http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog personal finance that makes cents Tue, 03 Nov 2009 18:24:46 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en This is a guest post from Robert Brokamp of The Motley Fool. Robert is a Certified Financial Planner and the advisor for The Motley Fool’s Rule Your Retirement service. He contributes one new article to Get Rich Slowly every two weeks. Every summer, my wife and I cull our closets for ... http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2009/11/03/the-regrets-of-christmas-past/ On today's episode of The Personal Finance Hour, I'll join Jim from Bargaineering to discuss financial rules of thumb. Rules of thumb are no substitute for proper analysis, but they can be an excellent way to make general plans. Today we'll talk about things like: When should you repair an appliance and ... http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2009/11/02/the-personal-finance-hour-episode-26-financial-rules-of-thumb/ This article is the sixth of a thirteen-part series that explores the core tenets of Get Rich Slowly. Last winter, Kris and I re-financed our mortgage. In one fell swoop, we trimmed our monthly payments for principal and interest from $1386.60 to $1137.69, boosting our cash flow by $248.91 per month. If ... http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2009/11/02/large-amounts-matter-too/ It's been a strange October for me. At the first of the month, I began the transition to working full time on my book, Your Money: The Missing Manual. It's a much different challenge than blogging, and it's taking all my time. In theory, the book writing will be done ... http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2009/11/01/the-best-of-get-rich-slowly-october-2009/ Every month, my wife and I track how much time and money we spend growing food. This is the report for October 2009. (Here are the results for 2008.) As those of you who follow me on Twitter already know, it's been a l-o-n-g Saturday filled with all sorts of misadventures. ... http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2009/10/31/the-grs-garden-project-october-2009-update/ This post is from GRS staff writer April Dykman. When you have a need or a problem, there's usually a solution that can be bought. Buying a solution is often the easiest and fastest way to solve a problem — but it also can be the most expensive. When my husband ... http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2009/10/30/the-art-of-improvising-alternatives-to-buying-new/ This is a guest post from Andy Jolls, founder of VideoCreditScore.com. Andy ran the myFICO.com business for a number of years and now educates consumers with free credit videos. You can follow him on Twitter at @vidcredit. My wife and I were married a few years ago. I was working ... http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2009/10/29/pre-nuptial-agreements-are-for-everyone/ Ron Lieber writes the excellent "Your Money" column for The New York Times. Last week, he shared a list of four money talks to have before marriage. Lieber writes: Divorce tends to be emotionally gut-wrenching for the people who go through it (not to mention those around them). But most couples ... http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2009/10/29/money-and-marriage-tackle-trouble-before-it-begins/ On April Fools' Day 2007, I posted a tongue-in-cheek article describing the lifestyles of the rich and stupid. This list of the dumb things people do with money in one of the most popular posts I've ever shared. I've softened a little since then. Yes, I think that people do some ... http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2009/10/28/daily-links-a-fool-and-his-money-edition/ This is a guest post from Sierra Black, a long-time GRS reader and the author of ChildWild, a blog where she writes about frugality, sustainable living, and getting her kids to eat kale. Previously at Get Rich Slowly, Black told us about sweating the big stuff. Buying in bulk is great, ... http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2009/10/28/the-pitfalls-of-buying-in-bulk/ In his book Banker to the Poor: Micro-Lending and the Battle Against World Poverty [my review], Nobel Peace Prize-winner Muhammad Yunus argues that one of the most effective ways to reduce poverty and overpopulation is to boost the economic status of women. When you empower women — especially poor women ... http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2009/10/27/economica-women-and-the-global-economy/ This article is by GRS staff writer Adam Baker. Baker is a big, fat hypocrite. The statistics on credit reports errors are staggering. A 2004 U.S. PIRG survey showed that 79% of credit reports contained either serious errors or other mistakes of some kind. 79%? Seriously? How can that be? I ... http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2009/10/27/how-to-get-your-free-credit-report-online-a-step-by-step-guide/ On today's episode of The Personal Finance Hour, I'll join Jim from Bargaineering to discuss personal budgets. What works and what doesn't? And why are so many people scared of them? (Personal finance writers especially seem afraid to talk about budgets.) This show will air live at 3pm Pacific (6pm Eastern). ... http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2009/10/26/the-personal-finance-hour-episode-25-why-does-everyone-hate-budgeting/ This article is the fifth of a thirteen-part series that explores the core tenets of Get Rich Slowly. Getting started with smart personal finance isn't always easy. It's one thing to read about the steps you should take, but it's another thing to actually do them. Your debt is so overwhelming ... http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2009/10/26/small-amounts-matter-2/ As I shared yesterday afternoon, although I believe National Save for Retirement Week is important, I find the topic dreadfully dull when stretched out for a week of blog posts. Lesson learned. Still, I don't think all retirement discussions have to induce snores or tears. In fact, when you think about ... http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2009/10/23/ask-the-readers-why-are-you-saving-for-retirement/ As important as I believe National Save for Retirement Week is, I have to confess that after four days (five, if you count Sunday), I'm bored of it. My short attention span has dwindled. (Imagine the difficulties I'm having as I try to concentrate on writing a book for three ... http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2009/10/22/the-paradox-of-choice-and-the-dangers-of-perfection/ This is a guest post from Robert Brokamp of The Motley Fool. Robert is a Certified Financial Planner and the advisor for The Motley Fool’s Rule Your Retirement service. He contributes one new article to Get Rich Slowly every two weeks. In recognition of National Save for Retirement Week, let’s take ... http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2009/10/22/no-one-cares-more-about-your-retirement-than-you-do/ This article is by GRS staff writer Adam Baker. In addition to his work at Get Rich Slowly, Baker blogs over at Man Vs. Debt, where he compiles the most famous and inspiring quotes on debt. This article is a part of National Save for Retirement Week, and a sort ... http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2009/10/21/should-you-stop-funding-retirement-to-focus-on-debt/ This post is from GRS staff writer April Dykman. It's also a part of National Save for Retirement Week A few weeks ago, J.D. asked me to consider writing a post on retirement for National Save for Retirement Week. As it was intended, National Save for Retirement Week made me reflect ... http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2009/10/20/which-comes-first-the-house-or-the-nest-egg/ It's National Save for Retirement Week! All week, Get Rich Slowly will feature articles about retirement planning. This morning, I wrote about how important it is to pay yourself first. April and Adam will share their thoughts on the subject in the days ahead. On today's episode of The Personal Finance ... http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2009/10/19/the-personal-finance-hour-episode-24-saving-for-retirement/ This article is the fourth of a thirteen-part series that explores the core tenets of Get Rich Slowly. It's also a part of National Save for Retirement Week. One of the oldest rules of personal finance is the simple admonition to pay yourself first. All the money books tell you to ... http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2009/10/19/pay-yourself-first/ I have some financial blind spots. For one thing, Kris and I do not have children. It's difficult for me to write about the concerns of parents. So when the publisher sent me a copy of Munny Journey, "a keepsake journal for baby's first money", I recruited a new mother ... http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2009/10/18/munny-journey-a-journal-for-your-childs-financial-development/ On Thursday, I featured a guest post from Free Money Finance that proved to be surprisingly controversial. His five steps to six figures in seven years offered solid common-sense career advice for those looking to boost their incomes. Many readers disliked the post. (Though they didn't hate it as much ... http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2009/10/17/ask-the-readers-what-if-your-high-paying-job-makes-you-miserable/ It looks as if today will be a record day for traffic at Get Rich Slowly! The current record is 48,244 visitors on 31 July 2007 (while we were on our trip to London and New York). 08 January 2008 is a close second with 47,749 visitors. At only 1:30 ... http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2009/10/16/daily-links-record-day-edition/ This post is from GRS staff writer April Dykman. A lot has been made of the minimalist lifestyle on personal finance blogs. Some readers love it; some think it sounds like a miserable existence. But rather than focus on how much or how little we possess as a measure of our ... http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2009/10/16/accumulation-and-attachment-finding-balance/ This is a guest post from FMF at Free Money Finance, a personal finance blog designed to help you grow your net worth. You can subscribe to Free Money Finance here. Historically, "making six figures" has been to income earners what "becoming a millionaire" has been for those tracking their net ... http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2009/10/15/five-steps-to-six-figures-in-seven-years/ A reporter from SmartMoney contacted me a couple of weeks ago to ask me to participate in a little game they were hosting. "All you have to do is guess when the Dow will hit 10,000," she said. "This is just for fun." "I'll do it," I replied, "but I want ... http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2009/10/14/dow-10000-and-other-nonsense/ This article is by GRS staff writer Adam Baker. Currently, Baker is fat and in debt. We all know how to rent a typical, cookie-cutter apartment or house. Find a contact number. Set-up a walk through. Fill out the application. Pay your fee and wait for a response. But sometimes typical just doesn't cut it. Maybe you're ... http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2009/10/14/9-ways-you-can-knock-the-socks-off-your-next-landlord/ Yesterday, I argued that the most effective path to financial success is to boost your income. Frugality is an important part of personal finance, and you will eventually meet your goals if you simply cut your spending, but it might take you a very long time. Maybe even decades. To ... http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2009/10/13/crush-it-the-best-books-on-boosting-your-income/ This is the third of a thirteen-part series that explores the core tenets of Get Rich Slowly. "Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure nineteen nineteen and six, result happiness. Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure twenty pounds ought and six, result misery." — Charles Dickens, David Copperfield When people ask me for ... http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2009/10/12/to-build-wealth-you-must-spend-less-than-you-earn/