ConsumerMom

It's officially Autumn. Don’t Let Halloween Costs Scare You!

Today is the Autumnal Equinox, so it’s not too early for me to start talking about Halloween costumes.  I’m sure you have already seen costumes and candy in the stores—or had your children point these out to you.    These costumes – and the Halloween celebrations – can get expensive.  In fact, according to the National Retail Federation, in 2008, the average person planned to spend more than $66 on the holiday!  

 

Here are some tips to save money while keeping your little goblins happy:

1 – Have a costume exchange with friends.  We all have dress up gear at home.  How about organizing a swap? Invite friends and classmates over, bring your costumes and other items from your dress-up box and have at it.   Some local PTA’s organize costume swaps; check locally and see if there is a swap at your school.  I plan on organizing a swap with families from our preschool – just the moms or dads.  I plan to get ideas of what my children want to be for Halloween, then invite interested parents, and organize a swap meet between parents of new or gently worn dress up items and costumes.  If you are more adventurous, you could invite the kids to the swap and ask them to put together an outfit.  Keep it fun, and let their creativity take over.  My sister suggested that you could make a game of this by having children draw names out of a hat, have each child choose one item, and go round and round until all items are chosen.  Set ground rules to keep it fair.  It’s ok to have an exchange where you are just lending items – be sure to ask friends to put their names in the backs of the costumes and return them after Halloween.

 

2 – Use craigslist, local consignment stores and freecycle.org to find a costume and costume components. I love freecycle.org, especially for items like costumes and craft materials, which you may also need for Halloween.  You could post a “Wanted” email on the Freecycle.com listserv for the items you need for your child’s’ costumes, as well as offer any items you no longer need.  Craigslist and consignment stores are also low-cost options. (Updated 10/20 -- Goodwill rocks too! Thanks to a commenter for this tip!)

 

3 – Make your own costumes.  My children’s old preschool asked children to wear homemade costumes.  I admit that my first reaction as a mom of twins was “no way! Too much work”…!  But when we starting making the costumes, it turned into a great family event.  We all worked together, and the kids were so proud of what they made!  We did this two years in a row, and the memories were worth it!   Last year, my son was Percy the Tank Engine. We just painted a box dark green and pasted on the number; my son hung the box around him and wore overalls and a train conductor hat!  It was great.  My daughter was a gypsy – we layered on clothing, beads, a headscarf and clip on earrings.  She looked great!  We had everything we needed for the costumes in the house – cha-ching! I saved the money I would have spent and used it to buy extra candy (for me!).

 

If you are going to make your own costumes, there are some great websites with fun ideas:

1 - http://www.ehow.com/topic_1765_diy-costumes-kids.html             

2 - http://www.coolest-homemade-costumes.com/

 

I look forward to reading your tips for saving money at Halloween, too.  Thanks, and have a great Halloween!

 

Cash for Clunkers – in your Kitchen!

(and I'm not talking about the pot roast no one will eat.)

 

If you are thinking about buying some new appliances – hold that thought just a bit longer.  The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009 included $300 million for rebates to buyers of energy-efficient Energy Star appliances – but the program won’t launch until the fall.   The ARRA will offer rebates between $50 and $200 towards the purchase of energy efficient refrigerators, dishwashers and other appliances.  And unlike the “Cash for Clunkers” program, you will not need to trade in your old appliances to get the rebate.

 

I had no idea, but appliances account for about 17% of your home’s energy use, with refrigerators, clothes washers, and clothes dryers at the top of the list.  With energy costs always going up, it makes sense to buy energy efficient appliances!   And the rebate program makes it even more affordable.

 

Why the wait til the fall, you ask?  Well, each state will write its own rules for the rebate program, which then need to be reviewed by the Department of Energy.  All this is expected to happen in late fall – which could mean rebate-qualified appliances in your home for the Thanksgiving holidays. (Remember those Maytag commercials with the big red bow on a washing machine? I used to think they were silly. Now that I spend half my day doing laundry, it makes sense!)

 

Since the rebates will be handled on a state by state basis, check with your state energy office for details before buying.   A list of state energy offices is here.

And it may be easier than you think to get rid of our old appliance…in addition to selling it on Craigslist – you may get more money and less hassle by recycling it! There are recycling programs – that offer you $25-$50 for your old appliance – across the country.    To see if your state utility offers a recycling program for your appliances (or to help get one started), visit http://www.arcaincutility.com/, JACO Environmental, or http://www.csgrp.com/.

Debit Card: Friend or Foe?

Watch our for overdraft fees on your debit cards -- that's right, debit cards.  The New York Times has a great story (and video) showing that increasingly, banks and credit unions are allowing consumers to exceed their checking account balances when they use their debit cards — for a price.  We all know banks aren’t in the best shape right now, so they are finding creative ways to collect money --- from you!  Debit card fees are a big source of income --  the Times reports:  “this year alone, banks are expected to bring in $27 billion by covering overdrafts on checking accounts, typically on debit card purchases or checks that exceed a customer’s balance.” 

 

The Times also offers great tips on how to avoid these fees:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/09/your-money/credit-and-debit-cards/09debitside.html.

 

Bottom line: if you use debit cards, always check your balance.  Don’t go over your budget!  See if you can stop overdraft protection, asking your financial institution to deny charges when you do not have the money in your account.  If you aren't good at keeping track of what's in your account, see if your bank can send you alerts when your balance gets low.  Any way you look at it -- whether with credit OR debit cards -- it is simply not a good idea to spend money you don’t have…period!

 

Credit Card Check Up!

I’m afraid to get my next credit card bill. It will include spending from our vacation, as well as Back to School Shopping. I’ll be looking at it to confirm all the charges are legit (you should always review your statements carefully)…and when I’m done, I’m going to make sure to read all the fine print.  If you have a credit card issued by Bank of America, Citi, Wells Fargo, US Bank, to name a few – you should too.  Chances are the fine print – your terms and fees – have been changed.   Why? Well, Congress passed the CARD Act that includes long sought after reforms to protect consumers from unfair credit card practices. However, since most protections will not go into effect until February 2010, the card companies are implementing new fees and rates while they still can.  Consumer Action just released their wonderful annual credit card survey and focused this year on practices that will be restricted when the Credit CARD Act takes full effect.  Consumer Action’s survey reports that “nearly all surveyed issuers have at least one practice that will be prohibited or limited by the new law, including anytime any reason changes in terms, payment allocation, early payment cut-off times on the due date, penalty rates and penalty fees, and universal default.”  If you do not have time to read the Consumer Action survey, Consumers Union does a good job and includes a chart listing some credit card fee increases here.  Bottom line:  read your statement carefully, pay on time and if you have a problem with the new rate or fees – call your credit card company. You may be able to negotiate better terms, too, according to this article in Smart Money magazine.