The Three Worst Things to Say When Asking for a Personal Loan

If you are applying for a personal line of credit, make sure to avoiding saying any of these things to the banker interviewing you. They seem fairly harmless, but could result in a rejection!

From WalletPop.com:

1. "I Have a Job, But I Hate It."

What gives? At least you have a job. So what's so wrong about admitting you're not crazy about it?

"Your loan officer is looking for stability, says Dr. Mary Ann Campbell, a spokesperson for IndexCreditCards.com, a credit card comparison site. And if you're hinting around that maybe you plan on leaving that job sometime soon -- maybe even before you get another job to replace your lost income -- well, you're not exactly giving the lender a vote of confidence in your ability to pay back the loan.

About the only worse thing you could say -- but we're sure you wouldn't say this -- is, "I don't have a job, but I hope to have one soon," says Gail Cunningham, a spokesperson for the National Foundation for Credit Counseling.

"A lender likes stability," says Cunningham, echoing Campbell's reasoning, "and not having a steady source of income doesn't make them feel secure about loaning you money."

2. "You're the Fourth Bank I've Come To."

"Going from bank to bank and being turned down for a loan doesn't exactly give a lender any confidence in you," says Cunningham, adding that while it's true "the lender is going to see the previous inquiries on your credit report, there's no use underscoring the situation by seeming desperate. If everyone's turning you down, there's probably a good reason."

Continue reading at WalletPop.com…

Four Expert Tips on Personal Finance for Executive Women

The Glass Hammer, one of my favorite blogs for women in business, posted a great article last week with tips on personal finance for executive women. It was contributed by Myra Salzer, author of Inheritor’s Sherpa and Living Richly: Seizing the Potential of Inherited Wealth. You can find a snippet below. (Keep the awesome content coming!)

1. First – secure your “nut.” There is a quick and easy way to calculate whether or not you have inherited enough to have your “nut” secure already. Can you comfortably live on one fortieth of your inheritance? For example, let’s say you inherited $10 million. $10 million divided by 40 equals $250,000. If all your needs and wants would be met on $250,000 per year (after taxes and adjusting for inflation) then your “nut” is secure. All you need to do is invest in a manner that keeps up with inflation and spending. Of course, you’ll miss out on the next hot IPO (initial public offering) and you will never again enjoy cocktail-party bragging rights boasting about your latest venture. But you will be secure.

2. Then – find an investment management firm whose intractable systematic approach is wealth preservation. (We recommend independent registered investment advisory firms that don’t sell any products and who are not associated with any brokerage houses or broker dealers.) Remember, you don’t need to make a killing in the markets when your “nut” is secure. You need only avoid losses. This isn’t nearly as easy to accomplish as it was for Grandmother, but it is doable. Find someone with a global perspective whose analysis goes beyond the scope of modern portfolio theory and CFA (certified financial analyst) curriculum.

3. Make sure your investment manager is a fiduciary, a person or firm whose legal obligation is first to you, above all else. If the management firm is, for example, a public company, the managers’ first obligation is to the firm’s shareholders, so they cannot possibly be fiduciaries. Demand that the manager agrees to a fiduciary contract.

More here

Boomerang Kids: 85% Of College Grads Move Home

According to new statistics, there is a new group of kids in town: the boomerangers. They are college graduates who move back home because of extreme unemployment rates among their age group. Nearly 15% of taxpayers between the age of twenty and twenty-four are unable to find employment. According to CNN Money:

"This recession has hit young adults particularly hard," according to Rich Morin, senior editor at the Pew Research Center in DC.

So hard that a whopping 85% of college seniors planned to move back home with their parents after graduation last May, according to a poll by Twentysomething Inc., a marketing and research firm based in Philadelphia. That rate has steadily risen from 67% in 2006.

"It's peaking at levels we have not seen before," said David Morrison, managing director and founder of Twentysomething.

Mallory Jaroski, 22 graduated from Penn State University in May but has been living at home with her mother while looking for a job in press relations. "It's not bad living with my mom, but I feel like a little kid. I have a little bed, a little room," she says.

Jaroski thought she would stay for summer. But like many others, she's found her stay becoming significantly longer.

"There's almost an expectation that kids will move back home, there is no stigma attached," Morrison said. "The thought now is to move home for 6-12 months but in reality those young adults will be home for a year and a half or longer. Even if they have jobs, they are living at home."

Continue Reading…

Can Using Gift Cards Help You Stick to a Budget?

Most of us only think to buy gift cards for birthday or holiday presents. However, some savvy shoppers are finding a new use for them: budgeting tools. By purchasing gift cards ahead of time for gas, food, and other necessities, it forces them to stick to the budget.

More from WalletPop.com:

The holiday shopping season is drawing near, and if you're like many Americans, you may be wondering where to find the discipline to stay within your budget. Here's a new idea for you: Try using gift cards. You pay for them up front and there's no interest or late fees to pay, unlike credit cards. In fact, you don't need to wait for the holidays; gift cards could help you budget for a big expense like a vacation or a home-improvement project.

But while gift cards might help you establish a greater degree of control over your holiday spending, there are a few things you should keep in mind to stay on track, says Ruth Susswein, deputy director of national priorities for watchdog group Consumer Action. "It's not a bad idea if it helps you stick to a spending limit," Susswein says, although she notes that the people who really need financial discipline might still be tempted to whip out a credit card if their spending goes over the pre-set amount on the card.

There can also be an issue with the cards themselves, Susswein warns. "One thing I would caution is the cards with the most flexibility may cost something to buy and you may not want to waste your limited funds on purchasing the gift card," she said. While most chain retailers don't charge anything beyond the amount that's loaded on the card, the drawback is that you can only use the card at that chain or occasionally at one of its sister brands. If you want a go-anywhere card, you'll generally have to pay for it, and those cards can also hit you with fees.

Furthermore, Susswein points out, gift cards are less secure than their credit or debit counterparts in the sense that if you lose a gift card, it's just like losing cash: It's gone forever. If you plan to purchase gift cards to help you stick to a budget, do your research first so you're informed about any limitations, caveats or fees imposed by the seller.

One final point: Many rewards cards out there will let you cash in your points or miles for gift cards. Susswein advises against this, pointing out that because of the cards' various conversion rates, you almost always get a better bang for your buck if you take an available cash-back option. So instead of using $100 worth of points to purchase a gift card, she says, have those points applied as a statement credit, then take the cash and use it to buy a gift card at a retail store.

Read more here

How Much of My Savings Should Go to Annuities?

Prioritizing your income and deciding how much should go where can be difficult, especially in today’s economy. One of the toughest decisions many Americans face is how much of your savings or 401(k) should go towards annuities. CNN Money.com recently published an article on this topic, in response to a question from an Ohio taxpayer. You can find a section of their answer below, or check out the full text at CNN Money.com.

Question: What portion of my 401(k) and savings should I move to annuities? -- Jack S., Alliance, Ohio.

Answer: That depends. Many annuities have such onerous fees and other drawbacks that you're better off avoiding them altogether.

There's one type, though, that I've long believed can play a useful role in some retirement portfolios. I'm talking about immediate income annuities, where you turn over a lump sum to an insurance company and in return receive guaranteed monthly checks for life, regardless of how the economy and markets fare.

But while most people should at least consider devoting some money to such an annuity at retirement, don't assume that buying one is the best move for you.

For one thing, retirees automatically qualify for an immediate annuity of sorts -- Social Security, which provides guaranteed, inflation-adjusted lifetime payments. If you'll be collecting a pension on top of that, you may very well have the assured income you'll need to cover enough of your expected outlays in retirement without an annuity.

What's more, if you have large balances in your 401(k)s and other retirement accounts, you might be able to draw enough from them with little risk of outliving your assets.

Continue reading at CNN Money.com…

Savings Experiment: Carpooling

From WalletPop.com:

Everyone knows that carpooling can save energy and it diminishes traffic. When many people use only one vehicle to get to the same place, fewer resources are used up. But does the money it saves passengers really make much of a difference to your pocketbook?

According to the AAA, the average American one-way commute to work is 16 miles, so most of us travel an average of 32 miles a day just to get to and from our jobs. Using the commute computer at RideFinders.com, a ride-sharing portal, we found a savings of more than 50% for people in car pools.

Assuming a vehicle costs 59¢ a mile to operate five days a week (a typical figure under stop-and-go conditions over 15,000 miles a year), we can do a little math and find that when split equally among all members of the car pool, the per-person price for fuel, car maintenance, paring and tolls plunges by half or more compared to solo commuting.

That car will cost about $4,680 a year to get to and from work. Start splitting that among passengers, and the per-person cost plummets. For two people, the per-passenger savings is $2,340 per year. Split between three people, the per-person savings is $3,120 per year; instead of shouldering the whole $4,680 cost, each person in a three-person pool pays only $1,560.

Carpoolers also can become productive during a significant portion of their day. Instead of manning the steering wheel every day, the passengers in a car pool can spend their time doing more productive things, such as reading the news, writing, catching up on books, texting family -- for a 45-minute commute, that's like getting another hour and a half of your life back when you're not driving.

8 College Fees You Didn't Plan For

There is no doubt that college has its expenses, but beyond tuition and supplies, there are dozens of other hidden costs you should plan to incur. SmartMoney.com put together a great list of 8 college fees you probably aren’t planning on. You can find a few of their tips below, or check out the full list here.

Freshman orientation: $100

Orientation isn’t usually optional, but neither is it free. For opening dorms early, guest speakers or, yes, even orientation parties, some schools charge $100 per student – or more. Iowa State University charges $190. Boston University charges $215 per student; if parents and siblings attend, they're charged $100 and $50 each, respectively.

Study abroad enrollment: $800

Aside from regular tuition and the costs associated with living abroad, some schools tack on a “maintenance fee” for study abroad. Purdue University, for example, charges a fee of up to $853.35 per semester if a student goes abroad through a program that isn’t run by Purdue. A spokeswoman for the university says the fee covers maintaining relationships with the host university, including the cost for Purdue officials to travel to the school abroad to check on the program.

Technology: $130 to $445

The days of free computer labs are over. Nowadays students are often charged about $200 per year to cover maintenance, ink and paper, says a spokesman for the U.S. Student Association, a network of college student governments. And more tech-oriented students pay more. At Iowa State, most students pay $115 per semester, but majors in fields like engineering and computer science pay $223.

Student activities: $270

The extracurricular activities on campus look free, in that students don’t have to pay to attend them. Instead, there’s a student union fee tacked on to tuition bills to help pay for the student newspapers and activities like dances. At the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the University of Maryland, it’s $272 for the year. At California State University, Fresno, it’s up to $109 per semester to pay for the recreation center, plus a $34.50 student body fee for support of on-campus student organizations.

Sports: $200 to $1,000

Big-time jocks get college scholarships. Amateurs and enthusiasts have to pay to play. At Ohio State, students in intramural sports will pay up to $125 per team per quarter. These sports aren’t supported by university athletic departments, so they turn to students for funding, says Rod Bugarin, a former financial aid officer at Brown and Columbia universities. And even if your child isn’t the athletic type, you may still have to pay $1,000 or more to support a school’s athletic program – especially if it’s in the National Collegiate Athletic Association’s top division, says a USSA spokesman.

More Families, Friends Move In Together

From 2005 to 2009, American families took about 3.8 million extended family members in to their home to live with them. Due to financial strain, more and more households now have multiple siblings or family members living under one roof. New census data found that extended relatives now make up 8.2% of family households, up from 6.9% in 2005.

USA Today reports

Fueled by the dismal economy and high unemployment, more Americans — friends and families — are doubling up.

From 2005 to 2009, family households added about 3.8 million extended family members, from adult siblings and in-laws to cousins and nephews. Extended family members now make up 8.2% of family households, up from 6.9% in 2005, according to Census data out this week.

"Clearly, a big part of that is the economic recession and housing costs," says Stephanie Coontz, co-chair of the Council on Contemporary Families, a non-profit research association. "We're seeing a shift away from the 1950s and 1960s mentality against extended families," when "modern" women did not take in aging parents for fear of hurting their marriage.

There are also signs of a shift from family households. For the first time in more than a century, more than half of people aged 25 to 34 have never been married.

The number of people in non-family households — those whose members are not related — grew 4.4% from 2005 to 2009, faster than the 3.4% growth for family households.

"It's a realistic recognition that while a good, healthy nuclear family is a valuable thing to have, it's not the only family form people are going to live in all their lives," Coontz says.

Read more here

Five Ways to Save Money on Thanksgiving Travel Now

Since tomorrow is the beginning of October, taxpayers across the country are beginning to make travel arrangements for the upcoming holiday. Since so many members travel to see family for Thanksgiving, the expenses can quickly add up. Earlier today I came across this article from WalletPop.com with advice on how to save on your holiday travel arrangements. You can find a few of the tips below, or check out the full article here.

1. Book now. For the last few weeks, editors at SmarterTravel.com have monitored prices between 100 of the most popular cities for Thanksgiving travel and found that fares are slowly dropping as we approach the end of the month. The same trend occurred last fall, when airlines put Thanksgiving fares on sale in early October, Banas said. At Bing, fareologists said there are 50% more price drops during the holidays if you know how to look for them.

2. Set alerts. Sites that let you search flights on multiple airlines at the same time, like Expedia, Bing and Kayak, will track prices for you routes of your choice. When the prices fall, they will send an alert to your e-mail. These alerts will help you benchmark prices over several days.

3. Be flexible. If you plan to leave the Tuesday before Thanksgiving and return the Sunday after, you could pay as much as $170 more for your ticket, said Genevieve Shaw Brown, Travelocity's senior editor. Some experts suggest that traveling on Thanksgiving day is a good way to snag a cheap seat. Most travelers stay on average for five-and-a-half days, so extending your trip, or shortening it, could also lower your ticket price.

"Consider flying out early on Thanksgiving day itself, when flights can be exceptionally discounted and airports less crowded," said Darren Frei, editorial director at ShermansTravel.com. "But be aware that you always run the risk of delays or cancellations, which could mean missing out on the big feast."

5 Ways to Get Your Retirement Back on Track

A lot of Americans have seen their retirement plans interrupted in the bad economy. According to CNN, nearly half of the taxpayers in this country worry they will not have enough money to retire comfortably. This is up from 29% in 2007, a report from the Employee Benefit Research Institute found.

But the truth is, you can still get to your destination. "Not everyone is going to be able to retire exactly the way they want," says Denver financial planner Mark Brown. "But I talk to people all the time who overestimate the scope of their problem and underestimate their ability to do something about it."

Here are a few strategies for navigating five of the most common retirement roadblocks.

Roadblock #1: You're carrying a big mortgage

The problem: It used to be that Americans aimed to cross into retirement free of debt. But if you're in your fifties or sixties, chances are you aren't planning a mortgage-burning party anytime soon. The Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard says that 63% of homeowners ages 55 to 64 have mortgage or home-equity debt, up from 49% in 1989. In addition, a third of retirees carry credit card balances, reports the Federal Reserve. Such liabilities can be a dead weight in retirement -- you'll have to make the payments even if your expenses soar or your portfolio plummets.

Solution #1: Erase the debt if you can. Assuming you have cash savings in excess of the balances (besides emergency funds, that is), it usually makes sense to pay debts off around the time you retire. But zero out HELOCs and credit cards first. "You don't want a variable rate going into retirement," says Scottsdale financial planner Jacob Gold.

How 3 couples bust through retirement roadblocks

As for your mortgage, if you're two-thirds through the term, you're not benefiting much, if at all, from the interest write-off. And after taxes you're unlikely to earn more in risk-free investments than the cost of the debt, a recent Center for Retirement Research study found. That said, if you'd have to pull from tax-sheltered accounts to pay off the balance, you may want to consult a financial planner about whether doing so would be worth the tax bite.

Continue reading at CNN.com…

Talk with Your Partner about Taxes

Last week my team put together another great tax advice video. This time hosts Edward Lester and James Owen sat down together to discuss the importance of talking with your partner about taxes and financial issues. You can watch the embedded video below or visit my YouTube channel for more great tax videos.

Cardholders Prefer Debit as Credit-Card Use Falls

For the first time the total payment volume of debit cards in this country surpassed credit-card volume. As this article from Bloomberg.com explains, this trend will continue in 2010 as more taxpayers are trying to avoid incurring more debt. Considering the way of our economy at present, I think it absolutely great that people are being more conscientious about incurring more debt!

At San Francisco-based Visa Inc., the world’s biggest payments network, the total payment volume for debit cards increased by 7.9 percent in 2009 to $883 billion as credit-card volume declined by 7.3 percent to $764 billion. Volume for debit cards at No. 2 MasterCard Inc. in Purchase, New York, rose by 5.8 percent and 2.8 percent at No. 4 Riverwoods, Illinois-based Discover Financial Services.

“Consumers are turning from one form of plastic to another,” said James Van Dyke, President and Founder of Javelin. “Credit cards are falling out of favor as cardholders become more cautious and look for more conservative payment methods.”

Fifty-six percent of consumers said they had used a credit card in the past month compared with 87 percent who said they had in 2007, according to the study, which surveyed 3,294 people in November 2009 for that question. Other findings were based on data collected online from 5,211 respondents in March 2010 and 5,000 consumers in November 2009. If the rate of decline continues, 45 percent of consumers will reach for a credit card in 2010, the study said.

Continue reading at Bloomberg.com…

Labor Day Travel Savings

Thousands of Americans getting ready to celebrate this Labor Day weekend, but in today’s economy traveling has become a luxury for many families. To assist struggling taxpayers, CNN Money has put together the following list of travel tips.

Lodging deals

There are still plenty of great deals to be found if you book a room now for this weekend. "But don't delay," advises Bob Deiner, president ofGetaRoom.com. "We expect hotels to raise rates right before the weekend."

Deiner's low price pick for Labor Day: Orlando. The Disney Regal Sun is offering deals as low as $55 a night.

To get the best deal on a room, check rates online first. Then, call and ask for the unpublished rate. Deiner claims, "Typical savings by phone is 10 to 25% lower than the lowest online rate."

Continue reading at CNN Money.com…

Save Dough When Dining Out: Top 10 Ways to Cut Your Restaurant Bill

Eating out is a great way to get a good meal with out much effort, but it does come at a price, especially if you dine out often. One of my favorite finance blogs (WalletPop.com) recently put together a great list of tips to save money when you dine out. I have included a few of their tips below, but you can find the full list here.

1. Forget about the "Joneses"

Unless I am at a business dinner, I could care less what other people think of me when I order -- or for that matter, not ordering. If I'm so worried about what my friends think, maybe they're not really my friends. As long as I am content and have followed the proper tipping etiquette guidelines, I'm not going to worry. To me, this is the number one way to keep your bill in line, hands down.

2. Eat those freebies

It could be bread and butter, chips, or just about anything. Take full advantage of these freebies! Am I saying to stuff yourself silly with bread and butter so much that you don't even order an entrée? Of course not. But if restaurants give you some food that comes out before your main meal, isn't that kind of like an appetizer? Do yourself a favor: Fill up on the chips and salsa or bread and butter within reason and skip the paid appetizer. And don't be shy about asking for a refill.

Continue reading at WalletPop.com…

15 Things You Shouldn't Be Paying For

In the past few years, many Americans have been forced to tighten their personal budgets. However, as this article from Yahoo! Finance there are a lot of things you are probably paying for that you do not necessarily need to. You can find a snippet of their article below, or read the full text here.

So much money and energy is wasted on things we could get for free. If you're into new, shiny things and collecting stuff, this is not for you. But if you want less clutter in your life and want to keep more of your money, then check out these 15 things you shouldn't be paying for.

Basic Computer Software -- Thinking of purchasing a new computer? Think twice before you fork over the funds for a bunch of extra software. There are some great alternatives to the name brand software programs. The most notable is OpenOffice, the open-source alternative to those other guys. It's completely free and files can be exported in compatible formats.

Your Credit Report -- You don't have to pay for your credit report. You could sign up for one of the free credit monitoring services online to get a quick look at your credit report. You just have to remember to cancel the service before the end of the free trial. Or you could do one better and visit www.annualcreditreport.com, the only truly free place to see all three of your credit reports for free once a year.

Cell Phone -- The service plan may be expensive, but the phone itself doesn't have to cost a thing. Most major carriers will give you a free phone, even a free smart phone, with a two-year contract.

Books -- There's a cool place in your town that's renting out books for free: the library. Remember that place? Stop by and put your favorite book on reserve. And if you don't feel like getting out, visit www.paperbackswap.com and find your books there (small shipping fees apply).

10 Tips for Finding a Job in Today’s Economy

It seems like whenever you turn on the news, or look through a newspaper, there are stories about the ongoing unemployment problem in this country. In fact, just a few weeks ago it was reported that the number of Americans who are receiving food stamps rose to a record 40.8 million in May. To assist taxpayers across the country looking for employment, I have put together the following list of tips for finding a job in today’s economy.

1. Make Goals

One of the hardest parts of job hunting is the amount of perseverance it requires. In order to keep motivated, set goals to strive for on a daily, weekly, and monthly basis. For example, your daily goal might be to send out 5 resumes, or your weekly goal might be to go to at least one interview. By keeping yourself motivated you can stay focused, and encouraged to keep working towards your goal.

2. Get Aggressive

The job market is competitive right now, and if you want to stand out you have to work hard. Be aggressive in your job search by calling back potential employers and making sure they know you want the position. Then, always send thank you notes after every interview. Above all, stay positive, a good attitude will keep your mind sharp and impress potential employers.

3. Online Resources

The Internet can be used as one of the most powerful tools in your job search. Create profiles on online job search sites, and look for jobs in your area. You should also check the job section on classified sites such as CraigsList.org on a daily basis.

4. Resume Tips

Having a resume that is too general will give the impression to potential employers that you are not really that interested in the specific position they are offering. You should always modify your resume before sending it in for consideration, so that it is relevant to the open position. You do not want recruiters to think that you send the exact same resume to every listing you see. It also helps to write a new cover letter for each application.

5. Work on your Skills

There are some skills that need to be learned on the job, however while you are looking for employment you should consider building up some of your relevant skills. If you are unfamiliar with Microsoft Office then check out an online tutorial or pick up a book from Amazon.com. Any extra skills you can add to your resume will help set you aside from other job candidates.

6. Phone a Friend

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 70% of jobs are found through networking. If you are serious about job hunting then you should call and email your friends and family members to see if anyone knows of a vacant position.

7. Use Social Media

Another great way to get the word out that you are looking for a new job is by participating in social media communities like FaceBook or LinkedIn. Just be sure that you do not post any questionable materials to your profile, as recruiters often Google the names of candidates, and you do not want your online presence to reflect an unprofessional image of yourself.

8. New strategies

Regularly checking the same job sites or the same newspaper could get you stuck in a rut. Therefore, you should try looking for job openings in new places whenever you have a chance. Maybe pick up a less popular newspaper or start a profile on a different job site.

9. Enlist Some Help

If you have been on the hunt for a while, you might want to enlist the help of a job placement agency. Run a search on Google for job placement help, and you should be able to find a few local agencies. However, you should always be cautious and avoid scams that make you pay excess fees for equipment, or invest in a pyramid scheme.

10. Nail the Interview

In the past you may have come to an interview expecting to answer a few questions, and leaving it at that. Not in this economy. Before you go in for an interview you should always research the company, and prepare a list of questions to ask the person conducting the interview. Preparation is the key, and if you look well prepared it will help you stand out from the list of applicants.

Celebrities with the Worst Money Problems

We have all heard it said, “Mo’ money, Mo’ problems”. Although most of us associate celebrity status with money and fame, a lot of the so-called “rich and famous” are actually facing serious financial problems. WalletPop.com put together a great piece on which celebrities have the largest money issues. You can find a section or their list below, but checkout the full article at WalletPop.com.

Tiger Woods: $100 million

The $100 million that Woods owes to his ex-wife in a divorce settlement may not be a money problem to Woods, who has a net worth of $900 million and makes $85 million a year, according to CelebrityNetWorth.com. But $100 million is still a lot of money and it has to hurt to write a check that large to an ex. And with his golf game falling short lately, that annual salary may also be on the decline.

Jay-Z: $50 million

The rapper must be thankful he signed that $150 million music deal with concert promoter Live Nation. That money should come in handy as he tries to cover his $50 million loss on two Manhattan hotel projects that he bought in 2007, but has been unable to turn into J Hotels. Some reports have him spending $65 million on the property. Whatever the amount, it's been a losing proposition for Jay-Z. The housing market crashed, something even Jay-Z, born Shawn Carter, couldn't fix with the Midas touch he has had on his other businesses.

O.J. Simpson: $33 million

After being acquitted of murdering Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman, a civil court found Simpson liable for $33.5 million to the Goldman family in a wrongful death suit. But then things got even worse. Simpson is now in a Nevada prison serving up to 33 years for robbery and kidnapping. Simpson tried to make money by writing a book entitled If I Did It, Here's How It Happened, but that project was quickly shelved.

Your Card Has Been Declined, Just as You Wanted

If you are one of those people who just cannot seem to stay within your monthly budget, you might want to look into the new personal finance tools Citigroup plans to begin offering customers. They intend to offer a feature that will allow customers to set budgets for themselves, and have their card decline purchases that would put them over budget.

The service, called inControl and already in use by some Barclaycard holders in Britain, is a sort of financial chastity belt that offers the potential to prevent a variety of budget sins and other money traps.

Worried about your restaurant habit? If your bank adopts MasterCard’s service, you could tell it to have your debit or credit card reject any restaurant purchase above whatever monthly cap you set.

Sick of your credit card number falling into the hands of thieves? Tell your card issuer to never allow charges originating from the fraud-prone countries that end in “stan” or “ia.” (Don’t worry: You can instruct your bank to make an exception for Australia during the few weeks that you’ll be honeymooning in Sydney.)

Continue reading at NY Times.com…

Tired of Living Paycheck to Paycheck

From CNN Money:

Question: I've been trying to be a little more thrifty lately. I realize that a lot of the luxuries Americans have are "wants" not "needs." Basically, I'd like to balance my household budget so I don't end up with just $30 at the end of the month. I'd even like to start building some savings. Any suggestions? --Kim, Idaho Falls, Idaho

Answer: A lot of people are experiencing the epiphany you've had about wants vs. needs.

Of course, we also have to keep in mind that one person's indulgence may be another's necessity. For example, a recent MainStay Investments poll that asked just over 1,000 baby boomers about their attitudes toward saving for retirement found that 46% considered weekend getaways not a luxury but a basic need.

I guess I can understand that. Someone who puts in lots of hours at a high-pressure job might very well see the occasional short trip not as an extravagance but a way to preserve sanity in a hectic life. I have to admit that I'm less sympathetic, though, to the 2% of my fellow boomers who classified professional manicures and pedicures as a basic need.

But despite individual differences in what we may consider "wants," it does appear that Americans have been rediscovering thrift of late. Last week's figures from the Bureau of Economic Analysis show that Americans saved 6.4% of after-tax income in June, the highest percentage this year. Granted, that's less than the 8.2% in May 2009. But it's a huge improvement from the 1% to 3% rates that were common back before the financial crisis.

Wheat Shortage May Mean Higher Grocery Bills

New reports of a wheat shortage around the world have experts warning consumers to expect higher prices this fall. As this article form ABC News explains, the shortage in Russia has government agencies all over the globe scrambling for wheat in order to avoid the potential economic strain.

Wheat prices spiked Thursday after Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin issued a ban on exports as that country confronts grain shortages amidst drought and withering crops, a situation made worse by out-of-control wildfires.

The global ripple effect – other countries possibly hoarding food, grain supplies dwindling, commodities prices rising – is likely to impact a range of food companies and livestock farmers.

Meanwhile, in India, the government there is stockpiling wheat so aggressively that much of it is sitting outdoors under tarps and starting to rot, the A.P. reported Friday.

"A worldwide scramble for wheat supply is on," said Phil Flynn, commodities analyst at Chicago-based PFG Best. "Higher costs for wheat and grains may hurt the economic recovery because a few months down the road it means higher costs for everything from bread to cereal to meat as farmers reduce their herds."

Continue reading at ABC News…