A warning about walmart.... The large "economy" sizes at walmart are usually the most expensive. They count on people expecting them to be cheaper and not checking the prices. That's another way I save; I check prices.
I process it as debit and do get money back sometimes, so perhaps those particular transactions are somehow processed as credit? I'll have to try it, and see if there's a difference. I get the $$ back when I pay at the Kroger register, but I run it as debit, and have also gotten the money back when I've paid online at AT&T. It shouldn't make a difference financially to me, other than possibly bringing in some extra money, so I'm going to do that from now on and see, thanks.
That may be. At times, in stores that do not have the self-scanning machines that allow me to process my own transaction, I have had clerks tell me that they can't accept debit cards, since the card says "debit" on it, but the same stores can run them as credit. I think that the advantage to PayPal is in the fees that are passed on to the business when a transaction is made as credit rather than as debit.
Ah, I see, so I guess they're more willing to give back if they can pass fees along to the businesses. That makes sense. Any little extra I can get back definitely helps. I just got a notice that I'm getting a little back from my last Walmart online purchase via Ebates. For some reason, it usually takes them a few days to process those transactions. Maybe there are lot of scammers who try to collect then cancel the orders, not sure, but a few days doesn't hurt me, and I'm happy about the money.
Here's an idea that my wife and I just noticed that we have been doing, although not intentionally, hiring sex offenders. We live in an old house that is frequently in need of maintenance, as well as improvements that I haven't completed yet. We live in a small town where pretty much everyone knows everyone, or can find out whatever they might want to find out. Professional service, such as plumbers, electricians, and other contractors are in high demand. We have had a terrible time getting someone to come out in an emergency, let along something less dire. It doesn't help either that we were involved in a local political fight a few years back, so some of them won't even do business with us. When we can get someone to come out, the prices are high, and if they get a bigger job, they'll take it, leaving us stranded, usually without even telling us they weren't coming. Basically, they have all the business they need and don't care whether we're happy with them or not. Many of these jobs don't actually need a licensed contractor, just someone who knows how to do the job, such as a handyman. Over the years, we've found that the ones that are most likely to be available, do a good job, and charge us very little are registered sex offenders. Since a lot of people won't hire them, they are available and glad to have whatever jobs they can get. Since it's a small town, it's easy enough to find out what it was that they had done, so we're not hiring a pedophile or rapist, not that we have any children or young women around here anyhow. For a few years, we had a woman who was living with another woman, not a sex offender at all, but still someone who most people thought was weird, so she wasn't on the top of a lot people's lists when it came to calling for help. But she knew what she was doing when it came to a lot of stuff that we needed done, while we were reconstructing the house, tearing down walls, combining rooms, and the like. Some of that was stuff that I could do, but not so easily by myself. After she moved, we hired a guy who had had a fifteen year-old girlfriend while he was nineteen, twelve years ago, and was on the sex offender registry. The only problem with him was that he was a sometimes recovering alcoholic, who would occasionally disappear for a month or so. He has done a lot of work here, including putting a metal roof on our house. When he shows up again, we'll continue to use him. Since he's not around, we had someone else come by who is going to be able to help me jack up the house down in the crawlspace, as I have a few issues. He is on the sex offender registry because he was convicted of molesting a stepdaughter. The accusation didn't come up until after the divorce, and other people who know him tell us that his ex-wife was a nutcase. So I don't know, but we don't have any children around here anyhow. Besides, offenders are less likely to re-offend if they are able to lead a productive life, and I need the help. So, while I am not necessarily recommending that you scour the local sex offender list when you need a handyman, they will probably underbid the competition.
I usually pay with my credit card with all my purchases. But lately I realized that credit card companies charge me for those purchases to the tune of 2.5% every month. It is like I am borrowing money from them, huh. We normally use the credit cards for specific purposes like the Visa for gas and groceries, the Mastercard for dining out, the other card for travel, etc. So now we are evaluating our stand on the credit card because we can maybe use cash instead. But the only disadvantage with paying in cash is the probability of a holdup. You cannot underestimate criminals. They seem to smell if you have a big amount of money in your bag.
@Corie Henson Do you not have a debit card you can use instead of the credit cards? That way, you wouldn't have to carry cash, and wouldn't be charged the 2.5% for using the card. I like to carry a little cash, but I'm outside of the city, so there's less chance of being mugged here. I mainly buy generic goods, and save a lot in doing so. I also use Walmart's Savings Catcher program, and have gotten back around $55 so far this year via that program. I transfer the money to a Blue Bird card from American Express. It's free, and I use it first when paying for groceries and other items at Walmart, so it decreases what I have to pay out of pocket.
@Diane, I have a debit card as well but I only use it for my personal shopping. Using credit card has been my habit and now I am rethinking to change that habit. That is a good reminder, for me to use the debit card. The biggest mall chain here has the Bonus brand, a generic with low prices. They have a complete line of foodstuff, from rice to cooking oil, canned and preserved meat, canned fish, noodles, almost everything. The owner of this brand is SM, the mall chain itself. They created that retail company to be able to sell cheap products (that are generic in nature). So now the poor have a choice.
When I write a check, say for $5.37, I'll enter it as $6 in my checkbook. I seldom looked at my statements until one day I checked, just out of curiosity. I had near $600 extra dollars. I still do that but I check each statement now.
Like Ruth, Pat, Von and all others I do many of what they do to save money. Sold my car relinquish my license and bus to save money. Buy sale items mostly. We have ad days Sunday & Wed. locally. Get Senior Citizen Disount around town like Ross Dept. Tuesday, McDonald's Senior coffee for a $1, and here is a link for you of nationwide senior discount. Good luck!
We save money by making our own coffee and cooking our own meals. Is a cup of coffee at McDonalds really a dollar? Wow, it amazes me to think of some of the prices of things these days. The last time I went to Sonic, several months ago, 2 hamburgers, two onion rings and two malts were nearly $18. I just gave the car hop a twenty and left. It was good but for twenty dollars we can have a big pork roast with several vegetables that will last us at least three days.
When I go to a regular grocery store I only get "Buy One Get One Free" items and they let you get just one for 1/2 price. But then I go to Whole Foods aka "Whole Paycheck" and do most of my grocery shopping there. In the long run it's worth it because everything is fresher and lasts longer. Also, WFs has many organic products and their store brand 365 is reasonably priced and excellent. People complain about the price of their lunch or dinner hot bar at 8.99 a pound, but mine only costs about 6.00 and you can't get fast food for less than that…plus Whole Foods is healthier by far. I'm not a clothes horse or shoe hoarder so I save there and I don't buy expensive jewelry.
We make most all of our meals at home, too, and rarely ever buy coffee from any kind of a coffee shop. I can see doing that if you are traveling; but when we have a coffee pot, it just makes sense to make our own coffee or tea. My mom always said that there is no sense spending money to buy food that you can make at home, and have it cheaper. We usually just order water when we do go out to eat, unless the drink comes with the meal price. There is a little cafe here called "Frizzles", and on Tuesdays and Thursdays, they have a senior special. It is basically the childrens' menu, and you can choose anything on there for under $3. We usually get the cheeseburger deluxe, which comes with all of the trimmings, french fries, drink, and custard-ice cream dessert. We don't go there a lot; but for $6, we can both have a great meal. Another thing we do to save money is not use the oven unless necessary, especially in the summer when the house is already hot. In the winter, we have to heat the house anyway, so cooking something in the oven also helps to heat up the house. Otherwise, I usually just use the stovetop, or cook it in the Ninja Cooking System.
hmm, Ninja Cooking System, I'll have to google that. I'm thinking of buying a toaster oven, instead of using a big oven now that I'm the only one to cook for. I want it large enough to bake a whole chicken because I eat it with roasted veggies and then, with the leftovers, I make chicken salad, portion it out, and freeze some….or I chop it up for other meals like chicken curry, lemon chicken, BBQ etc. Studies show that you live longer if you eat at home.