Check this out!The National Retail Federation estimates
that the average family can expect to spend $548.72 on back-to-school
costs!!
I don't know about you, but
that figure makes me shudder.But what's
a family to do when each kid needs new shoes, clothes, pencils, books,
etc?B-U-D-G-E-T!
It seems easy enough, but
when your son just has to have the $100 pair of shoes (and he really looks and
acts like he will cry if he doesn't get them) and exclaims, "Everyone else will
have them"; it's easy to cave under pressure.
Don't cave.Have a plan in place and stick to it.There are dozens of resources and tips
available to help you and your family get what you need (key word) for school and not go broke in the process.Check out the following sites for tips, and
then share your back-to-school budgeting
tips for a chance to win cash for your school supplies:
What are YOUR best
back-to-school money-saving tips?
Post a comment and share
your tip by midnight Sunday, September
13 for a chance to win a $50 Visa gift card.Be sure to include your name and email
address in your post so we can contact you if you are our winner.
While it won't influence
the outcome, we'd also be interested in knowing if you've ever been a guest at
any of our 150+
properties.
For more
information on Value Place,
please visit ValuePlace.com.Best wishes for a successful school year!
*A panel of Value Place
employees will choose the best ideas submitted. The winner will be randomly
selected and announced on this site by September 15, 2009.
A few days
ago, I came across an article on Kiplinger.com
titled, "20
Ways to Waste Your Money."With a headline
like that, who could resist reading more!?The piece provides a list of 20 things that many of us do that lead to a
complete and totalwaste of our hard-earned money.Fortunately, the article also offers
insightful ways to find the holes in your budget and plug them for good.
The list of
money wasters includes things like:
Paying to use an ATM
Letting your money wallow in a low interest checking account
vs. a high interest savings account
Giving Uncle Sam an Interest-free loan (by withholding too
much money from your paycheck for taxes).
Click
here to read the full article.I'm guilty of some of the things on
the list.Are you?
After
evaluating the "Ways to Waste Your Money list," I thought of one more point
that should be added:Paying Too Much for
Lodging!(What a waste that
can be!)At Value Place, you'll never pay too much
for a clean, comfortable, secure hotel room.
The next
time you need an extended stay hotel and are looking for incredible value, stay
at a Value Place.Your wallet will thank you.
Value Place guests across
the country, particularly those who are in
transition, continue to tell us how grateful they are for our product
and services.Here is one example:
"You have provided such a service to
the working people in these bad economic times - relieving the people searching
for employment of one less stressor of 'where will I stay' during my job
search.You have provided safe, affordable,
clean housing for us traveling nurses as well as many others.Thank you!
-Sandy R. - Ocala,
FL
Thank you, Sandy, for sharing your feedback through the testimonial page
on ValuePlace.com.Have you had an
experience like Sandy's?How has Value Place served you recently?Post a comment and share with us.
According to a new report
just released by Challenger,
Grey & Christmas, job seekers are ready and willing to relocate for a
new job.In fact, the percentage of
relocating job seekers has more than doubled to 18.2% from the record low of
8.9% early last year.
Why?The report suggests that people are not
seeing the job and housing markets rebounding quickly enough.As a result, more are willing to lose money
on the sale of their homes in exchange for a paycheck in a new city.
Can you relate to this?Will you be making a move for a new job?If relocation
plans are in your future and you need a temporary place to stay before settling
into your new home, we invite you to stay at Value Place.Check out our Amenities & Features page
to see all that we have to offer extended stay travelers.
There are currently more
than 150
Value Place extended stay hotels open across the U.S., and new properties are
opening each week.Make reservations on
ValuePlace.com or by calling 800-ValuePlace.
Looking for jobs in a new city?Check out these links:
Like sands through the
hourglass... so are the days before school
starts!!
If you and the kids are
looking back on your summer and you find yourself saying, "Geez, we really
didn't do much;" it's not too late!You
still have time to squeeze in a last minute vacation and beat those
back-to-school blues.
Here are a few pointers to
help you plan a great and affordable trip:
1. Visit ValuePlace.com to find
a property in a city near you.We're cleaner, more secure and more affordable than other major
brands, and we have a kitchen!Not eating out every meal = more $
for fun stuff!
3. When you select your vacation destination, visit
that city's Visitor's Bureau.Most
post lists of free things to do and/or offer discounts to many tourist
attractions.
4. Travel safe.Check out Value Place's
tips on how to Stay
& Play Safe.
Last Thursday, July 30, Value Place hosted
a grand opening and ribbon cutting event at our 150th
property in Knoxville, TN, located at
4412 Singleton Station Road.
This is the first of five Value Place
economy extended stay hotels that are planned for the Knoxville area.
A crowd of Value Place guests,
employees and community leaders gathered for the celebration.Additionally, six potential investors who are
interested in franchise opportunities met with company officials to discuss the
Value Place
Brand and available markets.
The Knoxville Value Place is
owned and operated by Evan Carzis, an architect and real estate developer, and
Bill Davidson, former principal with Foodtown Supermarkets and the founder of
Pet Food Giant.
The Blount County Daily Times, a local TV station and DailyFranchiseNews.com
also covered the event.
Looking for a franchise opportunity?
Value Place could be for
you.Read our June
30 post and contact Gina McKee, Vice President of Franchise Development, at
316-631-1312 or gmckee@valueplace.com.
To make a reservation at any
of our 150+ hotels, visit ValuePlace.com
or call 800-ValuePlace.
