A few months ago, oil prices were skyrocketing and there seemed little hope that the prices would go anywhere else but up in the near future. Because of that belief, many individual customers and business chose to lock into the current oil price to protect their finances during the cold winter months. However, over the [...]

Posted in budgeting, financial plans, personal finance perspectives 3 Comments »

This Thanksgiving holiday gave most of us something else to be thankful for - lower gas prices. When gas prices hit over $4 a gallon a few months back, consumers freaked and went crazy trying to sell the large model vehicles that consumed just too much gas to be worth keeping. However, as gas prices [...]

Posted in automobiles, lending, saving money No Comments »

Just because you are trying to keep close tabs on your spending doesn’t mean you can’t ever treat yourself by eating at a restaurant instead of cooking at home.  Here are some tips for keeping on the budget and still going out to eat:
Go Earlier in the Day:  Breakfast and Lunch are almost always less [...]

Posted in budgeting, entertainment, family, food, frugality in motion, lifestyle, personal finance basics, recreation, saving money No Comments »

Despite a weakened economy, the roadways near the shopping malls were absolutely packed on Black Friday 2008.  Children should have a few gifts to open this holiday season, but I’ve discovered a new way to give gifts that is way better than giving the latest Barbie, Elmo or Monster Truck toy…  it’s the gift of [...]

Posted in banking, budgeting, children, college, education, family, financial plans, holidays, investing, making money, online savings, parenting, personal finance basics, saving money, savings, wealth 1 Comment »

As it is said, “you don’t know what you got till it’s gone” is very true in the case of job loss and benefits. For many, the convenience of knowing that medical coverage is there is good enough. But when you retire or unexpectedly lose your job, what was once a convenience can now be [...]

Posted in careers, income, insurance No Comments »

It is almost hard to believe Thanksgiving is almost upon us and Christmas is right around the corner. While both holidays bring immediate images of families and friends gathering together to celebrate, they can also bring serious concerns about finances, especially when it comes to holiday shopping bills.
Black Friday occurs the day after Thanksgiving where [...]

Posted in budgeting, holidays, saving money, shopping 1 Comment »

As many more stores go out of business, it is becoming more common to see the promotional signs announcing “liquidation sales” and “low, low prices” as the stores attempt to reduce the amount of stock remaining in the store. However, caveat emptor - let the buyer beware.
When a store goes out of business, often a [...]

Posted in saving money, scams, shopping 2 Comments »

We at American Consumer News have been hitting the carnival circuit - we’ve been mentioned all over the ‘net and to show our appreciation to the hard work the carnival hosts put in to get each edition published, here’s a round-up of carnivals.  They’re just full of entertaining and informative posts on a variety of [...]

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The financial status of married couples is all too often the reason for divorce. In many cases, couples just do not properly communicate about their financial situation and only one half of the couple ends up being financially responsible for the money in the household. This leads to many problems, many of which become seemingly [...]

Posted in debt, family, financial planners, financial problems, marriage 2 Comments »

Selling things you no longer need or want on eBay is a good way to drum up some extra cash.  Depending on what you have to sell, November and early December could prove to be good months for attracting buyers who are doing their holiday shopping!
Here are some tips for successfully selling the items that [...]

Posted in 1 5 Comments »