All Posts in "Personal Finance/Consumers"

The Social Security Administration has launched an online form for the public to report Social Security-related telephone scams.

In the past year, fraudulent callers tricking victims into making cash or gift-card payments to avoid arrest for purported Social Security problems have become the most frequent type of fraud reported to the Federal Trade Commission and Social Security officials.

The new reporting form at https://oig.ssa.gov will capture data that officials will use to find any trends and leads for investigators in an effort to identify scammers, curtail the fraud attempts and reduce the number of victims, officials said.

“Awareness is our best hope to thwart the scammers,” said Gail Ennis, the SSA’s inspector general. “Tell your friends and family about them and report them to us when you receive them, but most importantly, just hang up and ignore the calls.”

Ennis said scams are also attempted via e-mail, texting and in-person. Social Security employees do occasionally contact people–generally those who have ongoing business with the agency–by telephone for business purposes. However, employees will never threaten a person, or promise a Social Security benefit approval or increase in exchange for information or money, she advised.

Generally, the agency mainly calls people who have recently applied for a Social Security benefit, someone who is already receiving payments and requires an update to their record, or a person who has requested a phone call from the agency. If a person is not in one of these situations, they normally would not receive a call from the agency.

srmedia by — June 24, 2020 in Personal Finance/Consumers
Pretty sharp job and business

Dennis Martin plays with knives for a living.

A moulding operator at L.J. Smith Stair Systems in Puyallup, Martin routinely makes and grinds as many as 300 different knives for the company’s machinery that’s dedicated to creating custom handrails and mouldings.

“Our team is in the business of making anything a customer wants,” said Martin, a resident of University Place. “Whether it’s a replica of a historical piece or an entirely new design, we can create it.”

The custom process at the plant in Puyallup’s industrial area starts with drawings and computer renderings. Then Martin downloads a template. He cuts and creates steel knives that are needed to grind the custom pieces. The knives are a quarter-inch thick, high-speed steel. Their heights vary from two to 10 inches, depending on the size of the piece being created. And the weight will vary from 10 pounds up to 50 pounds.

“I put exact knives in the left, right, top and bottom sides of a machine to create an accurate reproduction,” said Martin. “This is very intense work, but it’s fun. We make adjustments for any minor miscalculations with the goal of crafting the perfect piece.”

For the L.J. Smith team, the demand is heavy for custom pieces. More than two-dozen requests come in each year for completely customized handrails and mouldings.

“One of the most unusual projects we’ve worked on recently was for the Louisa Hotel in Seattle,” Martin said. “Bear Wood Windows came to us during the restoration process of the historic 1909 hotel. They requested very old, unique and original profiles in clear fir for the handrails. We were able to exactly replicate the pieces they needed to help renovate the hotel.”

The lure of uniqueness in the job — plus the ability to play with knives, so to speak — keeps Martin interested in his work.

“I’ve been in woodworking since 1996,” he said. “What’s best about this job is that each day we’re tackling something different. We make a positive impact on a project and fulfill the needs and dreams someone has for a railing system. That’s a great career to have for more than two decades.”

L.J. Smith — whose products include wooden and ornamental iron balusters, stainless steel cable and tube infills, metal panels, newel posts, hand rails and accessories — is owned by NOVO Building Products, manufacturer and distributor of mouldings, stair parts, doors and specialty millwork. Smith is based in Bowerston, Ohio.

Dennis Martin makes and grinds knives for machinery that creates custom wood products.
Pat Jenkins by — June 8, 2020 in Personal Finance/Consumers

A cooperative housing community for seniors and retirees is in the planning stages in Puyallup.

The Village Cooperative of Puyallup, proposed for a vacant, four-acre site at the corner of 39th Avenue Southwest and 17th Street Southwest near the Fruitland Grange, will include 57 homes in a three-story building. The dwellings will have one-bedroom and two-bedroom floorplans and range in size from 900 square feet to 1,600 square feet.

The Minnesota-based parent company of the project is Real Estate Equities Development, which has developed 40 Village Cooperative projects with a combined 2,200 homes in urban and suburban areas of the western and midwestern U.S.

In cooperative communities, residents own equity shares of the development through a non-profit co-op corporation. The corporation holds title to the entire property, including dwellings, and assumes the mortgage, tax and other obligations necessary to finance and operate the facility. Residents elect a governing board of directors from among the co-op residents/members to oversees policies, spending and operations of the cooperative.

The Puyallup project is the second Village Cooperative community in Washington, following one in Olympia that was announced last spring. The co-op communities are also in seven other states—Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, South Dakota, and Wisconsin.

Pat Jenkins by — May 26, 2020 in Personal Finance/Consumers

For military veterans who are approaching Medicare eligibility or are new to Medicare, it might be confusing to know the difference between your VA benefits and Medicare benefits. Let’s set the record straight on four common misperceptions about veterans and Medicare.

Myth 1: My health coverage is covered by the VA, so I don’t need Medicare.

Enrolling in a Medicare Advantage plan may be a good supplement to VA benefits, as it may help ensure that there aren’t any gaps in your healthcare coverage. Medicare and VA benefits are separate and don’t work together. If you enroll in a Medicare Advantage plan, it may provide Medicare-eligible veterans with additional services and location options, as well as prescription drug coverage.

Myth 2: All parts of Medicare are the same.

Medicare options vary. For example, Medicare Part A helps cover inpatient hospital and skilled nursing home care, limited home health services, and hospice. Medicare Part B helps cover services from doctors and other healthcare providers, outpatient care, home health care, durable medical equipment, as well as many preventative services. With Medicare Part C, or Medicare Advantage, all the benefits under Part A and B are covered through a private insurer, who may also include additional benefits such as fitness center memberships, a nurse advice hotline, and dental, hearing and vision coverage. Finally, Medicare Part D helps cover prescription drugs.

Myth 3: There is no way to save money on health care plans.

There are ways to save money when choosing a Medicare plan, such as considering the total value of the Medicare plan you select along with your health, medical and budget needs for the coming year.

Myth 4: I’m on my own.

Licensed insurance agents with Medicare expertise can help you select the coverage that best meets your needs. Let them know if you’re eligible for VA health care or a TRICARE for Life member, and if your spouse is eligible for CHAMPVA healthcare, as those details will help determine the best options for you.

For more information about Medicare, call 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) or TTY 1-877-486-2048, 24 hours a day/7 days a week, or visit medicare.gov or humanamedicare.com.

 

Catherine Field, who wrote this article, is president of Humana’s intermountain region, which includes Washington.

srmedia by — May 8, 2020 in Personal Finance/Consumers