Low Electric Rates in Texas

If you live in Texas, then you know it already feels like summer, and if you're like me then your A/C is cranckin' all day long. So now is the perfect time to shop around to find a low electric rate.

WhiteFence can certainly help you find which electric companies service your area. You can then shop and compare to find the lowest rate that will save you money during the hot summer months in Texas. 

I went to the electricity page on WhiteFence and entered in a Dallas address and saw that residents there can get rates as low as 8.2¢ per kWh for a variable rate plan and 9.6¢ per kWh for a fixed rate plan. Houstonians also have great low rates to choose from: 8.8¢ per kWh for a variable rate plan and 10.4¢ per kWh for a fixed rate plan.

Start shopping for you great low rate today before rates go up!

City Highlight: Moving to Chicago

Over the last few months, we've incorporated a variety of unique topics and features into the blog, including WhiteFence 101 tutorials, FAQs, and Provider Highlights. One of the new things that we want to start doing is highlighting specific cities around the country, and show what deals are available for each of them. This should be of great use to anyone moving to that area or even people that already live there and want to save some money on monthly bills.

Our first city on the list? Chicago. I admittedly don't know much about Chicago, but I have friends that live there or are from there, and they seem to be mostly alright people, minus that bizarre love of socks, bear-like animals and bulls. But regardless of whether or not I've been there or understand their fascinations, I've been able to do some digging around inside the WhiteFence engine to find some great deals for Chicagoans.

If you live around the area, you'll definitely want to check these out and see where you can cut some spending out of your expenses.

Hollywood Considering Fast-Tracking Movies to On Demand

Are you tired of waiting for months after a movie comes out to watch it at home? According to the Wall Street Journal, Time Warner Cable is working on a solution to just that problem. The cable giant has pitched the major studios the idea of "home theater on demand," which would make new release movies available to watch on demand after just 30 days.

If Time Warner Cable does sign a deal with the studios, expect other television providers to roll out a similar system. The catch? The price point for these movies would be between $20 and $30. But, tickets for a family of four along with snacks and drinks can easily run more than $30, so this could actually be a money saver for some families.

If it pans out, this would be a major shakeup in movie distribution and a real blow for movie theaters. However, with everything moving towards a more open model where consumers can enjoy content when and how they like, this just makes sense and seems almost inevitable.

Will movie theaters ever go away? Not likely, but it does look more likely than ever that you'll soon have the option of staying home to watch new releases.

How Do Consumers Rate Their Services?

Each year, the American Customer Satisfaction Index does a study to see what consumers think of the services they use day in and day out. They cover a broad array of services and products that range from hospital care to computer software, and everything in between. It's certainly helpful to see how other people view these items, and just how satisfied they are with them. Well, the new ratings are out for this year, so you can see just where all of the providers stand with the current ACSI 2010 list.

The things that are most curious, however, are the home services that we deal with on WhiteFence. Several of the categories that were ranked are products that you can compare side-by-side using our shopping engine, such as TV, home phone and electricity. Apparently, Verizon FiOS won out in the TV service department with the highest satisfaction rating, and AT&T; came out on top for home phone service.

The list is definitely worth looking at it, especially if you are going to be doing some shopping anytime soon. To view it and find out more, visit the American Customer Satisfaction Index.

Television Customer Service Links

Did something go wrong with your TV service or do you just have a question for the provider? Getting your issue fixed or finding an answer for your question is a snap when you tap into the provider's online help center

Here's a list of all of the television providers we have here on WhiteFence, with a link to their online customer support center:

• AT&T
• Atlantic Broadband
• Bright House
• Buckeye
• Charter
• Comcast
• Consolidated
• COX
• DIRECTV
• DISH Network
• Everest
• Grande Communications
• Insight
• Knology
• Optimum
• RCN
• Suddenlink
• Time Warner Cable
• TVMAX
• Verizon

Looking to order television service? You can compare offers from all of these brands and find the best deal when you shop at WhiteFence.

Myths About Using Coupons

I'm not sure how many of you watch Mythbusters, but every time I am flipping channels and find that it's on, I just can't pass it up. It does the same thing to me that Apollo 13 does for some reason, where I am almost physically incapable of turning away. I love watching Mythbusters because nearly everything they spend their time debunking is stuff I've repeated or heard from somewhere before. I think my favorite episode is the one they did about ninjas, because let's face it, ninjas are cool.

The other day, I stumbled across an article at Get Rich Slowly about busting the myths of saving money with coupons. It's a really interesting look at the perceptions that people have about using coupons to buy things and why more people don't use them. For instance, did you know that generic brands aren't always the cheapest? Or that the average coupon user "is between the ages of 25-34 and earns between $25,000 and $100,000 per year".

Besides those, there plenty of other useful facts and pieces of information about coupon shopping. Personally, I've never done a whole lot of it myself, but after reading this article, I might adjust a few of my thoughts on it. How many of you regularly use coupons to save money when shopping? Tell us in the comments!

To read more, visit Get Rich Slowly.

WhiteFence 101: Home Service Categories

We post quite a bit on this blog about home services and how you can save yourself both time and money when you shop with us or use our tips. Typically, the conversation centers around things like TV, high-speed Internet, electricity or phone, because these are the categories that many people are interested in. However, we may have a few additional categories that you weren't aware of:

Home Security

Appliance Rental

Maid Services

Lawncare

Pest Control

Newspapers

Magazines

Moving

Auto Insurance

Homeowners Insurance

Product Warranty

Credit Cards

Cell Phones

Who knew, right? Entering your address with WhiteFence can help you find the best results for your area for each of these categories. You really can get everything you need for your home, all in one place.

Traveling Tips to Get You Through the Summer Abroad

Oh, summer. You are just around the corner for many people across the country. However, in Houston, Texas, you are that party guest that showed up just a little too early. Now you're hanging out and eating cheese and crackers while we are still getting ready. At least, that's how I felt about the weather today when I got in my car and saw the first 100 degree reading on the dashboard. It is no doubt the first of many, and yet another reminder that summer is upon us.

When it comes to summer vacations, there are a great amount of "dos" and "do nots" for traveling, spending money and enjoying yourself. We've already covered some ways to save and have a cheap summer vacation somewhere nearby, but what if you're traveling abroad? If you are going to another country, there are a whole new set of rules and guidelines to follow, even some that can lower the burden on your wallet.

A recent Lifehacker post, A Savvy Traveler's Guide to Vacationing Abroad, provides some excellent tips about what to do when you're out of the country. It has useful information about saving money (including checking multiple banks for the best exchange rates), which useful phrases to learn in the country's most used language and some guidelines on staying safe (such as registering with your embassy). The post itself has quite a bit to it, so I would definitely recommend checking it out if you will be one of the many lucky cross-country travelers for the summer.

Source- Lifehacker

The Best Deals on WhiteFence Right Now

Our providers often run promotions to persuade you to choose their services over the competition's. These promotions can add up to some pretty significant savings for the savvy consumer, so it pays to keep an eye open for them.

Here are some of the hottest deals available on WhiteFence right now:

• Get a $200 AT&T reward card on select AT&T U-vesre bundles.
• Save over $20 per month with select Frontier bundles.
• Get $150 back and save $5 per month for 24 months on select Verizon bundles.
• Lock in your price for life with select Windstream bundles.
• Get a $100 Visa gift card when you order home security service from ADT from Security Choice.

These promotions are running as of the date of this blog, but could be removed at any time. Not everyone will qualify for each of these deals. To check availability in your area, just visit WhiteFence.com and enter your address. More details available once you have entered your address.

Your Opinion Matters to the FCC

Have you ever been hit hard by your cell phone bill? Did it leave you thinking "how in the world did I rack up all those charges"? Well the FCC is trying to help stop the cell phone bill shock syndrome and they need your help.

The FCC says that most people get hit hard when they fail to realize they have gone over their minutes or are in an area that is considered roaming. This typically leads to a bill that can be over $300 easily.

Well wouldn't it be nice if you could get a text message that told you that you were close to going over the limit on your minutes? Well get this, the European Union already does this kind of thing and the FCC would like to implement that here in the US. Right now they are getting slack from mobile companies saying that customers can access their accounts online anytime to read up on their cell phone accounts.

So to get both sides of the issue, the FCC wants to hear what you have to say. If you're experiencing cell phone bill shock or you have an opinion on the matter, visit www.fcc.gov to learn more on the topic and how you can leave your comment.