My Money Blog

Submissions for Carnival of Debt Reduction

Posted on November 2, 2005 // 4 Comments

I'm hosting the Carnival of Debt Reduction next week. To learn more please see the guidelines and schedule at MightyBargainHunter. I've only got one entry so far, so let get those debt-reduction posts coming in! (Just e-mail them to me). I need … [Read the rest]

OneSuite 2.5 cents/minute Long Distance + 10-15% Bonus Promotion

Posted on November 1, 2005 // 17 Comments

Before I switched to VoIP and cell phones, I used OneSuite.com exclusively for long distance calls. The charge a meager 2.5 cents/minutes for calls to the lower 48 if you live an urban area, 2.9 cents otherwise. Great international rates too. To top … [Read the rest]

Buying a 4-Week Treasury Bill, Hoping to break 4.30%

Posted on November 1, 2005 // 16 Comments

I think it was pretty cool we predicted the new I-Bond rate two-weeks ahead of time, and let everyone make some educated decisions on when to buy. I'm now interested in Treasury Bills. Today, the new rate for the 4-week T-Bill is 3.788%. After … [Read the rest]

New I-Bond Fixed Rate: 1.0%, Current Return 6.73%

Posted on November 1, 2005 // 14 Comments

The new fixed rate for I-type Savings Bonds was announced today, and it has decreased from 1.2% to 1.0%, matching the lowest historical fixed rate. This was within my prediction of 1.0 to 1.4%, but one has to wonder if all the mid-October buzz … [Read the rest]

Finding the Equivalent Bank Interest Rates For Savings Bonds

Posted on October 31, 2005 // 28 Comments

One perk of U.S. Savings Bonds (USSB) and Treasury Bills is that they are exempt from state and local income taxes. For comparison, what would be useful is a quick way of comparing those tax-advantaged rates with the regular interest rates from a … [Read the rest]

U.S. Treasury Bills: Possible Worthwhile Investment

Posted on October 30, 2005 // 7 Comments

I was snooping around the U.S. Treasury website looking up stuff on potentially laddering I-Bonds, when I came across Treasury Bills again. Treasury Bills are short-term investments (from 4-26 weeks usually) that common folk like us can also buy at … [Read the rest]

Laddering Bank CD’s: Is It Worth It?

Posted on October 30, 2005 // 8 Comments

I have most of my cash in a high-yield savings account making 4.12% APY. However, in previous days when the yield curve wasn't so flat, a technique called laddering along with certificates of deposit (CDs) was pretty popular. For example, let's … [Read the rest]

Renting Rambles

Posted on October 27, 2005 // 8 Comments

I'm still a bit in shock over getting kicked out, with countless thoughts zipping around in my head. Here's my attempt to put them on virtual paper. Buying. Just not going to work. With 20/20 hindsight, yes, we should have bought a place when … [Read the rest]

Buy, Rent, or Get Kicked Out

Posted on October 27, 2005 // 11 Comments

So I get a call from my landlord saying she just put up a bid for some beachfront property and may have to sell the house I'm renting to pay for it. Another "heads up" that we may have to move again in less than 9 months. I'm getting really. tired. … [Read the rest]

Buying Savings Bonds Now or Later? Two “Experts” Collide

Posted on October 26, 2005 // 8 Comments

I guess the word has spread about the great I-Bonds rates, as is shown by this recent USA Today article. Unfortunately, this article does not help me at all, since the key to buying now or later is the upcoming fixed rate, and these two so-called … [Read the rest]

Bored Money: e-Rewards is my NetFlix Alternative

Posted on October 25, 2005 // 12 Comments

Next up in the Bored Money arena is e-Rewards. It's similar to MyPoints in that the make you fill out a big long profile and then pay you to receive e-mails, sign-up for offers, and fill out online surveys. They differ in that instead of Points and … [Read the rest]

Savings Bonds Purchased, $5 Oops, More on Partial Redemptions

Posted on October 25, 2005 // 3 Comments

My $5,000 I-Bond online purchase looks like it went off today without a hitch at Treasury Direct. Well, almost. I didn't pay attention to my BillPay along with my checking account balance and I ended up going below the $1,000 minimum on my … [Read the rest]