Debt Management Credit Counseling Corp (http://www.dmcconline.org), a nonprofit charitable organization (DMCC), announces new program to assist consumers struggling to repay payday loans. Program provides repayment plans with affordable monthly payments and suspension of collection calls. DMCC also approved by state to provide Florida residents a 60 day deferment of their loan payments.
Month: April 2012
Thrifty Spending Issue 93: Money Saving Tip
5 Things you should always buy bulk
So if you decide to take the plunge and sign up for the membership, you’ll want to take full advantage of the best bulk-buying opportunities these stores have to offer. Here, then, are the things you should always aim to buy in bulk.
1. Toilet paper – meets the main criteria for bulk-buying: It doesn’t go bad, you’re always going to need it and you use it all the time. Just make sure you have room for it in your house, and that you buy a brand that you and your family actually like.
2. Bottled beverages – rather than buying individual bottles for $1.50 each, instead buy a 12-pack for $6.
3. Diapers – buying a 100-pack of diapers might sound daunting – in addition to the logistics of fitting it in your car and then finding room in your house, it also reminds you that you’ll be changing 100 diapers in the coming weeks. Still, it is still less expensive than buying less diapers at your local store.
4. Dog food and treats – try a 14-pound box of large Milk-Bone treats, which can be had for around $10 and which is enough to last for two dogs for half a year. Also buy rawhide dog chews in bulk, but be aware they don’t last as long in the house.
5. Laundry detergent – buying laundry detergent in bulk, usually means two giant containers of liquid or powdered soap sold together. To make the most of your purchase, follow the instructions and moderate your usage.
Thrifty Spending Issue 93
FEATURE ARTICLE: Bottom-shelf bargains at the supermarket
Lots of supermarket chains claim to bend over backward to serve their customers.
But experts say consumers can serve themselves by leaning a bit forward — to find overlooked bargains on the bottom shelves of grocery aisles.
It isn’t where you’re likely to find imported olive tapenade or balsamic vinegar older than a Spanish monastery. But on your next supermarket safari, hunting through the bottom shelf may be the ticket to bagging big savings.
MONEY SAVING TIP: 5 Things you should always buy bulk
So if you decide to take the plunge and sign up for the membership, you’ll want to take full advantage of the best bulk-buying opportunities these stores have to offer. Here, then, are the things you should always aim to buy in bulk.
DID YOU KNOW…It’s not good to maintain a balance of more than 30% of your limit?
Thrifty Spending Issue 92
FEATURE ARTICLE: Looking to earn extra income? Rule helps you avoid bogus business opportunity offers
Maybe you’ve seen ads for stuffing envelopes or assembling crafts at home. Perhaps a company says it can help you set up a vending business. Before you sign on the dotted line or send money to buy a business opportunity, find out about the Business Opportunity Rule, enforced by the Federal Trade Commission, the nation’s consumer protection agency. The Rule puts safeguards in place to make sure you have the information you need to evaluate whether abizopp is risky business.
How does the Rule protect people thinking about buying a bizopp? First, it requires sellers covered by the Rule to give you a one-page disclosure document outlining important facts about the opportunity. Second, if sellers make any claims about how much money you might make, they have to give you a separate paper with more specifics. Third, the Rule makes clear that certain practices are against the law.
The disclosure document – Under the Rule, sellers have to give you a one-page disclosure document that offers five key pieces of information. Use the information in the disclosure document to fact-check what the seller tells you about the opportunity and what you find out from your own research.
The document has to: identify the seller; tell you about certain lawsuits or other legal actions involving the seller or its key personnel; tell you if the seller has a cancellation or refund policy. If so, what are the terms of that policy? Say whether the seller is making an earnings claim. If so, the seller has to give you another document called an earnings claim statement; and give you a list of references.
The Rule says that a seller has to give you the disclosure document at least seven days before you sign a contract or pay them anything. Use that time to check out the information in the disclosure document, including contacting references. Be aware that some questionable bizopp promoters have been known to name “insiders” who give glowing – but bogus – recommendations. Don’t just talk to the few people they suggest. Choose whom to contact. What if what the seller is telling you is different from what’s on the disclosure document or what you hear from another buyer? Step on the brake. An inconsistency could be a tell-tale sign of a bizopp rip-off.
In addition, the disclosure document has to be in the language the seller used to offer you the bizopp. If you discussed the deal in a language other than English, the document has to be in that language. Also, the seller has to make it clear that if you buy a business opportunity from them, your contact information will be given to prospective buyers in the future.
The earnings claim statement
What if the seller makes a claim about how much money a person can earn? Under the Rule, they have to give you a separate document that says in big type across the top: EARNINGS CLAIM STATEMENT REQUIRED BY LAW.
This document has to include: the name of the person making the claim and the date; the specifics of the claim; the start and end date those earnings were achieved; the number and percentage of people who got those results or better; any information about those people that may differ from you – for example, the part of the country where they live; and a statement that you can get written proof of the seller’s earning claims if you ask for it.
Since the Rule gives you the right to see written proof for the seller’s earnings claims, savvy buyers exercise that right and study those materials carefully. Compare that information to what the seller has told you about how much money people make. If the dollar amounts don’t line up, your best bet is to walk away. Like the disclosure document, the earnings claim statement has to be in the same language that the seller used to communicate with you.
Misleading claims
The revised Business Opportunity Rule spells out that certain practices are against the law. For example: It’s illegal for bizopp sellers to say anything that contradicts what’s in their disclosure document and earnings statement. Under the Rule, sellers can’t claim they’re offering you a job when they’re really promoting a business opportunity. The Rule makes it illegal for sellers to misrepresent the nature of the investment – for example, to claim they’ll help you line up locations, outlets, accounts, or customers or that you’ll have an exclusive territory if it’s not true.
The revised Rule puts new protections in place for prospective buyers. But for added protection, take the time to find out what the Rule requires of sellers. Did they give you the disclosure document with the five key pieces of information? If they made earnings claims, did they give you a separate statement with the specifics? If you spot a seller who isn’t complying with the law, it’s a red flag: You could be in the cross hairs of a bizopp scammer.
Report Possible Fraud. If you suspect a bizopp seller is fraudulent, report it to the state attorney general’s office both where you live and where the business opportunity promoter is based; your county or state consumer protection agency. Check the blue pages of the phone book under county and state government. Also, the Better Business Bureau in your area and the area where the seller is based and the FTC. File a complaint online at ftc.gov or call toll-free 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357).
MONEY SAVING TIP: Online drugstores offer many of the same brands and products that are available to you at your local retailer. In fact, with Amazon.com’s Subscribe and Save program, you can save up to 15 percent off your go-to cleaning supplies, baby care products and more. Shipping is free, and you can even set how often your delivery comes. If you want to cancel, you can do so at any time with no hidden charges.
With sites like Drugstore.com andSoap.com, you can stock up on hygiene and beauty products, and score free shipping after reaching a certain dollar amount in your shopping cart. Soap.com also has a savings program called My 5 Faves, which automatically gives you 10 percent off of five frequently purchased items of your choice.
On top of that, sites often offer instant coupons, while also honoring manufacturer coupons, which means you can easily double up on your savings. Just check your online drugstore’s coupon policy — some require that you mail the hard coupons in ahead of time.
DID YOU KNOW…about the National Do Not Call Registry?
Scammers have been making phone calls claiming to represent the National Do Not Call Registry. The calls claim to provide an opportunity to sign up for the Registry. These calls are not coming from the Registry or the Federal Trade Commission, and you should not respond to these calls. To add your number to the Registry you can call 888-382-1222 from the phone you wish to register. Your registration will not expire. Telephone numbers placed on the National Do Not Call Registry will remain on it permanently due to the Do-Not-Call Improvement Act of 2007.
The National Do Not Call Registry gives you a choice about whether to receive telemarketing calls at home. Most telemarketers should not call your number once it has been on the registry for 31 days. If they do, you can file a complaint with the FTC. You can register your home or mobile phone for free.