The Complete Idiot's Guide to Stretching Your Dollar

by Shannon M. Medisky

An online expert and home economist gathers hundreds of practical-and surprising-tips.

Everyone is being squeezed these days by the faltering economy, but nobody wants to give up the things that add to quality of life. Much more than just common sense warmed over, this handy guide will take them through the doldrums of the current economy, helping them budget and set priorities, while still enjoying their lives.

• Hundreds of tips on stretching the dollar-without the no-brainers like "clip coupons"

•The few businesses thriving during the downturn are bargain- and budget- oriented

•Does not require a lifestyle makeover.

Genres: Nonfiction, Finance

208 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 2009

Reviews

[AnandaTashie]

2 stars is me being kind of generous. :)

Most of the 'useful' tips are very common sense, to the extent that I'm not sure they're worth mentioning. However, I'm giving the book two stars instead of one due to the belief that maybe some people would benefit from the walk through. :)

Other tips are a bit... odd. For example, the author mentions befriending people in certain departments of the grocery store to get information about when deliveries arrive, free samples, sales, general insider info that can benefit, etc. Really? I've found that just politely asking any question pretty much gets the same response without it being a big deal. She also suggests asking friends to use their discounts for you - senior days, employee discounts, etc. Eeeeehhhhh, that's pretty iffy.

Then, some tips are a little misguided. I guess they technically save money, but only under ideal circumstances. For example, she suggests getting store credit cards when their intro is a good deal. Then, just paying for the purchase fully when the bill comes. In an ideal world, that's a plan. In a normal world, most people aren't going to do that. They'll just suddenly have good intentions that accumulate into more debt which completely doesn't help to stretch the dollar. Or, in another passage, she mentions using QVC & HSN's specials and no-interest payment plans. Okay, yeah, technically that does save money if you would instead use a credit card. But, it's, well, spending money that you don't actually _have_ which doesn't really help someone not wanting to do that. It's stretching invisible money or something. :D

[Sarah]

I think they stretched their dollar a little too much when they hired a proofreader.

You can get the same tips from a subscription to "Woman's Day," which is much more entertaining and grammatically correct.

[Eve]

I pulled a few good ideas from this book. Most of the info seemed a little too obvious. However, I liked the list of websites in the back for free samples, coupons, price comparisons, etc.

[Andie]

Good information, but it didn't provide me with anything I hadn't already learned from other books.