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The DIY Cleaning Kit: Ditching Expensive Commercial Chemicals

Consumer / Personal Finance /

Take a look under your kitchen sink right now. How many different specialized plastic bottles do you see lining the shelf?

There's a specific spray for the glass, another for the granite counters, a third for the bathroom tiles, and a fourth for the stainless steel appliances.

If you add up the cost of all those single-purpose commercial ...Read more

Quick Tip: Buy Bulk Raw Pecan Halves for Baking

Consumer / Personal Finance /

Pre-packaged baking nuts carry high retail markdowns. Purchase large bulk bags of raw pecan halves from wholesale clubs and freeze them in airtight bags to preserve freshness.

The Clothing Swap Party: Refreshing Your Wardrobe for Free

Consumer / Personal Finance /

Does your closet feel like a crowded museum of clothes you haven't worn in years, yet you still feel like you have 'nothing to wear' for your next event?

We all fall into the trap of buying new outfits for weddings, parties, or seasonal changes, leaving our closets overflowing with garments that get worn once and then abandoned.

Instead of ...Read more

Quick Tip: Shop Around for Certificate of Deposit (CD) Ladders

Consumer / Personal Finance /

Lock in guaranteed interest rates across staggered maturity dates by building a CD ladder, ensuring steady cash flow while protecting a portion of your savings from market volatility.

The Utility Audit: Unplugging the Silent Energy Vampires

Consumer / Personal Finance /

Have you ever walked around your house in the middle of the night and noticed tiny red or green indicator lights glowing silently from the walls?

Those little lights are visual proof of energy vampires: household electronics that draw power around the clock even when they are turned completely off.

Microwave clocks, idle game consoles, phone ...Read more

Quick Tip: Look for Entertainment Rewards Apps

Consumer / Personal Finance /

Download movie theater chain and entertainment venue apps to earn points on ticket purchases, concessions, and digital rentals. These loyalty ecosystems frequently distribute exclusive midweek discount codes, free popcorn vouchers, and early-access ticket sales directly to app members.

The Coffee Shop Fast: Brewing Your Way to a Bigger Savings Account

Consumer / Personal Finance /

Let’s talk about that comforting morning ritual of pulling up to the drive-thru or stopping by the neighborhood café for a specialty latte.

It feels like a harmless little treat—just a few dollars here and there to jump-start your morning with a bit of joy and caffeine.

But when you multiply those daily five-dollar purchases across a full...Read more

Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images North America/TNS

Treasury unveils rule to ban large investors from homebuying

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

The Treasury Department on Thursday proposed new regulations to bar large institutional investors from buying up single-family homes, the latest step in the process to implement the most controversial section of the sweeping bipartisan housing law passed this summer.

Under the law, the ban — which prohibits investors with more than 350 ...Read more

Real estate Q&A: Can we keep deposit after buyer backed out of home sale?

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

Q: We had our house under contract. and everything was on track. The inspection period had passed, and the buyer’s loan was approved; then he simply changed his mind because he found another house he liked better. We took our home off the market for six weeks for him. He left a good-sized deposit in escrow. Can we keep it? — Theodore

A: You...Read more

Michael Quine/Las Vegas Review-Journal/TNS

Las Vegas home sellers turn to mortgage buydowns to attract buyers

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

To buydown or not to buydown? That’s become a pressing question for Las Vegas Valley home sellers as mortgage rates remain elevated and buyers struggle with affordability.

With 30-year mortgage rates hovering above 7 percent since September, home sellers are increasingly being asked to help buyers lower their monthly payments through mortgage...Read more

Quick Tip: Use Browser Extensions for Entertainment Deals

Consumer / Personal Finance /

Install automated browser extensions that scan the web for active promotional coupon codes when buying tickets, streaming subscriptions, or hobby gear online. These digital helpers test multiple discount strings instantly to ensure you capture every available markdown.

The Cable Box Cull: Trimming the Invisible Entertainment Fat

Consumer / Personal Finance /

When was the last time you sat down and meticulously audited every single entertainment charge hitting your credit card statement each month?

Most of us signed up for our traditional cable packages, premium movie channels, and multiple streaming services years ago and simply let them roll over on auto-pilot.

We pay for dozens of channels we ...Read more

Quick Tip: Use Digital Coupons Before Shopping

Consumer / Personal Finance /

Before heading out to run errands or grocery shop, spend five minutes browsing store mobile apps for digital coupons and store-loaded rewards. Actively clipping these digital offers ensures you capture instant price breaks at the register that casual shoppers miss. Harnessing store apps turns routine checkout lines into opportunities for ...Read more

The Brown Bag Revolution: Reclaiming Your Lunch Money

Consumer / Personal Finance /

Think about your typical workday lunch routine. Are you running out to the local deli, ordering takeout apps, or grabbing a quick bite from the office cafeteria?

If you add up those convenient midday meals, you might be genuinely shocked to realize you are spending upwards of ten to fifteen dollars every single day just to feed yourself for an ...Read more

Justin Sullivan/Getty Images North America/TNS

US pending home sales plunged in September to a record low

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

Pending sales of existing U.S. homes fell to a record low in September as high mortgage rates continued to weigh on demand.

An index of contract signings from the National Association of Realtors tumbled 7.3% to 66 last month, its lowest reading since records began in 2001, according to data released Tuesday. The decline was sharper than any ...Read more

Quick Tip: Shop Thrift Stores for Board Game Replacement Boxes

Consumer / Personal Finance /

If you own classic board game components that are missing their original outer packaging, check thrift store game sections for sturdy boxes of matching dimensions to organize your tabletop collection neatly.

The Generic Brand Swap: Beating the Grocery Store Name-Brand Trap

Consumer / Personal Finance /

Take a slow stroll down any grocery store aisle and look closely at the products lining the shelves right at eye level.

More often than not, those prominent spots belong to flashy, expensive name brands that spend millions of dollars on marketing, fancy packaging, and catchy jingles.

Right below them—or tucked away on the bottom shelf—sit ...Read more

TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP/Getty Images North America/TNS

Musk plans to gift SpaceX shares to kids through Trump Accounts

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

Elon Musk vowed to distribute a share of SpaceX to each child in the U.S., a multibillion-dollar pledge that adds to a string of sizable donations from the tech industry for the benefit of the American public.

“Next year, I will give one of my SpaceX shares to every kid in America,” the company’s chief executive officer wrote Monday on X,...Read more

David Guralnick/The Detroit News/TNS

Dan Gilbert pledges $1 billion for RenCen revamp, nonprofit to own complex

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

DETROIT — Mortgage mogul Dan Gilbert has pledged $1 billion to establish a new nonprofit that will redevelop, own and operate the Renaissance Center and surrounding 35-acre east riverfront district, officials said Oct. 19.

The contribution comes as the $2 billion project with RenCen owner General Motors Co. moves forward with plans to ...Read more

Frederic J. Brown/Getty Images North America/TNS

Donating to charity? Your generosity could pay off at tax time this year

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

For years, people have faithfully dropped money into church collection plates, supported their favorite charities or helped fund local nonprofits — only to discover their donations didn’t save them a dime in federal income taxes.

Now, a new tax law is changing that.

Starting with the 2026 tax year, taxpayers who take the standard deduction...Read more

 

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