Dow Breaks 10,000, Investing, and Credit

Posted by Madison on October 15, 2009

Wouldn’t you know it, the day the Dow decides to cross 10,000, I have a chunk of money sitting on the sidelines. It wasn’t intentional, as I don’t believe in timing the market; it was the result of moving some money around. I was moving our solo 401k from Fidelity to Vanguard. At the same […]

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DirecTV at Two Houses, Real Estate, and Investing

Posted by Madison on October 8, 2009

Did you know you can get DirecTV at two houses on the same account? Crazy. I took the two little kids for a weekend visit to Michigan. My grandma used to live there; after she passed away last year, my extended family now uses it for vacations. My uncle, who was visiting from California, had […]

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Did Mortgage Rates Just Hit Rock Bottom?

Posted by Madison on September 30, 2009

I had to rearrange my schedule today. I subscribe to the rate watch at Pentagon Federal and they sent me an email that the 5/5 ARM rate had dropped to 4.0% with no points. And it’s a jumbo! Are you kidding? Is it April Fool’s Day? Whatever the reason, I had to drop everything and […]

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Fidelity Sucks, Credit, and Investing

Posted by Madison on September 24, 2009

Before diving into the personal finance articles of the week, I usually write about a quick personal finance topic that I’m engaged in for the week. However, as I was writing about my difficulties dealing with Fidelity today, I got a little long winded…. obviously I’m really mad! So, we’ll just jump right into the […]

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MonaVie Trying to Sue, Retirement, and Debt

Posted by Madison on September 17, 2009

This week, I’ve been busy following the legal developments for a fellow writer and friend of mine. You know him as Lazy Man of Lazy Man and Money. Awhile back he asked if MonaVie is a Scam? His wife was recruited to sell the juice blend, which runs around $40 a week, and is part […]

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Starting a New Business, Debt, and Retirement

Posted by Madison on September 10, 2009

When I used to work in the corporate world, I spent an hour commuting each day. I didn’t especially like living across town from my office, but looking back, it was probably the most valuable hour of my day. I used to brainstorm various ways to move around money to maximize retirement planning options, tax […]

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Lending Club is Giving Away $2500

Posted by Madison on September 3, 2009

Lending Club is closing in on a big milestone soon… their 25,000th investor. To celebrate, they are giving away $2500 cash to the 25,000th investor! If you haven’t signed up for a Lending Club account, you might as well do so for your chance to get the cash. Just open an account by September 30, […]

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Finance in Schools, Investing, and Credit

Posted by Madison on August 27, 2009

A close friend of mine just told me that she got a position teaching personal finance at one of the local universities this semester. Not only was I excited for her, but I was really excited for the students. I just wish that all the students would be required to take the class instead of […]

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Vacation, Savings, and Investing

Posted by Madison on August 20, 2009

Hopefully, while you’re reading this, we’re successfully heading south. It’s our first vacation by car with three kids in tow. Wish us luck… we’ll probably need it! While we are out boating and enjoying the houseboat capital of the world you’ll be in good hands. As we travel, you’ll begin to see articles by some […]

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Back to School, Investing, and Credit Cards

Posted by Madison on August 13, 2009

It’s that time of year again… back to school! Luckily, we have a law here that school can’t start until September (to protect the tourism industry), so the kids still have a few more weeks to enjoy their time off. Back to School If you are getting ready to send your kids back to school, […]

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