Money saving tips for groceries, cars, utilities, personal finance, healthcare and more

These days consumers are being squeezed on both ends: By higher food and gas prices on one end and by dropping interest rates on savings, disappointing stock-market performance, and meager to no salary increases on the other. CRMA’s experts came up with practical tips to help consumers trim their spending in a number of areas. Here are some of them:

Groceries: Purchase store brands and stock up on regularly used items when they go on sale. But watch sell-by dates and compare unit prices carefully—for some staples like tuna and ketchup, the smaller size often has a lower price per unit.

Automotive: Keep tires properly inflated, and plan outings to accomplish as many tasks as possible within a single trip. Car buyers should select one that is fuel-efficient by checking www.ConsumerReports.org.

Utilities: During cold weather, lowering thermostat settings by 10 degrees can cut heating costs by as much as 20 percent. For those who can stand the heat, summer cooling costs can be  cut by 3 percent for every degree the thermostat setting is raised. 

Personal Finance: Make sure to pay as little as possible in  bank fees. The average overdraft fee charged by large banks in 2007 was $28. Be careful with debit cards—cardholders can easily rack up several of those fees and not realize it. 

Healthcare: Switch to generic drugs, which are as effective and as safe as their name- brand counterparts but can cost 20 to 50 percent less.

How to Evaluate Online Banks

In these days of declining rates, putting money in an online bank might help people eke out some extra interest. While many Internet-based banks pay higher rates on deposits than other financial institutions, CRMA’s experts advise consumers to choose one with care.  Here are some things to take into account:

• Compare interest rates.  Get the latest rates at Bankrate.com and verify the information with the bank. Note if the bank requires a minimum deposit for the highest rates.
• Check for fees.  Some online banks charge a fee if consumers exceed a set number of transactions each month, request printed statements, or repeatedly call customer representatives instead of doing transactions online.
• Ask about set-up and funding. With some Internet banks, consumers have to send in       their initial deposit by mail. Accounts that accept direct deposits can be convenient.
• Watch for rate changes.  Rates on savings and money-market accounts can change often. Consider moving money to another online bank if the bank’s rates become non-competitive.

Consumer Reports Money Lab: Best Performing
Socially Responsible Mutual Funds

The common wisdom in today’s tough market is that investors will pay a premium to invest in companies that have a conscience. But that might not be the case: Consumer Reports Money Lab recently analyzed the performance of funds that follow socially responsible investment (SRI) principles and found five funds that have been among the best performing SRI mutual funds in the past five years.

These mutual funds mostly outperformed their benchmark indexes over the last five years following different paths of social responsibility: Amana Growth (invests in companies that profit without crossing Islamic principles), Neuberger-Berman Socially Responsive (screens companies that demonstrate progressive employment practices), New Alternatives (invests globally in alternative energies), Parnassus Equity Income (screens for companies that demonstrate respect for their employees and the environment), and Timothy Plan Large/Mid Value A (faith-based fund that has clobbered the S&P 500 in each of the past three years.)