better
TIM E
IPS •
FOR •
MEETING' ' YOUR ' BUDGET
fun money
holiday sitters
family budget
OVER-
INSURED?
If your home’s value has dropped
significantly due to the housing
slump, try to negotiate a break
on your insurance premium, says
Adam Sherman, CEO of Firstrust
Financial Resources in
Philadelphia. Get a ballpark
estimate of your home’s current
value at a site such as
zillow .com
or
cyberhom es.com ,
then talk to
your agent. Sherman says that
when he tried this for himself,
he knocked
$ 2 75
off his home
policy’s annual cost.
$ 4 4
nnoH
The cost for
Thanksgiving
food to teed
10
, according
to =arm Bureau
economist
^
Sartwelle.
it’s down
- 0
cents from
last year due
to a drop in
the wholesale
price of turkey
That tab, alas,
does not
include wine.
site cents
Frenzied shopping is downright pleasant compared to finding a
babysitter for a holiday party. Start your search on December
1
and talk
money up front. “You want to woo them away from whatever else
they’re doing,” says Genevieve Thiers, CEO of
Sittercity.com ,
an online
service that connects parents with sitters. During the holidays, expect to
add an extra $
5-10
an hour to the normal rate. It’s even more on New
Year’s Eve, when you’re best off just asking them for a quote. To find
out the cost of a local sitter during normal times, check out the rate
calculator at
Sittercity.com /rates.
PRO JECT 3/50
Imagine life without your favorite mom-and-pop shop.
The grassroots
3/50
Project started earlier this year with
the aim to support these businesses, which are so vital
to local economies. The project asks this of you: Choose
three independent businesses you would miss if they
closed. Stop in, browse, and perhaps buy something.
Then commit to spending
$50
each month in locally
owned stores. Learn more at
the
350
project.net.
best time to buy
AIRLINE TICKETS
Travel experts say to check fares on any. Wednesday that’s at least
21 days before your departure. Most .airlines reprice their seats, on
Tuesday nights or Wednesday mornings, and if flights aren’t filling
up as expected, you’ll often see seat sales pop up and prices drop
in an attempt to attract more travelers.
252
NOVEMBER
2009
BETTER HOMES AND GARDENS
