Love to Shop? Read This First.

Who doesn't love to shop? While there are many people, even in my own family, who would rather have dental work than go shopping, I have to admit to to be one of the many people who truly love shopping. But, the thrill of buying is tainted if I didn't get a great deal on the price. So for those of us who hunt for the perfect item at the perfect price--here are a few ideas:

• Look online for price comparisons before hitting the physical stores, or better yet, get the item online at the price you want and stay out of the stores. You'll resist the temptation to buy other items by not seeing them.
• Check out Consumer Reports' "Shop Smart" magazine. It combines the reliability testing of products done by Consumer Reports with tons of helpful ideas to get good deals on products.
• Get to know the thrift/secondhand stores in your area. Find out what days they put new merchandise out and when they offer deeper discounts on certain color tags. i.e, 50% off on all blue tags on Sundays.
• Don't disregard certain stores because you think they're too high end. Some of those stores have amazing sales--I just got a long sleeve really nice casual men's shirt for $15 at Lord & Taylor.
• If you're willing to, sign up to get text messages of sales codes for stores. You don't have to carry any paper coupons with you (or, like most of us, forget to bring them in the store).
• Make sure you check the return policy of the store in case you might not want that item. Many stores are changing their policies and you don't want to lose the money spent. 
• For kids toys, garden tools, flower pots and outside furniture, try yard sales. They usually always have items for tons less than new.
• Plan some purchases around the "tax free" week your state may sponsor in August before back to school. Taxes add up.
• Lastly, be sure that any purchase is in your Spending Plan. The thrill of finding the perfect item for the perfect price sours quickly if you go into debt for it.

Authorized User/Co-Signer--Who Cares?

I come across a lot of people who have no idea what their legal and financial status is when they have a credit card or a loan with someone else. One mom let me know that she's working two jobs so she can pay her son's student loan which he can't pay. She co-signed the loan and doesn't want a negative account on her credit report and risk a lawsuit by not paying. Other women have told me that they are authorized users on their partner's credit card and wonder how that affects their credit.
Let's define the terms first:

Authorized User--someone who has permission to make charges on another person's credit card, but is not legally responsible for the debt.  Mint.com calls it "having a Credit card with training wheels". Pretty attractive for the authorized user. The primary account holder needs to exercise caution with this--if the authorized user makes a ton of purchases, the lender is looking to the Account holder to pay.

Co-Signer--Two people sign for a loan or credit card--both can make purchases/get the loan and both are legally responsible for the debt. If the primary person doesn't pay the debt, the co-signer will be the next person the lender comes to for payment (hence the mom working 2 jobs example above).

Information on the account is reported to the Credit Reporting Bureaus for all the parties involved--there is a myth out there that nothing is reported for the authorized user but that is incorrect. If fact, according to Experian, being an authorized user can help to build credit, if the account is in good standing (if the account is not and could harm an authorized users credit, they can have that account taken off).

It's important before you get into a legal and financial transaction with someone, that you are completely aware of what your risk is--what you will be responsible for--and how it could impact your credit rating. If you allow someone to be an authozied user on your credit card, be specific on the amount that person can spend, check your account often to ensure there aren't additional charges and be ready to take that person off the account if needed. If you co-sign with someone, make sure the payments on being made on time and be aware that you are at risk for the entire loan if that person bials on you.
For more information, see Bankrate.com article.

Percentage Deductibles--Huh?

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Have you ever heard of a Percentage Deductible? We're all used to insurance deductibles where we pay the first $250, $500 or $1000 of a claim (the higher the deductible, the lower your policy costs), whether it's car, home or renter's insurance. I attended a conference where the Maryland Insurance Administration gave a great presentation on insurance, feeling pretty proud that I already was aware of the various points the presenter was covering when, out of the blue, she told us to be wary of "Percentage Deductibles".  No one in the room had ever heard of them. She described them as this: instead of a set amount, and generally for certain specific coverages, you pay a percentage of the damage. So if you had a 20% percent deductible and your house was destroyed costing $250,000 to rebuild it, you would pay $50,000 out of your pocket. She further explained that the consumers who complained to her office about such deductibles had no idea they even had that and that it was devastating to them to incur such costs. You could hear a pin drop in that conference room as all of us were stunned.

Needless to say, I immediately checked my homeowner's policy when I got home. Sure enough, we have a 20% deductible on a rider we have for earthquake insurance (hey--it could happen--don't judge) meaning that we could potentially be out of tens of thousands of dollars if our home was damaged by an earthquake.

My insurance company, after quite nicely listening to me fume about how this was never fully disclosed etc, informed me that the only way to have earthquake insurance was to have a percentage deductible--but they could lower the percentage to 10% for $3 a year. I'm not happy--why don't they just write the policy for 10% and charge the $3 without the consumer having to know to ask--but I'm at least thankful that I've cut my risk in half. The Baltimore Sun newspaper covered this unknown issue which came up via Hurricane Sandy-apparently if the National Hurricane Center issues a hurricane warning for Maryland, insurers can charge a percentage deductible for any damage done by the hurricane.

We often get insurance and hope for the best--but take some time to check your policy and minimize your risk.

In Honor of St. Patrick's Day--17 Lessons Learned for European Travel

Our family was very lucky last year and enjoyed our first European trip. Our daughter was studying abroad in Spain and the rest of us joined her for the holidays-travelling to Valencia, Spain; Paris, France; Venice, Italy and Barcelona, Spain. Here are 17 lessons I learned from that wonderful trip:

1. Start planning your trip as far out as possible--we had 2 months which allowed for searching for flights and accommodations but not as much time as I would have liked to research the history/culture of each city.
2. Be realistic about your travel plans getting to your destination--we flew to Paris, then to Barcelona and then had a 3 hour train ride to Valencia. Between missed connections and the exhaustion of being up all night, I plan to scale down our travel time for the next trip.
3. Renting apartments was without a doubt, the best option for us. Having the additional space for everyone to sleep and relax without being in close quarters was invaluable. Adding a kitchen and usually a washer/dryer made for a smaller suitcase to lug around and the option of everyone being able to have breakfast whenever they wanted to. We used Trip Advisor and VRBO to research and find our apartments.
4. Pack light. The size restrictions for carry on luggage on European flights are smaller than the US restrictions so unless you want to check your luggage--and wait for often an hour upon arrival to retrieve you luggage, learn to mix and match.
5. Bring a filtered, refillable water bottle--it's essential.
6. Pick your seat on the plane carefully. On the flight over, we were one row behind the bulkhead--which is where the airlines have cleverly figured out how to attach basinets--5 of them in fact--I pitied the parents of those babies all night long as they struggled to soothe their children--along with the rest of us who did not sleep a wink.
7. Grocery stores in Europe are surprisingly cool--it was amazing how they packed in such a selection of items in such tight quarters. It's helpful to stand a minute and watch the regulars so you can figure out the "proper" way of navigating the store--just getting the carts in some stores were tricky--you had to get a special token to release the cart. Bring your own bag or realize that you will have to pay for each bag--if the store even has them. Some stores require you to weigh your produce in the produce section and it prints out a bar code for the cashier to scan.
8. Learn some of the common grocery names for items you want to buy before going. Even though we knew we were buying shrimp-we didn't realize that it was cooked shrimp vs raw shrimp--which made for a very different meal.
9. If you enjoy wine, look for these great shops that allow you to bring in a plastic liter bottle ans fill it up with wines from these huge wooden casks--that's what the locals do and I wish I had realized that earlier on.
10. Know some of the language for the country you are visiting--while most people do know some English, it's polite to at least be able to order something, thank someone or be able to ask for directions in their language. We found that if we attempted to speak the language, the locals were very responsive and helpful.
11. Valencia, Spain is amazing--beautiful beaches, modern urban area and very reasonably priced. Lots of people biking everywhere and very friendly locals.
12. Osteria Al Pozzo Roverso was our favorite restaurant in Venice.
13. Always bring some OTC meds with you--even though the pharmacies in Europe are plentiful, and easy to find--each one had a sign outside the door with a "+" over it--many shut down during the afternoon for a few hours and on Sundays, especially in Spain--which is exactly when someone will be sick. 
14. Ask a restaurant if they charge when they ask if you want water--unlike restaurants in USA where its common to bring water to the table, most European restaurants charge a fee for the water.
15. Bathrooms are unisex in restaurants--it's ok, you'll adjust.
16. Don't pack 4 cities into 2 weeks--next time, we'll spend more time in one location to get to know it and the people more.
17. Enjoy the lifestyle in Europe--we found it to be very relaxed, social and friendly to visitors.

Watch Out For "Check Out Fees"

Consumers have to work hard to get the best price for the best quality item they can get--doing their research before buying; comparison shopping; checking out the company to buy from and keeping all necessary paperwork--here's another example of how consumers could lose money if they don't watch out: Stores can now charge consumer a "Check Out Fee" for paying for their purchase with a credit card. Stores have to pay the credit card companies, VISA, MasterCard, American Express, Discover and others, a percentage of the purchase (the percentage rate varies which is why some stores don't accept American Express, who charges a higher percentage rate) and they can now pass that fee on to the consumer. Some states have made these check out fees illegal: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Kansas, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, Oklahoma and Texas. Lucky you if you live in one of those states. The rest of us need to contact our state elected officials. In the meantime, here's what you need to know about these fees:

• The store can only charge what fee they actually pay to the credit card issuing company, usually 1.5% to 4%.
• The store must disclose if they are going to charge the fee, by a sign in the store or before you check out online. However, ask every time before you buy if they charge this fee--it's always easier to not pay, than to deal with a dispute.

You do not have to pay this fee--you can ask the store to discount the purchase price of the item or use your undeniable right as a consumer--walk out and don't buy from a store who charges those fees.

Check out Consumer Action, a national non-profit consumer advocacy organization for more information on these fees.