Today’s guest post comes from Philip Laube. He is a CPA in Ohio and the Assistant Vice President for Business & Finance at Muskingum University. He presents and writes about personal finance issues for college students. He can be followed at twitter and on his website

When searching for colleges, you may find that your son or daughter wants to venture out of your state. These trips can be expensive, but they can open new horizons to your son or daughter. And… if you’re like me, you guide them to warm weather locales when it’s February and you’re just tired of biting wind and snow/ice storms. Some comparison shopping can result in good plane fare…just don’t give it back when you rent a car.

After renting a car this past week and feeling like I was buying a used car (no offense to used car salesman?) with all the options being offered, I started to contemplate all of the services they offered and thought that all are not such a great deal.

Insurance
I get this question at work at lot too. The story they tell about lack of insurance is very compelling – and scary. But the insurance is pretty expensive. In one recent (and fun) article on the subject at Car and Driver, the cost of the insurance was half again as much as the rental. In this case, that was $35 a day. In this case, the price covered both the Loss Damage Waiver coverage and the Supplemental Liability Insurance.

Loss Damage Waiver (LDW) coverage (sometimes called CDW for “collision”) covers damage to the car. An important note: it covers damage to the car as long as you comply with rental agreement terms. Read those terms. Driving an SUV off road does not comply with the rental agreement. Also, pushing or towing anything and racing aren’t allowed. And despite the funny scenes in some movies, you cannot with “willful disregard” allow damage to the vehicle.

Supplemental Liability Insurance (SLI) goes by many names. This is for damage to other persons from your actions with the car or “willful disregard”. Remember that when you are at fault (or just partially at fault) you can be held liable for any damage and injury you caused. We’ve all seen the commercials for injury lawyers. There are are also additional options for any injury to people in your car. These cost extra of course.

There are many options to this insurance that cost you much less – down to nothing. The first is to look at the benefits on your credit card. Many credit cards offer some kind of coverage.  Most would cover full replacement of the car (up to $50,000).

Another option is your personal auto insurance. Your liability insurance on your personal auto goes with you on any car you drive. That eliminates the need for the SLI insurance. Your policy may include a rider for rental cars. If it doesn’t, you can likely add it for less than the cost of the rental car company’s insurance – and this coverage will last for all year. Be sure to talk to your insurance agent or company about what is available with your policy.

In either case, there are options that cost far less than the coverage offered by the rental car company. It’s not bad for everyone. You may be a person who doesn’t have a car (New York City residents?) or feel that your personal auto coverage is sorely lacking. In either case, I would still talk to an insurance company first. In all cases, though, make sure you have some coverage. Rolling the dice on an accident is never a good idea. It hurts your credit and frequently others as well.

Prepaid Gas
The newer option being offered these days is prepaid gas. I love the way they sell this. You can buy a full tank of gas and return it without trying to fill up around the airport. They will tell you that their gas is cheaper than the stations around them and they will tell you about their service charge for filling up the car if you fill up more than 2 to 10 miles from the airport. It sounds like a safe bet that gives you peace of mind. My warning: anyone pushing you to buy an extra service has something to gain. The more they push the better it is for them. There are not that many compassionate people out there.

After a particular pushy agent at a national company gave me the stern warning about the service charge – which I ignored – I started to add up the costs.

Let’s look at what you pay for. You pay for a full tank of gas. This is their ‘cheap’ rate times the manufacturer’s stated fuel capacity for the car. There is no credit for unused fuel. So if you are driving a car with a 16 gallon tank and their gas is $3.35 a gallon, the fuel charge is $53.60.

As you leave the rental lot you will immediately notice a gas station. And the price will be at least as expensive as the agent warned you. Long before prepaid fuel, these guys built stations for people to fill up their rental. And you will notice that the cost is higher. Pay attention as you drive away. Two miles is a lot of territory. You’ll likely see one that may be cheaper. But let’s say it is still 15 cents – or even 25 cents. That first station was pretty convenient. How much more do you pay?

This is the rub: who ever drives their car to complete empty. To do so means that you risk running out of gas outside the lot and someone has to push you in. Even if you can get the fuel light to come on. That is usually still 1/8 of a tank. Most of us will be something under 1/4 tank. So how much more did you pay? Well if you paid for 7/8 of a tank at $3.60 (25 cents more), your cost is $50.40. That’s $3 less. Maybe you can’t plan your gas to go all the way to 7/8. At 3/4 of a tank your cost is $43.20, a savings of over $10. A two day rental may use only half a tank depending on how much driving you had ($25 less). My three day rental in LA used just 3/4 of a tank – and that was with LA’s horrible traffic and several times of getting lost.

There is some benefit to the prepaid option. If you are nervous about making your flight, worried about traffic in a strange city or otherwise likely to not have time to fill the car up, then maybe it makes sense.

Remember the rule, the more they push and try to scare you, the better it is for them.

Helpful Links:
·         Car and Driver, Rental Car Olympics
·         Wikipedia, Damage Waiver
·         Avis, Optional Protections
·         AT&T Universal Card: Extras
·         Thrifty Car Rental enrollment

A few months ago I shared a new cost savings feature called Amazon Prime. This program is provided by Amazon.com and the main benefit is free 2-day shipping on all orders that you purchase online directly from Amazon.com. The regular price for this program is $79 a year but if you are a college student you can get it for free.

The only downside to Amazon Prime is that you had to have a “.edu” email address to qualify for the free service. Since many colleges and universities don’t provide email addresses with the “.edu” suffix, a lot of people were being excluded… until now…

If you are one of the unfortunate students that has a non “.edu” college email address, the instructions below provide all the steps required to get you Amazon Prime for free. Hope you find this helpful.

Free Amazon Prime Instructions For Non “.edu” Email Accounts

If you’re able to provide proof of enrollment in at least one course at a college or university located in one of the 50 states or the District of Columbia, you may be eligible to enroll in Amazon Student through an alternative process.

To provide proof of enrollment, please send an e-mail to amazon-student-verification@amazon.com from the e-mail address associated with your Amazon.com account. In the message, include one of the following:

* A scan of your current student ID
* A transcript or class list for the current term
* A tuition bill for the current term

You must also include all of the following information:

* The state where you attend school
* The name of your college or university
* Your academic level
* Your major
* The e-mail address given to you by your College or University (if applicable)

Amazon.com will review your submission to determine your eligibility. If they determine you’re eligible, you’ll receive the Amazon Student enrollment confirmation e-mail.

The following is a guest post from Ocean Gildee who is a contributing writer for ReadyU & The Real College Guide.

Being a college student used to mean eating three packs of ramen noodles a day and biking around campus because gassing up your 1985 Chevy was too expensive. Whether you work a part-time job or get an allowance from your parents, you can learn some key concepts to saving and spending wisely — now and after college.

Smart Spending
There are plenty of ways to save a few bucks every day. Dr. Dick Verrone, personal-finance professor for the Cameron School of Business at the University of North Carolina, Wilmington, has these penny-pinching tips:

• Order water. Don’t get soft drinks when you’re eating out. Why pay $2 for 150 soda calories? Also, Verrone says, “Never order orange juice.” OJ is extremely overpriced at restaurants, and most of the time it’s from concentrate.
  
• Limit your pocket cash. When going out on the town, take a 20-spot, and leave your cards at home. You’ll be forced to keep your tab under $20.
• Buy quality clothing items. They may be a little more expensive, but they’ll last longer. Verrone also definitely approves of outlet shopping. But before making purchases, think: Do I need this? If not, don’t buy it!
• Switch your prescriptions. Change your name-brand medications to generic ones. You can usually save about $20 per med this way.

Clipping “Coups”
OK, most college students don’t have easy access to a daily paper or coupon flyer, so how do you save with coupons and special discounts?

• Look online. If you’re going to the sporting-goods store, for example, type the name of the store into the search engine, along with the words coupon codes. Lots of websites track down discount codes for online shopping, as well as printable coupons for buying items in-store.
• Sign up for discount alerts via text. Some campuses have local text-message discount services — check at your student center or information desk. (Of course, this is not a good idea if you don’t have an unlimited cell-phone plan.) Mike Meyer, a UNCW senior, is signed up for deals in North Carolina at CouponstoYourPhone.com. “Every Monday, I get a coupon-text for one of my favorite restaurants,” he says. “It’s awesome.”
• Purchase a coupon book. These books pack hundreds of coupons, usually for buy-one-get-one-free offers. They’re worth the $25 (if you buy one from a campus organization’s fund-raiser) or even $35 (available online at Entertainment.com) after just a few uses.

Long-term Saving
Verrone recommends getting into the habit of saving now to set yourself up for an easier financial situation after graduation. “Make the amount small enough so you can do it,” he says, such as saving $5 per week or $10 each month.

• Set up an automatic transfer. Most large banking institutions, such as Bank of America or Wachovia, will let you set up transfers between linked checking and savings accounts. Meyer has $30 a month transferred. “That’s how I saved money for spring break freshman year,” he says.
• Start an individual retirement account. No, you’re not too young! This is the time to do it. “Once you’ve accumulated $200 to $300, open a Roth IRA and continue to fund it every month from your savings,” advises Verrone. Even if you continue to only save that $10 per month, you’ll be accumulating real money for the future.
• Watch your money grow. Let your savings work for you by investing in mutual funds with low expenses and superior performance records, suggests Verrone. Consult a financial adviser at your bank for more information.
• Consider an online banking service. Having an online bank can be a good outlet for putting away large sums of money that you can still access without penalties (unlike with an IRA). Online banks usually provide higher interest rates, although transfers take two to three business days. Meyer has a savings account with INGDirect and loves it: “A two-day transfer is more of a commitment, so I have to really think about it before I make that decision.”

Are you going to be sending a student away for college this coming year? My guess is that if they are far enough away, they will probably need a place to stay (other than your house). Outside of tuition, room and board costs are the next largest expense associated with going to college. Since we have decided that this expense is just a fact of life for college students, let’s check out all your options when it comes to campus housing.

Residence Halls

Dormitories, residence halls, quads, suites, – no matter what you call them we all know them as the place on campus that provides beds, bathrooms, and lounging areas for students in large quantities. Some have elevators, some just have stairs, some smell like potpourri and others remind you of a musty old gym sock. Regardless of how hard you try to avoid them chances are that you will be spending at least one year in the halls depending on the residency requirement of your campus. Since residence halls provide unlimited electricity, heat, air conditioning, water (hot and cold), bathroom facilities, and usually toilet paper,it is not uncommon for colleges to charge students a premium price to live there. The best approach to avoiding these fees would be to become an RA. Since that is not in the cards for everyone, the next best approach is to not be afraid to make new friends and share a room with one or more people. If you plan on living in a single, you had better be prepared to absorb the extra costs. If you are willing to take on a roommate and live in a double, your expense will be dramatically reduced.

Greek Housing

Just about every college and university has some sort of Greek organization on campus. Fortunately for you, most of the fraternities and sororities have houses and they are jumping at the chance to rent a room out to you – assuming you make it through the hazing and get tapped for membership . My experience has been that fraternity and sorority housing is cheaper than university housing. However, after you add in dues, parlor fees, etc… the costs become a lot more comparable.

University Owned Off-Campus Housing

You have paid your dues (living in the residence halls) and now you have the chance to live in a “real house” with 4 or 5 of your best buddies. University owned housing is awesome because they take care of all the general maintenance and upkeep of the house and all you have to do is live in it. Some colleges cover the utility expenses but others expect the students to get the utilities transferred into their name and take responsibility for paying them. Before you take the leap and sign a housing contract with your college make sure you know exactly what you are responsible for. If you do have to foot the bill for gas and electric, drop a call to the local utility company to see what the average monthly expense was on the house in the past year. You may find that one house you are interested in has insulated walls and the other one is scheduled for that upgrade (deferred maintenance) in a couple of years. That little fact could play a big role in your housing budget.

Non-University Owned Off-Campus Housing (aka Slum Lords)

Every college town has them. These are the housing “opportunities” provided to students after the college owned housing has reached maximum capacity and they must release students to live in non-university owned housing. I would say that six out of ten landlords do a decent job of keeping their houses up to code and making sure that the student’s safety is the top concern. However, the other four are the ones that will take every dime you have by charging a crazy premium rent and providing a living environment that has been band-aided over time and time again throughout the years. If you decide to tread down this path, I would do so cautiously. Check references of prior students that have experience with that landlord. Ask the residential life office if they know anything about the property or the landlord. Inspect the house thoroughly and make sure to point out anything that you think may be a safety hazard (faulty wiring, leaky plumbing, broken windows, busted sidewalks/steps, etc…).

Buy A House!

This is starting to gain popularity with many families over the past few years. They are purchasing houses that are on or near campus and becoming the “not so slum lord” for students (including their own!). The return on investment is fairly decent because they are demanding a premium rental rate. Since the house has an ideal location (on or near campus) their probability of resale with a profit is highly likely. They utilize their student to help pre-screen suitable renters (no offense but I can tell you that girls have a far better track record than boys when it comes to rental damages!). If you have the resources, I would definitely consider this option when it comes to housing.

I hope this information helps you as you try to figure out the best approach to living on campus. If you think this article would be of benefit to someone else, please don’t hesitate to utilize the “Share Tab” below.

The following is a guest post provided by the good people at AVG. You can get their FREE AVG Anti-virus program here.

We should all know by now that pranksters and cyberthugs can exploit weak passwords and phishing scams to gain control of our Facebook, Twitter, and other accounts. But students are especially vulnerable. Many share their computers and laptops with roommates and study group partners they only just met. It’s also common for students to share passwords with friends or simply forget to log out of a public workstation. This invites rabble-rousers to impersonate them, post embarrassing updates and pictures, and instantly ruin their online reputations.

Sometimes ‘status hijacking’ is just a harmless prank among friends. But when you consider who may be reading these posts—teachers, family members, potential employers—it can create real damage. And then there are the criminal imposters who break into accounts to bombard contacts with spam, trick them into giving up their account info, and direct them to malicious web sites. (Recent AVG research shows the top 50 social networking sites include 20,000 malicious pages set up specifically to launch an attack on anyone who visits them!)

So it’s important for students to keep their online accounts under lock and key. Here are some tips from AVG to help them do just that:

• Use a strong and different password for each of your accounts.
• Do not share your password or leave it where it can be found.
• Be wary of any Facebook or Twitter app, site or email that asks you for login info.
• Be sure to log out of your accounts when done.
• Avoid logging in from a friend’s computer. They could have purposefully installed a keylogger or fallen prey to spyware without knowing it.
• If somebody sends you a link, confirm the sender’s intent before clicking as it could have been sent from a hijacked account. Be especially careful if the message that accompanies the link is particularly tempting – i.e., “OMG is that you in this pic?”
• Install an online security solution that includes anti-phishing features.
• Use a spyware scanner to check for keylogging software a ‘friend’ may have installed while using your computer.
• Remember your accounts are never 100% safe. Be careful of what kind of information you store on your account in case of a break-in.