Affordable Ways to Feed a Crowd on a Holiday

Holidays can hard on the family budget – especially if everyone is coming to your house for dinner. Here are some ideas for feeding a crowd without going broke.

Potluck
Ask friends and family to share the wealth. Offer to provide the meat, dessert and drinks and ask your guests to bring their favorite holiday side dish. In addition to saving money, you get a wide variety of foods and you may even learn something about your guests. As the dishes get passed around the table, ask your guests why the dish they brought is their holiday favorite. Is there a tradition they can share with the group?

Plan Ahead and Shop Sales
The earlier you know you’ll be entertaining a crowd, the more cost efficient you can be. Make your menu ahead of time and start shopping weeks in advance. If there’s room in your freezer, buy a ham, turkey or roast when it goes on sale and freeze it until you’re ready to cook it. Stock up on frozen vegetables when they go on sale or even fresh produce that lasts a while like potatoes, sweet potatoes, carrots, apples, onions, etc. Buy as much as you can on sale and/or with coupons, and keep the menu reasonable. Just because people will eat 10 different side dishes doesn’t mean you have to make them all.

Food Made to Order
Many grocery stores and restaurants sell meal packages during the holidays which come complete with meat, side dishes, dessert and sometimes beverages. Super Target is currently offering three such meals which range in price from $35 to $60 and feed up to 10 people. If there’s not a Target near you, check with your local grocery store for similar deals. These can be cost-efficient solutions even if you have to buy two of them for really larger crowds. They’re also time savers, because most of the food just needs to be heated. It’s already pre-cooked. You’ll most likely need to order these kinds of meals several days in advance if not more.

Of course, if feeding a crowd just isn’t in the budget this year, ask someone else to host the holiday meal this time around. If you’re not comfortable talking about the cost factor, tell them you just need a break from the added stress of holiday preparations this year. True friends and family will understand.

Woot.com – Cost Savings Worth Cheering About

Here’s something to cheer about – brand new electronics at a discounted price. It’s not too good to be true. It’s simply Woot.com, and here’s how it works. There is only one product for sale every day. That product is made available at midnight, central time, and is available until it is either sold out or until 11:59 p.m – whichever comes first. Woot does not disclose how many it has in stock. You can buy up to three of that product, and each buyer can only order once a day.

Items for sale run the gamut. Last week, items for sale included a back pain relief system, a pedometer, a blue tooth mouse, a wi-fi robo cam, an HD player, a heart rate monitor and a Netbook with accessory kit. In the past, they’ve had mp3 players, LCD monitors, digital cameras, GPS devices and so on. Most items are brand new, but some are refurbished, and that is always disclosed. If you’re looking to buy some type of electronic device, it pays to check Woot.com daily.

Caveats
There are some caveats. On occasion, you may find the item cheaper on another website. Or, the item may not be the quality you’re hoping for. To help you shop, Woot.com offers an online forum where people can talk about their experiences with the product of the day. There’s also a blog. Earlier in March, one buyer posted that Amazon.com was selling the item of the day, brand new, for only $40 more than the refurbished one for sale on Woot. Comments like those help you make an informed decision.

Returns may not be easy or cheap, so you definitely want to do your homework before you buy. You pay shipping costs to return your item, and because they often sell out daily, there may not be a replacement item available. When that happens, you get your money back, but you don’t recoup shipping costs. If the item you purchase has malfunctioned, Woot recommends contacting the manufacturer before returning it to Woot. The manufacturer will often send a replacement model or an upgraded model at no cost to you.

More Deals
One of the best things about Woot is the links on its site for other deals. You can find all kinds of good deals by starting at woot.com. Plus, Woot has some sister sites for kid stuff, shirts, wine and sellouts. Start your journey at Woot.com. You may just find savings to cheer about.

Saving habits of ‘The Greatest Generation

How We Can Learn from Them
The people who lived during the Great Depression era may be the only generation of people in America who truly experienced what it was like to live without.  They didn’t just live without luxury items. They lived without basic necessities, because there just wasn’t enough to go around. That level of deprivations taught them some hard lessons but also made them some of the most prosperous people in the world. Here are some things we can learn from them.

Establish an Emergency Fund
These people didn’t just save money. They hoarded it, because they didn’t know when the next paycheck might come. They stashed money in coffee cans around the house, under mattresses and in old pipes, because there was no deposit insurance at the time and they didn’t trust financial institutions. Today, we know the money we deposit is safe, yet fewer people are saving any. If people who had nothing still found a way to save, we can too. The trick is to pay yourself first and then use what’s left over to pay bills and debt. Financial experts recommend that everyone have three to six months of expenses in savings. Once you have that established, put 15 percent of your income into retirement savings.

Don’t Spend What You Don’t Have
This may be the easiest change to make. If you want to buy something, wait until you have the cash for it. There was no such thing as credit cards during the Great Depression. People paid cash for everything. If they didn’t have the cash, they didn’t buy it. It’s a little more complex in our world today, which includes plastic and cyberspace. If you want to shop online, you usually need a credit or debit card to pay for it. The lesson here is don’t buy it if you don’t have the money in your checking account to pay for it.

Mortgages
According to financial guru Dave Ramsey, only 2% of homes had mortgages in 1929. By 1962 only 2% did not. Back then, people paid cash for their homes. That might be harder to do today because homes are more expensive than they used to be, but there’s still a lesson to be learned here. Don’t buy a house you can’t afford. So many people have lost their houses in the past few years because keeping up with the Jones’ was more important than keeping up with their budgets.  If you have to get a mortgage, shoot for a 15 or 20 year term at the lowest rate possible and pay more toward your principal to pay off the loan faster. Also, keep your monthly payments to lower than 30 percent of your monthly take-home pay.

A lot of this comes down to self control. Don’t buy what you can’t afford, and don’t spend everything you make. It worked for one generation. It can also work for us – if we let it.

How Loan Approval Works

You decide you need a loan for a house, a car, a computer or anything in between. So, you fill out the application and then wait. But what exactly are you waiting for?

Loan officers at any financial institution have a process they go through to determine if you and other applicants are a good credit risk. They are looking at several specific factors so they can determine your ability to repay the money you borrow from them.

Disposable Income
At Neighborhood Credit Union, we are most interested in your disposable income. We look at how much money your bring home after taxes, and how much of that take-home pay is available to repay your loan. Disposable income is our primary factor for approving or not approving a member loan.

Credit Score
Many other lenders rely on a credit score to make their decisions. Neighborhood does pull your credit score, but only to determine your interest rate. A credit score is a number formulated by a credit bureau based on factors like how much debt you already have, your history of making other loan payments on time, how long you’ve had any credit at all and outstanding loan balances. There are three major credit bureaus in the U.S., and they each have their own formula for determining a credit score. The higher your credit score, the more likely you are to get approved.

Debt to Income Ratio
Many lenders also look at your debt to income ratio. This number looks at how much debt you’re repaying every month and compares it to your income. Financial advisors generally recommend that people keep their monthly debt to 30 percent of their monthly income. Financial institutions often look at mortgage debt separately and have two ratios – one for housing and one for all other debt. That means you can sometimes have up to 60 percent debt (30 percent for each ratio). For someone making $3,000 a month, that’s a $900 mortgage payment and $900 in other debt.

Additional Factors
If your credit score and debt ratio are a borderline yes or no, loan officers will often look at additional factors. If your payment history with them is exceptional, that could work in your favor. Another consideration is your potential debt. You may have five credit cards that you haven’t used in five years. Some financial institutions will look at the credit limit on those five cards to see how much debt you would take on if you suddenly maxed out all five cards. Potential debt doesn’t usually work in your favor. However, cancelling those cards could lower your credit score, because you’re erasing some of your credit history.

We always encourage you to come to your credit union first, where personal service flows into the loan approval process, as well.

Home Values in North Texas

The housing market in north Texas is one of the most stable markets in the country. That’s good news if you’re looking to buy a home. Homeowners looking to sell, however, may want to wait it out if possible.

Home values in North Texas actually decreased by about 4 percent in 2009. This is low compared to other parts of the country, but it’s still a decrease. Unfortunately for home owners, when property values decrease, the selling price usually goes down, too.

According to Trulia.com, one of the top three most visited real estate websites, the average listing price for homes in north Texas ranges from $199,000 to $277,000. However, the sale prices are much lower. The median sale price for houses in north Texas ranges from $65,000 to $151,000. And, within that range, most homes are selling between $81,000 and $119,000.

The current housing market is what we call a buyer’s market. Property values are down, which means people can’t sell their homes for as much as they’d like to. Mortgage rates are also low, which makes mortgage loans extremely affordable. Plus, the government is currently offering sizeable tax credits to new and existing home buyers.

Home Buyer Tax Credits
There are two tax credits available. First-time home buyers are eligible for an $8,000 credit. The IRS defines new home buyer as anyone who has not owned a home for three years prior to this purchase. Existing home owners qualify for a $6,500 credit. A binding sales contract must be signed by April 30, 2010, and the sale must be complete by June 30, 2010, to qualify for the tax credit. Home prices and income levels also apply, so visit the federal housing tax credit website for complete details.

Financial experts are expecting property values to go up again in 2010. If you’re thinking of buying a home at a great value, now is the time to do it. And, remember to consider a Neighborhood Credit Union mortgage loan.

   

Economical Spring Break Travel Options in Texas

Spring Break is just around the corner. It’s always nice to get away – even if it’s just for a day or two – while the kids are out of school. Of course, budgets can be tight, so we’ve put together some economical, family-friendly ideas within driving distance from the DFW area.

San Antonio
Spring break for most, if not all, Dallas-area school districts begins on St. Patrick’s Day weekend. That’s always a fun weekend to be in San Antonio, because city officials dye the water green along the Riverwalk and temporarily re-name it the River Shannon. This will happen on Saturday, March 13th with a river parade beginning at 3 p.m. It  is free to the public.

Consider making a weekend of it, or even longer. We have partnered with Sea World to provide our members discounted tickets, which includes options for the water park. Spend a day with Shamu and another day at Sea World’s Lost Lagoon Water Park. If you’re still not ready to go home, San Antonio is home to Six Flags Fiesta Texas. Or, visit the San Antonio Children’s Museum, which has so many activities that families could easily spend the better part of a day doing.

Six Flags Tour
Six Flags in both Dallas and San Antonio is currently offering season passes for as low as $50 per person, and they’re good at any Six Flags theme park in the country. That’s the cost of a one-day ticket, and the season pass is good for a year. You could actually visit several Six Flags theme parks during Spring Break without the added expense of theme park admission.

Houston/Galveston
If you choose the right lodging in Houston, you can stay in the same hotel for several days and drive to some very family-friendly attractions in both Houston and Galveston. Spend a day at Moody Gardens or Schlitterbahn on Galveston Island. They are right next to each other.

Space Center Houston, the visitor center at Johnson Space Center, is another full day activity that kids love. And, they’re offering half price tickets until May 31^st if you print them online at home. Be sure to spend a lot of time in the Kids Space, where they can play, climb and feel what it’s like to be an astronaut.

Round out your stay with a day trip to the Kemah Boardwalk. An All Day Ride Pass is $16.99 for people under 48 inches and $19.99 for anyone 48 inches and above. There is also games and entertainment.

Lodging
There are several family-friendly hotel chains in Texas that are reasonably priced, offer roomy accommodations and offer a free hot breakfast buffet every day. Depending on the size of your family, that could save you a lot of money just in food. All of them have locations in Houston and San Antonio.

Residence Inn

Drury Inn (also offers free hors d'oeuvres every evening at 5:30 p.m.)

Holiday Inn Express

Have a fun and safe Spring Break!

Single Women CAN Buy Their Own Homes

When it comes to home ownership, buyers come in all shapes and sizes. While one size may not fit all, home ownership isn’t just reserved for the traditional couple with 2.5 kids and a dog named Rover. In fact, single people in general (with or without children) make up more than a third of the home buying population. In 2009, about 20 percent of all home buyers were single women. And, according to the State of the Nations Housing: 2009 report compiled by the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University, “social and economic trends have given women a more powerful presence in housing markets.”

This is good news for women, particularly single moms, who may have thought home ownership was out reach. But even with these favorable statistics, there are important factors to keep in mind.

Affordability
You still have to make enough money to afford the home you want to buy. You should expect most lenders to require some type of down payment, and, as an unwritten rule, your mortgage payments should not exceed a third to half of your monthly take-home income. Child support is often considered income. Find a house that fits your price range. Property taxes and home owners insurance will have to be figured into your monthly payments, as well.

Credit
Lenders use credit scores to determine your ability to pay back the money they lend you. A low credit score could delay home ownership or qualify you at a higher interest rate. If your credit could use help, take steps now to reduce debt and be sure to pay all of your bills on time.

Negotiate
Nothing is set in stone, especially the cost of housing during a recession. Do your homework. Look up the taxable value of the home on the website of the appraisal district where the house is located and see how it compares to the asking price. You might also get pre-approved for your mortgage before you shop. Sellers are more willing to negotiate when they see on paper that you only qualify for a certain amount of money.

Find a good realtor
A good real estate agent will have experience with customers of all incomes, budget and concerns. They can help you find the right house for your needs.