What the experts say

Debt: No easy out

Americans’ soaring debt has given birth to a cottage industry of debt-settlement firms, said Stephen Franklin in the Chicago Tribune. “Done right,” debt settlement lets a financial middleman take the burden off debt-weary consumers and wary creditors, and also can “dramatically trim the amount of money” owed. But such firms are rarely regulated, and scads have recently entered the scene. A decade ago, about a dozen debt-settlement companies existed; there are now 500. So it can be tough for consumers to know who’s playing by the book. In the last six years, the Federal Trade Commission has filed more than a dozen civil actions against such companies; one had settled less than 2 percent of its 44,000 clients’ debts. “Our concern is whether consumers understand the bargain that they are making when they get into this,” says Sara Gottovi, an attorney with the FTC. “It’s all over the place.”

Priced out of the skies

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If airfares continue climbing, air travel may become a luxury only the rich can afford, said Gary Stroller in USA Today. “Airfares have risen this summer more than in any year in the past quarter century.” Studies conducted on behalf of USA Today by Travelocity.com, FareCompare.com, and Harrell Associates found that domestic fares have risen 12 percent to 15 percent this summer. Some routes are up more than 200 percent. “For a family of four, a cross-country flight this summer may cost about $1,000 more than last summer.” That estimate doesn’t even take into account the laundry list of fees that fliers now pay for everything from changing tickets to checking bags. “More increases are expected in the fall, when carriers say they will reduce seat capacity on many routes and stop flying some others.”

Finding book bargains

“Filling a book bag with a course-load of college textbooks will not only weigh on a student’s shoulders but also their wallet,” said Kelli B. Grant in SmartMoney. If you can “ditch the heavy hardcover for an electronic book,” however, you could cut costs in half. Six of the biggest textbook publishers sell subscriptions to digital copies of their books via CourseSmart.com. Alternatively, you can buy old-fashioned tomes online. “Check textbook-specific price comparison search engines, such as Bigwords.com, CheapestTextbooks.com, and Booksprice.com.” You can also rent textbooks via sites such as Chegg.com or BookRenter.com. But renting books isn’t necessarily any cheaper than buying used ones—especially since you can’t cash them in at the end of a semester.