Nov

9

Cheapest colleges: 13 good schools under $5,000 a year

November 9, 2009 | Leave a Comment

College will kill your bank account, no question. So you might want to look at some good colleges that also happen to be cheap. If you have a high school child it's time to start planning.
According to the College Board, the average college tuition in the United States is $26,273. That's up more than 4% [...]

Aug

28

Toys ‘R’ Us launches "cash for cribs"

August 28, 2009 | Leave a Comment

Baby products are being recalled left and right. Now Toys "R" Us is offering a financial incentive to parents to trade in used cribs, bassinets, play yards, car seats etc. Fewer than 30% of recalled baby items are actually turned in. So many unsafe baby items are still being used. Toys R Us wants to [...]

Oct

30

The Right Time To Save Money

October 30, 2008 | 3 Comments

So the economy has taken a down turn.  You've decided you might need to start saving some money.  Well, it's too late.  You should have been saving five years ago.  But there's hope.
There's a Chinese proverb about the best time to plant a tree.
The best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago.
The second [...]

Jul

7

Moving My Money Away From Prosper

July 7, 2008 | 1 Comment

I just transferred my current balance out of Prosper.com.  I know they've made some changes recently but I'm not going to bid on new loans.  It's just way too risky.
I've posted about my experience with Prosper.com in previous articles.  Here's an index of my articles on prosper.com.

Peer to Peer Lending with Prosper Et Al.
What is [...]

Jun

27

Searching for a Safe Short Term High Yield Investment

June 27, 2008 | Leave a Comment

A couple years ago, online savings accounts were paying over 5% interest.  Now interest rates have dropped slightly and are just starting to recover.  I have short term money that I want to keep liquid, yet I also want a decent return on investment.  What do I do now?
In 2006 high interest online savings accounts [...]

Jun

10

6 Ways to Spend Your Stimulus Money

June 10, 2008 | Leave a Comment

By now a majority of Americans have received their stimulus payments from the IRS.  If you're wondering what to do with that money, I have some suggestions.

Start an Emergency Fund.
Everybody needs an emergency fund.  Dave Ramsey recommends at least $1,000 until you pay off your debts then you need 3 to 6 months of income.  [...]

Apr

9

Lending Money on Prosper: My Results

April 9, 2008 | 9 Comments

This is the 4th post in a series of articles about Prosper.com. Prosper is a person to person lending site with an auction format similar to EBay. I’ve been lending money on Prosper for awhile. In this article I’ll write about my results.
In my previous articles, I’ve discussed how Prosper.com works and the risks [...]

Mar

9

Can You Afford a Tire?

March 9, 2008 | 2 Comments

What kind of financial shape are you in? Can you afford a large automobile repair bill or even a set of new tires right now? Do you have the money for single new tire?
Last night my wife called me and told me the car was telling her to check the tire pressure. [...]

Feb

23

Online Savings Accounts: HSBC vs ING

February 23, 2008 | 3 Comments

Everyone should have a little cash stashed away for a rainy day. After all you never know when an emergency is going to come up. I first starting saving online many years ago with ING Direct. I really liked ING and their website is great. I liked them so much I [...]