Welcome to the January 26, 2009 edition of twenty something finances. This is my first time hosting this carnival and am excited to do so. There were so many good entries (with a few spammers- nice try) and I wanted to make sure that there was good material for all to enjoy. I thought it would be only appropriate to pick the top few that made the editor’s cut (that’s me) . Deciding to do so meant that that I was taking on a pretty daunting task. Nonetheless, here are some of my favorite reads….
Editor’s Picks
Fabulously Broke presents An odd middle-class existence posted at Fabulously Broke in the City, saying, “In response to the ripple of whether growing up wealthy or poor affects how you deal with finances.”
J. Savings presents Would you take a 10% pay cut if it meant saving an employee? posted at Budgets are Sexy., saying, “Would you be willing to cut your salary by 10% if it meant saving another employee? And what if there was a randomized chance that the employee in question could be YOU?”
Studenomist presents How the Weekends Could Make You Rich posted at Studenomics, saying, “You want to put yourself ahead of the competition? You willing to work harder than everyone else? If you answered yes then maybe working on the weekends is for you. It’s an obvious fact that nobody wants to spend their weekends working but if you are willing to give this idea a try it could make you rich.”
MoneyNing presents 50 Ways to Budget Travel and Save Money on Vacations posted at Money Ning, saying, “Save money, travel more!”
Lazy Man and Money presents How to Stock a Bar posted at Lazy Man and Money.
The rest of the good entries
Scott Crawford presents New Year Debt Resolution Step 8: Ask Others For Support posted at DebtGoal, saying, “Asking others for help increase the success of New Year’s Resolutions by 20%. Here’s how you can do this with debt.”
Debt Free Destiny presents Don’t Let a Joint Account Get You Out of Joint posted at Debt Free Destiny.
Livingalmostlarge presents Stay at home – loss of potential income posted at LivingAlmostLarge.
Silicon Valley Blogger presents Keep Your Money Safe: Online Bank Accounts and More Savings Options posted at The Digerati Life, saying, “Thanks!”
The Smarter Wallet presents Plan Your Vacation Well: Travel Tips For The Early Bird Traveler posted at The Smarter Wallet, saying, “Thanks!”
Super Saver presents $6 – $8 Trillion in Investment Losses for 2008 posted at My Wealth Builder.
Russ Egan presents How to Take Control of Your Finances posted at Open Road Open Mind.
The Investor presents Stanford researchers prove you can spend 20% less on gifts for the same result posted at Monevator.com, saying, “The message of this Stanford research is clear – money doesn’t count for much when giving gifts.”
The Dough Roller presents The Balance Transfer Index™ | How Does Your Card Rank? posted at The Dough Roller, saying, “How much do “0 percent” balance transfer offers really cost? The balance transfer index answers that question and ranks balance transfer offers from best to worst.”
Dan at Everydayfinance presents How I Saved $250/Year for Life with Comcast posted at Everyday Finance, saying, “This article highlights how any consumer can save hundreds per year on cable bills.”
nickel@fivecentnickel.com presents Refinancing Your Mortgage? Get a Reissue Rate on Your Title Insurance posted at Money Tipper.
CreditAddict presents Tightening Consumer Credit Standards posted at CreditAddict.
Still More To Go
PatrickCML presents 2009 Traditional and Roth IRA Contribution Limits posted at Cash Money Life, saying, “2009 Traditional and Roth IRA Contribution Limits”
PatrickCML presents Quicken 2009 – $20 Discount Offer posted at Cash Money Life Deals, saying, “Quicken 2009 – $20 Discount Offer”
kathryn presents Basic Ideas for Balancing a Budget posted at Out of Debt Christian, saying, “Finances are one of the most difficult challenges that many of us face during our lives. It is no surprise (or maybe I should say it SHOULDN’T be a surprise) that the challenges double when we get married.”
Fitz Villafuerte presents 4 Things To Think About Before You Make Money From Your Hobby posted at Ready To Be Rich, saying, “Are you planning to make extra income from your hobby? Then better consider first these four points before you do.”
Joe Manausa presents January 2009 Housing Market Trends | Tallahassee Real Estate Blog posted at Tallahassee Real Estate Blog, saying, “The continuation of the three-year-old bear market in real estate has brought many people forward to comment on the condition of the real estate market. It seems for everybody with an opinion, there are an equal number of theories about where the housing market is going. So, not to be left out of the crowd……. I thought I would chime in with an (updated) opinion of my own.”
KCLau presents Best of KCLau’s Money Tips 2008 posted at KCLau’s Money Tips, saying, “A run down of the best KCLau’s Money Tips 2008″
Michael Haltman presents The Financial Crisis: Losing Your Job and Money May Not Be The Only Casualty [del.icio.us] posted at The Political and Financial Markets Commentator, saying, “”One mother in TriBeCa, who is married, at least for now, to a Wall Street executive, put it rather bluntly: “My job was to run the household and the children’s lives,” she said. “His job is to provide us with a nice lifestyle.” But his bonus has disappeared, and his annual pay has dropped to $150,000 from $800,000 a year. “Let me just say this,” she said, “I’m still doing my job.””
Roshawn Watson presents Thrift Paradox – Is Frugality Hurting Economy? posted at Watson Inc, saying, “Many “families hope their new found frugality will see them through the economic downturn. But this same thriftiness, embraced by families across the U.S., is also a major reason the downturn may not soon end”"
FIRE Getters presents Free Download – Microsoft Office Accounting Express 2009 posted at FIRE Finance.
J. Savings presents PS: Tell me I’m not the only bitter one in this crap economy!!! posted at Budgets are Sexy., saying, “Sure everything is crazy in today’s economy, but it’s important to hold tight and keep doing your thing!”
David Weliver presents What Feature is Most Important to You at Your Bank? posted at BankAround.
Scott Crawford presents 7 Tips on Student Debt Refinancing posted at DebtGoal, saying, “More students than ever are taking on alarmingly high levels of student and credit card debt to finance their educations. Learn how you can lower the costs of your student debt.”
PatrickCML presents How to File Your 2008 Federal Taxes For Free posted at Cash Money Life, saying, “How to File Your 2008 Federal Taxes For Free”
PatrickCML presents Free Tax Preparation for Military Members posted at Military Finance Network, saying, “Free Tax Preparation for Military Members”
I Promise We’re Close
Tushar Mathur presents Are You Doing The Most Important Thing to Get Rich posted at Everything Finance, saying, “Creating wealth is a long process, but it begins with one easy step. Before paying any bills, write yourself a check for as little as $25. If you do only one thing, this is more likely to make you wealthy than anything else. Paying yourself first is popular advice because it’s the most important step to becoming financially independent.”
Matthew Paulson presents Are You Getting the Most from Your Employee Benefits posted at American Consumer News.
Debt Freedom Fighter presents Why Reading a Credit Card Review is Important posted at Discover Debt Freedom!.
Savings Toolbox presents Stashing Cash at Home posted at Savings Toolbox.
Debt Free Destiny presents Marriage and Money Making it Work posted at Debt Free Destiny.
Destroy Debt presents 11 Wierd Ways to Use Coca Cola and Save Money posted at Destroy Debt.
Livingalmostlarge presents From rags to riches posted at LivingAlmostLarge.
Stingy Student presents Stingy Students: Free Sam’s Club membership posted at Stingy Students.
Debt Free Dave presents Circuit City Closing, Who’s Next? posted at Debt Free Earth, saying, “Yesterday came the announcement that surprised few: after being unable to find a buyer, Circuit City asked a bankruptcy judge to allow them to close their remaining 567 stores. They had already closed 155 stores in the past 2 months while attempting to find a buyer.”
kathryn presents Be a Better Bargainer posted at Out of Debt Christian, saying, “A 2007 Consumer Reports survey discovered that 61 percent of those polled had tried to get a bargain by haggling and more than 90 percent of them succeeded.”
nickel presents Your Flexible Spending Account (FSA) After a Layoff posted at fivecentnickel.com.
Michael Haltman presents Hail To The New Chief posted at The Political and Financial Markets Commentator, saying, “I am a Republican while many among us are Democrats or non-political. I follow the world and the goings on while some among us could care less. I voted for McCain while many other voted for Obama or did not vote at all. What does it all mean?”
Writers Coin presents Quitting Your 401(k): When is it OK? posted at The Writer’s Coin, saying, “We all know the wisdom of always funding our 401(k), but is it ever OK not to? To toss it away like a dirty rag? Sometimes…”
Thanks for all the good submissions!
Securities offered through LPL Financial, Member FINRA/SIPC
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
Thanks for the include!
Writer’s Coin’s last blog post..Illegal Downloads: Do You Do It?
Excellent! Thanks for hosting.
Patrick’s last blog post..Reusable Shopping Bags – Save the Earth and Your Wallet
Wow what a nice roundup! I wish I had more time to go over every article in detail. Thanks for the mention!
Studenomics’s last blog post..How the Weekends Could Make You Rich
Thanks for the roundup. I think it’s great to know that there are so many people taking time to write about important financial issues.
elementaryfinance’s last blog post..What is the Fed?