US Media Studios Reviews Fall and Winter Household Expenses

Household budgets are tight for many Americans. Yet, we still will spend a pretty penny to spiff up the home for the fall and winter holidays.

A recent poll from the National Retail Federation estimates that Halloween enthusiasts will spend $8.4 billion getting ready for the yearly fall holiday. That comes out to almost $83 per shopper and almost $10 more per shopper than last year. The estimate includes decorations, candy and the always popular costumes, which many people shop for in physical stores and online.

US Media Studios also notes from the survey that Americans spent more than $626 billion dollars in 2015 on winter holiday preparations. Meanwhile, it’s reported that we spend almost $76 billion dollars on back to school and college shopping, with Mother’s Day, Valentine’s Day and Easter following in that order.

Fall and winter household expenses for home repair and preparation for cold weather should start now before the cold blast of winter air arrives. Check all windows and doors for leaks with special devices found in hardware stores.  A candle or cigarette lighter also works to check for air leaks. Caulk leaky window areas and add padding around the door frame. Run ceiling fans in the opposite direction to move cold air up and warm air down. Use the schedule function on thermostats as it saves electricity.

Fall is a great season to sleep with windows open a bit to enjoy the cooler air at night. If at all possible, it is also nice to open the doors and let fresh in and stale air out. This is assuming there are screen doors to keep closed.

Another way to save money on fall and winter household expenses is to bring out all holiday decorations and sort through them. Throw old ratty decorations and take stock of what is left and usable. Be creative and put Halloween costumes together from what wardrobe in the closet.  Dig deep. There may be some goodies in there!

Everyone likes to dress up for Halloween

US Media Studios Shares Retirement Tactics for Boomers

A search on any website about financial or retirement news will usually turn up several articles geared toward the Millennial generation. US Media Studios takes time to share some retirement tactics for Boomers instead.

For the Baby Boomer Generation

Employees in their 50s and 60s spend most of their careers working hard, working long hours, and socking away money in retirement accounts. They know if or when they can retire. They know how much more they need to save before they can retire. They have a solid understanding about health care, social activity and perhaps even part-time work they might engage in after full-time works ends.

It is also essential that career employees in their 60s know that retirement account withdrawals are permitted and without penalty. If older workers in their 60s are let go, they can withdraw and use some of their retirement savings to help with expenses. There are circumstances, such as unexpected medical expenses, which can force someone to dip into savings also. However, it is best to avoid that and to continue to save as much as possible before finally retiring.

US Media Studios reminds that employees in their 60s might want to keep working until they have a good nest egg stashed way. Most 401(k) plans have catch-up limits. Workers can contribute up to $23,000 a year. Roth IRAs have a limit of $6,500. It’s best to diversify savings accounts so not all of the savings “eggs” are in one basket. The best bet is to keep working as long as possible or as long as one can afford to. Use retirement savings to live from as a last resort.

US Media Studios Examines Strategies to Cut Healthcare Costs

Health care is getting more expensive every day. Employees are paying more for health care than they were in previous years. Fortunately, there are thrifty strategies to help cut health care costs, as US Media Studios relays.

Stash Some Cash

One of the most effective methods of reducing the personal cost of health care is to contribute to a Flexible Spending Account (FSA) or Health Savings Account (HAS). Both of these savings plans offer employees a way to contribute pre-tax dollars into the accounts to be later used for prescriptions, co-pays, medical equipment, and the like. But there are differences in each plan to note:

The money in an FSA cannot be rolled over at the end of the employer’s health coverage. It must be used before the next pre-enrollment period begins. So, you use it or lose it.

The money put in an HSA is the employee’s to keep no matter where they go. However, the health care plan must be a high deductible one in order to qualify for this savings.

Another caveat is that some employer-paid health care plans do not offer either savings option.  But if they do, take one. Savings average about 30 percent.

Save on Prescriptions

Research and compare the price of prescriptions within your geographical area with GoodRX.com. This site shows you differences in prices for one prescription within a zip code range. People who have to pay out of pocket for prescriptions could find price comparison shopping advantageous.

Additional Ways to Reduce Health Care Costs

Warehouse clubs like Costco and BJ’s can be beneficial when consumers want to save money. 

Get a 90 day supply of the prescription because it saves money in the long run.

US Media Studios suggests looking into The Partnership for Prescription Assistance, a free service that helps consumers get access to needed prescriptions.

Community centers offer free health checks once a month. Drug stores provide low cost vaccinations.

There are many ways to save on health care costs. We hope these suggestions are helpful.

US Media Studios Relays Hack-Proof Tips

Who better to learn about hacking tricks that work other than those that are paid well to do it for some of the world’s biggest corporations? US Media Studios relays hack-proof tips for all users.

The Internet-of-Things and Social Media

Many people spend a great deal of time on the Internet and on social media sites every day. Yet, the most cunning hackers can break into the digital coding or a newer vehicle through the Internet and take control of it. The same can happen anything digitally connected in the home or office.

Social media sites are also easy for hackers using phishing schemes to gain personal and financial information about users. A hacking team announced, at a recent convention, it created a bot than can phish social media users and their interests, and send a catered post or message. The social media user believes the post or message to be authentic, clicks it and the hacker has their personal information. It pays to be careful what links we click on when perusing social sites.

Chip and PIN Cards

US Media Studios has read many reports about the hazards of using this new technology. It is usually touted as the safest way to use a credit or debit card. In reality, the card readers can be easily tampered with and financial data stolen.

Public Wi-Fi

Any business that offers public Wi-Fi where every guest or customer has access to the same log in credentials is opening up those people to a potential hack attack. Instead of using it, find a private Wi-Fi source through a wireless provider or something small and convenient and use that.

Safeguard your personal and financial data from hackers.

US Media Studios with a Consumer Report on Buying Used Cars

How much research should a consumer do before buying a used car?

Consumer Research

We can search for and read consumer reviews from several good websites such as Edmunds and Cars.com about the year, make and model of a car. We can spend hours evaluating those reviews. These reviews are generally frank and to the point. It is the consumer’s opinion about the specific vehicle, after reading reviews, if that vehicle is reliable or not. For instance, a consumer can read 10 reviews on one review site and five are positive and five are negative.  He or she can also read 10 reviews on another review website where six are positive and four are negative. That’s 20 consumer reviews read. Which reviews should the consumer believe? And should the consumer search for even more information about the vehicle, such as recalls for the vehicle, known mechanical issues for the vehicle? How many consumers do that? It is the consumer’s choice to spend the time to do that or not.

The Used Car Dealer’s Responsibility

Used car dealers have a responsibility too. When a dealer takes in a used car, they should take the time and expense to be sure that vehicle is operable and safe. All defects should be clearly noted on the vehicle’s documentation. US Media Studios has heard dealers’ standard reply “we wouldn’t sell you an unsafe car because we know it means possible lawsuits or the return of the vehicle.” In that case, why even put the vehicle up for sale if it could mean possible litigation or return of the vehicle? It is far easier and more profitable for the used car salesperson to sell a vehicle with open recalls and known defects and make commission than steer a consumer away from an unsafe, unreliable vehicle.  It is their innate responsibility to know everything about that vehicle. If a consumer expresses an interest with the vehicle, wouldn’t it be wise to do more than make cosmetic and cheap fixes, such as replacing windshield wipers? Would it be too expensive and time consuming to check the tire pressure, run it through a thorough mechanical and safety evaluation, before selling it to a consumer?

Bottom Line

There are two parties in a vehicle sale: consumer and dealer. Both parties should be transparent about the plusses and minuses of the vehicle of choice. No one wants to see a driver or passenger injured or killed due to faulty parts in the sold vehicle. That said, each US state also needs to step up and enact specific laws to protect consumers from bad car sales. A consumer’s life is more valuable the dealer’s profits. CBS News has a great article on car sales in Florida, and the link for the National HighwayTraffic Safety Administration to search before buying a used car is very useful.

US Media Studios Offers Advice for Road Travel

Travel on America’s roads and interstates can be fun, adventuresome, and maybe troublesome. US Media Studios offers advice for road travel which we hope readers will find helpful. After all, it is no fun getting stuck on the side of the road with a car problem.

Road Tips for Road Warriors

Road warriors on road trips surely know the ups and downs of getting their destinations. They also know where the best travel center and rest areas are, and who to call when vehicle trouble forces them to wait on the side of the road for help.  It may also be useful to know that some states are better at taking care of stranded travelers than others. What might a driver need or want before hitting the road:

• A good GPS for navigation and traffic updates
• A charged smart phone to use for emergency calls, texting, and music, recorded books or whatever.
• Water. Water keeps you hydrated.
• Portable snacks such as whole fruit, protein bars, sandwiches just in case a long traffic jam delays the trip or the wait for help takes longer than normal.
• Jumper cables, Fix a Flat, heavy duty duct tape, scissors, one regular size spare tire in good shape, tire pressure gauge a first aid kit, small and large working flashlights.

 Must Know

Every driver should have roadside assistance coverage. Breakdowns can happen on the commute to or from work, or on the way home from far away. It is reassuring to know that someone is on the way to rescue the driver and the vehicle. Most of roadside assistance coverage is not very expensive to add to vehicle insurance plans. Most companies that provide this can GPS locate the caller with permission from the caller first. Having had this locator service performed twice – once locally and once out of state – we vouch for its usefulness.

What Else?

USMedia Studios suggests getting a full vehicle inspection including all fluids replaced or topped up, tire pressure check, alignment, and mechanical and safety checks before getting on the road for a long road trip. Keep emergency numbers easy to find on smart phones or download an app if there is one. Hitting the open roads of America for pleasure or business is a great way to travel. Take the time to be sure you have everything needed before departure. 

US Media Studios Reviews How to Prevent Retirement Pitfalls

We long for the day when we can retire, relax and enjoy life without the stresses of work. We plan for it, save for it, and eventually reach it. Don’t let the pitfalls of retirement get in the way.

Live Healthy

Health problems can interrupt the most well-thought of retirement plans. Not only do these obstacles mean expensive hospital stays, ambulance bills, reduced mobility and activity, there is also the probability of not having the best health insurance to help pay the bills. Start today living a healthier life. Get plenty of rest. Eat a well-balanced meal every day, rich in vitamins and nutrients. Stay active by walking, biking, or some other favorite way of movement.

Build a Solid Financial Savings Net

Pensions are great, if offered by an employer. Some pension plans fall apart when companies are bought or merged. A work life’s worth of savings can whittle away by administration fees. Retirement savings plans, such as a 401(K), are offered to give employees the chance to start saving for their after-work life. Add as much as possible into these plans now. Social security saving distributions may or may not be as much as hoped for. There’s no counting on it. US Media Studios reminds readers to work out household financial budgets, both for expenses and savings. It pays to stay on top of personal finances.

Remain Social

Retirement can be lonely for those who lost their spouse or loved one. Retired couples who are still together can still face loneliness. Let this not be the situation for anyone. Stay connected with family and friends. Seek adventures for meeting new people, enjoying new interests, and remaining social. Often, this is one of the keys to a happier, more fulfilling life in later years. Plan excursions. Hit the golf course, baseball field, yoga mat or arts class with confidence and grace. Life is not over when we retire. It’s a whole new way of living, loving, and appreciating what all the hard work of a long career paid for. Grab it by the horns.

US Media Studios Relays Three of the Top Financial Tips

Financial advice can be found everywhere on the Internet. From retirement saving guidance to child college funds, there is no lack for info. There is, however, some pretty basic advice almost anyone could use.

Save, save save. This is usually the financial advice mantra spoken and read time and again on television, in the media and on the Internet. US Media Studios concurs.

Emergency funds are necessary to have to prevent financial catastrophe. Save one percent of regular pay every pay period, and have it automatically deposited into a savings account. Name the account when you set it up, as a reminder to yourself. At least three months of savings are needed to avoid serious debt and financial trouble in an emergency.

Insurance for the big, valuable items you own. Insurance protects you from the things that can flatten you financially, if something major happened to them. Examples are vehicle accidents, catastrophic weather events like tornadoes or flooding. Higher limits mean higher deductibles to pay, but in the long run, this protects you financially.

Credit cards and credit card debt are major financial obstacles to break through for many people. Carry a few cards, charge only 10 percent of the credit limit each month on them, and pay off balance every month. Look for a low interest rate card, or if you have one, transfer the balance onto that card and pay it off. Once that’s done, find the best rewards card that offers 1.5% back on charges. US Media Studios believes we can all be financially healthy as long as we stay on top of it.

 

US Media Studios Addresses How to Avoid the Top Travel Fees

Have you traveled lately? The fees that a consumer pays when traveling can be avoided by simply paying attention.

There are many travel sites which can churn out discount air fares for the most cost-savvy seeker. We can set up alerts on these sites to find the lowest fares, best car rental rates, cheapest hotel room rates, and read all the reviews we can take. But we can still do more to assure we have a fun, safe and affordable vacation or holiday without breaking our budgets.

Airlines:

Don’t book too far ahead or too close to the date of travel. The ideal time window to book airfare is roughly 55 days before the wanted departure date. Airfares are published months before a flight and stay flat and relatively high until about two months before the flight. At that time, airlines readjust airfare based on supply and demand.  Of course, it can be hard to determine when to buy a ticket to Europe or Africa or any other faraway place. One more note: don’t over pack and you won’t have to overpay for extra heavy luggage.

Cell Roaming Fees:

Avoid getting hit with these excessive fees in countries and continents where cell coverage is not covered. Contact your cell provider about short-term international travel plans to add on before leaving the US. These are less expensive than the roaming fees and more convenient than having to purchase an international SIM card to use in international destinations.

Foreign Transaction Fees:

There is no need to pay these fees on a credit or debit card when most of the major credit cards have plans to not apply them. Take the time to reach out to the card companies and find out what their policy is.  Also, don’t exchange currency at the airport. Do it at partner banks in country or at international ATMs. Another option is to contact your bank and ask if you can get some of the local currency from them before departure.

Travel insurance:

Long distance travel can be fraught with delays, cancellations, and other unforeseen events. While there are many good travel insurance companies, it pays to take time to research the best options.  US Media Studios suggests reading the details of the plans you are interested in. The longer and more expensive the trip, the better it is to cover it.

Travel fees can add up before and after a long-planned vacation or holiday. Please do as much research to avoid the extra, unnecessary fees as possible.  

US Media Studios Explains How to Get a Handle on Medical Bills

Medical care is not cheap. Bills can arrive in the mail with errors on them costing patients hundreds of dollars. It pays to examine every medical bill.

The American Medical Association estimates that 7.1 percent of claims paid in 2013 had an error. Financial website NerdWallet found mistakes in 49 percent of Medicare claims in 2014. Billing errors are common and can cost patients a lot of money in out-of-pocket expenses.

Medical coding is often to blame for the errors. In truth, it takes meticulous attention to detail. Even small bills, such as those for co-pays, can be ripe with errors. But there is good news in all of this worrisome news.

US Media Studios learns that as part of a 2015 settlement, medical debts sent to collections will have a six month grace period before they show up on a consumer’s credit report. Further, the three credit reporting agencies are required to remove a medical debt once it is reported as paid or settled by the insurance company. Keep in mind though that bills paid by the consumer and settled remain on reports. The insurance company has to report it to the credit reporting agencies in order to it to be removed.

The most important thing to know is to not wait too long to pay or officially dispute a medical bill or bills. Some insurers and providers are quick to settle unpaid bills. Twenty percent of consumers have an unpaid medical debt on their credit report, according to a report from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

When a medical bill arrives in the mail or in email, review it as soon as possible and completely.  Do Google search on medical codes not explained or understood. Call the insurer or provider and ask what the charge is for. Haste makes money waste. Jump on medical bills and don’t pay for something that should not be there. It’s your money. Why give it to an insurer if you didn’t get the service?

Don't be this guy.
(image:pixabay)

US Media Studios Reviews the Best Video On-Demand Options

Cable television companies seem to be charging consumers an arm and leg to simply turn the TV on and watch something entertaining – be it a sports event or a 30 minute sit-com. “Bundle” cable TV with phone service and soon the monthly bill is well past one hundred dollars. US Media Studios reviews some of the best video on-demand options for people who are thinking about cutting the cord.

A recent consumer research report published last year by the Leichtman Research Group found the average cable TV bill is $99.10, and has gone up almost 40% since 2010. Consumers complain of poor customer service and bad technical help. So where does one go when they simply have had it?

A decade or more ago, the term “on-demand” video could be heard bantered around cable television conference rooms and family living rooms. Video on-demand is now something more commonplace than just a candid conversation. There are affordable streaming options available from CBS All Access, HBO Now, Netflix, Hulu Plus, Amazon Prime, and more. All except Amazon Prime charge a small monthly fee. Amazon charges its standard $99 per year subscription.

US Media Studios believes that on-demand video streaming is going to become more common than watching regular cable TV. It is inherently more convenient to choose the day and time to watch favorite TV shows and films. It is also more convenient to be able to pause the action when we need to get up and walk into another room. Take a look at the on-demand video streaming services. It may just be worth it to cut the cable cord and find great entertainment on your own terms. 

US Media Studios Explains How Americans are Prepared to Retire

It seems there is a lot of bad news in the nation about how prepared the next generations are for retirement. While many people plan to keep working through their retirement years to be able to meet monthly household expenses, US Media Studios learns there is good news comes that 45 percent of the working public is on track to live comfortably after they reach retirement age.

It is essential that retirement savings tools and resources are used to calculate how much will be needed. But here are some other tips from Fidelity to help everyone obtain what need financially to have a decent retirement:

• Save 15% of pay. If the employer matches contributions, that counts.
• Replace retirement portfolios that are too conservative or aggressive with one that allocates according to age guidelines.
• Work until the full retirement age of 66 for early boomers, and 67 for those younger than that – not age 65 as most retirement calculators figure.

As US Media Studios often reminds readers, if health and lifestyle permit, work longer, perhaps part-time, as a contractor or as an adviser. Keeping busy and active are keys to a longer life. And isn’t it better to have a longer life when the savings are there to support it?

We concede that it can be very difficult to save anything when jobs disappear, there are older parents to care for, adult children come home to live, and health challenges around every corner. The trick is to have retirement savings automatically deposited from paychecks into retirement accounts. Out of sight is out of mind and out of mind is money socked away for the time when is just that – work. And it’s time to leave.

US Media Studios Reviews Retirement Savings Plans for Boomers

As baby boomers face retirement in the coming years, most are not financially prepared to live the life they envision. In fact, many plan to keep working as long as possible to keep earning money. Others plan to work part-time jobs to keep some income coming in. US Media Studios reviews retirement savings plans for boomers.

A recent survey from TransamericaCenter for Retirement Studies (PDF) found that two-thirds of the baby boomers they interviewed plan to keep working past age 65 or don’t plan to retire at all. This is a common plan among workers age 50 and up. With fluctuating pay rates, periods of lengthy unemployment, poor job opportunities, and illness, it is increasingly more difficult to save for the non-working years. The little most people can put away in a retirement plan barely adds up at the end of the year.

More than one-third or 39 percent of those surveyed said they expect to earn income by working into and during retirement. Part-time and contract work are two employment types that help retirees make ends meet or give them a little extra padding in the wallet. But many people expect to earn the same salary in retirement as they do when working full-time, even though this is not realistic.

US Media Studios finds it alarming that one-third or 35% haven’t made a retirement plan, and only 14% have a written plan. As most people know, a household budget keeps expenses in line. It makes sense then to have a written retirement plan.

Workers in their 50s might want to reduce living expenses, have automatic withdraws from payroll checks to deposit into retirement accounts, and work with a financial professional to hammer out retirement plans. Retirement comes sooner than most of us expect.