Interview: A Military Boot Camp For Your Money

Service members are known for their discipline and their ability to stay cool under fire. Veteran and financial planner Steve Repak says those skills are crucial to managing everyday finances. Yesterday on National Public Radios's Tell Me More, he speoke with host Michel Martin about his book, "Dollars and Uncommon Sense: Basic Training for Your Money." Listen to the short program below (even I learned a thing or two).

Making Food Last Longer!

As a Generation Xer, my thoughts and outlooks on the way of doing most things would pretty much categorize me as Old School. That being the case, I can remember growing up in the 70’s and watching my mother actually can fruits, going through the process of boiling, making wax, and sealing the food up for later usage. Rarely today do I see or even hear of people going through such lengths to get the most out of the food we buy…not unless they belong to some fringe militia group or survivalist preparing for next month’s Mayan Apocalypse.
At any rate, I got the idea to post a little primer on storing perishable foods for the long-term while watching NBC’s The Today Show last Saturday morning (I’m not afraid to admit that even I learned something watching). I invite you to view the video of that topic below:

When A "Free" Credit Report Isn't Free!

A few years back, I had attempted to obtain a copy of my credit report. This was shortly after the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003 had been signed into law. If you’re not familiar with this law, it requires the three major credit reporting agencies—Experian, Equifax, and Trans-Union—to provide you with 1 free copy of your credit report a year upon request.
But when I had tried to obtain a copy of my credit reports online during the early years of this then new law, I had found it was a case of if being easier-said-than-done. One of these agencies wanted me to provide them with a list of the creditors that I owed, which was a ridiculous requirement seeing as how my entire purpose for getting a copy of my report was that I was trying to find out everyone I owed money to. Another used a loophole in marketing and hard salesmanship to—although the credit report itself was “free”—force me to check a box as a requirement to obtaining a copy of my report; the checked box was a forced agreement to try a trial subscription to a credit monitoring service for a monthly fee if it’s not cancelled in short order.
The first thing I thought about in dealing with this insanity was the old French proverb, “The only free cheese is found in a mousetrap.”
Whether they intend to or not, many of us are actually paying to get a copy of our individual credit reports, which by law are supposed to be given once a year for free when you ask. According to the Federal Trade Commission's 2006 Identity Theft Survey Report, 78% of people surveyed paid to obtain a copy of their “free” credit reports. Given my own experiences, I can see how and why that's more possible than not.
So, how do you get the free kind of credit report? You can go to AnnualCreditReport.com, call 877-322-8228 or fill out the Annual Credit Report Request Form and mail it to:

Annual Credit Report Request Service,
P.O. Box 105281,
Atlanta, GA 30348-5281.

These are the only official channels to make a request for a free annual credit report. But if you're looking to get a copy of your credit report, financial experts are warning you to avoid the numerous websites that look to offer free reports, but then invite you to buy other related services. A 2007 Consumer Reports analysis found that out of 24 such sites, 9 were owned by or closely connected to TransUnion; 8 were either owned by or connected to Experian. Among such sites—many with the word “free” in their site domain name are:

Free3bureaucreditreport.com 

Freebiecreditreport.com 

Free-credit-reports.com 

Freecreditreportsinstantly.com 

Freecreditreport.com 

Thefreecreditreportsource.com. 

Creditreport.com 

Creditreporting.com 

Nationalcreditreport.com. 

The best advice is to just simply do your homework, and avoid jumping on to the first website that appears to offer you the change to obtain your entitled free credit report. Don’t be the mouse in the trap.

Look Out for (Hidden) Credit Card Surcharges

As if things weren’t bad enough with the average consumer having to diligently watch where every penny goes during these lean economic times, some retailers have began engaging in a questionable practice resulting in a slow nickel-and-diming of consumer’s bank and credit card accounts. As a result of the antitrust settlement reached earlier this year between credit card issuing banks and major retailers (discussed on an earlier posting: “The Higher Cost of Banking…and How To Avoid It”),some retailers have already started to instituting “checkout fees,” surcharges of $1 or $2 on purchases made with either debit or credit cards.

Retailers use these fees as a means of attempting to recoup processing fees levied in turn on them by the card issuing banks. Before the settlement, major card issuing banks such as Visa and Mastercard prohibited retailers from charging such fees. The sad part of this policy is that we shouldn’t expect it to go anywhere, anytime soon. In fact, it’s probably a safe bet—barring a major consumer revolt—that more and more retailers will start charging these fees in order to offset the costs they incur processing credit and debit card payments.
Bill Hardekopf, CEO of LowCards.com offers some times for beating these surcharges at the register:

* ASK ABOUT ANY CREDIT/DEBIT CARD SURCHARGES BEFORE THE TRANSACTION.

* RETAILERS MUST DISCLOSE ANY SURCHARGES BEFORE THE TRANSACTION.

* IF THERE IS A SURCHARGE, DECLINE IT AND REQUEST ANOTHER METHOD OF PAYMENT. If necessary, cancel the transaction and shop somewhere else.

* REVIEW YOUR RECEIPT. Even if you end up using cash, a check or your debit card, review the receipt to make sure the store didn't levy a surcharge. There should never be a surcharge on a cash purchase.

Click on the graphic to view how surcharges appear on sale receipts.

In addition, Consumer Report’s website has an online guide warning credit card hunters shopping around for the best credit card deals about what to look for in order to avoid being nickled-and-dimed by credit card issuing banks.
You should know that there are 10 states which by law prohibit retailers from charging checkout fees.  They are:

California
Colorado
Connecticut
Florida
Kansas
Maine
Massachusetts
New York
Oklahoma
Texas

If you find that you are either being charged in one of these states, or being charged excessively (relatively speaking), Visa offers an online reporting site where you can submit your complaints.  Additionally, consumers who are subjected to checkout fees in states where they are protected by law may report the retailer to their state attorney general's office.
When it comes to spending money, the first rule of thumb is to remember the advice our mothers gave us; always check your receipts!

Beware of Home Repair, Contractor, & Insurance Scams!

 When it comes to my own thoughts about home repair and contractor scams, I think of the time when my mother’s house burned, almost to the ground back in 1987; she lost everything. When it came time for the insurance company to pay out on the policy in order to find a contractor to rebuild it—she had to secure the necessary three bid minimum from local contractors—the insurance company naturally went with the lowest bidder. What I remembered in particular about her ordeal was that when the contractor (and related sub-contractors) had finished, her house looked like a dream home you’d find in a magazine…a least on a superficial level. It was not long before she’d encountered unusual wiring problems such a certain light fixtures constantly and inexplicably blowing light new light bulbs at an unusual rate. Other problems cropped up too, such as leaking pipes (we actually found one set of pipes that hadn’t even been joined together properly), insufficient insulation (almost lunacy during a cold Michigan winter), and a roof which eventually began to leak. Although the primary contractor was licensed, I cannot say with a level of assuredness that the subcontractors used were licensed.
It took my brother and a proverbial army of self-hires to repair the shotty work.
Thinking back to last week’s storm on the East Coast, I imagine that the owners of some of the hundreds of homes damaged and/or destroyed during the so-called “superstorm” Hurricane Sandy will be in jeopardy of a similar experience. Over the weekend, NBC’s The Today Show did a piece on unlicensed contractors are coming out of the woodwork, and passing themselves off as licensed and/or bonded contractors in order to make a fast buck from the victims of Sandy. The following video highlights how unlicensed, for example how unlicensed tree trimmers are passing themselves off as licensed contractors for people desperate to have debris cleared from their properties:

The “red flag” here is that most reputable contractors won’t come to you; the more unscrupulous individuals and outfits will usually show up on your doorstep unsolicited, inquiring about whether or not you need their services. Such an approach should be treated with skepticism. Resist the probable high-pressure selling tactics that will come from this approach!
With an estimated damage cost of $25 billion and dollars and rising, home-owners and insurance companies alike will be under pressure, mostly from the quickly changing seasons and the approach of inclimate weather to begin repairs so that displaced residents can have some shelter from the approaching winter. And it’s a sure bet that in addition to individuals claiming to be able to clean up properties, others claiming to be able to do actual labor and/or home repair “cheap” will also target not only Sandy survivors, but others who might find themselves in need of home repair at some point.

I would urge anyone in need of home repair or any other related services to observe the following caveats:

-Ask to see a license. If indeed you are truly dealing with a reputable company with an established presence, its representatives should have no problem showing you a copy of a license recognizing the right to perform the work they advertise. If any such outfit is only capable of producing nothing but excuses as opposed to an actual license, slam the door!

-Employ due-diligence. Be willing to research and chock out any prospective contractors as well as insurance company. In addition to asking to see their license, check out whether or not there are complaints filed against any business entity you are considering doing business with. The Better Business Bureau and Consumer-friendly sites like Angie’s List are great places to start to check the integrity of insurers and building contractors.

-Avoid paying up front. If a contractor requires money up-front (usually as a good-faith gesture of their sincerity and of your seriousness), limit any up-front payment to less than half the total cost; 1/3 of job cost is a good number.

-Avoid high pressure tactics. If someone “offers” to “do you a favor” by “starting right away,” especially if they “like you” or want to give your job priority—especially for more cash—be skeptical. A little healthy skepticism is a good thing when it comes to preventing being taken to the cleaners.

-Use your insurance company’s resources. Most have a preferred set of contractors they usually work with, or are willing to recommend for their customers. Most reputable insurers take the time to check out local contractors for mostly for this reason…to weed out the fly-by-nighters.

-Shop around. Don’t be afraid to go around to multiple contractors and insurers and obtain multiple quotes. If you must, check them against the going market rate for similar labor and contract work. Being able to compare reasonable prices for contractor labor is a good way for anyone willing to trust their instincts to weed out probably scammers themselves.

-Report any suspected scammers. Although this may be somewhat embarrassing, even the most intelligent people are capable of being taken in by astute and practiced scammers. At this point, it’s time to swallow your pride and report any attempted and/or actual scams you might have found yourself on the receiving end of. Contact your local police department, or head to one of the various consumer reporting sites such as Consumer Fraud Reporting.

As I have observed in my own life, taking the time to think with your head rather than with you wallet can pay off in terms of saving the misery, money and mortification that comes along with knowing that someone scammed you out of your hard-earned money...especially in troubling times such as these.