Long Haul Traveling

Tuesday, May 5th, 2009

Sorr that it took me a bit longer to write than expected since Nicolas and I were preparing to travel to France to visit my in-laws.  When getting ready for our trip, I wanted to share some great money and time saving tips that I thought you’d appreciate:

• When packing, use those Space Bags (www.spacebag.com) to arrange your clothes.  It compresses them so that you can fit a lot more in your suitcase–this is particularly helpful if you are traveling in winter with a bunch of bulky, space-taking sweaters. But just be careful that you don’t go over your airline’s weight limitations if you are flying!
• If you are flying with a child that requires a car seat on the plane, check out Go-Go Kidz’s Car Seat Travel carrier.  It is basically a wheeled cart that you attach any car seat to and then pull your child through the airport with and check the stroller at the gate.  It takes the misery of dragging a car seat around the airport–which I’ve done and can attest that it is not fun at all.  This accessory doesn’t come cheap, (the best price I found was at www.happymothers.com for about $75 including shipping) but is worth every penny if you end up in this situation.
• Bring new toys your child has never seen on the plane with you.  The days of “getting your wings” and special treatment on airlines is long gone–heck, even the free drinks on many international flights are finished too!  Save as much space in your carry-on bag for said toys, because you will need them!  I started to panic when our flight was delayed for 1 1/2 hours–half of it after we were already on the plane!  We went through 2 books, crayons and a coloring book, a Thomas Color-Forms set and Aquadoodle before take-off.  Thankfully Nicolas fell asleep before we ran through all of his snacks as well.  (My discerning child did not like the airplane food and I’ve learned that kids’ meals aren’t an option.)
• If traveling overseas, use your credit or debit cards as infrequently as possible.  Yes, I know carrying cash for some folks is painful and makes them nervous about getting pickpocketed.  However, the lousy exchange rates coupled with the hefty transaction fees levied by your credit card company are nothing short of breathtaking–particularly if you make a bunch of small purchases. And if you are going to be in another country for an extended period of time (or have children doing a foreign exchange), find out if your bank or a bank in your area has branches or agreements with local banks in the host country.  Then open an account there while still in the U.S. and save yourself both fees and hassles.

If anyone has any other tips to add, please do share!

Copyright 2008-2009 Kristin Delfau, author of Turbo-Mom's Guide to Saving Money Without Wasting Time a womens' personal finance book, and Aji Publishing.

Tags: credit cards, travel
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Guilt-Free Shopping

Wednesday, March 25th, 2009

Hi Everyone! Sorry for the posting delay…tax season makes it a bit crazy for me!

A special hello to all of the new visitors coming from the Blog Party at 5minutesformom!

So what is guilt-free shopping? It’s when you buy something and you know you can afford it because there is money in the bank to pay for it!  In our house, we stick to a debit/cash payment style 95% of the time.  The only time we use a credit card is when making an online purchase for something like airfare, where we don’t find it to be a good idea to put our debit card number out on the web, even if it does have a Visa logo on it. 

But what happens when you are not in guilt-free shopping mode?  What if there are credit card bills piling up?  Where do you start to undo them?

The lousy part of this economy is that it brings out the vultures in our society–those who prey on people suffering.  Those who say they can “fix” your credit if you just pay them $500 or $1000  and they will get everything fixed for you.  Or they tell you you can “just declare bankruptcy” and that will work.  And then when it doesn’t work out you feel double-ripped off and helpless.

If you or someone you know is having problems managing their debt, there is a legit non-profit out there to help.   Try www.debtadvice.org.  This is the website for the National Foundation for Credit Counseling, a branch of Consumer Credit Counseling Services (www.cccsinc.org).  With these folks, you have the opportunity to work with a trained, certified NFCC counselor.  And you can achieve for free or very little cost what these debt settlement companies may charge thousands of dollars for. 

I actually called these folks and interviewed one of their staff members for my book and asked every question I could think of to determine their legitimacy and understand how they work to make sure I wasn’t recommending a group that would rip off my readers.  These are good folks that can get you on the right track when you are ready to take control of your debt.  Then it is 100% guilt-free shopping!

Copyright 2008-2009 Kristin Delfau, author of Turbo-Mom's Guide to Saving Money Without Wasting Time a womens' personal finance book, and Aji Publishing.

Tags: credit cards, debt, free stuff, guilt-free shopping, saving money
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Credit cards

Monday, January 26th, 2009

First of all, thanks to everyone who came to my author talk at the Danbury Library yesterday.  We had a great time!  Please check out my other upcoming radio/library appearances–we continuously update them to keep you informed!

 One of the topics we talked about yesterday was credit cards.  For many folks, credit cards were problematic before all of the economic upheaval in the U.S.  Now they are downright overwhelming.  Which, among other things, means that the vultures come out.  I am talking about those companies that promise to get rid of your credit card debt and/or help you declare bankruptcy, charge you an arm and a leg to do it, and then you are left with the wreckage of their help.  Instead, here are 3 ways to help get yourself back on track:

 There are several players in the get out of debt arena that are honest, trustworthy, and can actually help you get the job done. However, no method will be successful without commitment on your part to take charge of your debt, get rid of it, and never let it happen again.

Provider: You (as in DIY Credit Card Management)

Website: None

What it is: You take control of your debt by calling each of your creditors and negotiating a lower interest rate or a better payment plan. Then you stick to the plan and knock out your debts one by one. If you are nervous about negotiating, go back to the “Ask, Ask, Ask” chapter.

Pros: No additional cost other than your current interest rates. Negotiating on your own saves you money as well as keeps your credit report cleaner since you do not use a service to manage your debt. It’s also very empowering!

Cons: This method requires a large amount of self-discipline, motivation and organization. Take notes on everything that you do, who you talk to and before paying anything to anyone, get the deal you made in writing.

Provider: Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University

Website: www.daveramsey.com

What it is: A guide to getting out of debt using Method 2 above. This is for folks who want to manage their own debt but don’t know where to start. You can purchase Ramsey’s book, The Total Money Makeover for about $20 (or borrow it from your local library) or his entire Financial Peace University Kitfor about $150. If you buy the kit, you are also entitled to attend any of the Financial Peace classes held around the country for free as well as have lifetime access to his financial counselor hotline.

Pros: A relatively inexpensive way to organize your finances and get yourself out of debt. There’s no going through a debt consolidation process and no further trashing of your credit. Free lifetime phone support comes with the plan. It’s straightforward, easy to follow, and generates results. Consider it a financial lifestyle change instead of a financial diet.

Cons: Quality of Financial Peace classes can vary greatly. You must be able to focus and practice much self-control to make this method work.

Provider: Consumer Credit Counseling Services

Website: www.cccsinc.org

What it is: One of the few legitimate companies dedicated to helping you get out of unsecured debt. They are a non-profit organization that works to lower the interest rates on your debts (not the debts themselves) and consolidate your payments. They provide free credit counseling and budgeting; you only pay if you decide to use their Debt Management Plan. You write one check to them and they send it to your creditors. You can also discuss bankruptcy options with them.

Pros: Lower interest rates on your outstanding debts mean that you can get yourself debt-free sooner. Not as damaging to your credit as companies who perform debt negotiation, or reduction of the actual amount owed. They also work with you to create a budget and keep you out of debt in the future. The low monthly cost to be in their program is dictated by individual state law: the highest monthly fee they can charge is $50/month, but many states are in the $15-$25/month range.

Cons: If you do not control your spending, this is like a financial diet as opposed to a lifestyle change. Also, if your interest rates are already low but you have a high amount of debt, their services will not be very helpful to you.

If you are in a bad credit card situation, promise yourself today that you will use one of these tools to get you back on track.  My heart goes out to you–you can do it!!

Copyright 2008-2009 Kristin Delfau, author of Turbo-Mom's Guide to Saving Money Without Wasting Time a womens' personal finance book, and Aji Publishing.

Tags: credit cards, Dave Ramsey, interest rates
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