FREE MONEY
By Molly's Brother | April 10, 2008
Free money is ALWAYS worth it.
ING and HSBC gave out money to people who signed up with them. This is happening at Revolution Money Exchange, too. Sign up and get $25.
So, there is a new company that they are trying to roll out. Actually, they have been trying to roll out this company for a long time. It’s called Revolution Money Exchange. They are trying to position themselves as a viable alternative to paypal. Regardless, if you sign up with them you get $25.
Easy. Google them. The company was founded by Steve Case from AOL and is supported by an FDIC insured bank. Please follow this link to the right to get your money!
Thanks. I also have other “sign-up” to receive $25 offers from other reputable banks, too, if you are interested in making more easy money. There’s no obligation with this. It’s incredible.
P.S. You can get an extra $10 for each friend that YOU sign up too!
Topics: Personal Finance | No Comments »
Debt Elimination 101: List your debts
By Molly's Brother | April 9, 2008
So you thought the idea of tracking your spending was painful? Wait until you realize that another important step in eliminating your debt is facing your demons head on. That’s right: You have to sit down with all of your debts and you have to write down each and every outstanding debt…to the penny.
Impossible to discover the validity of this, but I bet that too many people who are serious about eliminating their credit card and consumer debts abandon the process because they’re overwhelmed at this prospect. It’s true, facing the extent of your debt can be a daunting idea.
But you’ll never climb out from under the oppressive weight if you don’t do it.
MAKE A LIST
Again, the Gurus all agree that you need to compile an exhaustive list of all your debts if you are serious about eliminating debt (although, as you’ll see later, they arrive at different ways to eliminate it).
So…write it down! Write down you car loan, a decade old loan to your parents, your credit card debts, school loans. Everything is written down. To the penny.
You may feel depressed or overwhelmed once you’ve completed this step. But remember, if you read Dante’s Inferno in high school, you remember that you have to climb down into the pits of Hell before you can reach the heights of Heaven.
IT’S WRITTEN DOWN. NOW WHAT?
This is where the Gurus disagree. Many financial planners will want you to not only write down how much debt you owe, but the interest rate your being charged on the debt. According to his plan, you will order the debt from the most expensive to the least expensive amounts. Maintaining minimum payments, you will work on paying off the most expensive debts first before concentrating on the cheaper debts. (Dave Bach and Jean Chatzky support a version of this form of debt elimination.)
Dave Ramsey, on the other hand, takes a more “touchy feely” approach to debt reduction. He calls it the Debt Snowball. Dave suggests that you order your debt from the smallest amounts to the largest amounts. Again, you will make the minimum monthly payments on all your debts while you are working on your snowball. The trick with Ramsey’s approach is that you make you actually create a snowball effect (i.e. all the money that you were throwing at a debt you just eliminated, now gets thrown to the next amount that needs to be eliminated and so on and so on and so on until, theoretically, you can pay off your last debts with large sums of money).
STAY FOCUSED
Above all, it is important to stay focused. Reducing your debt takes focus. Debt elimination takes years. There will be bumps in the road on your path to financial freedom. Instead of abandoning your goals when a setback occurs, it is crucial that you take a deep breath, refocus your efforts and work through them. Setbacks will occur. Maintaining your focus on eliminating debt will guarantee that all your hard work will pay off.
While there are many different ways to pay off your debts, the fact remains that you have to know where you are financially. Only then can you develop a successful plan of action.
Topics: Debt | No Comments »
INGDirect: A Reader’s Comment
By Molly's Brother | April 7, 2008
The other day, a reader posted a comment to a post that was written in January of 2007. I think the message is absolutely crucial and wanted to highlight the message. Per usual, I was raving about INGDirect.com . My “raves” have become considerably less vocal as I have watched the interest rate on the account plummet over the past year. Such is the way in a troubled economy, I guess.
Anyway, the reader posted the following comment:
I was a huge fan (of ING) too, until I tried to withdraw money. I have been depositing money for three years with this bank. Then last night for the first time I tried to withdraw money. Sure enough, transaction denied.
So here’s the story I get today, apparently three years ago they sent two small transactions to my bank. I confirmed the amount of these transactions, but my wife did not, and as she is a joint account holder, I cannot withdraw money.
If this is their policy than so be it, what I don’t understand is how come every time I log into the website, I don’t get a big red message saying your account is not authorized for withdrawals.
There are really only two things you do at a bank, put money in and take money out. ING seems to be good at the first, but not so good at the latter. You would think that an online bank, with all of the skepticism about online banking, would know better! Unless of course their ultimate goal is to never give me my money back, which for all I know is true!”
Heed the warning! Follow-up on financial matters. The reader had neglected to follow-up on those two small deposits that were made to his wife’s bank account. Years later, he ran into problems when trying to withdraw his money.
Topics: ING vs. The Others | No Comments »
A Simple Survery Request
By Molly's Brother | March 30, 2008
A fellow blogger has asked that I send on a simple survey request. He is trying to develop a debt elimination tool. If you are in debt, please head over to SurveyMonkey and take the free survey for him. All answers are confidential and the survey is less than 10 questions.
Topics: Personal Finance | No Comments »
Establish Attainable Financial Goals
By Molly's Brother | March 21, 2008
Often times, when we set goals, they are often worthy and laudable. Unfortunately, rarely are they attainable. We establish goals that are seemingly doable, but we haven’t honed the skills necessary to reach them. When we start back at the gym, we vow to ourselves that we’ll go five days a week, for two-hour stretches. We may keep this up for a week or two. Then we stop because we are exhausted. The plain fact of the matter: we were not in good enough shape for such a workout routine to begin with. The same can be said for planning and setting financial goals.
Establish Attainable Goals – Articulate the biggest and wildest dreams you have. Figure out a way to achieve these dreams by breaking them up into smaller, more attainable tasks. Once you’ve done that, breakdown those goals into smaller objectives and tasks. For example, you might decide that you want to have a net worth of $1 million (dream/overall goal). To do this, you might realize that you first have to own a house (smaller goal). In order to own a house, you might have save money for a down payment (smaller task). In order to save money for a down payment, you might have to reduce your credit card debt (smallest task). Therefore, in order to reach your large goal, first concentrate on the attainable short-term goal of eliminating your credit card debt.
Start Small – As mentioned above, starting small will give you the skills, building blocks, and confidence to reach your goals. Start small and expand from there. If you have a goal of saving X amount of money this year, but you have never saved money before, then start small and build off your success. Try to set aside 1% of your paycheck. When that is a comfortable amount, up it to 5%. When that has become comfortable, raise it to 10%. Many stop at 10%, but you may want to extend it to 15-20% of your paycheck.
Work Through the Setbacks — As with most things in life, there will be setbacks. Face this fact early on and arm yourself with the necessary mindset right away. Know that these hiccups will come along the way in reaching your financial goals. Be confident that you will be able to work through the setbacks and that you will be able to keep your eyes on the prize.
If you establish goals–attainable goals–you will build the necessary habits and develop the ideal skills to make your financial dreams a reality.
Topics: Personal Finance | No Comments »
Three Ways to Bust Your Budget
By Molly's Brother | March 19, 2008
When I talk to people about budgeting, the #1 complaint I hear is, “I don’t do budgets, because I can never stick to them.” Budget-busting seems to be pandemic behavior among these individuals. I am not surprised, however. Budget-busting used to be a common experience in my life, too.
1. Not Having A Budget — It is vitally important that you sit down and work out your budget. I remember Dave Ramsey explaining in perfect terms what a budget does: “It is not your money telling you what you can not do. It is you telling your money what to do for you.” If we think of budgets as restrictive and oppressive, chances are we will not work to create one (nor will we work to maintain one). You need to figure out where your money is going every month.
2. Not Maintaining A Budget — In addition to creating a budget, it is vitally important that you maintain your budget. Working within the parameters that you have established will help you stay focused on your quest to financial clarity. Maintaining a budget does not mean that you can not roll with some level of financial flexibility. Some months you may spend less on entertainment or grocery needs. You can take that money and pay down your debt or increase your savings. But make sure that you maintain your budget–and revisit it from time to time–to serve your financial goals.
3. Abandoning the Budget because of Setbacks — This was the most difficult concept for me. When I abandoned my budget–or any goal, for that matter–it is because I give in to the negative self-talk that got me in the situation in the first place. A speeding ticket that I could not afford used to bust my budget. The self-talk that ensued always sounded like this, “See, I will never get ahead. I will always be in debt.” The reality is quite different. As you work with your budget, you will find ways to make sure to guard against any setbacks. When those setbacks do arrive, take a deep breath, remember that this one setback should not get in the way of the rest of your life, and move through it.
Inaction causes us to continue to float through our financial lives without much purpose or without any clear direction. By creating, maintaining, and following-through with your budget you will find success in reaching your financial goals.
Topics: Your Budget | No Comments »
Tightening that belt…
By Molly's Brother | March 17, 2008
I was reading the LA Times on Sunday morning and came across the article “Our daily bread? It costs more” by Jerry Hirsch. In the article, Hirsch talks about how the increase in the price of wheat worldwide has caused an increase in basic wheat-based staples around the world. Pizza is more expensive. Breads are more expensive. Tortillas are more expensive. This increase in wheat prices has jumped 300% in just 12 months. A 50-pound bag of flour cost $12 a year ago. That same 50 lb bag costs $27 today–and experts expect it to hit $30 in a few weeks and $60 by the end of the year.
Gulp.
All of this is interesting. Fascinating to me, actually. The most important facts that I hit me from the article were these: the price of bread and cereal products rose nearly 2% (the largest increase since 1975). Additionally, the cost of eating at home–something that I think it crucial to saving money–has seen a 5% increase “so far this year” (the fastest increase since 1990).
Clearly, it is time to start tightening that belt and increase the amount you are saving. Just as clear to me, the rainy day I have been saving for (metaphorically), is actually here.
Topics: Saving | No Comments »