How to buy big, save bigger in college at warehouse stores

Odds are that at the start of every term, you find yourself running to the store and getting the same household basics that you just ran out of: toilet paper, laundry detergent, maybe pens and notepads for your classes. Beer.

But there's a better, smarter way of buying many of those goods than grabbing what's on sale at the grocery store or big-box office supply store. It's called shopping at warehouse stores, such as Costco, and it isn't just for restaurants that need to load up on gallons of cooking oil. By making a strict shopping list and knowing ahead of time what's a good value at warehouse stores, you can save a lot of money on things you'd buy anyway.