For years, I’ve said that Get Rich Slowly has the best readers and commenters on the web. I often think that I get more from your contributions than you get from mine. I’m not the only one who has noticed this. I was just speaking with long-time reader Dylan today, and he told me why he likes GRS. “It’s not just the blog,” he said. “It’s the readers.”

So, it should be no surprise that I’m honored that Get Rich Slowly was featured in The Wall Street Journal yesterday, and that it was singled out for the quality of reader discussion. Beckey Bright writes:

The strength of [Get Rich Slowly] is that, along with plenty of advice from financial experts, he opens the site up to input from readers so they can learn from each other…Much of the value of the blog comes from readers’ comments.

As I’ve said many times before: I’m just an average guy trying to teach himself about money. I do my best to share what I learn, but this site is richer because you contribute your knowledge, as well. Thank you.

Note: Congrats to my pal Jim from Bargaineering, who was also highlighted in the same article. Bright paid notice to his new personal-finance video blog. (I think Jim looks like a pro golfer in all his videos!)

Also at The Wall Street Journal, Karen Blumenthal writes that “the dowdy savings account is making a comeback.” She notes that more and more people are being drawn to high-yield savings accounts, even though their rates are lower than they were just a year ago. Personal finance blogs have been singing the praises of these accounts for years; it’s fun to see the mainstream media finally catch up. :)

At Man vs. Debt, Baker asks, “For what are you willing to consistently pay more?” He’s willing to pay more for customer service — and so am I. Baker cites further examples from his Twitter followers, including several who are willing to pay more for quality. (I’m willing to pay for quality, also.)

Elsewhere, Green Panda Treehouse looks at the age-old question: How much house can you afford? Different financial calculators give different answers. So do different brokers and realtors. How do you know whom to believe? One thing’s for certain: the smaller your housing payment, the safer your financial situation will be.

Finally, though it’s not personal-finance related, I like this forum post about how to give a great talk. I’ve bookmarked it for future reference.

This article is about Spare Change  Wednesday, 3rd June 2009 (by J.D. Roth)