Airlines collect $3.4B in bag fees in 2010

NEW YORK - Passengers hate them, but airlines can't afford to give them up - those aggravating bag fees.

Negotiant bottlers

We have talked much recently about "grower wines" and their impact on the wine industry as we have continued to be impressed by many of the wines. So too though we continue to find negotiant wineries who bottle some really great wine at compelling prices. Negotiants are defined differently in the states and in Europe. Domestically a negotiant bottler is one who buys the wine already fully fermented as a finished product that they then purchase in bulk and simply bottle and label it. In Europe it refers more broadly to any winery that buys the grapes from a grower even though they fully control the production of the wine from start to finish.

E-Fairness good for Idaho

Shopping online is a simple and convenient way to make purchases. The Idaho Retailers Association fully supports online shopping, and we encourage all our members to develop an online presence to compete in today's marketplace. What we do not support is the unfair advantage some out-of-state online retailers have over local businesses by not being required to collect sales tax.

NYC plan would keep tobacco products out of sight

Planting a position: The business of political yard signs

The ubiquitous reminders of the upcoming election continue to thrive.

Knudtsen Chevrolet receives award

Named a CarGurus 2022 Top-Rated Dealer for Excellence in Customer Experience

Named a CarGurus 2022 Top-Rated Dealer for Excellence in Customer Experience

Morning after pill OK for ages 15 and up

Europe gropes for crisis fix, bond buys pushed

BRUSSELS - Europe's leaders are grasping for ideas to halt their government debt crisis ahead of a series of top-level meetings over the next 10 days. The latest: Using their emergency bailout funds to buy up government bonds on the open market.

Embittered Facebook investors ponder next move

To say that Facebook's debut as a public company was bungled is something like saying Facebook is a website you might have heard of.

FDA allows over-the-counter morning-after pill, lifts age limit

Buy or rent?

Realtors will be quick to reply that you should buy, but let’s face it, we’re biased. If you want an objective opinion do some research online. The Department of Housing and Urban Development is a great resource for those of you who want to educate yourselves on how the advantages of Buying vs. Renting a home apply to your situation. In addition to the step-by-step process outlined on their website: http://www.hud.gov/buying/index.cfm there is a handy little calculator on realtor.com that will help you decide whether or not it makes sense to buy a home: https://www.realtor.com/mortgage/tools/rent-or-buy-calculator/ Click on advanced options. There you can enter in your current rent, let’s say $750 per month. Enter in the purchase price of a home, for this example we will use $200,000. Enter the percent down from your lender, but don’t forget about Idaho Housing, FHA, Rural Development and USDA loans that offer lower down payment loans. Then put in the number of years you plan to stay in your home. The default for this field is 30 years, but you can put in whatever you like. The yearly property tax rate is defaulted at 1 percent, so you may want to check with the Assessor or your Realtor to get a rate for the home you are considering buying. The calculator also projects a modest appreciation of 2 percent per year for the time you are in your home.

Shopping for back-to-school deals?

It's all in the timing

NEW YORK - The start of the school year is just around the corner, and you haven't shopped yet?

Apple fans to the core

Fans, entrepreneurs among first buyers of new iPad

Housing prices hold their course

Asking prices haven't changed, even with higher mortgage rates

Real state market 'like nothing we have ever seen'

Do you take OTC medications seriously?

According to one survey, nearly one-third of consumers polled said that they did not consider over-the-counter (OTC) medications to be as "serious" as prescribed medications. Are you among those who think this way?

Web sites can take some hassle out of car buying

Excelling at selling, on a serious tip

Years ago, a salesperson friend told me a story about his daughter. She insisted on buying her favorite gumdrops from a particular candy store owned by Nick, even though a more convenient candy store had recently opened in a shopping mall.

Apply for elk, deer controlled hunts

Idaho hunters regardless if they are chosen to hunt elk in a controlled zone must wait to five days after the drawing to buy remaining elk tags.

Is shopping fatigue setting in?

Consumer wine trends

While the economics of the wine industry continue to greatly influence the behaviors of wineries, winemakers, growers and distributors there are also clear trends from the consumers of wines at the retail level. While all of us continue to choose those bottlings that we prefer based on what we like to drink and our own budgets, these trends are interesting as they do influence what we see in the market both at retail stores and restaurants.