Start the New Year with a Bang – for Your Buck

We are back from the Holidays with some tips to help you tackle your financial resolutions for 2010.  Let’s start with three simple things to do during this short work week: Sign up for free loyalty programs and emails from your favorite stores, including the local pharmacy you frequently visit. As covered in previous posts, [...]

Tip of the Week: Check Your Health Care FSA Deadline and Balance

The Health Care Flexible Savings Account (FSA) can be a great idea since it allows you to use pre-tax dollars to pay for any medical expenses not covered by your health insurance.  But the FSA operates under a use-it-or-lose-it principle, so make sure you clean out your account by the end of the deadline or risk [...]

Being Healthy on a Budget

Organic fruits and vegetables are healthy, but also cost more.  However, you don’t have to buy everything organic.  Below are two lists to keep handy when shopping for produce so you can maximize your budget. The Dirty Dozen: 12 Foods to Eat Organic Peach Apple Bell Pepper Celery Nectarine Strawberries Cherries Kale Lettuce Grapes Carrot [...]

Saving for a Sick Day

When it comes to your health, every penny counts.  Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) can help you build up a “sick day” fund, and, because eligible contributions and distributions are tax free, get more mileage for each buck you set aside for your health. HSAs were created by law in 2003, and are available for individuals [...]

Open Season to Get Some Tax Savings

The annual open enrollment period is upon us once again.  Over the past and in the coming weeks, you should receive information packages from your employer on your benefit enrollment options and instructions for this year.  Now is the time to evaluate the benefits you have and decide which to keep, change, or remove.  The [...]

Get a Gift for Transferring Your Drugs: a battle between pharmacies

Rite Aid and CVS are both giving $25 gift cards for each prescription transferred to their respective stores, as part of their efforts to draw in customers from each other.  Take advantage of that battle. To get the deal, you should bring your empty prescription bottles/ boxes and present the coupon for a $25 gift [...]

The Score That Really Matters

While your SAT, GRE, GMAT, MCAT, or LSAT scores will cease to matter once you have graduated from college or graduate school, there is one score out there that will follow you the rest of your life: your FICO credit score.  This number is used by various parties,  from prospective landlords and employers to institutional lenders to insurance [...]

An Added Benefit for Biking to Work

If you ride your bike to work or are thinking of doing so – be it for your health, to save money, as a hobby, or any other reason – you may be able pick up a tax break along the way.  As of January 1 of this year, qualified bicycle commuting reimbursements of up [...]

Benefits of Pre-tax

For those who are starting their first job and trying to wade through the mountain of papers from HR on benefits, may I point your attention to two really great pre-tax benefits. Transportation Reimbursement Incentive Program – You can elect to contribute pre-tax dollars from your paycheck for any commuter expenses.  As of March 2009, [...]

Burn the Fat, Not the Cash

The recessionary lifestyle has led many folks to trim the gym membership from their budgets.  But it is precisely now that everyone should focus on preventative care and stay as healthy as possible, because it doesn’t take much more than a trip to the emergency room to drain your rainy day fund.  And while most [...]