College tuition savings may be closer than you think.

With college tuition costs on the rise, the answer to your college budget woes may be close to home.

Here are 5 reasons why community colleges can be a great deal and still get you where you need to be in your career.

1. Of course the tuition costs are much lower.
2. It is likely that your instructors will be from the real career world vs. being taught by a grad student.
3. You can still live at home and keep the housing and food costs down.
4. Many community colleges offer schedules conducive to keeping at least a part-time job.
5. Some states will automatically consider your lower division requirements fulfilled when you transfer to a 4-year institution upon completion of your associates degree at a community college within the same state.

Disaster Charity Releif Aid – Be generous but careful as well

Leaptocheap.com wants all visitors to be generous and careful in their charitable giving.  Scams tend to pop up whenever good people step out to help those in needs.

LeapToCheap.com supports and stands behind this Charity:

Smart Giving to Help Disaster Victims

Once of the most efficient and organized charities in the world, Samaratans Purse headed by Franklin Graham was not only one of the first responders to Haiti, but they have a strong reputation for quickly analyzing what assistance organizations are providing and then precisely delivering just what is needed when it is needed (From Medical to basic needs). Please take a look at this CNN video on Samaritans Purse’s disaster response in Haiti.

Need more information?
Check our charity page that will show you how to review the statistics on the top 200 charities in the united states.

Quick Tip: Which charities deliver the most to the needy?

On this site we spend a lot of time showing people how to save money.   Now we are turning our attention to good stewardship of your money.  Hey, if you’re thoughtful enough to donate your hard earned money to the needy, you should expect that most of it goes to the target of the charity.

A quick way to sort through which charities meet your giving criteria, take a look at Forbe’s report on the 200 largest charities by clicking here.  http://www.forbes.com/lists/2008/14/charities08_The-200-Largest-U.S.-Charities_CharComm.html

Remember, that you can click on the column header links to sort by what is important to you.

FREE Giving?

Yep, you can donate to your charities just by using goodsearch.com .  You just specify your charity, use their search engine (just as you would Google) and your charity receives money from goodsearch.com.

Another option accomplish a similar result to feed the hungry  is the  thehungersite.com .  When you click on sponsor links food is donated to the hungry.

Quick Tip: Free e-learning from MIT

While you won’t be able to obtain credit or an MIT college degree, the MIT Open Courseware online e-learning curriculum provides lecture notes, exams, and videos from MIT.  No registration is required and there are 1900 courses published so far.   So, if you’re the curious type that craves learning, this freebie may be for you.

http://ocw.mit.edu/OcwWeb/web/home/home/index.htm

Quick Tip: Calculated Savings

When shopping at the grocery store you may want to bring your calculator with you.   While you may find per unit prices on many shelf items, you probably won’t find it shown on all products. Instead of just comparing the prices of one item to another, we suggest that you compare price per unit (e.g. price per ounce, etc) to ensure that you are getting the most for your money.  We found that while some products are priced less to attract buyers, after a closer look at the per unit price, we learned that we would actually end up paying more if we were to buy the product with the lower shelf price.

If a per unit price is not listed on the shelf, use your calculator to determine the unit price.  Simply take the shelf price of the item and divide it by the total number of units in the container.  Then do the same for the item you are comparing the first product to and then simply compare the two unit prices.

The same technique can be used for paper towels, napkins and other items that are marked with a product count.

After you start pricing by unit, you might be surprised at what you find (especially if it those extra dollars in your pocket)

Rebates, Tax Credits & Financing for energy efficient purchases, etc.

The U.S. Department of Energy is offering some great rebates, tax credits and financing for consumers who choose energy efficient options.

For example, you may be able to get a 20% rebate on the purchase of an energy efficient appliance when you turn in your old energy hog.   So, this example alone could be a pretty good deal when you consider that you can save  on both the appliance purchase and your monthly power bills as well.

According to the Department of Energy:

Consumers can find financial assistance for energy efficient purchases and improvements in the form of tax credits, rebates, and energy-efficient financing.

Tax Credits for Energy Efficiency

Learn how you can take advantage of federal tax credits for your energy efficient purchases and improvements. For information on state and local tax credits, see State Incentives for Renewables and Efficiency.

Rebates for ENERGY STAR Appliances

Rebates for ENERGY STAR Appliances will be available from your state in late 2009 or early 2010. Find out how the program will work and how you can apply.

Energy-Efficient Mortgages and Financing

Learn about your options for energy-efficient financing programs, including mortgages to home improvement loans.

Hidden fees: Do gift cards take as much as they give?

According to the Federal Trade Commissions FTC Gift Card Message

There are two types of gift cards.

• Retail gift cards (e.g. Target, Walmart, Chilli’s, etc.) may have expiration dates or a fee for inactivity that sometimes is called a “dormancy fee”.
• Bank gift cards (like VISA, MasterCard, Discover, etc) can be used at any location accepting cards from their network, but you’ll probably end up paying more fees for activation, maintenance, and/or transactions on bank gift cards than on retail gift cards (e.g. Target, Walmart, Chilli’s, etc.)

The FTC suggests that you take the following measures to protect yourself and/or the gift card recipient:

• “Buy from sources you know and trust. Avoid buying gift cards from online auction sites, because the cards may be counterfeit or may have been obtained fraudulently.”
• “Read the fine print before you buy. If you don’t like the terms and conditions, buy elsewhere.”
• “Ask about expiration dates and fees when you’re buying a card. This information may appear on the card itself, on the accompanying sleeve or envelope, or on the issuer’s website. If you don’t see it, ask. If the information is separate from the gift card, give it to the recipient with the card to help protect the value of the card.”
• “Consider purchase fees: Must you pay a fee to buy the card? If you buy the card online or on the phone, is there a fee for shipping and handling? Does expedited delivery cost more?”
• “Consider fees that may be deducted from the card, including activation, maintenance or transaction fees. It might be embarrassing to give someone a $50 gift card and find out later that fees gobbled up most of the amount.”
• “Inspect the card before you buy it. Verify that none of the protective stickers have been removed, and make sure that the codes on the back of the card haven’t been scratched off to reveal a PIN number. Report tampered cards to the store selling the cards.”
• “Give the recipient the original receipt to verify the card’s purchase in case it is lost or stolen.”
• “Consider the financial condition of the business and whether it has filed for bankruptcy.”

For more information about gift cards and how to use them, visit the FTC’s gift card web page at
http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/alerts/alt010.shtm

Read about new Gift and Credit Card federal laws going into affect in this year (2010).  According to the FDIC, “Under the new law, gift cards and similar cards cannot expire within five years from the date they were activated unless the expiration date is clearly disclosed. The law also generally prohibits an inactivity fee on gift cards except in certain circumstances, such as if there has been no transaction for at least 12 months.“

Debit card risks that everyone should know about

According to the Federal Trade Commission your liability under federal law for unauthorized use of your ATM or debit card depends on how quickly you report the loss.

If you report  that your ATM or debit card is missing before it’s used without your permission, the Electronic Fund Transfer Act (EFTA) states that  the card issuer can’t hold you responsible for any unauthorized transactions.

If unauthorized transactions occur before you report it to the card issuer, your liability under federal law will vary depending on how quickly you report the loss.

According to the Federal Trade Commission:  “If you report the loss within two business days after you realize your card is missing, you will not be responsible for more than $50 for unauthorized use. However, if you don’t report the loss within two business days after you discover the loss, you could lose up to $500 because of an unauthorized transfer. You also risk unlimited loss if you fail to report an unauthorized transfer within 60 days after your bank statement containing unauthorized use is mailed to you. That means you could lose all the money in your bank account and the unused portion of your line of credit established for overdrafts. However, for unauthorized transfers involving only your debit card number (not the loss of the card), you are liable only for transfers that occur after 60 days following the mailing of your bank statement containing the unauthorized use and before you report the loss.”

For more information, visit the Federal Trade Commission’s Credit, ATM and Debit Cards web page

Rebates. Great way to save or just a marketing trick?

Rebates

If you’re a disciplined person rebates can be a great way to save.  The folks offering those rebates are betting that you won’t mail them in within the required period of time.  Their also betting that even if you mail in the rebate, you won’t  follow all of the instructions and/or remember to follow up later to make sure that you received your check.   The fact is that it’s  a safe bet for them a good amount of the time.

Most people believe that they’ll remember to mail in the rebate, but the fact is that life offers many interruptions and distractions and it’s  really easy to forget.

The moral of our rebate story:

If the only reason that you’re buying the product is because of the rebate,  figure out a way to alert yourself to follow up later.  You can do this on a wall calendar, PDA or just sticky notes posted in a location that you frequent often.  Also, be sure to read all of the instructions carefully and follow them carefully.

How to drive down costs on your next car rental

List out potential rental car companies

• Make  a list of at least seven rent a car companies that offer competitive prices in the city that you want to rent in.   For example  Avis, Alamo, Hertz, Thrifty, Dollar, Budget, National, Enterprise rent-a-car, etc.

Look for discounts on rental cars

• If you are a costco member, check out the costco web site under their travel section.  They offer really great discounts from most rental car companies.  Discounts will vary by care hire company.
• Are you a AAA member?  If so, you may be entitled to discounts.
• Have you purchased an Entertainment  Book?  If so, look for coupons inside your book.
• Are you an airline frequent flier member?  If so, you may qualify for discounts.  It’s also possible that  can redeem your airline mileage points for free car rentals.

Compare car rental car value (questions to ask).

• Will the car rental company waive the additional driver fee?
• Will the car rental company allow you to personally select the car you want at pick up time?  Some companies will check you in, send you to the garage and let you choose the vehicle that you want to drive.  The keys are left in the car, so you just hop in and give the guy at the gate the paper work and off you go.
• Are the vehicles that that the company rents  safe, fuel efficient, clean and in good overall repair?
• Will the car rental company provide you with a free car seat?  If not, this could add on a significant cost to your daily rental charges.  So, you may want to bring your own car seat with you.
• Can you earn frequent flyer bonus points for the airline program(s) that you are a member of?

Insurance costs.

• Contact your auto insurance company ahead of time and ask them if they will fully cover you in your rental car.  If so, you may choose to waive the coverage that the rent a car company offers.   Remember, make sure that you confirmed that you are already covered by your auto insurance carrier (be sure to get it in writing).

Fuel costs.

• Consider the mileage of the vehicle that you are renting and how that will impact your overall rental car expenses.
• Figure out if the pre-paid fuel option makes good “Cents”.   To do this you need to know the average cost of the gas in the city that you will be driving the car in.  Also, consider if you will be able set aside enough time to re-fuel the car on the day that you will  return the car.   Finding out if there is a well priced gas station on the airport grounds may help you to make up your mind.

Coupons

Coupons are not created equal.   So you really need to pay attention how much of a discount that you’re actually receiving.

Examples of good coupon offers include

• Free (if none or very little strings are attached).
• Provides a discount of 15% or greater.
• Buy one get one free.
• A coupon that will allow you to combine it with other coupons and offers.
• A coupon of a product or service that you were planning on obtaining anyway.

Less desirable coupon offers will require you to spend a lot of money while yielding you a comparatively small discount.

So, do the match on how much money that you are actually saving.

Open Your Mind and Close Your Wallet

Open Office Software vs. Microsoft Office

We’ve noticed these days, that many PC’s no longer ship with Microsoft Office included for free.  Instead, you might receive Microsoft’s scaled down version called Microsoft Works instead.

Hey, PC’s cost enough by themselves, even before you consider the additional costs of the software needed to use the computer effectively.

Ok, so what are my options?  Well the answer to this question is becoming more and more….Open Office software.

According to OpenOffice.org , here area few reasons why you may want to use Open Office:

• Open Office can be downloaded and used completely free of charge for any purpose.
• Open Office can also read and write files from other common office software packages.
• Open Office works on all common computers.
• Open Office stores all your data in an international open standard format.
• Open Office is the leading open-source office software suite for word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, graphics, databases and more.
• Open Office is available in many languages and works on all common computers.
• OpenOffice.org 3 is the result of over twenty years’ continuous high quality software engineering. Designed from the start as a single piece of software.
• Open Office is easy to choose, easy to install, easy to learn – OpenOffice.org 3 is the easy choice for an office software suite.

According to ZDNET Asia, the following companies are major contributors to the Open Office product include:

• IBM
• Google
• Novell
• Red Hat (associated with Linux)

The following chart outlines product offerings and prices associated with Microsoft Office (Home & Student) and Microsoft Office Standard as of October 25, 2009.

Click here to download Open Office 3 for free (no, really its FREE).

Open Office