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Stories for July 2009
Stories for Friday, July 31
Weakened organic food standards hurting consumers
Are you really getting your money's worth when you pay extra for organic food? The Washington Post reports that food producers have been able to convince the U.S. Department of Agriculture to lessen its organic labeling standards. The result is that there are currently 245 products labeled as organic that ...
Discount airlines light on fees, big on customer service
Clark loves discount airlines like Southwest, JetBlue, AirTran, Frontier and others. When they go into a market, airfares start dropping like flies. In April, the consumer champ took an hourlong flight to a market that was only served by full-fare airlines. He had to pay $1,350 RT! Had he had ...
Websites/phone numbers mentioned:
No sites or numbers mentioned in today's network broadcast. Listeners to AM 750 and NOW 95.5 FM News/Talk WSB 750 heard Ilyce Glink filling in for Clark.
Twitter work-at-home scams are all the rage
RIP-OFF ALERT: As social networking gains in popularity, so too does the prevalence of scamsters pushing supposedly amazing work-at-home opportunities. One company called Easy Tweet Profits claims you can make up to $873/day online. They even claim one person earned $400,000/year using their method of tweeting your way to success. ...
Kiplinger identifies three areas of opportunity for young people
The "Great Recession" provides a once in a lifetime opportunity for people under age 40. Yet polls show they're one of the age groups that are most pessimistic about the future. On the one hand, it's easy to look at the current economic climate and feel glum. But the very ...
Stories for Thursday, July 30
Extended auto warranty provider USfidelis stinks
USfidelis is perhaps the most heavily marketed extended auto warranty in the country. Consumer Reports has investigated this popular outfit and is warning people away from them. According to the publication, USfidelis has failed to respond to more than 1,000 complaints from the Better Business Bureau. Among the complaints are ...
How the recession is impacting funeral planning
One unexpected consequence of the recession is that some families can't afford to bury their loved ones. The Los Angeles Times reports that bodies are going unclaimed in record numbers at morgues because families know they can't afford a burial. In a case like that, many jurisdictions will do a ...
Websites/phone numbers mentioned:
Funerals.org - A clearinghouse for non-profit memorial societies ClarkHoward.com - Clark's list of peer-to-peer online lenders VirginMoneyUS.com - Formalizes loans between family and friends RothRetirement.com - Explore the benefits of a Roth IRA ClarkHoward.com - Clark's investing guide
Wealthy now have limited-time access to do a Roth IRA
Clark has been long obsessed with the Roth IRA, but not everyone is allowed to do one. Americans who make more than $100,000 individually or $160,000 as a family typically are ineligible. However, there are two unique loopholes at this time that let wealthy Americans take advantage of this tax-free ...
Banks using new tactics to assess your credit worthiness
The nation's biggest credit card issuers have new data management policies in place that directly affect your ability to retain lines of credit. Up to now, it's been very common for the banks that issue most of the credit cards in our country to monitor your credit reports and score ...
Stories for Wednesday, July 29
Scamsters posing as credit card fraud investigators
RIP-OFF ALERT: The Sun Sentinel reports that con artists are calling people on the phone posing as credit card fraud investigators in an effort to steal sensitive account information. The crooks often pretend as if they're calling to investigate a supposedly questionable charge that you may want to dispute. But ...
Websites/phone numbers mentioned:
GetPeek.com - Unlimited e-mail/texting for $16/month TIAA-CREF.org - The lowest cost teacher retirement plans Pandora.com - Listen to music online for free
Lottery and savings meet head-on with Save To Win program
We've all heard Clark encouraging people to adopt saving money as a lifestyle choice, but not everyone can easily heed the message. In fact, Americans spent almost $100 billion on gambling in 2007, but only saved just a little more than $50 billion, according to Jason Zweig of The Wall ...
Florida woman continues to drive her 45-year-old car
Clark advocates thrift, but sometimes he'll hear about someone who goes way beyond him when it comes to making a dollar stretch. A 90-year-old Florida woman named Rachel Veitch has driven the same car -- a Mercury Comet she calls "Chariot" -- since 1964. She bought it for $3,289 back ...
The Peek offers unlimited e-mailing and texting for $16/month
How would you like to have unlimited e-mailing and texting for about $16/month? A new handheld device called the Peek offers just that. Clark first talked about the Peek last November. The device was originally marketed to tweens and teens, but that approach missed a more valuable market segment. Now ...
Stories for Tuesday, July 28
Best and worst credit cards named
There are wonderful deals on credit cards for those who pay their balances in full every month. In industry lingo, any one who pays in full is referred to as a "deadbeat." Isn't that interesting?! SmartMoney magazine has revealed its picks for the best cards out in the marketplace. Among ...
Websites/phone numbers mentioned:
Chegg.com - Rent your college textbooks ClarkHoward.com - Clark's investing guide Wikipedia.org - Info on gold exchange-traded funds (ETF) Investopedia.com - Info on gold exchange-traded funds (ETF) MissingMoney.com - Free search for missing money
The traditional incandescent bulb makes a comeback
That's the paradox of government regulation. You try to control something and wind up not getting what you intended. It's like trying to grasp running water in your hand. --> Conservatives were all upset when they learned of new federal energy requirements coming in 2012. Articles were written anticipating the ...
Drunk driving on the decline
The rate of drunk driving in our nation continues to drop, according to figures from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Today, typically only 2 out of every 100 people on the road is drunk. If you go back to the 1990s, that figure was 4 in 100. Go back ...
Chegg.com a new resource for renting college textbooks
Textbooks can be one of the biggest expenses of a college education. Clark upsets college professors whenever he picks on them for requiring students to use the newest edition of a book -- instead of allowing students to purchase older used versions. Some professors have even accused the consumer champ ...
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