Category Archives: Holiday and Seasonal Finances

4 Tips for Saving Money on Spring Painting Projects

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Painting is a popular spring do-it-yourself project, especially since it’s one of the easiest ways to refresh the appearance of your home. If you’re trying to sell, new paint can also improve your home’s appeal to potential buyers. Depending on the size of your project, primer, paint, and supplies can get expensive fast. To help you stay on budget, here are a few tips to help you choose paint, find good deals, and ultimately get the greatest return on the time and money you invest in your spring painting projects.

1. When choosing paint brands, compare key qualities.

There are scores of paint brands to choose from these days, ranging in price from $8 per gallon to more than $30. The price of some brands corresponds with their quality, but that’s not always the case. To choose the best paint for your project, you need to look at more than just the price tag. Here are five key qualities to look for:

  • Coverage: Many higher-end paints have built-in primers and get the job done in fewer coats than economy brands.
  • Stain resistance: Depending on what you’re painting, you may want to choose a paint with better stain resistance (for instance, high-traffic living areas).
  • Scrub resistance: Some paints dull when you scrub them, so if you’ll be using extra elbow grease on the walls, prioritize this quality.
  • Paint pros say acrylic latex paints are more resistant to the effects of temperature and moisture over time than oil-based alternatives.
  • Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are the solvents paint releases into the air as it dries. A typical paint has about 150 grams of VOCs per liter; low-VOC paint has 50 g/l or less. If you’re concerned about paint fumes, this is something to pay attention to.

A great place to find all this information in one place is Consumer Reports, but you’ll also find useful reviews on non-biased handyman and do-it-yourself sites.

2. Consider what you’re painting.

Deciding which of these qualities to prioritize is easier when you keep in mind what you’re painting. Areas that won’t be seen or trafficked don’t require top-of-the-line paint, but if you want the paint job to look professional and last longer, you may want to spend a little more.

Also, consider the color change you’re making. If you’re painting over a very dark color, it could mean the difference between two coats of a high-quality paint versus three to four coats of an economy paint.

3. Use expert tips to make inexpensive paint look spectacular.

Even though the quality of paint you use matters, how well you paint can also make a huge difference. Failing to prep your surfaces properly and follow good painting techniques, can make even the most expensive paint look bad. On the other hand, using expert tips with mid-range paint can result in a professional looking job. If you’re an amateur painter, look for expert tips or — better yet, get a seasoned pro to help you.

4. Find deals on paint.

Investing in quality paint won’t be cheap. Stretch your budget a little further by looking for coupons (DIY retailers like Home Depot run regular sales). The best time to shop for paint is in the months of May, July, and September, right before the major summer holidays.

If you’re not picky about the shade of your paint, check out the miss-tint section at retail stores, where you’ll often find $35 gallons discounted as low as $15. There’s nothing wrong with this paint – it just didn’t turn out the way a customer expected.

You might be surprised to learn that you can get even get paint for free from recycling centers, where businesses tend to drop off excess paint from their renovation projects. Even if the paint is a few months old, the shelf life of paint is much longer – up to 8 years!

Like many things in life, what you put into painting is what you get out of it. Even if you’re just trying to spruce things up for your own benefit, it doesn’t hurt to use these tips to get the best possible results and save a little money in the process.

Article Source: Jessica Sommerfield for moneyning.com

Don’t Give to a Charity Imposter this Holiday Season

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When you give to a charity, you’re giving because you care and want to help — and you want to be sure your money actually gets to those you’re trying to help. But scammers who are pretending to be a charity, will try to get to your wallet.

Typically people feel as though the holiday season is one of the most important times of the year to donate to a charity – which is a great thing, just be sure you are doing your research and know where your money is going first!

Consider these tips before you give:

  • Rule out anyone who asks you to send cash, pay with a gift card, or wire money.
  • Confirm the exact name of the charity and do some research, especially when donating for the first time. Search for the name of the charity online — plus the word “complaint” or “scam.” That’s one way to learn about a charity’s reputation.
  • Give to charities you know and trust, with a proven track record. Before you give to any charity, check them out with the Better Business Bureau’s (BBB) Wise Giving Alliance, Charity Navigator, Charity Watch, or GuideStar.
  • Avoid charities that seem to pop up overnight in connection with a natural disaster or other tragedy.
  • Don’t assume that pleas for help on crowdfunding sites or social media are legitimate. Real victims’ pictures and stories can easily be misused to con you.
  • Before you text to donate, confirm the number on the charity’s website.
  • Be cautious of clicking on links or opening attachments in emails, even if they appear to be from a charity. You could unknowingly install malware on your computer or be taken to a look-alike website run by scammers.

For more information, visit ftc.gov/charity. If you think you’ve spotted a charity scam, report it to the FTC.

 

Break the Bank this Holiday Season? Get Back on Track!

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Even if you didn’t storm the shelves at 3am on Black Friday, there’s a good chance you may have overspent during the holiday season. If you’re fretting about your finances, there are a few things you can do to remedy your wallet. Follow these tips for reversing the damage and getting back on financial track.

Make some returns.

It may be tough to do but it’s time you take a hard look at the purchases you made. Did you buy gifts for others or splurge on yourself? If you intentionally made purchases for your loved ones you will probably be safe holding on to those items, as chances are you were budgeting for them. But, if you spontaneously spent on things you may not need just because they were on sale, consider returning those extras to put more money back in the bank.

Save what you bought for the future.

Just because you bought your child ten toys doesn’t mean they all have to end up under the tree this Christmas. If you decide to keep them all, hold on to a few for future holidays. That way when it is time to celebrate Timmy’s birthday, you’ll have already spent money on his gifts and won’t be out even more cash down the road.

Cut costs elsewhere.

If you overspent and are feeling stressed, you may have to make some sacrifices until you can get your money back to where it was. That means it’s time to scale back on the extras. Simplify your life and remember what’s of real value during this special season. Instead of eating meals at restaurants, save money and spend quality time together by cooking at home as a family. Forget spending a ton at the movie theater and opt instead to enjoy movies from the comfort of your couch.

Article Source: Wendy Moody for CUInsight.com

3 Easy Ways to Make Some Extra Holiday Cash

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Black Friday has come and gone and Cyber Monday is in the past too. Did you take advantage of any big sales? Did you overspend on your holiday shopping budget? Whether or not you spent too much over Thanksgiving weekend, it’s always nice to have a few extra bucks in your pocket over the holidays. Here are three ways you can accumulate some extra money for the holiday season.

Keep the change: A piggy bank is a very simple item, and that’s what makes it so genius. You need $100 in a couple of months? Start putting away your spare change now and by the time that day arrives, you’ll be ready to go. The best part is, you can find the money without having to budget it and then cash in all your coin for dollars.

Answer some questions: Taking surveys online or at the mall may not seem like the best way to spend a couple of hours, but it can put a few extra bucks in your pocket. Check out Make Money Taking Surveys and discover some easy ways to make $25-$50 a day.

Go into sales: People love yard sales. It’s a great way to get something cool at a great price. You probably won’t get rich from having a yard sale, but you can definitely make $50-$100, depending on what you’re willing to sell. Ready to part with that drum set that’s been collecting dust? Put it on Craig’s List or use an app like Let Go, and see what happens.

Article Source: John Pettit for CUInsight.com

6 Scams to Watch Out For this Holiday Season

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The holiday season is a joyful time for family, friends, celebrations, and gifts. And unfortunately, it can be a time for scams. Now that the holiday season has officially arrived, authorities are warning local residents to beware of scams and deceptive advertising while shopping at stores or online this year.

Here are some tips on how to protect yourself:

The Bait and Switch: Take retailers’ advertisements to the store with you. Unscrupulous retailers may advertise goods at low prices, but when you get to the store the price may be higher than advertised or the product might not be there at all.

Skimming Devices: Skimming devices are often placed on gas pumps or ATMs to capture data from the magnetic stripe on the back of credit and debit cards. If something looks out of place or easily wiggles, use a different ATM, gas pump, or register.

“Cybersquatting” Sites: Crooks try to impersonate well-known websites by inverting characters or slightly altering the name of a well-known website. The copycat sites may look similar to the real website – and they can steal your credit information. Carefully read website addresses to ensure you are shopping on a legitimate website.

Copycat and Fraudulent Websites: Fake websites set up by scammers target online shoppers during the holiday season. Sometimes appearing as ad results in online searches, these sites may contain malware or steal credit card data. Avoid making purchases from untrustworthy sites.

Security Certificates: To ensure you are shopping on a secure website, make sure the website begins with “https” and has a small padlock icon next to the webpage address. Keep your computer, tablet or smartphone up-to-date and install security software.

Retailers Who Request Payment through Wire Transfer: Legitimate online businesses will not use wire transfer to collect payment for purchases, ever. This is a sure sign of a scam.

Some other important holiday shopping tips:

  • Sign up for transaction alerts on your credit and debit cards, or at least monitor your accounts closely online and report any suspicious activity immediately to your financial institution. Enroll in Visa Purchase Alerts for your First Financial debit card here. Sign up for Visa Credit Card alerts in Online Banking.
  • Think before you click! This doesn’t just pertain to emails, also be leary about clicking on online ads, applications and electronic greeting cards. Cybercriminals often mimic content, so be on the lookout for altered URLs.
  • Don’t trust a site or name you don’t know, and don’t fall for too good to be true prices.
  • Use payment methods that offer tokenization. This includes using a digital wallet to pay for purchases like Apple Pay, Samsung/Android Pay and the like.
  • Have unique, complex passwords for websites that store your information and change your passwords frequently.
  • Be cautious of charities you give to online, in person and over the phone. If you are going to donate, be sure to investigate the charity on the web first and make sure they are legitimate (or a well-known organization like the Salvation Army, St. Jude, etc.).
  • Ensure home computers are protected with antivirus software, anti-spyware, and a firewall.
  • Look for ATM and gas pump tampering, or skimming devices. Do not use the ATM or gas pump if you suspect anything suspicious. Watch our short video on how to spot a skimming device here.

Article Source: Kara Seymour for Patch.com and 11-28-17 CUNA Risk Alert

4 Tips to Plan for Holiday Toy Shopping

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Want the holiday season’s hottest toys? Or maybe you want a retro game. Whatever the goal, with some holiday toys already in stores, shoppers may want to start planning their strategy ASAP.

GET THE HOT TOYS EARLY: Try shopping online because in a few clicks you can search sites like Walmart, Target, Toys R Us and Amazon to find out quickly if the item is available. Also, it’s good to follow retailers on Twitter, where some post when they get in their next order of certain hot toys in the final weeks before Christmas.

KNOW WHEN THE SALES ARE: If you can afford to wait, stores offer toy discounts of up to 50 percent and also bundle toy deals during the Black Friday weekend. But the best time to get deals on basic toys is two weeks before Christmas, when toys are discounted up to 70 percent, according to DealNews.com. Take advantage of deal trackers. With CamelCamelCamel.com, shoppers can set up alerts when the price of an item falls to a certain level. It also offers a price history of all products sold on Amazon.

Overall, Amazon.com offers the lowest toy prices, with Walmart a close second, according to Lindsay Sakraida, director of content marketing for the DealNews site, which combed deals during last year’s holiday season. Target, Kohl’s and Toys R Us were ranked third to fifth.

TAKE ADVANTAGE OF LAYAWAY:  Walmart kicked off its layaway service in September and customers have until December 11 to pay off their account. As in past years, there’s no opening fee to start a layaway account but customers need to put down 10 percent or $10, whichever is greater. Shoppers can put items as low as $10 on layaway with a $50 minimum basket.

At Sears Holdings Corp.’s Kmart, members of the Shop Your Way loyalty program get special perks for the holiday season. They have a $1 down payment for in-store and online layaway contracts. For non-members, it’s a $10 down payment. For Sears, there’s no difference between members and non-members — they don’t have to put any money down for layaway in the store and can put just one penny down online at all times.

EMBRACE SERVICES: Walmart offers curb pickup for online shoppers at 1,000 stores — mostly for grocery items but also some seasonal general merchandise like toys. Walmart, Target and Sears also have pickup services inside the store for online shoppers. Many are trying to improve the speed of service.

Follow these tips and get a jump start (while saving money) this holiday season on toys!

Article Source: Anne D’Innocenzio for the Associated Press on USAtoday.com