Another new website, Credit Sesame, now offers you free credit scores and updates based on your Experian credit report. No credit card required, no trial required. This is not a real FICO score, but an estimate of the FICO formula that uses the same … [Read the rest]
Book Review: Keep The Change – A Book About Tipping
Posted on June 14, 2011 // 16 Comments
If you want to start a lively conversation online, just bring up the topic of tipping. Keep The Change is basically a book that interviews the actual workers in the service industry to find how they view gratuities. The author is Steve … [Read the rest]
Two Movie Tickets for $9: Fandango + LivingSocial
Posted on June 9, 2011 // 4 Comments
LivingSocial is offering up two movie tickets from Fandango for $9 today. Thanks to those who alerted me to this; Over 600,000 bought already. Looks like a good way to add new users before their own IPO... Limit 1 purchase per customer only … [Read the rest]
Reader Poll: Do You Subscribe to NetFlix?
Posted on June 9, 2011 // 26 Comments
I'll be honest, I did not see the success of Netflix coming. I thought it was a nice, cute DVD rental business that would probably be bought out by Blockbuster eventually, leaving their founders stupendously rich. But look around today: Blockbuster … [Read the rest]
Debt, Debt, and More Debt
Posted on June 8, 2011 // 15 Comments
After seeing this household debt bubble chart, I've been especially sensitive to news about consumer debt. Here are some recent stats from across the spectrum: Mortgages According to real estate data firm CoreLogic, 22.7% of US homes with a … [Read the rest]
Free 1-Year Subscription to Businessweek Magazine
Posted on June 7, 2011 // 3 Comments
Here's a link offering a free 1-year subscription to BusinessWeek magazine. I'm currently enjoying a free year of this publication from a previous offer, and I do skim it weekly and find some of the investigative articles especially interesting. … [Read the rest]
The Value of Diversification Beyond The S&P 500
Posted on June 6, 2011 // 10 Comments
Scott Burns of Assetbuilder has a new article that shows the benefit of diversifying your portfolio beyond the often-cited S&P 500 index fund that you probably have in your 401(k) plan. During the recent financial crisis, nearly every asset class … [Read the rest]
Loyal3: Easily Invest In Brand Name Company Stocks
Posted on June 3, 2011 // 13 Comments
Ready for the next new investing start-up idea? It's "customer stock ownership plans” from Loyal3. Basically, companies encourage consumers to buy shares of their stock with only three clicks of the mouse, in the hopes that this will ownership … [Read the rest]
Chart: The Household Debt Bubble?
Posted on June 2, 2011 // 17 Comments
Economist Paul Krugman says that fragile banks are no longer what's holding back economic recovery, it's housing and household debt. We already saw that housing prices are dropping again, and yesterday he pointed out another chart of household … [Read the rest]
$10 for $20 of Old Navy Clothes on Groupon
Posted on June 1, 2011 // 1 Comment
Groupon has a new national deal today: $20 worth of stuff at Old Navy for only $10. Over 45,000 have been bought already. Gotta love cheap and at least temporarily-fashionable clothes! :) Limit 1 per person. Purchase of Groupon may take up … [Read the rest]
How’s Your Retirement Portfolio Doing?
Posted on June 1, 2011 // 9 Comments
You may or may not believe me, but even though I blog daily about money I only check my investment portfolio balances every few weeks. It's part of my selective information restriction diet. I found it curious that the S&P 500 is now at ~1350. … [Read the rest]
Home Price Index Update Shows Double Dip
Posted on June 1, 2011 // 1 Comment
The S&P Case Shiller Home Price index was updated yesterday with data through March 2011, or 2011 Q1. Here is the press release [PDF]. Here is the chart: Click to enlarge. Sources: S&P Indices Nationally, home prices are back to their … [Read the rest]
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