Buy Gift Cards at Costco and Save a Lot of Money Elsewhere

If you're not already a Costco member and have no intention of becoming one, gift cards are a reason to consider a Costco membership. Costco offers an assortment of gift cards for sale at bargain prices; typically 20% off.  A $55 annual Costco membership fee can quickly be recovered if you use these cards. Here's a summary of what several (Oxnard, Westlake Village and Simi Valley) local Costco stores either currently have on hand or have carried in the past.

• Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf: $100 in gift cards for $79.99 (also available online)

• Buca di Beppo $100 in gift cards for $69.99 (in store)

• CPK $100 in gift cards for $79.99

• P.F. Chang's $100 in gift cards for $79.99 (online and in store)

• Roy’s $100 in gift cards for $79.99 in store

• Marmalade Cafe $100 in gift cards for $79.99 in store

• Build-a-Bear Workshop $100 Gift E-Cards for $79.99 (available online)

• 24 Hour Fitness discounted 2 year memberships

• Cold Stone Creamery $100 in gift cards for $69.99

• Yogurtland four $25 gift cards for $79.99

• Krispy Kreme 4 $15 gift cards for $44.99 (online)

All of this of course is subject to change and availability.

The So Called "Tax Cuts" and Jobs Act of 2017 Eliminated Deductibility of Alimony for Divorces in 2019

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The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 made divorce quite possibly much more expensive. Beginning for divorces executed in 2019, alimony paid by one spouse to another spouse is no longer deductible by the spouse making the payments. Inversely, the alimony is not taxable to the spouse being paid.

On the face of it, this sound pretty good for the payee. You no longer have to pay taxes on your alimony!

But the problem is that the payor, who is likely to be in a higher tax bracket than the payee, will no longer be able to reduce his or her or his taxable income by the amount of the alimony paid.

For grins (or perhaps groans), let’s look at an example.

Billy Bob and Billie Jean get divorced on January 1, 2019. Billy Bob earns $150,000 per year. Billie Jean does not work. As part of the divorce settlement, Billy Bob must pay $30,000 in alimony per year.

Using 2019 federal tax rate schedules, and assuming both deduct only the $12,200 per year 2019 standard deduction, Billy Bob would pay $27,295 in federal taxes in 2019. Billie Jean would pay no taxes on her alimony.

If the divorce agreement had been finalized one day earlier, December 31, 2018, Billy Bob would have reduced his taxable income by the $30,000 in alimony paid to Billie Jean. As a result, his 2019 federal taxes would be $20,095, fully $7,200 less than under the new laws. Billy Bob is in the 24% federal tax bracket.

Billie Jean would have to pay taxes on the $30,000 received had the divorce been finalized in 2018, but after taking into account the $12,000 standard deduction, her federal taxes would be $1,966.

So some might think, GOOD! Now Billie Jean doesn’t have to pay taxes! Good for her!

Well, let’s look at the bigger picture. The total taxes paid on that same $150,000 in total earned income in 2019 has increased by $5,234, from $22,061 ($20,095 plus $1,966) in 2018 to $27,295 in 2019. That’s a 24% increase in federal taxes as a result of the so called “Tax Cuts” and Jobs Act of 2017.

This may result in some particularly more heated discussions in future divorce proceedings.

Unlike other of the so called “Tax Cuts” laws that were changed on a retroactive basis that hurt middle class taxpayers (such as the arbitrary $10,000 per year “cap” on state and local taxes that has hit many in California particularly hard), this change in tax law was not made retroactive.

In other words, if you were divorced prior to 2019, the deductibility of alimony payments was not taken away from you. It just applies on a go-forward basis.

On behalf of all current year and future divorcees, thank you to our brilliant legislators who make these drastic changes in tax laws impacting our financial livelihoods.

More on the treatment of alimony at www.irs.gov/taxtopics/tc452.

Exploring the Coca-Cola All You Can Eat Right Field Pavilion at Dodger Stadium (NO LONGER AVAILABLE)

WELL, IT WAS FUN TO TRY ONCE BUT THESE “ALL YOU CAN EAT” SEATS ARE LONG GONE :(

I've been a Dodger fan my entire life, having been born and raised in the Los Angeles area and moving to the Conejo Valley in the mid 1990s.

When I was a kid, my dad would take us to the game a couple times each season. We sat in the cheapest seats and on our way there would stop by McDonald's or In-N-Out Burger and bring food into the stadium.

Today, while still fans of the Dodgers, we rarely go to games. Just too many other things going on in our life. But I decided it would be fun to take the kids on a Saturday night.

BUYING TICKETS ONLINE

Plenty of tickets are available, but I had moderate sticker shock at the prices. The cheapest seats on the Dodgers ticketing website were $28 + $6.50 "Convenience" fee (whatever that means) and a $5.10 "Processing" fee. It certainly would be nice if all online ticket sellers just have one "all in" price that clearly shows the total price.

I was amazed at how terrible the Dodgers' ticketing website is, compared to other sites like StubHub and SeatGeek. They make you run Flash and don't provide a view from the seats like the other sites do.

In any case, I reviewed multiple alternatives to the Dodgers' ticketing website and went with StubHub. StubHub adds a service fee and a fulfillment fee to ticket prices. These fees vary based on event and ticket type. For the Dodgers game, the service fees were in the 23-25% range and fulfillment fees were $2. Factoring these fees in, StubHub still had the best overall prices for comparable seats out of the options I looked at.

Save 10% Off Tickets on StubHub with code MEMORIES10

PICKING THE SEATS

I was taking three kids to the game and my cheapest alternative were seats way, way up high in the Top Deck or Reserve areas. I didn't really want to be that high up, so I looked at the alternative of the bleacher seats. 

I'm not a fan of bleacher seats as they are just that - long benches with numbered seatbacks - no individual seats. I'm that guy who is annoyed the entire flight on a plane where the guy next to me's arm intrudes on my space. So bleacher seats probably are not the best idea for me.

But on second thought, we're only talking two to three hours and the kids would enjoy it. How bad could it be, right? So I decided to look at seats in the Coca-Cola All You Can Eat Right Field Pavilion. They were about $20 to $25 more than the seats in the Left Field Pavilion, but ALL YOU CAN EAT sounded like a fun option with the kids.

The bleacher seats make you feel closer to the action IMO than the seats in nosebleed land.

THE ALL YOU CAN EAT PAVILION

If it were me and a buddy, I would not sit in the Coca-Cola All You Can Eat Pavilion because, well, I'm not big into gorging myself. But hey, I was with the kids, and thought it would be fun to just let em at it and not worry about cash. And indeed it was fun.

A few things to note. We are not talking about a gourmet selection in this deal. We're talking Dodger Dogs, nachos, peanuts, popcorn and non-alcoholic beverages (soft drinks, iced tea and water). No ice cream, churros, cotton candy or beer (though those were available for sale). And no pizza, hamburgers or other food items. One pizza vendor walked by around the 7th inning; I suppose he was desperate to unload them at that point.

Is the All You Can Eat Pavilion worth it? Well it comes down to numbers. If you were to consume one Dodger Dog (cost is $6.50), one bag of peanuts ($5 estimate) and one drink ($6 insanely expensive), you are consuming $17.50 of Dodger Stadium cuisine. Throw in one other item, like another hot dog or nachos, and you've pretty much broken even on the deal. 

Two of the three kids with me "broke even." So I had to personally make up for the third kid's under-consumption. Indeed I was hungry on the drive from Thousand Oaks to Dodger Stadium, so I was prepared for the challenge. In fact, I went for a run that morning to ensure my metabolism was raring to go.

My take: 3 Dodger Dogs (really closer to 2 1/2 as I couldn't finish the 3rd one), 1 iced tea (refilled once), 2 bags of peanuts (I brought one home) and 2 bags of popcorn. Ignoring the refill, I think I devoured about $46 retail value in food.

Of course consuming all that salty food might make one thirsty. I woke up the next morning with a very dry mouth. And I certainly got my money's worth the night before so it was worth it. Kind of.

I had fond memories of Dodger Dogs going back to my childhood. They were great back then. But these Dodger Dogs were lukewarm at best and had kind of a metallic taste to them. I find the hot dogs at Costco, for $1.50, INCLUDING drink, to be more fulfilling.

The popcorn I thought was actually pretty good for pre-bagged popcorn. The peanuts were quite salty. The nachos were meh, not particularly good, according to the kids. 

THE BLEACHER SEATS

They weren't that bad. It was fun. The crowds were pretty mellow and there were a lot of families/kids out there.

There is zero room between your legs and knees and the row in front of you, but thankfully we didn't experience too much back and forth of people passing by as we were seated towards the middle of the row.

Great view of the field. We had to twist our necks a bit to see the big video screen, but it wasn't too bad.

There's nowhere to place your food and drinks, so you have to kind of balance the food in a tray on your lap. There's no cup holder for the drink. I placed my iced tea under the bench, where it was soon joined by trash. In fact, the amount of trash left by attendees was jaw dropping.

Quite a mess under the seats of the bleacher benches.

My back was a little tweaked by the end of the game, but I survived. Though the Dodgers lost, the game was entertaining, as was the between-inning on-screen shenanigans. It was a fun night out.

GETTING THERE AND PARKING

I decided to use the Waze app to tell me the best way, factoring in traffic conditions, to get to Dodger Stadium. Without the app, the natural way I would go would be the 101 east to the 134 east to the 5 south.

Waze informed me that I would get there 12 minutes faster from Newbury Park via the 23 north to the 118 east to the 5 south to the 134 east to the 2 south to the 5 south. Yep, a bit out of the way, but it worked like a charm. A very stress-free drive, with minimal traffic.

Going home was much more direct - 5 north to 134 west, then 101 west. If you find yourself in the right-hand lane on Stadium Way coming out of Dodger Stadium, you will be forced to go on the 5 south. Whoops, wrong way! But if you do find yourself in this situation, not to worry. Continue on the 5 about half a mile and take the Riverside offramp, turn right, then you'll soon see a 5 north onramp.

Parking at the stadium is $25. DO buy a parking pass on the Dodgers ticketing website in advance for $15 to save yourself $10. www.mlb.com/dodgers/ballpark/transportation/parking

Was fun catching a Justin Turner home run in the 4th inning.

IN SUMMARY

• Dodger Stadium is just 40 to 60 minutes from the Conejo Valley and is a fun entertainment option for the entire family.

• Plenty of seating options are available. The Coca-Cola All You Can Eat Right Field Pavilion is a great option if your family enjoys Dodger Dogs, popcorn, peanuts, nachos and soft drinks.

Homeless Prevention Rental Help Available to Ventura County Residents

Through the American Recovery & Reinvestment Act of 2009, the Ventura County Homeless Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Program (HPRP) makes federal funds available to local residents who are homeless or about to be evicted. County and city government have joined efforts to operate HPRP, ensuring that eligible County residents receive help when they need it most.

Basic eligibility criteria includes:

• Homeless or facing eviction within 21 days
• Household income limits based on family size
• You have no other options or resources to find or keep housing
• Financially able to maintain housing after rental assistance is received
• Ventura County resident and U.S. citizen or qualified resident alien

Eligible HPRP applicants may receive various types of assistance, including eviction prevention rental payment, rental deposit, short-term rental payment, credit counseling, utility deposit/payment, moving and storage costs and case management. Payments go directly to vendors.

Case managers work closely with clients to develop and implement a service plan to ensure that they receive full benefits.  Through HPRP, clients are stabilized in housing and assisted comprehensively to help ensure that they do not face homelessness again.

Visit www.vchsa.org/hprp or call 805.385.8585 for additional information.

Other resources for low income residents of Ventura County:

Free cell phone service from Assurance Wireless

Ventura County shelters and meal programs for those in need

Conejo Valley area shelter and meal programs

Ventura County 2-1-1 service

Budget-Friendly Summer Travel Tips

Budget-Friendly Summer Travel

by Mira Reverente

The New Year usually means a couple of things to me - put holiday decor away and start planning for summer vacation. Actually, even before the onset of the holidays, I usually have my eye on a couple of destinations or adventures already.

I have pretty straightforward criteria: budget-friendly and kid-friendly. A blog post on train travel planted the seed. Considering that his blog post has been shared 3.9 million times already I thought I must be onto something here.

So, I researched rail passes, which I found out you can purchase for 15, 30 or 45 days on amtrak.com, allowing you to make 8, 12 or 18 stops, respectively. I purchased the 15-day rail pass for $459 ($229.50 for children 12 and under), which my daughter and I are planning to use soon to tour the Midwest and the East Coast. You can’t beat that price for a seven-state tour we plan to do.

Lodging can get pretty pricey too. Fortunately, we’ll be staying with a college friend for the DC-Virginia-Maryland leg of our tour. For all the other stops, I have found good deals on Airbnb. Depending on your comfort level and privacy needs, you can choose from many options: anywhere from a parked RV to a couch, to a private room or even a villa.

I just keep an eye on extra fees like cleaning, security deposit, extra occupant, etc. because they do tend to sneak up on you if you’re not paying attention. I have had great experiences on Airbnb over the years and have received good reviews from the hosts as well.

If you are the adventurous and outdoorsy type, summer and camping probably go hand-in-hand for you. With a few one-time basic investments - a tent, a sleeping bag and a small stove - you are good to go camping.

In the past, I have found affordable campsites on recreation.gov and reserveamerica.org. The main difference between the two is that the latter includes state and private parks. You can book popular campsites like the Grand Canyon and Glacier National Park on recreation.gov. Last summer, our Glacier campsite was only $23 per night, while Yellowstone was $28 per night.

CAMPGROUNDS AND RV FACILITIES IN VENTURA COUNTY AND NEARBY AREAS

From my hiking buddies, I have heard that campendium.com is also a good resource for a listing of free campsites in eight states including CA. Just remember that although there may be no nightly rate for camping, there may be permits needed and they may not always be free. Another site, hipcamp.com, though not free, has an enticing listing of camping deals and new destinations.

More budget-friendly summer travel tips:

1. First rule of summer travel, avoid it if you can (just kidding). Some child-free friends of mine avoid it by traveling during “shoulder season” like early May or mid-late September when the kids are still or back in school. Prices also drop as soon as summer break is over.
2. Set a budget and stick to it. We all get carried away by dreamy pictures of the sand, sea and sangrias, but they all come with a price. Get on the same page with your spouse, significant other and family members as to how much you can afford to spend, so there are no surprises long after the vacation thrill has worn off.
3. Research. Use social media to find good deals and tips. Ask friends if they’ve been to your intended destination/s.
4. Plan well. If you are planning to visit NYC for three days, for example, and would like to hit the museums and popular landmarks, you can save money by buying discounted passes such as CityPass.
5. Stay in places which have basic kitchen facilities. Those restaurant meals out do add up quickly. Look for lodging with a kitchenette or a microwave at the very least, for heating up leftovers and preparing basic meals.

Happy summer traveling!

Conejo Valley resident Mira Reverente a.k.a. The Money Savvy Mommy, loves finding and sharing money saving strategies just as much as the next person. Her first book on money and thriving post-divorce is available on Amazon. Get your money savviness fill on themoneysavvymommy.com or follow her on Facebook and Instagram.

U.S. Mail First-Class Letter Rates to Increase by Three Cents on January 26, 2014

The Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC) announced on Christmas Eve that it was approving a U.S. Postal Service request for a 3 cent increase in first-class mail single letter rates effective January 26, 2014. This will increase the price of stamps from 46 cents to 49 cents, or 6.5% (though I'm puzzled by the PRC press release that indicates an increase of 6.0%, which, if you do the math, is incorrect...maybe they need to hire me and my calculator).

This is a pretty significant increase, well in excess of the Consumer Price Index change that is typically uses to justify rate increases. The reason for this is that they are seeking to offset what they call "exigent" losses during the "Great Recession of 2008-2009." 

I had to look up the word "exigent" as it is not part of my limited vocabulary. According to Merriam Webster online, exigent is defined as "requiring immediate attention or action." OK, I guess I could have figured that out.

The PRC indicates that this increase is "temporary" however as it has determined that 25.3 billion pieces of volume were lost between 2008 and 2011 at a loss of $2.8 billion and that this temporary increase in excess of inflation would be put in place until the lost revenue is made up. This could be a few years.

Previous first-class letter rate increases were 1 cent in January 2013, 1 cent in January 2012 and 2 cents in May 2009.

This next month is probably the best time ever to stock up on "Forever" stamps to be the 6.5% price increase. If you don't use mail much, I suspect this will not have too big of an impact on you. If you do plan to mail a lot of stuff these next few years, it is exigent that you stock up soon.