Thoughts and Riches

The difference speaks to a relatively obscure aspect of credit finance called interchange fees. Those are the fees (usually slightly under 2% of a purchase) that the merchant must pay the credit-card issuer. As gas prices skyrocketed, the money paid to card issuers ballooned as well. Today, the fees amount to 9¢ to 12¢ a gallon. That, coupled with a sharp rise in the number of people who use cards at convenient pay-at-the-pump machines, squeezed Flash Foods' profit margins. Those margins have fallen to an estimated 4¢ to 7¢ per gallon. To put the increase in perspective, consider that in 2004 Flash Foods paid $4 million in credit-card fees, but this year it estimates it will pay $14 million.

Gas retailers say that $136-a-barrel oil isn't the only factor driving up costs at the pump. Card companies have long charged interchange fees, but as credit-card use soars, the total cost of interchange fees has risen drastically. About 60% of gas purchases were made with a card last year. While the National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS) doesn't have comparable earlier data for gas purchases, the share of all convenience store purchases made with a card has risen from 32% in 2003 to 56% today.

Labels: frugal

"Meet the Press" beats its Sunday morning rivals on CBS, ABC, CNN and Fox in the ratings. In this peak political season, it often draws four million viewers. This is little more than half what NBC and ABC's weekday news programs garner, but the power of the position still established Mr. Russert as perhaps the most influential journalist inside the Beltway.

Politicians queued up to get airtime with him, and he earned a reputation as one who could translate complicated issues for a mass audience, exemplified by his use of a simple white-board to explain the convoluted and fast-changing details of the contested 2000 presidential election. The show also was profitable.

Mr. Russert was more than an interviewer: He became a celebrity, and his story became familiar to millions because he talked and wrote about it. Amid the trappings of Washington glitz and power, he preferred to be thought of as a blue-collar Roman Catholic kid from Buffalo who worked his way up and lived by simple, traditional values. He revered his father, "Big Russ," a World War II veteran who is still alive, and cherished the Buffalo Bills football team.

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Labels: survey

it's important to realize that it's usually not just one item or one habit that must be cut out in order to accumulate sizable wealth (although it may be). Usually, in order to become wealthy one must adopt a disciplined lifestyle and budget. This means that people who are looking to build their nest eggs need to make sacrifices somewhere - this may mean eating out less frequently, using public transportation to get to work and/or cutting back on extra, unnecessary expenses.

How much difference will funding a vehicle such as a Roth IRA early on in life make?

If you're 23 years old and deposit $3,000 per year (that's only $250 each month!) in a Roth IRA earning and 8% average annual return, you will have saved $985,749 by the time you are 65 years old due to the power of compounding. If you make a few extra contributions, it's clear that a $1 million goal is well within reach. Also keep in mind that this is mostly interest - your $3,000 contributions only add up to $126,000.

Now, suppose that you wait an additional 10 years to start contributing. You have a better job and you know you've lost some time, so you contribute $5,000 per year. You get the same 8% return and you aim to retire at 65. When you reach age 65, you will have saved $724,753. That's still a sizeable fund, but you had to contribute $160,000 just to get there - and it's no where near the $985,749 you could've had for paying much less.

Try to become more educated as far as what types of items are deductible. You should also understand when it makes sense to move away from the standard deduction and start itemizing your return.

...........renting is often not a good long-term investment because buying a home is a good way to build equity.

There's nothing wrong with purchasing a luxury vehicle. However, individuals who spend an inordinate amount of their incomes on a vehicle are doing themselves a disservice - especially since this asset depreciates in value so rapidly.

Always keep your eye out for other opportunities and try not to sell yourself short. Work hard and find an employer who will compensate you for your work ethic, skills and experience.

Labels: frugal

"We are targeting a niche market of investors who are interested in the opportunity to buy a new home for themselves and get a free rental property or second home for family members," developer Michael Crews said in a statement.

The developer claims the row homes are not shoddy townhouses that are being given away with luxury estate homes. The two-acre Royal View luxury homes with four bedrooms, four baths, up to six car garages, swimming pools would be paired with 2,000 square-foot upscale row houses.

"People don't expect to get what they are getting with the row-homes," said marketing director Dawn Berry. "These are well appointed luxury houses."