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We’re all familiar with the discounts we can sometimes get at attractions for being Florida residents.
For instance, Disney World is currently offering a four parks in four days pass for $99, among several deals for Florida residents only.
Occasionally some local attractions offer deals to South Florida residents, such as the current Jungle Island deal that gives South Floridians a free annual pass with an individual ticket purchased through March 31.
But there are also discounts in South Florida for residents of specific cities or ZIP codes. Here are three:
- City of Miami residents can get 20 percent off on-street parking for a year if they use the Pay by Phone system. If your ZIP code falls within the city of Miami, you’ll get the discount. While this deal is only for City of Miami residents, the Miami Parking Authority has some deals that include visitors.
- Miami Beach residents can get an INcard from the Miami Beach Chamber of Commerce, which provides a variety of discounts from Miami Beach businesses. Non-residents can get a Platinum InCard, which isn’t quite as lucrative.
- People who live and work in Coconut Grove can get discounts from a number of businesses through Code33, a discount program organized by the Village of Coconut Grove that provides discounts to residents and employees in ZIP 33133.
Do you know of other city-specific discounts in South Florida? Email us at info@floridaonthecheap.com, and we’ll share the word in a future column.
A few weeks ago I found time to make a special trip to CVS to get a tube of toothpaste for 24 cents using Extra Bucks and a coupon, but somehow I didn’t find time to call my insurance agent and find out why I hadn’t received the $501 refund I was due for an overpayment in November.
With thrift, as with so much else in life, it’s easy to miss the forest for the trees, focusing on small economies and ignoring the big financial issues.
It’s important to set aside time now and then to take care of all those chores we put off that could save us money, whether it’s making a will or looking for a cheaper cellphone plan.
What we really need is a “snow day,” a surprise day off from work that we can devote to taking care of pending financial matters. Since we’re not going to get that (we hope), we may have to give ourselves the tropical equivalent, and I don’t mean a day off waiting for a hurricane that veers away.
Start by making a list of all the money-related tasks you have been putting off. As you think of other chores, add them to the list.
When you believe your list is complete, award yourself a snow day, or at least a couple of snow hours.
Maybe you can use a lunch hour, a few hours in the morning before you go to work, an afternoon off or even a vacation day. Blitz through your list and your wallet will thank you.
And if you don’t make it to CVS to get the discount toothpaste because you spend the time getting your financial house in order, buy yourself a tube at full price. You deserve it.
If you have an unlimited-talk cellphone plan on Verizon Wireless or AT&T, the company has just cut your monthly bill by $30. Oops, they forgot to tell you.
Both companies have new plans that will give you unlimited talk (on an individual or family plan) for $30 per month less than their previous unlimited plans, but they’re not going to volunteer that information. You have to call and ask.
Cellphone packages are always changing. It’s a good idea to keep an eye on the available plans and ask friends what they’re paying. Even if you’re under contract, most wireless providers will let you change your plan without penalty as long as you stay with the company.
It’s also good to take a look at your use. If you’re paying for a lot more minutes than you’re using, you might want to downgrade. Or maybe the teenagers need unlimited text, but the parents are wasting their money on a texting plan.
Also consider whether you’re better off paying per-unit prices. I was surprised to see charges of about $3.50 for text messages one month (somehow that’s not included in unlimited data). But even if I write that many texts every month, paying for messages individually is still cheaper than the least expensive texting plan.
For those who are occasional cellphone users, a prepaid plan might be the best deal. Don’t consider your research complete if you’ve only checked your provider’s website. Unadvertised, no-frills plans may be available, so if you want something you don’t see, ask.
Once your contract runs out, be sure to check the offerings of other carriers. Even Wal-Mart has gotten into the wireless business.
As you see the money drain from your bank account — an electric bill here, a mortgage payment there — don’t you wish the bank would put some back in?
Sometimes they will, if you jump through a few hoops first.
Financial institutions have been offering cash bonuses to lure new customers. Most of the deals require a certain amount of activity — debit card transactions, direct deposit — but the rules often aren’t onerous.
I’ve signed up for three bank bonuses in the past year, totaling $250, and have just applied for a $50 payment in exchange for taking out a new credit card.
Here are two current promotions:
• Bank of America: Open a checking account with a minimum balance of $500 and get $100. This deal, good through Feb. 28, requires you to keep the account open at least 30 days and make at least one debit card transaction.
• TD Ameritrade: Open a brokerage account through March 31, deposit $100 a month for a year and earn $100.
Watch newspaper ads and the fliers in your mortgage statements and credit card bills for more deals. Chase, which is expanding in Florida, is one likely source.
If you decide to take advantage of one of these offers, be sure to read the fine print. If you don’t follow the rules, you don’t get the money.
There’s a lot of strategic shopping going on these days. But perhaps no shoppers are as strategic as those who play the Drugstore Game.
You may, like me, belong to CVS’ ExtraCare program or Walgreens’ Register Rewards, through which you sometimes receive coupons on your receipts. Occasionally, you may even use one.
But Drugstore Game players are getting all of their toothpaste, and a lot of other items, free. They do it by combining the rewards programs with manufacturers’ coupons.
Through March 15, CVS is awarding double Extra Bucks rewards for CVS-brand items and prescriptions. But Drugstore Game players can do better.
Interested? Websites including www.chieffamilyofficer.com, www.moneysavingmom.com and www.dealseekingmom.com offer tutorials and post the best deals, matching them with recent coupons.
To take full advantage, experienced players suggest sticking with the program for at least three months, saving your Sunday newspaper coupon supplements and starting with one store. Many find the CVS program easier and more lucrative, but results depend on which products you buy. Friends or members of an extended family might consider shopping together to maximize savings.
I’m not a serious game player, but I’ve started to pay more attention to the Sunday CVS circulars and make a point of redeeming the Extra Bucks coupons I get. (I haven’t tried the Walgreens program.) Here are a few tips for saving a little cash at CVS without spending too much time:
• Sign up online. You’ll get frequent printable coupons for $4 or $5 off a $20 purchase.
• Scan your card in the machine when you enter the store. That will usually yield a coupon, which you can use right away.
• Make two transactions on the same visit. First buy products that will yield Extra Bucks, then use them on the second transaction.
If you forget your card, give the clerk your phone number and your transaction will be credited. If you didn’t study up ahead of time and your find yourself there anyway, check the fliers as you go in to see if there is anything you need.
I don’t very often clip coupons, but I’m a dedicated user of the Publix “buy one, get one free” promotions. And nothing annoys me more than stocking up on something only to see it go BOGO the next week.
Then I realized that BOGO promotions, and other supermarket discounts, run in cycles, with certain items going on sale every three months. Once I learned that, I started waiting to stock up.
Sure enough, I discovered that I can almost always get a BOGO deal on cereal, tea bags, granola bars, salad dressing, snack crackers and frozen dinners. Other frequent sale items include canned tomatoes, name-brand toilet paper and paper towels, soda and ice cream. Meat also has predictable sales cycles.
Really dedicated bargain hunters keep a price book to track how often their favorite items go on sale and at what price, so they know what bargains to wait for. Coupon clippers can save even more by holding manufacturers’ coupons to use when items are on sale. (Many products go on sale about a month after the coupons come out in the newspaper.)
Online resources for bargain hunters include GroceryGame.com ($5 a month per store) and CouponMom.com (free), which match coupons to store sales, IHeartPublix.com, which provides additional information about savings at that chain, and SouthernSavers.com, which does the same for Winn-Dixie, Walgreen’s, CVS and Target.
If you pay attention to sales cycles, you can save at least 50 percent on items you were going to buy anyway. That’s better than you could do clipping coupons, though no one says you can’t do both and save more.
As you worked your way through your home, ruthlessly identifying the items you plan to boot out of your house, you probably found a few things you suspected you could sell. Selling secondhand goods is big business, whether it’s on eBay, in yard sales or at a consignment shop.
Here are some places to sell items:
Craigslist: I’ve found this the best place to sell furniture and larger household items.
eBay: This works well for some people and not for others. See how items like yours are selling before you set up shop. Be sure to check eBay commissions.
Amazon: Selling items on Amazon is easier than selling them on eBay, and it can be an excellent way to sell books, CDs and other items in its database — if you have the right items. Bestsellers and novels often sell for only a penny, while lesser known books sell quite well. I sold an out-of-print commercial real estate textbook for $220, minus Amazon’s cut.
Consignment store: If you have clothing, costume jewelry and household items in good conditions, check with these stores.
Jewelry stores: Start with a reputable local jeweler. Some pieces may be worth more intact, while others are worth only the wholesale value of the gold. It’s OK to get a second opinion. Be wary of companies that ask you to mail in your items.
Yard sale: I swore off yard sales when I netted $25 for two full days of work. But my brother and sister-in-law made $600 from their last sale. It depends on your location and the items you have.
Friends: I’ve sold household items and furniture by sending e-mails to my friends. Your too-small purse may be someone else’s just-the-right-size bag.
If you’re not sure whether the items you want to discard have any monetary value, spend some time on the Internet, checking eBay and other sites to see what people are asking for similar items.
Most important, factor in the time it will take you to sell your stuff, whether it’s holding a yard sale or packing up items and standing in line at the post office.
If you discover that your stuff isn’t worth the time it would take you to sell it, donate it a charity.
Recycling is good for the soul.
Did you take my advice last week and embark on Step 1 of the Great January Decluttering Extravaganza? If you did, you have put all your like things together. If you didn’t, you still have time to catch up.
You may discover in the process that you just don’t have enough storage space for some categories. No, you may not rush to the Container Store and buy a bunch of cute storage gear. That is not cheap.
What you must do first is sort ruthlessly through your things and decide which you don’t really need. We spend a lot of money, as well as time organizing, reorganizing, dusting and moving stuff we never use.
Take a critical look at your clothes, tools and kitchen equipment. Which have you used in the past year? Which books and decorative objects bring you pleasure and which do you keep only because Aunt Martha gave them to you?
The traditional advice is to sort into three piles: stuff you know you will keep, stuff you know you will give away and stuff you’re not sure about and will revisit later. Those categories are good, but add a fourth: stuff you think you can sell.
Be tough. If you have things you’re not using now but think you may need in the future, weigh the cost of storage vs. the cost of buying new ones down the road. (Be grateful you don’t have a basement and are forced to make the hard choices now.)
Once you have removed the things you don’t want from their usual storage places, you may need to rethink your organizational scheme. Maybe the washcloths should go in the bathroom cabinet and your stockpile of canned beans in the linen closet.
If you are convinced you truly do not have enough shelving or storage containers, see what you can find on Craigslist or at clearance sales. But your goal should be to pare down your stuff to fit into the storage space you have.
Next week: Sell your excess stuff for cash.
As you look at your Christmas gifts — the ones you wanted and the ones that made you wonder, “What was she thinking?” — there is probably one thought on your mind: Where am I going to put this stuff? (If you celebrate Hanukkah, you are a few weeks ahead in this process.)
You are going to find places to put your valued new gifts by organizing what you have and getting rid of an equal amount of old stuff.
Because clutter costs. It costs you time looking for things you have but can’t find and money buying things you don’t need because you can’t find the old ones.
You are going to get organized, once and for all. Or at least for once.
Step 1 in the Great Decluttering Extravaganza: Put like things together.
That means putting all your shampoo in one place and all your sandals in another. If you have tomato sauce in your pantry and tomato sauce in a kitchen cabinet, get all that tomato sauce together. This simple step is one of the first rules of organizing.
I once moved in with someone who had so many unused bottles of shampoo scattered around her apartment that I didn’t have to buy any for a year.
If you don’t have a lot of storage space, getting all your like things together may require some time and effort, but persevere.
It is worth it.
Oh, and that ugly sweater you know you’ll never wear? Put it in a box for charity immediately. You are ahead on Step 2.
Next: Get ruthless.
I love the convenience of online shopping, but I hate paying a hefty fee for shipping, especially when buying an inexpensive item. Happily, a lot of companies are offering free shipping to win your holiday business. There’s even a new holiday: Free Shipping Day.
Free Shipping Day this year is Thursday, the last day to order goods online and be sure they will be delivered by Dec. 24. The promotion is organized by FreeShipping.org, always a useful resource for finding shipping deals and coupons.
About 250 merchants participated in last year’s Free Shipping Day. Nearly twice as many have signed up this year, and more could join. We won’t know exactly what they’re offering until 12:01 a.m. Thursday, when the deals are unveiled.
Participants include large companies such as Macy’s, Sears and Borders as well as smaller merchants in categories ranging from clothing and baby supplies to sporting goods and automotive items.
I don’t advocate buying anything online until you have done a search for a coupon. You should also always check freeshipping.org for deals.
If you’re in the market for a specific item, it’s a good idea to sign up for e-mail newsletters from your favorite stores. I get coupons and deals nearly every day from Borders and Dell Computer, for example. You can also get daily deal alerts on a variety of products from DealNews, Cheap Today and Brad’s Deals , among others.
Be aware that more deals means more temptation. An online offer prompted me to order a flat-screen TV I didn’t need. Luckily for my pocketbook, the order didn’t go through. It did include free shipping, though.
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