Life Today For Women

U.S. News online recently published an article entitled “15 Things You Shouldn’t be Paying For.” After reading this article, I started thinking about some of the ways we really do waste our money because we don’t take the time to think about alternatives or, perhaps, choose not to spend some time to save. Without rehashing the entire article, I thought it would be useful to expand on some of the useful points it made and perhaps add some new ideas for those still feeling the effects of today’s sluggish economy.

1.         Credit Report Paying for a copy of your credit report is, definitely, something you should not need to do. As the U.S. News article suggested, you can sign up for a free trial with a credit monitoring service online and just cancel before the free trial expires. Besides this, many individuals do not know that the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) allows individuals to obtain a free copy of their credit report if you are denied credit and/or financing, are unemployed or on welfare. You are permitted one credit report every twelve months. Under one of these circumstances, you can obtain a copy of your free FCRA report by visiting www.annualcreditreport.com or www.experian.com/reportaccess. You may also be able to mail in a written request, but be sure to contact one of the credit reporting agencies first to obtain instructions.

2.         Movies & Video Games This is one area that still perplexes me when I think about it, in particular movies and video games. I have wondered how local movie stores, such as Blockbuster, continue to stay in business when there are hundreds of movies and video games for rent at no cost by visiting a local library. As a bonus, you can often rent a movie or video game for 7 days with the option to renew, again, at no cost. Isn’t this better than stressing over returning a movie within the 2-day time period the movie stores allot? And, if you happen to forget, you are charged late fees that could likely have rented another movie or game. This suggestion is not made with the intent to harm any company’s movie rental business, but it is intended to get individuals think about alternatives. Although you probably won’t find the latest new release at the library, you may be pleasantly surprised at some of the fairly recent titles available. If you have a little patience and want to save a bundle, this is the route to go.

            Another possibility is to swap movies and video games you own with friends and family. This can give you a good mix of possibilities without spending the extra dollar. It can also provide some good conversation pieces after you’ve both tested out your latest game or watched the same movie. Finally, as the U.S. News article suggested, you can also rent DVDs from RedBox locations for one dollar and even avoid that $1 charge by obtaining coupon codes online. One such source is www.insideredbox.com. I have seen RedBox rental stations in a variety of stores, such as Wal-Mart and Meijer. For those antsy to actually rent a movie, $1 is certainly better than $5.

3.         Books This will be my last stop for this particular article, but oh such an important one. Similar to movies and video games, the U.S. News article sent the reminder that you can get books from the library. That sounds silly to even write, but with the enormous industry surrounding book purchases, consumers must need the reminder. I know I do. When I am looking for a book on a particular topic, I usually (out of habit) head online to Amazon. What I should do is, first, check my local library’s database to see if they hold a book that will meet my needs. Even though I always purchase the used book, I would much rather get the information I need without spending anything, wouldn’t you?

There are so many other great ways to save money, but these are a great place to start. So, next time you are standing in the check-out line to rent a movie or need a copy of your credit report, remember these tips. Bad habits can be hard to break, but if it means saving a few bucks, we should at least try!