Tips on Buying Milk

How do you decide which is the best milk to buy? What is value for money? What are the differences between 1% and 2% milk? Between cream and half-and-half? Between powdered and fresh milk?

Two articles -- "How to buy the best milk" (Cooking Light) and "A Family's Guide to Buying Milk" (Mambo Sprouts) offer you tips on how to decide which milk to buy for your family.

A Penny Saved Is A Penny Gained #02

Today's round-up of my favorite money saving tips (continued):

1. I always live within my means, buying only what I can afford.


2. I always pay off the balance on all my credit cards in full at the end of each monthly billing cycle.
   


3. I believe in saving diligently to pay for all my expenses instead of charging the expenses to my credit cards and being saddled with high interest for my poor planning.


4. To assist me in figuring out how much I need to save to manage my cash flow, I keep a strict budget and plan all my expenses.
   


5. I keep an emergency fund in case I should lose my job. At present, I have saved up enough to cover 8 months of unemployment. My goal is to save up enough money to cover 12 months of unemployment.
   

Read my other blog entries in A Penny Saved Is A Penny Gained Series.

How to Avoid Being Fleeced When Buying A Car

Since the legislation for the "Car Allowance Rebate System" (CARS), popularly known as the "cash for clunkers" rebate program was passed, car dealers are now waiting for the hordes of potential new car buyers heading their way to sign the dotted line for a new vehicle. If you are one of those potential new car buyers, below is a round-up of resources to find out whether you qualify, what your "clunker" is worth, and how to avoid being fleeced by car dealers:

• In The Market For A New Vehicle? Here Are The Details Of The New CARS Credit Program. The Consumerist has compiled a list of helpful information that you need to know to determine whether it is worth your while to trade in your old car for a new car, and how to protect yourself from scammers.


• "Beware 'Cash for Clunkers' scams" A timely reminder from CNN about the usual scammers out to make you part with your hard earn money.
  


• www.cars.gov. Get the facts from the official government site.
  


• "Edmunds.com Provides List of Vehicles Eligible for "Cash for Clunkers" Rebate". Edmunds.com has compiled a helpful list of vehicles that are eligible for the "cash for clunkers" rebate. Check here to see whether your old car qualifies.
  


• Car Dealers' Tricks To Watch For. This article by Car and Driver is a must-read, to prep for the hardball tactics that many dealerships prey on unsuspecting buyers.
  

My Frugal Living Tip #6: Know when you can safely ignore "dry clean only" labels to save money

You can often ignore "dry clean only" labels and save money on high dry clean bills. Indeed, it's more like killing two birds with one stone, i.e., saving money and environment by reducing the discharge of highly toxic dry clean solvents on the environment.

Do you know when you can safely ignore "dry clean only" labels and when you ought to follow those labels? These two posts below from the folks at EcoSalon give you helpful advice and tips:

• The Tyranny of "Dry Clean Only"
  


• Dry Clean Only? An Eco Expert Tells Us When It’s Safe to Ignore Labels

Read the other entries in my Frugal Living Tips Series.

Online Banking Rate Comparison

I must admit that I haven't done much to update my early blog post on online savings accounts. If you want to know how the various online banking institutions compare among themselves, Get Rich Slowly has done a wonderful job compiling the various rate charts for easy comparison: Online Banking: 13 Choices for Higher Interest Rates and Increased Security.

Looking at the chart, it is clear that Ally Bank (formerly known as GMAC Bank) offers some of the best rates in the industry. My Money Blog has reviewed Ally Bank here and here. I am so tempted to move some of my funds, which is sitting in an HSBC Online Savings account with a paltry 1.55% annual interest rate to them. Any thoughts?

Link: Online Banking: 13 Choices for Higher Interest Rates and Increased Security (via Get Rich Slowly)

Saving Money on Your Summer Air Travel

Summer has begun! Frugality is the new buzzword these days and everyone is looking to save money. Holiday travel is no difference. Over the years of traveling, I have discovered ways of saving money on air travel by experience. Here they are, in no particular order:

• If time is on my side, which is the case with leisure travel, I always use www.yapta.com to help me track air fares. www.yapta.com tracks the ups and downs of the flights I'm interested in. When the price drops to my target level, I make a beeline to the airline's website to book my flights. In addition, www.yapta.com also has fare/rate deals that might work for you.
  


• If time is not on my side, i.e., I need to travel on specific dates and times at short notice for busines trips, I start my flight search on www.kayak.com and www.mobissimo.com to ascertain what the cheapest rates are. Being obsessive compulsive, I double check by searching on www.orbitz.com and www.travelocity.com even though these two sites are aggregated in www.kayak.com and www.mobissimo.com. I have discovered that no two websites give me exactly the same results, and hence I hedge my bets by searching everything.
  


• Once I find the fares I want (within my budget/target range), I avoid booking fees by booking directly using the airline's website. I find that many airline websites' sometimes run special fare sales from time to time, or more frequently, award bonus airmiles for booking with them.


• I also sign up for the airlines' e-mail lists of last minute deeply discounted tickets. These tickets are usually only offered the beginning of the week for weekend travel, so you have to be willing to travel on very short notice. Also, these tickets have restrictions on departure and return flights, so you would have to be willing to plan your travel around these restrictions.


• As a frugal traveler, I always travel deeply discounted coach. But this does not mean that I consent to be stuck in the dreaded middle seat. Before I book my flights, I always consulted my trusted guide to airplane seating, www.seatguru.com, which allows me to identify the decent and comfortable coach seats on my flights.
  


• It seems to me that the cheapest flights tend to be on Tuesdays and Wednesdays (unless they are holidays), as well as Saturdays. I try to book my travel on these days, whenever possible. I also try to avoid Mondays and Fridays, which tend to be more expensive.


• If you can spare some time, hang around in www.flyertalk.com, which bills itself as "an interactive community that provides up-to-date information on travel-related loyalty rewards program." I have learned so much about finding deals listening in to the conversations of hardcore road warriors who know the ins and outs of air travel better than I do.

See also my previous blog postings:

• Frugal Traveler's Review of Travel Websites
  
• How to Get The Best Seat on the Plane
• Frugal Traveling Strategies
• Buy Now or Later? Planning for Summer Travel

Frugal Traveler's Review of Travel Websites

The New York Times' Frugal Traveler's most recent blog posting: Travel Web Sites: A Click-On Showdown is a much read if you are planning your summer travel. Here you will find the lowdown on various travel websites and which ones land the best travel bargains.

From my own experience, I can safely say that no one website is the cheapest. Unfortunately, you have to search all the websites to find the best deals.

For more information, see my previous blog postings:

• How to Get The Best Seat on the Plane
• Frugal Traveling Strategies

Saving During Tough Times

This week, ABC World News is running a series entitled, The New Normal, where ordinary Americans share their struggles, hopes and dreams about coping with the severe economic downturn. Highlights of this series include:

• Are you a good saver? Five things to ask
  

• Suze Orman: Tough Talk, Pink Lemonade
  

• No More Job Security?
  

• Embrace Your Inner Cheapskate

• No More Maternity Leave?

• Fantasy Mortgages

Top Ten How-to Cooking Videos

In this deepening recession, many folks are rediscovering the "joys" of cooking, except that having eaten out for ages, cooking seems to be a lost art for many. Are you one of those looking to save money by eating home cooked meals, but find yourself somewhat limited by your cooking skills? All is not lost. The folks at Lifehacker have compiled this list of Top Ten How-to Cooking Videos to help you out. Enjoy!

A Penny Saved Is A Penny Gained #01

Today's roundup of my favorite money saving tips:

1. I borrow books, magazines and DVDs for free from my local public library instead of buying new, subscribing or renting.


2. I reuse plastic grocery bags as liners in my trash bins.


3. I buy machine-washable clothes to save on dry cleaning.


4. I mixed vinegar, water and baking soda as homemade natural cleaner instead of buying commercial products.


5. I brownbag my own lunch to work.


6. I eat my breakfast at home instead of making impulse breakfast purchases on my way to work.


7. Whenever possible, I buy gently used stuff at consignment or thrift stores.


8. Whenever possible, I double my savings at supermarkets by combining coupons with sales.


9. I watch over-the-air HDTV broadcast and catch up on movies and TV shows for free online using Hulu and Boxee instead of paying for cable.


10. I take advantage of free or discounted promotions for various services and cancel before the various promotions end.

Best & Worst Fast Food

Are you one of those who are turning to fast food as a frugal and affordable way to fill your stomach? Are you someone who likes the pricing of fast food but wonders whether it is possible to to have your cake and eat it, i.e., saving money by eating fast food without compromising one's health. Lifehacker's two recent articles are useful to help you decide on what kind of fast food you want to eat:

• Best and Worst Fast Food: McDonald's Edition


• Best and Worst Fast Food: Wendy's Edition
  

How to Save Money with DTV Transition

Today, June 12th is the day that over-the-air TV stations are going fully digital (digital TV or DTV). If you ever thought about dumping your cable provider, now is a good time to do so. Nothing beat the fact that over-the-air digital TV, which is broadcast at 1050i, is free. All you need is a HD TV (either LCD or Plasma) and an antenna.

If you are ready to take the plunge, PCMag.com columnist Sascha Segan has written an excellent column, How I Slash My Bills with Tech (Part 2), explaining how he dumped cable for broadcast digital TV and saved big bucks in the process. The two items he recommends in the article:

• Winegard SS-3000 Amplified Indoor UHF/VHF Antenna


• TiVo TCD652160 HD Digital Video Recorder
  

are excellent products. The Winegard SS-3000 Amplified Indoor UHF/VHF Antenna is the Rolls Royce of TV antennas. I agree with Sascha Segan that this is simply the best indoor antenna out there and worth every penny of added cost, compared to the cheaper rabbit ears type one can pick up at Radio Shack.

Here's my set-up:
I have a cheap Viewsonic 32" HD LCD TV that I bought on sale from Office Depot. Because I live within city limits in an area with good reception, I settled for the cheap RCA powered/amplified rabbit-ear antenna.

I have had this set up for more than a year now (since last summer), and I have had excellent HD broadcast digital TV reception for free, which I supplement with free movies and TV episodes via www.hulu.com, www.tv.com, and Boxee.

I have not had cable since 2003, the date when I decided to get all my TV, movies and episodes via over-the-air broadcast and online. You can make the jump too, and save money in the process.

My Frugal Living Tip #5: Consignment & Thrift Stores Offer Excellent Value for Money

It is possible to be frugal and fashionable at the same time. Instead of buying new, consider buying gently used stuff at consignment and thrift stores for bargains.

Indeed, I visit my local Goodwill, Salvation Army and St. Vincent de Paul stores to browse for good finds on weekends. If you visit these stores in better neighborhoods, they usually have higher quality donations that look almost like new. Why pay full price when you can get items that are like new at a fraction of the price?

A recent New York Times article, Look Who's Shopping Goodwill makes the same point too.

Bottom line: bargain hunting in consignment and thrift stores is fun. You never know what you'll find.

Read the other entries in my Frugal Living Tips Series.

Saving money by finding new uses for coffee grounds

Natural Home Magazine has a fascinating article on creative uses for old coffee grounds.

The tips in this article is not only environmentally-friendly, but they also help you save money. Now you know that coffee grounds can be used as fertilizer, odor repellent, natural flea rinse, and natural exfoliate.

Article Link: Multipurpose Coffee Grounds

New Pinecone Research Sign-up Link

Pinecone Research is looking for new members. For the uninitiated, Pinecone Research offers $3.00 per completed online survey. My experience with Pinecone Research has been great, and I have no hesitation recommending them. Membership is by referral only.

If you are looking to join Pinecone Research and have been chasing that elusive referral sign-up link, you're in luck. Here is the sign-up link (won't last long).

See my earlier blog post about PineCone Research and other paid survey sites.

Affordable Steaks for Summer Grilling

Summer is just round the corner and the aroma of sizzling steak is wafting gently over many backyards. In case you're wondering whether it's possible to grill steaks without breaking the bank, the Washington Post is helpfully offering you tips on how to search for affordable cuts of steaks, as well as how to grill those steaks:

• Affordable Steaks That Make The Cut (also available in PDF)


• Nine Affordable Cuts of Steak For Summer Grilling


• Tips for Grilling Steaks

Good news for summer travelers: online travel agencies end fees

As I was glancing through my morning news, this article caught my eye: U.S. online travel agencies end airline booking fees. This is certainly good news for summer travelers looking to save on fees.

Before you book your airline ticket for that summer getaway, here are my previous blog postings that might interest you:

• How to get the best seat on the plane


• Frugal traveling strategies