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Jeffrey Strain

What’s Open and Closed on Valentine’s Day 2019?

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What's open and closed on Valentine's Day
February 14, Valentine’s Day, is a day that many people celebrate, but it is not a federal holiday. What gets a bit confusing is Valentine’s Day sometimes lands on a weekend and it’s always near President’s Day weekend. Presidents’ Day (officially known as Washington’s Birthday) is a federal holiday, so many establishments close. For those who will be out and about, here’s what’s open and closed on Valentine’s Day this year.

Stores

Retail stores are open on Valentine’s Day. For all those who didn’t find the time to get their significant other a Valentine’s Day gift, you’ll be happy to know all major retailers will be open on February 14, so you can pick up a last minute gift. For those who love chocolate, it’s good to remember Valentine’s chocolate will be reduced by half or more on Sunday, and it can be a great time to pick up premium chocolate at a huge discount.

Restaurants and Eating Establishments

Restaurants and eating establishments are open on Valentine’s Day. Restaurants and other eating establishments will be open for business on February 14. In fact, some will have special Valentine’s Day menus to take advantage of all the couples celebrating the day. If you plan to eat out, it’s worthwhile to call ahead and make reservations. Valentine’s Day is one of the most popular evenings for people to eat out, so getting a seat without reservations may be difficult.

Stock Market

The stock market is open Valentine’s Day. The New York Stock Exchange and the NASDAQ composite both close on Saturday, and since Valentine’s Day lands on a Saturday, both will be closed this year. The stock markets are closed these days in 2019.

Libraries

Libraries are open on Valentine’s Day. Public community libraries will be open their normal hours on February 14, so you’ll be able to check out as many books as you’d like.

Public Schools

Schools are open on Valentine’s Day. Most public and private schools are open as usual.

National Parks

National Parks are open on Valentine’s Day. Take your sweetheart to a nearby National Park.

Federal Government Offices

Government offices are open on Valentine’s Day. Because Valentine’s Day isn’t a federal holiday, most government offices are open.

State and Local Government Offices

State and local government offices are open on Valentine’s Day. Much like the federal government, the majority of state and local government offices are open on Valentine’s Day.

Banking Institutions

Banking institutions are open on Valentine’s Day. While the vast majority of financial institutions, like banks and credit unions are closed on Sunday (with some exceptions), Valentine’s Day 2019 falls on a weekday, so banking institutions will be open.

Mail Delivery

You will get your mail delivered on Valentine’s Day.

For those who want gifts and cards to arrive on February 14, the post office will deliver mail on Valentine’s Day as it regularly. Both Federal Express (FedEx) and UPS will deliver packages on their typical Saturday schedules.

Grocery Stores

Grocery stores are open on Valentine’s Day. Grocery stores will be open for business on the 14th, and they can be a great place to get last minute Valentine’s Day gifts, candy and flowers.

(Photo courtesy of Dave)

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Should We Buy a House Next to a Cemetery? (Your Advice)

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house next to cemetery

When purchasing a house, there are a lot of considerations to take into account before making the purchase. This reader writes wondering if their dream house is ruined by a single (but major) fault.

We have been looking for a new house for about six months now. We finally found what I would consider to be our dream house in every aspect except for one problem. The house is located right next to a cemetery.

This does not bother me or my husband in the least bit, but I have heard from other people that it is considered an “incurable defect” that may make it very hard to sell in the future. Because we consider it to be our dream house, we have no thoughts of selling, but I also know that things change and we may have to sell years down the line if our circumstances change.

Do you think that having a cemetery next to the house will greatly reduce the appreciation value for future years? We know that it will have some impact on the price since the sellers are offering it at a lower price than comparable houses in the area. I think that we can even negotiate the price down more if we want. But if the house appreciates at a similar rate as other houses in the area and we give the discount that we receive, I don’t see how this could be a bad thing. Am I missing something in the equation?

Would you advise this couple to purchase their dream house even with it being next to a cemetery? Why or why not?

8 Free Ways to Prepare for Higher Winter Heating Costs

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high heating costs

It’s clear that it’s going to be an expensive winter keeping your house warm. But there are some things you can do to prepare for high heating costs, that won’t cost you anything.

According to the National Energy Assistance Directors’ Association, heating a typical home in colder areas of the country with natural gas will cost more than $1,568.

Get An Energy Audit

First, call your local utility company to get an energy audit of your house. Many utility companies offer these for free or at a very low cost. In an audit, the utility company rep will come to your house and thoroughly check for any energy leaks in your house that could cause your energy bill to be higher than it should. Once you know where your problems are, you can take care of them and work on getting your energy bill under control.

If your local utility doesn’t offer a free energy audit, you can do a free virtual energy audit at the government’s Home Energy Saver website which will also allow you compare your heating bill to others in your area.

8 Free Ways to Prepare for Higher Winter Heating Costs

Here are some other things that you can do at no cost to help reduce your heating bill:

1. Turn Down the Thermostat: The basic rule of thumb is that for every degree you turn down your heat, you save 3% in energy costs. Keep the thermostat as low as possible in the winter while still being comfortable. The closer your indoor temperature is to the outdoor temperatures, the lower your overall heating bill will be.

2. Put On an Extra Layer: There is no reason to walk around your house looking like the Michelin Man during winter, but at the same time, there’s no reason to lounge around the house in a tank top and shorts. Put on a comfortable extra layer (a thermal undershirt or a nice sweater) while in the house and lowering your thermostat will be easier.

3. Close Heating Vents: Search rooms that are rarely used and close the heating vents. Why heat a room no one is using? Before closing the vents, however, make sure there are no thermostat sensors in the room. If a sensor is located in a room that you close off, you might actually make your furnace work harder since it’ll try to warm a room that you have prevented from being warmed.

4. Clear Heating Vents: Although you want to close heating vents in the rooms you aren’t using, you also want to make sure they are clear in the rooms that you are using. Make sure rugs or furniture are not covering vents so the heat can circulate freely.

5. Close Doors: Close the doors to rooms that aren’t being used, especially closet doors. There is no reason to heat these spaces if nobody is there.

6. Close and Open Curtains and Shutters: Open your curtains and shutters wide on south-facing windows. This will let in as much sunshine as possible to help warm the house. Only close them after the sun has gone down. At the same time, close the curtains and shutters on the north side of the house as this will help insulate the house and keep heat from escaping.

7. Turn Off Ventilating Fans: Only use ventilating fans in the kitchen, bathroom, and other areas when you need them and turn them off immediately once afterward. Accidentally leaving a ventilating fan on can clear out all the warm air in your house in about an hour.

8. Check the Fireplace Flue: Check the seal on your fireplace flue damper and adjust it to as tight as possible. A large gap in the flue is the same as having a window partially open in the room and the warmed air will go straight up the chimney.

Read More on Reducing Heating Costs:

30 Day Money Saving Challenge: Save $100 in One Month with Quarters

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30 day money saving challenge
Now that the new year is underway, people across the country are striving to make their resolutions a reality. If your goal is to increase your emergency savings (or even start your first emergency savings account), a quick money challenge can be an excellent option. While popular approaches like the 52-Week and 365-Day challenges are great choices, they do require a full year commitment. If you want to start with something shorter, this 30-day money saving challenge might be right for you.

How to Save $100 in a 30 Days

If you want to start slow or simply have a need for a quick $100, you can painlessly get the money you need with a 30-day quarter challenge. This approach is great for individuals who are living paycheck to paycheck, as the daily deposits never exceed $7.50.

On day one, deposit $0.25 in your savings account, the value of one quarter. Then, on day two, you deposit two quarters instead of one, making your deposit into your savings account $0.50 and bringing your balance up to $0.75.

As you proceed with the challenge, you just add $0.25, or one quarter, to the deposit amount from the previous day. On day 10, your deposit will be $2.50. On day 20, you’ll reach $5.00. Finally, your day 30 deposit is only $7.50.

You can also remember the amount by recognizing that the number of quarters you deposit matches the day of the challenge. For example, on day 10, you would deposit 10 quarters, which have a value of $2.50.

At the end of the challenge, you’ll have $116.25 in your account. Plus, if you put the money in a high-yield savings account, you might even earn a little bit of interest too.

If you would rather do the challenge in cash, you can place the appropriate number of quarters into a jar at home instead. However, you won’t earn any interest this way, and you might have to wrap up your change in rolls before depositing it into a savings account.

Want to Save $500 in 30 Days Instead?

If you want to challenge yourself, and pull together almost $500 instead of $100, then use dollars instead of quarters. On day one, deposit $1.00. Then, deposit $2.00 on day two, $3.00 on day three, and so on until you finish the 30 days.

At the end of a 30-day dollar challenge, you’ll have $465 in the bank. Plus, your largest deposit is just $30, the cost of a single fast food meal for many families of four.

Benefits of the 30-Day Money Saving Challenge

While the biggest benefit of completing the 30-day challenge is increasing the balance in your savings account, you also get more out of it than that. Along the way, you are setting good savings habits, helping you create a solid financial cushion in case of an emergency.

Plus, there is nothing to say that you have to stop after 30 days. You could always keep going, increasing your deposit by $0.25 each day until you reach a particular savings goal or hit the end of the year. Alternatively, if you are living paycheck to paycheck, you can start over each month, using the date to guide the size of your deposit. That way, your largest daily deposit never exceeds $7.75, making it much more manageable for anyone with a tight budget.

Consider Money Saving Apps

A great way to supplement your savings is the automated approach with an application like digit.co

Simply sign up and let the program analyze your checking account. The app will then make automated withdrawals which don’t impact your spending and sweeps them to an account you control. It is a super easy way to save money without a lot of effort. Click here to check it out.

In either case, you are creating an easy way to bolster your savings, ensuring that you have a health emergency fund in place at all times.

Do you have a tip for saving $100 a month? Share it in the comments below.

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30 day money saving challenge

When Is the Last Day to Send Christmas Cards and Packages 2018?

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When is the last day to send Christmas cards and packages
If you are planning to send out Christmas cards and packages this year, it’s important to know the last day to send those items so they reach the recipient before Christmas Day. Make sure you check the last day to send Christmas cards and gifts with USPS to ensure your packages and cards arrive at their destinations before December 25th.

What’s the last day to send packages through standard mail?

Friday, December 14, 2018 is the last day you are able to send packages through the post office at the standard postage rate for them to arrive by Christmas Day. This is the least expensive way to send packages. While you can send packages other ways to ensure they arrive before December 25, they will cost more money.

Be warned, you will likely be standing in long lines if you do take your packages to the post office on December 14, because it’s during the busiest time – which according to USPS begins December 10 and lasts about two weeks.

When’s the last day to send Christmas cards?

Thursday, December 20, 2018 is the last day you can post Christmas cards if you want to make sure they arrive before December 20th. Thursday, December 20, is also the last day you can send packages using USPS First Class (up to 15.99 ounces) to guarantee they arrive and are under the tree when the kids wake up on Christmas morning.

When’s the absolute last day to send packages to arrive before Christmas?

Saturday, December 22, 2018 is the very last day to get a package to its destination in the U.S. for those who wait until the last minute. This can be done by using Priority Mail Express. You can also use FedEx and UPS next day service.

When’s the last day to send packages internationally?

For those sending packages to countries outside the U.S., the last day to send them out using the USPS Global Express Guaranteed shipping option to arrive before Christmas Day are as follows:

  • Africa: December 19
  • Asia / Pacific Rim: December 19
  • Australia: December 20
  • Canada: December 19
  • Caribbean: December 20
  • Central America: December 18
  • Europe: December 20
  • Mexico: December 19
  • Middle East: December 20
  • New Zealand: December 20
  • South America: December 18

Although Post offices will be open on Christmas Eve keep in mind that cards and packages sent on the 24th won’t arrive in time for Christmas.

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(Photo courtesy of Thomas Lillis IV)

Which Banks Are Open on Sunday?

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banks open on Sunday
The vast majority of financial institutions, including banks and credit unions, are not open on Sunday. While many retail outlets are open on both Saturday and Sunday, banks and credit unions work a lot like many non-retail businesses that are open from Monday through Friday, but closed on the weekends. There are exceptions to this rule, although they are few and far between. Below you will find a list of the top banks open on Sunday, as well as the ones that are closed.

Banks Open on Sunday

  • Academy Bank Midwest (Walmart Locations 11 am – 4 pm)
  • American Savings Bank (9 am – 3 pm)
  • Armed Forces Bank (11 am – 4 pm)
  • Crest Savings Bank (8:30 am – 1 pm)
  • IBC Bank (noon – 4 pm)
  • TD Bank (11 am – 3 pm)
  • Valley National Bank (10 am – 2 pm)
  • Wells Fargo (10 am – 3 pm)
  • Most banks in Walmart locations have Sunday hours.

Banks Closed on Sunday

  • JP Morgan Chase
  • Bank of America
  • Citigroup
  • PNC Financial
  • HSBC
  • Bank of New York Mellon
  • US Bank
  • SunTrust
  • State Street
  • Capital One
  • BB&T
  • Royal Bank of Scotland
  • Regions Financial
  • Fifth Third Bank
  • ING
  • KeyCorp
  • Northern Trust
  • Bank of Montreal
  • Bank of the West
  • Union Bank
  • Allied Irish
  • Comerica
  • Zions Bank

Like banks, most credit unions are open from Monday through Friday and closed on the weekends. While some might be open on Saturday, we currently don’t know of any credit union with retail offices open on Sunday. If you happen to know of a credit union open on Sunday, please leave a comment or contact us, so we can add it to our list. Below you will find the top credit unions and whether or not they are open on Sundays.

Credit Unions Open on Sunday

  • Coastal Federal, NC
  • Community America, KS (grocery store branches only)
  • First Community, St. Louis, MO (Walmart branches only)
  • TruMark Financial, PA

Credit Unions Closed on Sunday

  • Navy Federal
  • State Employees
  • PenFed Federal
  • BECU
  • SchoolsFirst Federal
  • Alliant
  • The Golden 1
  • Security Service Federal
  • Star One
  • San Diego County
  • America First
  • First Technology
  • American Airlines Federal
  • Randolph-Brooks Federal
  • Suncoast
  • Bethpage Federal
  • Alaska USA Federal
  • Citizens Equity First
  • Digital Federal
  • VyStar
  • Teachers Federal
  • Delta Community
  • ESL Federal
  • PSECU
  • Police and Fire Federal

Even though most banks and credit unions are closed on Sunday, you can still carry out basic banking transactions through ATMs or banking online.

It’s important to remember that if you do use an ATM or website, some transactions won’t fully post to your account until the next business day when the bank or credit union opens. This is usually not an issue, but something to keep in mind.

Why Aren’t Banks Open on Sunday?

The plain and simple reason that banks aren’t open on Sunday is that it’s not cost effective for them to be open. This is especially true now that ATMs and bank websites can handle most common banking transactions, such as checking your balance, transferring between accounts, withdrawing, and depositing. The one bank that does offer Sunday service, TD Bank, uses this as a way to differentiate itself from all the other banks.

Do you know of any other financial institutions open on Sundays? Let us know in the comments below!

Read More

Protecting Your Money: Is Online Banking Safe?
Are Credit Unions Better Than Banks?
10 Reasons Credit Unions Are Better Than Banks

(Photo Source: Robert Couse-Baker)