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Gotta cell phone? Don't make any changes until November!!! [Here's why.] Plus: Thinking about pulling the ripcord on your marriage? If it's simple [sans kids and lots-o-property] we've got some great on-line resources that'll save you some big bucks!!!
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Air date: Thursday, June 12, 2003
Good news if you've gotta cell phone...bad news for the cell phone companies! They're gonna have to work a lot harder to keep you as a customer! A U.S. Court of Appeals has ruled that an FCC order requiring cellular phone number portability by Thanksgiving '03 is "permissible and reasonable."
In other words, millions of cell phone users are gonna be able to take their numbers with them when they jump cell phone carriers! It's terrific news for consumers because it'll [finally!] give us the ability to jump ship and ditch cell phone companies that subject us to poor coverage, high rates and/or lousy customer service! About 45 out of 140 million cell phone customers change carriers every year...and experts estimate that another 12-15 million frustrated cell phone users would jump if they could keep their same phone number.
Ben's Bottom Line? I think we're about to see:
- An improvement in cell phone coverage
- An improvement in customer service
- Lower rates
- More "dealing" and incentives from cell phone companies eager to keep you as a happy customer.
However!!! Watch out for these sign-up incentives designed to lock you into a contract as they try to keep you (and your precious cell phone number) from jumping to the competition. Want the 411 on this story? (Aren't we the clever wordsmiths?) Click here.
1 out of 2 marriages end up in divorce court and another 60% of second attempts the same results: Why not save some dough if you (or someone in you know) are about to sub-divide misery. Go on-line! First things's first: Clean out the bank accounts and cancel all of the credit cards first, then read all about clicking your way to happiness by "pulling the cyber-pin"...
Splitting-the-sheets and filing for divorce? If you've gotta home, you're going to need to buy the other person out. Or maybe you're happily married and wanna buy your first home...or a bigger home...or just re-finance! Interest rates at 40-year lows are simply too good to pass up. Ben's no-brainer choice for any/all of your mortgage needs? Easy...do it all on-line or on the phone with the official mortgage company of www.benjamindover.com and your first (and only) stop: W.R. Starkey Mortgage. Hit their website or call their main Dallas-Fort Worth office toll-free: (888) 282-6632.
Never owned a home? Now's the absolute best time to buy a house and stop throwin' your dough away on rent: It's easy to get educated about the process first...and the price is right! Everything you need to know, and the price is right [free!] can be found on-line; get your own copy of Ben's 2003 Home Buyer's Guide by clicking here.
Beware Of The Hidden Dangers Around Your Home Plus: Why You Should Never Let A Grieving Family Member Or Friend Ever Deal With Someone From A Funeral Home And: Getting Your Act Together...While You've Gotta Chance: So much of what I've covered over the years in this column is a direct result of my own (good, bad or ugly) personal experiences. With that said, it personally saddens me to have to discuss end-of-life issues, triggered by a tragedy in my own family. My sister's husband (Peter) passed away a couple of weeks ago, and his death-at the age of 47-has stunned my family. Working around the house on Mother's Day last month, my brother in law reached too far, falling off a ladder, dropping 6 feet onto the concrete below. In addition to the assortment of orthopedic injuries, the door to his demise was opened by the major liver damage he sustained. Seventeen days later-despite expectations he'd recover-he died from a blood clot in his lungs. Hoping that his untimely death can somehow help others live, I want you to take away three lessons from this story:
Number One: The home can be a dangerous place-Peter fell 6 feet and died; I was thrown 85 feet in a motorcycle accident in 1989 and (fourteen surgeries later) survived. It just doesn't make sense, but it should spotlight the fragility of life and the dangers that exist around the house...regardless of your age group. We've all "over-extended" while up working on a ladder at some point in our lives. And then there's the hazard created by a swimming pool in your backyard. Too many people-especially little people-drown every single year. Take nothing lightly...or risk the consequences.
Number Two: The aftermath of Peter's death was a cold personal reminder of the inherent land-mines that await grieving family members forced to deal with the death care industry. Fortunately my sister knew that my level of insight from covering the inner-workings of the funeral business over the years-combined with my natural instinct to protect and support my family-qualified me to step in and assist her with the funeral arrangements she was about to deal with. The local funeral home representative was insistent that he have the chance to sit down and talk with my sister...until I made it crystal-clear that this wasn't going to happen. Why?
Dover's Rule for family members about to be subjected to the sales devices used by death care industry salesmen intent on selling you a casket, cemetery plot, cremation, urn, gravemarker or any other service, following the passing of a loved one? Don't do it! We're so emotionally vulnerable and (frequently) not thinking clearly that the best strategy is to appoint a trusted friend or family member that's emotionally-detached enough to allow them to represent you. A common technique they'll use to increase their commission checks? Attempting to draw a parallel between the depth of your love (for the recently departed) and the amount of money you're about to spend on their funeral or cremation. "You loved your Mother, didn't you? Now's your chance to do the very best for her..." Uggghhhh!!! Protect your family (or friends) and keep them out of the grasp of the funeral salesmen...period!
Number Three: Be prepared. All of us fear dying with little or no advance warning. So let's re-visit some tough questions: Is your will updated? Do you have a Medical Power of Attorney? When was the last time you updated your legal papers? Where are they located? Who has copies? If the only copies are locked away in a safety deposit box, you could be creating a bigger set of problems for your heirs and survivors. What about insurance? When did you last update your policies or the beneficiaries named? Don't have any insurance? Maybe it's time you did. I've got a check list and some excellent resources that I hope you'll make the time to read, posted on my website: www.bendover.com/beprepared.asp
Aside from the legal issues and stuff that goes with this territory, I hope that when you finish reading this column you'll pick up a phone or write a note or fire off an e-mail to those people in your life that mean the most to you. Because as Peter's passing reminded me-close up and personal yet one more time, life really is too short.
Be resourceful and share the wealth! Give a subscription to the Dose of Dover, the most reliable source of insights and no s*** ideas available on the planet...and it's free! Sign 'em up for their weekly Dose of Dover newsletter on our award-winning website!
In honor of Father's Day 2003-How To Lower Your Child Support and Successfully Battle A Crazy Ex-Wife Without Going Broke! You can't afford to miss this one (especially if you're married to someone with kids and a crazy ex!) so put it on the calendar and set the alarm clock for the Sunday, June 15, 2003 edition of The Benjamin Dover Show on KFI-AM/640, Los Angeles! 5-7am (Hawaiian Time) 7-9 am (Pacific Time) 8-10 am (Mountain) 9-11 am (Central) 10 am-12 noon (Eastern) 3-5 pm (GMT). [Listen live via the Internet! Click here for more information.]
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