CRMA Money Lab determines that financing a vehicle is more economical than leasing

    Leasing is often touted as the option that gives consumers “more car for less money,” but that might not be true. 

    The CRMA Money Lab compared financing over five years with leasing over the same time period for two vehicles—the best-selling 2008 Honda Accord EX family sedan at $24,495 which can be leased at $239  month, and the 2008 Lexus ES 350 at $38,405 that can be leased for $429 a month. The results—the Honda would cost $4,597 less over five years than closed-end leasing for the same model and the Lexus would cost $9,245 less over the same period. Both cars were compared against a typical five-year loan at 6.99 percent.

    If car shoppers look merely at the monthly costs, leasing seems like the better deal for both cars. But the advantage changes over time, according to CRMA’s analysis for the costs after 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 years. Also, CRMA’s calculations don’t take into account end-of-lease costs, such as excess mileage charges.

Understanding Reverse Mortgages
CRMA’s guide to reverse mortgages makes them less overwhelming

    Thanks to mail solicitations and a glut of TV ads that tout their potential advantage, most homeowners over age 62 know they're eligible for a reverse mortgage. Because reverse mortgages are complicated, CR Money Adviser put together a guide in that makes them less overwhelming.

    CRMA experts advise that younger people—say, in their 60s—who are facing financial difficulties should probably avoid taking out a reverse mortgage.  Odds are that such a loan would quickly swallow their credit line and sacrifice their home equity without being a long-term solution to their problems. However, for those in their 70s whose other assets are dwindling or who face long-term care or medical costs beyond their means, a reverse mortgage could be a solution. But CRMA warns that some reverse-mortgage providers are using hard-sell or deceptive techniques to pressure seniors into taking out loans they don’t need.

    For those who can afford the monthly payments, a home-equity loan is a less drastic alternative. Alternatively, a family member could fund a personal reverse mortgage, agreeing to cover living expenses in exchange for a fair amount of equity in the house paid back upon the owner’s death. Another option is to sell the home and use some of the proceeds to buy a smaller, cheaper one.

   CRMA’s Test of Free Tax Help Sources Found Disappointing Results
Providers of free help proved to be starting points, at best

    CRMA’s tax experts recently put several sources of free tax help to test including The Internal Revenue Service, AARP, and several Web sites, forums and newsgroups that offer gratis assistance to the befuddled. The tests revealed that at best, these sources are starting points. In many cases, people will still have to pay a tax pro to get more complete answers.

    CRMA found IRS phone help to be limited. Although getting a live representative often took less than one minute, getting an answer to a detailed question took between 7 and 49 minutes. Sometimes the answer provided was to seek advice from a tax pro and CRMA found some answers to be incomplete and wrong. In the case of TurboTax’s Live Community forum, where any participant—expert or novice—can answer questions, CRMA found the answers given were correct but incomplete. An heir got no information on how to save taxes on accrued savings bond interest, for example.

    The other sites CRMA looked at were hit or miss. A query posted on AARP’s Tax-Aide page remained unanswered after more than two weeks.