Seller concessions and buyer bargains - What to ask for in the current real estate market.

Xin Lu — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 16:58:42 -0400

It is currently a buyer's market for real estate in most of the United States and there are many ways a buyer could negotiate for a deal beyond getting a great price. Here are some of the concessions sellers are willing to make and some ideas for buyers at the negotiations table.

1. Closing costs - Lately I have seen many real estate listings in California that say the seller would pay for the closing costs or the seller would pay a set amount towards the closing costs. Closing costs could add up to thousands of dollars depending on the size and type of loan a buyer acquires. This means that if a seller pitches in then a buyer would not need as much money to procure a loan.

2. Tax assessments - Many transactions in troubled real estate markets are currently foreclosures. Some of these properties have back taxes and usually the buyer is supposed to deal with this, but it is possible to negotiate with the bank or seller and have them pay for the taxes before the sale completes.

3. Home owner association fees - Here in San Mateo county the typical home owner association fee for a townhouse or condo is $300 to $500 a month so getting the seller to pay for one year of the fees is a $3000 to $6000 perk. Many new developments in the Bay Area are paying the fees for a year in order to move units, but some builders have given out deals where three years of HOA dues were paid. It is also possible to ask for an individual seller to pay the fees for a set amount of time as part of the deal.

4. Repairs and upgrades - Instead of buying a fixer upper, it is possible to ask sellers to do certain repairs and upgrades before the deal is complete. In new developments it is now common to receive upgrades to appliances, flooring, and other custom features.

5. Miscellaneous goods - In an article by CNN a buyer was able to score $800 worth of heating oil in addition to a price discount, and some sellers are throwing in other incentives such as cars and vacations. Indeed, this home seller in San Mateo is throwing in a free vacation to Maui if you buy the incredibly expensive home. In this case, the vacation is really a marketing tool and not a real discount since the home is quite overpriced.

All of these things can be negotiated in any real estate transaction, but in the current market it is more likely for the seller to agree to terms that are more in favor of the buyer. So if you are buying a home now you should keep in mind that it never hurts to ask for a discount, and there are many ways to receive the discount you want. You should also be aware of the difference of a true seller concession and a marketing gimmick because getting a vacation worth $5000 on a home that is $300k overpriced is not a good deal at all. Finally, you should get whatever terms you settle on in writing and make sure that the sellers follow through.

What discounts or perks have you gotten in recent real estate transactions? Feel free to share!

Permalink | 6 comments | Xin Lu's blog | Channel: Personal Finance, General Tips, Real Estate and Housing

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Seller concessions and buyer bargains - What to ask for in the current real estate market.

Xin Lu — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 16:58:42 -0400

By Xin Lu

What discounts or perks have you gotten in recent real estate transactions? Feel free to share!

Permalink | 6 comments | Xin Lu's blog | Channel: Personal Finance, General Tips, Real Estate and Housing

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Dealing with Financial Drought: A Recovery Plan

Sarah Winfrey — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 18:39:50 -0400

By Sarah Winfrey

You know how it goes. One minute, you have extra money sitting in the bank just waiting for you to play with it. The next, your car needs repaired, or the cat gets sick, or the roof falls in and there's no way you can afford the bills without dipping into savings. Not only has your "fun money" disappeared, but so has some of your emergency fund, general savings fund, or goal-oriented savings fund. And we all know what happens next: more catastrophe, more bills, more dipping in when you meant with all your will to save this month.

Financial drought sucks, but it happens to all of us. Not even the wisest, most frugal person on the 'net can avoid it. What we do when the savings numbers are slipping backwards, however, can determine how much we actually lose during the drought and how quickly we bounce back.

Know what to expect.

All sorts of negative emotions can accompany financial drought. Don't be surprised if you find yourself wondering if it's all your fault, or if you're lying awake at night wondering if you could have seen this coming and how. Your emotions may run particularly close to the surface during and just after a drought, or you may find yourself unable to feel at all. However you respond emotionally, know that you will and that it will go away when things get better. Expecting an emotional fallout of some sort can, rather ironically, help you keep your equilibrium when you're in the middle of the drought. You won't be nearly as tempted to follow them into an unwise choice or to change your financial plan on a whim.

Rather closely related to that point, know that things will get better. Financial drought doesn't last forever. It might seem like it's going to when you're wading through it with the water at your neck, but it doesn't. And knowing that it will end can make all the difference in the world.

Take stock.

Sometimes, an emergency fund isn't enough. I hate to bring up depressing stuff, but it's true. When life throws a really big lemon, not even the most overfunded emergency fund in the world can make lemonade. But you know what? That's ok. Sure, it means taking money from somwhere else, maybe from a goal-oriented savings account, or a general fund, or even a loan. And that sucks. Even this worst-case scenario, however, isn't the end of the world. Are you alive? Check. Relatively hale and whole? Check. Ready to get back on the pony? Well....maybe.

Wherever you find yourself after the bills are paid or the wells are dried up, look around. What's good? What's wretched? What can you change? What will only make things worse if you tinker with it? The answers to these questions will help you figure out where you are. And generally, when we know where we are, the way forward becomes much more clear.

Your goals are still your goals.

Even when you're negatively saving towards whatever it is you want, that thing you want is still your goal, and don't you forget it! It's easy to lose sight of your goals when your finances take a dip for the worst. When you're taking money out of your savings account instead of putting it in, it's so easy to let the doubts wiggle in. It might start with a, "Wow, I guess we won't be able to buy the boat in April," but quickly progresses to, "Maybe we'll never be able to buy the boat," and in the worst cases becomes, "It was silly of me to try and save for a boat." Nip those thoughts in the bud. Your boat (or car, house, horse, roadtrip, cruise, whatever) is worth the time you spend saving, the effort of saving, and the money you save. Just because it may not happen when you wanted it to happen doesn't change that. Knowing that your goals have value can help you stay focused and oriented even when life tries to throw you off.

Not only that, but remembering the value of your goals and staying focused on them can help you bounce back after the crisis. Sure, it sucks to be in the hole with your savings account, but at least you still have one. And there's something out there that you want! Focusing on your desire wil help you save even when it feels hopeless to do so. Because that day where everyone sees you having accomplished your goal? It's out there somewhere, and your saving makes it come quicker.

Take your time.

All of that said, give yourself some space to figure out where you are, where you want to go next, and how to get there. A drought can change a lot of things in your life, not the least of which are your energy, stress levels, relationshps, and general health. An extended, sudden, or particularly intense drought can impact all of these and more for the worse. So give yourself time. Maybe you need to sleep every Saturday afternoon for a month instead of assessing your finances. Or maybe you need a day at the beach, a chance to finish that book you got into before it all started, or a couple of massages. Whatever it is, you have time for it. Let your whole self take a deep breath before you dive back in.

In addition to healing some of the hurts of drought, taking some time can give you a different perspective. It can help you notice that the world isn't out to get you, no one actually seems to hate you, and things look remarkably similar to how they looked before the drought. What a relief!

Get back on the pony.

Whether you decide on a recovery plan or just jump back in to what you were doing before, get started. Maybe your drought has lingering consequences and you can't save like you used to. That's ok; save what you can. Sometimes, a drought shakes us so deeply that we can't bear to risk again. That's ok; do it anyway. The more you follow a plan and get some money back in savings, the more you'll be able to stop expecting the worst. And once you've done that, well, you've overcome the drought.

What sorts of droughts have you faced? How did you overcome them? I'd love to hear your stories in the comments.

Permalink | 9 comments | Sarah Winfrey's blog | Channel: Personal Finance

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Would you sell your vote?

Paul Michael — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 17:15:33 -0400

By Paul Michael

Being a humble Green Card holder, I don’t have a vote here in the US (makes me wonder about that old “no taxation without representation” line, but that’s another story). Anyway, as the election goes into overdrive, a question has started to bubble up inside my head. If the price was right, would you sell your vote?

It’s important to remember that voting is a right that many people didn’t have for the longest time. Here’s a very brief history of voting in the US, as listed on many sites including ActiVote America and InfoPlease :

1776 – Voting rights based on property ownership; white protestant males over 21.
1830 – Many states drop religion and property ownership as requirements.
1870 – African Americans given the right to vote.
1920 – Women given the right to vote.
1947 – All states finally grant Native Americans the right to vote.
1965 – Voting Rights Act bans use of literacy tests and poll taxes.
1971 – Voting age lowered to 18.

As Fatboy Slim once said, “we’ve come a long way baby.” People have campaigned, suffered and died for this right. Wars have been fought in the name of freedom and democracy. It seems like one hell of a privilege to give up. I know I miss my right to vote, especially as I have such strong political beliefs.

Not unlike Woody Harrelson’s character in “Indecent Proposal,” everyone has their price; (although I would rather sell my vote than do what he did). But in light of recent DieBold news, and an HBO documentary I saw last month called "Hacking Democracy," I have to wonder what has happened to that most precious gift that is your vote anyway.

As Engadget reported in August of this year, DieBold spokesman Chris Riggall explained that a "critical programming error that can cause votes to be dropped while being electronically transferred from memory cards to a central tallying point" has been part of the software for ten years. So, your precious vote may have been dropped from the system on multiple occasions.

And in “Hacking Democracy ” it’s unveiled that voting machines can be rigged, records can disappear and elections could indeed be miscounted by machines. The security of the electronic voting machines being used today is suspect to say the least, and this is not a partisan issue. Your vote is your vote, and if it’s not being counted, or it’s being manipulated for one party of the other, does it then open up the debate about selling your vote? If your vote is not as sacred as we once believed, is there less culpability involved in selling that vote?

If someone came up to you tomorrow and told you that you were in a swing state, and your vote was needed to ensure victory for one party, would you consider the offer? Would your vote be up for grabs?

It may be that you were going to vote for that party anyway. You may believe that one vote doesn’t actually make a difference. Or, you may just think the whole system is screwed anyway, so why not profit from it? And just what would your price be?

In these tough economic times, I’d be tempted if someone waved $5000 hard cash in front of me and asked me to vote a certain way (if, of course, I had a vote to sell). But as there’s no way to prove who you voted for anyway, would you then just give your word that you’d vote for one party, and then vote for the other anyway? Or would you just say no?

It may all seem like rhetoric, but it did actually make the news in July of this year. CNN reported that “University of Minnesota student Max P. Sanders, 19, was charged with a felony Thursday in Hennepin County District Court after allegedly asking for a minimum of $10 in exchange for voting for the bidder's preferred candidate.”

And this got Sanders into more than a little hot water; “Sanders was charged with one count of bribery, treating and soliciting under an 1893 state law that makes it a crime to offer to buy or sell a vote.” He tried, he failed, he says it was a joke. Maybe it was, but it still leaves the question hanging in the air…would YOU sell your vote, and if so, what would your price be? Over to you.

Permalink | 28 comments | Paul Michael's blog | Channel: Consumer Affairs, Making Extra Cash

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Women of personal finance spotlight: Nina Smith of Queercents here to answer your questions

Lynn Truong — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 06:30:32 -0400

By Lynn Truong

For this entire week (9/2 - 9/7) Nina Smith from Queercents will be answering questions in our forums about personal finance, real estate, and group blogging!

Nina is one of the most media savvy bloggers around. I'm personally looking forward to asking her about how she's able to get such great press on the New York Times, Bankrate.com, and Entrepreneur magazine.

This interview is part of Wise Bread's spotlight on the Women of Personal Finance. At the end of the interview period we'll publish the best questions and answers from the forum interview and post them on the homepage. If your question gets picked we'll include a link back to your blog.

Joing our chat with Nina today!

About Nina Smith

Blogs: Queercents, Sitting Pretty

Blogger: Nina Smith

Subscribe: RSS for Queercents, RSS for Sitting Pretty

By day, Nina sells software, but her real estate investments have grown to become a significant part of her financial plan. She has owned and lived in four homes from varied eras (three of which she upgraded and sold for tidy profits, one she occupies now). She also owns three investment properties and sold a fixer a few years ago in Palm Springs.

Nina is the founder and fearless leader of Queercents, a syndicate of personal finance writers serving the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community. But you don't have to be part of the LGBT community to benefit from Queercents. As Trent from The Simple Dollar once pointed out:

Although it’s awesome that they’re targeting such a specific audience, the truth of the matter is that Queercents is just a great personal finance blog, period. The writing is amazingly strong on a daily basis and I find the advice highly applicable to my own life as a heterosexual white Protestant living in rural Iowa.

Check out the great content on Queercents and find out why Trent has such high praise for its writing:

Ten Money Questions: interviews with prominent people in the LGBT community.

Sleeping with Money: love, relationships and money

WWYD: as in What Would You Do

In Search of Gay Money: Queercents reprints advice from straight columnists by swapping out pronouns and a few other words to make it seem like the whole world is queer.

Almost Debt Free: John’s series about reducing debt, followed up with the recent Bliss Chronicles.

Building Wealth Consciousness From Within: How-To series from Dr. Lana highlighting our relationship between the power of the mind and wealth.

Career & Money: Paula’s helps readers move beyond the daily grind

Femme Economics: Mooreas writings for just between us girls

God & Mammon: Aundi’s essays on god, religion and money

Pink & Green Parenting: How-To go green without wasting greenbacks as a queer parent.

Reducing Pet Costs: Andrea’s fetches a few tips to minimize the cost of owning a pet.

Rising Cost of Food: Serena’s cheap and easy ways to stretch your food dollar.

Tax Guide: Allison’s expert series in 2007, followed up with Tax Tidbits in 2008.

Tipping Etiquette: Mike’s series explores the ins and outs of tipping.

Please drop by the forum and have a chat with Nina today.

Permalink | 2 comments | Lynn Truong's blog | Channel: Personal Finance

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6 Random Things I Have Taught My Kids About Money

Julie Rains — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 18:29:57 -0400

By Julie Rains

I’d like to say that I have taught my kids everything they need to know about personal finance, from the basics of banking to the complexities of investing and portfolio management. I haven’t. When I was ready to inform and guide, they had no interest in learning. The financial education of my children has not been progressive or linear, but rather haphazard and unorganized. Imparting wisdom, then, has been the result of random events and conversations. So, with the understanding that life keeps happening whether you are ready or not, here are 6 things I have managed to teach my children about money.

1) Beware of fees for add-on services.

Both of my sons, newly equipped with cell phones, accessed the Mobile Web during out-of-town trips. When my oldest son went away to football camp, he got bored during his downtime and checked ESPN box scores. My youngest decided to check on updates for his favorite computer game during a family vacation. Neither realized that this service was not included in our flat monthly fee.

Now they know that easily accessible services are not always (hardly ever?) free.

2) Watch your expenses if you want to have a profitable business, but don’t be so cheap that you won’t have satisfied customers.

When my youngest decided he wanted to sell Yu-Gi-Oh! cards on eBay, we worked together to set up an account linked to my credit card and checking account, both of our emails, etc. Though he seemed to understand the revenue side of business, he had to learn about expenses. He carefully considered the cost of posting multiple photos, postage, and mailers. Would an extra photo help sell the cards or just increase the eBay fee? How much is postage? And should he use a rigid mailer, as I suggested, or a flexible bubble envelope, as he preferred, to get the best buyer feedback? (He shipped the cards using the bubble envelope and earned a “well-packaged” comment from his first buyer.)

Not only did my son figure the basics of controlling expenses, he also learned how to weigh business costs vs. benefits to the customer, made easier thanks to the feedback mechanism.

3) Be certain of a purchase before you make a commitment.

For the fourth year in a row, my son decided to attend a month-long summer enrichment program. Before I sent in the $350 fee, I confirmed his interest but never mentioned the amount.

Having spent the week just prior to start of the program at Boy Scout camp, walking several miles each day, he was tired, rather than energized, for the first day of activities. Adding to his troubles were 1) a new program site (he preferred the inner-city school of prior years); 2) more watchfulness and protection on the teachers’ part, limiting his perceived freedom; and 3) no long-time friends in any of his classes.

He wanted to quit after the first day but I felt troubled having paid the non-refundable program fees and more importantly, not having taught him the value of $350. We had a series of discussions in which I managed to explain to him that while I didn’t mind paying for the program, it bothered me tremendously to waste money. Also, I made clear that I had to forgo other opportunities to allow him to participate. Our first solution was for him to repay me (he had a couple of hundred dollars in unspent birthday cash that made a dent in his debt); though he said he didn't miss the money, he decided within a couple of days to go back (thus reclaiming his cash) and found the experience enjoyable.

We both learned to consider the cost of programs and other opportunities before making a big commitment.

4) Bring cash but don’t spend everything you have.

For many years, my oldest, a saver by nature, seemed to think that he should either spend all the cash I gave him for outings or keep all the change. I would give him money for a movie with a friend, for example, but he would ask his friend’s mom to pay his way and then try to keep my cash. After I clarified that he was to use our family's money, he then proceeded to spend as much as possible. I was surprised when my youngest, the spender, gave me change when he returned from scout camp; during the entire week, he bought just one root beer and a merit-badge handbook. About that time, my oldest also returned currency and coin from a parent-funded activity.

I am not sure how it happened but they managed to learn financial restraint.

5) Just because you can afford any one thing you want doesn’t mean you can afford everything you want.

In the past year or so, my teenage son’s appetite has gone from average to outrageous. During this time, he discovered Jersey Mike's and developed a preference for giant-sized sandwiches (currently Chipotle Cheese Steak) to the extent that he began to think that having a giant every day was a normal request. During the summer break, when I had trouble keeping his hunger abated, he kept asking for Jersey Mike's. When I expressed my frustration and told him that we couldn’t afford to eat out every day, he asked if we were poor.

I did convince him that limiting your appetite doesn’t mean you are poor but thrifty and wise.

6) Having money can save you money.

Now that I’ve realized that I should involve my sons in day-to-day financial decision-making, I took my youngest with me to get his band instrument for the upcoming school year. The local music stores have rental programs, making it easier to afford an instrument, but the one we visited had a combination of offers. We could 1) rent the instrument for a monthly fee, 2) rent the instrument and have the monthly amount go toward the purchase price so that at the end of a few years, we’d own the instrument or 3) buy the instrument at nearly a 50% discount and, if my son changed his mind about band, return the instrument for the purchase price less the monthly rental fee. After some consideration, we opted for the purchase with buy-back guarantee (the rental interest rate seemed about 25%).

He found, as Philip as mentioned in "On the Importance of Having Capital" that having enough to pay now can save money; or if he missed the nuance of the salesperson's presentation, he certainly learned that band instruments are expensive.

Do I hope to be more intentional in my financial education of my children in the future? Yes. But I'll take what I can give (in terms of personal finance) as it comes along.

Permalink | 7 comments | Julie Rains's blog | Channel: Consumer Affairs, Entrepreneurship, Shopping

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Health insurance: Two other numbers to look at

Philip Brewer — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 15:05:08 -0400

By Philip Brewer

Most people, of course, have almost no control over their health insurance: They get what their employer provides (if they have a good job) or else they get nothing. Whether they pick their own policy or not, the first two numbers everyone looks at are the premium and the deductible. Well, here are two other numbers that are at least as important.

The premium and the deductible, of course, are very important--those are the numbers that determine whether you can afford the policy and when it starts paying something if you get sick.

If you think of your insurance as being a sort-of prepaid medical package--you pay a monthly premium and they provide whatever care you need--then the deductible (and the co-pays) are what matter. If you think of it as insurance though, there are two other numbers to pay close attention to: the out-of-pocket maximum and the policy limit.

The out-of-pocket maximum

Even after you pay your deductible, your insurance only pays a percentage of your bill. (It used to be universally 80%. Now you often see 90% for in-network coverage and 50% for out-of-network coverage, but in policies that you buy yourself, just about any numbers can show up.)

This is all well and good as long as you don't get seriously ill or have a bad accident. If you do, though, even 10% of your medical care can add up fast. An extended stay in the hospital--even a short stay in intensive care--can reach hundreds of thousands of dollars. If that happens, your 10% plus co-pays would be in the tens of thousands of dollars--enough to ruin the finances of many households.

That's what the out-of-pocket maximum is all about. Once your share of the charges hits the maximum, the insurance should pay the rest.

The out-of-pocket maximum is the single most important number in determining if your insurance is really insurance. If your finances are such that you could pay the maximum without going bankrupt, then your insurance policy is about the size you need. If they aren't, then you don't really have insurance at all--you've got one of those increasingly common pre-paid medical packages. (And you've got a bad one--one that leaves you vulnerable to ordinary bad luck ruining your finances along with your health.)

One other thing to be aware of regarding the out-of-pocket maximum is that it often doesn't apply to out-of-network coverage: you not only have to pay 50% instead of 10%, but the amount you pay may not count toward the limit, leaving you on the hook for virtually unlimited expenses.

The policy limit

Just like any insurance, medical insurance has a policy limit--the most they'll pay. When I got my first job, $1 million was common. Nowadays I see a lot of policies with $3 million or $5 million limits (although I've also seen policies with limits of just $300,000).

A policy limit is necessary for the insurance company in order to be able to calculate how much they're on the hook for--without that information, they have no idea what premium to charge.

The policy limit doesn't come into play very often. Usually, insurance companies will aggressively deny coverage for expensive stuff right from the start--long before they even approach the policy limit. But it's always possible to argue about coverage for procedures that the insurance company doesn't want to pay for--you have access to appeals, arbitration, lawsuits. In the extreme, it's even possible to get the legislature involved, passing laws that require insurance companies to pay for certain things. That's not true about the policy limit. Just like with other kinds of insurance, once you hit the policy limit, the insurance company has no obligation to pay any more money.

If your health insurance is to be real insurance--the kind that protects your finances from being ruined by bad luck--then you'll want to pay special attention to the out-of-pocket maximum and the policy limit. Appropriate amounts for those values will matter far more than the deductibles, co-pays, or even the premiums.

Permalink | 14 comments | Philip Brewer's blog | Channel: Personal Finance, Health and Beauty

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High Tech and Homeless: My Life as a Cyber Nomad

Myscha Theriault — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 10:02:43 -0400

By Myscha Theriault

Being connected on the road can be a challenge. Doing it while your life is in complete transition adds another layer altogether. When our home recently got wiped out during a flood, we had to figure out very quickly how to accomplish our normal, work from home all day routine while being completely displaced. Here's how we're pulling it off.

For starters, this entire process is occurring in stages. The first was the holy crap stage where we had to get out alive and get claims filed, get an immediate roof and spend several months wrapping up the process, ending with bulldozing the house and putting the lake lot up for sale. Next, it was organizing the salvaged items into as unobtrusive a corner as possible in my parent's basement, finding a sitter for our dog, and heading south to find a replacement house in Florida. (Many factors went into that decision, but that's a separate article.) Then of course, there was the trip south, landing here to stay with a long time friend, getting a grip on the Tampa / St. Petersburg area, and throwing ourselves full tilt into the house hunting experience.

The last time we were homeless for this long, it was planned. Traveling for six months after my husband's retirement, we knew well in advance how prepared we would need to be, as well how unencumbered. Months of planning and getting work done ahead of schedule went into the preparations. Unfortunately this time, none of that was possible. While many of the same skills and infrastructure have come into play, we've had to figure out quite a few new things as we go along.

STAYING CONNECTED

As I've stated before, our family motto, “Com is King” has served us extremely well in the past. With this current flood recovery, it is proving once again to be invaluable. Here are some of the ways we do it.

Phone Calls

Unlimited cell phone plan. While I pray for the day when this might actually include full access to my friends and colleagues in the international community, for now at least I have unlimited calling and texting in the United States.
Vonage. Because this was our long distance solution of choice prior to the flood, the device can go with us and hook up wherever we land once we hook up high speed internet. We can also have calls forwarded to our cell phone, and receive voice messages on our web based email. Result? We were able to proceed post flood with absolutely no disruption as far as business contacts were concerned.
An unlocked, quad-band phone. This allows us to not only use our cell plan here in the states, but to easily incorporate a local SIM chip from any country we are visiting.

Internet

Truck stops. Many of these have free high speed wireless and twenty-four hour dining services. Pull in, gas up, and order a cup of coffee while you check your email. One chain that does this is Irving's Blue Canoe and Big Stop combo stores.
Tourist information stops. Maine is one of the states where we've noticed this the most. A large portion of the state tourist information and rest areas have free twenty-four hour high speed wireless access. Got a pet? We have travel food and water bowls and tie-ups long enough to secure to the post of a covered picnic table. So before we left our beloved black lab with the sitter and headed south to house shop, she often came with us for outside work days.
Extended battery packs. These come in varying operation time frames and sizes, and have tried several. We prefer the style that is larger in surface area, but thin so it fits easily into the extra slot on the back of a standard laptop case.
Campgrounds. A great national chain that my husband found? K.O.A. Not every single one has wireless for free, but all the ones we've lucked into so far have. They even have a ten percent savings member card program, as well as swimming pools, hot tubs (sometimes), activities for the kids, laundry, showers, store for incidentals, food and Fed-Ex deliveries, etc. Bonus? The connection speed thus far has been excellent.
A tent with a power port. We really lucked out on the Eddie Bauer model we got. It has a separate bright orange flap covering a small zipper slot (clearly labled power port). This is where you can route an extension chord with multiple outlets to the power source at your camp site. Inside tip? Get the retractable type of chord on a wheel. It will save you more stress than you can possibly imagine. (Yes, we stopped at a Lowe's to get one after one rainy night without.)
Hotels. Our favorite mid range business chain is the Hampton Inn. Not the least expensive, but if you are part of their rewards program you can often find these for at least the price of a Comfort Inn. They have high speed, hot tubs, swimming pools, fitness centers, breakfasts, courtesy beverage and snack selections in the lobby / dining area all day, and often soups at night. The atmosphere is pleasant with comfy lobby seating and fireplace access with cable news. And since the lobby has wireless as well, you can get out of the room for a bit if you like. The beds are fantastic, and the water is always hot and well supplied. When we need a break from roughing it, this is where we go to stay wired while we relax.
Libraries. Not only do they usually have free wireless, but the one we had to use for several weeks while we were dealing with flood recovery had a conference room available. We had access to it about eighty percent of the time. Cool perks? Private room so that you can have private business and financial phone calls take place with the support staff while you are actually looking at the same online page they are, great lighting, large table for spreading out documents and loads of electrical outlets. Score!
Eateries. There are a few out there where you can pull off from the road, get a bite to eat, and get wired. Starbucks is certainly fine if you are in a familiar city, but for close to the highway access down the eastern seaboard, my money is on Panera Bread. Great healthy food, decent meal deals and free wireless. I was clueless about their free wireless benefit until Hammock in Paradise blogger Lisa Overman gave me a hot tip about how she stays wired while out and about.

CHALLENGES

I have to admit, there have been more than a few. In the interest of keeping an already lengthy article as brief as possible however, I've selected my top picks for those things that send me just short of postal.

Maintaining a routine.

While we have no problem being flexible, a certain amount of routine is helpful in productivity. While each day may unfold differently, there are at least certain aspects of it that we try to do in a repetitive way. One thing we're doing to maintain order? Sticking to assigned chores.

Certain things need to be done daily on the road. Charging electrical gear is one. Simple meal prep and clean up is another. Planning the route, navigating, dealing with trash and water bottle fill up are also on the list. David does some of these. I do others. While we occasionally jump in for one another and have some things (like tent assembly and tear down) that we do together, we try to keep things assigned to one person to avoid seriously stressful situations. Leaving your cell phone behind on a long road trip is not on anybody's list of fun things to experience. Shaking up the chore routine is a certain and sure express path to that sort of thing. Having key things on autopilot is critical, in my humble opinion.

Feeling frumpy.

Let's face it. Living out of a bag and on the road leaves certain traditional beauty routines by the wayside. I have a few things I try to incorporate, but it sure is easier when we can be in the same place for more than a day or two. Painted fingernails just aren't happening when the added drying time doesn't gel with my keyboarding and packing schedule. If I get to file them, I'm lucky. Guess who's ready to give nearly her left kidney for a spa day?

Carving out work time on a driving schedule.

Depending on the route, this can be accomplished somewhat by rotating shifts in the navigator's seat. Certain parts of the western United States have several hours between possible highway changes. That makes it doable for the navigator to set the timer for when to break out the map and use the time in between to read reports, sketch out an article, make important calls, etc.

As anyone else who's tried this can verify, doing this while driving south through the northeastern part of the States is not an option. Other portions of the country offer a similar challenge. When you've got long straight highway legs, you can count on getting work done. If you don't, you're out of luck.

Going Light.

Doing this for extended adventure travel is one thing. Pulling it off while functioning professionally is another. Loads of tech gear, spare parts, and other bits of infrastructure need to be included. Toughest thing I gave up? A pillow. Various items have been used as substitutes, including a day pack, clothing wrapped in a sarong, and most recently a fully packed laptop case. (I don't recommend it.)

Dealing with dial up.

Sometimes, it's just all that's available. A pain in the neck? Absolutely. Likely to change without a radical upgrade in our national infrastructure? Not from where I'm standing. The only thing you can do here is try to get by with email only and use the time for other off-line projects.

LOGISTICS / ORGANIZATION

Most people find this stressful under normal circumstances, and I admit to more than one chick meltdown as we have juggled all of our regular responsibilities, recovery and tear down, trip planning, and wet tent stress. I do try to keep them to a minimum as I know the last thing my husband ( a saint) needs after a day of dealing with the same stressors I am is a wife in the middle of a chick fit. Which is of course unfortunate for him, since that is frequently exactly what he gets. A few ideas for maintaining at least minimal sanity?

Make every stop count.

When you have to leave the highway for a reason other than to get set up for the night, make it count. A few ways to take “one stop shopping” to the next level? Combine a fuel stop with a restroom break or a lunch stop with a swing by to Walgreens or the grocery store. Since you usually have to stop once or twice before you get where you're going anyway, you can use the time to pick up what you need to hit the campground or hotel ready to settle in for the night.

Maximize your built in storage and surface area.

When forced to take living out of your car to the next level, staying organized and maximizing space go a long way toward keeping your sanity on an even keel. The side door pockets in your car, glove compartment, and beverage holders may come immediately to mind, but there are other ideas we've put into use.

Seat organizers. Ours are incorporated into our bucket seat covers, but there are other strap on options available. The backs of both front seats provide access to seriously underutilized real estate when it comes to fully functioning from your car. Add in your favorite furry labrador and space becomes even more critical.
Containers are another tool that are as helpful for road trips as they are for small space apartments. We have a small box to organize trail mix, cracker packs, cheese and a few other things. We also brought our large zippered freezer bag which stores flat when not in use.
Two things we are really missing on this trip are the tackle box supply cabinet and our traveling boxes for hanging files. For absolute essentials, we are getting by with one flexible accordion file each.
Forgotten tip I'll be re-incorporating this week? Rubber bands around our front seat visors to get a grip on receipts, scribbled directions, brochures, and real estate fliers.

Checklists.

For us, these include both mental and written versions. It keeps the flow of pack up and tear down consistent. Counting tent poles upon set up and packing and verifying with each other ensures we will not be caught with our proverbial pants down. For each item of tent paraphernalia, one of us counts, checks against the packing list, and has the other verify that count against both written and verbal tallies. People get tired and misread, believe me. We've caught some potentially serious mistakes through this system, so we are motivated to continue it. This also applies to the repacking of dishes, equipment, chargers, adapters and more.

Precision infrastructure.

As with bulk buying and assembly cooking, a certain amount of infrastructure is necessary for living with efficiency on the road. Some of our favorites?

Caribiners. We use these to secure cargo bags from bouncing around the car. (If you don't think this is necessary, just talk to your highly annoyed pet or child.) The last few vehicles we've had included a few rings in the back, as well as the ceiling handles inside the doors of each passenger window.
Cyber charger. My folks got us one of these as a gift, and it has come in handy. They plug into the cigarette lighter in your dash and provide an electrical outlet for various accessories you may need.
Car carrier. This vertically challenged blogger has to come clean. While this has been absolutely critical to the success of our current logistical mission, there is absolutely no way I could make use of it on my own. The extremely tall and good natured stud I'm married to has had to take this one on all by himself. That being said, these things rock for increasing vehicle space. Some attention should be paid to selecting the correct roof rack bars, but after that you'll be good to go.
GPS unit. We've never owned one before, but our friend has lent us her Garmin to use while we house shop. Personal verdict? Sold. In fact, we're ordering one tonight. This thing has really helped us feel more secure while trying to find some out of the way places and to get around in general. Word to the wise? I don't recommend throwing the baby out with the bathwater. Definitely hang on to your map as these things do have limitations and will occasionally tell you to turn right even though the street you need is below the overpass you are driving on. This hasn't happened often though, and it will recalculate if you miss a turn. Just be aware that you may want to still keep your atlas on hand, particularly in strange areas.

KEEPING IT CHEAP

Staying frugal while in transition is always hard. The more frequently you change locations, the more challenging it is to find a different grocery store, office supply resource, library, insert your favorite type of infrastructure here, etc. And you can only go so “bulk” in your shopping when you are operating out of your vehicle. Although, now that we are doing this in the same country for a while, and one in which we can actually read and speak the language, there are some things we are finding easier.

An inside tip? Chain stores rock. I've already covered the Subway thing, but franchises in general really help keep things in control. And many of them have resources online to help you find the nearest one. So, if you have membership rewards at places like Staples and Safeway, or just know how much lunch costs at Panera (certain fluctuations obviously apply), you have more of a prayer of sticking to some sort of budget.
Further point of info? Green can be frugal. I covered several tips in the Eco Travel article that can keep things extremely frugal on the road. One thing I'm hoping to try on the return leg? Using the chain store idea above to track down Goodwill and Salvation Army locations. This should come in helpful for unexpected weather shifts. Who wants to pay top dollar for a sweater you're only going to need for two or three nights? Picking up the cheap stuff second hand is frugal and responsible. Bonus? You can re-donate it when you leave.

That's it, folks. Not the briefest of articles, but thorough. Those interested in trying this out should find the help they need. It isn't easy on the best of days, but incorporating these strategies and tools has helped us out tremendously. Got a great road warrior tip? Pass it on!

Permalink | 9 comments | Myscha Theriault's blog | Channel: Life Hacks, Lifestyle, Technology

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A Little Light in Dark Financial Times

Linsey Knerl — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 12:23:07 -0400

By Linsey Knerl

I’ve had it. If I hear one more negative rant from an economist, financial planner, or my RSS feed, I think I’m going to detonate. I know that things are icky right now, but do I need to be reminded? Let’s take a moment to celebrate these rarely found gems from across the blogosphere. They’ll inspire you to think better!

10 Ways to Keep a Sluggish Economy from Breaking Your Stride at Motivate Thyself – It’s not often that I find one post so positively uplifting that I subscribe to their blog feed. Eric Hamm has found freedom in ways most of us only dream of, and it doesn’t take him $1 million to do so. His recent post emphasizes the ultimate coping skills for any financial (or personal) downturn. My favorite tip? Adjust your gauge of success:

“Keeping up with your progress is always important if you want to know the state of your success. Sometimes you compare yourself to others and other times to yourself. But in a weaker economy you must keep your comparisons to current situations. In other words, don’t compare the current success of your business with how it was doing when the economy was better. Inevitably you will not be doing as well as you were and therefore be discouraged to move forward. Instead, look at other, similar businesses in the same economy, to set your bar for success.”

Very well said!

Life’s Enough: Stop Comparing Yourself to Others at Zen Habits – You didn’t think I could do a positive roundup and just forget about Leo, did you? In this more recent article, he not only explores the consequences of comparison, but also tells you how to stop doing it! His tip to “Count Your Blessings” is one I try to practice regularly, and I find it is often the ONLY thing that can break my cycle of self-blame and pity. Try all the dead-on advice for best results. (This post is extremely relevant for those of us who are always sizing up our finances.) If you have any doubt that Leo’s heart is in his writing, just skip to his last tip: “Learn to Love Enough.” The quote from Bernard Grasset sealed the deal for me.

How to Survive an Economic Meltdown at Pick the Brain – A perfect balance of positivity and financial mitigation, the tips offered up by Tejvan Pettinger pretty much sum things up. Avoiding fear-tactics in media and finding ways to make yourself more valuable to your employer top my favorites. Who knew that “Opportunities in Redundancy” even existed?

Worry is Prayer for What you Don’t Want at Cultivate Greatness – What? And all this time I thought worrying was helping me to plan out my options and maintain control of my life! When you read this well-written post in its entirety, you’re left feeling like a schmuck for staying up late crunching numbers and planning for the worst. Thanks for the wakeup call. Some of us need to read this weekly.

Want to read more? These classic Wise Bread posts might give you a lift!

Being Poor Without Being Pitiful

Feeling Stuck: 100 Ways to Change Your Life

The Most Powerful Weapon Against Debt: Your Mind

How to Survive (and thrive) in a Job You Hate

Seven Tips for the Newly Unemployed

5 Tips for Making Do with the Right Now

Personal finance and productivity blogs are popping up everywhere. Some are good. Others are great. The ones I really appreciate, however, are those that inspire and instruct. Do you have a great post to share that can become the silver lining to an otherwise dreary financial future?

Permalink | 3 comments | Linsey Knerl's blog | Channel: Life Hacks, Productivity

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One genius little button that's saving me a whole bunch of time

Paul Michael — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 01:38:39 -0400

By Paul Michael

How many times do you click on a link to an article, video, image or anything else of interest and want to visit the homepage of that site? It happens to me all the time. Sometimes finding the homepage link is fairly easy, on other occasions it's buried. And then you have to go up to the address bar, delete all of the information before the domain name and hit enter. Well, not any more with the help of this "bookmarklet."

It is the brainchild of Billy Chasen, author of [anerroroccurredwhileprocessingthisdirective].com (nice and easy url Billy). Billy explains the simplicity behind his idea:

The best ideas come from finding something you do all the time, realize you do it, and then automate it.

With me, I discovered that I frequently go to the base domain of a website by going to the URL, highlighting and deleting the junk on the end of the domain name and then pressing enter. I HATE doing it. I also have to do it when websites don’t link to their home page.

As someone who does a lot of research online for Wisebread, and my job, I'm coming up against this on a daily basis. Countless links lead to websites that I just want to know more about, but I end up having to spend valuable time editing the web address (which doesn't always work either, usually because I delete an extra letter or symbol by mistake).

The "bookmarklet" Billy has devised uses a simple piece of code, that I don't pretend to understand, to get around all of that. To get this simple little button, visit Billy's site here . You'll be greeted with the image below. Simply drag the "go to home" button to your bookmark bar, and hey presto, now you can get to the homepage of any site just by clicking it.

It's already saved me a bunch of time this evening. And as we all know, time is money.If you have Firefox, you can also try this little add-on that basically navigates you up one level. Enjoy, and thanks Billy.

Permalink | 4 comments | Paul Michael's blog | Channel: Life Hacks, Productivity, Technology

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