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Quick Tip: Use Sports Streaming Free Trials Strategically

Consumer / Personal Finance /

Major live sports streaming platforms and league-pass services offer promotional free trial periods at the start of specific tournaments or playoff series. Time your subscription sign-ups to align with crucial championship weeks, and cancel immediately before billing kicks in to watch premium sports for free.

The Generic Over-the-Counter Swap: Beating Pharmacy Markups

Consumer / Personal Finance /

Walking down the medicine aisle at the pharmacy can feel overwhelming with rows of brightly colored name-brand pain relievers and allergy pills.

The prominent shelf space and aggressive marketing campaigns make those familiar boxes look like the only safe choice.

Government regulations require all over-the-counter medications to contain the ...Read more

Quick Tip: Check Credit Card Cell Phone Protection

Consumer / Personal Finance /

Certain credit cards offer complimentary cellular phone protection coverage if you pay your monthly mobile carrier bill using that card. Review your card benefits to see if you can drop expensive carrier insurance plans while maintaining damage coverage.

The Public Park Fitness Routine: Ditching the Expensive Gym Membership

Consumer / Personal Finance /

January resolutions often inspire people to sign up for expensive annual gym memberships that sound great in theory.

Months later, many of those same people find themselves paying a monthly fee for a facility they rarely visit.

Indoor treadmills and weight machines can easily be replaced by utilizing the vast resources right outside your front...Read more

Justin Sullivan/Getty Images North America/TNS

Young home shoppers still priced out without help, according to survey

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

40 remains the typical age, partly because of cash purchases by older buyers.

The age of the typical first-time homebuyer last year remained stuck at a historic high of 40 years old as younger people continue to get the worst of brutally high prices and interest rates in much of the country.

That’s according to new data from the National ...Read more

Quick Tip: Check Credit Card Price Protection Dollar Limits

Consumer / Personal Finance /

Note the per-item and annual maximum claim caps on your credit card's price protection benefit so you know exactly how much cash back you can recover on major retail purchases.

The Digital Document Audit: Eliminating Paper Clutter and Fees

Consumer / Personal Finance /

Take a look at your mail pile or home office desk. How many physical paper statements, utility bills, and insurance policies are stacking up?

Many companies quietly tack on a small monthly paper statement fee if you haven't opted into their digital portals.

Accumulating paper clutter makes it difficult to track expenses and stay organized when...Read more

Quick Tip: Use Public Transit or Carpool Days

Consumer / Personal Finance /

Vehicle maintenance, parking fees, insurance, and rapidly fluctuating fuel prices make driving one of the highest expenses in a modern household budget. Designating one or two days a week for public transit, biking, or carpooling with a colleague cuts wear and tear on your car while saving direct cash on fuel and downtown parking meters. A few ...Read more

The Meatless Monday Habit: Slashing Your Weekly Grocery Total

Consumer / Personal Finance /

Meat is consistently the most expensive item on any grocery shopping list, often dictating the budget for your entire week of meals.

Building every single dinner around a heavy protein center like steak, chicken breasts, or salmon adds up quickly at the register.

Shifting your household routine to include just one or two meatless meals a week ...Read more

Kayla Bartkowski/Los Angeles Times/TNS

No one wanted this Long Beach home until waves crashed into its living room

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

Andy Carter's latest listing on the Long Beach peninsula has it all: four stories, ocean views, even a private elevator. But when the house hit the market for $4.95 million in August, it couldn't find a buyer.

Turns out, the missing piece was a red tag deeming it unsafe for occupancy.

After Tropical Storm Rachel battered the oceanfront home in...Read more

Myung J. Chun/(Myung J. Chun/Los Angeles Times/TNS)/TNS

L.A.'s Westside once bragged about not needing air conditioning. This year's heat changed that

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

LOS ANGELES — Longtime Santa Monica resident Lori Woods used to love the one-bedroom apartment she and her husband shared. The second-floor unit had large, west-facing French doors that let in plenty of afternoon sunlight.

It didn't have built-in air conditioning, but Woods was not too worried given its location seven blocks from the beach. ...Read more

Quick Tip: Shop Thrift Stores for Kitchen Glassware

Consumer / Personal Finance /

Mugs, drinking glasses, and mixing bowls purchased at department stores carry high retail markdowns compared to thrift shop shelves packed with sturdy, sanitized glassware.

The Second-Hand Tool Library: Borrowing Instead of Buying

Consumer / Personal Finance /

Tackling weekend home improvement projects often requires specialized tools you might only use once in a decade.

Buying a brand-new orbital sander, tile cutter, or heavy-duty pressure washer for a single afternoon project feels like a massive financial waste.

Stashing expensive equipment in your garage to gather dust takes up valuable storage ...Read more

Dreamstime/Dreamstime/TNS

Real estate Q&A: No one has made an offer on our house in months. What should we do?

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

Q: Our house has been on the market for almost three months, and we have had showings but no offers. Our agent is telling us to lower the price, but a friend said we should take it off the market and relist it as new so it looks fresh. We are also tempted to just wait for interest rates to come down. Which is the right move? — Diane

A: The ...Read more

Quick Tip: Use Price Alerts on E-Commerce Wishlists

Consumer / Personal Finance /

Save high-ticket items to your online retailer wishlists and enable automated email price-drop alerts so you are notified immediately when merchants lower prices during unadvertised flash sales.

The Smart Thermostat Schedule: Lowering Heat While You Sleep

Consumer / Personal Finance /

Heating and cooling an empty house all day long is one of the fastest ways to watch your hard-earned money float out the window.

Many of us leave our climate control locked at a comfortable daytime temperature even when we are away at work or tucked snugly into bed.

Adjusting your home's temperature manually every morning and night quickly ...Read more

Daniel Mears/The Detroit News/TNS

United Wholesale Mortgage rebounds to third-quarter profit

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

United Wholesale Mortgage reported net income of $212.6 million in the third quarter of 2026, compared with net income of $12.1 million in the same quarter last year, the Pontiac, Michigan-based company reported Wednesday, Nov. 4.

The results are a turnaround from the second quarter, when UWM reported a net loss of $451.9 million.

The company ...Read more

Kevin Clark/The Seattle Times/TNS

'Enraging': WA residents despair as insurance premiums climb again

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

SEATTLE — Kate Neville is dreading the new year.

As a freelance grant writer, Neville has to buy her own health insurance, and for years her premiums have been climbing.

Her Kaiser Permanente plan cost around $350 per month just three years ago. Today, she pays $633 per month for the same plan — a nearly 80% increase. As open enrollment ...Read more

Kayla Bartkowski/Los Angeles Times/TNS

They left the suburbs for a 1916 Craftsman with an ADU in a walkable L.A. neighborhood

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

LOS ANGELES — Some of the best things in life are the ones you create together: a hand-built pergola, a picnic table for family get-togethers, or in Lisa “Jack” Akey and Blake Steury’s case, the 1916 Craftsman home they remodeled together.

Akey, 59, a recipe developer, stylist and photographer, and Steury, 63, a former roadie for ...Read more

Quick Tip: Consolidate Old Retirement Accounts

Consumer / Personal Finance /

Roll over stranded 401(k) accounts from previous employers into a single traditional or Roth IRA to simplify your investment tracking, lower administrative fees, and expand your mutual fund choices.

 

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