March 31, 2009
Nickel at Five Cent Nickel has recently put together a simple article about the basics of buying life insurance: How to Save Money on Life Insurance. If you are looking to supplement your current life insurance, or you don't have any, check it out!
Photo by: kevindooley
March 31, 2009
4/2/2009 This Just In: The brand new Carnival of Pecuniary Delights, hosted by Penelope at Pecuniarities, has an all time Paycheck Chronicles favorite: Seven Reasons Why Clutter is Costing Me Money.
Elsewhere on the internet this week, The Paycheck Chronicles has been noticed in the following places:
The Carnival of Debt Reduction, hosted by Penelope at Pecuniarities, features A Dollar Saved Is Two Dollars Earned.
The Carnival of Personal Finance, hosted by Wide Open Wallet, showcases Powers of Attorney.
The Carnival of Everything Money, hosted by The Penny Daily, includes Transferring Your GI Bill.
The Festival of Frugality, hosted by I've Paid for This Twice Already, added Laundry on the Cheap.
The Money Hacks Carnival, hosted by Ask Mr Credit Card's Blog, presents How to Opt-Out.
Some of the most excellent reads around the internet this week include
At Man vs. Debt, Baker reports the result of My Debt-Recon and Current Battle Plans. His humorous style makes hearing about his debt repayment plans even more interesting. I also suggest his current post, The Real Price of Spending While In Debt: $6.25 Footlongs... If I were carrying around high interest consumer debt, I would print out this article and tape it to my wallet. Heck, I might just do that anyway...
The Sun's Financial Diary offers an excellent explanation of the differences between PIN vs. Signature Based Debit Transactions. This is a subject I don't hear much about, but I think it is important that consumers understand the differences between the two methods of paying with the same card.
Fire Finance presents an Early Retirement Case Study: Sandy Aldridge and Dale Lugenbehl. I often hear military members say that they plan to have an early retirement when they get out of the military. It certainly can be done, but it isn't easy. While they are not military, Aldridge and Lugenbehl's retirement looks pretty similar to what an early retirement on a military pension might look like.
Hope you're having a great week!
March 30, 2009
Chances are, there is one person in your family who handles most of the day-to-day money issues. And chances are, if you are reading this, that you are the money person. There are lots of reasons why one person handles the money in most families: it is easier that way, one person may be more interested or have more of a natural aptitude for it, one spouse may be deployed - the list could go on for quite a while.
That's the reason I love this concept from Fiscal Fizzle: Using a Monthly Report to Discuss Money With Your Spouse. In this article, Wojciech talks about the benefits and the stuff that he recommends be included. I think this is a great idea. Sometimes when you are the money person, it can feel like the other spouse doesn't know what is going on or isn't on board with your current situation. A monthly report creates a record of your financial progress and presents the opportunity to talk about goals, dreams and changes that need to be made.
Writing up a monthly report is one of my goals for this week. Anyone care to join me?
March 29, 2009
Most of us have credit cards, and many of us still have credit card debt. That isn't the end of the world, until you reach the point where it seems like the credit card company has more control over you than you have over your credit card (and your debt.) One of the keys to making sure that credit cards don't take over your life is to make good choices along the way.
If you are slipping into a situation where your credit cards and the issuing company are running your financial life, check out this post at Gather Little By Little: Credit Card Companies - How to Really Stick It To Them. While I'm not sure that I agree with the title, I do like the premise of the article, which is that you need to make sure that you are doing everything you can to keep your costs down and not give the credit card companies any more of your money than necessary.
I recently took advantage of an excellent balance transfer offer: no transfer fees and ZERO percent interest for 12 months. It took a little bit of effort to get the balances neatly transferred but I'm saving nearly $100 a month in interest. That extra money will get the bill paid off that much faster! These offers are getting hard to find but if one comes your way, be sure to take advantage of it. (Mine was a selective offer from an existing account, or I would share it with you.)
I also make my payments well before the due date to ensure that I don't have any late payment fees. One time, a few years ago, I forgot to pay my husband's card on time and his interest rate went up immediately! I don't intend to make that mistake again. I pay online because I find it easier for me, but you may prefer to pay at the bank if that helps you feel in control of the situation.
If you are working on paying off credit card debt, it is essential that you do everything you can to keep your fees and interest low. Low interest balance transfers and on-time payments will help keep your payments working toward paying off the balance instead of filling the credit card company's bank account.
photo by: TheTruthAbout...
March 26, 2009
Deployment brings it's own set of financial issues. There are benefits to deployment: special allowances, possible tax free status, and fewer bills at home. However, it is also a slightly dangerous time because it is so much easier to treat yourself (this is true for the deploying military member but also for a spouse at home.) Snazzy gear, port calls, R&R, babysitting, and other expenses can really add up.
Way back in December, Jeff Rose of Good Financial Cents wrote this excellent article as a guest post at the Military Finance Network. In Managing Money While Deployed, Jeff writes about his family's experience with financial issues during a deployment. He talks about the good and bad side of deployment finances and lists the reasons why he feels that his deployment was a financial success. I've been working on a similar post for quite some time, but so far Jeff's is better than anything that I've written.
If you are deployed or preparing to deploy, make plans to maximize the financial value of your time away from home. A little planning will pay off with real, large, long-term benefits.
March 25, 2009
I no longer receive stacks of credit card offers each week because I've
opted out of pre-approved offers. I'm
down to three companies that I'm willing to work with in the world of
credit: NFCU, USAA, and Pentagon Federal Credit Union. (I'm sure that
there are other reputable banks and credit unions, but these three meet
all my needs right now.)
If you are still receiving unwanted solicitations from companies, opting-out is easy! Just call 1-888-5-OPTOUT (1-888-567-8688) and work through the telephone system to prevent the credit bureaus from providing your information to companies without your specific permission.
In addition to making your mailbox less full, this is a small step towards keeping your identity secure. One way that identity thiefs can get your information is through the mail in your mailbox, or they can apply for cards in your name.
Take a few minutes today to opt-out of pre-approved credit offers.
Photo by: Pink Sherbert Photography
March 24, 2009
Well, it is music to my ears anytime The Paycheck Chronicles gets noticed elsewhere on the internet, and it has been a banner week. So far, our articles have been included in four blog carnivals.
The Carnival of Everything Money, hosted by The Penny Daily, includes Store Brand Groceries.
The Carnival of Personal Finance, hosted by Four Pillars, selected my article on the economic stimulus package: What's In It For Me?
The Festival of Frugality, hosted by MoneyNing, chose Understanding Your Social Security Statement.
The Carnival of Debt Reduction, hosted by M is for Money, picked No More ATM Fees.
Each of these carnivals has numerous excellent, informative articles. It would take a week to read all of them! Here are my favorites so far:
Single Guy Money has a friend who says: "I Don't Make Enough to Save Money." That might sort of seem like a reasonable statement, until you read the whole story.
Save Few Bucks explains 10 Tips to Reduce Car Expenses. For many of us, our car expenses are the largest part of our budget. Maybe one (or more) of these tips will help!
True Adventures in Money Hacking explains how the Save Big-Shopping Secret: how to combine store promotions with manufacturer's coupons and sale prices to slash your grocery bills.
Not listed in any of these blog carnivals is my favorite article this week: 10 Reasons Why Budgets Fail by Fiscal Fizzle (that name just cracks me up!). This article is so accurate, and I've fallen into several of these categories at different points in my life. Right now, my excuse is: my budget takes too much time.
Hope you enjoy!
March 23, 2009
A dollar saved is two dollars earned. That's one of the concepts taught in David Chilton's The Wealthy Barber, which I recommended in Top Ten Personal Finance Books. I've been rereading it again lately and that piece jumped out at me. First, because it is so powerful, and second, because I'm not sure that the math works out for my family. I'm going to hit each point separately:
It's powerful: The concept is pretty amazing. Saving $15 dollars at the grocery store by checking sales and making smart choices is work $30 worth of income. Make a few adjustments to your car insurance, save $40 every six months, and it's worth $80 worth of work. PIck the less expensive apartment ($190 a month) and it is worth a second job that pays $380 each month. Suddenly, skipping that vending machine soda sounds pretty smart. Most of Chilton's book deals with the big picture stuff: paying yourself first, being appropriately insured, etc. But this little tidbit can help make a small paycheck stretch a little further.
This next section deals with what he means, and whether it is accurate. The position that Chilton is making is that by the time you take out deductions and expenses, half of each dollar that you earn is gone before it hits your checkbook. I think that is a little extreme. Here's the math: Say you make $2000 per month in pay. Social Security taxes (FICA and Medicare) will take 7.65%, and you might be in the 25% tax bracket. You're already down to $1347! If you pay state taxes, take out another chunk. Then add in any expenses that come with working: picking up lunch instead of eating at home, transportation, having special (or just decent) clothes, maybe child care. It doesn't take long before you're down to the half mark. In fact, for some people, it might be a lot less than half.
On the other hand, if you don't need child care or snazzy clothes, you bring your lunch to work, and you are in a low tax bracket (as many military members are,) the number might be a lot higher. You might be bringing home 90 cents for every dollar you earn.
Either way, it is an interesting idea and one that might help you to change your spending. What if everything suddenly cost twice what it does now? What would you cut out and what would you keep? Obviously, you would still need a place to live and food to eat. But could you live in a smaller house, or make less expensive food choices? Would that new video game be so fun if it were twice as expensive? Thinking this way would certainly help me to prioritize my spending.
Chilton's point was that you should keep any eye on expenses to maximize the use of your money. He's certainly right about that!
photo by: wwarby
March 22, 2009
April 15th is coming up quickly, and many of us haven't finished our taxes yet. There are several provisions of the tax law that allow for extensions of time to file for military members.
First, members of the military serving outside the United States (and Puerto Rico) but are not in a combat zone have until June 15th to file your income tax return without penalty. If you owe taxes, however, you will be charged interest from the April 15th due date. You do not need to notify the IRS that you plan to use this benefit, but if you expect that you will owe taxes, you may want to file Form 4868 to pay the estimated amount due and keep the amount of interest charged down. You can also use Form 4868 to request a further extension until October 15th. When you file your returns, make sure to include a statement explaining that you are serving outside the US so that you aren't accidentally penalized for filing after the regular April 15th deadline.
Second, if you are serving in an area that authorizes you hazardous duty/imminent danger pay (officially called a combat zone by the IRS,) your are granted an extension that equals that time that you remain in the combat zone, plus 180 days, plus the time before filing that still existed before you entered the combat zone. This last part is a little tricky, but basically if you entered the combat zone on April 10th, you would get that 5 days included in your extension. (from April 10th to the regular April 15th due date.) The best part about this rule is that you will not be charged any interest or penalities. It is lovely that you can just not worry about your tax return while you are busy serving. The exemption from penalties and interest applies to both spouses as long as you are filing a joint return. There are also provisions for military members who are hospitalized due to injuries received in a combat zone.
All this information, plus more, is included in IRS Publication 3: Armed Forces Tax Guide.
Keep in mind, every state has its own rules and they may or may not be the same as the federal rules. Check with your individual state tax office to make sure you meet their deadlines.
photo by: Paul Keleher
March 21, 2009
This is a little odd for The Paycheck Chronicles, but I'm feeling like playing along. Penelope at Pecuniarities tagged me in a meme. What does meme mean? According to dictionary.com, a meme is "A unit of cultural information, such as a cultural practice or idea, that is transmitted verbally or by repeated action from one mind to another." In blogging, it is a set of questions or a thought that is answered by individual authors on their site. You can learn interesting things about other people by participating. Thus this little experiment to see your reaction to this meme.
7 Things You Didn’t Know About Me” Meme Rules
Link to your original tagger(s) and list these rules in your post. Share seven facts about yourself in the post.
Tag seven people at the end of your post by leaving their names and the links to their blogs.
Let them know they’ve been tagged.
Oh, gosh, that means I have to find 7 people to tag. I hope I can do that!
Here goes:
OK, who to tag? In no particular order, friends from various venues (mostly they are my internet friends, or "imaginary" friends):
Please let me know what you think of this little experiment? Did you enjoy learning more about me, or was this just a waste of space on The Paycheck Chronicles. Give me the good, the bad, and the ugly. I want to hear!
March 20, 2009
If you overpaid taxes last year, you're getting a refund sometime this spring. That chunk of cash can quickly disappear out of your bank account if you don't have a plan for using it wisely. So, what should you do with your tax refund? Here are the five smartest moves, in order:
photo by: AComment
Build an emergency fund. What is an emergency fund? It is a small (or large) chunk of cash that you can get to within a few days. Savings accounts, CDs and money market accounts are all good places to keep your emergency funds. Why do you need an emergency fund? Because you never know what life is going to throw at you. Emergency funds can make things like car repairs, tickets home to see a sick relative, or exploding hot water heaters seem like small problems instead of huge catastrophes. How much of an emergency fund do you need? Well, that depends on you and your life. A single soldier living the barracks is going to need a lot less than a married airman with four kids and a 40 year old house. Try to imagine the worst possible month, financially, then make that your goal for an emergency fund. For me, that would involve a leak in my house, repairs to a car, a dead computer, and dental work that wasn't completely covered by insurance. That's a lot of money. For other people, it might be as simple as money for car repairs or plane tickets. How can I ever save that much money? Start small. Your tax refund can be a great beginning to a healthy emergency fund. Consider setting up an automatic transfer from your checking account to a savings account each month. I find it works better if it is a savings account that I can't easily access, but that is my own personal preference.
With some preplanning, your tax refund can be providing benefits for years into the future. Take a few minutes before your tax refund arrives to plan the smartest choices for your life.
March 19, 2009
There are tons of tips for saving money on laundry (even without counting making your own detergent, which seems like a lot of work to me.) Some are great for homeowners or renters with their own machines, and other save money for people going to the laundromat or doing their wash in the barracks. Check it out:
Laundromat or Barracks, plus everyone else:
Don't overwash. It takes up time and it wears out your clothes. Hang up your clothes when you take them off and let them air out. If it isn't dirty, and it isn't underwear or socks, wear it again.
Washing at home:
Use cold water for most things. Water heating costs are one of the top three utility expenses in most houses.
Don't let laundry be an expensive job! With a little planning and creativity, you can have clean clothes, spare time and a little extra cash as well.
March 18, 2009
There are all sorts of arguments in favor of credit cards and against credit cards. No one can tell you exactly what the right choice is for your particular situation. However, if you decide to be a credit card user, make sure that you are a smart credit card user.
Fortunately, Ramit Sethi of I Will Teach You To Be Rich is offering free online access to the first chapter of his new book, (also titled I Will Teach You To Be Rich.) The first chapter is called Optimize Your Credit Cards. I love that Sethi stresses personal responsibility but gives you the information that you need to be responsible.
The book, which will be released next Monday (March 23, 2009) is a 6 week personal finance program for 20-35 year olds. It focuses on banking, saving, budgeting and investing; what Sethi calls "the four pillars of personal finance. Obviously, he doesn't address the unique situations of military members, but he provides an excellent education in general personal finance - something that will be useful now and still after you leave the service.
March 17, 2009
Congratulations to Sean Cruz, winner of the Jean Chatzky book. I used Random.org to pick a number - it picked #6 - and Sean was the sixth comment during the contest period. Sean, please contact me at katekashman@military.com and I'll get it out to you!
Thanks to everyone who commented during the contest. I appreciate your participation.
March 17, 2009
Wowwie Pzowie - I've just learned that Microsoft is offering their Office Standard 2007 Military Appreciation Edition for the discounted price of $49.99. I've looked through the offer and it seems to be the regular Office Standard 2007, which includes Word, Excel, Outlook and Powerpoint. The regular price is $399.95, though it can regularly be found at a discounted price of around $320.00 at various retailers online and in-store.
Keep in mind, there are word processing and spreadsheet programs available for free, including both web-based and downloadable versions. If you don't need to have the Microsoft products, and you're comfortable with more alternative type software, check out this list by Paul Michael. I've read good reviews about the free, downloadable OpenOffice program. However, if you click on that link, you'll see that it's got more thumbs down than thumbs up.
If you think that you are more comfortable with a Microsoft product, or you need to have things in certain formats for work or school, this might be just the deal for you. Click here to go to Microsoft and see the offer.
I always appreciate military discounts. Even though I know that Microsoft is just trying to drum up more business, I still say "Thank you!"
Photo by: psd
March 16, 2009
One of the many nifty things about military service is that you often have access to seminars and classes on a variety of topics, some relating to your job and some relating to life. Your command, your service's family assistance center, and your JAG office might offer financial education training on base.
If you aren't able to access any of these resources, you might want to check out Jeremy's list of 20 Free Online Finance Courses. The classes listed at the Generation X Finance website include serious, college level economics and finance classes as well as more casual personal finance offerings. I can just imagine it now, a group of you putting down the Wii and checking out MIT's Principles of Microeconomics. Let me know what you learn!
March 16, 2009
You know there are weeks and days devoted to nearly every imaginable thing or cause? Well, the Environmental Protection Agency has designated this week (March 16-20, 2009) as "Fix a Leak Week." According to the website, the average American home has dripping faucets and leaking toilets that waste 11,000 gallons of water each year. That's a lot of water! By fixing small leaks and water runs, you will help the environment and save money as well.
In my area, water costs $4.08 for every 1,000 gallons, plus various taxes and surcharges. That would be almost $50 per year, plus the general wastefulness of it. Plus, if 11,000 is the average, I'm sure that some homes are wasting way more water than that.
Take a few minutes this week to check your plumbing and make any repairs. It's worth the time!
Photo by: hnnhlh14
March 15, 2009
Every year, about three months before your birthday, you should be receiving from the Social Security Administration (SSA) a document called "Your Social Security Statement." It is full of valuable information and also has a place that you should check to make sure that your income has been reported properly. But what do all those numbers mean? Click on through and you will see...
On the front cover, there is your name and address, the date that your document was produced, and some information about the social security system, it's current status, and what the future may hold. The back cover contains more in-depth information about the benefits described on the inside pages.
The personal and important stuff is on the inside two pages. When you open it up, the left side has your estimated benefit and the right side has your earnings record.
Your estimated benefits are broken down into four categories: retirement, disability, survivors, and medicare. (The statement also includes a "family" category, but all it does is say whether your family could be eligible for benefits if you retire, become disabled, or die.) All of these benefits are based on "credits." Earn one credit for each $1,090 of wages or self-employment income earned in 2009, up to four credits for the year. (The dollar amounts goes up a little bit every year as the average earnings levels rise. It was $1,050 for 2008.)
Retirement: Most people need 40 credits (about 10 years), earned over their working lifetime, to receive retirement benefits. In the retirement section of the estimated benefits, it will say whether you have earned enough credits to qualify for benefits. If you haven't yet earned 40 credits, the SSA is unable to estimate your benefits yet. Your estimated benefits are based upon average earnings up to this time, and assume that will continue to earn roughly the same amount each year until you reach retirement age. These estimates will change throughout your life as your earnings go up or down (hopefully up!). In addition, the laws that govern the benefits may change before you begin receiving these benefits.
Your benefits estimate shows three different amounts: retiring at age 62, full retirement (age 67 for most of us), and delayed retirement. For these purposes, retirement doesn't necessarily mean when you stop working, but rather it means when you start drawing social security benefits. There is no requirement to start drawing social security as soon as you stop working. As you can see from the figures, there is a large incentive to put off drawing social security as long as possible.
Disability: Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) pays benefits to the worker and certain family members if the worker becomes disabled. Disability benefits are available for people who have enough credits from earnings. (The exact amount varies depending on your age.) You must suffer from a physical or mental impairment that is expected to prevent you from working for a year or more, or result in death. For purposes of disability payments, the definition of disability is very strict: your illness or injury must severely limit your ability to perform basic actions such as sitting, walking, or remembering. Payments under SSDI begin in the sixth full month after you have become disabled.
If you are eligible for SSDI, certain family members may also be eligible for a benefit. These members include a spouse who is aged 62 or older or is caring for a child under the age of 16, an unmarried child who is under the age of 18 (19 if still enrolled in high school,) or an unmarried child who is disabled and became disabled before turning 22 years old. The Disability section of the statement shows how much your monthly payment would be if you become disabled. As you can see, it is probably no where near what you are making right now.
Survivors: This section of the statement talks about benefits that could be available to your family members if you die. Survivor benefits also require enough credits for eligibility. Payments may be made to a surviving spouse, at retirement age, or a disabled surviving spouse as early as age 50. Unmarried children are eligible for benefits until age 18 (19 if still in high school) and a surviving parent who is caring for a child under the age of 16 will be eligible for benefits as well. The estimation of benefits will state individual amounts for certain circumstances, and then state a "total family benefits cannot be more than" amount. If you have two or more children, this is the important amount for you to note and use in your life insurance planning calculations.
Medicare: This section will state if you have earned enough credits to qualify for Medicare at age 65.
Your Social Security Statement is interesting and full of good information. Don't get discouraged if you haven't earned enough credits to be eligible for benefits, or if your benefit amount seems low. Estimates assume that you will continue to earn at your current rate for the rest of your working career. For most of us, particular when we're young, it is more likely that our income will continue to increase, thus increasing the benefits.
There has been a lot of talk about the solvency of the Social Security system and some people think that it won't exist by the time most of us reach retirement age. While that is certainly possible, I personally think it more likely that benefits will decrease and the age to receive benefits will continue to go up, but some sort of Social Security will still exist. Regardless of what does happen, knowing what the current situation is is better than not knowing anything at all. So next time that envelope arrives from the Social Security Administration, take out your statement, make sure all the information is correct, and see what benefits may be there for you.
March 14, 2009
Daunted by the idea of financial planning? Regardless of your age, experience, or income, it can be easy to be scared by the idea of financial planning. It sounds so hard!
That's why I like this excellent article by B. Simple at Simplified Financial Lifestyle, where B compares financial planning to planning for a trip. B breaks it down to 4 steps: figuring out where you want to go (the goal), figuring out how you're going to get there (the plan), planning how much money you'll need (the numbers), and asking for help when you need it (the professionals.) I'm amazed at how easy B makes the process!
Check out the full article here:
http://simplifiedfinanciallifestyle.com/2009/01/financial-planning-is-as-easy-as-vacation-planning/
March 13, 2009
Oprah is giving away a free download of Jean Chatzky's book The Difference. The offer is only good until 9:59 AM on Saturday, March 14, 2009. You will have to register with the Oprah website to access this offer. I was able to download in about half a minute and it wasn't complicated.
Jean Chatzky is an award-winning journalist and author. She has published several books on personal finance.
In addition, I'm offering the Paycheck Chronicles' first ever contest: I will give a copy of Chatzky's Make Money, Not Excuses to a randomly selected Paycheck Chronicles commenter. Anyone who comments, on any Paycheck Chronicles post, between now and 11:59 pm (EST) Monday, March 16th will be eligible to win. So start read and commenting!
Good luck!
March 13, 2009
"Do not be fooled into believing that because a man is rich he is necessarily smart. There is ample proof to the contrary."
March 13, 2009
With all this talk of economic stimulus, and so much confusion about the huge and complicated bill, many people are wondering: will there be a check again this year? It's a reasonable question, but the answer is no. There are no checks this year. There are, however, plenty of scam artists who will try to take advantage of the confusion.
The Federal Trade Commission has recently issued a bulletin describing some of the frauds that have popped up so far. There seem to be two basic forms: asking for a fee to process your payment, or asking for personal information to access your accounts. The conclusion of the bulletin says that there is no "payment" this year, don't share information with people who contact you, and don't pay any fees for benefits. The same rules apply for offers that might refer to your military service. If you have any questions that can't be resolved by a little research, check with your legal office.
Good advice at tax time all throughout the year.
March 12, 2009
I have had the most interesting week. With my husband deployed, I can't easily ask him to call the financial institutions if I have a question about something in one of his accounts. We do have several accounts that aren't joint, including retirement accounts and credit card accounts. It is a conscious choice to keep separate credit card accounts, but sometimes it can be a pain.
Since I'm the Chief Financial Officer at our house, any questions or issues come through me first. If it deals with my husband's accounts, I usually ask him to "call this number and ask/tell them this." In confusing situations, he'll just ask them to please talk to me, and usually we can get things straightened out pretty easily. Except when he's deployed, then I've got to whip out the Powers of Attorney every time I need to contact a financial institution about one of his accounts.
This week has been full of financial transactions: gathering tax records, moving money, and changing stuff to best suit our family's situation while he is gone. Right now I'm feeling a little frustrated because the two banks with which we do most of our business have such widely differing policies on handling Powers of Attorney. In fact, neither of them is awful, but they are so very different and I hadn't planned ahead to accomodate their individual rules.
Navy Federal Credit Union wants me to fax the Power of Attorney before every time I call about an account in my husband's name. I don't actually have a fax machine set up in my house so it is a half hour process to plug it in, put a couple of phone lines together, stretch them across the house to a phone jack, and get the papers faxed. Inconvenient, but fine.
On Monday, I called USAA to ask some non-account specific questions about their credit cards. They didn't really understand or want to help me in that way and said that I should fax in my POA so that they could talk to me about the specific account. I wasn't at home and said that I would call back to get the phone number. I just called, got the phone number, and asked if they would call me or if I should call them. I was informed that it could take up to 14 business days to process the POA. What? That's nearly 3 weeks! The representative did say that once I had the POA attached to the account, I wouldn't have to send it in again - it would remain on file. Had I known that initially, I would have sent them the POA two months ago. I just assumed (yes, I know about assuming) that they would be able to process it a little quicker than 3 weeks.
I think the lesson here it is to ask before you need to know. While I've only dealt with these two situations (recently), I do know others who have run into similar problems. Like Andi from SpouseBUZZ, whose lender required a specific power of attorney for her transaction. As Andi says, the Fedex camel doesn't always come by on a schedule! If you anticipate any need to use your Powers of Attorney, start asking questions early, and ask them often. Maybe you can avoid some of the surprises that I've had this week.
3/16 Update: I faxed my POA to USAA on Friday, March 13th. I called after faxing the POA, concerned that perhaps two of the pages had stuck together and wondering how I would know if that had happened. The representative on Friday informed me that I should have access to the account in 24-48 hours, and to call back on Monday.
I called today, Monday, March 16th. The first representative told me that the POA had been received, it was under review, and I should call back on Thursday. Since this made no sense to me (and she didn't really sound like she knew what she was talking about,) I immediately called back to see if I would get a different answer from a different representative. The second representative today (fourth total) told me that 14 days was correct, and that I could call back in a week to see if maybe they had gotten it processed more quickly.
So here we are, a week since I first started, and I'm still being told two more weeks. I appreciate the comment, usaarep, but perhaps you could explain it to the rest of the company?
photo by: Leonid Mamchenkov
March 11, 2009
Sometimes it is inevitable - you need to pick up some cash from an ATM machine and there isn't any way to do it without paying a fee. Once in a while is understandable, every week isn't. There are some easy ways to eliminate ATM fees from your life.
If you are paying ATM fees more than once or twice a year, look at your behavior and your bank accounts to see how you can stop paying ATM fees. I'm sure there are other great checking accounts that can help you avoid ATM fees - leave your experiences in the comments. There's no reason to give your bank so much of your hard earned money!
photo by: viZZZual.com
March 11, 2009
The economic stimulus package is a huge, complicated document and I haven't even made a dent in reading it yet. However, I have found a few key points that seem to apply to many military members.
It looks like our family is only eligible for the first benefit, but I know that there are many military families who will be able to take advantage of one of the other benefits as well. These seem to be the top issues the will affect military members. I'll let you know as more information is released.
March 10, 2009
Most of us have places where money escapes us, either through spending more than we have to, failing to take advantage of free or inexpensive things, or losing track of our finances. Back in October, I wrote about Seven Reasons Why Clutter is Costing Me Money. It seems that the topic is timeless, because David at MoneyNing recently posted 19 Ways Laziness is Costing You Money. I hate to admit to being lazy, but I will admit to being overwhelmed and underorganized. There is just so much stuff that a girl's brain can contain at any one time.
I found three points in David's article that probably apply to most people:
#1 Gift Cards: Gift cards have become such a popular gift and they are often given when you make a return. At any given time, I might have a handful of cards in my box of small but important stuff. Given the complicated fees and rules, I'm sure that some of them are worthless by now. Make an effort to use gift cards as soon as you receive them, trade them with your friends, or sell them at a gift card site like Swapagift or Plastic Jungle. These sites don't offer very good value, but they do offer instant cash.
Again, I don't like the choice to use the word lazy, but David makes good points. Disorganization can be expensive, there's no doubt about it.
March 10, 2009
I'm sure you remember that fridge I've been planning to get rid of. Well, my local radio station might have just convinced me. WTOP is Washington, DC's "news, weather and traffic" station and they just did a segment saying that refrigerator could be costing me $300 a year in electricity. And I'm guessing that they're not including the fact that the seal doesn't seal properly. Wow, that should be good incentive. Maybe I need to make a sign that says "Save $300 - empty the freezer!" and place it somewhere obvious. Signs seem to work for me.
The WTOP article also links to the Energy Star website. Specific pages address issues such as sealing your home, Heat & Cool Efficiently and Home Improvement FAQs. I learned several interesting things here, like that I probably shouldn't have wasted money getting my air ducts cleaned and that I'm not likely to seal my older home too tightly.
There's a world of energy efficiency information out there - have a look.
Photo by: Runder
March 9, 2009
There are many different ways to save money on your grocery bill. One way is to change the brands that you purchase, usually by moving to economy brands or store brands. Are they any good, or are you just wasting your money?
Keep in mind, these are not our parents "generics." Gone are the white boxes with boring black print, and in comes the snazzy labels and upscale products that rival name brands. In fact, many store brands are made by the same companies that manufacture the name brands, just using different labeling or packaging. If you are shopping in a civilian grocery store, they often have a "try our brand" guarantee. If you are unhappy with the store brand, you can bring it back if you are unhappy with the product. Stores are promoting the value and quality of their own brands for several reasons. First, customers are becoming more value conscious and less impressed with fancy stores and crazy sales strategies. Stores don't want to alienate customers by putting their own name on an inferior product.
There are categories where the differences are obvious: store brand sodas rarely taste like their brand name counterparts, and my daughter can spot most store brand oatmeal before I'm even done cooking it. I won't by store brand soups because I just don't like them. However, in most products the difference is negligible. Frozen vegetables? Usually identical. Cheese? Pretty darn similar. And so far, my Cheerios addicted daughter hasn't complained about all the non-Cheerios brand cereal I've been sneaking into the container. The website WalletPop has done a lengthy side-by-side comparison of numerous products and agrees: it all depends on the product.
How much can you save? In an ABC news report (http://abcnews.go.com/Business/Economy/Story?id=6926703&page=1) , the editors saved about 25% by purchasing store brands at three different stores. Their experiment included 9 household items and included both a regular grocery store and a super-store. It's not scientific but it does illustrate the potential savings. I think that their numbers may have been a little low - I've seen other studies with significantly higher savings. If you are a savvy-coupon cutter and stock up when certain products are on sale, then the savings will be a lot less.
Of course, the military commissaries don't offer store brands, but they do often offer an economy brand. For example, the commissaries sell Quaker oatmeal products and they also sell Ralston oatmeal products. Most of the time, (but not always,) the Ralston brand is less expensive. You have to keep your eyes open and be aware of your prices to make sure you're choosing the least expensive option.
I recommend a little experimentation. Pick the three items that you purchase the most frequently and try the least expensive brand available. If you like it - great! You've just easily saved a bundle on your groceries. If you don't like it, try to take advantage of any store guarantee. Chances are you'll find that at least one of your regular products has a less expensive choice that you'll enjoy.
photo by: robertstinnett
March 8, 2009
SpouseBUZZ's resident financial guru, Love My Tanker, sent me a great link about Energy Vampires: Fact versus Fiction. I love how this article gets specific about which things in your house are gobbling up energy, and how you can work to lessen the problem. This is one area that I really need to work on, and maybe now I know the best way to do it.
Thanks, LMT!
photo by: Stephen Cummings'
March 8, 2009
You may have seen those people at the grocery store, clutching a handful of coupons and making the cashier just a bit nutty. They are holding up the line and you're a little annoyed, until the cashier hands them the receipt (it's a mile long) and announces, "You saved $74.30 today."
And suddenly you wonder - should I be clipping coupons? How do they have time to do it? And aren't they buying a lot of stuff that I wouldn't regularly buy? These are all legitimate questions.
I admit that I go in phases: sometimes I am hyper-organized and save a bundle, other times I just shake my head sheepishly when the cashier says, "Do you have any coupons today?" It can be work, and it can make you crazy if you let it. Fortunately, Briana at Bargain Briana has put together an excellent series of posts: 15 Days of Couponing. She's currently on Day 5 and they've all been super so far. She keeps it simple enough for beginners but adds enough complicated stuff to keep experienced couponers interested as well. I'm confident the rest of the articles will be just as good, though I can't imagine where she's going to come up with 10 more posts. I look forward to finding out.
March 7, 2009
In a surprising turn of events today, the Defense Commissary Agency has announced that it has received approval from the Department of Defense to honor all Certificheck Gift Certificates until July 31, 2009.
Last week, Certificheck announced that is was suspending operations and filing for bankruptcy. The company has issued $20 million in DeCA gift certificates since the program began in 2002. It was initially expected that those certificates would now be worthless.
DeCA and the DOD have been working together to find a legal way to honor the gift certificates for commissary patrons. The certificates have been very popular, particular for family members to send to military families as gifts.
I'm so glad that they've figured out a way to let these certificates be used. What a blow to have all that money "disappear" into a private company's bankruptcy. I know that both the givers and the receivers were disappointed by the potential loss. If you have DeCA Certifichecks, be sure to use them by the end of July!
photo by: Robert Couse-Baker
March 6, 2009
The most popular topic at Military.com is the GI Bill. We've compiled a ton of resources to help you understand the current bill and the new bill that comes into effect in August. In fact, we've got an entire section of Military.com devoted to educational issues - you can click here, or click on the Education tab at the top of the page to learn more.
The Department of Defense has recently offered a short video that explains the transferability aspect of the new bill. It seems pretty clear cut and it is nice to have the information presented like this.
The New (sometimes called Post 9/11) GI Bill is an amazing upgrade from the old GI bill, which was pretty good itself. From the number of questions we're getting, I know that there are a lot of people planning to take advantage of it. Stay tuned as all the final details are worked out - we'll be bringing you all the info right here at Military.com
March 5, 2009
"A wise man should have money in his head, but not in his heart."
March 5, 2009
The Army has re-launched their benefits site, My Army Benefits. The site is intended to be a one-stop resource for all things related to Army benefits, such as pay, education, health care, and family services.
The topics are organized by the following categories: Benefit Facts, Planning Toolkits, Wounded Warrior, and Survivor. The Benefit Facts section includes: Federal Benefits, State/Territory Benefits, and a Resource Locator. The Planning Toolkits section includes: Transitioning and Retirement, Survivorship and Deployment. The Wounded Warrior section includes: Disability Income Calculator, Sustaining Income Calculator, MyMEB/PEB, and Wounded Warrior Fact Sheets. The Survivor section includes: Survivor Benefits Report and Survivor Fact Sheets.
I spent a good deal of time looking throughout this site and it contains a lot of information. Most of it is not Army specific but rather general to the entire military, though some is just for the Army. Some of the information is available in Spanish as well. I'm going to bookmark it because I'm sure it will come in handy.
Photo by: www.Army.mil
March 4, 2009
Redbox, those small, inexpensive movie rental kiosks that are popping up all over, is offering free movie codes every Wednesday in March. Just click on over to Redblog on Wednesdays to find the free code.
Also, Redbox offers free rental codes sent to your mobile phone every Monday. Click here to register for the free codes.
March 4, 2009
Due to the bankruptcy of the issuing company, DeCA gift cards are no longer accepted at the commissary. The issuing company has posted directions for possibly receiving a refund. Check out the Military.com article here to learn more.
March 3, 2009
I spent a chunk of last week working with Myscha Theriault of Wise Bread on a post titled: Married to the Military: Five Freebies for New Spouses to be Aware Of. Myscha is married to a recently retired Air Force guy and writes regularly about some amazingly effective frugality. So, if you want to learn more about the legal office, the self-help store, the base thrift store, space A travel, and the libraries/resource lending, click on over to Myscha's post.
March 3, 2009
My post about It's Deductible was included in the week's Carnival of Personal Finance, hosted by Free Money Finance. There are several other great articles, including:
Also, at the Festival of Frugality, Green Panda Treehouse has put together a lengthy list of articles about various aspects of living on less. The Paycheck Chronicles' Gas & Electric Bill Update X2 has been included in the Money Management section. Other good reads:
There's truly something for everyone in this week's carnivals. Enjoy!
photo by: aka Kath
March 2, 2009
If you live near a Ted's Montana Grill, you can enter their burger contest. In addition to some great prizes, every entry will get a free burger. I actually made a serious entry into the contest, but I imagine that you could make a simple entry to qualify for the burger.
Photo by: javajoba
Welcome to Military.com's Finance channel blog, hosted by military spouse and finance writer Kate Kashman. The military money experience is unique and challenging. The Paycheck Chronicles is here to help with daily tips on the special financial situations of military servicemembers and their families
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The content on this blog are my personal opinions and thoughts. I am a blogger and writer with a strong personal finance background. However, I am not a certified financial planner or financial professional of any sort, so content on this personal finance blog should be treated as entertainment only. Listen to what works with you, verify it with the real professionals, and make your own decisions.
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