College Students, Have I Got a Plan for You!

single month, without fail.

Credit Limit

It’s super easy to see your credit limit on your credit card statement as your money -- like it’s there and it’s yours to spend. It’s not your money. It’s the bank’s money that it cannot wait to lend to you at a ridiculously high interest rate.

Eat Your Food Plan

If you or your parents have paid for the school meal plan, you need to know how many meals are covered and then do something remarkable: actually eat those meals.

If you’re eating pizza in your dorm room or driving through Burger King instead, you’re just throwing away money. It might feel cool to spend your money like that now, but you will regret it later.

DON’T BECOME A STARBUCKS REGULAR

I want to say never, but I’ll compromise a bit on this one. Seriously, the cof- fee at Starbucks or Coffee Bean or any other trendy coffee house is so expensive it brings tears to my eyes.

Let your grandparents and others know how much you love Starbucks gift cards. They are anxious to know what they can send to you while you’re away. Then use the gift cards instead of your cash. Or buy an inexpensive coffee maker and make coffee in your room instead.

Buy Or Rent Used Textbooks

The cost of new textbooks is going to be so shocking it will make you want to chew your hair. You can cut that cost in half at least by buying used books online or even renting them. Take good care of them so that when you’re done, you don’t get charged a damage fee on rentals, and so if you purchased them, you can sell them back.

Take these basic money principles and apply them to your life now. Take money management seriously. You will never regret it.

And have a great year!

Mary invites you to visit her at EverydayCheapskate.com, where this column is archived complete with links and resources for all recommended products and services. Mary invites questions and comments at https://www.everydaycheapskate.com/contact/, “Ask Mary.”

This column will answer questions of general interest, but letters cannot be answered individually. Mary Hunt is the founder of EverydayCheapskate.com, a frugal living blog, and the author of the book “Debt-Proof Living.”

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BY TOM MARGENAU

I think I get more questions about benefits for spouses than I do about any other kind of Social Security benefit. And even though I’m using the gender-neutral term, “spouses,” these questions almost always come from women wondering what benefits they might be due on their husband’s -- or ex-husband’s -- Social Security record. Or they come from men asking about the benefits their wives or ex-wives might be due on their record. Women tend to qualify for benefits on a husband’s record because most times their own Social Security benefit is less than their husband’s benefit. Why? Primarily because women spend more time out of the workforce -usually because they take time off work to have and raise children.

Of course, there are some family situations where the wife makes more money than the husband and she ends up with a higher Social Security benefit. So, her husband might be due spousal benefits on her record. Still, statistics show that 95% of spousal benefits go to women, so I’m addressing them today.

Oh, and before I go on, I must cover this issue. Every time I write a column about benefits that wives and widows might be due from Social Security, I get angry letters from single women who have never been married asking me why I never write columns explaining what they are due from the system. I always have to explain to them that I write such columns all the time. If they are working and paying into Social Security, then they are potentially due the same kind of retirement or disability benefit that any other taxpayer might be due. I’ve written thousands of columns explaining these benefits. In other words, from a Social Security perspective, there is nothing special about being a single woman, or a single man for that matter. They just get regular Social Security benefits. So now, back to questions about benefits for wives and widows.

Q: My husband is 67 and starting to receive his Social Security benefits. I am 62. Other than a few years after high school when I had some part-time jobs, I have spent my entire adult life as a wife or homemaker, so I have no Social Security of my own. A neighbor told me that after my husband dies, I will never be able to get widow’s benefits because I don’t have my own Social Security account. Is this true?

A: It’s absolutely false. As I always tell my readers, never listen to friends or neighbors offering Social Security advice. It’s almost always wrong.

In fact, not only will you be due widow’s benefits when your husband dies, but you are also due dependent wife’s benefits on his record right now. So, call Social Security at 800-772-1213 and file a