Sunday, April 24, 2011
Compare Mortgages, Credit Cards, CD's, Checking and Savings
Think you're getting a good deal on Compare Mortgages, Credit Cards, CD's, Checking and Savings? Although not the be all and end all guru guide of every single last best deal out there, stopping off onto Google's little search tool, is a good place to start to baseline the potentially best deals out there for such types of financial products. Check it out!: https://www.google.com/comparisonads/home?c=ny_fam&kw=mortgages&q=mortgages&s=1 It's similar to bankrate.com and interest.com and some others. Compare at least all three is my recommendation before getting any of the covered financial products that they cover.
Saturday, April 23, 2011
Where to Allocate Savings: 401K vs. Roth 401K vs. 529 College Savings Accounts
For those who are reading this and unfamiliar with what a 401K is vs. a Roth 401K vs. a 529 College Savings Account, descriptions are at the bottom of this blog post.
A friend of mine saw that I have the UPromise credit card and complimented me on using the credit card. It lead to a more extensive conversation about saving for college for his daughter. I asked him the question of whether he was maxing out his 401K first prior to his monthly contribution to the 529 College Savings Account. The answer was no.
I asked him why not? He replied that he needs the money to pay for his daughter's college first since that'll come before he retires. Smart logic? In theory yes, but you should be able to guess that the answer is no, otherwise why bother to write this blog commentary.
The smarter strategy for most people is to max out their 401K (preferably a Roth IRA over a traditional IRA in most people's cases) before saving for their kids college. Why? A few different reasons
A friend of mine saw that I have the UPromise credit card and complimented me on using the credit card. It lead to a more extensive conversation about saving for college for his daughter. I asked him the question of whether he was maxing out his 401K first prior to his monthly contribution to the 529 College Savings Account. The answer was no.
I asked him why not? He replied that he needs the money to pay for his daughter's college first since that'll come before he retires. Smart logic? In theory yes, but you should be able to guess that the answer is no, otherwise why bother to write this blog commentary.
The smarter strategy for most people is to max out their 401K (preferably a Roth IRA over a traditional IRA in most people's cases) before saving for their kids college. Why? A few different reasons
- Colleges will count the 529 savings toward their financial aid packages.
- Roth IRA's are taxed at current tax rates rather than future tax rates, and most people say that future tax rates and the tax brackets that you'll be in at retirement are likely higher than the rates currently being paid.
- Maybe your kid will get a scholarship for college and you won't need the 529 - not likely, but one can hope. With programs such as Income Based Repayment for student loans, it's ideal to let your child rack up debt with the government's assistance and then only pay a portion of it back.
- If your child works for the government or non profits post college, then they have a lot of repayment assistance programs out there, so it may not make sense to pay for college out of pocket if Uncle Sam will pick up the tab ultimately for you.
Thursday, April 21, 2011
Finding The Best Gas Prices
In case you haven't noticed, gas prices keep going up; seriously, if you haven't noticed, perhaps you should stop driving and go get your eyes checked. Or you are a New Yorker, and don't drive and don't care what the gas prices are. Anyway, for those who care, check out http://www.newyorkgasprices.com Of course nothing beats just finding those consistent "go to" stations with great prices, but perhaps this tool will prove useful.
Perhaps it's also worth hedging against gas prices by buying a relevant stock or ETF holding. I've personally purchased the Vanguard Energy ETF. http://www.google.com/finance?hl=en&sugexp=ldymls&xhr=t&q=vanguard+energy+etf&cp=17&qe=dmFuZ3VhcmQgZW5lcmd5IGU&qesig=sCltFq9adfD7ODBv77Jgrg&pkc=AFgZ2tk6Utts8GENjru8XMzpnMVSnbHS2KpfFmDD9MGXvK9FaWcKzuXdllDl6NFGdU-_OmvYsyo99bxx2HCQgqfTDJQozEs9eA&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=we It pays a dividend, so you're guaranteed some income out of it for the duration of ownership.
Others are classics like Exxon also pay dividends and are likely to go up in sync with gas prices, though no guarantees and invest as you see fit - definitely don't go by me! http://www.google.com/finance?q=NYSE%3AXOM
Perhaps it's also worth hedging against gas prices by buying a relevant stock or ETF holding. I've personally purchased the Vanguard Energy ETF. http://www.google.com/finance?hl=en&sugexp=ldymls&xhr=t&q=vanguard+energy+etf&cp=17&qe=dmFuZ3VhcmQgZW5lcmd5IGU&qesig=sCltFq9adfD7ODBv77Jgrg&pkc=AFgZ2tk6Utts8GENjru8XMzpnMVSnbHS2KpfFmDD9MGXvK9FaWcKzuXdllDl6NFGdU-_OmvYsyo99bxx2HCQgqfTDJQozEs9eA&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=we It pays a dividend, so you're guaranteed some income out of it for the duration of ownership.
Others are classics like Exxon also pay dividends and are likely to go up in sync with gas prices, though no guarantees and invest as you see fit - definitely don't go by me! http://www.google.com/finance?q=NYSE%3AXOM
New Google Feature to Find Best Checking, Savings and CD Rates
Check it out if you haven't already... https://www.google.com/comparisonads/ussavings?kw=best+CD+rates&q=best+cd+rates&s=1#!search&Deposit+Range_D=5000&Zipcode_S=11577&si=0&start=0 Of course be wise and still keep an eye out for deals not listed on here that may be available locally, etc.
Friday, April 15, 2011
Cell Phone Services
If you're like most people, you have a cell phone. If you don't have one, and never intend to have one, you can stop reading right now.
Ok, glad you decided to keep reading. If you're like most New Yorkers, you likely have Verizon as your cellular carrier; or you have an iPhone via AT&T and are pissed that you are locked into a contract with them because you wish you had a Verizon iPhone now. If you're in the minority, you have Sprint, TMobile or Nextel.
An increasing number of people are switching to "prepaid carriers" such as Boost Mobile, Virgin Mobile, MetroPCS, Cricket and a few other companies that are emerging into the market place. Some people have heard of them and are skeptical about changing to one of those carriers due to the confusion about what they are, whether the network is as good and whether it's worth switching.
I'm not going to actually be able to give a clear definitive answer as to whether it's worth switching to one of those carriers, for each person's individual situation is different, but one thing is for sure: with their competitve rates and service being transmitted over the big name carriers, it's worth giving some of these newer brands a serious look and consideration. Sure, you have to usually purchase the phones outright from the carriers, but in effect, the cost is more than mitigated through lower rates over time. I did the math, and found that it was definitely worth getting a phone through one of those newer carriers over the "legacy" carriers.
I have always found it interesting how people are willing to pay for phone insurance. I'm not a math genius, but if you're paying $7 /month for insurance, and have a $50+ deductable, over a two year contract, you'd pay $7*24 months = $168+$50 = $218 to replace your phone via insurance. Meanwhile the same phone likely can be had used/refurbished via ebay for less. Aside for piece of mind, something to think about before paying for insurance on a phone - it very well may not be worth having insurance on your cell phone.
Are you in school? Do you use your phone for work purposes sometimes - even to call to say you're running late in getting to work? Perhaps you've overlooked deducting the cost of using your phone from your taxes? Maybe your accountant didn't advise you to consider reviewing your usage and determine whether some of the associated cell phone costs should be tax deductable. With the ever increasing cost of cell phone services and devices, perhaps it's time to check with your accountant whether any or all of the costs you incur are tax deductable? Just another way to help keep more of your pay check.
Ok, glad you decided to keep reading. If you're like most New Yorkers, you likely have Verizon as your cellular carrier; or you have an iPhone via AT&T and are pissed that you are locked into a contract with them because you wish you had a Verizon iPhone now. If you're in the minority, you have Sprint, TMobile or Nextel.
An increasing number of people are switching to "prepaid carriers" such as Boost Mobile, Virgin Mobile, MetroPCS, Cricket and a few other companies that are emerging into the market place. Some people have heard of them and are skeptical about changing to one of those carriers due to the confusion about what they are, whether the network is as good and whether it's worth switching.
I'm not going to actually be able to give a clear definitive answer as to whether it's worth switching to one of those carriers, for each person's individual situation is different, but one thing is for sure: with their competitve rates and service being transmitted over the big name carriers, it's worth giving some of these newer brands a serious look and consideration. Sure, you have to usually purchase the phones outright from the carriers, but in effect, the cost is more than mitigated through lower rates over time. I did the math, and found that it was definitely worth getting a phone through one of those newer carriers over the "legacy" carriers.
I have always found it interesting how people are willing to pay for phone insurance. I'm not a math genius, but if you're paying $7 /month for insurance, and have a $50+ deductable, over a two year contract, you'd pay $7*24 months = $168+$50 = $218 to replace your phone via insurance. Meanwhile the same phone likely can be had used/refurbished via ebay for less. Aside for piece of mind, something to think about before paying for insurance on a phone - it very well may not be worth having insurance on your cell phone.
Are you in school? Do you use your phone for work purposes sometimes - even to call to say you're running late in getting to work? Perhaps you've overlooked deducting the cost of using your phone from your taxes? Maybe your accountant didn't advise you to consider reviewing your usage and determine whether some of the associated cell phone costs should be tax deductable. With the ever increasing cost of cell phone services and devices, perhaps it's time to check with your accountant whether any or all of the costs you incur are tax deductable? Just another way to help keep more of your pay check.
Thursday, April 14, 2011
Car Buying 101
This really isn't car buying 101, but considering how so few people seem to know how to buy a new car for the right price, I'll go ahead and call it such. Now I should disclose that I have never bought or leased a new car for myself, and quite frankly, I may never - cars are one of the fastest depreciating "assets" around - a sinkhole for money if you will. However, I have done this for other people, and figure I should at least clue the rest of the world in on how to haggle a great deal.
Let's assume that you're just the average Jane or John looking to buy a car and know what car you want and what options you want. I highly recommend first checking out the Zag Car buying service for strong bottom line pricing, as a baseline maximum price to pay. That's right, maximum price to pay - for if you're paying more than that, you're clearly overpaying. AmEx, Costco, USAA and others offer pricing from Zag to its customers as a service. Here's a link to the AmEx site with car pricing. http://amexnetwork.zag.com/main.html
If doing a trade in, find out what your car is worth http://www.kbb.com/ Don't kid yourself, you're not getting anything above the "good" condition for the trade in value, so keep that in mind if you think your car is awesome.
To figure out what to actually pay, take what the price is from Zag, subtract it from the kbb trade in value. Pretty simple, right? But wait, let's now up the ante; start calling some dealerships and ask to speak to their Internet Sales Dept, tell them what you want in terms of the car and trim and trade in, and tell them the price you want to pay - what you just calculated and subtract another $500 off that price and see if they're able to do the deal.
They'll likely tell you to come in and they'll see what they can do. Don't bother - tell them they have to make you a deal over the phone, and if it's not what you agreed to over the phone, then you'll walk. You'll see them later - and be prepared to do a deal later, if they have the best price of all offers you receive over the phone that day.
Now some may say they can't match that price - then ask them what the best they can do is - psych them into thinking that price is something some other dealer quoted you to push them to admit their best bottom line; do this for a solid dozen dealers if possible and that should give you a good idea of whether even just $500 off the caculation from before is enough, or you should try to get an even lower price.
Happy car shopping!
Let's assume that you're just the average Jane or John looking to buy a car and know what car you want and what options you want. I highly recommend first checking out the Zag Car buying service for strong bottom line pricing, as a baseline maximum price to pay. That's right, maximum price to pay - for if you're paying more than that, you're clearly overpaying. AmEx, Costco, USAA and others offer pricing from Zag to its customers as a service. Here's a link to the AmEx site with car pricing. http://amexnetwork.zag.com/main.html
If doing a trade in, find out what your car is worth http://www.kbb.com/ Don't kid yourself, you're not getting anything above the "good" condition for the trade in value, so keep that in mind if you think your car is awesome.
To figure out what to actually pay, take what the price is from Zag, subtract it from the kbb trade in value. Pretty simple, right? But wait, let's now up the ante; start calling some dealerships and ask to speak to their Internet Sales Dept, tell them what you want in terms of the car and trim and trade in, and tell them the price you want to pay - what you just calculated and subtract another $500 off that price and see if they're able to do the deal.
They'll likely tell you to come in and they'll see what they can do. Don't bother - tell them they have to make you a deal over the phone, and if it's not what you agreed to over the phone, then you'll walk. You'll see them later - and be prepared to do a deal later, if they have the best price of all offers you receive over the phone that day.
Now some may say they can't match that price - then ask them what the best they can do is - psych them into thinking that price is something some other dealer quoted you to push them to admit their best bottom line; do this for a solid dozen dealers if possible and that should give you a good idea of whether even just $500 off the caculation from before is enough, or you should try to get an even lower price.
Happy car shopping!
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Unit Pricing @ the Supermarket: the secret to the best deal
How many people have gone into a supermarket and have seen a unit price next to the price of the item they intend to buy on the shelf and have wondered what the unit price is? Raise your hand - no one's looking, unless you're using your computer in public - and they'll probably think you're stretching.
If you've ever seen two similar labels like the ones above, and are trying to figure out which is the better deal per tissue, how can you tell? It's really simple if going by a standardized measure - that'd be the unit count - the one in orange above. It allowes you to compare the price per 100 tissues. Which one is less expensive? The one for $1.32 per 100 count, right? It's less than $1.68, right? Well, not quite - read carefully - the unit price saying $1.32 is "per each," NOT, "per 100" as the one above it says.
If you adjust the unit price for the second item to "per 100", then the true unit cost per 100 would be $1.55 - still less costly per tissue than the label above it, but not by much.
Takeaway:
1) Unit pricing can be helpful for comparing the unit cost of items vis a vis one another BUT
2) Stores are sometimes tricky when they use a different unit for similar items making it difficult if not impossible to compare unit prices accurately.
3) Be careful when using unit prices to ensure all units are the same, and adjust accordingly - use the calculator on your cell phone if you want. To adjust the price to "per 100" like I did above, simply take ($1.32/85)*100 to get $1.55 per 100 count.
4) Bulk sizes may not always have a lower unit cost, so be careful not to get ripped off buying bulk sizes thinking it's less costly - Costco and BJ's may not always be less per unit cost than regular supermarkets, particularly when shopping in suburbia.
If you adjust the unit price for the second item to "per 100", then the true unit cost per 100 would be $1.55 - still less costly per tissue than the label above it, but not by much.
Takeaway:
1) Unit pricing can be helpful for comparing the unit cost of items vis a vis one another BUT
2) Stores are sometimes tricky when they use a different unit for similar items making it difficult if not impossible to compare unit prices accurately.
3) Be careful when using unit prices to ensure all units are the same, and adjust accordingly - use the calculator on your cell phone if you want. To adjust the price to "per 100" like I did above, simply take ($1.32/85)*100 to get $1.55 per 100 count.
4) Bulk sizes may not always have a lower unit cost, so be careful not to get ripped off buying bulk sizes thinking it's less costly - Costco and BJ's may not always be less per unit cost than regular supermarkets, particularly when shopping in suburbia.
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