At AARP The Magazine, older Americans are treated as clueless about saving money

CLUCK, CLUCK: The December 2018/January 2019 issue of AARP The Magazine offered older Americans a lot of advice about their finances and how to save money. But one of the suggestions -- renting chickens and a coop for "really fresh eggs" -- was laughable, wouldn't save you money and would likely be barred by health ordinances.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

HACKENSACK, N.J. -- Judging from the endless stream of articles about money -- how to save it, how to invest it and how to keep it -- the editors of AARP publications must think their older readers are brain dead.

An article about money appears in just about every bimonthly issue of AARP The Magazine and AARP Bulletin, a tabloid issued 11 times a year.

Both are sent free to members of AARP, a U.S.-based interest group whose stated mission is "to empower people to choose how they live as they age."

Rent chickens?

In  the December 2018/January 2019 issue of the magazine, three pages are devoted to saving money, including an article called "Rent, Don't Buy!"

Readers are urged to "live it up and keep costs down by leasing" instead of buying a 19-foot RV, camping gear, a telephoto camera lens (when going on a safari), chickens and a coop, and jewelry "for your special event."

I crave the creature comforts of a hotel room -- not to mention the free buffet breakfast that comes with many of them -- and would never rent an RV for $1,300 a week or buy one and get eaten alive by insects at campgrounds.

Karen Cheney, whose byline is on the article, says you'd spend $16 on 4 dozen organic, cage-free eggs from a store, and $240 on 2 egg-laying hens, feed and gear for 4 weeks, but get about a dozen "really fresh eggs" each week.

Well, you can buy 2 dozen organic eggs at Costco Wholesale for $5.99 or 4 dozen for $11.98 so neither of her options passes the smell test.

Save thousands?

In a second article, Allan Roth outlines 8 ways you can "save thousands without being a Scrooge!"

Roth, identified as a financial planner for more than 20 years, discusses purchasing a car, picking good credit cards and uncovering a "hotel bargain," among other suggestions, but I believe I can save more money.

What really galls me is his selfish car-buying advice, which ignores many reasonably priced gas-electric hybrids and all-electric cars that can save older Americans money on fuel, help ease climate change and cut premature deaths from auto emissions.

"I take the time to shop for a good, small, modest sedan -- say, for $30,000 -- and drive it for a decade, more or less," Roth says. 

"It depreciates less than a $75,000 luxury sedan, I pay less sales tax, and my insurance is cheaper."

But in New Jersey and other states, you'll pay no sales tax when you purchase an EV or get other incentives, and you'll receive federal tax credits on many models, too.

The Nissan Leaf, Chevy Bolt EV and other moderately priced all-electric cars are ideal for the limited driving many older Americans do.

Cash-back credit cards

Roth urges readers to use "credit cards such as mine, which charge no annual fee and pay 2 percent cash back," so "you'll get $180 more a year" (after spending $1,500 a month) than with a 1 percent cash back card. 

I also have a 2% cash-back card, but use other cards that pay more cash back, including the Costco Anywhere Visa Card, which gives you 4% back on gasoline, 3% back on restaurant meals, and 2% back on purchases at Costco Wholesale warehouses and Costco.com.

There is no annual fee, but a Costco membership costs $60 a year -- which you'll get back many times over.

I have a friend who uses the card "for everything" and who received $1,100 cash back after one year. I received $450 cash back this year.

The Costco Anywhere Visa Card also has no foreign- currency exchange fee (usually 3%) when you are traveling outside the United States, and charging hotels, meals and other expenses in Canadian dollars, euros or other currencies.

6% back on groceries

And the Blue Cash Preferred Card from American Express gives you 6% back on groceries from ShopRite, Aldi and other supermarkets (but not on food bought at warehouse stores like Costco).

At my level of spending at supermarkets, the annual fee of $95 reduces my cash back to 5% -- still higher than any other cash-back card.

Hotel bargains?

Roth claims he uncovers "hotel bargains" by using BetterBidding and other sites, but ignores joining a hotel loyalty program that allows you to turn spending into points for your next vacation, getting free hotel nights or reduced rates.

For example, as a member of the Hyatt loyalty program, I'm guaranteed the lowest rates in Hyatt Regency, Hyatt House and Hyatt Place hotels, and receive a free night each year.

Both Hyatt House and Hyatt Place offer free buffet breakfasts of fresh fruit, juice, cereal, pancakes, eggs and made-to-order omelets.

As relatively new members of the loyalty program, my wife and I received two free nights at the Park Hyatt in Manhattan, where the average daily rate is $675 a night, after we spent $1,000 on the Hyatt Credit Card.

Read: A luxury hotel, dinner at Per Se

 and other superlatives

BIG REWARDS? I'm skeptical about much of the advice on saving money offered by Allan Roth, a financial planner.

BUGS ARE FREE: Renting a 19-foot RV  -- a "home on wheels" --had me thinking about being eaten alive by mosquitos at campsites, and missing the free buffet breakfast that comes with many hotel rooms.

Rooftop panels, Tesla Powerwalls, Model S allow me to cut cord to utility, slash bills

STORM SAVIOR: In the event of another big event like Superstorm Sandy, my three Powerwalls -- 40-kWh energy storage batteries -- will provide about 5 days backup power for my New Jersey home, Tesla says.

Long road to self-powered home

pays off with tax credits, solar cash

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

HACKENSACK, N.J. -- I stared at my April utility bill in disbelief.

With 68 solar panels on the roof  charging three newly installed Tesla Powerwalls -- energy storage batteries that run my home overnight -- I had finally zeroed out my electric bill.

"Power from the sun day and night" is how Tesla describes the pairing of panels and Powerwalls.

But Public Service Electric & Gas Co. insisted on billing me $4.95 as a "monthly service charge."

What "service"?

Solar dates to 2009

After installing my first set of 60 solar panels in 2009, I was enrolled in the utility's net-metering program that banked electricity, as measured in kilowatt-hours (kWh), when my generating system produced more than our needs.

PSE&G lists them on the monthly bill: 

As of May 7, 308 kWh were delivered to me, but we generated a total of 484 kWh sent to the utility for a difference of -176 kWh.

That includes the electricity needed to charge my 2015 Tesla Model S overnight in my garage every few days.

Those kilowatt-hours are available to me, if my solar panels and storage batteries don't generate enough electricity to run my 3,300-square-foot home with central air conditioning and a heat pump that drove up my electricity bill in December, January and February.

$3.44 for electricity

In the previous billing period (ending on April 5), I paid $3.44 for my net usage -- 86 kilowatt-hours of electricity delivered to me -- plus the $4.95 monthly service charge, for a total of $8.39.

Tesla techs were delayed by March weather and didn't complete the wiring until three days into the billing period.

Before my Powerwalls were installed, my solar panels generated more than enough electricity to run my home during 5 months of the year, roughly April through August.

Now, that should be the case year-round. 

Before Powerwalls

My electric bill for Jan. 8 to Feb. 5 was $366, including the cost of "delivering electricity to you;" and for Feb. 6 to March 7, I paid $221.05 for electricity.

For the billing period of Dec. 5, 2018, to Jan. 7, total electric charges were $323.29.

I blame an electricity sucking heat pump I had installed to supplement an inadequate radiant-heating system the previous owner, a Realtor,  saddled me with.

SOUTHERN EXPOSURE: One of the deciding factors in the purchase of my home was a southern exposure ideal for the installation of solar panels.

Cutting the cord

The process of cutting the electrical cord to my utility has been long, but there was a time in New Jersey when there were limits on how many solar panels you could install (lest everyone decided to go solar and put the utility out of the electricity business). 

And when the grid goes down, as happened during Superstorm Sandy in October 2012, my solar panels were "knocked out," so to speak, and didn't generate electricity to keep my home running in the 5 days before power was restored. 

Storage batteries were forbidden.

The inspector sent to look at my Powerwall installation in April said they were the first such energy storage batteries in Hackensack, a small city of about 45,000 people.

I paid for the 3 Powerwalls with a fixed-rate home equity loan of about $20,000, repayable over 5 years.

Each Powerwall 2 cost $5,500, and the rest of the cost -- a total of $20,739 -- was for installation and permits.

Rebate, loan

First Light Energy installed my first set of 50 200-watt panels in 2009 -- when the maximum allowed was 10,000 watts -- under a New Jersey rebate program. (The state paid $35,000 and I paid $45,500.)

In the years since, I've earned federal tax credits and sold tax-free solar renewable energy credits (SRECs) to the utility that have more than reimbursed my investment, not to mention the savings from lower utility bills.

You get one SREC for every 1,000 watts your system generates, so I can sell about a dozen to my utility every year.

In 2012, First Light Energy installed 18 more solar panels, these rated at 240 watts each, after I got a solar loan from my utility that required me to put up about half of the cost.

That loan of roughly $11,000 is being repaid with more solar renewable energy credits, which PSE&G values at $400 each, even though their worth on the open market has fallen to almost half of that. 

SELF-POWERED HOME: My Tesla App allows me use my smartphone to monitor my 3 Powerwalls as well as my 2015 Model S. Selecting "Power Flow" shows me when my solar panels are charging the Powerwalls, running the house or sending energy to the grid. My neighborhood experienced two 5-minute outages on May 12, but I never lost power.

Older drivers who take a refresher course may get discounts on their auto insurance

PEDAL ERROR: These photos from the website of the New Haven Register in Connecticut show the car of a 70-year-old woman who told police she hit the gas pedal instead of the brake, causing her to crash into a fence on Feb. 27, 2019. 

By VICTOR E. SASSON

EDITOR

HACKENSACK, N.J. -- If you follow the local news media, you'll probably never guess the biggest challenges facing older drivers.

Newspapers and news websites often run gee-whiz photos of older drivers who hit the accelerator instead of the brake pedal, slamming their cars into storefronts, other vehicles or other people, sometimes with fatal consequences.

But AARP's Smart Driver Course takes a more comprehensive look at the challenges facing older people when they get behind the wheel, and the need for a safe-driving refresher course.

Constant change

"Our abilities are changing, our cars are changing, our roads are changing [and] our state laws are changing," says AARP, the Washington, D.C.-based interest group that takes credit for empowering people to choose how they live as they age.

In a pre-course quiz I took last month, typical challenges for older drivers include: 

• Making left turns, especially at intersections. 
• Failing to yield the right of way.
• Merging into another lane of traffic. 

Warning signs of unsafe driving are listed on Page 88 of the 124-page guidebook for people who take the course.

They include "trouble moving the foot from gas pedal to brake pedal." 

I'll save $99 a year

The cost for taking the course is $15 for AARP members and $20 for non-members.

But the certificate I received entitles me to an insurance discount of $99 a year for 3 years, based on the cost of my current liability, collision and personal injury coverage.

NJM, my insurance company, said my 5% discount won't go into effect until January, when my policy renews, so the savings I list are only an estimate.

Older drivers who complete the course also could remove up to 2 points on their license.

AAA also has a senior defensive-driving course called Roadwise.

SENIOR CENTER: I took the AARP Smart Driver Course on April 22 in the Bogota Senior Center, but the course also is available online. 

COMPREHENSIVE: The course, which ran from 10 a.m. to about 3:30 p.m., included videos, a quiz, an AARP volunteer instructor and discussion. There are sections on health, vehicle maintenance, changing roads, and tips for driving in bad weather and emergencies.

At The Hill, Michelin-star chef is showing his lighter side when using butter, cream

REALLY SPECIAL: Even though I went for the $29 fixed-price dinner, I couldn't resist starting with this Scallop Sashimi special at The Hill in Closter ($14) -- buttery slices of raw sea scallops bathed in cantaloupe juice and served with crunchy pine nuts, diced melon and chilis. I ate each slice from a soup spoon for a sweet, salty and spicy sensation all at once.

$29 MENU: My entree from the fixed-price First On The Scene Menu last Thursday was Alaskan Cod A La Plancha with broccolini and cherry tomatoes. The fish was moist and flaked beautifully, below.

DELICIOUS: As a pescatarian who is watching his cholesterol, I welcome dishes that are prepared without butter and cream. On my first visit to The Hill in February, I loved my entree of Mahi-Mahi swimming in a Meyer Lemon Vinaigrette.

"I believe you can start with great ingredients and coax their natural flavor to the forefront without covering it up with butter or cream."

-- Ben Pollinger, chef/owner of The Hill

CITRUS VINAIGRETTE: Grilled Calamari was my appetizer last Thursday, served over sauteed pea shoots, sugar snaps and chilis in a citrus vinaigrette, above and below.

NO NEED FOR BUTTER OR CREAM: The fat, tender squid rings, swimming in the oily vinaigrette, were beautifully charred.

"My cooking style was very much affected by the year I spent cooking in Monaco for Alain Ducasse at Le Louis XV. By its nature, the cuisine of the Riviera is light, full of fresh vegetable cookery and more reliant on olive oil than on butter or cream."

-- Chef Ben Pollinger

FRESH BERRIES WITH CANDIED KUMQUAT: I asked Ann, my server, for fresh fruit instead of the desserts -- ice cream and sorbet or maple panna cotta -- that were included in the First On The Scene Menu for $29, including a glass of white or red wine, but excluding tax and tip. I'm not a dessert person.

STUFFED: My meal included addictive sea-salt focaccia with extra-virgin olive oil.

COMPlIMENTARY: I received this Salmon Ceviche as a gift from the kitchen -- another reason I begged for fresh fruit for dessert. The salmon, swimming in passion fruit juice, was served with crunchy green mango and chilis ($15).

"I actually don't use any cream in my clam chowder. I do use milk. Then, [pureed] potato gives the chowder body and creaminess without the need for cream."

-- Chef Ben Pollinger

ANNIVERSARY: The Hill celebrates its first anniversary in June. Website: Seafood, steak and game with light, bright global flavors

FIRST ON THE SCENE: The 3-course, $29 menu is available on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m., and on Sundays from 4 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.

FINE DINING: Last Thursday's specials menu at The Hill.

Read: A great Bergen County dining deal

-- VICTOR E. SASSON

If Trump has told more than 10,000 lies, why do news media quote him so much?

Cartoonist Jimmy Margulies reduces Attorney General William Barr to President Trump's middle finger -- a royal F.U. to the American people. Both have tried to cover up the damning conclusions of the Mueller Report, which laid out Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. See more at JimmyMargulies.com.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

HACKENSACK, N.J. -- Donald J. Trump is a cold, calculating liar who has shown contempt for the truth over his many decades in public life.

"The president of the United States has exceeded 10,000 false or misleading claims since his inauguration on Jan. 20, 2017," The Washington Post's Fact Checker declared on Friday.

"Let that sink in for a moment," the newspaper said. "To be precise, that's 10,111 claims in 828 days, according to the Fact Checker's database tracking and analyzing all of Trump's suspect statements."

In the last 7 months, The Post said, "it's nearly 23 [false claims] a day."

Bald-faced lies

The newspaper's unwillingness to call the "suspect statements" what they are -- lies, pure and simple -- is bad enough.

But even worse is that none of its reporters or any reporter assigned to cover the president has had the courage to confront him, and demand:

"Mr. President, when are you going to stop lying to the American people?"

Instead, they continue to knock themselves out spreading all of the president's lies and lying Tweets around the world for the consumption of friend and foe alike.

'The Art of the Deal'

In July 2016, Tony Schwartz, co-author of the 1987 memoir, "Trump: The Art of the Deal," told this to an interviewer from PBS' Frontline documentary series:

"'Why does it matter whether the president of the United States tells the truth?' [Laughs.] Yeah, I mean, you didn't mean it this way, but it's a good question.

"In a civilized society, we operate on the assumption that what another person is saying to us is factual. If we lose that connection, we're in chaos.

"And I fully believe that Trump would pay as little attention to the truth as president as I observed he did 30 years ago when he was making deals to buy up property."

Bergen readers of The Record go begging when a lot of news is from Passaic County

Paramus was the focus of a front page story in The Record on Wednesday.

Retired NJMG employees receive 

notice of pension plan shortfall

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

HACKENSACK -- Paramus residents must have swelled with pride when they saw a story about their borough on The Record's front page.

But Wednesday's "exclusive" report, which covered more than half of Page 1, had nothing to do with borough affairs.

Staff Writer Melanie Anzidei, the retailing reporter, was raving about a plan to turn the region's biggest shopping center into "something Paramus has never seen, a brand-new downtown" with luxury apartments "a stone's throw from their [residents'] favorite stores."

Passaic County news

But there was plenty of local news inside Wednesday's paper -- if you lived in Passaic County or were interested in sensational trials, crime or crashes.

Since Gannett Co. took over The Record of Woodland Park in July 2016, news of the towns in Bergen County, where the majority of readers live, has been harder and harder to find.

Stories from Paterson, Wayne and other Passaic County towns, as well as crime reports, often crowd out Bergen news in the paper's Local section, as they did on Wednesday.

No editorial

The 12-page Local section included only three and half pages of news and feature stories from Bergen and Passaic counties. 

The rest of the section was devoted to obituaries, Business and Opinion, though no editorial appeared.

Readers have responded by abandoning the print edition and NorthJersey.com in droves, as Gannett's annual report revealed:

The Record and NorthJersey.com

 lose even more readers in 2018

The absence of a daily editorial or two also is puzzling.

More Passaic news

The Local section a week earlier, on April 26, was led by a sensational trial, but the headline had readers scratching their heads:

"Sting's court docs

 reveal graphic talks"

The reference wasn't, as many undoubtedly thought,  to Sting, the English musician, singer, songwriter and actor. 

Instead, the reference was to a tri-state dating app sting that led to the arrest and Hackensack trial of 16 alleged sexual predators from three states.

Five Passaic County stories appeared in the section.

Pension plan

The North Jersey Media Group pension plan for employees and beneficiaries is now called the Fourth Edition Inc. Pension Plan.

A notice I received in the mail said the funded percentage of the plan as of Jan. 1, 2019, is 73.24%.

"Since the funded percentage of the plan is below 80%, certain restrictions apply," the notice said, but "if you are retired or a beneficiary currently receiving payment from the plan, you will not be affected."

This feature about a poetry reading in Paterson was one of three stories from Silk City that appeared on Page 3L of Wednesday's Local section along with a story from Wayne, below. Much of the Paterson news is credited to the Paterson Press.