Taxes & Write offs

Filed under: College The California State University system made headlines yesterday when it threatened to cut enrollment by 10,000 students next year if the state didn't front it more money. Chancellor Charles Reed said CSU had to make more cuts to a budget already $215,000 below what it needs, and that it currently serve 10,000 students for whom the state gives no money. But when it comes to top staffers, well, that's a different story . According to the San Francisco Chronicle, Reed and his Board of Trustees recently approved salary increases of up to nine percent for nine vice-presidents, and hired 11 more at salaries as high as $225,000. I'm thinking it's time for a career change to college administration, because these guys have it good. For example, the VP of student affairs at CSU Monterey came on board in February 2007 and less than 18 months later, he gets a $22,500 pay raise, from $117,500 to $140,000. The new vice-chancellor for university relations gets a salary of $240,000, plus another $40,500 to cover brokerage commissions, escrow fees and other costs for selling his home in Sacramento. Wait, is this a state school system or Wall Street these people are working for?Continue reading State colleges cut students and budgets but hike salaries for top staff State colleges cut students and budgets but hike salaries for top staff originally appeared on WalletPop Blog on Thu, 20 Nov 2008 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Bargains , Home Holidays are just around the corner and if there's one appliance that'd better be ready for the onslaught it's the toilet. While many household fixtures require repair or replacement, one that's getting renewed attention thanks to the collective green-living consciousness is the toilet. If yours is a water hog, it's a good time to think about getting a new one. Years ago, if a plumber told you that your family's hardest working appliance needed to be replaced, you'd have had a right to be skeptical. Historically been darn near impossible for a toilet to actually break, thanks to the typically tough vitreous china and straightforward construction with replaceable moving parts. But today, water consumption is the big issue, and if any of your home's toilets date to 1994 or earlier, you stand to save a lot of money by switching them out for the current generation of high-efficiency toilets (HETs). Worlds apart from the low-flow models that debuted in the early 1990s, WaterSense-labeled HETs provide dependable performance on 1.28 gallons of water or less per flush. According to the EPA, a family of four that replaces higher-flow toilets with HETs stands to save an average of more than $90 per year on water bills and as much as $2,000 over the lifetime of the HETs themselves. What's more, many local utilities offer special rebates and vouchers to residents ready to make this water-saving investment. A wide variety of HET styles and price points make it easy to find the right fit for your household, with one- and two-piece design and such features as right-height sizing and elongated bowls. To learn more about HET advantages and browse product information, visit the EPA's WaterSense website. Tom Kraeutler is the Home Improvement Editor for AOL and co-author of My Home, My Money Pit: Your Guide to Every Home Improvement Adventure . Tom helps listeners prevent plumbing problems each week as host of The Money Pit, a nationally syndicated home improvement radio program. New toilets help stop flushing dollars away originally appeared on WalletPop Blog on Thu, 20 Nov 2008 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Bargains , Shopping , Tax , The Dolans With times tight, everyone is looking for ways to save money. One way to do that is by making sure you get the most bang out of every hard-earned dollar you spend. So today we're going to reveal some retail rip-offs that give you less than your money's worth. These tips aren't about scrimping or cutting out life's little luxuries -- we just want to show you some places where you are paying big price mark ups and may not realize it. Once you see just how little you are getting for your money, you can save a lot with just a few simple changes. Like... 1. Wine in restaurants The markup on wine in restaurants is outrageous -- 100 to 200% more than what you would pay at the store if you buy by the bottle. It's a whopping 300 to 400% markup if you buy wine by the glass! To make it even worse, the highest markups are on the lowest priced wines. Here's one thing you can do to combat wine markups: If your state/restaurant allows it, bring your own bottle and pay a small fee for the restaurant to open and cork it for you. You'll normally pay about $10. Option two: Find out if the restaurant has an "off premises" license that allows you to take open wine bottles home with you. If so, you'll save money when you buy the full bottle even if you don't plan to drink it all. Simply cork it at the end of your meal and bring it home to enjoy later. Continue reading 10 huge retail rip-offs you can no longer afford to ignore, despite your cravings 10 huge retail rip-offs you can no longer afford to ignore, despite your cravings originally appeared on WalletPop Blog on Thu, 20 Nov 2008 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Saving , Shopping , Technology Other than window shop, I haven't done any serious online shopping yet, and I admit, I'm kind of glad. Because clearly, I need a plan. In the old days, I'd just browse an online store, see something I liked, and if I could afford it, I clicked and made my purchase. But now, shopping like that is almost crazy. After all, if you play your cards right, there are a lot of ways you can make the most of your shopping dollars. Continue reading The best and worst of the online shopping cashback sites The best and worst of the online shopping cashback sites originally appeared on WalletPop Blog on Wed, 19 Nov 2008 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Food , Shopping , Recession Reductions in retail foot traffic may signal continued tough times ahead for restaurant chains, which are mainly dependent upon shopping mall exposure for gaining customer volume. Many large restaurant chains, including Cheesecake Factory, Red Robin, and Ruby Tuesday, have significant presence in retail shopping malls. These dining establishments are certain to experience continued weak sales figures as consumers restrain their discretionary spending. According to a report in The Wall Street Journal , ShopperTrak RCT Corp. indicates that sales figures for restaurants declined over 12% for the month of October, in comparison to last year. Although restaurant sales projections appear fairly grim, the food service sector is not nearly ready to give up the fight. Continue reading If nobody shops, nobody eats If nobody shops, nobody eats originally appeared on WalletPop Blog on Wed, 19 Nov 2008 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Shopping , Technology Craigslist.org began its life as free-form board for local people to swap, hook up and take advantage of the hive mind. As it has grown into a mainstream garage sale/job search site, however, it is increasingly exploited for less savory purposes. Just as the site put into practice new measures to curb ads for prostitution and other illegal activities, the New York City Police Department told the Daily News that the site has become an avenue for the sale of street drugs. According to the story by Patric O'Shaughnessy , a common slang has developed which buyers and users understand. The word ski, for example, refers to cocaine, while crystal meth can be called cristina, or tina, as in "Tina Turner tickets for sale." Since street slang evolves faster than fruit flies, craigslist will have a real chore smoking out the druggies among its posters. While craigslist continues to operate with an org extension, it is not a not-for-profit, which I feel is deceitful. eBay owns 25% of the site. I just hope that "leather recliner" isn't slang for some kind of dope, or my vigilant search for one on craigslist could present me with a nasty surprise. Craigslist hooks up dope users, dealers originally appeared on WalletPop Blog on Wed, 19 Nov 2008 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Budgets , Retire , Health , Travel With home prices and their 401(k) accounts falling, Baby Boomers can forget about retiring to the beach in Florida and playing golf all day. Instead, they're worrying about paying the bills. The top financial concern for people 45 and older is now paying for food, shelter and other basic needs , according to a global survey by the Hartford Financial Services Group published on RedwoodAge.com , a Web site targeted to people older than 45. About a third of the average retirement nest egg has been lost in the financial markets, according to the report. Hartford's data shows that half of Americans over 45 are worried about getting by on a daily basis in retirement, and the numbers are higher overseas, where many European countries have guaranteed pensions. The study also found that 43% of Americans said they're concerned they won't have enough money to enjoy life, 27% said they're worried about running out of money before they die, and 16% of Americans said they may not be able to afford health care. With an average stay at a nursing home costing $80,000 per year , not having enough money in retirement is a scary thought. While retiring to Florida or other sunbelt locations may be difficult, some Boomers are looking at retiring in Mexico , where home prices can be half as much as they are in the United States, according to a developer in Mexico. Maybe that's one way to solve the problem of paying bills -- convert them to pesos. Aaron Crowe is an unemployed journalist in the San Francisco Bay Area. Read about his job hunt at www.talesofanunemployeddad.blogspot.com Boomers worry retirement won't be what they had hoped originally appeared on WalletPop Blog on Wed, 19 Nov 2008 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Budgets The Amish use credit cards, just like the rest of us. If you just know a little of the usual stuff about the Amish, that sounds so hard to believe at first. After all, the Amish are known for living a rather quaint 19th century lifestyle. They drive horses and buggies. They eschew electricity. They don't have telephones or television sets. Surely, they don't use plastic. But some do. I knew a little about that when I first started working on an article about the Amish , which ran yesterday on CreditCards.com , but until I started talking to some Amish businessmen, I hadn't given their use much thought. Nevertheless, they deal with high interest rates and occasional late fees like the rest of us. Still, their lifestyle does usually protect them from going into massive deep credit card debt, and it's worth thinking about. Continue reading The Amish use credit cards, too The Amish use credit cards, too originally appeared on WalletPop Blog on Wed, 19 Nov 2008 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Ripoffs and Scams The web site Facebook is all about community. Unfortunately, companies that prey on the human desire for love and companionship have come a-courting. However, the Washington State Attorney is now courting, as well, fining the Washington company Tattoo Media , which served up ads for the ripoff site MyLuvCrush.com to Facebook users. MyLuvCrush, taking a page from the controversial if not fraudulent playbook of sites such as Classmates.com , ran ads customized to the Facebooker's location. For example, a Facebooker in Topeka might see an ad declaring that someone nearby had named him/her as a new luvcrush, following up the hook with a pitch for its real product, a $9.99 per month autorenewed subscription to its horoscope service , with an upsell opportunity that sucks another $37.50 out of the unwary customer's pockets each month. Continue reading Tattoo Media fined for serving up MyLuvCrush.com ads to Facebookers Tattoo Media fined for serving up MyLuvCrush.com ads to Facebookers originally appeared on WalletPop Blog on Wed, 19 Nov 2008 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Food Run right over to Restaurant.com , do not pass go, do not collect $200. But you DO get great restaurant certificates almost FREE. Normally the site sells $25 gift certificates for $10. Through tomorrow, you can get a $25 certificate for only $2 with the coupon code SURPRISE. It's easy to find certificates if you search by your zip code. Be sure to read the fine print though... Many of the restaurants require minimum purchases or restrict the days on which you can use them. Even still, it's a great deal! And getting your certificates is easy: You simply print them out at your convenience. Beware... The site is slow because of heavy traffic. And make sure you opt out of any offers at checkout, because consumers have reported finding charges on their credit cards for these special offers. But I completed a purchase today, so I know the site is still working and the deal is still valid. What a great way for those who have cut back on eating out to have a little fun!Almost FREE to eat at local restaurants originally appeared on WalletPop Blog on Wed, 19 Nov 2008 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Technology , Transportation If you took out a car lease only to find that, with a change in your circumstances, your can no longer afford your lease , you may want to check out LeaseTrader.com . The ten-year-old firm is in the business of matching drivers in the market for a short-term lease with those looking to get out of an existing one. For its trouble, the company collects a fee, of course. The process, which has been OK'd by almost all the car manufacturer's financing departments, works this way: Person A, the lease holder, posts the vehicle and details of the lease on LeaseTrader Person B, who wants to pick up a vehicle on a short-time lease, selects yours Person B's credit-worthiness is confirmed The vehicle lease is transferred from Person A to Person B. The buyer is not required to pay an down payment to the leasing company. Person A pays LeaseTracker $79 for the service and $149 for the transfer While the average time between posting and transfer is 3-7 weeks, according to a LeaseTrader exec quoted in Advertising Age , the site is hoping to drop that significantly with a new marketing campaign. LeaseTrader claims that it has seen demand grow threefold as nervous drivers look to shorter term leases in an unstable economy. A couple of caveats, however: people who find themselves with burdensome leases are often people who also don't understand how to negotiate favorable deals, so the lease you assume might be on the high side. You may also have to include a wide swath of the U.S. to find enough candidate vehicles; near my home, there were almost none. Extending my search to 1,000 miles found a number of them, but retrieving a vehicle from that distance would cost me something in time, mileage or shipping. If you're looking for to get out from under your lease, or looking for a nice ride for a short commitment, this seems like an interesting alternative to consider. Stuck in your car lease? Not necessarily. originally appeared on WalletPop Blog on Wed, 19 Nov 2008 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Bargains , Entrepreneurship , Shopping , Transportation The adage my dad used to tell me that "If it looks too good to be true, it probably is" looks like it applies here: In the news today, a suburban Chicago car dealer is selling a PT Cruiser for $1, if you buy a $40,000 luxury SUV. The Cruisers that Frank Mancari is selling are used 2008 models with about 10,000 miles on them that usually retail for $10,000. The Chrysler Pacifica has a list price of more than $39,000. It's a great way to get people in the door as car sales drop around the country, but a little difficult to swallow when you do the math, as Steve Rhodes of the Beachwood Reporter did. You're already down some cash by agreeing to the sticker price of the SUV, instead of any negotiated price. As Rhodes points out, maybe you could get the Cruiser for $8,000 and the SUV for $32,000 without the deal. With the deal, the two cars would cost $40,001 together. Not much of a deal so far. View Poll The deal was to have ended Monday after the five Pacificas were sold, but Mancari says he may extend it to other models. Neither vehicle gets great gas mileage. The Pacifica gets about 15 mpg in the city while the PT Cruiser gets less than 20 miles per gallon in the city. With gas prices dropping, returning to the gas-hog days of the past with an SUV may look like a deal now. But wait until gas prices go up again, because you know they will. Aaron Crowe is an unemployed journalist in the San Francisco Bay Area. Read about his job search at www.talesofanunemployeddad.blogspot.com Continue reading PT Cruiser for a buck? Of course there's a catch PT Cruiser for a buck? Of course there's a catch originally appeared on WalletPop Blog on Wed, 19 Nov 2008 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Saving , Technology , Wealth You would think that a country with the lowest savings rate amongst all of the other industrialized nations of the free world would do more to encourage its citizens to save money. After the US Treasury Department's announcement of higher I bond rates on November 3, you start to ask yourself: Should I spend my money, or save it and earn more? On December 3, 2007 the US Treasury Department announced it would be reducing the limit on the amount of savings bonds an individual can purchase, to $20,000 annually, effective January 1, 2008. This means that one person can purchase up to $5,000 out-of-pocket of paper EE, paper I, electronic EE and electronic I bonds. The limit prior to the change was a grand total of $120,000, (or $30,000 each type,) six times greater than the new limit. Continue reading Didn't you hear? Maximum amount of savings bonds purchases changed Didn't you hear? Maximum amount of savings bonds purchases changed originally appeared on WalletPop Blog on Wed, 19 Nov 2008 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Bargains , Shopping , Wealth The pigs are officially flying -- high-end designers are cutting prices on their clothes, sho