Whether you're furloughed today or just battening down the hatches for pending high winds and (somewhat) lower temperatures, here are a few freebies to consider for Labor Day weekend planning:

--- Download a free playlist of 10 songs by Lillith Fair performers from iTunes, including a live version of "Angel" by Sarah MacLachlan. There's also a free Lollapalooza playlist with 10 songs from iTunes as well. (via Tia's Saving Cents)

--- Order a free 2011 calendar from womenshealth.gov (via Suddenly Frugal)

--- If you're an amusement park fan, buy 2011 season passes to Six Flags America and visit the park for the rest of 2010 free --- including the upcoming Fright Fest. (via WalletPop) Individual passes are $59.99, although the price drops to $49.99 for four or more.

--- UPDATED: If you're not barbequing on Monday, here's a coupon for 50 percent off a Boston Market 'family meal' or 'market feast' (via the MintLife blog's Dining on a Dime). A family meal for four usually costs $25.80, according to the menu online. Coupon on valid at participating restaurants, of course.

How will you be spending --- or saving --- this long weekend? Please share in the comments below.

P.S. Interested in more free or cheap stuff? Don't miss Andrea's post about Kiplinger's favorite freebies or my heads up about Spa Finder's Deal Days.

Posted by Liz Kay at 9:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: Cheap/Frugal, Free
        

Most major airlines are allowing passengers to change their travel plans for today through Saturday without paying a fee if their flights were to/from areas affected by Hurricane Earl. The destinations included seem to vary. For example, AirTran Airways is allowing reservation changes for Baltimore, Boston, New York, Philadelphia and Washington flights, among a few others. Southwest Airlines, however, has a more limited list, which doesn't include Baltimore. Southwest is allowing changes for Boston, Long island, Norfolk and Providence.

That could change, of course, but most forecasts seem to put the Baltimore region in the clear. Still, if you've got plans to fly this weekend - especially along the East Coast - it's a good idea to check with your airline before heading to the airport.

Posted by Michelle Deal-Zimmerman at 9:37 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Airlines
        

If the start of school or end of summer has given you stress, then consider signing up for a spa treatment or yoga class during SpaFinder's Deal Days "Wellness Week".

So far, 12 Maryland spas and salons and one yoga studio are offering spa and salon treatments such as massages and pedicures for the discount price of $50 or 50 percent off.

For example, at Toscana MediSpa in Little Italy or Farashe the Day Spa in Columbia, hour-long signature Swedish massages usually cost $80, but during Deal Days, they're only $50.

The participating businesses started taking appointments Aug. 25, so better call sooner than later if you want to take advantage of this deal. 

Posted by Liz Kay at 8:16 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Cheap/Frugal
        

Everyone likes a great bargain.

And the best bargain is the one that is free.

Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine today released its list of the best freebies out there.

Here is some of what they found:

1. FREE CAR-REPAIR HELP: RepairPal.com will help you find out whether your mechanic is quoting a fair price. Enter your car's make, model and year, plus your zip code. Then choose among dozens of fixes to get a price range for the job at dealerships and independent shops in your area.

2. FREE TECH SUPPORT: If you're a member of Sam's Club or Costco, you can get free tech support -- even if you didn't buy the device at their store. For PC problems, try TechGuy.org or 5starsupport.com for free help. You can search the forums for your computer's particular ailment or post a question to receive a timely response from the sites' groups of geek volunteers.

3. FREE TREATS: Your favorite snack shop or fast-food restaurant may have an annual freebie day. Mark your calendar for free IHOP pancakes in February; free Ben & Jerry's ice cream, Rita's Italian ice, and a Starbucks pastry in March; free Pretzel Time pretzels and a Cinnabon treat in April; free Haagen Daas ice cream in May; a free Krispy Kreme doughnut, Sonic root-beer float and TCBY frozen yogurt in June; and a free Chick-Fil-A meal in July -- to name a few. You can also sign up to score free food on your birthday from Famous Dave’s BBQ, Cold Stone Creamery, Denny’s and other eateries. Search the Web for "birthday freebies," or call your local restaurants to ask whether they offer such a deal.

4. FREE FINANCIAL APPS: There's a slew of free apps for your mobile phone that can simplify your financial tasks. Among our favorites are apps from Mint.com to track your spending and investments, Allpoint and Moneypass to find surcharge-free ATMs nearby, Yowza for coupons on the go and CheckPlease Lite to easily calculate a tip or divide a restaurant check.

5. FREE COMPUTER PROTECTION: Is your computer vulnerable? You can download malware-protection services available free online. We recommend PC Magazine's Editor's Choice: Panda Cloud Antivirus. Or try Microsoft's Security Essentials, which PCWorld.com says renders subscription antivirus services unnecessary.

6. FREE WORKOUTS: Forget the costly gym membership. It doesn't cost a penny to put on a pair of sneakers and go for a walk or jog in your neighborhood. Or check out a workout DVD from your local library. You may also find free instructional workouts in your area. For instance, Lululemon Athletica stores offer free yoga classes weekly. We also searched the Web and found free tai chi sessions from a variety of organizations in several cities, including San Francisco, Omaha and New York.

7. FREE RX DRUGS: Bring in your prescription, and you can get free antibiotics at some pharmacies, including those at Giant, Meijer, Publix, Stop & Shop and Wegmans. You can also get free prenatal vitamins at Meijer and Schnucks.

8. FREE PHONE ASSISTANT: Streamline your personal phone system with Google Voice, a free service that allows people to dial one phone number to ring all your phones simultaneously. It converts voice-mail messages to text that you can go back to and search by keyword (no more Post-It collages on the wall). You can set up different voice-mail greetings for different callers, plus you can easily screen or block calls -- all without paying for a personal assistant. Bonus: Even if your cell-phone plan charges you per text message, you can send free texts from your Google number.

9. FREE CASH: Don't let your short-term savings stagnate. Stash it in a high-yield online savings account such as ING Direct or HSBC Direct. They're FDIC-insured and were recently paying 1.1 percent. (For every $1,000 in your account, that's $11 free every year.) Online interest-bearing checking accounts from ING Direct and Everbank are also a good deal. They pay from 0.25 percent to 1.46 percent Another source of free cash: Some employers will match your contributions to your workplace 401(k) plan. For instance, if you contribute $100 per month, they may toss in another $50. You've got to save for retirement anyway, so take the free cash if it's offered.

10. FREE EDUCATION: Many colleges and universities, such as Johns Hopkins, University of Notre Dame and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, post course material and lectures on their Web sites. You won't get credit toward a degree, but you can pursue an interest, sharpen your skills or even learn a language. You can also go to Apple's iTunes U to access more than 250,000 free lectures, videos and other materials from 600 universities, including Oxford, Stanford and Yale.

Posted by Andrea Walker at 12:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Free
        

Shoppers are loyal to their online retailers.

The National Retail Federation and BIGresearch surveyed people about their favorite internet shopping sites and the top 10 remained unchanged from last year.

Rankings were based on the total number of responses to these two questions:

1. What website do you shop most often for apparel times?

2.What website do you shop most often for non-apparel items?

The top 10 are:

1. Amazon.com

2. Walmart.com

3. eBay.com

4. BestBuy.com

5. JCPenney.com

6. Target.com

7. Kohls.com

8. Google.com

9. Overstock.com

10. Sears.com

Newcomers to the list included Express.com, Aeropostale.com and Nike.com.

Shoppers look at good deals, lenient return policies and free shipping when evaluating Internet shopping sites, the survey found.

What is your favorite online shopping site?

Posted by Andrea Walker at 12:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: online shopping
        

The organizers of Abbey Road on the River, the "world's largest" Beatles tribute festival that begins Thursday at the Gaylord Resort at National Harbor in Prince George's County, has decided to take a page out of Glenn Beck's book - MLK's before that and really, anybody who can get a national park permit - and hold a "Give Peace a Chance" rally in front of the Lincoln Memorial tomorrow at 11:11 p.m.

The event will honor John Lennon (everybody's talkin' about Beckism, this'ism, that'ism), the legendary Beatle who would have celebrated his 70th birthday on Oct. 9 of this year. Several tribute concerts and events are happening both stateside and in Britain. Why 11:11? According to the festival, it's a tribute to WWI armistice, which happened at 11 a.m. on Nov. 11, 1918. And Lennon, as most know, was a big supporter of keeping the peace.

Organizers say "This gathering will have the same peaceful intention as when it was sung by half a million demonstrators in Washington, D.C. at the Vietnam Moratorium Day on October 15, 1969 and the song quickly became the anthem of the anti-war movement."

All we are saying...

Photo is front cover image from the book "Lennonlegend."

Posted by Michelle Deal-Zimmerman at 11:37 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Travel
        

Woot made the concept of a "deal of the day" popular by offering steep discounts on products for no more than 24 hours.

It spawned many group-buying imitators and variations focusing on everything from sporting goods, jewelry, electronics and more. Some, like Woot, offer the deals until inventory runs out. Others, like Jasmere, continue to lower prices on jewelry and beauty products the more people agree to purchase. Even major retailers like Target have now gotten on board, offering their own daily specials for items that turn into pumpkins expire at midnight. 

But if you want to avoid missing a deal  check out DODTracker, an exhaustive list of items on sale that day only from sites such as ScopeaDay, which offers discount telescopes; PeachyCheap, a source of scrapbooking products; or a Marc Ecko Star Wars Clone Trooper Hoodie by dtagitgifts (only $39.95 for a few hours).

The usual caveats apply when considering one of the deals, of course ... 

Continue reading "DODTracker, a deal-of-the-day aggregator: Consumer Website of the Week" »

Posted by Liz Kay at 10:48 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Cheap/Frugal, Consumer Web Site of the Week
        

Maybe this new manager has the Orioles doing double duty. It seems that way since a couple of players will be doing some field work tomorrow morning at BWI-Marshall Airport. 

Orioles players Brian Roberts and Jake Fox, along with the Orioles mascot, are going to trade places with employees of Southwest Airlines around 11 a.m. at BWI. Southwest, which has partnered with the Orioles for the past 10 years and is the team's official airline, says the players and bird will be making gate announcements, boarding planes to welcome folks to Baltimore and even directing a plane into one of the Southwest's gates at BWI.

Let's just hope one of those planes isn't full of Red Sox fans. Who knows what could happen! If you're set to fly into or out of BWI tomorrow a.m., feel free to snap a shot with your cell phone and e-mail it to us and we'll post it here.

Posted by Michelle Deal-Zimmerman at 12:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: Airlines
        

In June, student loan debt surpassed credit card debt — nearly $826 billion — for the first time.

Mark Kantrowitz, publisher of FinAid, has put together a student debt clock so you can watch students slip deeper into debt by about $2,854 per second. Kantrowitz says student loan debt has risen because need-based grants haven’t kept up with growing college costs. Meanwhile, he says, credit card debt has been dropping because of lower card limits, higher minimum payments and tighter credit standards.

He gives some tips on keeping education debt down. I like this one: Don’t borrow more for your entire education than you expected starting salary after graduation.

Posted by Eileen Ambrose at 10:37 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)
Categories: College/Financial aid
        

Two cruise ships out of the Port of Baltimore have made changes to itineraries and port calls this week because of Hurricane Earl. The Carnival Pride, which sailed Sunday on a 7-day cruise to the Eastern Caribbean, is skipping a port call at Grand Turk Island. Instead, the Pride will stop at Port Canaveral tomorrow, then spend two days in the Bahamas at Freeport and Nassau. The ship is also missing a call at Half Moon Cay - one of my favorite stops.

Royal Caribbean's Enchantment of the Seas - new to Baltimore this season -  left last Thursday for a 9-night Caribbean cruise. The ship made its port call at San Juan, Puerto Rico on Sunday, but missed the stop at St. Thomas on Monday. Instead, the cruise made calls at Samana, Dominican Republic and Labadee, Haiti. The ship will spend the next three days at sea, returning to Baltimore on Saturday.

There's always a risk you take booking a cruise during hurricane season. Most of the time, everything works out just fine. But once it gets into late August and September - when hurricanes can really whip it up in the Atlantic - all bets are off. For advice on booking a cruise during hurricane season, CruiseCritic.com has 10 tips worth checking out.

Posted by Michelle Deal-Zimmerman at 9:42 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)
Categories: Travel
        

Here's a long list of Naughty Businesses of the Week: in August, the Maryland Department of the Environment announced more than $1.6 million in penalties for 25 water, land, air and radiation violations.

WATER POLLUTION

Construction violations: people are supposed to get a permit from MDE before starting to construct anything in state wetlands and waterways.

Erik and Kimberly Roese – Baltimore County: On June 8, 2010, Erik and Kimberly Roese paid $4,200 to the Tidal Wetlands Compensation Fund to resolve alleged violations of tidal wetlands laws regarding unauthorized construction of a pier in excess of six feet in width and a pier platform in excess of 200 square feet in Middle River. Corrective actions have been taken to address the alleged violations. The site had achieved compliance with the Tidal Wetlands Act prior to the imposition of the penalty.

Jeffrey and Linda Baker – Calvert County: On June 7, 2010, Jeffrey and Linda Baker paid $1,000 to the Tidal Wetlands Compensation Fund for the alleged violations of constructing a pier extension landward from the “L” head platform and constructing a platform in the first 50 percent of the pier and adjacent to the bulkhead without an approved tidal wetlands license in accordance with the Tidal Wetlands Act in Lusby. Corrective actions have been taken to address the alleged violations.

Jerome Brewis, Lori D. Brewis, Kelly D. Lockner – Anne Arundel County: On June 29, 2010, MDE finalized a Settlement Agreement jointly with Anne Arundel County to resolve alleged violations at properties owned by the parties Jerome G. Brewis, Kelly D. Lockner, and Lori D. Brewis. The Settlement Agreement requires corrective actions to reduce the size of pier structures to be completed by October 31, 2010, and to pay $5,000 to the Tidal Wetlands Compensation Fund upon completion of the required corrections.

Erosion control: erosion and sediment control plans are required before digging or clearing more than 5,000 square feet of land, because it's against state law to allow soil to wash into Maryland waterways.

Bumpy Oak Corporation – St. Mary’s County: On June 23, 2010, Bumpy Oak Corporation paid $6,600 to the Sediment Control Fund to resolve alleged sediment control violations at the Forest Knolls Two Subdivision in Mechanicsville. Corrective actions have been taken to address the alleged violations.

M. E. Mohler Company – Charles County: On July 13, 2010, MDE issued a Site Complaint and Stop Work Order to M.E. Mohler Company for the failure to implement and maintain an approved Erosion and Sediment Control Plan at the St. Mary’s Villas residential development site in LaPlata. The Site Complaint and Stop Work Order requires the company to cease and desist all work at the site and to immediately implement and maintain an approved Erosion and Sediment Control Plan.

Churchill Development Corporation-Palmer Washington Overlook – Fort Washington, Prince George’s County: On July 19, 2010, MDE issued an Administrative Complaint and Penalty against Churchill Development Corporation seeking a penalty of $120,000 for alleged sediment control and pollution violations at the Palmer Washington Overlook construction site. The alleged violations consisted of sediment pollution to a tributary of Henson Creek and failing to properly maintain erosion and sediment control devices, resulting in the discharge of sediment to waters of the State.

Discharge violations: you can't release spollutant into waters of the State without following the terms and conditions of a discharge permit.

BSJ Partners – Dorchester County: On June 18, 2010, the Department filed a Complaint for Injunctive Relief and Civil Penalty in the Circuit Court for Dorchester County against BSJ Partners, LLC, regarding alleged water pollution violations at the Clearview at Horn’s Point, formerly known as Cambridge Country Club, at 5650 Horns Point Road in Cambridge. The Complaint alleges unlawful discharges of sewage from the Country Club’s on-site septic system to the Choptank River, and alleges failure to submit discharge monitoring reports as required by its discharge permit for swimming pools. The action seeks an injunction requiring the defendant to cease unauthorized discharges and establish regular pumping of untreated sewage from the facility as well as a civil penalty of $790,000.

James M. Dugan and Jennifer Rizzo – Charles County: On June 22, 2010, the Department filed a Complaint for Injunctive Relief and Civil Penalty in the Circuit Court for Charles County against James Dugan and Jennifer Rizzo, owners of the Marshall Hall Mobile Home Park at 6454 Oreta Lane in Charles County. The Complaint alleges unlawful discharges of sewage from the park’s subsurface wastewater disposal system to waters of the State. The action seeks an injunction requiring defendants to cease unlawful discharges, to repair the failed system, and to establish regular pumping of sewage from the system as well as civil penalties of up to $10,000 per day for each day of unlawful discharges but not less than $100,000 total.

Laurel Sand & Gravel – Prince George’s County – On July 27, 2010, MDE issued an Administrative Complaint and Penalty against Laurel Sand & Gravel, Inc., and 1325 G Street Associates, respectively, for alleged past violations of sediment control, sediment pollution, and water pollution control laws at the sand and gravel mining operation formerly known as the Magruder surface mine. The mining site, located at Van Dusen Road and Interstate 95 in Laurel, is currently being prepared for transformation into Konterra, a mixed-use development located adjacent to the Inter-County Connector. The action seeks a total penalty of $170,000 for alleged violations.

LAND POLLUTION

Lead Cases The following actions were for properties alleged to be out of compliance with lead risk reduction standards:

Continue reading "MDE enforcement of pollution violations: Naughty Businesses of the Week" »

Posted by Liz Kay at 8:18 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: Naughty businesses/NBotW
        

Do you think brokers should act in your best interest?

If so, this is the last day to tell that to the Securities and Exchange Commission. The agency, as part of the new financial reform law, is studying whether brokers owe a duty to put clients first. Right now, they are only required to suggest "suitable investments."

Investment advisers, who are often financial planners and money managers, have had a "fiduciary duty" to clients first for about 70 years.

This is a big deal. Your broker can recommend a "suitable" mutual fund but not have to tell you that it also pays a whopping commission that eats away at your return.

In response to my article on the controversy Sunday, Knut Rostad, who wants brokers to also have a fiduciary duty, wrote:

"I would only add that the legal differences between the two classes of investment professionals is far greater than generally understood and characterized by many investment professionals, in terms of what is required by law. An investment fiduciary must: only recommend products he or she believes are in the best interest of the client; either avoid or disclose AND manage important conflicts of interest; disclose (before the transaction) all fees, expenses, incentives and associated costs, and must, generally, control investment expenses. A broker who only meets the minimum requirements of the suitability standard is required to do none of these. In a nutshell, a broker is permitted by law, similar to other sales professionals following the law, to pursue his or her interests ahead of consumers’ interests."

You can submit your own thoughts online to the SEC, which is taking public comment on the matter through today.

Posted by Eileen Ambrose at 12:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Personal finance
        

If you shopped at BJ's earlier this summer, here's a reason to check your freezer.

The USDA has announced a recall of 8,500 pounds of ground beef that was repackaged for sale at retail locations including 26 BJ's Wholesale Clubs, such as the location in the White Marsh Retail Center, due to possible E. Coli contamination. 

The original packages, each containing three 14-pound chubs, had a use or freeze by date of July 1, 2010.

There have been three reports of illnesses --- two people in Maine and one in New York --- due to this meat, prepared by Cargill Meat Solutions Corp. of Wyalusing, Pa.

It's possible that other retailers sold this meat that were not on the USDA's retail distribution list, and it's also possible that some of those listed (such as the Maryland location) did not actually have the contaminated product. Still, if you think you froze some ground beef from BJ's earlier this summer, it's worth checking out.

Now I'm worried ... 

Continue reading "Ground beef recall: meat sold at Baltimore BJ's due to E. Coli contamination" »

Posted by Liz Kay at 8:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (5)
Categories: Consumer safety, Recalls
        

Next month, state securities regulators from across the country will be in a Baltimore for an annual meeting.

I’ll be participating in a panel discussion about whether people are questioning their long-term investment strategies given all that’s happened in the past couple of years. (Who isn't?)

Also, are all these new regulatory reforms rebuilding your confidence as an investor or not?

So, I’m taking a poll, but would love to hear from you in the comment section on if or how your investment philosophy has changed since the market crash of 2008.

Are you doing anything differently with your 401(k) or other investments? Are you more or less inclined to put money in the stock market?

And what would it take to rebuild your confidence as an investor? Or, maybe you don’t need any confidence building?

Posted by Eileen Ambrose at 7:24 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)
Categories: Personal finance
        

Google is rolling out a new feature for Gmail to let users make phone calls directly from the site.

It requires downloading and installing a plug-in, but folks who have tested it report on Lifehacker that the sound quality is good (although how *you* sound to the person you're calling may depend on your own configuration of computer mic and speakers).

Calls to the U.S. and Canada will be free through the rest of the year, but international costs vary (sometimes depending on whether you're dialing a landline versus a mobile phone). Many countries start at 2 cents per minute.

Why would you use this service?

Continue reading "More cheap calling options: Cheap Trick Thursday" »

Posted by Liz Kay at 8:35 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Cellular/Landline/Voice over Internet, Cheap/Frugal
        

High end retailer Michael Kors is opening a store at Towson Town Center mall tomorrow - just in time for the fall fashion season.

The clothing and accessories retailer known for its classic styles is opening at the mall's luxury wing on the second floor. It will be located next door to Burberry and joins other brands located at the wing, including Louis Vuitton, BCBG MaxAzria and Christian Audigier, creator of the Ed Hardy T-shirt line.

Martin + Osa recently closed its store at the wing after going out of business across the country. Tiffany & Co. will open one of its jewelry stores at the wing Sept. 3.

The new Michael Kors store will be a little more than 1,700-square-feet and include a full line of accessories and apparel.

Posted by Andrea Walker at 4:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Shopping
        

Travel+Leisure magazine is in the midst of its annual survey of America's Favorite Cities and Baltimore is being included for the first time since 2007. The editors there call it something of an "urban smackdown" because readers can use the survey results to compare cities based on a variety of categories. For example, which city has the most romantic hotels? The most attractive people? The best microbreweries? (Here's a link to last year's results.)

The survey asks questions about culture, hotels, attractions, nightlife, shopping, food/dining and more for 35 U.S. cities and asks users to rate a city based on a 1-5 scale. The magazine will publish the results online in November and in print in its December 2010 editions.

I asked why Baltimore hadn't been included recently and was told that the editors had originally limited the list to only 30 cities, but this year it has been expanded which allowed Charm City into the field. The first survey was in 2002 and Baltimore was last included in 2003. A lot has changed in Charm City since then, so it's worth taking the survey before it ends Aug. 31. After completing the survey, you can also enter to win a $25,000 dream vacation.

Posted by Michelle Deal-Zimmerman at 3:57 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Travel
        

Toys R Us wants your used strollers, car seats, cribs, bassinets, high chairs and any other old baby gear collecting dust in your house.

The toy retailer is having a baby gear trade-in starting Friday and lasting through Sept. 19. Bring in your old gear to any Toys R Us and you'll get a coupon for 25 percent off baby items from select manufacturers.

The toy retailer said it is using the event to bring attention to the fact that certain baby products shouldn't be reused because of safety concerns.

The company will  launch a new national program called Product Safety Vigilance in conjunction with the trade-in. The program gives parents steps to keep their children safe. It also gives parents a checklist to help them stay on top of recalls on unsafe baby products.

Posted by Andrea Walker at 2:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Lately, many people have been weighing the value of a college education versus the burden of years of student loan debt.

A Wall Street Journal blog post stating that student loan debt now exceeds credit card debt inspired the MintLife blog to provide this visual breakdown of statistics on student loan debt in the United States with two interesting tidbits about Maryland.

Half of all students graduating from colleges and universities within the state carry debt, and the average student loan debt here is $18,647, ranking 13th in the list.

Click through the link to see state-by-state comparisons, although I'll satisfy your curiosity by stating the municipality with the highest average debt is Washington D.C., at $29,793.

Although education is often praised as a good investment that reaps returns in the form of improved earning potential. But no doubt debts such as student loans often impact when people can start working toward other financial goals, such saving for retirement.

How should students and families balance the benefits of a college education with the cost? How important a factor should future salaries be when choosing a university or committing to a major?

Posted by Liz Kay at 10:40 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)
Categories: College/Financial aid, Student loans
        

Here's one more back-to-school tip: college students can use book.ly to compare prices to buy or rent new or used copies of textbooks and other required materials at a number of websites.

The metasearch engine, which bills itself as the Kayak of textbooks, automates searches and aggregates results from common sellers of new books such as Amazon, resellers of used books such as eBay and textbook rental sites such as Chegg.

There are other textbook price comparison sites, but book.ly offers one additional feature that wins it praise as our Consumer Website of the Week: course syllabi from more than 1,500 colleges and universities have already been uploaded so there's no need for extraneous typing.

Students can simply select their departments, courses and sections and up pops a list of required and optional materials. (Although, Johns Hopkins University departments were listed as numbers, not descriptive names. Is this how things are done over at Homewood?)

Some caveats that everyone has already thought of:

Continue reading "Compare textbook prices online: Consumer Website of the Week" »

Posted by Liz Kay at 7:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)
Categories: Cheap/Frugal, College/Financial aid, Consumer Web Site of the Week, textbooks
        

What are a consumer's legal rights when asked for their Social Security number?

This question was posed by Consuming Interests reader Documented on my earlier post about how 40 million SSNs were associated with multiple people. 

SSNs are used to establish new lines of credit or a bank account, for employment purposes and for tax purposes and for government benefits such as Medicare, said Linda Foley, founder of the Identity Theft Resource Center.  

So, if you open a new checking account or start a new job, your SSN will be necessary. And Medicare cards list Social Security numbers as their identifiers.

You may also be asked for a Social Security number when starting a new account with a utility or a cell phone carrier, because they want to check your credit, Foley said.

But there are also a couple of other little known but also valid occasions to share your SSN:

Continue reading "Who should get your social security number? " »

Posted by Liz Kay at 3:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Healthcare, Identity theft
        

Here's an interesting statistic: more than 40 million Social Security numbers are associated with multiple people in commercial records, according to IDAnalytics, a consumer risk management firm.

The company studied more than 280 million SSNs in its database to come to that conclusion. It also determined:

--- 6.1 percent of Americans have at least two SSNs associated with their name. More than 100,000 Americans have five or more SSNs associated with their name.

and

--- More than 15 percent of SSNs are associated with two or more people.  More than 140,000 SSNs are associated with five or more people. Significantly, more than 27,000 SSNs are associated with 10 or more people.

Of course, some of these problems may be the result of ... 

Continue reading "Who has your social security number?" »

Posted by Liz Kay at 9:51 AM | Permalink | Comments (6)
Categories: Identity theft
        

Update: Here's a link to Social Security's trust fund holdings from the Social Security Administration.  

My column today covers some of the hundreds of suggestions by readers to fix Social Security. One gripe cropped up frequently. 

Readers accused the government of “raiding” Social Security trust funds, and wondered if there would even be a deficit if the money had been left untouched.

Barry’s complaint via e-mail is a common one:

“As you know when President Roosevelt created Social Security he put it into an account all by itself. It was meant to be for the people and used for any other purpose. When President Nixon found out that the Social Security account had many millions of dollars in it he wanted to put his hands on it. And he somehow convinced Congress to remove it from its own account and put it into the general fund.

With it being in the general fund the Congress can use these funds anyway they wish. Now you want to know how to save Social Security?? Well the solution is very simple PUT IT BACK INTO ITS OWN ACCOUNT AND SET IT UP SO THAT CONGRESS CANNOT TOUCH THE PROCEEDS FOR THEIR USE. Now does this not seem like a suitable solution to the problem? Tell them to keep their cotton picking hands out of the till and leave the money for the citizens the contributed to the program.”

Social Security’s surplus is invested in U.S. Treasuries, and the government uses the money for other purposes while promising to repay it with interest. This promise is included in Social Security calculations, so the projected deficit remains the same, according to Frank Todisco, a senior pension fellow with the American Academy of Actuaries. In other words, even if all that Social Security surplus was left in a vault, we'd still be running a projected deficit.

Of course, some of you might argue that the government will renege on those bonds someday. But that’s a different argument.

Another myth worth busting: Many readers claim Congress doesn't care about Social Security because its members aren't part of it. Since 1983, new federal employees — including members of Congress — are part of the Social Security system. Sen. John McCain collects Social Security benefits.

Posted by Eileen Ambrose at 5:32 AM | Permalink | Comments (8)
Categories: Social Security
        

There are many ways to cut costs when shopping for back-to-school supplies, as personal finance columnist Eileen Ambrose told us in Sunday's paper.

I definitely noticed a theme in her recommendations: used, refurbished, swapped --- there's no need to purchase brand-new items when clothes, equipment and technology are often outgrown or abandoned with a lot of life still left in them.

For example, it's great when your offspring is taking advanced math, but graphing calculators are definitely expensive. But hunt around in your social circle for a hand-me-down from a graduate who never plans to open another calculus textbook again, or check sites such as Amazon.com's used and refurbished electronics section, as recommended in the September issue of ShopSmart magazine.

Thank goodness the colleges testing iPads as educational tools (as BaltTech blogger Gus Sentementes wrote about today) are providing them to their students, and not adding them to the tuition bill!

Speaking of college, don't forget to consider expenses such as on-campus ATM fees, as we've recommended in the past for any student who is relocating.

How are you trimming back-to-school costs with your kids this year? Recent college graduates, any advice for staying within your budget when heading back to campus? Please share in the comments below.

(photo: Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun)

Posted by Liz Kay at 8:17 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Cheap/Frugal, College/Financial aid
        

If you had 60 seconds to grab — for free — groceries at Weis Markets, what would you throw in your basket?

The chain announced it finished the renovation of the Washington Boulevard store in Laurel, and as part of a week-long celebration it will randomly select two customers for a “free 60-second shopping spree.”

The celebration of the renovation kicks off Aug. 22. Weis also says it will donate $10,000 to Howard County Hospital’s neo-natal until and $1,000 to the Savage Volunteer Fire Department.

The store renovation enlarged the produce, bakery and deli departments, expanded the sushi counter and increased the selection of take-out meals.

If I win the contest, I’m hanging out in the steak department.

Posted by Eileen Ambrose at 6:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)
Categories: Food