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Alberto Culver Reports Second Quarter and First Half Fiscal Year 2011 Sales and Profit Growth

Alberto Culver Company , a leading manufacturer and marketer of beauty care brands including TRESemme, Alberto VO5, Nexxus, St. Ives, Simple and Noxzema, today announced results for its fiscal year 2011 second quarter and first half ended March 31, 2011.

Question: consumer math….PLEASE HELP! 3 questions!!!!!!!!!! THANKS!?

6. Your primary job’s gross income is $3,468.73/month. Deductions are FICA (7.65%), federal tax withholding (11.5%), and state tax withholding (7.8%). How much are your fixed expenses if they are 36% of your realized income? (1 point)

$ _____________ /month

7. Your fixed expenses are $1,235.78/month. You want to save 5 months’ worth for an emergency fund over a year’s time. How much must you save each month? (1 point)

$ ______________ /month

8. Your realized income is $2,847.69/month. Your fixed expenses are 36% of your monthly income. You decide to save 40% of your discretionary monies each month. How much do you save per month? (1 point)

$ _____________ /month

THANKS SOOO MUCH!!

Answer: 6. $912.21/month
7. $514.91/month
8. $729.01/month

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Get More out of Your Charity Tax Deductions

Six ways to stretch your charity dollars.

Superannuation tricks for a 66-year old

Question: How much should a replacement HVAC system cost in the DC area?

Has the “SEER 13″ efficiency standard greatly increased the cost of AC replacement (a lot of the other questions I see here were answered before SEER 13 was in effect)? I live in the DC area and got a quote for $7500 for complete HVAC system replacement including installation (no ductwork, for my 2600 sq ft house). The system is rated SEER 16 and qualifies for the $1500 tax deduction. Am I getting fleeced or is this about right?

Answer: always get 3 quotes and let them know you will get back to them when all the estimates come in, this keeps them honest

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Recovery: Energy Tax Credit-Claim It – 2011

Question: Question about carrying two Major Medical Insurance policies on 1 individual?

My wife and I are having a kid and we both have HMOs from our individual employers. We both have high deductibles and ultimately similar coverage. A friend (who isn’t in the insurance business) recommended we double insure our new born son when he arrives just to insure he is covered should he have health issues. Is this legal and does it make sense to do it?

Answer: Do you have a high-risk pregnancy? If not, then over insuring for the small probability that something goes wrong and you hit the maximum’s on the insurance plan probably isn’t the best financial decision if you are both paying extra premium to add dependents and if both of these plans are “high deductible” plans.

You can legally do it and it’s called “Coordination of Benefits” (COB). The posters who have mentioned that one will be primary and one will be secondary (based on DOB of each spouse) are correct. You should also pay attention to the cost of your premium’s vs. the cost of hitting the “high deductible” on both plans. That’s potentially a LOT of out of pocket costs just to be “extra” insured.

The most important thing you are missing (IMO) however:
Is the doctor and hospital in which you plan to deliver covered by both plans networks? If not, then I wouldn’t even consider it.

If they do both cover it, here’s a quick example of how it can work. Let’s assume that yours is primary and your wife’s is secondary.

Each insurance company allows so much in charges by the doctor, so hypothetically let’s assume your that a routine exam will be “allowed” up to $100.

Your doctor then charges $75.00 an office visit and you have a $15.00 co-pay each time. That will cover it because it’s within the $100.00 “allowable charge” and you are still responsible for the co-pay.

Your wife’s insurance will NOT pick up the co-pay and only comes in as secondary if the charges exceed the allowable charge and there is money still owed after both the primary insurance and you have paid your applicable charges… and that’s assuming that the left over amount doesn’t also exceed the secondary insurers’ “allowable charge” which, in the spirit of insurance companies… is entirely possible and you can still be left holding the bill…

Hope that isn’t too confusing and good luck with having a healthy baby!!

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State’s decision to drop two HMOs causes worries

Thousands of state employees, retirees and their dependents in central Illinois have been angered and worried by the prospect of losing Health Alliance HMO coverage and having to join other plans that could require them to pay more to keep their doctors or force them to get new ones.

Soaring Pharmaceutical Profits & Prescription Drugs Coverage in the News

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