Looking for a cheap flight to Houston ? Well one site that we’ve come accross that seems to provide flight information only on flights to Houston is, well FlightToHouston.com. They have links to travel deals that are exclusive to Houston, Texas. One great advanatge is that it also cuts down on the amount of time needed searching for this information online. Imagine being able to find what you want, save money and time. We highly recommend FlightToHouston.com if you are searching for just that, a flight to houston.

WHERE DID ALL THE SMART SHOPPERS GO

Where did all the smart shoppers go this holiday season? You might be inclined to answer on line to that question, but you would be wrong. Due to unfavorable forecasts for this past holiday season your local retailers were offering deep discounts on in store purchases that may not have been passed on to the on-line consumer, so the smart shoppers were the ones braving the mall and other local retailers and saving money. Since the economic slump in sales is hitting hard on local retailers, the economy will take another hit as some local stores will have to close their doors. The holiday season couldn’t possibly make or break a retailer you say, it certainly can! Many local retailers make up to 67% of their annual sales during the holidays. While the figures are hard to track because of the varying types of retailers, the proof is in the closings at your local malls, boutiques, and specialty shops, many are going out of business.

That means higher unemployment, more downsizing and less revenue circulating in your local economy. That means you might begin to worry about “your job” if you aren’t already. Why are you telling me this now you’re probably wondering, because there are lessons to be learned from this and it’s not too late to save money and save jobs. We need to take action before it’s too late. We’ve got to make sure we’re on the right path, not one that will lead us to an end result where our only option is debt settlement.

I am not telling you don’t shop on-line, there are instances when it is even necessary, but many consumers today shop on- line as a convenience. We should try to spread the money around in these trying times, into your local economy. You may think buying locally won’t keep a local “chain” retailer open if the chain itself is failing, but you would be wrong it actually does. When making corporate decisions on which stores to close the number crunchers are looking at retailers with the lowest sales, making decisions on which stores will be closing based on the numbers. Analysts will tell you there are many factors that make those determinations, but most will admit that gross sales at that particular location is a major deciding factor. In this economy the trickle down effect of sagging retail sales directly effects your pocketbook in many ways. With less money flowing through your local economy bad can go to worse quickly and none of us can afford that. Save money while you save your own local economy!

Keep in mind that every business is like a large oak tree with many roots spread out in your community and we are the roots. Like any tree we have to feed and water it on a regular basis or it will die, our local economy is much the same. We can learn from this past holiday season and apply that knowledge to our everyday shopping habits. Buy what you must on line but, keep feeding the trees in your own back yard by shopping at your local retailer and save our trees.

CEO’S CAN SAVE MONEY TOO

The slowing economy has the travel industry and associated businesses scrambling to entice travelers to the sea and air once again. The myriad of offers out there are far too numerous to list, so I’ll just give you a few examples so you can see how these money saving promotions being offered as vacation deals can be applied to the business world, and save your company money, and if you’re a CEO maybe even your job.

Round trip airfares between the U.S. and London are down to $399.00 between Jan. 10 and Mar. 31, Virgin Atlantic Airlines will fly you between many U.S. East Coast cities and London for $399.00 without imposing a fuel surcharge (Other taxes and fees amount to about $250.00) that ticket price and the reduction in the cost of a British Pound to about $1.50 makes travel to London a great business fare. You can access all airlines offering these fares by going to www.1800flyeurope.com, and be able to get the same ticket price of $399.00 ($469.00 Miami) and save money on business travel. The big 3 need to start checking fares and saving money, instead of flying in their private jets to good ole Washington with their hands out! Searching the travel section can be a great source for saving money on fares when traveling for business, or seeking a meeting venue for your next business junket.

Cruise Lines offer the best savings deals of all, due to their serious over-capacity issues. Online Vacation Center (800-329-9002; www.onlinevacationcenter.com) is offering 14 day cruises each departing round trip from Ft.Lauderdale to both the Eastern and Western Caribbean for $799.00 to $819.00 per person. Staying home would cost you more money than that, what a deal, go on a cruise and save money! Cruises are the ultimate in affordability especially if you live in or with-in driving distance to one of the departure port cities, as most large corporations are. Imagine, if you will that AIG had saved themselves the thousands upon thousands of dollars and the public outrage and scorn they incurred, if only they had held their top producers junket aboard a cruise ship where all the food and drinks are included, and spa facilities are still available if you must. You may think I’m joking, but after they received their bailout agreement from the U.S. taxpayers and held their junket in their pricey California Resort and Spa I was seeing red for the excesses they indulged in. I say send them on a cruise and save our money!

How to Cut Insurance Costs, Part 2

One good way to keep your costs down is to be reasonable about the deductible amount. That is, you agree that the insurance company will pay everything above a certain amount that you will first pay out of your pocket. If you feel that you could come up with $500 a year for medical situations, you will pay a lower premium then if you will not pay anything. Therefore, increasing your deductible will lower your insurance bill by as much as $100 a month.

Car insurance is mandatory in most states. However, your premium will depend a great deal on your age, how good your driving record is, and how much deductible you are willing to pay. You can’t do anything about your or your family members ages and accidents do happen. But again, you can control that deductible. Shopping around to other companies and increasing your deductible can have a very large effect on your car insurance costs. We personally recently decreased our car insurance costs by $2,000 a year by just making a few phone calls and shopping around. While shopping around, ask each company if they have special lower rates for individuals who are non-smokers, kids who have taken safe driving courses, etc. Our insurance company even gave us a break because our son is a straight A student. Of course, your biggest savings on car insurance will be a good driving record. If you or someone in your family is involved in one or more accidents within a five year period, you are not good drivers and need to consider taking a course in safe driving. We know that some people are literally born with more driving skills than others are. But if you can accept the fact that maybe you are not one of them, then you can start driving more carefully to compensate for it.

We all know that teenagers are responsible for most accidents. But what can you do to control your teens driving when you are not around? Plenty! Sometimes the old-fashioned ideas work the best. Make sure your kids know that driving is a privilege that they must earn, not a right given to them at birth. Therefore, if they are involved in an accident that is judged to be their fault or they get a ticket for a driving infraction, take away their car privileges for awhile. Make sure they are well aware of the consequences that will result from their driving record. Just as crime cannot go unpunished, kids need to have some punishment in order to learn what is expected of them.

Another things to always keep in mind concerning car insurance is that a family sedan will costs you less in insurance then a sports car will (a lot less). And buying a used car will cost quite a bit less then a new car. You may want a new car in order to avoid the problems created by the previous owner but, if you must have a second car, could the additional car be a later model? Thus, you not only save on your monthly car payments but you also save on your car insurance and registration costs.

House insurance is usually very necessary for a lot of reasons. For one thing, your house is quite often the most expensive thing you own. On top of that, depending on where you live, you will need “normal” insurance to cover fire, theft, etc. and you may also need something additional such as flood insurance. Again, the major ways to save on your house insurance are to shop around for the best prices and to raise your deductible as much as you can. Unless you have already done these two things, you should be able to save at least a couple of hundred dollars.

Insurance is a very expensive gamble. We believe in using the old saying “I only bet on a sure thing”. Therefore, do everything you can to keep the bet in your favor rather than the insurance companies favor. Eat and live healthy, drive safely, and protect your home as much as possible.

How to Cut Insurance Costs, Part 1

Our society has become dependent on the insurance industry. We may not approve but there is nothing we can do about it. Hopefully, you will all be very healthy, your house will never burn down, you will be a safe driver, and you will live to be 100 (at which point you will be ready to go). Insurance was created as a gamble. That is, you are betting that something is going to go wrong and the insurance company is betting that nothing will go wrong and they will get to keep all your years and years of payments without having to ever pay out anything. So far, the insurance companies are winning as illustrated by their good profits. However, let’s not give them more than we have to.

Life insurance is usually necessary for the younger working couple with small children. Even if both of you work, if something happens to one of you, will the other be able to make a high enough salary to raise the children? However, once the children are grown, this insurance should not be necessary as the remaining spouse should be able to support him or herself. If you are from a one-income family, then you will probably want life insurance until that bread winner dies in order to support the unemployed spouse. Thus the two income family needs only term life insurance that lasts only up to a certain age. Yes, the insurance company gets to keep all of that if you do not die before you are say 45, but the rates will be much lower for you. Whole life insurance will be more expensive as it lasts until you die which means that eventually the company will have to pay out. It would be ideal if everyone started investing at a young enough age that, should something happen to one spouse, your portfolio would be sufficient to take care of the family. But this is not mentioned to young people today. You should look at what you currently have for life insurance and adjust it to the correct policy for you. And as with most things you purchase, shopping around for the best price among the different companies can also save you quite a bit of money.

Most importantly, concentrating on paying off your debts. If something does happen to you, your insurance money could be totally eaten up by creditors who will collect what is owed them before your family is taken care of. Paying off all of your creditors, even after you are dead, will not help in the daily support of your children you leave behind. So if you want life insurance to protect the future of your family after you are gone, pay off your creditors first or they will be the ones to benefit from your life insurance.

Medical insurance is also considered necessary today. Not so long ago, if you became ill with cancer, there was very little that could be done about it so your family took care of you until the end. Today, the majority of cancer patients (if caught early enough) will survive through the use of specialized treatment and drugs. And these treatments and drugs are very expensive. Therefore, unless you were on the ball and started investing at a young age or for personal reasons do not wish to go through such treatments, you will need long-term medical insurance. Again, assuming that you do not have a large financial portfolio, you will need day-to-day medical insurance to cover the usual appendicitis, broker bones, etc. Because so many people have no qualms about going to the doctor or the emergency room every time they have a head cold, insurance costs have sky-rocketed. However, usually it will still be worth your time and effort to research the different companies available in your state to find the lowest priced health insurance.