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Tuesday, September 16, 2014

19 Fees You Should Never Pay. Affordable Cuts of Beef, Homemade Savings


Poor Man Survival

Self Reliance tools for independent minded people…

 


 

ISSN 2161-5543

A Digest of Urban Survival Resources

Use what talents you possess; the woods would be very silent if no birds sang there except those that sang best.
- Henry Van Dyke


 


19 fees you should never pay…Plus, Watch for those hidden charges!


Costs associated with airlines, banks, car dealers, credit cards, and more can add up…how much money are losing each year?


 

Many online purchases come with concealed charges often hidden in the fine print…often revolving around automatic charges made to your credit card each month.  These phantom charges can add up so it is always wise to double check your credit card and bank statements monthly [or more often].

On average these hidden charges average $215 per person annually.  Of course, there is an app for that.  BillGuard (free for Android and Apple) spots suspicious transactions which you can dispute directly from your phone.  It can forward your challenges to the merchant and, if you prevail, wipe the charge from your account.

We all hate the dozens of little fees which attack our wallet on an endless basis…and not just because all of that nickel-and-diming adds up to a pretty penny.  It’s also because they can be hard to escape. Consumers pay $2.4 billion per year in credit-card late fees—and $800 million in expedited-payment fees to avoid those late charges. We cough up $31 billion annually in debit-card overdraft fees. That’s a lot of $30-a-pop penalties for payments that banks authorized in the first place.

Airlines fees can be just as bad. Spirit Airlines, for example, ropes you in with its claim of “ultra-low fares,” then gouges you for $90 to check your first bag at the airport, $110 for the second, and $100 per carry-on (round-trip).

Still, many fees can be avoided or minimized. Here’s a guide:

Banking


Banks often give you an escape hatch, so use it to save. Avoid ATM withdrawal fees, usually $2 to $3, by using your own bank’s machines or fee-free ATM network. Or tap the cash-back feature many supermarkets offer when you pay by debit card. Stamp out those $25 to $35 overdraft fees by monitoring balances with a smart-phone banking app, signing up for e-mail alerts that tell you when your balance is low, and opting out of overdraft protection plans, which set you up to overdraw.

Avoid big-bank checking fees of $8 to $15 per month by signing up for direct deposit, maintaining minimum balances, or switching to a credit union, community bank, or branchless online or smart-phone virtual bank, where free checking is more common. And axe your bank’s $75 check-printing fee by paying more bills electronically and by buying the same 500 checks from Costco for just $12 to $14.

Read the rest here at Consumer Reports:


 

 

More Money Saving Tips

 


 

 
Shampoo - Cut the last step out of the “lather, rinse, repeat” suggestion. One wash is almost always enough to do the trick.  Grandma always diluted her shampoo with water in order to stretch a buck.

Since you don’t have to squeeze hard, you can determine exactly how much you need. This is good for people with arthritis or other hand issues. (Hint: Save that bottle when it’s nearly empty and squirt in half of a new bottle.

 

Healthy, inexpensive snacks for kids
read more here

 

Another common household item you’re probably misusing is vinegar. Sure, it’s great for cooking and for dyeing Easter eggs, but it can replace a number of household cleaners, too. (For more information, see “Earth Day Smackdown: Homemade vs. Store-Bought Cleaners.”)

 

It does more than just clean, according to Yazmin Cruz of the Bargain Babe website. The article “31 Secret Uses for Vinegar” extols the stinky stuff’s abilities…

 


 


Navigating the beef section of your grocery store can sometimes be a daunting task. Before I went to culinary school, I was baffled at the huge range of cuts and prices. What is a clod? What does chuck mean? Grocery shopping shouldn’t feel like a pop quiz! If you’re searching for affordable cuts, stick with muscles that do the most work, like the […] MORE >

 

Cheaper Cooking Spray

Why pay for fancy aerosol cooking sprays? I bought an inexpensive spray bottle and filled it with olive oil. It does the same thing at a fraction of the price!

 

 


Now free of charge…the best damned valuable information package in America!

Lost in the rhetoric about the decline of the middle class is the reality of the decline. Nearly everyone is aware that the middle class is struggling, but few understand how the struggle plays out in everyday life.

How to Survive the…

War on Middle Class and All 9 Bonus Reports can be downloaded here:


 

 
Find the resources YOU WILL NEED here:


 
www.OurGreatBargains.com

 

 Yours in freedom,

Bruce ‘the Poor Man’

 

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