Bank of America Raises ATM Fee

By MoneyBlueBook

Yesterday, Bank of America raised its ATM surcharge fee for non customers at most of its ATM's nationwide to $3 from $2. The newsis significant for many people because Bank of America operates the largest ATM network in the United States and the higher fees could affect millions who do not hold consumer banking accounts there.

Such news barely raised a blip on my radar frankly. They could raise the ATM fee to $100 for non Bank of America account holders such as myself, and I still wouldn't be phased. That's because I pay for everything almost exclusively by using credit cards.

Switch From Cash To Credit Cards

Now is a good time to reiterate what I've been trying to tell people all along. If you are a responsible credit user, the simplest and most routine way to save money and even make some extra money is to use credit cards. It's time to stop paying everything using cash.

We've finally evolved from a trade and barter society into a cash market. Now it's time to take one step further and transition into plastic. ATM surcharges are sure to increase across the board to match Bank of America's move, so it's time to stop those daily and sometimes expensive visits to your neighborhood ATM to withdraw cash. Why carry around so much cash and end up with the inevitable jingling coins in your pocket or purse?

To be fair, the regular and exclusive use of credit cards isn't for everyone. Some people truly have difficulty handling

By MoneyBlueBook

Traffic and parking tickets are the absolute worst ways to have to spend your money. The only possible good that can come from it is that you save a few extra minutes by speeding or a few extra minutes by not having to find a less convenient parking space.

Pulled Over in New York and Paying Dearly

Earlier in the year, I was pulled over in upstate New York for greatly exceeding the 65 miles per hour speed limit. Needless to say I had no credible defense other than that I did so in an otherwise "safe manner" since there was no one else on the interstate highway. Obviously what I did was wrong and I paid heavily for it. I was fined $500 for the speeding violation and penalized an additional $450 for a New York state law called the Driver Responsibility Assessment, which imposes a stiffer penalty for greater violations. The total came to nearly $1000.

Virginia and the New $3,550 Speeding Ticket

Many states are enacting stiffer penalties for traffic violations. In Virginia, the government recently enacted a very controversial self proclaimed revenue-generating law that slapped many ordinary traffic offenses with an additional civil remedial fee. That means a motorist convicted of reckless driving (75 mph in a 55 zone would qualify) faces not only a fine of up to $2,500 and a year in jail, but a non-negotiable and non-waivable $350 a year tax for three years, bringing the total possible cost of a speeding ticket to a whopping $3550.

Costly, But I Learned My

By MoneyBlueBook

This week, Apple released it's newest iPod Nano model and a new update to its popular iPhone. The company has increased each unit's storage space and the design makeover looks more tantalizing than ever. More the reason not to go out and buy one.

Those who must have the newest and fanciest gadgets will be shelling out a hefty premium to acquire them before anyone else. My advice is to stay away. You don't need it so soon. Give it a few months for the frenzy to level off before you make your purchase. When the initial craze is over, prices will surely drop.

My Hasty Purchase Experience

Back when I was in graduate school I came across this new silver ultra-thin Sanyo cell phone. I was immediately hooked and hastily paid $350 for it. It wasn't even a smartphone or a PDA. It was just a shiny new phone that looked amazing (this is back when thin phones were just being developed). Months later, the fascination of owning this new gadget wore off and I realized that I had made a costly mistake. Newer models had come out by then. If I had only waited a few months, I wouldn't have paid so much.

Here's another example. When the Xbox 360 and Sony Playstation 3 video game systems first came out, bidders on eBay furiously bidding the prices to nearly twice or triple what the retail value was. It was all hype, plain and simple. Do the sensible thing and avoid the irrational exuberance.

Another Reason To Wait

By MoneyBlueBook

Recently I went to eat at a local casual diner. There were very few customers but yet the service was still terrible. Our waitress made us wait and delayed in taking our order or even offering us water. The water never came until I raised my hand for another waitress to bring it to us. Our waitress never offered us much service. It was only a quick evening snack so the bill came out to only about $11.00. I had initially decided not to tip at all because the service was so lousy but decided to at least chip in an extra $1.00. When the waitress saw her tip, she became enraged! She began whining and complaining very loudly and angrily to no one in particular but clearly and purposefully within earshot of us, while her mild mannered manager tried to calm her down to avoid a scene. Eventually her obnoxiousness made me stand up and confront her verbally. The manager ultimately offered us an extra dessert to make peace and apologized for her behavior.

Voluntary Compulsory Tipping

Afterwards, the incident got me thinking about how tipping has gone from being a gesture of good will to a mandatory social custom. The tip is supposed to be a sign of appreciation for a job well done and purely voluntary. Although the amount is never legally required, failure to tip in certain situations can now result in embarrassment, or even feelings of guilt. That is the part I don't understand and find very frustrating. If tipping is

By MoneyBlueBook

I have been exercising a money saving habit that has netted me many freebies over the years and has also enabled me to acquire goods and services at reduced prices and rates. We should all be aware of this simple but oftentimes forgotten phrase: "the customer is always right". Such a simple phrase, but what does it mean? It means that as the customer, you are almost always entitled to the benefit of the doubt and that it is the duty of the service provider to meet your needs, to the best of the provider's ability.

What this also means is that as the customer, we must always demand satisfaction and nothing less. I am not advocating mistreatment or the making of gratuitous demands, but I believe consumers should always receive in full the benefit of the bargain that they paid for, which would include good service, clean facilities, and timeliness. If you are not satisfied with the product or experience, always bring this to the attention of managers, supervisors, or owners. The upper management types have a greater a vested interest in responding to their customer's satisfaction needs, and are almost always more willing to please.

My Starbucks Experience

Case in point. I visited a Starbucks in Washington D.C. close to where I was working not too long ago and was horrified to see several fruit flies hovering inside the pastry display case. This disgusting sight continued for several days and I finally brought it to the attention of store management. I also emailed Starbucks.com numerous

By MoneyBlueBook

Yesterday I had dinner with an Indian friend of mine at a pretty nice Chinese restaurant. I've known him since we were little kids in junior high school. Every time we'd get together for a meal, we'd usually end up eating a vegetarian meal since he's a vegetarian. Now, I'm a meat lover myself, preferring a nice pork, beef, or seafood laden meal to something bereft of all finger licking goodness. However, everytime my friend and I go out to eat, I'd always find myself ordering a vegetarian dish out of courtesy.

Vegetables Dishes Are Cheaper Than Meat Dishes

What I didn't realize or notice until recently was that he was actually saving a rather large sum of money by sticking to a vegetarian diet, albeit unintentionally. It's not a secret that vegetables, tofu, and fruits simply cost less than meat products such as chicken, pork, beef, and seafood.
While we were at the Chinese restaurant, I glanced down at the menu and compared prices. Since were were both going to share our dishes, we were obviously going vegetarian. Prices for vegetarian dishes such as ma-po tofu or the bok choi with black mushrooms were only $8.50 each. Keep in mind that this was a pretty nice restaurant in a very nice part of town. A quick flip back to the meat entrees showed prices such as $12.50 for a chicken entree, and a$13.75 for a beef dish. Yes, it's only a few dollars, but in the aggregate and over the years, a dollar here and a