Things To Do In SW Florida

Downtown Sanford has turned into a popular destination for visitors to enjoy a meal or grab a cold one, after the city dedicated millions of dollars toward attracting new restaurants, craft breweries and events.

But the vibrant downtown has come with another cost: Frustrated motorists trying to find a parking spot, with some resorting to parking illegally or even creating their own spaces on the sidewalks.

Now, Sanford officials plan to look at how other Central Florida municipalities have grappled with the common urban conundrum of keeping their downtowns lively but providing enough spots for vehicles.

“I’m not an expert on parking, but I know that there is a problem, and we need to form a solution,” said city Commissioner Sheena Britton, whose district includes the downtown commercial and historic areas. She brought up the concern at Monday’s commission meeting.

The parking woes are especially troublesome, Britton noted, along Palmetto, Magnolia and Sanford avenues, at the intersections of Second, Third and Fourth streets. The area is a mix of historic homes, restaurants, breweries, shops and the Ritz Theatre. read more

By Amrita Jayakumar | NerdWallet

The surge in inflation may have slowed, but the cost of everyday items is still high enough to put a strain on your travel budget. If winter already has you dreaming of a luxury beach vacation, it’s worth finding a destination where the U.S. dollar delivers more bang for your buck. Fortunately, there are several options around the world where five-star accommodations are surprisingly affordable, even without using travel rewards.

Travel search engines Skyscanner and Kayak both analyzed data on their platforms to rank the cities where you can book the cheapest five-star hotels. How cheap are we talking? All of the cities in this combined list feature five-star hotels for less than $200 per night.

Skyscanner looked at the average price per night for a five-star hotel room booked on its portal from January through June 2023. Kayak looked at average prices based on searches conducted across all its portfolio domains from July 2022 through June 2023 for travel from November 2022 through October 2023. read more

Holly D. Johnson | Bankrate.com (TNS)

Overall inflation of consumer prices increased 3.4% over the 12 months leading up to December 2023, according to the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics data. the largest increase in over 40 years. After that, regular inflation numbers finally slowed, with the most recent figure coming in at 4.0% during the 12 months leading up to May of 2023.

Consumers are bearing the brunt of rising prices and interest rates, unfortunately. And while this isn’t great news, Americans have weathered these storms before. From coupon clipping to discount shopping, we know there are ways to soften the blow of inflation.

By using your credit cards strategically, you may be able to earn discounts in common spending categories where prices are rising. Here are tips on how you can use your credit card rewards to save on food and fuel spending.

Inflation’s impact on food and fuel

How much are you spending on groceries and gas nowadays? The average family of four with two adults and two kids ages 8 and 10 is now spending $1,306.30 per month on a moderate food spending plan, according to November 2023 data from the USDA. read more

James Royal, Ph.D. | Bankrate.com (TNS)

If you’re an investor, be sure to give special attention to the taxes you’ll have to pay on your investments. In many cases, you have ways to legally reduce, defer or even eliminate taxes on your investment gains and keep more of your profits. So it pays to know the smartest ways to minimize your taxes and keep more of your money working for you.

Here are some of the best ways to keep taxes low on your investment income.

How your investments are taxed

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) taxes your investment income, but it does so differently from how it taxes income from working wages. Those differences include not only the tax rates you pay but also when and how taxes are assessed on investment income. Broadly speaking, investments generate income in two ways and each is treated differently for tax purposes:

— Capital gains: Capital gains are an increase in the price of an asset, for example, if a stock or real estate property goes up in value. In general, the government taxes capital gains only when they’ve been realized (i.e., an asset has been sold for cash). read more

NEW YORK (AP) — JetBlue Airways warned that it may end its bid to acquire low-cost carrier Spirit Airlines as soon as this weekend after a federal judge blocked the deal, sending Spirit shares sharply lower Friday.

Spirit shot back that finds no reason to terminate the deal and will continue to meet its obligations, “and it expects JetBlue to do the same.”

A federal judge sided with the Justice Department and blocked JetBlue’s proposed $3.8 billion purchase of Spirit last week. The Justice Department sued to block the merger, saying it would drive up fares by eliminating Spirit, the nation’s biggest low-cost airline.

Both airlines have filed their intention to appeal with a higher court.

JetBlue said in a regulatory filing Friday it told Spirit that certain conditions of their deal might not be met by the deadline set in the airlines’ 2022 agreement. JetBlue said that could lead it to terminate the deal as early as Sunday.

Spirit responded hours later with its own filing that disputed JetBlue’s position. read more