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September 2009
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Deals of the Week Home Money Real Estate Recall Tips More KVUE Blogs
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February 2009 Archives
It's interesting to see how much we're willing to pay for that fountain of youth in a bottle. There's an interesting article in today's USA Today which shows restaurants and other major retailers are offering more two-for-one deals to tempt shoppers. So here are a few of the deals being offered right now: You may remember the San Diego home builder that made headlines earlier this year by offering a two-for-one deal on new homes. Marketing experts say this is often a good tactic because it prevents businesses from having to drop prices and then having shoppers get used to that pricing. What do you think? What kind of deals are you seeing? Add your comments below.
• AirTran is also having a sale. The cheapest fare from San Antonio is $59 one way to Fort Lauderdale, FL. You need to book by March 5th. • You can fly from Houston to London on Continental Airlines and pay $325 one way. If you're hoping to get awy for the summer they've got a lot of deals to Europe. You have to book your tickets by March 11th. • There are also some amazing deals on Carnival Cruise lines including some three day cruises for less than $200 a person. The sale is only good this Thursday, February 26th.
Here's the deal IHOP hopes you'll donate the money you would have spent on pancakes to charity. This year the restaurant hopes to raise a million dollars for Children's Miracle Network. Since IHOP began celebrating the day in 2006 it has raised nearly two million dollars to support charities in the communities where it operates. You can go here to find an IHOP near you. Monday afternoon Microsoft agreed that employees who were overpaid a severance after being laid off last month do not have to repay the money. According to reports, about 1,400 Microsoft employees received letters saying the company overpaid about 25 employees $4,000 to $5,000 each. So the company was giving those employees 14 days to pay it back. You can see a copy of the letter here. It essentially said, "An inadvertent administrative error occurred that resulted in an overpayment in severance pay by Microsoft. We ask that you repay the overpayment and sincerely apologize for any inconvenience to you." I'm curious what you think about this? What would you do if you were handed a letter like this? Did Microsoft do the right thing by changing its requirement? Add your comments below.
Where Homes Sell Fastest in Austin Average time to sell Healthiest Housing Markets in the Country
It gives college students a chance to share their reviews, photos and videos with students across the country. It's almost like giving high school students an inside look at what life is really like on college campuses across the country. Some describe it like taking a nationwide campus tour without leaving home. Maybe that's because there's an entire section of video campus tours. Students talk about class size, the feel of the campus, the ability to get involved on campus. You can pick and choose the colleges you'd like to learn more about. Campus Crime The U.S. Department of Education provides more information about the way schools report crime on its website.
Through tomorrow Restaurant.com is offering 70 percent off their gift certificates. Select your zip code, choose the restaurant of your choice then in the "enter discount code" box type "PREZ". This means $25 gift certificates that usually sell for $10, you can buy for $3. Remember some restaurants make you spend a minimum amount when you eat out. For example, some restaurants require that your bill total $50 when you use a $25 gift certificate, so you'll want to make sure it's a place you wouldn't mind spending that much.
• The Obama Store on 11th street in Austin was packed around inauguration time. Things have quieted down and now the owners are trying to clean out their inventory. The store is planning to close in March so it is also offering 50 percent off lots of presidential memorabilia. • The President's official online store is offering similar discounts. Discounts on Family Fun • Then remember the Austin Visitors and Convention Bureau offers up several coupons including a buy one get one free admission to the Austin Children's Museum. Deal sites • I've mentioned Frucall on this blog before. It's a site that lets you comparison shop while you're in the store. They've added a text messaging service. Find a product in a store you like, then text the bar code to FRU 11 and it will show you where you can get that product the cheapest. Don't want to waste a text you can also call 1-888-doFRUCALL. You can also use your smart phone and pull up this website then plug in the bar code. You do have to sign up using either your e-mail or cell phone number in order to use the service. You also won't be able to find comparisons for every product or every possible store, but it's a help when you're looking for a deal on the run.
If you're willing to fly out of San Antonio, Air Tran is also offering some incredible deals through tomorrow.
The reason for only requiring the biggest banks is because according to the government they originate 90 percent of the loans in this country. You can read the full report here. Here are a few of the highlights: •From October to December, total residential mortgage balances across the twenty banks was essentially flat. The median percent change in total residential mortgage balances was a decrease of 1 percent. • For the same period, corporate loan balances decreased slightly. The median percent change in total loan balances across banks was a decrease of 1 percent. Ten banks experienced increases in total loan balances. The driver of the decrease was softening loan demand, particularly by smaller businesses, as noted by several banks. • Credit card borrowing increased, while available credit decreased. The median percent change in average total loan balance for U.S. credit cards was an increase of 2 percent. The median percent change in total used and unused commitments for U.S. credit cards was essentially flat. For banks with the largest credit card loan balances, the decrease was more marked. • In commercial real estate, renewals of existing accounts increased significantly, while new commitments decreased significantly. The median percent change in renewals of existing accounts was an increase of 55 percent. The median percent change in new commitments was a decrease of 19 percent. Many banks noted challenges in this space, including "negligible" residential home builder loan demand and weaker construction and development activity, softening with regards to retailers, an uncertain outlook with regards to office space, and the continued dislocation of the commercial mortgage backed securities (CMBS) market. What the banks say BB&T says it has originated "loans for the purchase of new and used automobiles, boats and recreational vehicles through approved dealers within the 11 state BB&T footprint. New loan volume is highly seasonal." Capital One explained the lack of loan growth this way: "We must maintain prudent risk management standards in the face of a worsening economy in order to protect the U.S. taxpayers' investment in us and ensure an appropriate return. Also, we must adapt to an environment in which consumers with strong credit are borrowing less while consumers with weak credit are becoming riskier. Under these conditions, we expect that loan balances will decline going forward even though we remain an active lender across our businesses." Commerica says much of the same. The report shows, "New commitments and renewals were lower in the three largest markets (Midwest, Western and Texas), although new commitments declined the least in Texas, a less weak economy. There were $380 million of new commitments in consumer lending in the fourth quarter." JP Morgan & Chase Co. says during the fourth quarter it "approved more than 60,000 mortgages and home equity loans and lines." Yet "approval rates declined slightly during the quarter for most products." The company also says it has added "24 new Chase Homeownership Centers in areas with high mortgage delinquencies; and the addition of new loan counselors to provide better help to troubled borrowers, bringing the total number of counselors to more than 2,500. This effort is expected to help 400,000 homeowners with a total of $70 billion worth of Chase owned mortgages." Since the program began 400 banks in 47 states have participated. You can read more detailed reports of how much money banks have received here. How to get help
Now there's a new deal being offered by Verizon Wireless. It allows you to designate five or 10 phone numbers that don't get added to your minute total. Here's what makes this plan different than most, your friends and family don't have to use Verizon Wireless service. So you can register any cell phone, any landline, just pick the numbers and when you call those numbers they won't count toward your total minutes. The five number plan starts at $60 a month, the 10 number plan at $90 a month. My good friend Todd e-mailed me a little warning for people with current plans with Verizon Wireless. He wrote," I was on a plan called "America's Choice", a 1400 minute family share plan. I ended up having to call Customer Service after I discovered online that my plan wouldn't allow for the "Friends and Family" deal. In order to get it, I had to switch my obsolete plan to a 1400 minute "Nationwide Family Share" calling plan. I get the same number of minutes and better extended network capabilities, with no additional cost to me. Making this change was pretty easy to do. Calling plans can be changed at Thanks Todd for the feedback. Not sure which plan is best for you? Here are a few websites that may help you decide: My husband and I love to eat out. Like many families we've cut back on how often we visit restaurants, but some Austin eateries are trying to get us to come back. Many are introducing lower priced menus with smaller portions especially for lunch. Here's a sample of what's being offered: Z'Tejas (Southwestern grill) and Sagra's (Italian food) have added to their weekday lunch specials. You'll find specials for less than $10. Andrew sent me an e-mail to tell me about some of the great deals at Texas Land & Cattle Steakhouse. They have an entire 7 for $7 lunch menu. They also sell 110 items for under $10 for dinner. Remember to check for deals on gift certificates at restaurants in your city at Restaurant.com. You'll also find deals where kids can eat free in Austin here. I've mentioned this site in this blog before, but if you have children, no matter where you live you may want to bookmark this site. It let's you plug in your zip code and find the meal deals across the country.
Most schools ban cell phones from classrooms. However at a conference this week in Washington, a wireless industry trade group called CITA plans to make its case for the value of cell phones for education. According to the New York Times the group will present research from "Qualcomm, a maker of chips for cell phones--that shows so-called smart phones can make students smarter." Some states like North Carolina are already using smart phones as a way to boost test scores. The program is called K-Nect. Students get the phones free and can access lesson plans that go along with what they are learning in the classroom. The idea is to allow students to collaborate with each other and with tutors. American students are struggling to compete in math and science. One study ranked U.S. students 24th of 29 in the world when it comes to math proficiency. But is this the answer? Isn't it important to teach kids the process? I've got to be honest I'm amazed when I go to a store and the person ringing up my order can't figure out how much change I need to get back without the register telling them. Call me old fashioned, but my dad was an accountant so math was something I grew up learning. My parents taught each of us kids how to properly balance a checkbook the old fashioned way--using a pen and paper not relying on a computer. What do you think? Is this a good idea? Add your comments below.
According to the Wall Street Journal, "by the end of 2008, more than one million foreclosed homes were on the market, representing at least "one quarter of all properties for sale". That means banks are more willing to help you avoid foreclosure, but you don't want to wait until you fall behind. The Wall Street Journal provides some terrific advice including asking for a loan modification once you lose your job and send the request via certified mail. For new homeowners the stimulus plan Congress passed last week includes a Homebuyer Tax Credit. This means anyone who buys a home for the first time in three years on or after January 1, 2009 and before December 1, 2009 will get an $8,000 tax credit that doesn't have to be paid back. The credit will be claimed on a tax return and will reduce the purchaser's income tax liability. In July 2008 when the credit was first offered homebuyers were required to pay it back over 15 years. This new plan does away with that requirement. There is some concern that this is once again allowing people who can't afford to buy a home back into the market. What do you think? Add your comments below.
Kids at Copperfield, Highland Park, Spring Hill and Rowe Lane Elementary schools, as well as Delco and Windermere Primary Schools and Kelley Lane Middle School sold the dough. Here's what the brochures looked like: • Blue Ribbon Products Ultimate Gourmet • Little Lambs Gourmet Cookie Dough This recall only involves the peanut butter cookie dough. No one who has gotten sick eating the dough, but the company is asking people not to eat it. They also tell customers who bought the peanut butter dough to throw it out and return the box to the campus you helped. They will take your contact information and the fundraising company will mail you a refund for the purchase price of the product. If you have any questions you can call 1-866-386-3724 or www.866fundraise.com. To learn more about the Peanut Corporation of America's recall you can visit this website or call 1-877-564-7080. The FDA recalled this cookie dough last month, so I called to ask the school district why it was just notifying families about the recall. The school district says it just heard from the fundraising company yesterday and so it notified people as soon as it could put all the information together. You can find an entire list of recalled peanut butter products here.
However this could be one of the most important Valentine's Days for retailers in a long time. Retail sales for January were up 1 percent, but fell 9 percent year over year. And stores count on holidays like Valentine's Day to sweeten their sales. This year may not bring as big of a boost as some retailers hope. According to a recent study from the National Retail Federation, consumers plan to spend, on average, $102.50 on Valentine's Day gifts this year, down from $122.98 in 2008. That's a 17% drop. The study estimates Valentine's Day spending will fall 14 percent to $14.7 billion compared with last year. Are you cutting back on what you buy your sweetheart?
A new study by Insurance.com finds car insurance rates rose at record levels across the country last year. They're up 8 percent nationally. There is some good news starting this year rates dropped or were unchanged in about 24 states. According to the study, car insurance rates in Oregon rose the most, they were up 8.9 percent in January 2009. In Texas rates rose 2.9 percent in January 2009, 2.5 percent in Minnesota and 4.1 percent in North Carolina. Want to save some money? According to this study West Virginia, Vermont, Connecticut and Wisconsin saw the largest rate decreases. As an aunt for the fifth time I pay a lot of attention to what's in products. Last year parents became concerned because BPA or bisphenol-A was discovered in baby bottles and cans of baby formula. The chemical has been linked to developmental problems. Researchers have found it acts as a potential endocrine disruptor that mimics the action of estrogens and has been linked to problems in boys and other studies have linked it to heart disease, type 2 diabetes and liver enzyme abnormalities. A new study out of Canada has now found we may be exposed to low levels of the chemical when we drink canned soft drinks. There is still much debate on what is considered an allowable level of BPA. Last April, the National Toxicology Program, an agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, issued a report stating that BPA presented "some concern for neural and behavioral effects in fetuses, infants, and children at current human exposures". Yet, an advisory committee appointed by the Food and Drug Administration reported in June that the evidence against BPA was not conclusive enough to support a ban. So that you understand what this study found researchers in Canada based their findings on what is allowed in Canada and Europe (which often has stricter standards than the U.S.). According to the study, "A tolerable daily intake (TDI) for bisphenol A was set at 50μg/kg body weight/day by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and at 25μg/kg body weight/day by Health Canada. The authors of this study claim the trigger for the project was the fact that while previous surveys of BPA in canned foods have been conducted in various countries, there is little information on levels of BPA in canned soft drinks." Researchers didn't release the names of the drinks tested but tested 72 different types of soft drinks and energy drinks. Here's what they found: The highest levels of BPA found were 4.2 and 4.5μg/l, which were detected in two energy drink products. The researchers concluded, "that BPA levels in soft drinks are low compared to those in other canned foods and they indicated that this could be due to the different coatings used in the two piece easy open cans often used for soft drinks or that the amount of coating applied to soft drink cans maybe less than for other foods." This is a good resource by the Environmental Working Group to help you avoid BPA. They've even put together this nice printable guide to help you.
And remember if you ever have a deal worth sharing send me an e-mail. Kid Deals Thanks to KVUE.com web producer and mom Cindy Brummer one for sharing. Entertainment Book Discounts In case you don't want the entire book or you'd like to just print the coupons you know you'll use, remember you can always buy an online subscription. You can spend $30 for a year subscription or $4.95 a month and print as many coupons as you'd like.
Here is a sampling of some of the one way fares Travel Zoo found: Here's a list of some of the amazing fares being offered out of Houston. Be sure to click on the price to see the dates and the available prices. There are still some round trip airfares from Houston to London selling for around $600 this spring. Then be sure to check out some of the other top 20 deals the site mentions. Airfare Watchdog also mentions some incredible European deals. You'd have to get to some destinations along the east coast, but with the airfare deals out there they might still be worth checking out. They found fares as cheap as $287 from Charlotte to London. Need to save some money on a rental car? Between now and March 31st you can get one free weekend day car rental from Hertz. Carnival is offering more amazing cruise deals if you're hoping to get away this spring or summer.
Charity Bachelor Auction This is the 8th year the American Women in Radio and Television has hosted this event. This year the event benefits Femme Film Texas an organization that teaches film making and media literacy to young girls in Austin.
But there are lots of things people will cut back on like satellite radio, eating out and high end cosmetics. People are also skipping haircuts. My hairdresser said for the first time in a long time she's seeing people double the time between haircuts. People are also cutting back on coffee. The days of the $4 latte may be fading. Sales at Starbucks dropped 9 percent in the last three months of 2008 forcing the company to cut hundreds of jobs. So this week Starbucks is launching a new promotion that includes combo deals of food with coffee to entice people to come back. Under Starbucks's new $3.95 promotion, customers can get a 12 oz. latte with oatmeal or coffee cake or a 12 oz. brewed coffee with a choice of breakfast sandwich or roll. It's the first time Starbucks has paired food and drink at a discount. What are you cutting back on? Add your comments below.
A New Jersey congressman thinks that's criminal. He's demanding an investigation because fans in New Jersey were promptly offered more expensive tickets from a Ticketmaster subsidiary. Ticketmaster agreed to stop forwarding people. When I looked it tried to forward me but wouldn't pass me all the way through to the site. Tickets Now is owned by Ticketmaster and allows people with tickets to exchange, trade or sell them at marked up prices. I did a quick search and found tickets to the Austin concert selling for between $86 and $856 a piece. Originally Ticket Master sold the tickets for between $39 and $89 a piece. There is more controversy involving Ticketmaster because there is talk it may merge with Live Nation, the world's largest concert promoter. Critics and even some artists say this too is a conflict of interest and gives Ticketmaster a monopoly. Austin is one of the best cities in the country for music, so I'm curious what you think? Have you had problems securing tickets for concerts? Do you think the current system for buying tickets works? Add your comments below or send me an e-mail if you're willing to share your experience for a story I'm working on.
You've got to show up between 6:30am and 10:30am to take advantage of the deal. And here's another great thing, you don't have to buy anything to enjoy the freebie. Here are the participating locations in the Austin Area: • 701 S. Capital of Texas Highway • 10901 Research Boulevard • 500 East Ben White Boulevard • 3600 South FM 620 Road • 12501 North Mopac Expressway • 5033-D US 290 West • 11200 Lakeline Mall Drive • 12901 I-35 North Service Road • 2901 Capital of Texas Highway • 1325 E Whitestone Boulevard • 110 Louis Henna Boulevard
An article written today in the New York Times found the "proportion of women who are working has changed very little since the recession started. But a full 82 percent of the job losses have befallen men, who are heavily represented in distressed industries like manufacturing and construction. Women tend to be employed in areas like education and health care, which are less sensitive to economic ups and downs, and in jobs that allow more time for child care and other domestic work." The USA Today reports," In the year since the recession began in December 2007, the jobless rate for men rose from 4.4% to 7.2%. At the same time, the jobless rate for women rose from 4.3% to 5.9%." What do you think? Add your thoughts below. By the way, if you're looking for a recession proof job you may want to consider taking up one of these professions. Teachers, nurses, physical therapists and computer analysts appear to be fairing pretty well during this economic downturn.
Williamson County, Travis County and Hays County all of which are in the Austin area rank in the top 100. To see where your county ranks go here. This list includes nearly 800 different counties. In parts of Louisiana and Alabama people pay less than 1 percent of their yearly income on property taxes. Forbes says that's because "those states have local governments with little local autonomy. There is less reliance on the property tax because it is considered a local tax." Most people figure since property values are reportedly dropping, their appraisals should reflect that and thus they would pay less in taxes. However here in Texas it's important to remember we really haven't been seeing a significant drop in values. In fact a recent article in my neighborhood newsletter mentioned how much property taxes have risen in the past few years. One local business claimed their property taxes have risen 65 percent in the past three years. What are you seeing? Add your comments below. You can learn more about property taxes in the state of Texas here. This site is also a great resource for tax information if you are looking to move or retire. This week's deals of the week offer up some terrific local savings, a few travel deals and some parents-to-be savings. Remember if you've got a deal you think is worth sharing or know of a business that offers some savings let me know by sending me an e-mail. This is a great way to save money and support local businesses. You can buy the card at any of the businesses on that list that have an asterisk beside their name. All you have to do once you get the card is show it at any of those businesses and start saving. I used my card to try Jo's Coffee and Amy's Ice Cream for the first time the other day. They also offer a 10% student discount everyday. All you have to do is show a valid student identification card. When I visited earlier this week I found some cute dresses, some selling for between $100 and $200. Be sure to head to the back of the store and check out the sales racks. The jewelry was really reasonably priced and something you won't have to worry someone else will be wearing. Web Deals
Finding licensed, insured and reliable contractors isn't as difficult as you might think. Service Magic.com is a terrific site that puts all of that information in one place. The site is free and puts contractors through a ten point screening process. It includes making sure the contractors are licensed and insured. The site also puts contractors through a criminal background check and checks to see if there have been any civil judgments against them. I spoke with Matt Dillman who said one of the things homeowners fail to consider is whether a contractor has liability insurance. "This is important because if a contractor gets hurt on your property and they don't have this, you could be liable," he said. Dillman said they also offer a new service called Screen a Pro. This is a good site to look at if you know the name of a contractor and want to screen them. It can take up to a day to get information back so this is not going to help you if you need immediate help. You can do some of these checks on your own. To check to see if a contractor is licensed in Texas go here. This is a great national site that helps you find contractor information specific to your state.
According to the Washington Post, "the volume of loans outstanding from U.S. banks fell about 1 percent during the last three months of the year. The decline was more than twice as large among banks that accepted taxpayer funds, according to an analysis of fourth-quarter financial reports from 115 companies." Citigroup released its first report today about how it is spending the TARP money. The company says, "In the fourth quarter of 2008, we extended approximately $75 billion in new loans to people and businesses in the United States ". The company also says, "Since the start of the housing crisis in 2007, we have worked successfully with approximately 440,000 homeowners to avoid potential foreclosure on combined mortgages totaling approximately $43 billion. Last year, we kept approximately four out of five distressed borrowers with mortgages serviced by Citi in their homes." However, the company has received lots of criticism for agreeing to pay $400 million for a marketing deal with the New York Mets. According to the Wall Street Journal the company is now exploring ways to back out of that deal. Some banks complain they are in a no win situation, that they would lend more if people were making more deposits. What do you think? Add your comments below.
The National Retail Federation had BIGresearch conduct a survey that found consumers plan to spend an average of $102.50 on Valentine's gifts and merchandise. That's reportedly down from last year's $122.98. The majority of shoppers plan to buy flowers. I've done stories in the past on how to get the best deal on flowers so I thought I'd remind folks your best bet is to call a local florist directly. There can be stores that advertise both online and in the phone book that appear local, but are not. They are called order gatherers. They buy local phone numbers then they call other companies to place your actual order. So you pay for a $50 arrangement, but they take a cut and end up sending out a bouquet that costs much less. So be careful. Buy from someone you know. I also recommend you do this when you order flowers for someone out of town. Find a florist in that city and place the order directly through them. That way you don't pay a processing fee. The best way to find a local florist is to do a Google search for the florists' association in the state you'd like to buy flowers in. Here's the Texas State Florist Association Directory. Florist Detective is a site that's dedicated to this issue. It has some great tips to help make sure you get the most for your money. |
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Terri Gruca anchors KVUE's 6 and 10pm newscasts. She brings you the latest consumer news and tells you where to find the best deals.
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