A NEW WAY TO BUY POSTAGE

Postal rates continue to climb, and we've got a drawer full of Forever stamps because that's how we roll. But we wondered if we could do even better.

Everyone already knows to stock up on the Forever stamps, since they're good at face value even if/when the rates go up. Right?

But we bet you didn't know this:

If you go to a stamp and coin store, many will sell you unused stamps at at least 10% off face value. Apparently, stamps don't expire, so you can still use old stamps to mail new things. (Just make sure you're buying United States postage, not foreign stamps, and make sure that they're not canceled.)

Recently, Team CHEAPIOSITY bought some vintage postage stamps at our local stamp/coin store, and our discount was about 15% off face value. Cool. We used the stamps on some letters, and nothing has returned postage due, so we're concluding that our little scheme works just fine. Why the bargain, you ask?

Apparently, baby boomers and their parents started collecting stamps and coins as a post-war hobby (and investment), but so many of them did that there's a glut on the market. So many stamps were issued and saved that they haven't increased in value at all. Only stamp collections that date back to the 1940's and before have started to appreciate. Bad news for the baby boomer collectors, but good news for us bargain hunters who still traffic in snail mail.

And with Valentine's Day right around the corner, what could be more thoughtfully retro and hip than a Valentine's card sent with vintage postage stamps? You don't have to thank us.

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HOW TO AVOID MOST FEES

Let's face it, we are all getting nickeled and dimed and dollared to death with fees from airlines, banks, and everyone else who knows how to manipulate an overly trusting consumer using very small type and obfuscating language.

Here's a straightforward and user-friendly article from PopWallet on how to avoid the most egregious fees out there:

http://www.walletpop.com/2011/01/19/how-to-avoid-getting-nickel-and-dimed-with-fees/

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2011 COST CUTTING TIPS

Who doesn't want to save money? Who? Who? Who?

We've already told you about many of the following tips, but we figure a cost-cutting refresher course never hurt anyone. Take a look at this article from The NY Times:

http://travel.nytimes.com/2011/01/09/travel/09pracsave.html?src=un&feedurl=http%3A%2F%2Fjson8.nytimes.com%2Fpages%2Ftravel%2Findex.jsonp

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FREE CALLS

Yes, we all know about calling 800-FREE411 for directory assistance..

And yes, we know about free calling using Skype or Google Voice.

Thanks to a new service called FreePhone2Phone.com, you can make national and international calls for free. Listen to a 10- or 12-second ad and get 10 minutes of free calling to any of 55 countries. According to the company, 85 percent of all calls are under 10 minutes long, so most calls are covered.

Here’s the fine print:

Each call is limited to 10 minutes. A warning tone beeps every 5 seconds for the last half minute, and then you’re cut off.

If you try to call the same number again the same day, your call is limited to five minutes; this prevents you from exploiting the system by calling back over and over all day.

Calls overseas are mostly limited to landline numbers. Calling cellphones overseas is limited to a few industrialized countries.

There’s no reason you can’t make free phone calls to numbers in the United States, too, but this trick makes more sense if you have a landline.

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PERSONAL FINANCE TIPS FOR 2011

BankRate.com did an article on Personal Financial Tips for the new year. We thought it was worth sharing. We also thought that might not be the most provocative subject so we went a little overboard sexing up the graphics. We're sorry if we offend, but if you're still reading this, we weren't entirely wrong.

http://www.bankrate.com/finance/personal-finance/top-100-personal-finance-tips-for-2011.aspx

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FINDING CHEAP HOTEL RATES

Everyone's always looking for a good deal on a hotel. You can drive yourself crazy checking out sites like Hotels.Com, Expedia, Travelocity, etc. Very often you will find good deals on these sites, but taking another step can help you find even better deals.

These sites are call aggregators; you're probably familiar with Kayak, which we've talked about before. Sites like Kayak are not in the business of selling the rooms or flights or cars; they direct you to the sellers' site. On Expedia, you actually buy the service from them as an intermediary. Kayak has become cluttered with pop-ups for sites like Expedia or Priceline and others. While we like Kayak and still use it, there are other aggregators that we want to make you aware of:

www.Momondo.com The results appear on a map at the destination city. Particularly good for European cities, hotels, and flights.

www.hotelscombined.com

www.hotelly.com combs 48 travel sites, so you don't have to.

www.Hotelicopter.com combs some 30 sites.

www.Wego.com combs 42 sites.

So try these next time you're booking a room and save more dough. You're welcome.

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DISCOUNT SPORTS AND CONCERT TICKETS

Did you know that thousands of sports and concert tickets go unsold each year? Here's a way to get your hands on some of those tickets at a discount.

Go to: https://www.scorebig.com/

You can save 10-70% off the ticket price. We like that.

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