Queercents

Clint mentioned last week that he’s been bringing his lunch to work in order to stretch his food dollar. He’s a smart cookie. If you figure that the average lunch costs around $10, you could be saving $50 a week by bring your lunch to work. The challenge with bringing your lunch is that lunchtime can get kind of ho-hum if you just bring a sandwich or a frozen meal every day.

I’m a big believe in sack lunches. I’ve shared recipes with you all in the past for soups, salads, and sandwiches. Here are a few more salad recipes that actually get better after being in the fridge for a day or two. Make up a batch on Sunday night, for example, and you’ll have lunches ready to go for Monday and Tuesday. Both recipes are vegan-friendly, but anyone will enjoy these flavor-packed dishes.

Black Bean Salad
1 can black beans, drained
1 red bell pepper, seeded and minced
1 green bell pepper, seeded and minced
1 can corn, drained
3 green onions, minced
1/2 cup minced cilantro
1/2 Tbsp olive oil
juice of 1 lime (or lemon)
salt and pepper to taste

1. In a medium mixing bowl, combine all of your ingredients. Stir until everything is evenly distributed.
2. Pack about 1 cup of salad in individual plastic containers. Store in the fridge until ready to serve.

After making this recipe, you may decide that you like more/less onions or cilantro. Adjust the recipe according to your own taste buds. The kitchen is, after all, your own creative work space. Read the rest of this entry »

Thus far in this series, we’ve talked about all the things you should and shouldn’t buy as a consumer to save you money. We discussed how higher quality can cost a little extra initially, but how in the long run it can pay off to pay a little extra. I’ve ignored one thing that you should pay for though, and I hope that thus far it hasn’t been to your detriment. Yes, it makes sense, but you should be sure to pay a little extra for your food.

I can understand how you feel right now. You’re probably wondering what expense you can afford to scale back on now. If not for nothing, this series has meant to help you take a good long look at what you do spend money on so that you can pay quality there. My goal has been to get you to realize what it is you’re truly cutting back on and what sacrifices you’re making. Regardless, in this case, I want you to spend more money on food.

When I say food, though, I don’t mean fast food or restaurant fare. I want you to start spending more money on pure, raw materials such as spices, flour, eggs, milk, and produce. Yes, at first, it hurts. You will spend more money than you think you can and you’ll hate it. Your food will be terrible, and it’ll barely feel worth your while. But I ask you to stick it out. Keep to as few prepared foods as possible, and by that I include breakfast cereals, TV dinners, and canned soup. I still do admittedly keep a cheat around–Raisin Bran, as I cannot function in the mornings without it–but stick to my plan for now. It will help you to highlight weaknesses in the kitchen for you, and you’ll know how to plan and purchase around them. Maybe you eat a lot of salads but you’re always in a hurry. That’s fine to buy bagged prewashed lettuce then. Perhaps you are never home for dinner. A quick prep dinner when you get home (such as pasta with 10-minute sauce) is the way to go.

One thing that breaks my heart is having someone come up to me in the break room at work and goggle at the fact that I made my lunch. It’s a lost art to pack one’s lunch and an even more impressive thing to be able to cook. This should not be, as eating out can force you to spend at least twice as much as you would making your own food. And even if it didn’t, making your own food means frequently that you eat healthier, smarter, and better.

Yeah, you should buy local or organic. Does it cost more? Sure. But there’s mounting evidence to show that nutritional content is higher in foods grown in places optimal for them. That means eating what is capable of growing around you as well as eating with the seasons. It’s yet another lost art, but it’s sure to hit you less in the pocketbook. Not sure what’s good when? Click here to find out more. Hit up a good farmer’s market or buy organic when you can. It sounds trite and inaccurate, but it can often be better for you.

Do you have any tips for spending a little more intelligently? Let us know in the comments below.

Are the rest of you as irritated as I am about the banks sending out reminders to consumers about the new overdraft regulations? As of August 15th, customers have to specifically opt in to their bank’s overdraft protection if they want the bank to process transactions that would send an account into insufficient funds. That’s because NSF charges are big business for the banking industry. The Center for Responsible Lending explains:

In recent years, many banks have offered overdraft coverage as an automatic “feature” on most accounts. Banks routinely cover overdrafts for a flat fee of about $34 per incident, even on the smallest of transactions. Banks and credit unions have followed this overdraft fee recipe to the tune of billions of dollars every year, collecting nearly $24 billion in fees in 2008. The leading cause of overdraft fees is small debit card transactions.

If the bank asks you to opt in for overdraft protection, you should ignore their request. By doing nothing, your account automatically has no overdraft protection. Sure, it might be embarrassing to have your debit card declined at the cash register (assuming that you go shopping without looking at your account balance first), but you’ll save yourself the hassle of paying the bank $34 for a $2 overdraft. That’s just common cents to me.

If banks want to make a profit, perhaps they should look at their bottom line.  How much money has your bank wasted sending you notes in the mail, begging you to opt in for overdraft protection?  I can’t count the number of letters and e-mails I’ve gotten from my credit union about it.  Apparently some people just can’t take the hint.

What’s your take on overdraft protection and NSF charges? I’d love to hear what you have to say.

One investment I see people making over and over again is in their diversion. I have heard repeatedly from friends that they’d freak out if they lost their most precious resource: TV. I’m here to tell you that even though you may love it and you may spend all your time with it, paying for TV is foolish.

The biggest question to ask yourself is what cable package you have. If you have the super mega deluxe package with 1,500 channels and HBO, Showtime, and Cinemax, why? How could you possibly watch that many channels in your life? In my hedonistic college days, the most I ever had was 100 channels and even then nothing was on. Take a long hard look at what channels you actually watch. I’m sure you’ll be surprised to find that you don’t get a great bang for your buck. If you watch five channels regularly, is that worth $150 a month? You are paying $360 a year (or about a dollar a day) to watch each of those channels. That works out to nearly five bucks a day just to watch TV.

The fact of the matter is that most of what you now watch is online instead. I’ve been without TV for nearly five years but I’m hardly out of the pop cultural loop. I have had the ability to legally download TV and movies for awhile now, but recently I’ve been able to stream them via Netflix and Hulu if I don’t care about ownership. Frequently, I find that I don’t care about ownership, so I’ve been happy to stream instead.

For that matter, why do you spend so much extra on the ability to rent movies at home when you can do the same for only $10 a month through Netflix? If you don’t want to watch it on your computer, invest in a $10 cable from your computer to your TV and watch it there. You don’t even need to sink $100 in a Roku box, but you certainly still could if you wanted.

Which would you rather spend: $40 to download and own a season of your favorite show, $10 to stream it whenever you like, or $150 a month just to watch it? The cable company is blithely fleecing you. And you’re lining up to get sheared until you divorce yourself from the ancient institution of the cable company. Join me and save literally over a thousand dollars a year, then go to Cancún with your savings. Doesn’t that sound nice?

For those of you who haven’t followed this blog very long, we were known for our Ten Money Questions feature, which had small financial-related interviews with various gay celebrities. We have brought this very popular feature back and plan to run it monthly. Enjoy today’s inaugural post with Chris Ryan, NYC club promoter.

1. Just because you do a lot of stuff, can you give us a brief layout of your club promotion empire?

Yes, I run a production/promotion company. Onehalf of it is producing events (booking venues, acts, dj’s, staff, gettingdécor, set-up/take down, etc.) The other half of my company is gay marketing and advertising as well as club promotions. Anything that can be marketed towards the gay community and the gay community would appreciate, rather than just a bunch of club emails, I promote. I promote for several Broadway shows, concerts, salons, plastic surgeons, etc.

2. Do you do all that in addition to going to school right now?

I do.  I’m currently attending my last year for graduate school at New School University.

3. Do you also have a day job?

I do have a part-time job counseling GLBT youth.

4. Would you say that most club promoters are fiscally responsible?

I would venture to say that most are pretty good about money.  Considering this is mainly a cash business, one has to in order to keep their head above water. However, there’s the other side of the coin.  Since it is a cash business, many spend unwisely.  I make sure that my money goes right into my bank account.  I always use my debit card so I can track my spending.

5. What’s the best day of the week to go out, financially?

Saturday is the best day to go out “financially.” You have a lot of open bars at various different clubs.  People will save at the bar, but they may pay a cover for this (most likely so).

6. Which holiday/event would you say is the most expensive?

Thanksgiving is by far the busiest and best holiday night to go out surprisingly.  Most would think New Year’s eve.  New Year’s eve is by far more expensive and the most expensive night to go out though.

7. Which one is the cheapest to celebrate?

Christmas is the cheapest holiday to celebrate.  Since most place know people won’t go out, they offer pretty amazing deals.

8. What’s your take on pregaming?

Pregaming helps to save a person money when going out obviously.  The amount you pay for a bottle is nowhere near the amount you would pay for continually buying drinks at a club.  Of course, I shouldn’t be telling you this!

9. Do you have a retirement portfolio?

I do have a retirement portfolio.  I think the actual portfolio will begin to see progress after I finish grad school.

10. Which do you think is more important: accessibility or cheap rent?

Cheap rent, by far!

To learn more about Chris Ryan, please visit his website here.

After writing my Penny Wise, Pound Foolish post on health insurance, I received an email from Nicole Vincent of the FTC. For those of you who are not familiar, the FTC is the Federal Trade Commission, and they deal with consumer issues. Apparently, there’s a health insurance scam going on right now that she wanted me to tell all of you about, so let me break it down for you.

Health insurance is supposed to work like this: you pay a monthly premium, and in exchange, should you need medical treatment, they will pay for whatever you need to some degree. Some health insurance sucks so it doesn’t cover much, while other health insurance is really good so you can be fully covered in a number of instances. The point, though, is that you are covered no matter where you go. Sure, you may get a discount for going to doctors who accept your insurance, but you go anywhere to get coverage. Your insurance is going to cover you no matter what, even if it isn’t to the fullest extent of charges on your account.

Medical discount plans, on the other hand, are not health insurance, never have been, and never will be. We highly recommend at Queercents that you do not get one of these and do not even consider them. They are eventually worth less money than you pay for them, so save your hard-earned cash.

This is how they work: you pay a monthly premium, and in exchange, they don’t charge you as much for services at their specific clinic or network of offices. Frequently, these operations are not large, so they can only offer coverage in your city, and even more frequently they are only associated with one office. These plans simply don’t make sense. You’re paying less than you would for health insurance, sure. But you’re also getting far less, and it shows. Not only that, but you pay a monthly enrollment fee and then have to pay for most of your equipment and lab costs anyway–rather than just a simple copay to cover your medical visit. On top of that, if you have to receive urgent care–which is the whole damn point of health insurance–you’d have to go to a hospital and pay through the nose for it anyway.

This isn’t just penny wise and pound foolish; this is an outright scam and you will be fleeced for thousands of dollars before you pull the plug. And you more than likely won’t get your money back either, as the FTC’s lawsuits are currently pending. If successful, they won’t necessarily recover everything lost.

If you’d like to learn more, click here.

It can be scary to get a medical procedure done that might reveal serious problems, and we all feel scared to a certain extent. The attitude of course is fear that we might have something wrong with us and like some sort of demented Schrödinger’s cat, we’re only not sick until we find out that we are. But we know this on some level not to be true. If we indeed are sick, it would make sense to find out as soon as possible so that we can get treatment for it. Emotions cannot be reasoned with, so it will be scary. It might even be terrifying. But it’s just a feeling–ultimately, we are better off ignoring our emotions in this case and getting treatment.

Many financial decisions are unfortunately made this way. Emotions can cloud our judgment and lead to bad decisions. I know that people often buy big ticket items without thinking them fully through; for example, should you get the extended warranty? People also end up impulse buying fast food because they feel that the effort of cooking would be too great. Sure, you save time (and therefore money) when you eat out, but you pay far more in the long run than cooking for yourself, even if it’s just an hour a week.

Consider this your wakeup call for budgeting and planning your spending better overall. Think out everything you do in as long of terms as you possibly can. If you’re buying groceries, how long do you expect to be eating them? If you’re buying a new computer, how long do you expect to be using it? If you’re getting a mammogram, how long can you rest assured that you are breast cancer free? When you distribute costs, you can see that you’re paying merely pennies a day frequently rather than a seemingly more reasonable low but continual payment. By that I mean perhaps you have to buy $50 of groceries but you can get something off the dollar menu at a fast food joint. Sure, that seems cheaper, but you don’t just pay $1 for every meal. You generally would end up spending $2-3 per meal, three times a day. At the end of the week, you’ve spent nearly $50 anyway, and you haven’t eaten nearly as healthily as you could have if you had spent money on groceries. Factor in waiting in line (or in your car) and total up gas mileage, and you can see how you’d easily save by shopping once a week and cooking instead.

Are you neglecting some good behaviors that can save you money? Let us know.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

This morning’s “Today Show” featured a segment about “schizophrenic consumers.” With tough economic times and high unemployment, many people are shopping at the dollar store for basic necessities at the same time that they are putting lattes and luxury goods on their credit cards. Pscyhotherapist Robi Ludwig explains that many people use “retail therapy” as a way to feel better about themselves, particularly if they are feeling depressed about not have a job, or having to cut back on other expenses.

I can relate to splurging on a latte, but I always pay cash. If I don’t have the $2.50 for my Starbucks, I don’t buy it. I cannot relate, however, to putting a Coach purse on my credit card if I am struggling to buy toilet paper and groceries. To me it is a question of priorities. If I can’t pay my rent, I have absolutely no business going out to eat, or buying designer clothing. Read the rest of this entry »

Photo courtesy of Facebook's Boycott Target group.

Queercents is not going to get political here. At least, I’m not a fan of being political. I like to stick to the old wisdom that you should never discuss religion or politics unless you want to make quick enemies. But at the same time, the Target boycott is pretty hard to ignore. So rather than stay out of it, here’s your definitive guide to what happened, and the consumer decisions you make.

Matt Baume of the SFist posted an article about Target’s donation of $150,000 to Minnesota Forward, a Republican group that supports Tom Emmer. Tom Emmer is a Republican who is running for governor of Minnesota, so that is a big deal. Tom Emmer is also a supporter of a Christian rock group from his ministry known as You Can Run But You Cannot Hide. The frontman of that group, Bradlee Dean, has made some questionable comments about gays, including supporting the actions of Muslim countries that execute homosexuals.

To don the skeptic’s hat, though, Target is likely not supportive of Dean’s comments. Being a business, Target supports the Republican governor for his lenient business stance compared to that of most Democrats. Let’s be fair to Emmer here too; although he supports Dean’s group, to tie his comments to Emmer is ridiculously unfair. It is as unfair as saying that all Republicans are like Ann Coulter just because they invite her to events. That dimension of the boycott is unfair, as it is merely guilt by association.

Here’s a further complication. According to the HRC, Target received a 100 on its index of gay-friendly businesses. Target is more progressive than virtually any other retailer out there, going so far as to offer even transgender-inclusive healthcare, partner coverage, an employer-supported employee resource group, and provides diversity training. Aside from this donation, Target has been nothing but supportive of the gay community and been quite a booster.

By contrast, Men’s Wearhouse, Office Depot, Radio Shack, Walmart, AutoZone, Meijer, and even Minnesota-based Regis Corp. all score significantly lower, ranging from a middling 68 down to a questionable 20 on the index. The question here is why are we currently boycotting a business that has had a 100 with HRC (although this latest action may bring them to an 85) while Walmart enjoys top position on the Fortune 500 and a dismal score of 40? Target, by the way, is only 31 on the Fortune 500 list. Walmart’s market cap is $190 billion as of this writing, while Target sits at $38 billion.

In summary, this boycott is currently lead due to Target’s funding of a campaign for Minnesota’s next governor, who supports a group whose leader has made questionable comments. Is the boycott fair or effective?

Don’t expect to find answers here. This is just your guide to the boycott. The answers are up to you, readers. Let me know what you think in the comments.

This article is about to get me into a lot of trouble.

I’ve been kicking it around for awhile but I’m convinced that paying more for housing is a good thing. I know that you should reduce your expenses as much as possible but there are certain non-negotiables that you have to pay for–utilities, housing, debts, and the like. Saving on housing can sometimes seem like quite a boon, but let me paint the picture for you here.

You move to a new city and you find a really great apartment. It’s far from the city, though, so you’re going to have to travel farther to get to your brand-new job. Still, you’re saving a lot of money, so you figure that you’ll be able to move into the city after you bank some of those savings. Ah, but then you want to go out, so you stay out too late and you can’t get a train so you take a cab home. That’s okay once in awhile, but you start to make a habit of it. Then your commute turns into a beast because it’s nearly an hour each way, and you can’t get anything done during that time. So you waste two hours a day and end up spending nearly all your savings on cabs just to live far out of the city, plus no one comes to visit you because you live too far away, so you have to come to the city to visit any of your friends. Then they want to go out, so you spend even more money on cabs. Not to mention that if you want to do something on the weekend, you can take the train if it’s running, or you have to rent a car to get out.

Where’d your savings go?

There’s a sweet spot where you can live within relative proximity to the city where you pay just enough on rent. The general rule is that you should try to spend at around 25% to 40% on housing. Of course it helps to pay less than that amount, but you have to think of the lifestyle changes you’ll be making. There are far too many young people who move back in with Mom and Dad to save cash or live in borderline slum housing to save money, but then you aren’t saving much money if you’re out every night drinking to avoid your parents or getting all your stuff stolen because you live in a bad neighborhood. By the way, if you happen to be shelling out for renter’s insurance, it’s higher in bad neighborhoods. Factor that into your savings. And you do have renter’s insurance, right?

What’s more important to you: accessibility or rent? Let me know in the comments below.