Articles by Amanda


New Walmart Price Match: What They Will and Won’t Match

Posted by Amanda on October 11, 2011

Is couponing apart of your dollar plan? It’s an integral part of ours. Walmart has a new price match policy that is bound to turn some heads, especially here in Houston where Kroger has recently stopped doubling and tripling coupons and many stores are no longer accepting coupons printed from home. In a nutshell, you […]

Continue reading…





Can Stores Set Minimum Credit Card Purchase Amounts?

Posted by Amanda on September 29, 2011

In the article 6 Reasons Why You Need to Carry Cash, I mentioned that only carrying around credit cards makes it a nuisance to make purchases from merchants who implement credit card minimum purchase requirements. In the comments section, multiple readers claimed that it is actually against the terms of service between credit card companies […]

Continue reading…





6 Reasons Why You Need to Carry Cash

Posted by Amanda on September 13, 2011

You all may remember when Madison hosted a writing contest here at My Dollar Plan in order to find staff writers for her site two years ago. I was one of the winners with my post The Automatic Poorhouse, where I detail how my husband and I self-inflict living paycheck to paycheck because I automate […]

Continue reading…





How Much Do Reality TV Stars Get Paid?

Posted by Amanda on September 6, 2011

Reality television covers almost every aspect of life now, from busting the rat infestation in New York City (fittingly named Rat Busters NYC) and Ghost Hunting on International Ground to following the dating lives of sub-celebs. They have even managed to cram cameras into hoarder’s homes to catch a glimpse of what it would be […]

Continue reading…





Credit Scores: VantageScore vs Fico

Posted by Amanda on August 29, 2011

Most people are very familiar with the three credit bureaus—Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion—either because they have taken a loan out, purchased a home, or know that they should be checking their credit reports from each of these agencies once a year. On top of these credit reports, there is the FICO score, which is your […]

Continue reading…





Surprises on Your Social Security Statement

Posted by Amanda on August 10, 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, […]

Continue reading…





A Confession: I Have a Status Symbol

Posted by Amanda on August 4, 2011

I 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 […]

Continue reading…





5 Weird Bankruptcies Declared During the Recession

Posted by Amanda on August 3, 2011

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 […]

Continue reading…





5 Free Resources for Start-Up Businesses

Posted by Amanda on July 27, 2011

Do you have a business idea that’s been nagging you for the last few years? According to the US Census Bureau, over 590,000 new start-up companies open their doors in the US each year. One of these could be yours. Small companies and businesses take a lot of time and energy. You have to be passionate, diligent, […]

Continue reading…





How Much Money Do You Spend on (Bad) Habits?

Posted by Amanda on July 18, 2011

There are basically two schools of thought in the financial community when it comes to saving money on purchases. One is to focus your efforts on saving money on the big purchases in your life, such as a home, a car, insurance, furniture, etc., and to not focus your attention on the everyday purchases. The […]

Continue reading…