Reminder: I'll be spending much of this week coping with a family crisis. Several people have offered to fill in with guest posts. I'll be back as soon as I'm able.
If you're new here, you may want to learn what this site is about. I encourage you to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!
Contacting Get Rich Slowly is easy. Simply leave a comment on any entry — including this one — and your message will reach the right place. Or you may send e-mail to jdroth @ this domain.
July 16th, 2007 at 12:47 pm
I’m trying to contact jerichohill. I’m assuming you’re looking at JD’s email. Can you send me an email so I can drop you a note in response?
July 16th, 2007 at 7:37 pm
Hey JD,
Long time reader, and first wanted to say thank you for all the advice. Thanks to you I’m not putting off my IRA anymore.
Saw your post a week ago about finance videos on youtube and wanted to give you a heads up on a site a friend and I launched in the past few weeks.
http://chime.tv
It combines 10 of the top video sites around the web into one place.
More specifically I think you’d find the following finance-related documentaries interesting:
The Money Masters: How International Bankers Gained Control Of America: http://chime.tv/doc/j4l2
Money As Debt: http://chime.tv/doc/j4kx
And any of the TEDTalks (which I recommend to everyone I meet)
http://chime.tv/tedtalks/
Take care and keep up the fantastic work
Your fan,
Taylor M
July 19th, 2007 at 4:29 am
Hey JD,
Great site. I wanted to drop a line to give you a possible article lead. Recently I was going through my mortgage and noticed that our home owners insurance had crept up to $1500/yr. At that point we put together all of our insurance bills and it totaled over $4000 (car, home, life, umbrella, etc.)
After gathering up all our details we shopped around and brought the total down
a whole $1000).
It might be worth writing about. Perhaps with details about researching where to find insurance company ratings, and any pitfalls.
July 27th, 2007 at 10:09 am
I am wanting to know more about tax-free municipal bonds.
How do I find and obtain them?
What are the ups and downs of owning them?
Thanks
July 29th, 2007 at 7:52 am
Hi. I just read your blog for the first time. I am thrilled with it because I am hoping to start teaching financial literacy to at risk youth ( mostly teenagers who are ex-gang members or who live in very violent areas ). Your blog puts things succinctly and very simply and very applicable to life. What a great starting point !!!!!
Thanks you !
August 1st, 2007 at 4:32 pm
I have recently come into somewhat of a windfall - $25,000 lump sum payment with $3,000 monthly payments for the next 47 months (total value = $165k).
What would you do with this money to maximize what you get out of it?
August 3rd, 2007 at 6:52 am
Hi JD, I’ve been following your site and learning a lot of information. At age 28 I know I need to invest in retirement other than my company 401K. After reading your article on Roth IRA, I figured that would be my best option (index funds), but I also have an option to contribute to the Ohio Deferred Compensation Program at work (457 account). Which is the best option for long term growth? I do like that contributions can be withdrawn from the Roth if needed for buying my first house or other emergencies. I’m at a loss for which to pursue! Thanks!
August 14th, 2007 at 10:17 am
http://www.43folders.com/2007/08/13/hanger-trick/
i know you’re on a kick to rid yourself of clutter, this seemed like a good fit.
August 17th, 2007 at 8:06 am
I really like the articles posted here and
great post on health insurance. Now that I am planning to take a term / whole life insurance for me and my spouse, would appreciate any pointers in that direction. How do you decide which is right for you?
September 20th, 2007 at 8:56 am
Hello from a reader.
I don’t know if you’ve already seen this, but today’s “Dinosaur Comics” from Ryan North (http://www.qwantz.com/) definitely takes a look at the lighter side of personal finance. Though you might enjoy.
September 24th, 2007 at 2:20 pm
Regarding farmer’s markets.
I went to my local one last weekend. I’ve been on a “reduce my footprint” kick lately, and I’ve been reading “A Year Without ‘Made in China’” so this time I paid more attention to where the goods are from.
While some of the goods were from within 100 miles, many were not. I found grapefruit that were from the Palm Springs area, about 400 miles away. About 2/3 of the items were truly local, but that was less than I had expected.
I believe if you are not in the Central Valley of California as I am, your choice in truly local produce would be considerably less.
Looking back, I remember going to the Seattle Public Market with my grandmother in the 60s. I remember getting avocados….and they don’t grow anywhere in
the PNW.
Bottom line is you have to ask where it was grown. Just because it’s at your local Farmer’s Market doesn’t mean the farmer (or more likely, middleman) is local.
September 26th, 2007 at 9:20 am
Hi,
I was wondering if there are any fees/taxes that might make a Roth IRA
unattractive to a foreigner. I have a social security number and a
local bank account but will be returning to my home country next year.
Is it worthwhile to open a Roth?
Thanks for your time!
September 28th, 2007 at 2:14 pm
What are some of the current titles that you collect, JD? Love to hear about what you read.
Also, what plugin are you using for followup comments via email? I’m trying to find the same plugin to use for my blog. Help a comic lovin’ brothah out?
September 29th, 2007 at 12:44 pm
Hey, JD! I was wondering if you could review the following book, “Cheap Ways To…”. You can find it on Amazon or just do a quick search for it. I think it’s a nice book on how to save on stuff, and I’d love to see your review and spin on it.
Thanks!
October 5th, 2007 at 9:44 am
Can you discuss pre-nuptial agreements? I know a lot of your readers are very financially savvy, and I’m wondering what their take on pre-nups is. Maybe a pros/cons type of discussion. Thank you.
October 8th, 2007 at 9:24 am
How do I get the VIP code, to sign up for the forum ?
October 11th, 2007 at 7:36 am
Do you take submissions for guest writers? I’d like to write an article for your blog about saving money by getting rid of cable in favor of antennas, and why digital TV makes this a very viable option.
In a bigger sense, it would be an article about up-front costs, versus monthly charges.
October 17th, 2007 at 11:29 am
http://cornerscribe.com/wordpress/2007/10/17/financial-planning-and-writing/
Thanks for the great site and contest. Above is my entry for the Wii drawing.
October 18th, 2007 at 4:08 pm
http://lisetiffner.blogspot.com/2007/10/get-rich-slowly-writing-project.html
October 19th, 2007 at 6:35 am
I wanted to enter the contest for the HOW TO GET RICH FORUM. However, the system is saying I have to call or contact them to activate my account. Anyways I wanted to join the contest…See below…my story…
Thank You!
Kimberly Labra
Back in 1970’s life was hard.Mother told us stories how hard it was to earn sleazy dollar. Fathers on the other hand blessed with inheritance. Parents wed 1972 couple months later father enlisted in the military. Each time they rec’d paychecks deposit to bank. They were precise at spendin money. They purchased their home in 1973 & had leased house out & till this day. They also saved efficiently not outsourcing agents; & father’s brother portray in management. Imagine their profitable gains & top it of they’d both work everyday of their life. Finally they decided it was time a wealthy retirement. Father at 62 is retired military with indefinite military privileges & also lookin into retirement with US Gov’t & planning to withdraw investments.Mother at 60 also retired from Hilton Hotel & collecting benefits from SSI for Disability. Still reluctant on how they spend their money. I would say,it took a while to get there & with the hard work & investments its payed off. They’d set their goals, analysis their budgets,created a plan & stuck by it until the end. They are now living off from their investment & their retirement. I have learned much from my parents. “The apple never falls far from the tree.”
October 20th, 2007 at 11:44 am
same question
How do I get the VIP code, to sign up for the forum ?
thanks rob in madrid
October 21st, 2007 at 1:47 pm
How to avoid getting extra dollars added onto your tip at a restaurant. Use a simple checksum.
http://www.punny.org/money/fight-thieving-restaurant-servers-with-checksum-tips/
Fast, easy, and can save you real dollars.
October 28th, 2007 at 12:14 pm
I just saw a 30 minute DVD ad about Money Merge Account which was introduced to me through friend. It is another way to reduce your mortgage interest but at a faster rate than the biweekly program or by paying extra funds towards your principle. I just want your opinion about this program. What are the pros and cons.
Thanks,
Bobbi
November 18th, 2007 at 8:09 pm
“fast and without cash, that’s how I play”
Not sure if you’ve seen the commercial for the new monopoly game, but that’s the tagline by a little girl.
For the ad:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yS_APB09Ndc
On a side note, been following you for a few months now; great site, posts and tips, thanks! Heard you’ve dropped your day job and now a full time blogger, congrats!!!
November 22nd, 2007 at 6:22 pm
http://www.seat61.com/
November 22nd, 2007 at 11:45 pm
I love your site and am in the process of starting a blog detailing my fiance and I financial journey. What hosting service do you use, and do you use wordpress or is this blog offered by your hosting company? There are so many to choose from and I would appreciate your opinion.
November 24th, 2007 at 12:07 pm
I just recently began looking at your site. I like what I’ve seen but I need to know about your legitimacy, safety, reliability, and trustworthiness. Can you provide me with ways to accomplish this?
Thank you,
Gayle
November 26th, 2007 at 11:35 am
Hi JD. I love your blog. I have begun keeping track of my personal finances and will be out of credit card debt as of 01/15/07!!!! The most important things I’ve learned from your community are: 1. Pay yourself 1st, 2. Snowball method for repayment of old debt, 3. Stop acquiring new debt. I came across this list of 101 new uses for everyday items that I wanted to share with the gang! http://www.realsimple.com/realsimple/gallery/0,21863,1030084,00.html
Thanks for your inspiration!
Freddie
November 29th, 2007 at 11:07 am
i am having a major financial awakening from what can only be described as the worst financial nightmare of my life. i am buried unfiled taxes, paperwork that includes receipts, statements, ect, and the worst part, credit card debt w/HIGH interest (over 30%) to the tune of $40,000. please advise me as to my logical 1st step. i spent yesterday looking back through my bank account and the past 3 mths of expenses so i have a pretty good idea where my $ is going. however, i want to stop the bloodletting asap.
thanks for any advise, comments or recommendations!
November 30th, 2007 at 9:20 pm
a few days ago the significant other and i were discussing our current 401(k) paycheck with-holdings, as a kind of side note she said “and then there’s also a little bit of social security too.”
my question: i’ve always just assumed ssi would not be there by the time i retire (we are both 27); i’m wondering though, do others?
December 2nd, 2007 at 9:03 am
I was hoping you would contact me to discuss Forbes.com’s new initiative-
Forbes.com is building a blog network, comprising of best-of-breed financial and business blogs- there will be many advantages to this network, including the targeted financial/business ads that Forbes.com will be serving across the network. The purpose of this network is twofold: one to provide users with Forbes.com, with unique content while driving more traffic to you —as well as ability for you to further monetize your blog with higher CPM, etc.
Please let me know when you’re available for chat- but please be specific as to time in the next day or two–
many thanks
December 5th, 2007 at 7:29 pm
Printer Friendly buttons would be nice. I like reading your blogs/stories, but reading everyone’s comments below the blog isn’t something I have time for (or want to print out).
December 5th, 2007 at 8:50 pm
Okay so im sitting here at 11:41 Est time and reading your blog for the first time. I found your site via Lifehacker.com. I too am in debt far beyond I ever thought I would be. Currently we are $130,000 dollars in debt including mortage. I have cut all my non essential expenses. The only bad thing we are living pay check to pay check. I cant seem to be able to put anything in savings with collections calling daily pushing me to pay off some of my debt. Last year we rolled a car payment and 2nd mortage along with most of our credit card debt into a 2nd home equity loan to the tune of $76,000. Thank god for my parents we were headed for bankrupcy. I started a tech blog to help raise a little extra money. I also do Computer Consulting on the side plus my full time job. I dont have much time for sleep, let alone be able to sleep because of the constant burden that my wife and I have brought upon ourselves. Do you have any suggestions on how I should get started on turning everything around. I feel like I’m drowning a very slow and painful death. Thank you in advance for any help.
December 6th, 2007 at 9:54 am
I have been enjoying reading your blog on a daily basis. Thank you for
taking the time for the insight and information.
I did some search through your articles, but didn’t see much reference
to saving for a eduction and what options their are out there. Do you
have children? I have not done much research on this subject, but I
have a 4 year old and 2 year old and this is one thing that worries
me.
I feel that I am much like you and can relate very well. We have a
mortgage, car payment, student loans, a little credit card debt (which
will be paid off in Feb), and a small savings rat holed away for each
child and us. This last year my wife and I have been determined to
reduce our debt and build a future for us, with a year of diligent
money tracking and analyst, we are starting to see the light at the
end of the tunnel and gaining ground.
It would be great if you could post some info about saving for
education and what options are out there for the average guy like you
and I.
Hope all is well and wish the best for you and your family this
Holiday Season. Keep up the good work
Setup a Sharebuilder account today!
JL
December 9th, 2007 at 8:55 am
I’ve been following GRS for the past few months, I enjoy the posts and I’m glad to see Get Fit Slowly, this is exactly what I need! I got out of all debt except my mortgage this year but the extra pounds still linger and it’s time to get rid of those too. It might be interesting to see if there’s a correlation between being in debt and being out of shape/overweight. For me, I’ve been in debt since I enrolled in post-graduate school in my mid-20’s and finally broke free at the age of 46. I’ve been thin, a triathlete, and overweight while being in debt, but it feels much worse to be overweight and in debt. Like all areas of your life are out of control at the same time. I plan to follow your fitness journey picking up helpful tips for my own. Best of luck, jd, I value the work that you’re doing!
December 9th, 2007 at 11:28 am
I thought you may enjoy this video of Credit Card National bank — a parody of bank commercials with the reality of debt repayment.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lgu6NcgE2ek
December 12th, 2007 at 2:14 am
Hi,
I have been reading your blog for a while. Im in the England. I wanted to start organising my accounts / finances but am unable to use quicken as they have stopped publishing the software in the UK. Can anyone suggest another bit of software to help me?
Thanks in advance.
Tony
December 12th, 2007 at 7:41 pm
JD,
Congrats on being featured in the Jan. 08 issue of Money Magazine (page 68)!
I have been a longtime reader of GRS and truly enjoy. Keep up the good work!
Rob
December 13th, 2007 at 8:45 am
I think it would be a good idea to put a link to get fit slowly on the front page here.
December 15th, 2007 at 9:02 am
Hey there. I have a question for you. A little bit about myself first. I am a first year pharmacy student at a top 10 Pharmacy school here in the US. I am 21 years old. When I graduate school in 4 years, I will be earning anywhere around $70,000-$110,000 a year. I have no debt besides a few student loans, which arent a problem.
I was wondering if you could recommend a good book about finance in your twenties. This is a fair amount of money and I would like to invest at least 30% of it. However, I am relatively new to the whole finance scene, and need a book geared towards someone my age. Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks. -SAC
December 15th, 2007 at 6:58 pm
Sac,
I highly recommend “Get a Financial Life” by Beth Kobliner. She has a companion website: http://www.kobliner.com/. I read this book and it is a wonderful starting point.
Rob
December 21st, 2007 at 3:14 pm
I’m 19 years old and have been frequenting your blog for about a month now. I’ve read a lot of the archives and done some personal investigating on my own about investing firms and what not.
I have a few quetions that pertain to advice I’ve read on your blog posts.
1. I have a Shell card, cash back discover card, Victoria’s secret card and my debit card.
I buy gas about twice a month and pay it off as soon as it hits the statement, I use the Discover card for rather large purchases mainly because I know I’ll have to watch the bill and I am attempting to earn the cash back. I got the VS card because the salewoman haggled me into it but I haven’t used it yet. I do these “buy it” then pay it off before they get any interest out of me because it is my attempt to build credit. Would I be achieveing the same goal by leaving the accounts in good standing without ever using them…?
2. Health Insurance. My job does not provide, but I make good money. My university plan is more major medical and not a good plan. I bought a Blue Cross “HMO” point of service plan for $175 a month that gives prescription coverage, decent copays, out of network coverage, hospital & out patient, ETC. It seems like a really good plan.. but my question to YOU is what about a low cost high deductible plan?
I enjoy your blogs, keep em coming! I look forward to your response..
N
December 22nd, 2007 at 8:13 am
I was just thinking about holiday budgets (and realized it must have been ask metafilter rather than grs that I was reading about that, but I thought you’d be interested). I guess it’s sort of a money hack.
In my family, we’ve always had the rule that you couldn’t buy anything for yourself in December. The rule was to keep you from ruining any surprises that people had gotten you, but I just recently realized it also helps divert that same money that you’d spend on yourself to presents for other people. (This probably helps more for people who don’t save for gifts year round.)
Anyways, just felt like sharing.
January 5th, 2008 at 1:05 am
Re Ultimate Cheapskate….I’ve heard of a guy,
to save on his electric bill: recharges his cell
phone at the office! That’s a cheapskate!
My “cheap trick” is to ask the Supermarket baggers to DOUBLE BAG (in plastic bags) my
groceries. I re-use said bags for garbage
discards, hence never have to buy garbage sacks.
January 5th, 2008 at 9:02 am
please STOP the e-mails….too many!
I tried the link…said I was unauthorized!
PLEASE STOP your e-mail copies!
January 5th, 2008 at 9:03 am
STOP the e-mails!
January 9th, 2008 at 7:21 pm
Hey JD, I just wanted to ask you how long you’ve been writing this blog. If you have any tips for how you’ve accumulated so much traffic in a short time, I’d love to hear it. I know all of the stuff about writing quality content that people want to read and all of that good stuff. But, moneycrashers.com has not seen 1/1000 of the amount of growth that yours has seen, and I just wanted to know if you had any ideas for the site that you could give me. I enjoy reading the blog. Take care.
January 10th, 2008 at 11:50 am
JD - Like others, I commented on one thread and clicked the “notify me of updates” checkbox for that thread. I occaisionally get email updates for new comments on *all* threads. Not all the time, but enough to be annoying.
Could you post something on your front page blog alerting people that you’re at least aware of this problem (as I assume you are by this point)? It’s very frustrating since this has been occurring for awhile now but I’ve seen no notice or indication that it’s a known problem. Letting people know you’re aware of this issue (even if it takes awhile to track down and fix) would definitely help.
I really enjoy your blog and the discussions in the threads. I would prefer not to have to unsubscribe to the threads I want to follow but I don’t want unnecessary storms of emails everytime any of the threads here get additional comments.
January 10th, 2008 at 2:29 pm
JD,
I just stumbled onto our site and I’m glad I found it. In February my wife and I will just have a house payment to make. We will be free from the car payment and we don’t have credit cards. I’m not boasting, I’m actually concerned about what is next…extra money. We need to continue to make our money work for us and I’m not sure where to start. We have two kids and some retirement and we need to be able to help others. What would you do next?
thanks and God bless,
dc
January 13th, 2008 at 7:48 am
I’ve registered on the forum but can’t sign in. What’s wrong? Have tried several times for the last 5-6 days. Still no luck. Fix it please.
January 16th, 2008 at 7:39 am
Hey J.D.,
I’ve been reading your daily postings for a few months now and I love it. You keep me grounded and it helps me ward off the temptation to spend too much money. I’m right out of law school and recently married. I’m paying off my student line of credit, but also trying to save for the future.
I know that one is supposed to keep throwing money into their ETFs during a downturn, but it seems like the downturn has just begun and the market is going to continue to fall further.
Maybe it would be prudent to save the money I would invest and hold off purchasing my ETF shares until the market plummets further.
Its risky, because it may not plummet further, but I just have a hard time investing in something when I’m fairly certain its on a downwards slide.
Any comments or suggestions?
January 17th, 2008 at 9:46 am
I was looking to open an online brokerage account and wanted to know what you think is a good place to start. I have heard Etrade, Sharebuilder, or Zecco. What do you think? Also having little investing knowledge, what investing book do you recommend reading first. I saw the list of 25 recommended books, and am still undecided which one to pick up first.
Thanks
Jason
January 19th, 2008 at 11:37 pm
Hey I needed some advice…
I have an average amount of credit card debt…is it better if i pay off the whole amount in one go (tht would leave me with no savings for feb) or should i make installment based payments. I realise the upmaking month bill is goin to be considerable so i was wondering if i shud just pya it off in one go….or save some then pay it off in parts…
wht wud u suggest? can u contact me via email please
January 23rd, 2008 at 8:54 am
Hi JD,
I am planning on opening an ING savings account this weekend with a portion of my tax return(!), and I remembered that you had an offer for referrals, and wanted to know if I could do that, that way we both can get credit for it! I know that I read it, but didn’t know how to locate the post!
Thanks!
January 23rd, 2008 at 7:40 pm
Greg,
Was your problem resolved?
January 28th, 2008 at 6:36 pm
May I ask, what is your first and last name?
I thought maybe I’d find it somewhere on this site, but I can’t. Or do you always go by JD?
January 29th, 2008 at 12:59 pm
Love the blog… Thought you might be interested in this link:
http://lifehacker.com/350190/always-check-for-recalls-on-your-broken-gear
Roger
January 30th, 2008 at 7:31 pm
Hi,
I left a comment on a blog entry here a couple of weeks ago. My name is Pamela Capalad and I started a blog recently called wealthygrad.com and I expressed interest in possibly becoming a guest blogger.
I just posted a blog entry you might be interested in called “Why You Need a Financial Planner and How to Find a Good One.” I just taught a women’s financial literacy seminar this past weekend and it was the number one piece of advice we gave them.
Anyway, if you have time in your busy schedule, please check it out: http://www.wealthygrad.com.
Thanks.
Pamela Capalad.
February 1st, 2008 at 3:28 pm
Hello,
I am the founder of DollarCamp, a crash course seminar for high school students about money. We teach kids how to stay out of credit card debt, control their spending, and begin building wealth.
I am interested in networking with people interested in financial literacy and in spreading the word about our program.
We have two websites:
1) DollarCamp Seminars: http://www.DollarCamp.com
2) DollarCamp Books: http://www.DollarCampBooks.com
Many thanks,
Stephen Epstein, DollarCamp
February 3rd, 2008 at 10:06 pm
JD,
I was searching for a site that would lead me to the investments of our US politicians and found your thread from 2006 about the subject. I have never really subscribed to a blog, so forgive me for some of my inexperience.
Anyway, the reason I got onto this subject is that I have one of those friends that is “the man on a hill”. I don’t know if you have heard that term in all of your financial readings but I read it somewhere when I was on the path you were when you were reading everything about wealth (Millionare, Rich Dad, etc) Anyway, short story he is a friend from church who bought a janitorial franchise when he was 25 with $8k he borrowed from family and then worked he backside off and retired at age 32 with a $10k per month passive income whcih continues to this day. He is now in his 50s and loves to give free advice and share his stories (as well as marriage counseling, etc) anyway, my point is that he told me when he first started making good $ he subscribed to what he thinks was Kiplingers and they had a service that provided the investments of our politicians, along with full copies of their tax filings. He said at that time (the early 80’s) that a majority of politicians had owned gold and real estate…I came home today to see if I could find current information to see what was happening today and I couldnt find anything about what politicians invest in except common mutual funds and a few large real estate trusts, or private notes…I couldnt locate the tax returns in detail, just a couple for Bush and Cheney that were only two pages…I would like to be able to link up with the information I am trying to find on the non stock market types of investments that politicians are holding today. Also its a bit ironic that I found you, I am just south of Salem, and if you know the area, my friend owns 100+ acres on Ankeny Hill, which has a full view of the refuge… its very cool and he is a great friend anyway, I hope you get this and someone out there can help me in my little research project. My friend invested as the politicians were and has come out very nicely over the years. He says they always protect themselves and that was his philosophy on investing… thanks!
February 6th, 2008 at 8:33 am
Hey JD,
Great site! It’s become a daily reader for me. For the past year we’ve been trying to get our monthly expenses down as low as possible and we’ve had varying success. One thing we’ve done is work on our cable and internet bill. Through introductory deals and haggling, we’ve been able to cut $360 off the next 6 months, for the same services! Thanks for your advice. I just have to remember to keep on it in 6 months time when the deals run out.
Also, for the past year we’ve been saving a ton of money on our grocery bill by running a little co-op. About twice a month we collect about $30 from 5 or 6 other families and go down to our state farmer’s market. The local farmers have some good stuff but the farmer’s market is also where the local produce wholesalers are. After asking around, we found one that will sell to us at wholesale prices and just charge the sales tax. We’ll buy about $200 worth of produce and split it up between the families. For $30 each family gets tons of fresh fruit and veggies. A great example of the deals we get is bananas. A case of about 16 bunches costs about $11. But who will eat 16 bunches before they turn brown? We split the cost and the bananas up 5 ways and everyone gets 3 bunches for a cost of only $3.20/family. Compare that with the grocery store price! Peppers, apples, tomatoes, lettuce, you name it they have it. It’s also usually fresher than in a store and we understand the seasonality of some items better in relation to their price. We also eat much better for snacking because there is more fresh fruit in the kitchen. We cook and eat at home more because we have to use up the vegetables before they go bad. We have found that larger families and those with growing kids work the best for our group because there is always so much every time we go. Even with 5 in our family we often have to put some bananas in the freezer for banana bread because we couldn’t eat them all before they got soft. Then we have nice homemade banana bread!
Keep up the good work!
~james
February 6th, 2008 at 10:27 am
I recently read an article about the popularity of retiring overseas because the cost of living in many countries is lower than in the US allowing you to retire with less in the bank. I would love to spend my years abroad (Rome in particular) but is this feasible? Just curious if you (or your readers) have any thoughts on the subject.
February 6th, 2008 at 10:54 am
Hi There,
I’m writing to let you know about a great program that Real Simple magazine has created called Manage Your Money, Manage Your Life. This 14 month program is sponsored by Discover Card and features a wealth of tools and tips to help organize personal finances. Monthly topics range from holiday shopping to preparing for tax time and a dedicated website (www.realsimplerewards.com/Discovercard ) hosts downloadable forms and checklists as well as videos from Real Simple and Money editors as well as independent financial experts in upcoming months. I hope you’ll take a moment to explore the site or pick up an issue of Real Simple where you can see our monthly insert. We really want to spread the word about financial organization and empowerment to women but the information available is really great for anyone looking for advice/tools. If you have any questions or would like more information please don’t hesitate to contact me.
All the best,
Thom
February 7th, 2008 at 6:38 am
Frugality for Star Wars Geeks:
JD you do a lot of excellent posts on frugality and maybe you want to link to this for your geekier readers:
http://www.wisebread.com/9-ways-star-wars-can-inspire-you-to-save-money
February 8th, 2008 at 9:24 am
Hello JD
I really like your blog. It’s good you keep it consistently updated and provide useful advice for your readers.
Just curious, I have a friend who has written a personal financial handbook which is very straightforward and simple. Its a practical, easy read for most folks. If you have any extra time could be so kind to check out http://www.ask-a-financial-planner.com and tell me what you think?
Thanks!
Chad
February 9th, 2008 at 11:55 am
Where can we find “Ditch your bank for a credit union”
February 13th, 2008 at 1:44 pm
Hey JD, was wondering if you can get your readers (or yourself) to help me decide something. I’m in the process of buying a home and would like to know if it makes sense to take money out of my 401k to use as down payment. I’ve heard the argument of possibly missing out of potential earnings if you were to take money out, but at this point in my 401k, i’m actually losing money (-7.3% currently). And I expect it to be negative for a while until the market gets better. So with this in mind, does it makes sense to borrow from 401k and use it as down payment? I will be a first-time homeowner and made an offer on a 3/2 condo for $195K in southern cal (foreclosed home).
February 18th, 2008 at 1:02 pm
Hey JD - can you write something about the pro’s and con’s of long-term disability insurance? I’m getting very mixed advice about whether or not to buy it I’m 35, single with no dependents and I have a white-color job.
Thanks much, read the blog every day and love it!
February 18th, 2008 at 1:06 pm
Hi! I am really enjoying your blog. Thank you for inspiring me to reconsider the way I live my life. I was wondering if you had advice for people who remain in debt from visiting family (plane tickets), or keeping up with the social demands of my friends. It seems like I end up scraping the barrel because I feel obligated to my community. How can we keep family and friends happy without the embarrassment of saying ‘no’ to group events because of the money involved?
February 19th, 2008 at 7:04 am
Hey JD … over in square foot gardening I tried to edit an entry but took too long, so I can’t save the changes. I posted them to a subsequent comment … please delete the first one - it is too long. The second one might be too long, too, but I’m out of time to edit it. See ya’ round!
Bill
February 20th, 2008 at 1:06 pm
Hi,
I like this site and the articles being discussed here.
Good Work.
I have a small suggestion.
I know lot of discussion is being made about saving and investing money.
Can you also discuss and talk about small businesses and woman enterpreneurs who have been sucessful and unsuccessful so that it can be an example for others who are interested to follow that path.
Thanks,
welcome
February 20th, 2008 at 2:51 pm
I thought this would be of interest to you and your readers:
http://www.gsb.stanford.edu/news/research/khan_shopping.html
I think the psychology of “shopping momentum” is probably pretty similar to other bad habits that manifest themselves in binges.
John
February 20th, 2008 at 8:42 pm
hey guys,
your blog is AMAAAAZING !!!! I am about to start my very first Roth IRA along with starting my portfolio. After doing some reading, I’ve learned that Fidelity, Vanguard and T. Rowe Price are the three largest and easiest companies to start out in.
I’d like to you know from you - and the rest of your readers if one is better than the other ? I’m wondering which company is easier to deal with, customer service etc….
Any personal experience on this topic would be greatly appreciated -
thanks so much,
Deb
February 21st, 2008 at 5:55 am
Deb - I would say Vanguard, no doubt. Lowest fees, and great service. Search the blog for more on Vanguard, but every smart person I know has their money at Vanguard.
Cheers!
February 21st, 2008 at 8:31 am
Hello!
I would like to commend you on your website and newsletters first off. I was just referred to you. Fitness Together (if you have not heard of us) is the worlds largest personal training organization. We have very high end, exclusive personal training studios – over 600 sold world wide. We have over a 98% success rate with our franchise. Our web site is http://www.fitnesstogether.com and http://www.ftareadirector.com. If you approve of what we do I would like to speak to you about being on your web site.
I look forward to hearing from you soon!
February 26th, 2008 at 5:42 am
JD,
I signed up the other day for your forums and I think the activation e-mail may have gone into my spam (which gets deleted immediately), I turned that off and have been checking my bulk folder, but so far none from this web site to activate. If the e-mail to activate is sent right away, I have a feeling that’s what happened. Otherwise, maybe it gets sent out later, although I’ve seen registered users with posts join after me.
Thanks,
February 26th, 2008 at 10:11 am
I am a college student looking for a credit card that would be the most beneficial to me in terms of rewards. I am not trying to ruin my credit and go on ridiculous shopping sprees that I can’t afford. I’m just looking for the most rewarding credit cards. Could you be so kind and write an article about that sometime in the near future? Thanks!
February 26th, 2008 at 11:36 am
Hey - quick question about your blog. What software/site do you use to manage it? I’ve been thinking about starting a blog of my own so I’m polling a few of my favorites to see what they use.
Thanks!
February 26th, 2008 at 12:41 pm
Dear JD,
As the Vice President and co-owner of East Side Athletic Clubs, in Milwaukie and Clackamas, I am writing to address the blog you authored titled “Ads I Hate: East Side Athletic Club”. After reading your detailed description of your less-than-positive experience in deciphering joining fees it is quite apparent that both our verbage and our fee classifications are confusing. (at least to you and possible to others as well). Obviously our team member was unable to explain the difference between an enrollment fee and a set-up fee, moreover, possibly the labeling is just too complicated. I appreciate your thoughts and intend to re-phrase our discount programs with clarity as a primary focus. This extremely competitive market finds all clubs discounting much too much (in my opinion) and the consumer, at some point, will suffer with lack of service, cleanliness and professionalism overall. Our community-minded facilities have been servicing all generations for more than 30 years in this marketplace and we continue to work hard to improve with each new year. Our fees, as you stated, are higher than some but as you well know with any purchase decision….you get what you pay for and I believe we are positioned differently from our lower priced competitors. Regardless, I appreciate your opinions related to pricing and do hope that you, personally, elect to continue exercising “somewhere”…..because in the long run that’s what it’s all about. Don’t “pay and never go”….stay ACTIVE….in any and every way. I’m grateful for our more “positive” reviews but also know that we can only improve as we hear all “voices”. Be well.
February 28th, 2008 at 7:09 am
Hey, JD, I am not sure of whether I have commented here before, but I love GRS! Just thought I would send you a link to a current index card graph on “Indexed”:
http://indexed.blogspot.com/
that I thought you would like:
http://indexed.blogspot.com/2008/02/joy.html
I think it captures the essence of GRS and spending less than you make.
March 3rd, 2008 at 8:03 am
JD I thought you and the readers would like this idea behind this story http://wcco.com/consumer/frugal.february.save.2.667520.html
The basic overview is this family stops spending money in the month of Februay this lets them look at spending behaviors and clean out stocked up food items they have collect over the year ect. Its a short read.
March 4th, 2008 at 9:53 am
I’m 22 and have started working on obtaining financial freedom. I am finishing my Bachelors Degree, am paying off all my debt, and have started funding a roth IRA based on advice from your blog. I enjoy reading the articles on this site, but I recently stumbled on some credit card information I didn’t know about.
My first card was a student visa with a high rate (14.9% Apr). I had this card since I moved out and decided it was time to replace it. I got an offer for a Chase Visa with 1 year of 0% apr and a 8.9% fixed apr after that. I have now paid off the student visa and no longer use it, but I am carrying a balance on the Chase as I am working to pay it off.
What I didn’t realize (my mistake for not reading into the fine print), is that while the card is 0/8.9% apr on purchases, it is 21.9% apr on cash advances. This means I have $140 accruing high interest which I can not do anything about until I pay off the $860 I have at 0% apr. I consider myself to be financially aware and always learning, but this seems like a big caveat most people may miss.
Hope this inspires others to read more carefully.
March 5th, 2008 at 11:31 am
Just so you know, there’s a technical error on the “How To Inoculate Your Children Against Advertising” story. Every time I click on the comments (or click on the headline that links me to the article with comments), it takes me to the page logged in as you, giving me the power to edit the story and to edit, spam, or delete the comments. I’m pretty certain you don’t want me to have this power.
March 6th, 2008 at 8:45 pm
Hi JD,
Awesome website, super helpful! I had a question that I was hoping you might be able to help me out with…maybe find some info on it I haven’t been able to. I’ve been spending a ton of my time as a volunteer for a nonprofit (read, 0.00 pay) and i was wondering if there was some way to write that off somehow??
Rock on.
March 7th, 2008 at 3:12 pm
Hi JD,
I have been reading your blog for a couple of months and find it very
informative and motivating. I came across this documentary and wondered if you knew about it. I haven’t seen it yet, so I can’t give my opinion, but it sounds like it could be a good documentary to review.
http://www.indebtwetrust.org/index.php
March 8th, 2008 at 7:04 am
Hi JD,
I’ve been very impressed with your blog and Zen Habits, both of which I subscribe to. I’m trying to learn from you both. I have a question: when you have a guest writer, who do you this? Do you contact the writer and ask permission? Do they contact you? How does this work exactly.
Thanks for you help and good luck with your new full-time venture.
March 10th, 2008 at 2:35 pm
Hi JD:
I have been a long time reader of your site (although I don’t think I’ve ever left a comment on here). In fact, I liked it so much I started a site of my own: http://building-our-empire.blogspot.com. It has a little bit of a different angle than yours, but is centered on building wealth, ridding yourself of credit card debt, and increasing revenue streams. If you would take a look and give me a shoutout I’d be more than happy to link to your site on my site and give you a great review (truthfully I’ll actually probably do this anyway).
Anyway, great site, keep up the good work!
March 11th, 2008 at 7:59 am
JD:
Imagine: I’m in debt up to my neck, say hundred’s of thousands of dollars. All my credit cards/lines are maxed out, and I don’t have cash to make payments on these debts. Another creditor steps forward and says, “OK, I’ll issue you another $100K of credit so you can maintain your lifestyle and make minimum payments on your other credit accounts.”
Of course we’d label this as absurd - all for the sake of “liquidity”. It is just compounding the problem many times over, and making the impending crash that much more catastrophic.
Why, then, does the FED take this approach with regard to our national economy? See: http://www.reuters.com/article/ousiv/idUSN1155480820080311
March 11th, 2008 at 9:33 am
Dear J.D.:
Your post about “A Tree Grows in Brooklyn” brought back some sweet memories of old-fashioned saving. By coincidence I wrote something similar this week on a blog I do for freelancers, independent workers, and anyone who is self-employed, entitled freelance-finance.com. The post deals with a famous work of non-fiction that won a Pulitzer. Here’s the post:
http://freelance-finance.com/2008/03/08/how-to-save-money-the-old-fashioned-way/#more-48
Thank you for such an enriching website. Best wishes,
JD aka “Muck”
March 13th, 2008 at 5:53 am
Hi JD,
The latest episode of the wonderful comic Cat and Girl (by struggling artist Dorothy Gambrell) is about needs and wants. Might be appropriate material for your blog:
http://catandgirl.com/
Cheers,
Jan
March 19th, 2008 at 2:56 pm
Hi JD - at a library booksale yesterday, I found a like-new copy of “Bogle on Investing” for 50 cents! I’m not interested in it, but I’d like to offer it to you or a reader as a prize if you’re running any contests. I’ll ship it anywhere you tell me to.
I do this because I feel I owe the community something for all the help I’ve received over the last year and a half. My credit card debt has been shredded, my wife and I are on the same page about expenses and budgeting, I’ve got 10% of my salary going towards retirement, and I sleep a hell of a lot better than I used to. A huge part of that is due to you and the other folks that make GRS great.
trb
March 20th, 2008 at 6:01 am
I see your article on Pear Budget. I was wondering if you’ve tried the Budget program put out by Snow Mint http://www.snowmintcs.com. I’ve been using it for a year now, and they seem to do very similar things. Do you know which is better?
Thanks,
NB
March 21st, 2008 at 8:28 pm
Great blog. You’re in my top 3 blogs. I’m 16 and wondering what I can’t and can do or should and shouldn’t as on now. I think this would be a wonderful article.
Peace,
Jeffrey
March 22nd, 2008 at 10:33 am
I found Moneyless World blog, by a guy who lives with absolutely no money, mostly through camping and housesitting. You might be interested: http://zerocurrency.blogspot.com/
March 22nd, 2008 at 12:27 pm
Help, we have always sent out mortage payment on time and lately they have received it late. Now they want to make us pay late fees. They get in time they just don’t process it till it’s late. Hlpe anyone. We want to know the law that protects us, we can tell the bak to kiss our a**es
March 28th, 2008 at 11:42 am
amid the ongoing meltdown, the only option has been lowering and more lowering of the fed rate. i’m wondering what the effect would be if they tried Raising it? maybe a future post? thanks
March 29th, 2008 at 6:05 am
First of all, I love the site. Lots of good information there for someone wanting to dig his way out of debt. It’s become one of the sites I visit daily.
I had one comment about your hyperlinks. While I can appreciate the need for an aesthetically pleasing color scheme for your site, I find the green-colored hyperlinks to be almost invisible because they look so much like the black text. There have been a few times when I’ve gone back to a post and realized I missed clicking on something because I didn’t realize the text was actually a link. Have you considered underlining all your hyperlinks so that you can keep the color scheme while still making the hyperlinks easier to find?
March 29th, 2008 at 10:00 am
Hi JD,
Just thought I would send an interesting link your way….
http://blog.mint.com/blog/finance-core/30-free-ebooks-to-learn-everything-you-want-to-know-about-personal-finance/
…. “30 Free eBooks To Learn Everything You Want to Know About Personal Finance”
I have only downloaded and read one of them so far so I can’t really give you a review of the quality of the eBooks.
March 30th, 2008 at 5:06 am
I’ve noticed your posts are a lot longer now that you’ve moved to full time blogging. I’m not sure this is a benefit, the beauty of your site (and blogs in general) is that they are quick snacks of reading, not an entire meal (like a chapter in a book).
I’ve found that I pop over and read the title now and maybe the first paragraph - whereas before I would read the whole entry no matter what it was about. Just my constructive criticism.
March 30th, 2008 at 7:32 am
I wanted to ask you about your blog startup. Did you use a free service at first, like wordpress or blogger, or did you go straight to buying a domain? I was curious if was possible to develop a solid reader base on a free site.
Thanks for the great blog.
Padma
April 1st, 2008 at 11:10 am
This is a good documentary about the roots of American consumerism, mass marketing, and public relations among other things, and how psychology has played a large role in it, specifically Freud’s ideas.
It’s four parts…here’s part 1:
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=8953172273825999151&q=the+century+of+self&total=1657&start=0&num=10&so=0&type=search&plindex=0
It’s called The Century of the Self. Very enlightening.
April 1st, 2008 at 10:20 pm
Hi JD,
As a fellow weight-losing, debt-fighting, blogging Portlander, can I request a shout out to my own blog.
I’m not sure if you saw Steven Levitt’s (of Freakonomics) article on stickk.com, but I’m blogging about using the service in my weight loss.
I’m not affiliated in any way but my new membership, but I’m offering a prize drawing to feedburner-registered readers over at my blog.
TIA
Joe Kennedy
April 4th, 2008 at 10:07 pm
Love reading your blog.
Spotted this today.
http://www.cnn.com/2008/LIVING/wayoflife/04/03/frugal.strategies.ap/index.html
April 5th, 2008 at 8:26 am
I love your blog. You’ve made some excellent advices. Keep it up. I’ve suscribed for updates and I’ll add you in my favorites. By the way, I haven’t searched through your archives, but have you made a list of recommended “must read” financial books? I want to empower myself by acquiring additional financial knowledge.
April 8th, 2008 at 1:10 pm
J.D. excellent content.
Unfortunately, as “Is a Money Merge Account a Good Way to Pay Off Your Mortgage?” has climbed the Google rankings… it has been increasingly getting spammed by lying scamming shills attempting to promote their wares.
Post #671 is a perfect example of the “I’m not a client, but I know this is the greatest thing since sliced bread” con game… thought there are others.
I think some editorial/ ad ministerial oversight is likely warranted… at least the deletion of the most blatant shill postings like #671.
Thanks, and keep up the good work!
April 10th, 2008 at 1:51 am
Hi JD -
I’m wondering what one must do to write a guest post on this blog. I understand that you have a gazillion readers (or, maybe, 54k, which is nothing to sniff at), and that you have loads of guest posts to sort through already… but that’s good, no? That means you can take a vacation sometimes!
ANYHOW - I would love to be contributing writer and have a guest post at some time on your blog. Should I just send one in and maybe see it in a year? Or do you prefer to contact only those writers that you’ve found yourself?
Any guidance would be great. I write about many topics over at my blog and would be happy to write on any topic you requested.
Thanks!
April 10th, 2008 at 12:15 pm
Cnn Personal Finance has a great credit card artical about the best cards. I know you dont like them but I have never carried a balance and love when you can get something for nothing. I am thinking about the Fidelity card where in you get money placed in an investment account of your choice. I think its a great way to get a little retirement account you dont have to think about puting money in.
April 11th, 2008 at 6:38 pm
JD,
Every time I try to post some ING links, it gets marked as spam. Is it something I am doing? I posted other comments and had no problem. It is only in the last 2 weeks that I have had the problem. Can you help?
Thanks
April 12th, 2008 at 3:22 pm
Congrats on May “Money” magazine’s Best Money Blog mention in their Best 100 listings. Page 120 Add to your clipfile.
“His smart, can-do postings are stuffed with helpful resources and contagious enthusiasm about the joys of financial freedom.”
Yea!
April 14th, 2008 at 6:25 pm
I was wondering what software, now that you are self employed, you will be using to manage your finances? I am looking at Quicken Home & Business, but I’d prefer an online soulution. Got any recommendations or products you would suggest evaluating?
April 16th, 2008 at 1:47 pm
Enjoyed having lunch with you today…that is, reading Money Magazine while eating my salad. Kudos on the great shout out from Money for “most inspiring” money blog!
April 16th, 2008 at 8:05 pm
I am a 6th grade teacher who wants to do a month long lesson on financial education. I was wondering if you have any thoughts and/or ideas as to what you think should be stressed at such a young age? I have broken my lesson down into income, savings, and investing. I hear alot of people say it is important to teach financial education but I find hardly anyone doing anything about it. Do you have any tips or could you ask your readers to send in their thoughts? Anything would be appreciated.
Kindly,
Ryan
April 17th, 2008 at 4:58 pm
JD,
I keep reading that I should retire all of my debts as quickly as possible, but I wonder if this is always the best long-term solution.
For example, my student loans are at 6.73% interest. If I could invest my money at 9%, am I better off paying everything I’m able into the loans, or paying the minimum on the loans and investing the rest?
April 18th, 2008 at 7:28 am
JD,
I’m having problems posting comments in ING referral thread. Every time I hit ’submit’ I get redirected to a blank page. I tried from two different computers and the result is the same.
This is odd, because I was able to post in that thread before (my last post was on April 5). Do you have any ideas? Thank you very much for your help, and for maintaining this wonderful blog.
April 21st, 2008 at 6:34 am
Hey congrats on this! See third paragraph.
http://siliconflorist.com/2008/04/21/silicon-florists-links-arrangement-for-april-21/
EDIT: (looks like I am a bit late on the scene, now reading back on previous comments. Nevertheless, great to hear about this)
April 23rd, 2008 at 7:53 am
http://www.alternet.org/healthwellness/81773/
You might want to include this article in any discussion of the value of organic food. I hold an advanced degree in plant breeding and even I was startled by the differences in nutrition.
A while ago I read an article in either the NYTimes or Alternet.org about which organic foods one should buy which targeted the things we eat the most…potatoes, milk and eight others which I do not remember.
April 23rd, 2008 at 9:11 am
Hello,
I’m looking for either a post on this site or a post found through this site about creating an emergency fund and then gradually building. I remember it’s related to a book. Could you help me find the post?
Thanks!
April 23rd, 2008 at 10:11 am
First of all - I absolutely love reading your blog. I discovered it a couple months ago and am addicted.
Luckily, my father taught me the value of saving money and making smart decisions and ALWAYS keeping your credit score high. That’s how I’ve managed to buy two homes on my own before the age of 27, both with extremely low APR (due to my high credit score and with a stable, but very average paying job).
However, my new husband didn’t grow up with the same values and has an extremely low credit score. He’s made $90K for the past few years, but has nothing to show for it, except for some great memories of fun trips. All of the damage was done in the past (he has terrible spending habits but is okay with me handling all bills and financial planning) but he’s not even sure where he went wrong to create such a problem.
Now we’re being paired together when we apply for things (house, car, etc.). I have a few questions about this:
- Is it best if I continue to make all of our purchases (big items like houses and cars down to smaller things like home improvement loans and utilities) since I have the better credit and can get us the best rate? Or should he take some of this on in order to build a better payment history?
- Will my credit be harmed because it’s linked to his?
- What’s the best way for him to begin to increase his credit rating? He has zero debt and only one credit card (with no outstanding balance). His car is paid off and the loan was in his name.
We’re clueless as of where to start, but know we’ll have many financial encounters in the near future so we need to get on the right track soon. We also see how this could hinder us in the immediate future as we want to start a family in the next year or two, but know that I can’t quit my job to be with a kid simply because we need my income in order to be approved to make any large purchases (even though he technically makes enough to support a family).
Any advice from anyone would be greatly appreciated.
April 24th, 2008 at 12:34 pm
Hi JD,
I tried to register with GRS today, and it said that a confirmation email would be sent to me so I could log on. I haven’t received it yet - help!
April 27th, 2008 at 12:02 pm
JD,
I an always interested in energy efficiency. Althought I’m not a classic “tree hugger” I am a “wallet hugger”. Just kidding. Although I believe that global warming is a big sham, I TRUELY believe in keeping our air, water and land clean. But that’s a topic for another day…
On to my question… I live in Fresno, CA. Winters are pretty mild, but summers are HOT. Its not as bad as some places, but its enought to make cooling the house a major decision. I have a two story house (a mistake I would not make again) and the kids sleep upstairs. Last night it was 85 degrees up there when I put them to bed - its only April! Fortunately, it was cool outside, so I just opened the windows, but that won’t be an option much longer.
In the summer, out power bills SKYROCKET. Most of the usual advise does not help, because we already do it (I keep the thermostat at 85 degrees, we cook outside, I run appliances at night, I line dry…)
Two years ago I had our entire duct system pulled out and rebuilt to make it more efficient. Can anyone give us some “outside the box” ideas? Thanks!
April 27th, 2008 at 7:38 pm
JD, FYI, just got my Tax Rebate over the weekend (4/26) from the Fed. Knew it was gonna be pretty soon because of my low SSN.
Cash is pretty sweet, thank you to the Chinese and arabs for buying our treasuries and bonds…yeah this is gonna bail us out of a crisis. Out of the frying pan and into the fire.
May 3rd, 2008 at 4:45 pm
I have enjoyed your blog for sometime now. I am a born again saver and find myself trapped in a situation and really have little clue as to how to get out. Read below:
Here is my situation. I am in a house that due to my own foolishness, I am paying more then I can truly afford for a mortgage. However I have not missed one payment. I am incredibly house poor. In any other market (michigan) I would have just sold the home, and moved, breaking even. However this market would cost me money I do not have to leave this home. I am in a mortage with a house that sold for 1/3 less its value across the street from me.
What I would like to know is what are some options I might have. Will I be able to move into another house if I were eligible for a short sale ect…With the bruising to my credit will a modest priced home be out of my reach due to a higher interest rate that I might be qualified for?
I emailed my creditor (Chase Bank) filled out a hardship form hoping for some creative restructuring of the loan. As of yet, 3 weeks, have not gained any replies.
Any suggestions would be helpful.
Thanks
House poor and imprisoned
May 3rd, 2008 at 9:53 pm
I’m not sure what your policy is on listing your readers’ businesses in response posts, but I’ve seen a few other folks list their business ventures, so I will do the same. If this is not allowed, I will assume you will delete my response post!
You sent a newsletter discussing the problems of identity theft and the challenges around restoration. My company, Pre-Paid Legal Services, Inc., provides a service that addresses not just the financial ID Theft issue (which is actually only ~30% of all Identity Theft cases), but the 4 other areas:
1. Medical,
2. Criminal,
3. Social Security, and
4. Driver’s License
We have partnered with Kroll, Inc., the market leading risk management experts with over 30 years of experience. This may be worthwhile to you to look at further for your readers as a solution to the epidemic of identity theft.
Nicole A. Dunbar
Independent Associate
Prepaid Legal Services, Inc.
nicoleadunbar@prepaidlegal.com
http://www.prepaidlegal.com/hub/nicoleadunbar
May 6th, 2008 at 5:34 am
Hi JD -
Your blog, in part, changed my life from living paycheck-to-paycheck to only having only one debt - my rapidly decreasing mortgage. I can’t thank you enough for your inspiration! I am an avid fan who reads every new article with my morning coffee.
I echo the question posted by Valerie (#7) about whether it is better to invest in a Roth IRA or an employer-sponsored 457. I fund my 401k to the tune of 10.5% (including my employer’s match). The only downside I see to a 457 is that it can only be rolled into another 457 if I leave this job (which, being so incredibly happily employed now, I probably won’t do).
I’m single, in my 50s, have my home (with a mortgage), a vacation home (with no mortgage), a Roth, a 401k, two annuities, a mutual fund invested in gold and precious metals, and a $5k emergency fund. Sounds good, but it isn’t enough to fund retirement.
Any guidance you can offer about the wisdom of funding a Roth IRA versus funding a 457 versus paying off my mortgage would be appreciated.
P-
May 7th, 2008 at 7:11 am
I enjoy reading your website every day and get alot of valuable information out of it. One thing I wish you would write about in detail is on job loss. With the economy as weak as it it, there are many people losing their jobs. I will be one shortly, when the company I have been working for since 1997 closes down on 8/31/08, due to lack of orders. I would like to read about:
1. Coping with a job loss.
2. How to file for unemployment benefits.
3. Job search techniques, especially on-line job searching.
Keep up the good work!
Thanks,
Rick
May 8th, 2008 at 7:16 am
I was looking to join a personal finance site like Mint.com, and was wondering if you preferred or would recommend a similar site over them?
May 8th, 2008 at 7:38 am
Jason -
I signed up for Mint.com and really like it, but I can’t link to my local credit union where I have my checking and savings accounts. MAJOR bummer, and it defeats the purpose. I WAS able to link to my stock brokerage and the bank that sponsors my credit card. I inquired about it and they only link to banks that will bring them a fairly high number of customers. I fear that my credit union just isn’t that big.
May 10th, 2008 at 9:07 pm
Been a reader for a few months and love all the tips on saving. I also love all the number crunching that you do. I just graduated college and came into a “windfall” of about $500. What is the best thing to do with this money? My wife and I are both college grads with an acceptable savings account (can last about 3 months) and are planning to move to Mexico in August to do some work in an orphanage (minimum pay expected). Should we do something like ING Direct, invest somewhere, or just buy the guitar I’ve been looking at for a while?
Thanks in advance.
PS - I’m sure a lot of people this time of year could use some creative graduation money ideas
May 13th, 2008 at 4:10 am
Hi JD,
I’ve been subscribed to your RSS Feed for a few months now. I want to thank you for all that you do. I’m 22 and getting this advice early is really setting me up for a successful future. I saw this article and thought about your blog. I don’t know if you’ve read anything on it but it could save readers some money. Thanks again!
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/products/services/2008-04-02-amazon-textbuyit_N.htm
May 16th, 2008 at 3:56 am
Hi! I was wondering , if you could do something about your pages. They all run together & very hard to read. I used to read every word on your site, but then it got hard to read because of the overlapping words. THe big letters. THanks,Lisa
May 16th, 2008 at 9:48 am
VERY odd, Lisa. I don’t have that problem at all. All of the pages look fine to me. Has something in your computer’s settings changed?
May 16th, 2008 at 10:06 am
I love, love, love your blog. Keep up the excellent work!
May 16th, 2008 at 12:30 pm
Minor issue I’d like to see resolved if technically possible: the comments link for each entry is at the start of the article. I’d like to see it at the end: usually I want to look at comments after reading the entry, not before, so it seems to make more sense to put the link at the end (and perhaps the topic links too - I’m also more likely to be looking for similar articles after reading the current one, not before). Granted scrolling up is easy, but I think it’d add a small degree of usability to the site.
You don’t need me to tell you I think this is a great site; if I didn’t think so, I wouldn’t read it :).
May 18th, 2008 at 4:45 pm
Is Free Online Cash System like MLM?? Can you look into it? Everything I try to find online has a gooney talking about how great it is yet they never disclose what it is
May 19th, 2008 at 4:35 am
JD:
Found this article from the NYT today and thought you might be interested.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/17/business/yourmoney/17money.html?pagewanted=1&ei=5087&em&en=daa4a9ac68fbfc42&ex=1211342400
Apparently, there’s a new financial/PF editor taking over. Additionally, he even threw in what we’ve been talking about children and their parents’ finances. Well worth the read, although I did send in a comment saying he also needed to read *your* blog here, too. Keep up the good work!!
May 19th, 2008 at 10:20 am
JD,
Love your blog! You’ve probably already seen this article. It reminded me of your post about identity protection marketing this company:
http://www.wvgazette.com/News/200805172662
Very ironic!!
May 20th, 2008 at 5:22 am
Hi J.D,
I read how you were going to do a post about the drugstore game - I’ve done a breakdown of the savings and hidden costs for CVS-ing on my blog. It factors in a complete list of the products I’ve gotten over 3 weeks, how much time, trips, gas, etc. Check it out if you have time. Thanks
http://bethriftylikeus.blogspot.com/2008/05/true-cost-of-cvs-ing-for-3-weeks.html
S.B.
Be Thrifty Like Us
May 20th, 2008 at 11:42 am
Hey JD,
I was wondering if there were any money talk radio shows that you recommend.
Thanks
Jason
May 20th, 2008 at 2:17 pm
Hi JD,
Since you are moving your car and vacation savings to ING Direct, (smart move!) you may as well open an Orange Checking account there as well. This will appear on the same screen as your other accounts under the customer number assigned to you. You should then be able to send the mortgage company a “check” using Orange. You type in the information inside ING, and they will print and MAIL a check for you for free! I use this option to pay one of my loans, the other bills I can pay through Orange using their electronic payment option.
May 20th, 2008 at 5:03 pm
Hi JD,
I would like to let you know that Zilok.com has launched this week in the USA. It’s an online rental marketplace, where anyone can offer just about anything for rent: bikes, snowboards, bbqs, strollers, vacation rentals… We call it peer-to-peer renting. It’s a great way to make money, save money, while tacking over-consumtion and the accumulation of stuff.
I could go on and on but will keep it short. Let me know if you want to investigate the concept, and please get in touch with me if there are advertising opportunities on GRS.
Thanks,
Jeff Boudier, Zilok.com
May 21st, 2008 at 1:06 am
Hi would you have personal finance templates? Basically guides and recommended percentages for various types of investments: growth investments, capital preservation investments, life insurance, emergency fund etc.
Thanks
May 22nd, 2008 at 4:07 am
JD:
I posted this elsewhere, but thought you might also like to take a gander if you missed it there:
http://www.howispentmystimulus.com/
Yep, you got it, a website (complete with photos for some) of how people are spending their stimulus checks. Enjoy and keep up the good work here.
May 23rd, 2008 at 12:10 pm
You recently wrote an article about lost money and I followed the advice! I ended up finding $1100 between my wife and I! I got the last checks from the state today for a whopping $913.00
We put it straight to our $4800 credit card debt!
Thanks!
May 23rd, 2008 at 5:22 pm
Love the blog. Do you guys have any tips on how to deal with medical expenses that aren’t completely covered by insurance, like orthodontics?
May 24th, 2008 at 10:48 am
Hey JD,
Long time reader…I was looking for something on coin counting, and instead of taking it to coin star and getting ripped of by paying 8.9% or turning them into gift certificates, you can take your loose change to commerce bank. I don’t know if there are any in the pacific west yet, but they are expanding on the east coast. You don’t have to be a member and they give you cash right away. I thought it was a pretty brilliant idea, b/c they got me into their bank when I normally would not.
May 24th, 2008 at 7:30 pm
Hi there,
I wanted to drop you a line about a book that a friend of a friend wrote, called “All the Way Home: Building a Family in a Falling-Down House.” It’s by a hometown writer, David Giffels, who, with his growing family, restored their dream home - a falling down house in Akron, Ohio. They rebuilt the crumbling pile by salvaging many materials from other people’s discarded bricks, railroad ties, and other building materials, and turned them into a treasure. This now family of four did with no loans, no credit cards–all over 12 years with just $65K out of pocket and the rest from sweat equity.
Anywho, the book goes on sale this Tuesday, 5/27. You can find details about the book here:
http://www.harpercollins.com/books/9780061362866/All_the_Way_Home/index.aspx
There’s also an article about the whole adventure here:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/17/garden/17akron.html?ref=garden
He could use all the promotional help he could get and I just thought I’d drop you a line as it might appeal to your readers.
Thanks,
Alex
May 27th, 2008 at 12:07 pm
http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/15241
Hillbilly recycling. Thought you’d enjoy it.
June 2nd, 2008 at 2:36 pm
Hey J.D.,
I’ve been reading your blog for quite sometime now. I am 22, and I have lots of student loan debt (about $40,000). I am slowly working to get out of that debt. I just got engaged (on mother’s day) and we are planning a “frugal” wedding. Both me and the fiance are “artists” and we both do graphic design for a living. My fiance has horrible credit and because of my debt, I do as well. I was told to get a credit card and pay it off every month to build my credit (we do want to buy a house someday). Does that seem like a reasonable idea? I have had a gap card, but never use it and I also have a macmall card I used to get my computer, but paid that off as well. So I was looking into gas cards. What is your experience on them? I think it would be an easy way to build credit on something I already purchase and pay it off every month, because the last thing I wan to do is to get into credit card debt.
Thanks J.D.!
I love your blog, it is very encouraging.
Ashley
June 3rd, 2008 at 11:37 am
Hi J.D., I hope this hasn’t resulted in a quadruple (or more!) post, but I seem to be having a problem posting on your “Official GRS Referral Swapping” thread. Is it just me?
June 3rd, 2008 at 9:57 pm
Hi J.D.
First and foremost, keep up the great work. Your writing is great and is very informative (even though I do not reside in the US!)
I was wondering what your thoughts were on margin loans. There is obviously some value/benefit in gearing but, how would you reconcile margin loans with returns from the market (I would likely invest in broad indices as opposed to individual stocks) especially at such a volatile time; this is probably more significant in Australia where the interest rates are quite high (margin loans @ around 10%, base rate at 7.25%). Further, there would be tax advantages as well but I would be motivated by building wealth as opposed to reducing taxes (although they could go hand-in-hand!)
I would love to hear your thoughts (and those of fellow readers of your site) regarding this.
Cheers,
Gerard
June 6th, 2008 at 9:23 am
Hi,
I started getting a feed to your blog a few weeks ago and I love it.
Your post today sparked some questions I have about debt settlement. It’s regarding a situation my mom is in.
She got involved with someone and - long story made short - she now has hundreds of thousands of dollars in credit card debt. This happened about a year ago, and we’ve been able to eliminate all her secured debts besides her home, but there is still probably about 200k outstanding. In talking with various people about the situation, most of the advice we’ve been getting has been to wait about 2 years from the accumulation of all the debt to begin trying to settle everything. Do you have any resources you can point me towards or any words of wisdom?
If it sounds overwhelming now, just imagine what it was like when there were 6 vehicle purchases involved in addition to all the credit card debt. And, so you know, it’s not anything we can dispute; it was basically a situation where this guy capitalized on my mom’s naivety, loneliness, and immaculate credit and max’ed out on everything he possibly could.
Any info you could pass along would be much appreciated.
June 6th, 2008 at 5:29 pm
I checked out my credit reports from the 3 agencies online, and I saw on each of them that Verizon Wireless was a negative marker. My reports say that they “wrote off” approximately $200 for my account. This is not what I remember happening, but I have nothing in writing to confirm this. Verizon let me out of my contract because they misadvertised their coverage area. I was told that they would release me from the cancellation fees because I was assured that my phone would work in my home area. Needless to say, it didn’t. I thought I was getting a good deal and have had nothing but good things to say of Verizon because I considered this action to be very honorable. Now, I am extremely frustrated because this is a smear on my credit report, and I don’t understand how or why it is there if the information I was given was correct.
What steps do I need to take to ensure this negative report is taken off my report and to make sure this does not happen to me again?
June 7th, 2008 at 10:10 pm
For some reason, my comment in response to a question in the “Current Deals and Contests from Online Banks” post was marked as spam.
What gives?
June 8th, 2008 at 6:39 am
JD, you MUST see this blog!
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1024879/The-best-challenge—One-man-boldly-goes-use-dates-food.html
June 8th, 2008 at 5:02 pm
I had to share with you an ad that I found while flipping through the June 2008 issue of Smart Money today.
It’s a four minute workout machine that ooonly costs $14,615. The website for it is full of outlandish statements like “[the price]…still makes the ROM 4 minute workout the absolute least expensive method of exercise.”
It also calls doctors and personal trainers “so called experts.”
It’s a super entertaining ad and website (http://www.fastexercise.com/) but the full page ad in the center of Smart Money makes me worry that the company is actually selling enough of these to make a large enough profit that it can afford expensive ad space.
Enjoy!
June 9th, 2008 at 12:07 pm
I would like you to blog on online high yield savings accounts again. I have had a HORRIBLE experience with WaMu, and I’d really like to hear from you and others about other options. They charged me $10 per transaction after 6, even though they were transactions establishing additional accounts with WaMu, which WaMu encouraged as an option of funding the new accounts. I’ve paid $20 so far, and I’ll pay another $10 on Friday when my check is direct deposited, and probably another $10 at the end of the month when my 2nd monthly paycheck is deposited, plus $10 for ANY other transaction between now and the next billing cycle. I want to scream! Apparently if I had banked in person, these charges would not apply. HELLO!? Are you not an on-line bank? Aren’t you advertising the ease of using your account online? Aren’t you encouraging use of my current Wamu accounts to fund the new accounts? I feel as though I was tricked by the big, bad bank. I would really be interested to learn about any other online bank with a decent APY and GOOD customer service.
I am VERY disappointed in Wamu, and I recommend GRS readers to avoid them like the plague. This is NOT what they are looking for.
June 9th, 2008 at 1:58 pm
JD,
Thought you might be interested in this post for possible future use or ideas.
http://kblawson.wordpress.com/2008/06/06/rite-wrong-or-rite-aid/
June 10th, 2008 at 6:39 am
Hey J.D., I’m an RSS subscriber and lurker here. You may have already come across this article, “A Nation in Debt,” in The American Interest at http://www.the-american-interest.com/ai2/article.cfm?Id=458&MId=20. The full article was free when I viewed it this morning, though the rest of the magazine was subscription.
It seems to echo some of the sentiments found on GRS, taking them to the societal level and then into policy.
June 10th, 2008 at 6:43 am
I had an idea for something you might want to post someday…
I started driving 55 (or less on secondary roads)to save gas. The real payoff has been in less stress and a more pleasant commute. Now, instead of getting annoyed at drivers who go too slowly, cut me off, etc. I just go my pace and they all just go their merry way. Rather like the parting of the Red Sea. Also, there is no stress about looking out for cops to avoid speeding tickets.
June 10th, 2008 at 6:44 am
I’m trying to lower my monthly cell phone bill. On this blog’s recommendation, I e-mailed my provider and asked for a discount. They offered a different calling plan that has the same services that I am currently using, but for less money. After doing some research, I have found that the major cell phone companies all have discounted plans that they do not market. How do we know if we have the lowest cost plan for our usage?
Also, I understand that the major companies will allow you get out of your contract (usually a 2 year commitment) if you can find someone else to ’sign’ over your remaining contract time to. Does this really work?
June 10th, 2008 at 10:08 am
Thought you and your followers would be interested in this financial literacy system for teens that I launched today. The release is pasted below. Would love to send you more info. All the best, Stephen
For Immediate Release
THE STUDENT MONEY EXPERT™ LAUNCHES
THE DOLLARCAMP FINANCIAL SURVIVAL SYSTEM™,
THE FIRST-EVER PROGRAM TO TEACH HIGH SCHOOL
AND COLLEGE KIDS ABOUT BUDGETING, CREDIT CARDS
AND CREDIT SCORES
Just in time for graduation gift season, program can keep students from racking up credit card debt and ruining their credit scores
San Francisco, CA (June 10, 2008) — Stephen Epstein, the Student Money Expert™, today launched the first-ever financial literacy program to prevent young adults from racking up credit card debt and ruining their credit. The DollarCamp Financial Survival System™ (www.DollarCamp.com) is specifically designed to teach high school and college students how to control spending, how credit cards work and how to build strong credit scores.
Fifty percent of college students graduate with $5000 or more of high interest credit card debt (Sallie Mae), and nearly one-third of students admit that they were “not at all” or “not very well prepared” for managing their money once they got to college (KeyBank and Harris Interactive).
Through his San Francisco-based company, DollarCamp™, Epstein is doing something about this financial mess through a comprehensive, yet easy-to-understand crash course on financial literacy for high school and college kids.
“Unfortunately, most kids are absolutely clueless about money when they leave home and go to college and into the real world. Students have drug education, sex education and driver’s education, but no financial education,” said Epstein. “When I went to college, money wasn’t real to me, and I was oblivious to my credit score. I saw all my friends treat credit cards like they were free money. I have parents that were very vigilant, and I still managed to screw it up.̶