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Should You Get a Home Improvement Membership?

By U.S. News & World Report

Even Groucho Marx might have joined a home improvement membership club.

The late, great comedian, as you likely know, had that famous quip: “I refuse to join any club that would have me as a member.” But home improvement services are hardly snobby and exclusive. They’d be glad to have anyone with a pulse — and a bank account. It’s a concept that plumbing, heating and cooling services around the country particularly seem to be gravitating toward.

Just as an example, and mentioning these companies shouldn’t be considered an endorsement, some of what’s out there includes:

— Stan’s Heating and Cooling, in Austin, Texas, has a Gold Service Club that includes bi-annual AC tune-ups.

— Jason’s Water Systems, another San Antonio company specializing in water treatment appliances, offers a yearly maintenance plan ($120 a year, $12 a month) that includes a full-service cleaning of its water softeners.

— Gem Plumbing, in Lincoln, Rhode Island, offers a VIP Membership Plumbing & Drain Cleaning for $15.95 a month, according to its website. Along with its maintenance program, members get a 15 percent discount off any plumbing and drain cleaning service and 5 percent discounts off things like buying a new septic or air conditioning system.

— Service Stars, in Danbury, Connecticut, has a plumbing and electrical membership and a heating and air conditioning club membership. Along with inspections, it offers things like a 20 percent discount on plumbing and electrical repairs.

[See: 9 Easy Ways to Boost Your Home’s Curb Appeal.]

The concept behind all these types of services is that your air-conditioning, your water pipes and your furnace are parts of your home that really benefit from tune-ups and general preventative maintenance. If you pay your service a monthly fee, it will periodically send out workers to your home for a preventative maintenance inspection, or if you have a problem, like a leaky toilet, you can get reduced plumbers’ rates instead of paying full price.

The homeowner’s hope, of course, is that by having regular maintenance, the heating and air-conditioning system will stay around longer than if it had never been serviced, and maybe this will protect against disaster — say, having your sump pump die without warning one rainy night, and suddenly your basement is flooded.

But are these home improvement membership clubs really worth it? Maybe. As with anything, it depends on your point of view. You really should ask yourself the following four questions before you decide.

Are you handy around the house? John Bodrozi, co-founder of HomeZada.com, a home management website, says he pays a monthly membership to an HVAC service, which comes four times a year to inspect his heating and air-conditioning.

“It’s a system that is in regular use every month, and it requires electrical skills and product knowledge we don’t have,” Bodrozi says. “But other tasks such as draining the hot water heater or changing air filters are things that that we are reminded of with our home maintenance calendar, and have the skills to do the task ourselves.”

So in other words, if you’re mechanically inclined, and a true DIY-er, you could definitely make the case that you don’t really need this.

[See: 12 Home Improvement Shortcuts That Are a Bad Idea.]

Are you organized, especially when it comes to your home? If you’ve ever hired a heating and cooling guy, only to have him tell you that your heat gave out because you haven’t changed your filter in three years, then you’re probably a good candidate for one of these services.

Still, in many cases what these service people do isn’t a lot of work, says Coleen Pantalone, a professor of finance at the D’Amore-McKim School of Business at Northeastern University in Boston. “But like paying bills,” she adds, “you need to set up a schedule and follow it. If you decide you just don’t want to be bothered with any of it, then buy a membership and let the company do the work. But recognize you will still have to set up appointments and wait for someone to come to your house.”

Do you really have the money for a membership? That’s the key question. It’s easy to get sucked into the marketing mission of these companies without crunching the numbers and asking yourself what $15 or $20 a month will do to your finances in the long run.

It is definitely a good deal for the service company, Pantalone says. “It is steady income and generally a nice profit,” she says.

But that isn’t to say these services don’t make sense. Even Pantalone, who isn’t a fan, admits that these services may buy peace of mind. But she doesn’t think they’ll buy you all that much time.

“We know that older water heaters are more likely to leak and older furnaces are more likely to fail, but that is about all we can predict. No matter how many times someone monitors your systems, problems like these will happen and are not all that likely to be caught by an inspection,” Pantalone says. “Just like regularly changing the oil in your car, a little diligence and effort by homeowners is probably all that you need.”

[Read: Is a Home Warranty Worth the Money?]

Is your house old? If you’ve bought a new home, you’re already spending a small fortune on new furniture, maybe a lawn mower and you’re adjusting to paying your mortgage. Your appliances are likely new, and it would be nice to think that they’ll last for some time. You probably don’t need plumbers and electricians servicing your equipment. It may be harder to make that argument, though, if you have an old home, or you’ve recently purchased a house that’s only new to you but has been around for a few decades.

But whatever you decide, it would be prudent to start putting money aside, in a savings account, for when you need to replace your water heater, air-conditioning system or whatever you have that you fear won’t be long for this world. As Pantalone observes, eventually, everything is going to leak and fail.

More from U.S. News

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Should You Get a Home Improvement Membership? originally appeared on usnews.com

Don’t Settle for Student Loans to Pay for Online Education

By WTOP Staff
Online college programs are becoming a more popular choice for prospective students, with one study finding that more than 6 million students enrolled in at least one online course in fall 2015. The popularity of these courses can be attributed in part to their flexibility with working adults' schedules, students' ability to progress more quickly through online programs and, oftentimes, cheaper tuition. [See 10 low-cost online bachelor's programs for out-of-state students.]Online degrees can be beneficial to many college students, but some studies have shown online learners complete their programs at lower rates than students at traditional brick-and-mortar campuses. Individuals with student loans but no degree comprise two-thirds of defaulted borrowers. Though these numbers are not encouraging, just like for traditional programs, there are ways to reduce how much you'll need to borrow for an online program to ensure you won't become one of these statistics. Don't just settle on borrowing student loans to cover the whole cost of your program and living expenses. Instead, start thinking about how to cut costs and cover your balance in different ways, such as the following. -- Grants and scholarships: Even though you are taking an online course, you can still apply and receive grants and scholarships. But your first step should be to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, commonly referred to as the FAFSA, which will allow you to receive a Pell Grant if your expected family contribution is low enough. The EFC criteria and award amounts are adjusted annually, but the 2017-2018 academic year awards range from $606 to $5,920, which could significantly lower the amount you borrow annually. Your next step is to apply for scholarships. You can start by checking online scholarship search engines, such as the Salt Scholarship Search, College Board's BigFuture and Peterson's. But don't forget to take advantage of local organizations and your school's financial aid office. Both may offer scholarships that you can't find with a national scholarship search. [Review these 10 sites to kick off your scholarship search.]For instance, organizations like the Elks Club, Knights of Columbus or the Rotary Club typically offer scholarships annually to local students. Just because you're going to school online doesn't mean you're ineligible. Visit your local library for scholarship listings, and ask around town. You might be surprised how many local organizations offer scholarships. While these scholarships typically aren't large, every little bit counts. Each dollar you receive in a scholarship is a dollar you don't have to borrow and pay interest on. -- Work-study: Another option for online students may be work-study awards. Not all students enrolled in online programs are eligible, but students at some schools -- including, for example, SUNY Empire State College and Liberty University -- are. Work-study awards are not given upfront like scholarships and grants. In most cases, they are an offer to earn up to the awarded amount if you secure an eligible work-study job. While there is a misconception that all work-study jobs must be on campus, students can work for off-campus, nonprofit or public employers as long as the work is in the public's interest. You may be able to work for a for-profit employer if the job is relevant to your course of study. No matter who the outside employer is, it will need to have an established agreement with your college for you to receive work-study funds. Remember, to be eligible for federal financial aid, you must be enrolled and pursuing a degree or certificate. If you're not working toward a credential, Pell Grants and work-study won't be option, but you may still be able to take advantage of private scholarships -- just be sure to read the eligibility criteria carefully. [Explore what to know about financial aid in online programs.]-- Pay as you go: One of the great benefits to enrolling online is the flexible schedule, which can allow you to complete your college coursework around your responsibilities. But prospective students often overlook using their part- or full-time job earnings as an option for paying for college. Almost 80 percent of college students in 2015 worked at least part time while attending classes, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. By budgeting and thinking strategically about your college costs, you can likely reduce your dependence on student loans by paying a portion out of pocket. Many -- but not all -- online programs are less expensive than traditional programs and often have shorter payment periods. Six, eight or 10 weeks are common course durations. Because of the frequency of payments in an online setting, you may be well-placed to pay as you go and possibly avoid borrowing altogether. Attending college online and avoiding student loans may be challenging, but if you are willing to put in the effort, you can limit the amount you need to borrow. More from U.S. News Q&A: Understanding Student Loan Discharge Eligibility Student Loan Refinancing Isn't Right for All Borrowers
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