Personal Finance for Young Professionals
There are literally thousands of mutual funds out there and many of them claim to be diversified, low cost, low fee, etc. But if there's one thing that has the most direct impact on a fund's return, it's the expense ratio(ER). When comparing similar … [Continue reading]
You may have heard about the recent Global Payments Breach in which credit card data for over 1.5 million users was exposed to hackers. Although this is only a fraction of the billion credit cards currently in use by Americans, it's alarming to see … [Continue reading]
No matter who you are, one billion dollars is a ton of money. But to Facebook, this is barely 1% of it's estimated $100 billion value. Facebook's looming IPO has drawn Google like valuations of the soon to be public company. This most recent … [Continue reading]
I just received my yearly merit increase: a whopping 3% to stay right in line with inflation. Don't get me wrong, I'm very appreciative of the extra money, but in the grand scheme of things, how much will this improve my life? Will I be able to buy … [Continue reading]
This past week, the Supreme Court wrapped up three days of oral arguments over the health care law. At stake is the health care law's individual mandate that would require most citizens to have health care as part of a systematic overhaul intended … [Continue reading]
Update: See my update on why you should use Ally to hold all your cash in 5 year CD's and get the highest rates possible. It should make sense for 99% of all people to follow this strategy and feel free to contact me with any questions: … [Continue reading]
These days, there are tons of ways criminals can steal your identity. They can copy your credit card information at a restaurant or go through your mailbox at home. There are some services out there that charge you to monitor your identity, but … [Continue reading]
David writes in, "I waste my money on having a personal Financial Advisor w/ Merrill Lynch. He gets 1% of everything invested annually. I cut him a quarterly check and he picks which mutual funds to invest in. The market has been sucking so my … [Continue reading]
Update(12/5/12): Get your 3 month free trial of Amazon Prime here by signing up for Amazon mom(aff link) This Tuesday, Amazon Local will be offering $10 Amazon.com gift cards for just $5. They haven't announced how many are available so make … [Continue reading]
Last week, Invisible Children launched a passionate video aimed at bringing social awareness to the capture of famous Ugandan warlord Joseph Kony. They set a modest goal of half a million views by the end of the year. In just under a week, the … [Continue reading]
Mitt Romney's federal tax rate has come under a lot of scrutiny with the battle for the republican primaries heating up. He released statements that showed his effective tax rate was around 15%. This number has come under attack from the White … [Continue reading]
Have you heard of Mint.com? Mint is a personal finance site that links all of your financial accounts to one place and helps you keep track of your expenses. They also have a handy iPhone app that I use every day to stay on top of my spending. The … [Continue reading]
Any financial guru can tell you that the key to saving money is to spend less than you earn. Duh! Unfortunately, most of us are accustomed to certain amenities and the thought of losing these might seem harsh. The goal of this list is to enable … [Continue reading]
It seems like every few years the government introduces a new retirement plan. Even though it's getting hard to keep track of all the different types, at a minimum, a savvy investor should have a basic understanding of each option and whom it can … [Continue reading]
By now you should have received most of your year-end tax documents. More and more Americans, each year are turning to tax software like TurboTax or H&R Block at home to file our taxes. Software like this has made a once tedious task fairly … [Continue reading]
In the past couple of years, daily deal sites like Groupon and Living Social have exploded onto the scene. Now it seems like new sites are popping up every day, offering consumers a wide variety of deals. Whether it's 6 laser treatments for $97 or … [Continue reading]
Reader Alberto writes in: "I was wondering about what to pay off first. I have an $11,000 car loan at 3.25% with 5 years left and $20,000 in student loans at 6% with 10 years left. What should I pay off first and how much? I have a $10,000 … [Continue reading]
Update(6/5/2012) - If you're looking for the latest AMEX promotion: Get a Free $25 gift card for loading $200 onto an exisiting prepaid card(or with sign-up), click here. Thank you to everyone who has been reading and supporting my blog. As a … [Continue reading]
When gift cards first appeared on the market in the mid 90's, consumers instantly flocked to them. Businesses loved the idea because it attracted new customers who often spent more than the value of the card. Gift cards have grown into a … [Continue reading]
Here's a quick round-up of some of my favorite personal finance articles from the past week. With the presidential race heating up, there has been a lot of discussion lately about tax reform and tax plans. Although I won't be voting in the … [Continue reading]