Welcome to the 52nd edition of the Carnival of Retirement. Happy reading.

Michael Kitces @ Nerd’s Eye View writes What’s The Real Value Of Deferring Capital Gains? Less Than Most People Think… – We may be grossly overvaluing the actual benefit of deferring capital gains, and the unwillingness to harvest capital gains in retirement may be part of a broader tendency to allow the tax tail to wag the dog far more than it should!

Dividend Growth Investor @ Dividend Growth Investor writes Is Intel Corporation the Ultimate Value Trap for Investors? – Currently Intel is trading at 8.80 times earnings, yields 4.50% and has a sustainable distribution.

Michael @ Financial Ramblings writes Are My IRA Contributions Tax Deductible? – Curious if you’ll be able to deduct your IRA contributions?

Roger Wohlner @ The Chicago Financial Planner writes 5 Financial Resolutions for 2013 – The news is filled with stories about what happened in 2012 and with financial predictions for 2013. As I write this the pending Fiscal Cliff and Washington’s inability to reach a compromise also dominates the news.

SFB @ Simple Finance Blog writes 5 Cheap Ideas To Entertain Your Kids When School’s Out – When my kids are on school vacation, I tend to go a little insane. That’s why I’ve got a list of cheap ideas for keeping them busy when school’s out.

Ted Jenkin @ Your Smart Money Moves writes Should I Tip The Housekeeper? – It’s a big holiday week in the United States with many of you off to some vacation destination to spend time in sun and fun or skiing away from dawn until

Ashley @ Money Talks Coaching writes Tracking Your Spending Will Change Your Life – If I could close my eyes and make one change in everyone’s finances I know what it would be. It wouldn’t be to have everyone pay off their debt.

Eddie @ Finance Fox writes Are Money and Success the Same Thing? – No, money and success are not the same thing.People need to stop defining themselves by their money or what it can buy them. Money and success are not the same.

Barbara Friedberg @ Barbara Friedberg Personal Finance writes What Is Wealth? – Can you get rich and still buy what you want? Yes. Find out how.

TDB @ Tax Deduction Blog writes Master the Tax Credit Maze: A Short Primer on Child Tax Credits – What is a qualifying child in terms of the child tax credit? How do you figure out if your child qualifies? The answer is surprisingly simple.

Invest It Wisely @ Invest It Wisely writes Happy Holidays – So, if the world hasn’t ended and this post goes live… Happy Holidays!

CAPI @ Creating a Passive Income writes Passive Income: So, You’ve Won the Lottery?! – If you win the lottery, you need to know what to do with it. Poor financial planning has ruined many previous winners, so don’t let this happen to you.

Kyle @ The Penny Hoarder writes 4 Ways Plow Your Way Out of Debt – If you find yourself deep in debt, you may feel hopeless, but know that you have the tools to get yourself out of debt and recover financially. Here are some steps to follow that can help you get out of debt quickly:

Corey @ 20s Finances writes It’s OK Not To Go To College – Going to college may not be necessary to get a good job. Find out if going to college is right for you.

Jon the Saver @ Free Money Wisdom writes Should You Relocate to Find a Job? – There are some great reasons to relocate and some really really bad ones. Make the move wisely and lessen the burden on your finances.

Suba @ Broke Professionals writes Yes Virginia, You Can Change Your Own Oil – Perhaps it is just me, but it seems that a lot of us no longer do any type of maintenance on our own cars anymore – especially us girls!

A Blinkin @ Funancials writes Where Will You Be When The Bond Bubble Bursts? – Over the last 30 years (since about 1980), interest rates have declined steadily. The inverse relationship between interest rates and bond prices means that – as interest rates fall, bond prices rise. This also means that – as interest rates rise, bond prices fall.

Christopher @ This That and the MBA writes How To Sell on Craigslist and Do It Successfully – These tips will help you receive high bids and top dollars for the items that you sell on craigslist.

PPlan @ Provident Plan writes Do you want to pay off your debt faster? – We currently have a little over $30,000 in student loans and a mortgage that sits at around $110,000 to pay for which we are working on eliminating.

Maria @ The Money Principle writes The Best of The Money Principle 2012 – The Money Principle – The Best of The Money Principle 2012Couple of days ago I was casually browsing the internet; one of these sessions when you have no purpose and keep your expectations low – this way you won’t be disappointed when most of what you come across ranges from the trivial to the absurd.

Sustainable PF @ Sustainable Personal Finance writes Why Solar Power Rocks – Solar energy has become one of the most popular alternative methods for providing power to a home.

James @ Free in Ten Years writes The hidden psychological stress of work and why I want out – Working is bad for your mental health if you work in a bad working environment. Most people do. Opt out by planning for an early retirement.

Wayne @ Young Family Finance writes My New Years Resolutions – While some people may hate new years resolutions, I have come to enjoy them. In the past two years, my wife and I have accomplished a lot more because of resolutions or goals, if that’s the term that you prefer to use.

Tushar @ Earn More and Save writes Unconventional Investment Series: Investing in Art – This week’s Earn More and Save -Unconventional Investment Series- covers investing in art.

Buck Inspire @ Buck Inspire writes Avoid Finance Charges, Use AutoPay! – We work so hard for our income. Don’t let finance charges from not paying your bills on time eat away at your savings. Setup AutoPay in a minute and don’t worry about it again.

Everything Finance @ Everything Finance Blog writes Save Money on Car Insurance by Shopping Around – For a savings of more than $300 a year, of course I was going to change our car insurance! Do not feel the need to be loyal to your car insurance company. To them, you are just a number.

Daniel @ Sweating the Big Stuff writes The Most Powerful Moves to Make With Your Money in Your 20s – Ah you got to love being in your 20s. Life is amazing. You can get away with anything….

Penny Thots @ Penny Thots writes Gaming the Foreclosure Process – Recently during my travels, I visited Florida which is one of the worst hit areas of the housing bust. The law in Florida is a bit different than other states. In Florida, every foreclosure has to go through the court to be approved.

Peter @ Bible Money Matters writes Who Will Be Affected by the Fiscal Cliff? – For most people I don’t think they really understand what is being talked about. It’s an abstract concept being talked about in Washington D.C. by politicians that doesn’t really affect their lives.

Don @ MoneySmartGuides writes 5 Ways to Waste Money This Holiday Season – The holiday season is here again and the time has come to fly off to your favorite destination, do the things you have always dreamt of doing, see the places that you have dreamt of seeing, eat the foods that you have wanted to taste, meet interesting people you have never met before and maybe fall in love if you are still single.

Evan @ My Journey to Millions writes How Did I Do with My 2012 Goals and Objectives? – In almost every “goal” post for 4 years I have talked about taking better care of myself. Then in the review posts (including this one below lol) I have failed. Notwithstanding, lets see how I did on everything.

Passive Income Earner @ The Passive Income Earner writes A Short Story about the Gold Bullion – Gold Bullion is a symbolization of the majority of gold available in the market place. Buying and selling of gold bullion can be done in the form of gold coins, gold bars or ingots.

Ryan @ Early Retirement Investments writes When Can You Eliminate Private Mortgage Insurance? – Hate PMI, don’t know what it is? Read more on when you can eliminate it!

Joe @ Midlife Finance writes Getting A Loan: Fast – Money’s short. Too short, in fact — you have a payment coming due. Where can you come up with the money — fast?

Joe @ Retire By 40 writes A Little Active Income Goes A Long Way In Early Retirement – While passive income is good, you’ll most likely have to get creative if you want to retire by 40. Most people won’t be able to generate enough passive income by this age so it’s good to generate some active income to bridge the gap to full retirement.

NoTrustFund @ Where’s My Trust Fund writes A Spending Cleanse – Detox your spending in the new year.

krantcents @ KrantCents writes Progress Is Never a Straight Line! – Progress is forward movement toward a destination or goal. In education, changes are made often and the results are mixed! Have test scores increased from the changes? If they did, that would be progress.

Corey @ Steadfast Finances writes What You Need To Know About Debt Relief – Being in debt can be incredibly stressful. The logistics of just trying to remember who you owe money to and when you have to pay them are enough to drive you crazy, but on top of that you have to deal with all of the uncertainty, fear, sacrifices, and damaged relationships.

Hank @ Money Q&A writes What Should You Do With Your Unwanted Gift Cards – What should you do with unwanted gift cards? there are several alternatives that you can use to get rid of those unwanted gift cards and either earn cash or exchange them for gift cards that you do want.

Debt Guru @ Debt Free Blog writes Best Financial Practices for an Organization – In the past month, I have slowly adjusted to working a new job at a non-profit. I am currently working in Operations for a small organization and so it means that I am in charge of any and all of the day-to-day items. This includes both website maintenance and also the finances.

Roger the Amateur Financier @ The Amateur Financier writes Five Quick, Easy, and (Relatively) Inexpensive Gift Ideas – It’s almost here! Yes, Christmas comes tomorrow, the day that many of us (particularly those of us who are under age twelve) wait for all year.

Tushar @ Finance TUBE writes Why It Makes Sense to Convert Annuities into Cash? – Today I will be talking about why it makes sense to convert annuities into lump sum of cash. The easiest way to understand an annuity is to think of insurance in reverse.

MR @ Money Reasons writes Year End Investment Portfolio Analysis – Read how well my accounts have done during these past 4 years with my Year End Portfolio Analysis calculation! Personally, I was pleasantly surprised!

Aloysa @ My Broken Coin writes A Wacky Way to Create a New Career – Still, that game and reality show contestants are household names can help you launch a new career–if you win big.

Jeff Rose @ Good Financial Cents writes Retirement Planning Checklist – If you are approaching retirement do you know if you are ready? Do you have the funds saved that you will need?

Tushar @ Start Investing Money writes Tips for Choosing High Yield Mutual Funds – If you are considering investing some cash in mutual funds, it makes sense that you’d want to invest in the best ones you can find. So called high yield funds are the best ones to look for, since they provide you with the opportunity to enjoy the highest possible yield you can.

CF @ The Outlier Model writes Net Worth Update: January 2013 – Tracking your net worth is the best measure of financial success. It doesn’t tell you when you’ll be financially independent, but it is a great marker of overall financial health. Here’s where we stand at the beginning of 2013.

Jason @ Work Save Live writes Harley Davidson(R) Visa Credit Card Review – The Harley Davidson credit card boasts great rewards, Visa Signature perks, and no annual fee.

Crystal @ Budgeting in the Fun Stuff writes Settling in at Home – Pictures as Promised – After some requests, here are some new photos of our house and some pictures of me as a Chick-Fil-A mascot cow.

John S @ Frugal Rules writes First Steps to Investing in the Stock Market – Just starting to invest in the stock market can be a daunting task for many. But, with a few simple guidelines you can get started on the road to investing for your future.

Investor Junkie @ Investor Junkie writes Have You Created Your Financial Goals Yet? – The question I have for you – have you created your financial goals? You see it’s been shown time and time again that setting goals is critical to get to where you want to go. It’s almost something magical, or perhaps your subconscious takes over when you make your goals conscious.

Deacon @ Well Kept Wallet writes Top 10 New Years Resolutions for 2013 – According to a study by the University of Scranton’s Journal of Clinical Psychology, 34% of people make New Year’s resolutions that are money related. In fact, this is a 4% increase from the previous year.

Miss T. @ Prairie Eco Thrifter writes How to Prevent Three Common Disastrous Personal Finance Mistakes – Let’s look at the most common personal finance mistakes and what you can do to prevent or fix them. On their own, they may not seem too major but if you are guilty of more than one, you are seriously affecting your financial security.

Michelle @ The Shop My Closet Project writes Minus $330-What a way to start the New Year – I think it was New Years Eve 2006. Things were not going well. I was suffering from a lack of passion encompassing basically everything.

Jason @ Live Real Now writes Net Worth Update – Here is my net worth update, along with the progress we made over the course of 2012.

Lazy Man @ Lazy Man and Money writes Thoughts on the Fiscal Cliff “Solution” – A few weeks ago, I relented and wrote about this fiscal cliff thing and I’m going to do today. I have four main areas that I’d like to cover with regard to the fiscal cliff:

Jennifer Lynn @ Broke-Ass Mommy writes December Distractions & Frustrations. – Noticeably I have been absent this week, and the third “Hi, are you dead?” type of email just popped into my inbox. I am fine, my zexy kittens. It just has been a frenetic, nutsy type of week.

Little House @ Little House in the Valley writes Davis Was a Disappointment but Fulsom Was a Fave – I finally made it out to the Sacramento/Davis area and checked out a few towns I had on my list. To back track a bit, Mr. LH and I have been toying with the idea of moving to Northern California from Southern California.

Bank Free Credit @ Bank Free Credit writes What Is a Good Credit Score? – When most people ask themselves, what is a good credit score? They are unsure, as it depends on what the credit score is needed for. Whether it be a house, a car loan, or just to qualify for a basic credit card.

Daisy @ Add Vodka writes Getting Back On Track With Goals – Having success in past years with my goals, this year I am going at my 2013 goals with new vigor.

Luke @ Learn Bonds writes Yield to Call – What it is and how It Works – In this article we discuss yield to call, how it works, and how yield to call is different from yield to maturity.

Jeremy @ Modest Money writes Cutting Recurring Costs to Save Money – Recurring monthly costs can add up quickly without you noticing. They can chip in to your income, leaving you with less to squirrel away for a rainy day!

Girl Meets Debt @ Girl Meets Debt writes Cheap Date Ideas – The ideas that I am going to suggest are not going to be new, earth-shaking creative, but I can promise that they are all going to be fun and might even impress your significant other for suggesting something that is easy on his (or her) pocket.

Philip @ PT Money Personal Finance writes 2012 (and 2013) Federal Income Tax Brackets: What Is My Tax Bracket? – We break down the current (and proposed) tax brackets in an effort to help you plan for your upcoming taxes.

Dustin Small @ Stockodo writes A Buy and Hold Approach to Value Investing – My usual approach to investing is to take a very hands-on approach to managing position size and exit strategy.