Monthly Archives: May 2008
The Glum News on Housing Prices
The story of the US housing market doesn’t seem to be showing much improvement, according to a report by the Associated Press. US home prices dropped at the highest rate in twenty years during the first quarter, a closely watched index showed Tuesday, according to the Associated Press. Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller said its national home … Continue reading
Gathering Snowflakes to Pile On Your Debt
We told you earlier about the Snowflake approach to debt. The idea is a spin-off of Dave Ramsey’s “Debt Snowball.” The debt snowball is making a list of your debts from smallest to largest and then tackling them, starting with the smallest amount. Once you’ve paid off the lowest one, you target the next one … Continue reading
One Right Way to Use Credit Cards
Many people thing of credit cards as evil. But the truth is that credit cards can be a great tool for paying off debt – if you use them wisely. 1. Sign up for a credit card with 0% interest for a trial period (see if you can find one for 12 – 15 months). … Continue reading
Use Snowflakes to Snowball Debt
I recently read an article about “snowflaking.” Many people are familiar with the snowball concept – you make an extra payment on your smallest debt until it is paid off then you take that extra payment plus the original payment and apply the two against your next smallest debt until all of your debts are … Continue reading
How to Handle Gas Prices
Dave Ramsey just recently released some thoughts and advice on how to handle gas prices. Dave receives lots of calls and e-mails from people struggling with money since they’re now forking over more cash at the pump. Here’s what Ramsey has to say on the subject: “It’s time to revisit the budget. When I tell … Continue reading
Eat for Free on Your Birthday
I mentioned a few days ago some of the businesses that offer free stuff on your birthday. If you’re looking for a free meal on your special day here are a few restaurants that are especially sweet. California Pizza Kitchen offers a free birthday meal when you sign up for their newsletter. Sign up for … Continue reading
Stimulus Check Mix-Ups
Hundreds of Americans received more than their fair share of government stimulus checks. According to a report by Newsday, about 1,500 tax rebate checks issued by the IRS were directly deposited into the bank accounts of people who already received their payments or others who were not supposed to receive the money. One-hundred and thirty … Continue reading
New Reasons to Love Your Birthday
I just celebrated my birthday and even though getting older kind of stinks, I’ve discovered a new benefit of birthdays: free stuff. Occasionally I sign up for newsletters or fill out comment cards and many of them ask for my date of birth. I was never quite sure why and just assumed it was part … Continue reading