Designer Coffee - Is it worth $1,000 a year to you?

If so, I say go for it because dropping into your favorite coffee shop every morning will set you back about $5 a cup, $20 a week... at the end of the year that adds up to $1,040!!!  (That's assuming you haven't picked up something to munch on with it)

Going through McDonalds for a cup of joe will set you back - $5 or $6 dollars a week ( or more if you go with their new designer coffees)

Save some cash and brew your own coffee at home - even consider taking a thermos to work with you.... if you like froth, pick up a home frother at the hardware store to whip your milk - you could even buy some of beans your favorite shop sells and still be money ahead... but if it's all about see and be seen or not being able to get out of that habit, just know what that morning cup of joe costs you at the end of the year.

Saving Money on Textbooks

Saving money on textbooks March 2010

I have two college-aged sons so I'm always looking for ways to stretch a nickel...

The information below has been collected from various comments online about buying or renting textbooks to save money. With the exception of http://www.half.com/, I have not used any of them - if you have please leave your feedback to share your experience with others.


• http://www.chegg.com/ - they have pioneered textbook rental and saved students and parents more than $100,000 in the process.

"I purchase my textbooks online using www.campusbooks.com to find the lowest prices. After I finish the class, I sell my books on www.half.com I carefully calculate the shipping charges and commission to make sure I break even on my books. Some semesters I even make a little profit! I think it's a great way to "rent" textbooks for free!"

• Renting Books

"Cheaper than renting books is buying them online from www.alibris.com Great prices! New books and used books. The only down side is that it may take up to ten days for the books to arrive in the mail although you can pay more for fast delivery - "

Chegg and textbooks
if they use a code to do homework, the cost of buying the code and the rental may be more than a new text. NOTE -  Chegg's rental is a few months, if a student uses a book more than one term, cheaper to buy the book.

• a better solution is to buy the book directly from the publisher. they will save lots of money!

"I purchased through www.Abebooks.com this semester and saved a fortune. This is a clearinghouse for individual sellers. Ex - I got a used book that sold at the bookstore for $84 for only $20 at Abebooks. You do have to be careful with the sellers on this site. All the books from the various sellers arrived quickly, but one called "Motor City Books" took forever and had terrible customer service.

I have since found that it is much cheaper to buy used textbooks online at www.half.com and then resell them the same way. You can almost get all your money back that way!"