December 15th Friday Five – Double Dose Edition

I apologize for missing last Friday’s post and intend to make this edition extra special. To make up for the lapse I will be digging even deeper to bring you ten of the best posts of the week. This is almost as good as a carnival. As an added bonus, at the very bottom of this post you will find the answer to all of your pressing financial questions.

Live Like You Were Dying – Trent at The Simple Dollar tells us we should live like we were dying. Whether it is this year or fifteen years from now the post is very thought-provoking.

IRS: We Don’t Care How You Get It. Just Be Sure To Report It! – JLP stumbles across some humorous bits of information from the IRS and what income needs to be reported.

Don’t Be Afraid To Invest – Jim doesn’t want to be afraid to invest and neither should you. This post generated a bit of good discussion on investing and risk tolerance.

PMI Is Now Tax-Deductible – The Binary Dollar points out that starting in 2007 PMI may be tax-deductible. This was news to me and I heard it there first. I will definitely expand on this more as I recently talked about the pros and cons of a 20% down payment earlier this week.

Cheap Ways To Save Money This Winter – J.D. at Get Rich Slowly has some great tips on how to not only stay warm but also save money this winter.

Apple vs. Microsoft: Which Stock Is Stronger – TJP at Investor Trip takes an in-depth look at what is driving both companies and which one may make a better investment.

Rule For Building Wealth: Start Early – Flexo highlights the Fortune Magazine series on rules for building wealth and points out the importance of starting early. I can’t stress this rule enough so even if you know that starting early is important, read this anyway.

Efficient Credit Card Management: Change Your Bill Due Date – When you are in debt keeping up with your bills can be a headache and even lead to late fees. Money, Matter and More Musings takes a look at a very simple solution that could save you money.

Free Stuff For Your Birthday – Who doesn’t love free stuff? In the celebration of your birth many companies will give you something for free. PF Advice highlights a ton of freebies available on your birthday.

Top Five Companies We’d Be Better Off Without: #3 McDonalds – Nick over at Punny Money has an entertaining outlook on why we’d be better off without McDonalds.