Friday Finance Findings for April 4th
By Jeremy Vohwinkle with 2 Comments
Another week has come and gone, so it is time again to go back and take a look at some of the articles that caught my attention over the past week. Before I get to the links, I just want to remind everyone that I’m giving away $100 worth of SmartyPig gift cards. Entering is as easy as leaving a comment, and you have until April 10th to enter.
Beware of Hidden Credit Card Fees – Does that new 0% card offer sound good? It might be, but you have to be careful and read all of the fine print. There could be a lot of fees or changes tied to this teaser rate that could cost you.
All About IRA Recharacterizations – While it isn’t something you’ll need to do that often, there are some situations that could warrant a recharacterizatio of some or all of your IRA assets.
Vanguard to Launch Global Stock Index Fund – If you’re looking for global diversification, this new offering may be right for you. This new index fund will invest across 48 countries and roughly 2,800 stocks.
The Best High-Yield Online Savings Banks – Nickel has addressed one of the many questions he receives via email regarding online savings accounts. There are a lot of options out there, but he highlights the most popular banks.
Paying Bills vs. Money Management – Paying bills got you down? NCN walks us through his process that took him from just paying the bills, to money management.
Brip Blap Getting Zen Things Done – Heard of GTD? Heard of Zen to Done? I’ve tried them, and failed miserably. I don’t have the patience to stick with an organizational plan such as these, but brip blap shares a method that is very simple. Even I can probably pull this off.
Cruises, a Frugal Vacation? – I think so. While not everyone may enjoy a cruise, if you are looking for a low-cost way to enjoy some new locations, great food, and endless entertainment, a cruise may be a great option.
The Final Nail in the Coffin for Borders? – This may be happening to a Borders store near you. It is becoming more and more difficult for brick and mortar stores to compete with the likes of Amazon and other online retailers.
Book Giveaway: Every Family’s Business – Looking for something new to read? Million Dollar Journey has 5 copies of Every Family’s Business to give away. You still have a week to enter!
Save and Invest Enough for Retirement: Are You on Track? – How much do you personally need to save for retirement? There are a lot of assumptions and methods for calculating this number, and SVB examines the three most common methods.
Uncle Sam’s Budget in 2007 – Do you want to see where your tax dollars were going? Nothing terribly shocking, but JLP shows the budget, and my suspicious are confirmed that I’m seeing very little of my tax dollars come back to benefit me.
The Financial Markets Are in Trouble: Who’s to Blame? – There is certainly plenty of blame to go around, and Ben looks at some of the culprits. Personally, regardless of who’s to blame, it is just part of the economic cycle. You can’t have unchecked growth and expansion forever.
How to Conquer Your Fear of Investing – J.D. has put together a list of Kiplinger’s suggestions to overcome the fear of investing. I see a lot of people who simply refuse to save money for the future because they are scared to invest. You certainly shouldn’t let fear keep you from reaching your goals.
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I like your sentiment, at least in part, about "just a part of the economic cycle". This talk of blame is just a bunch of hype. Of course there may be individual culprits and various regulatory bodies will pursue, prosecute, etc. But why does any of that matter to us? It's not like we can help out the regulations. We can spectate and cheer on the litigation and perhaps *feel better* but that doesn't do anything for our personal finances. We should just focus on riding it all out, which we will, of course. And if a confluence of Black Swans knocks our system out indefinitely, well, then it really won't matter whether those who deserve the original blame have been assigned it proportionately.
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Here's another comment on media coverage of "financial market trouble". What the hell does the word "dislocation" mean in this regard?! I heard/read that at least every other media piece. (I know, I should just ignore all media.) It seems that a dislocation refers to a market place or economy that has been located in the wrong place, or something like that. "Dislocation in the housing market", etc. So the housing market is moving in a downward direction, why is that dislocation? What about when the housing market moved markedly in the upward direction for so many years? Why wasn't that "dislocation", too? Oh, that's because it was "wealth creation". Okay, I'm exaggerating, but only a bit: even during the housing boom, there was some media coverage re: concerns about housing affordability, so it wasn't all rosy.
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Nice list, gave me some good lunch reading for today :)
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