by SVB on January 4, 2009 in Money Roundups
How about emerging from our holiday stupor with the help of some financial reading material? Nice writeups here on budgeting tips, consumer debt and new year resolutions. Here we go!
Personal Finance Articles
Recent Carnivals
by SVB on January 1, 2009 in Money Roundups
We’ve finally hit the New Year! Well to mark that change — hopefully to a bigger and much better 2009 — I’d like to give you a quick summary of the year that flew by for us here. We launched The Smarter Wallet in late August and so far, things have been going quite smoothly!
The folks behind The Smarter Wallet have diverse backgrounds in writing and finance, and we all have our different writing styles, but we’re all bound together by our interest in sharing with you our experiences and opinions about personal finance and consumer matters. We’re not financial professionals, but we aim to write about the stuff that is commonly of interest and concern to most folks. Hopefully we’re touching upon the things that do matter to our pocketbooks.
Best Money Articles from The Smarter Wallet, 2008
Articles About Saving Money and Spending Wisely
Credit and Debt Articles
Money Management and Productivity Articles
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by SVB on December 29, 2008 in Money Roundups
This holiday break, I’ve been seeing some fun-filled days with my extended family during which I’ve spent the time watching movies, playing board games, and just reconnecting with the loved ones I only see once, or maybe twice a year. So pardon our somewhat erratic schedule here, which we may continue to have over the next few days. Still, I’ve managed to squeeze a few reads here today, courtesy of some of my favorite blogs from the financial blogosphere. Hope you enjoy these articles as much as I have!
Personal Financial Reads
Recent Carnivals
by SVB on December 23, 2008 in Money Roundups
Parts of the nation are snowed in and bitter cold, while others are just wet and cold (like here in California). Either way, if you’re indoors, why not warm up with a nice hot cup of cocoa and settle down to read a few personal finance articles from the financial web? That’s what I’m doing right now! 
- Think Your Way To Wealth reminds us to review our Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs) for this year and the next. Don’t forget to use your money or you’ll lose it!
- Rich Credit Debt Loan tells us how we can avoid financial disasters through good money management and budgeting. Hmmm… I don’t actually budget much, I just try not to buy stuff
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- No Debt Plan arrives at an interesting statement. He believes that a 30 year mortgage usually trumps a 15 year mortgage. Really? How is that? Won’t the bank get more of your money via interest payments for a longer term mortgage? Not if you can help it! Find out how he comes up with this conclusion, which I really quite liked! For the record, we have a 15 year mortgage and because of this recession, we’re regretting the relatively steep payments a little bit!
- StumbleForward is a new blog I’ve come across and I found the coverage on the option arm mortgage and other financial money traps very interesting.
- Pecuniarities has many cool DIY suggestions for the holidays. I love the creative ideas in this blog, including this one on an eggshell gift wrap!
- Christian PF has an awesome post about a group of Secret Santas whose members anonymously pass out $100 bills to random folks. Their Christmas spirit is very inspiring; it’s a wonderful legacy left by its founder.
Recent Carnivals
by SVB on December 19, 2008 in Money Roundups
How is the holiday season treating you so far? Here’s how the last day of school before the holidays turned out for us today.
When you describe your day as exhausting, you may not have envisioned a day of non-stop partying with preschoolers and Kindergartners, which was exactly what I found myself subjected to as I celebrated the last day of school before the Christmas break.
So here I am finishing up the rounds of the financial carnivals a little dazed after the sugar high from frosted home-made vanilla gingerbread men, stars, snowmen and Christmas tree cookies, and the whirlwind of crafts and clean up at the schools (nope, I’m not a teacher, just a regular parent of a couple of school-aged kids).
Top the last few days off with watching a couple of school Christmas programs and pageants, and dealing with hyped up kids stoked on more sugar and I guess I’ve earned myself a well-deserved break.
And this is probably just “part one” as we gear ourselves for the main family event next week!
So have fun at my virtual carnivals, and ‘xcuse me, while I wind down somewhere quiet.
Recent Carnivals
by SVB on December 14, 2008 in Money Roundups
This is a quick roundup I’m putting together since I got a bit stuck on releasing a new theme for my other site (The Digerati Life). Anyway, here’s what I got a chance to look over this weekend! Enjoy!
Rich Credit Debt Loan: Try answering a few questions and find out if you’re on track to become a financial success.
M is For Money ponders when she’ll finally receive her engagement ring, given the money issues that she and Mr M are experiencing during the current economic slowdown. Hang in there Miss M!
MoneyNing shares a heartwarming list of low cost activities for the Christmas holidays. Some things we can do this time of year? Christmas parties, museums and theaters and the myriad local events your town may be up to right now!
Thrive from Good To Grow delves into the details of why gambling is a terribly poor investment. If you’re going to gamble, do it for fun and with the expectation that you could lose all your money, so that you’ll feel fine regardless of whether you win or lose.
Funny About Money considers the possibility of turning what we love to do into a second income stream. I’d certainly call that the perfect hobby!
The Frugal Duchess gives us a list of scams from Kiplinger’s, from debt negotiation cons to bank phishing. Just a friendly reminder to not let your guard down even when you celebrate this season.
Recent Carnivals
Best of Me Symphony
by SVB on December 10, 2008 in Money Roundups
How do you manage your task list?
I’ve been juggling a few ongoing projects lately. Being self-employed, it seems like there’s just no respite from my gargantuan to-do list. I’m in talks to be involved in additional writing projects with other sites. I may talk about it more later. I’ve also been devoting time to my battered investment portfolio. And in between these tasks, I’ve been juggling the usual playdates, school events and holiday preparations for our family and schools. Not to mention that I’ve still got to rework some business matters and meet with the tax guy in order to position myself to better take advantage of tax deductions open to entrepreneurs.
My task list is always long. And only getting longer. But I’ve managed to keep up with the carnivals this week. Here it is then, a mid-week roundup of the latest carnivals in the money realm. Check them out at your leisure!
Carnival Rounds
by SVB on December 7, 2008 in Money Roundups
It’s getting chillier these days, heralding the start of the cold and flu season. But I got my kids their flu shots last Friday, so that’s one less thing to worry about. Let’s hope we can all stay healthy this winter.
Personal Finance Articles I Recommend
With me spending more time indoors, I’ve been able to devote more time to my reading. Here are a few financial articles of note:
- The Digerati Life: If you’ve got good credit and happen to be interested in signing up for a new credit card, then why not get rewarded for your spending by applying to one of these best cash back credit cards?
- Value For Your Life gives us 8 great reasons why she will cook at home. I agree that by doing so, you are likely to cut thousands of dollars from your annual home budget.
- Credit Karma: Perhaps credit scores are now used in new ways. Retail owners and property managers may now be using them to assess potential tenants for vacation homes.
- Cheap Healthy Good: I love India. Though I’ve never been there, I have always admired its people, culture and yummy food. I also love lentil soup. They all go very well together in this post.
- The Financial Blogger shares with us his marks for the summer session for his MBA course. Awesome how he got all straight A’s pretty much. What a sharp cookie!
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Studenomics: Oh cool, a Christmas tip list! Well, if you’re looking to tip, you can also check out our “how to tip, when to tip” rules.
Recent Carnivals
