generally move toward the tightwad end of the continuum as they age.”
Naturally, I wanted to take the survey myself. It took me 15 minutes and asked questions I expected – about my shopping habits – and those I didn’t – like whether I have a will and how many incandescent light bulbs I have at home. Um, okay?!
I’m still waiting for my results. In the meantime, you can take the survey, or read a 15-page paper about the study in the Journal of Consumer Research. Here’s the blog post on the NY Times science blog about the survey results.
For those of you who remember the Lincoln Lunches I wrote at the LA Daily News, I am reviving the tradition of regularly reviewing a $5 lunch on BargainBabeLA.com.
The first Lincoln Lunch is a review of Samosa House in Los Angeles. Read it here.
Know where we can find a Lincoln Lunch? Email me.
