Here's an observation that may not be true in all areas, but one that I've seen consistently. When a home is for sale, there seems to be two schools of thought: Price it high, and hold out for a sucker Here the idea is that all you really need … [Read the rest]
Effect Of Credit Score On Mortgage Rates and Monthly Payments
Posted on October 25, 2007 // 21 Comments
Did you know that 58% of people have FICO scores over 700? Here is the distribution, taken from myFICO.com: Although one's credit score is only one of the criteria for getting the lowest rate on a mortgage, and every lender has their own unique … [Read the rest]
Another $5 Sign-Up Bonus From TextPayMe
Posted on October 24, 2007 // 20 Comments
If you jumped on the old TextPayMe $5 bonus (now expired), you may be interested in the new TextPayMe $5 bonus. Apparently they decided to chuck out the old system completely when they created their new system linked with Amazon Payments (kind of … [Read the rest]
How to Maximize Investment Returns – By Warren Buffett
Posted on October 24, 2007 // 13 Comments
Let's talk about maximizing returns instead of minimizing now. In Warren Buffett's Gotrocks story, he explains how involving too many fee-charging people and trading commissions in your investments can only reduce the overall return for everybody. … [Read the rest]
$25 Sign-Up Bonus For Lending On Prosper
Posted on October 21, 2007 // 40 Comments
Shortly after my last Prosper review update, I decided that I should go ahead an sign up for my own Prosper account in order to (1) be able to provide a better review and (2) try to perhaps find an algorithm that works. While making a few more … [Read the rest]
Learn Some Easy Tricks Now, Earn Free Drinks Tonight
Posted on October 19, 2007 // 19 Comments
There is a fun TV show in the U.K. called The Real Hustle, which shows various scams and hustles. One useful area is proposition bets - Primarily done in bar scenarios, the goal is to score some free drinks. I believe I first heard of these over … [Read the rest]
Best Credit Card For College Students – 5% Back At Restaurants and Amazon.com
Posted on October 18, 2007 // 33 Comments
I ran across this article Best credit cards for college kids on CNN Money. I found it interesting that 75% of all college students have a credit card, when I see so much media attention to how credit card companies target students. Seems like … [Read the rest]
Predicting the New I-Bond Rates For November 2007
Posted on October 18, 2007 // 6 Comments
It's now six months since April, which means it's time again to partially predict the new I-Bond savings bond rates before the formal announcement until November 1st. Just in case we want to buy some beforehand and lock in some rates. The CPI-U … [Read the rest]
Mental Accounting: Is A Dollar Always A Dollar?
Posted on October 17, 2007 // 41 Comments
In economics, there is a concept called fungibility. A good is fungible if one example of the good is indistinguishable from another example of the same good. A common example is money. A dollar is a dollar, no matter where it came from, where it … [Read the rest]
What Percentage of My Income Should I Contribute To A 401k Plan?
Posted on October 15, 2007 // 56 Comments
Actually, a better question is what percentage of your income should you contribute to all types of retirement plans? But the 401(k) plan is one of those cases when you have to choose something to start out with, and many people just never get around … [Read the rest]
DonorsChoose pfblogs.org Financial Literacy Challenge
Posted on October 14, 2007 // 7 Comments
DonorsChoose.org is another way the internet is making giving back more transparent and easy to do. (Learn about Kiva and ModestNeeds as well.) On the site, teachers submit project proposals for materials or experiences that they feel will benefit … [Read the rest]
Roth IRA Contribution vs. Emergency Fund Savings
Posted on October 12, 2007 // 47 Comments
Earlier this week I explored how the performance of money invested in a 401(k) should compare to a regular brokerage account. This brought to mind a different debate: If you had to choose between contributing $4,000 to a Roth IRA or … [Read the rest]
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