Frugal Living - Wiser Consumer Wednesday

Welcome to Day 4 of the 24/7 MOMS Frugal Living event, our focus today is being a wise consumer. We also have a frugal invite for you to join in tonight and hear a blog talk radio show called Money 4 moms (details below). Be sure to Grab today's FREEbie it's a YUMMY one.

MONEY 4 MOMS Tonight :

I want to invite you to join Common Sense with Money tonight at their new time 9pm CST/10PM EST for their Radio Show Money4Moms. I am very excited about the show this evening. They are having Erin from $800 a year budget as a guest http://www.commonsensewithmoney.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/j4ghead1-300x175.jpg.
Erin sets every year only $800 dollars to feed her family of four. She has done it for a few years now. Because she relies on her stockpile heavily to get this accomplished she will be sharing her best stockpiling tips with us. We hope she will also share how she gets it done. If you have ever read her blog you will know how resourceful Erin is and I hope she can share some of her best money saving tips with us.

So please Join Tara, Erin and Mercedes tonight at 9PM CST/10PM EST, at their new time. You can listen online via their show page or right on their blog Common Sense with Money by using the blue BlogtalkRadio player on the right side bar or through your phone by calling the number (646) 716-8312.


Wiser Consumer Wednesday
by: Amy Hannold, of SavingCentsEveryday.com

Frugal living takes more than making the smarter, healthier choices. It means that we must be smarter than the average slogan or sales promise. We must have the tools (and use them) so that we can be an effective and efficient consumer. Instead of impulse buying and buying in “blind faith”, it is important to have a working knowledge of our options and rights. Taking the time to seek out the best product, and then find it at the best price is one way to use our resources wisely. Consumers have tools at the ready, available to help them in nearly every situation – it just takes knowing where to look. Being aware of these tools before you need them (before disaster strikes) is arming yourself (and those close to you) with priceless information.

Connect yourself to what I consider to be, the “Go-To Yellow Pages” of buying, selling and being a wiser consumer. The Consumer Action Handbook (http://www.consumeraction.gov/) is available on line or you can order a print version. If you have a consumer question, a need in your life for signing contracts, filing a complaint or recovering from identity theft (and more subjects), you must have a copy of this near your yellow pages. Just for fun even, it is enlightening reading. I find that in listening to others, I am the one who is able to point them in the right direction – and often times save them a whole lot of time and money, because I know about the Consumer Action Handbook.

What sort of information can be found in the Consumer Action Handbook?

*A step-by-step process for filing a consumer complaint

*Identity theft prevention and recovery

*Contact information to major corporations, including retail and manufacturer

*Buying a car, home or looking to invest? You can find tips and references here

*Your local consumer protection agency and Better Business Bureau

*Military Specific Better Business Bureaus (for military-related consumer news) and Military Support Agencies

*Teaching outlines for Teachers and other Consumer Mentors
*Subject information for Internet, Travel, Television, Health Care, Insurance and More
*Tips for shopping from home, junk mail and telemarketers – how to be aware of your rights

How Can Consumeraction.gov be of help to me?

*It acts as a guide when you encounter a consumer crisis. It begins with “be calm”, and continues as it provides a sample letter for you to use as you resolve your circumstances.

*If you want to learn about the importance of your credit score and how to improve it, or you want to know how to correct negative information on your credit report. (Links to all major credit-related organization and governing agencies are listed.)

*When you need to report a fraud, product defect or safety hazard, or you want to be informed of current product recalls and safety guidelines.

Tools You Can Use in These Financial Times:

*“How to Make Ends Meet" tools and links to forms which can help you calculate your circumstances and forms to apply for assistance: http://www.aarp.org/money/personal/real_relief_aarp/



*Ten Things You Must Keep in a Fireproof Safe:
http://www.legalzoom.com/legal-articles/10-Things-You-Must-Keep.html?WT.mc_id=EM_NEWS_JAN09BEST_NPFINAL&WT.mc_ev=EmailOpen&spMailingID=2332991&spUserID=NDE3MjE0MjY4OAS2&spJobID=64470653&spReportId=NjQ0NzA2NTMS1

*Ten Ways to Protect Yourself against Scams and Fraud:
http://www.consumerfed.org/pdfs/ten_ways_to_protect.pdf

Check out the “Go-To-Guide”. Once you have become familiar with it, use their text link to pass the good word onto others. You never know when you’re going to need this information (better to know it ahead of time!), or when you can save someone else their angst.


FREEbie of the day:


Get a FREEbie sample of Betty Crocker Warm Delights mini by signing up to receive the Betty Crocker® email newsletter.
http://freewarmdelights.bettycrocker.com/WarmDelights/Default.aspx?source=900





Frugal Quote for Thought:

“Seek the wisdom of the ages, but look at the world through the eyes of a child.”
-Author Unknown


Frugal Reading Review:

“Debt Proof Your Marriage”, by Mary Hunt (Author of “Debt Proof Your Kids”, “Financially Confident Woman”, and “Live Life for Half-Price”) Debtproofliving.com

When I speak to groups, a question I often get is how to bridge the financial philosophy gap between spouses. Money, according to statistics, is among the top issue that causes marital breakdown (or worse yet, divorce). Evaluating the expectations, challenges, and feelings about money of each man and wife, Mary Hunt guides you through conflict, and turns it into a workable plan. You can achieve financial harmony through addressing common obstacles and forming a strategy that will see you through the coming days as a team. This book is financial wisdom and insight, with a bonus measure of personal reflection (for you and your spouse), to improve communication and the likelihood that you’ll be able to navigate (as a team), the troubled seas life may throw you.

Upcoming Thursday: “Thrifty Meals & More"