5 Great Uses for Rebate Checks: Kiplinger's

Invest in your career? Domestic travel? Those are a few of the creative ideas for rebate checks that arrived in my email box. Here's the list:


"The June issue of Kiplinger’s Personal Finance offers creative ways to spend the cash, benefiting you—and the nation:

1. Travel Stateside. No one can argue the restorative power of some great R&R, especially if the attractions are in the U.S. Check out a two-night trip for two from the Brewster House, a bed-and-breakfast in Freeport, Maine for $580.

2. Boost Your Career. Perfect your Microsoft Office skills and learn to navigate the Internet more adroitly through local community college classes. Use the American Association of Community Colleges' locator tool at http://www.aacc.nche.edu/ to find a local school.

3. Help The Planet. Refrigerators can claim 12% to 20% of a family’s annual power supply, but Energy Star-rated models—many priced under $1,300—consume about as much as a 60-watt light bulb.

4. Focus on Your Neighborhood. By donating your rebate to a community foundation, you can deduct the gift from your 2008 taxes. Find a foundation near you via the Council on Foundations' directory at www.cof.org/locator.

5. Lend a Financial Hand. Fund a family member's mortgage at VirginMoneyUS.com. Or put your own financial house in order. Rates for financial planners in the Garrett Planning Network average $150 to $300 an hour; get a once-over for $800 to $1,500.

Here's the link to the full article.

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