Obviously, it’s already a long week with the market swinging wildly each day: back to back stock market slides, a rally, another slide, another rally, and another slide. And based on the way investors are reacting to every piece of news lately, it seems likely that the volatility will continue for awhile. Some people have […]
Archive for August, 2011
I have recently taken a lot of interest in our annual Social Security Estimated Benefits statements we receive around our birthdays each year. For one, it’s exciting to keep a rolling tally of how much I have earned, and to (hopefully) see my earnings to continue to increase. Also, it’s nice to see a tangible, […]
Getting out of debt is not an easy task – first, you have to make the commitment to stop incurring new debt. Then, you need to create a plan to pay off existing debts in some logical order. This all assumes that you have the income to cover your expenses, and the willpower to keep […]
46.4% of Households Will Pay No Federal Income Tax for 2011 In 2011, almost half of the households won’t pay any federal income tax. This chart strictly reflects federal income tax; it excludes states taxes and payroll taxes, including social security taxes. In addition, it’s people legally paying zero income tax, not those who aren’t […]
Continental 40,000 Mile Sign Up Bonus
Posted byThe travel deals continue, this time with a Free Money Friday offer from Continental and Chase. This is very similar to our United deal from last week, except that this one is a limited time offer. How to Get Your 40k Miles Apply for the Continental OnePass Plus Card. Earn 25,000 bonus miles after first […]
A Confession: I Have a Status Symbol
Posted byI have been called out by one of my readers before (in a very polite way), who inquired as to why I am still on a monthly contract cell phone plan. He/she sent me a great email detailing their own pay-as-you-go plan, the perks of it, as well as the financial benefits and savings that […]
When I think of bankruptcy I generally think of people declaring it. This could be for any number of reasons, such as large medical bills, poor financial decisions, losing work and being unable to find more, etc. With the recession, bankruptcy filings have increased with some very interesting cases popping up in the news. Because […]
Which $500 Sign Up Bonus Should You Get?
Posted byWe were hit with a landslide of huge credit card sign up bonuses lately. And while I think it’s fun to apply for all of them at the same time, I realize some readers want to pick just one: the best one. But which one is the best? Obviously, picking the card with the largest […]
7 Back To School Savings Tips
Posted byI can’t believe that July is over! I keep telling people I “just” moved back to Texas, but it’s actually been over two months. I had big plans for this summer, and I’m sad to say that lots of them just didn’t get done. As we enter fall, I’m going to try to be better […]