In case you haven’t noticed, things look a little different around here. While most of the site functionality is up and running, this will continue to be a work in progress. There are some minor bugs to address, and there will be some trial and error going on over the coming weeks in terms of placement for a lot of elements, but I’m confident that the new layout will be much easier to read and navigate.

So, while I’m working on the site this weekend, I encourage you to poke around the site to see if you encounter any errors or bugs, and also to browse through these great articles from the past week:

Avoid Tax Refund Anticipation Loans - With tax seasons upon us, a lot of people will be looking to get their hands on their refund as soon as possible. One of the worst ways to accomplish this is with a refund anticipation loan.

Clean Your Shower All Year in 25 Minutes and for Only $21.49 - This is one of the worst household chores at our house right now because we’re still waiting on a replacement water softener. This means our shower gets rust stains very quickly and they are a pain to scrub away. I might have to give this stuff a try.

Three Things I Won’t DIY - I have to completely agree with Money Socket on this one. You couldn’t pay me to try and repair plumbing, and while I have basic auto repair skills, I don’t have the time or proper tools, so I’d defer to a professional. And of course, the same goes for major HTML and CSS work. That is why I hired someone to put the bulk of the design together, so I only had to do basic editing on the final product.

There Are Just Too Many ETFs Out There - The Sun talks about some Claymore ETFs that are closing due to lack of interest, and I have to agree that there are just getting to be too many ETFs. They are becoming too specialized and track many odd indicies. The real losers are the shareholders who get stuck liquidating their position when a fund decides to shut down.

Lessons Learned From Average Net Worth Values - Nickel has been spending some time lately examining net worth values, and the lessons learned are very interesting. If you wanted more information about how the wealth is distributed in this country, this is a good place to start.

H&R Block Tax Software Giveaway - It’s tax time, so couldn’t you use some free tax software? You’re in luck, because SVB is giving away a few free copies, and you have until Tuesday to enter. Keep your eyes peeled, because I just might have my own tax software contest in the near future…

How to Get an Annual Discount With Dish Network - This is a timely post since we have been considering switching to Dish for a number of months. Comcast is getting outrageous, and we live in such a rural area that we can’t even get HD channels with our digital package.

Is a Health Savings Account Right for You? - This is a good question, and one I’ve often looked at for myself. Money Smart Life has put together a nice piece that can help you determine whether or not an HSA would be a good idea for you or not.

Market Volatility is Back: Don’t Panic - I’ve told hundreds of people not to panic over the past couple months, but some panic and make rash decisions anyway. Understandably, losing money can be a cause for concern, but when it is taken out of the context of long-term goals, worrying about volatility just does more harm than good.

Taking a Look at Bush’s $3.1 Trillion Budget Proposal - That is a lot of money, so where does it all go? Rather than listen to the media which likes to sensationalize the news, My Two Dollars highlights what funding increased, decreased, and was eliminated all together.

A Budget in Your Head Isn’t Really a Budget - This is so true. Sure, we all have a mental budget, but this is not a real budget. Just like you should write down your goals in order to have a better chance of achieving them, the same holds true for a budget. You have to get it out of your head and onto paper or into a computer program.

The IRS Knows What Happens in Vegas - Not everything that happens in Vegas stays in Vegas. If you win a reasonable amount of money, the IRS will probably know about it. And if you want to minimize some of your winnings by adding up all of your losses, you better have some good documentation.

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