Are those frequent flyer mile credit cards worth it?
Well, the New York Times posed these five questions to help you decide if it’s time to switch to a different rewards program:
Two deal breakers:
1. Do you carry a balance - if yes, then don’t do it. Just work on paying off the card.
2. Do you have kids. Airlines limit the number of seats that overlap with school breaks.
These could be Deal Makers:
3. Do you have elite status? Airlines like that a lot
4. Are you a big spender for your business? Save the points and get pricier tickets later.
5. Do you value upgrades? They can still be used to get you into first class.
In fact, the New York Times reports U.S. AIR has stopped giving bonus miles for the Dividend Miles program who have elite statues

For the full story try this website:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/16/business/yourmoney/16money.html?_r=1&em&pagewanted=print&oref=slogin

Opening day at E.C.U. is set for next week, and we wanted to help students save some money on text books.
.
We found, there are ways to legally download text books for free.
one way is called subsidizing.
http://www.freeloadpress.com offers dozens of e-textbooks for free by selling ad space on their web site and on the e-pages.
And then there is http://www.projectgutenberg.com - it offers more than 25-thousand free e-books of older out of copy write text books and classics like Jane Ayer or the Illyid.
Selection is the biggest problem right now, so don’t bank on finding all your required reading. .

Other than tuition, the biggest cost for college are those expensive books.
Your student will spend more than a thousand dollars a semester on books alone.
So here is some information that could help:
• ConsumerWorld.Org says ditch the hard cover books in favor of electronic books.
• That can save you 50 % of the cost per book.
• Try Coursesmart.com which sells subscriptions to digital text books.
• How about textbook rentals.
• You could pay as little as a third of the price of a new book.
• Try chegg.com; bookRenter.Com; or CampusBookRental.com
Here is a website that is good for more information:
http://www.smartmoney.com/deal-of-the-day/index.cfm?story=20080804-save-on-college-textbooks

Some people say you should buy gas in the early part of the day when it’s cool because you get more gas by volume before it warms up.

Well, I checked with consumer report which says, Yes gasoline does expand as it gets warmer.
In fact, when the temperature rises from 60 to 75 degrees, you get 1-percent less gas per gallon.

But Consumer Reports also says, gas is kept in underground tanks where the temperature variations are much less than the air above. So the temperature of the gasoline coming out of the nozzle changes very little during any 24 hour stretch.

The bottom line is - If you need to fill up, do it when you can.

The Great Depression drove millions to desperation, and economists say, our country is suffering its hardest times since then.  In tonight’s wallet watch:  prices are going up, and losing a home is one of the most devastating losses anyone can experience. But taking steps to save money now, could also help you save your sanity.  The largest employee assistance program in the U.S., says requests for therapists jumped 20 percent in the last three months. They tell clients they won’t feel as helpless if they have a plan of action, for saving money or refinancing a loan. And make children part of the conversation. Dr. Alan Hilfer, a Psychologist, says, “To not talk about it not only leaves them out of it but gives them a sense of unexpressed anxiety.” Leslie Lerner, a mother of two, tells how she involves her children, “I do explain to her we need to buy you essentials first and then worry about if there’s anything left over to buy extras.” Doctors say the biggest mistake is trying to shoulder the burden alone.

EVER DREAM OF HAVING YOUR OWN BUSINESS?  IN TONIGHT’S WALLET WATCH:  GOVERNOR EASLEY ANNOUNCED A NEW EFFORT TO TEACH ENTREPRENEURS AND SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS ABOUT TAX ISSUES AND PROVIDE THE TOOLS TO START THEIR COMPANIES.
THE DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE WILL CONDUCT FREE SEMINARS AT MOST OF THE STATE’S COMMUNITY COLLEGE SMALL BUSINESS CENTERS STARTING AUGUST 12TH AT JAMES SPRUNT COMMUNITY COLLEGE IN KENANSVILLE. 
THEY’VE LAUNCHED A WEBSITE, http://WWW.SBCN.NC.GOV, A ONE- STOP RESOURCE FOR SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS.

We’ve been telling you a lot of ways to save money...including budgeting. So let’s put all the ideas together in one fell swoop.

1. Set goals and write them down.
2. Track your expenses. If you have a computer, quicken is a good way to do that, if not, then use a pencil and paper.
3. Use debit cards and checks for all of your spending,.
4. Plan for surprises - add 12 percent to the monthly budget for say broken water heater or set of car tires.
5. And regularly update your budget plan every few months because things change.

There are a number of other rules, but these are the most effective according to area bankers. Good Luck and good budgeting.

We told you last week that thousands of people in our state still haven’t filed for an economic stimulus check—and many are right here in the east.

Officials say more than 2-thousand people in Jones, Greene and Lenoir counties are eligible for the unclaimed checks—that’s a total of more than 600-thousand dollars in those three counties alone.

Remember --the cut off date is only a few weeks away.. You must file a 2007 tax return using a 10-40 *a* form by October 15th. In fact, more than 175-thousand seniors, veterans, and people with disabilities have not filed for the checks.

You can get more information on how to file at:
http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=177937,00.html

Since gas prices started going up a lot of you have been trying to figure out how to save on gas.

Some have even tried to buy used cars that get better mileage than that s-u-v in the drive way.
Well here are the five highest mileage used cars according to the consumerist dot. Com.

Car type Mileage

The 2000 Honda Insight (manual shft) - 51-mpg
2001-02 Toyota Prius - 41 mpg
2000-05 Toyota echo - 38 mpg
1998-2002 Chevrolet Prizm - 32 mpg
1998 Mazda Protegé LX - 32 mpg

BY LAW, YOU’RE ENTITLED TO A FREE CREDIT REPORT, BUT MAKE SURE YOU GET IT FROM THE RIGHT SOURCE.
IN TONIGHT’S WALLET WATCH....
ANNUAL CREDIT REPORT DOT COM IS THE CENTRALIZED SERVICE FOR PEOPLE TO REQUEST FREE CREDIT REPORTS.
THE THREE NATIONWIDE CONSUMER CREDIT REPORTING COMPANIES - EQUIFAX, EXPERIAN AND TRANSUNION, CREATED IT.
THE WEBSITE PROVIDES A SECURE WAY TO GET A FREE CREDIT REPORT ONCE EVERY 12 MONTHS.