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Remember how I was encouraging you all to get ready for winter?
Well, Ace Hardware is offering some mail-in rebates that fit in nicely with that.
Here are a few of the highlights:

• Get a $5 rebate on a 3M Indoor Window Kit.
• Get a $5 rebate on a Pelonis Heater/Fan.
• Get a $5 rebate on a Mercury Free Heat Only Thermostat Round.
• Get a $10 rebate on the Digital 5-1-1 Programmable H/C Thermostat.
• Get a $5 rebate on the Digital 5-2 Programmable H/C Thermostat.

And to get your motors ready for winter:

• Get a $3.99 rebate on Gumout Fuel Stabilizer (8 oz).
• Get a $6 rebate on Peak Long Life Antifreeze & Coolant.
• Get a $5 rebate on Peak Long Life 50/50 Antifreeze & Coolant.
• Get a $1 rebate on Camco RV Antifreeze (gal.

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The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program expired on Thursday, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. According to the center, the expiration of this stimulus-subsidized employment program will leave tens of thousands without jobs and other forms of assistance.

What is TANF?

The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) was a program developed to provide assistance and work opportunities to needy families by granting states, territories and tribes federal funds. While the work opportunities were usually time-limited and other assistance (cash grants, housing assistance, food programs, etc.) was usually temporary, it was all helpful in not just keeping families in need on their feet, but keeping the unemployment rate below 10 percent.

Program Comes to an End

Thirty-seven states had been granted $5 billion to provide assistance to families in their communities.

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The proverbial ink isn’t even dry on the U.S. Department of Justice’s approval earlier this month of the United Airlines-Continental Airlines merger. But that hasn’t stopped the pace of even further consolidation within the domestic industry, as this week Dallas-based Southwest Airlines announced its intention to acquire the parent company of Orlando-based AirTran Airways.

For consumers, the approval of this merger would bring mixed blessings. Southwest’s expansion into Atlanta and other airports means the spread of low-fare service to even more markets. Currently AirTran serves destinations in Mexico and the Caribbean, so the potential also exists for Southwest to launch service outside the U.S. for the first time.

In addition, AirTran passengers used to paying baggage fees would get a break, since Southwest remains the largest carrier that does not charge for many service such as checking baggage. Read more…

ING DIRECT has a 1% cash back offer with their Electric Orange card. Some details about the offer follow. Runs October 1st through November 30th. Good on card purchases under $50. No registration needed. Your rebate will be placed into your account by the 15th of the next month. Visit the promo page for more info about this bank bonus.

If you don’t yet have an ING account you can get a $25 referral bonus.

Homebuyer tax credit: Third time’s the charm?

According to the most recent numbers, since it was first introduced in 2008, the homebuyer tax credit helped 3.3 million homeowners and cost the country $23.5 billion.

After President Obama extended the closing deadline to the second portion of the homebuyer tax credit back on July 2, 2010, most of us thought that was it for the credit. However, the homebuyer tax credit has been back in the news ever since HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan failed to give a reporter a straight answer when asked whether the administration was considering a third tax credit.

Record-low home sales have also ginned up discussions about the need for another homebuyer tax credit. Wh

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After personal homeowner details were found on mortgage documents, how much information should be disclosed to the government is a hot topic in Congress this week. Lawmakers are in the midst of a series of public hearings to determine what the data-collection process should be exactly to ensure homeowner privacy remains intact.

Adjustments to Wall Street Reform

When the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act finally became a law this past summer, decisions were made to determine what information should be collected according to the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act.

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As the holidays approach, those of us in budget mode—and who isn’t these days?—are  brainstorming how to do more with less. Often that means prioritizing spending, and making some holiday gifts from scratch. In fact, we’ve counseled folks on a tight budget to give homemade food items and crafts in lieu of cash tips to service professionals like haircutters and pet-care providers. We also suggest including a heartfelt thank-you note. For an upcoming article, we’d like to hear from service providers who have received these gifts from clients over the years. Which gifts said “I’m really stretched but I’d like you to know I appreciate you,” and which gifts said “tasteless” or “cheapskate?” Which gifts/tips made you laugh out loud, and which made you scowl? And Read more…