Carnival of Financial Planning 12/7/12

PF Carny

Welcome to the December 7th, 2012 edition of the Carnival of Financial Planning. Hopefully, you just put on a fresh pot of coffee, because there are a ton of great reads this week.

Consult with an accountant or financial planner with a tax llm before pursuing any major financial decisions.

BUDGETING AND ECONOMICS

James @ Free in Ten Years writes December challenge: Save Hot Water – In December I’m going to only shower with cold water in a crazy attempt to reduce my hot water consumption. I’m not sure I’ll last more than a single say, but it will save a heap of water and electricity.

Steve @ Ready To Quit My Job! writes Why You NEED to Quit Your Job RIGHT NOW! – The days are gone forever where you went to college, got a job that was not personally rewarding, worked at the same place for 40 years, retired and then got bored, depressed and finally died. You NEED to QUIT YOUR JOB, and start living life on your own terms.

Michael Kitces @ Nerd’s Eye View writes Why Being Invested In Bonds At Today’s Rates May Be Entirely Rational After All – As money continues flowing from stocks to bonds – despite sky-high bond prices and their associated ultra-low interest rates – there is increasing concern that investors may soon be blind-sided by at best a savage bond bear market, and at worst a bond bubble that pops. But are investors really buying into bonds because they’re bullish on bonds, or because they’re bearish on stocks with few appealing alternatives?

Carrie @ PT Money Personal Finance writes Christmas Shopping Debt Traps: No Interest Offers, Store Credit Cards, and Impulse Buys – The temptation to accumulate more debt at Christmastime is great, but if you’re careful with how you approach the season, you’ll see there are traps you can avoid.

Jacob @ My Personal Finance Journey @ My Personal Finance Journey writes Do You Really Need X to Live? – How many of the things on our monthly budget are really must-haves? This post addresses five things that may be on your list that you may not need after all, saving you a lot more time and money.

Jester @ The Ultimate Juggle writes Secrets To Santa’s Success – In my recent interview with Santa, he revealed to me the elements that makes him a huge success.

James Petzke @ This Is Common Cents writes The Only Real Get Rich Scheme – If you follow a simple two step plan, you’ll find that you will build wealth no matter what.

Rohit @ The Money Mail writes Simple Budget Template – Making a budget can be a lengthy and boring process. Use this new simple budget template that is easy to modify. Just plug in the numbers and you have a simple budget ready for your use.

Mike @ Experiglot writes The Formula For Saving Money in Your 20s – The simple way to save money.

Mike @ The Financial Blogger writes Is My Online Gig a Company or a Sideline? – Are you growing your business?

Roger the Amateur Financier @ The Amateur Financier writes Eight Ways to Save During the Holidays – Eight suggestions for how you can keep your costs to a minimum during the holidays, while still have a great time and giving out plenty of presents.

Amanda L Grossman @ Frugal Confessions writes Hidden Fees Make Rental Car Quotes Bogus – I have rented a car three times in my life. The first was on a memorable first business trip to Fargo when I was 23 (a difficult feat, as rental companies get

PPlan @ Provident Plan writes Preparing for an Emergency – As many of you know, Hurricane Sandy hit the north east a few weeks ago.

Miss T. @ Prairie Eco Thrifter writes How Controlling Holiday Spending Is Like Controlling Your Holiday Weight Gain – Many of us take no steps to control holiday spending and are surprised and dismayed when the bill comes in January. It is typical for American’s to gain a pound during the holidays, BUT THEN WE NEVER LOSE IT. Just for fun, today we’ll show how controlling spending and controlling weight gain are similar.

Little House @ Little House in the Valley writes Finding 30% in the Big City – Apparently I shouldn’t be spending more than 30% on my housing needs, but that’s a hard figure to find in the big city.

Young @ Young And Thrifty writes How The Canadian Banks’ Spending Spree Affects You – The recent headlines that smack of patriotic pride concerning Canadian banks buying up distressed financial assets in the USA over the past few months have been interesting to say the least. I don’t know a heck of a lot about corporate finances at the highest levels, or even what metrics these guys are using in order to gauge if these acquisitions make sense or not. Anecdotally though, as a Canadian citizen, I think I should be interested, and possibly even concerned about these goings on…

 

CAREER AND INCOME

Robert @ Entrepreneurship Life writes Online Tools For Tracking Your Client List – Cool online tools to help you with your business.

SFB @ Simple Finance Blog writes The 4 Most Popular Ways To Save For Your Child’s College Education – This article will discuss four ways to invest and save for your children’s college education. These strategies include 401k, ROTH IRA, 529 plans, & ESA.

Invest It Wisely @ Invest It Wisely writes Weekend Reading, November 2012 Edition – Weekend reading edition, I hope you enjoy!

Martin @ Studenomics writes You Think You Can’t Make Money Online? Read This – An interesting case study worth sharing.

Ashley @ Money Talks Coaching writes Job Transition – My family is going through a small job transition right now. If there is such a thing. My husband’s company got bought out by another company.

MD @ Start Freelancing Now writes What I Would Do if I Started Freelancing Today – How you can start freelancing if you’re clueless today.

Eddie @ Finance Fox writes What was Your First Job? What Did You Take Away From It? – What was your first job? What did you learn from your first job? Here’s my story on my fist job and hopefully you can share a story on your first job.

CAPI @ Creating a Passive Income writes Passive Income: Cashing in on Publishing Royalties – Find out how to generate passive income buy publishing writing.

 

DEBT AND CREDIT

Lou Rodriguez @ The Amateur Consumer writes Top 10 Reasons Why Credit Is Not Your Friend – In this post, I go over my top 10 reasons why credit is not your friend forged primarily from my very own experiences.

Buck Inspire @ Buck Inspire writes Credit Score Improves Loan Shopping Confidence – When you prepare to make a big ticket purchase like a car or a new home, make sure you go in knowing your credit score. You will be better prepared, more confident, and have more options in making the biggest financial decisions of your life.

Jon the Saver @ Free Money Wisdom writes How To Pay Your Credit Card Off Faster – Paying off a credit card is not fun. In fact, it can be quite painful! Don’t let it hinder your future, take these steps to conquer your debts!

Jason @ Work Save Live writes Secured and Bad Credit Cards – Whether you are looking to build credit for the first time, or you have bad or fair credit, it is difficult to find a company that will agree to loan you money. Fortunately, there are specific bad credit credit cards that have been created to help in these situations.

Don @ MoneySmartGuides writes Ways to Get a Personal Loan – I recently posted an article about things you should know before borrowing money.

 

INVESTING AND SAVING

Dividend Growth Investor @ Dividend Growth Investor writes Why dividend investors should never touch principal – As an income investor I focus on dividend stocks which regularly raise distributions. This ensures that my income keeps its purchasing power over time.

Robert @ The College Investor writes How Would You Like To Design Your Own Bank Account? – Know more about banking by Design

Jeff Rose @ Good Financial Cents writes 403b vs. 401k: What’s the Difference? – When people are first hired into a full-time job and some part-time positions, they get handed a variety of paperwork and decisions they have to make right away as a new employee. Among those items is the establishment of a company retirement account for their potential retirement savings from earnings.

John @ Fearless Men writes Compounding Interest 101 | First Step to Financial Security – Indepth and easy read on compounding interest and why it’s important to start investing now.

John @ Frugal Rules writes 5 Frugal Ways to Start Investing Now – Investing in the stock market can be intimidating for many, but it does not have to be. With a little education and setting a plan you can invest in the stock market and not have to spend lots of money doing it.

Roger Wohlner @ The Chicago Financial Planner writes 4 Retirement Savings Steps to Take Now – For those of you saving for retirement here are four timely and timeless tips.

Ryan @ Early Retirement Investments writes 3 Ways to Enjoy Your Retirement Online – Here are three ways to enjoy your retirement online.

Hank @ Money Q&A writes Should You Work For Yourself? Things You Should Consider – Should you work for yourself? There are many things that you must consider before you make that leap. There are questions that you need to ask yourself before you go.

A Blinkin @ Funancials writes How Are You Affected by the Mortgage Interest Tax Deduction? – Interest deductions, in general, began in 1913. At this time, the majority of Americans paid upfront for their homes rather than financing so the deduction wasn’t highly utilized. The deduction, which included interest paid on personal loans and credit cards, was later revised in 1986 to exclude these items.

Corey @ Steadfast Finances writes Best Holiday Gift Ideas – Find out why giving experiences as gifts is the better alternative to buying lots of stuff this holiday season.

Mike @ Personal Finance Journey writes Four great ideas to use a Big Screen for an Autumn Festival or Company Function – Four great ideas to take advantage of Autumn weather, keep the kids entertained or plan your Company Function in a fun unique way.

Luke @ Learn Bonds writes Investing in International Bonds – I would like to mention a few ETFs worth exploring if you plan to venture into the world of investing in international bonds.

Daniel @ Sweating the Big Stuff writes 5 Things We Need To Buy, But Hate To Spend Money On – There are things that just about everyone spends money on, whether we like to or not. Here are the 5 worst offenders in my book.

Pete @ Intelligent Speculator writes What Does It Take To Be A Great Investor? – Are you trying to become a great investor?

Michelle @ The Shop My Closet Project writes Whole Paycheck-Buying groceries without breaking the bank – In this fast paced life we live, it is easy to throw a meal in the microwave take it out and that’s it. Quick, fast, and easy. For me this isn’t an option. Why? Because I live to eat. I don’t eat to live. But I don’t want to go broke going to the grocery store.

Andrew @ 101 Centavos writes Be A Modern Magician – To be a modern magician, there are no requirements for pointy hats or chanting incantations of arcane magical lore. Just spend some time on Investopedia, pore through a couple of investing tomes (preferably Benjamin Graham’s Intelligent Investor), and prepare to let concepts such as debt-to-equity ratios, free cash flow, and EBITDA seep into your noggin.

Kyle @ The Penny Hoarder writes Know Your Options in a Financial Emergency – You’re going to need some money, and sometimes that need can come up at the worst possible time. All across North America and Canada families find themselves short of cash with days or even weeks to go before the next paycheck comes in.

Sustainable PF @ Sustainable Personal Finance writes Australia’s Most Sustainable Cities – Although visitors are drawn to Australia for its natural beauty and stunning array of wildlife, the majority of its residents live in urban areas. Nearly 90% of its residents live in cities, mainly along the coastlines of this massive country.

krantcents @ KrantCents writes How to Shop for the Holidays – Have you started to shop for the holidays? Here we are again, the holidays are here and the day after Thanksgiving is the official opening of the season. A couple retail stores are talking about starting on Thanksgiving. This confirms we are a consumer oriented country! I know some of you have started already.

IMB @ Investing Money writes Keeping Management Fees Low – Find out what fees you can expect and how to keep management fees to a minimum.

Ted Jenkin @ Your Smart Money Moves writes Should You Pay Off Your Mortgage? – One of the more difficult questions that I get from both younger and older people alike is whether or not it is a good idea to pay off their mortgage.

Passive Income Earner @ The Passive Income Earner writes Dividend Stock Analysis: Canadian National Resources (CNQ) – Dividend stock analysis of Canadian National Resources (CNQ)

Crystal @ Budgeting in the Fun Stuff writes Unprepared – I like to think of myself as being financially knowledgeable. But we are unprepared.

Rich @ Growing Money Smart writes Afraid of Success – Every think about why you are not rich, or why you’re not trying to make more money? Perhaps you are afraid of success? Read how to overcome this fear.

MR @ Money Reasons writes An iPad Mini For Christmas – Why and iPad mini for Christmas? This article is why I’m buying my daughter an iPad mini for Christmas but not one for myself.

Corey @ 20s Finances writes The Potential of Green Technology – The future of green technology seems to be in sustainable energy systems that is privately owned and operated. Learn more about my creative idea.

Daisy @ Add Vodka writes Just Add Beer – Many Uses For Beer (Other Than Drinking) – Read about the other fascinating uses for beer other than just consumption.

Tushar @ Start Investing Money writes What Are the Top 5 Commodities Exchanges? – Just as stocks and shares are traded on the stock exchange, so commodities are traded on a commodities exchange. Commodities may be viewed as tangible items, mainly those that are derived from agriculture.

harry campbell @ Your Personal Finance Pro writes A Review of My Experience With Car2go San Diego: A Car Sharing Service – Although Car2go hasn’t reached every major city yet, there is probably some type of car sharing service available in your local metropolitan. Whether it’s Zipcar or some other service, the idea of car sharing has really taken off over the past couple years. I’m pretty intrigued by the whole idea because less cars on the road is better for the environment and traffic congestion. This is pretty important for a city like San Diego with millions of people and no viable public transportation

Jennifer Lynn @ Broke-Ass Mommy writes Festively A Minimalist – Being a minimalist is great! Read why

Kanwal @ Simply Investing writes Do You Think Investing is Easy? – You don’t earn more if you have the higher IQ, nor do you need to be a math genius to make money.

Suba @ Broke Professionals writes In Today’s Workplace, Is There A New Normal? – I’ve never had an average workday, but now that I freelance, I don’t have a traditional workplace either. I’m not the only one. Is this the new normal?

Deacon @ Well Kept Wallet writes Get Cash Back Using a Debit Card – Most people don’t realize that they can get cash back by using a debit card. Every day people make purchases with their debit card and never get anything in return. That is about to change. There is a bank called Perkstreet where you can get up to 2% cash back on your purchases. Kim and I have been using it for about two months and love it.

Megan Russell @ Kittenomics writes Financially Savvy Kittens on Gifts to Charity – This kitten gifts appreciated stock. Be more like this kitten.

Josh Thompson @ Becoming Your Own Bank writes Alternative Investments – Alternative investments to stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and government sponsored plans.

 

RISK MANAGEMENT AND INSURANCE

John @ Wallet Blog writes Are Banks Making You Sign Away Your Rights? – Big banks include mandatory arbitration clauses in checking account agreements and the statistics speak for themselves. It’s obvious that making consumers sign away their rights is a costly and legally-dubious practice toward consumers.

Joe @ Midlife Finance writes Ten Tips for Getting There & Back Safely – There is always the possibility that Something Will Happen on the way there — or back. Here are ten things you can do ahead of time that will help you travel easier.

Kevin @ BryanMaltier.com writes Best, Cheap Car Insurance Quotes – Car insurance is mandatory in the United States and most people don’t understand their coverage or how to get lower rates. With the help an expert, we discuss the factors that affect premiums and how you can get cheap auto insurance.

Maria @ The Money Principle writes Top Errors People Make When Looking For Car Insurance – Loyalty is a great thing but not when looking for car insurance. Be informed, ready to switch and truthful to come top trumps in car insurance.

Bryan @ Gajizmo.com writes Types of Insurance Policies For Homeowners – Consumers are well-aware of auto, health, life, and home insurance, but what about the other, less common types of insurance most Americans use at some point? We cover the importance of title, mortgage, liability, umbrella, earthquake, and flood insurance.

 

REAL ESTATE AND PROPERTY

Miranda @ Wallet Hub writes Are Banks Making You Sign Away Your Rights? – For some borrowers, saving for the required down payment on a home can be difficult. However, there are programs out there that allow you to receive down payment assistance.

FMF @ Free Money Finance writes Real Estate 101: Managing The Property – Once you find a tenant the only task remaining is to manage the day-to-day operations of the property. This involves collecting rent, dealing with late or unpaid rent potentially leading to evictions, as well as handling the repairs and maintenance needed for a property. This area is one that often causes a sense of fear or lack of confidence among prospective investors. How does one effectively manage the property to deal with these issues? I am going to answer 4 questions that I hope will…

Teacher Man @ My University Money writes Get Your Parents To Buy You a House! – To most parents, buying a house for their 18-20 year old son or daughter to manage as a rental property as they go through school seems like a …

 

RETIREMENT AND TAXATION

J.P. @ Novel Investor writes How To Find Your Modified Adjusted Gross Income – Your modified adjusted gross income or MAGI is used to determine your eligibility on a number of things. Here’s how to figure it out.

Robert @ My Multiple Income writes 3 Steps Towards Retirement Planning – There are numerous things that you should be trying to do to plan for your retirement.

TDB @ Tax Deduction Blog writes How to Get the Most Out of Your Flexible Spending Account – Check out this article for tips and tricks on how to get the most bang for your buck with your flexible spending account before it’s too late.

Lance @ Money Life and More writes 2013 Standard Mileage Rates Announced by IRS – The IRS has released the new standard mileage rates for 2013 that many companies use to reimburse you for business miles driven on your personal vehicles.

About Jen Perkins

Likes: saving money, being debt free (aside from our house), zombies, travel, getting money, blogging and dogs. Dislikes: debt, being broke, bunnies, wasting money, not having enough money to travel the world and paying interest. Facebook  ♥  Twitter  ♥  Google+  ♥  RSS

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Carnival of Financial Planning 12/7/12 — 26 Comments