Seven Graduation Presents That Won’t Clobber the College Fund

Written by Ed Avis - 4 Comments

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As my 17-year-old son approaches his high school graduation, all sorts of expenses are aiming for my wallet. But I’m deflecting one commonly overlooked graduation expense: Gifts for the half dozen or so graduates who will invite us to their open houses. Cash is the standard graduation gift these days, but face it, cash is crass. And it’s expensive! So instead of a card filled with cash, consider one of these seven alternatives if you’re faced with a slew of graduation open houses:

1. A framed copy of the graduation announcement

I’m guessing that all of my son’s classmates are buying the standard-issue graduation announcement, which is approximately 4 x 6 inches. I’ll buy some decent mattes and frames for that size item, carefully lay in each kid’s announcement, add a line of calligraphy at the bottom congratulating the student, and voila! I have perfectly acceptable gift to give.

And, unlike a $50 gift card, the graduate will keep this gift and probably display it on his nightstand in college (at least until he moves and it gets shoved into some cardboard box).

2. A school memory book

Many photo developers, such as Shutterfly and Walgreens, offer remarkably inexpensive photo books. If you know the graduating senior well, dig out a handful of photos of him or her, add a bunch of generic ones from the school, and create one of these books. A guaranteed winner. If you don’t know the kid all that well, still make the book but focus on the generic photos from the school, together with any that you can find of your child together with the graduate.

Yes, official school yearbooks are basically fancy photo books, but nothing beats a semi-custom book — and you don’t need to limit yourself to one year when making your own books.

3. A cool t-shirt

Our town, and probably your town, has a custom apparel shop (if you can’t find one, go to any independent sporting goods store that makes uniforms for local teams — or buy a custom t-shirt online). These places are clever, and can make a cool t-shirt out of about any image or collection of images.

Bring in a favorite photo, your school logo, a favorite saying, an image of your school mascot, whatever, and they can put it on a shirt. This is one of those gifts the graduate will not be getting from anyone else. And since multiple copies of the same shirt cost much less than the first, make a batch of them to cover all the grads on your list.

4. An engraved mug

A mug is an exceedingly useful item for someone starting out on her own. She can drink out of it, store pens or change it, use it to keep a window open, or make it into a candle holder. And if the mug says “Smithville High School Class of 2012… The best ever!” or something like that, it’s a seriously cool gift.

If you have a set of these made, either online or from some bricks-and-mortar business, you’ll have enough gifts to go around without spending mugful of moolah.

5. A box of stationery and stamps

OK, this one will label you old-fashioned, but… If you don’t mind that, this is a gift that will be appreciated long after most graduation gifts are consumed. Who writes letters anymore? Kids who need to thank all the people who gave them graduation gifts, that’s who. And kids with grandparents who remember when mail was the primary way to communicate. And kids who will eventually be going on job interviews and will need to thank their interviewers.

6. A small, strong box

For the first time in their lives, graduates who leave home will have to keep track of all sorts of small items, from Social Security cards to passports to student loan papers. And they’ll want these things to be safe.

A steel box, which you can pick up at any office supply store, will seem like an odd gift at first, but soon the graduate will be delighted to have somewhere to store the growing pile of important items. And that box will follow them throughout their lives.

7. A blank book

True, most books have been obviated by the Kindle and its ilk, but there’s still something enchanting about a book full of blank pages waiting to be sketched on, written on, filled with scrap-book items, etc. The next decade of the graduate’s life is going to be jam-packed with memory making moments, and having somewhere to note some of these will be a joy. Rediscovering this book many decades later could be a truly moving experience.

One thing is for sure about all of these gifts — it’s unlikely the graduate you care about will get anything similar from someone else. And these gifts will long outlast the usual claptrap, cash, and gift cards. Congratulations!

Filing Taxes After the Deadline

Written by Nickel - 3 Comments

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It’s been nearly two weeks since the deadline to file your 2011 income taxes. If you missed the deadline, you’re likely in a panic and may not be sure what to do. The reality of the situation is that you’ll likely face penalties and interest (assuming that you owe) but you can minimize the damage by acting quickly.

Here are some tips for those that missed the filing deadline:

• File as soon as possible. If you owe money, penalties and interest are accruing as we speak. The sooner you file, the less you’ll have to pay.
• Pay as much as you can. If you can pay the full amount due, great. Do so. But don’t be surprised if you receive an additional bill for the penalties and interest. If not, then pay as much as you can and apply for an installment agreement (use Form 9465) to pay the rest.
• Plead your case. The law allows the IRS to reduce/remove penalties (but not interest) based on “reasonable cause.” There’s not a lot of guidance as to what’s acceptable here but, if you have a legitimate excuse, it can’t hurt to ask. You’ll need to produce a written and signed (under penalty of perjury) statement detailing the facts.
• File to claim your refund. If you don’t owe anything, you should still file in a timely fashion. There won’t be any penalties either way (since the penalties are based on how much you owe) but you won’t get any refund that might be due until you file.
• You can still e-file. E-filing is actually available up through the extension deadline (October 15, 2012).
• You can still Free File. If your income is $57k or less, you can use the IRS Free File program. If not, you can use the free fillable forms or any of a number of other tax prep methods (including pen and paper).

Finally, if you’ve already filed, but you dropped it in the mail late, you might be okay. Rumor has it that the IRS doesn’t bother checking postmarks, so if it was only a couple of days late, you may be in the clear. Just keep an eye on your mailbox for any tax bills that might show up — and keep your fingers crossed.

Also, as a reminder, the penalty for “failure to file” is more severe that the penalty for a late payment. Thus, in the future, you should file your return on time (or at least request an extension).

And now… Grab a red pen and circle April 15, 2013 on your calendar. That’s the deadline for filing your 2012 income taxes.

Citi Forward Signup Bonus: 10k Points = $100 in Gift Cards

Written by Nickel - 12 Comments

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This is just a quick note to let you know that Citi is offering 10k bonus points on the Citi Forward card. Here’s the deal…

Simply apply for the card, get approved, and spend $650 within the first three months to get 9k points. Sign up for electronic statements (again, within three months) and you’ll get another 1k bonus points. The 10k total points can be redeemed for up to $100 in store gift cards through the ThankYou network.

Going forward (no pun intended), you’ll receive 5 points for every dollar spent at bookstores, record stores, restaurants, movie theaters, and video stores. You’ll earn 1 point for every dollar spent elsewhere. You can earn up to 75k points per year, and there is no annual fee for this card.

ProTip: According to multiple sources, purchases from Amazon qualify for the 5% “bookstore” treatment. Nice!

If you keep this card for the longer term, you will receive 100 bonus points for each on-time payment. You can also reduce your interest rate based on making on-time payments for three consecutive months, but none of you should care about that because you never carry a balance. Right?!?!?

Speaking of interest rates, you’ll get 0% on purchases for the first seven months, and 0% on balance transfers (albeit with a 3%/$5 minimum transfer fee) for 12 months assuming the transfer is made within the first four months.

If you’re interested…

Using ING Direct’s Smartphone App to Deposit Checks

Written by Nickel - 3 Comments

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As a followup to my earlier post about remote deposit at ING Direct, I just wanted to share my first deposit experience. I had two small checks lying around so I figured I’d test it out.

Here are the steps:

1. Endorse your check.
2. Launch the app and hit the “deposit” button.
3. Snap a photo of the front of the check.
4. Snap a photo of the signed back of the check.
5. Enter the amount of the check on the next screen.
6. Select the account into which you want to deposit the check.
7. Enter any relevant notes about the deposit.
8. Repeat for additional checks.

Seconds later, I had a pair of e-mail notifications (one for each check) stating that my deposits would post the next business day (since I made the deposits after 5PM).

At 10AM this morning, I received another pair of e-mails stating that the deposits had been processed and that I was free to void the checks. The funds are showing up in my balance, but are not yet “available”. Since both checks were so small, I expect the full amounts to be made available tomorrow.

Should You Buy a Home Now?

Written by Sarah Gilbert - 13 Comments

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This is a guest post from Sarah Gilbert.

The story of one mortgage

I got my mortgage statement in the mail a few weeks ago. I bought my Portland, Oregon home 10 years ago on a busy street in an up-and-coming neighborhood with what I thought was a super-low interest rate: 5.25%. It was a five-year ARM, meaning that it would stay at 5.25% for five years and then change every year based on some margin over the 10-year treasury rate.

The good news is that it can’t move more than one percentage point in either direction, and also cannot move outside a five point range (i.e., it’s capped at 10.25%). I could remember my parents, who bought my childhood home in 1978, paying 14% or more. An ARM, I thought, could only get so bad.

Now, I’ve been proved so right, I almost cry with joy each year when I get my interest rate statement. After a couple years in the mid-2000s of rising, it’s been going down, down, down, to an all-time low of 2.825% starting April 2012. I’m paying about the same for my mortgage as it would cost to rent a much-smaller, downstairs apartment nearby, the one whose landlord is too chintzy to even provide recycling bins.

I have a home that was bought when the market was in the first half of a decades-long rise. It peaked in August 2008 (my home, says Zillow, was worth $344,000 then) and has since fallen in value to about 20% less than its peak value (still close to double what I paid and more than double what I owe; I’m not complaining, ever).

But I get questions all the time from friends and readers: should I buy, now? Is the market at its bottom? Is this an interest rate market worth jumping into? And what about the mortgage interest deduction: might it go away? Is home ownership a good thing any more, or is it better to rent? What they all want to know is:

Should I buy a home now?

As always, so much is dependent on your circumstances. I think, generally, yes, the current interest rate market is worth jumping into, and yes, the housing market seems to have come to (at least a temporary) bottom. Given the disclaimer that no one can possibly know anything for certain about the future, I consider myself a pretty good prognosticator. I base this on the belief that trends are all about psychology, something I’m better-than-average at assessing.

In my opinion, the low point of February 2011 will not be seen again for a while. If I’m right, and your market, like mine, is beginngin to trend up (albeit gradually), now is a great time to buy. (Was that enough “ifs”?) Here’s how to decide if you should buy a home now:

• Do you have good enough credit to score a less-than-5% ARM or fixed rate mortgage? If yes, take a look at the proposed mortgage terms and do — or have your mortgage broker do — the math. What is the maximum interest rate you could ever pay, and how much would you pay for your mortgage in that case? Is that more or less than you’d pay in 10 years for rent? (Very probably, rent will increase each year no matter what the real estate market does.)
• How high could your payment go? Could you afford that now? My maximum possible mortgage payment (not accounting for increases in property taxes) is about $1,400; if the interest rates are that high I’m sure I’d pay that much for rent for my family of five.
• How stable are you? My family is very stable; most of our extended family lives in this city and my husband and I went to the same high school where our children will go. We feel like we belong here. Plus, I’m a freelance writer and my husband is an Army Reservist; it’s unlikely that our jobs will take us away (and if they do, we could conceivably rent the house). If we were more transient, the uncertainty of the market in the immediate future would probably make renting a far safer bet.
• Are you the sort of person who will do it all yourself? Home ownership means gardening and fixing things and making sure your gutters are clean. If you’re paying other people to do it — especially in a 100-year-old house like mine — it can erase any financial benefit of home ownership fast. I love to garden and paint and dig and I even installed the tile in my own bathroom (it’s gorgeous!). My dad and husband have framed and drywalled and done the electricity and plumbing. Not everyone has that skillset or desire.
• Do you have money saved up for a down payment? This is the key, really: when I bought my home, 5% down payments were ordinary. Now even people with great credit must put up 20%. If you don’t have it in non-retirement savings, you should probably rent, keep your expenses as low as possible, and save until you have a nice chunk of change.
• How about this tax thing? There has been a lot of talk lately about eliminating the mortgage interest deduction for taxes. If your home is significantly above the median home price; between $200,000 and $220,000; this might reduce your tax bill pretty nicely. Nickel has a nice evaluation of whether this is a big deal; I haven’t itemized for a few years thanks to my plentiful children and low healthcare expenses and state taxes. In any case, I think you shouldn’t count on mortgage interest deduction as part of your home ownership equation.

I think now is a great time to buy a home; the market seems to have stabilized and the interest rates are very, very low. However, I don’t think it’s a sure thing, the sort of market you should rush into blind without doing the math for your situation. And, of course, the real estate market is very location specific.

That being said, the Fed shows no signs of considering interest rate hikes in the near future (~2 years). Rising gas prices only makes it more likely they’ll keep rates low. And home prices are always in flux; if they’re up too high in a few years when you’ve saved a down payment or know where you want to live for the next decade, rent for another year and I’d be willing to bet the market will be down again.

ING Direct Adds Remote Deposit – Finally!

Written by Nickel - 14 Comments

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At long last, ING Direct has added remote deposit. They’ve been promising that it’s “coming soon” since last summer, and it’s finally here.

Here are some details:

• There is no fee to make remote deposits.
• You can either use their mobile app or scan/upload.
• There is a limit of $3k per check.
• For checks under $500 deposited into an Electric Orange Checking account, the first $200 is available the next business day, the rest after two business days.
• For checks over $500 deposited into an Electric Orange Checking account, the first $200 is available the next business day, the rest after five business days.
• For all checks deposited into an Orange Savings account or a Kid Savings account, the funds will be available after five business days.
• Checks deposited after 5PM on weekdays, after 2PM on Saturdays, or anytime on Sundays or holidays will be processed the next business day.
• Checks may be rejected if the image is blurry, too dark/light, or otherwise unreadable, has not been properly endorsed, or if it exceeds the $3k limit.
• After depositing, you’ll need to hang onto the check until you get an e-mail from ING Direct saying the deposit is complete.

What do you think? As far as I’m concerned, this is a very welcome addition. That being said…

I would personally like to see a limit of $5k/check, as I sometimes receive checks in excess of $3k, but only rarely (if ever) will I get one over $5k. I realize that my situation may be unique, but it’s a limitation that will force me to continue using the ATM for at least some of my deposits.

I actually have a couple of low dollar checks lying around right now, so I will test it out and report back on my experiences.

Hat tip: Sweating the Big Stuff

Is it Time to Switch to LED Lightbulbs?

Written by Nickel - 26 Comments

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A little over five years ago, I replaced all of the lightbulbs in our house with CFLs. At the time, CFL prices had finally come down to the point of affordability and the technology improved to the point where we could find (with some searching) bulbs with decent light quality and minimal warmup time.

With this past Sunday being Earth Day, the next generation of lighting products — LED lightbulbs — has been in the news. From a technical perspective, these bulbs look great. Instant on, no warmup, good light quality, extremely long life, and low energy requirements. The main problem is the price — as much as $60 per bulb.

So… The question is whether or not it makes sense to switch to LED lightbulbs. I’ve given this a lot of thought and decided that the time isn’t quite right, at least for us. Don’t get me wrong, I fully understand that the large upfront investment gets paid back (and then some) in terms of energy savings and bulb replacement costs.

But, in our case, we’re already realizing the energy savings due to our prior switchover to CFLs. As it turns out, the energy requirements of CFLs and LEDs are roughly equivalent, as they both use ca. 25% of the energy of an equivalent incandescent bulb. We still have a lot of life left in our CFLs, as well as a number of replacements sitting on the shelf in our laundry room.

At the same time, I’m expecting LED bulb quality to continue improving and prices to drop considerably in the next few years. Thus, I’ll likely begin the transition over time as our CFLs wear out. As our supply dwindles, I’ll consolidate the remaining CFLs into individual fixtures/rooms and start replacing them with LED bulbs.

Honestly, in this case, the extremely long life of LEDs works against them as I don’t want to invest a ton in bulbs that are likely to be left in the dust by newer models as the technology matures.

That being said, if you’re looking for LED bulbs, I highly recommend checking out this detailed review by Marco Arment. You might also want to check out this bulb (that’s a link) from the Lighting Science Group. It’s been getting rave reviews.

So, dear readers, I’d love to hear your thoughts on the topic. Are you making the switch to LED bulbs? Or are you sticking with your current incandescent or CFL bulbs?

Note: There’s been some discussion of the mercury content of CFL bulbs in the comments, so I thought I’d add this link to instructions (from the EPA) on how to clean up a broken CFL. I’ve also written elsewhere about how to properly dispose of CFL bulbs – don’t just throw them in the trash!

In-Store Health Care Savings

Written by Jeffrey Steele - One Comment

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If you, like me, have been around since nearly the dawn of time, you likely recall an early 1970s TV show called Marcus Welby, M.D. The show’s premise was simplicity itself. A kindly old doctor, who teamed with a young, studly, hipper doc, made house calls on a variety of patients, and usually became ensnared in their lives.

As I recall it, patients rarely came to his office. He went to them, with doctor’s bag in hand and a smile on his face. His bill for services rendered couldn’t have been bad. I can’t recall a patient ever disputing a charge.

I’ve often thought of that show as I watched with alarm the morphing of the American health care landscape over the past decades. Every year, it seemed, as my income inched higher, my insurance premiums exploded by double digits halfway to the moon. At least I stayed pretty healthy, which was good because overnight hospital visits had grown about as costly as a mid-sized automobile.

Not 40 years after America bought the notion of Dr. Welby striding each week into his patients’ homes, health care had done a 180, and become more impersonal, inaccessible, and expensive than anyone could have envisioned.

So imagine my excitement and relief when some positive news finally emerged for those of us weary of high costs and the inability to get some basic medical care when we need it. That news was the advent within the past decade of the clinics tucked inside many neighborhood Walgreens and CVS pharmacies.

I don’t know about you, but if given the choice between having to make an appointment at a crowded and impersonal doctor’s office or medical center filled with sniffling patients, or simply strolling down to the pharmacy clinic located in my immediate neighborhood, I’d choose the second option any day of the week. If time is money, and we know it is, that’s spending green in your pocket.

The unveiling of these clinics is an upbeat development in a minefield of misery. So much so I sometimes worry they won’t be patronized enough and will vanish from the scene. While it’s probably an unreasonable fear, I’m not taking any chances. This is my opportunity to run down the list of all the reasons to utilize them, and ensure they’re embraced to such an extent they’ll never go away.

Quality of care

The first question most folks ask about these clinics is about the level of care offered. I checked it out, and am told pharmacy-based clinics are staffed by board-certified nurse practitioners who are able to diagnose, treat, and prescribe.

From what I hear, these women and men are as well or better trained than the general practitioner of years ago, the very Welbyish doc we see in our mind’s eye when we summon memories of the “good old days” of family medicine.

Accessibility

Don’t fret about getting sick on evenings, weekends or while your doctor lines up a putt at the 11^th green. Pharmacy-based clinics are open seven days a week, many evenings, and even on your physician’s preferred golf dates.

It’s even possible to go online and reserve a time to meet the medical professional at your local clinic. Of course, pharmacy-based clinics offer walk-in services as well as appointments.

Conditions treated

Have you ever had to take hours away from work or family to visit a doctor and have a sore throat or upper respiratory infection treated?

Well, these conditions, along with flu, coughs, ear infections, sinus infections, bladder infections, skin conditions like shingles and eczema and many others can be treated around the corner at your neighborhood pharmacy clinic.

Vaccinations

Who wants to go through the hassle of a doctor’s visit to simply get a flu shot? With the dawn of the era of pharmacy-based clinics, you don’t have to. Flu shots, pneumonia vaccinations, shingles vaccinations, and other vaccinations are now as close as your local pharmacy, and often less costly.

Insurance

Treatment by pharmacy-based clinics is covered by most insurance plans. For instance, Walgreens Take Care Clinics report: “Most commercial insurance plans, including Medicare and Medicaid, are accepted. If insured by a plan that covers a visit to the clinic, patients pay their insurance co-pay. Treatment for common illnesses starts at $79 for cash payers and/or the uninsured.”

Physicals

The chore of getting school, camp, college, sports, or administrative physicals is another nuisance you can check off your list by visiting your local pharmacy-based clinic. If you’re beyond the age of needing such exams, it’s likely you have a child or grandchild who can benefit from these physicals.

Referrals

Let’s say you don’t have a doctor, or your health condition is beyond the scope of medical services provided by the pharmacy-based clinic. Additional good news awaits you. The nurse practitioner on staff can provide you a referral to physicians in your area. Moreover, their lists are updated with names of physicians who are welcoming new patients.

Visit summaries

Tired of trying to read your physician’s handwriting? That’s not a problem at pharmacy clinics. CVS Minute Clinics, for instance, provide visit summaries at the conclusion of each visit. The summary will provide any test results and a treatment plan, which can be faxed to your physician with your permission.

Wellness and prevention

Pharmacy-based clinics can screen you for high cholesterol, hypertension, obesity and other conditions, and can help you monitor conditions for which you’ve already been diagnosed, such as asthma and diabetes.

They can get pack-a-day folks on a quit-smoking regimen, offer assistance to lower cholesterol, and provide a variety of other wellness services as well.

It’s my sincere hope that you go out and use your neighborhood pharmacy-based clinics, as long as you don’t overwhelm the friendly staff at the clinic in my ‘hood. You’ll find them good for your health: physical and fiscal.

How Long are Undeposited Checks Good?

Written by Nickel - 16 Comments

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Just over a year ago, my wife wrote a small check for an end-of-the-year school function of some sort. The check was made out to the school, but it was collected by another mom. A month or so later, I noticed that it still had not cleared the bank.

At the time, I assumed that it had just gotten lost in the shuffle and that it would eventually re-surface, perhaps when school started again in August. Well, it didn’t. And ever since then, this seven dollar check has been hanging out in MoneyDance waiting to be reconciled.

Over the weekend, I decided to ask the bank how best to handle this. At this point, I’m pretty sure that this check has been lost and/or forgotten, never to resurface again. Nonetheless, I wanted to check with the bank before completely forgetting about it.

Since I was already logged in, I clicked the “chat” icon in the Bank of America web interface and was soon connected with Jonathan. I explained the issue and this was his answer:

“Check are good for 180 days (unless otherwise noted), so if the check came from your personal checkbook, it would be void by now.”

That’s about what I figured, but I wanted to be sure, so I asked if he was 100% sure that Bank of America would refuse payment of the check if it ever resurfaced and got deposited. His reply:

“Yes, that’s correct.”

Good to know.

In fact, under the Uniform Commercial Code, banks in the United States are not legally obligated to pay checks older than six months (link). Of course, this leaves some wiggle room. Your bank may not be required to honor an old check, but they might choose to do so. You would thus be well-advised to check with your bank before ignoring an old check in your register.

Since it’s such a small check, I’m not worried about it showing up in the future and causing an overdraft. It is, however, possible that we’ll eventually close that account and that the check will subsequently re-surface. I thus printed a pdf of the conversation and dumped it into Evernote on the off chance that I ever need proof that I was told the check was void and wouldn’t be honored.

For the record, I would happily write a new check if I could figure out who to pay. Unfortunately, the school was just a pass-through entity in this case, and the money was ultimately destined for someone in the classroom. Thus, we have no idea who we owe.

Social Security Payments Transitioning to Direct Deposit

Written by Nickel - 20 Comments

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Guess what? Starting next year, Social Security recipients as well as those receiving veterans’ benefits, railroad pensions, and federal disability payments will no longer receive physical checks sent through the mail. Instead, the government will only issue electronic payments.

In general, this means direct deposit to a bank account, though debit cards will be available for the unbanked. For the time being, tax refunds will be exempt from this requirement, though the IRS has been pushing direct deposit for quite some time.

As it turns out, 90% of these payments are already made electronically, but still… Making the remaining 10% of these payments (7.3M per month) represents should save the feds a significant chunk of change.

The changeover is expected to be complete by March 2013, at which point the USPS will have even less business (and greater losses) than it does right now.

All in all, I see this move as a good thing. It’s significantly cheaper — the estimated cost savings is $120M/year — and avoids the possibility of checks being lost or stolen. The primary downside is for those without bank accounts, as they could wind up facing ATM fees to access the money on their debit cards.

What do you think? Is this a good move?