Dave Ramsey has done well for himself as a financial advice guru. He was one of the first people to recognize that our culture is steeped in debt, dependent on debt and that debt was enslaving the American culture. Ramsey has not been successful in changing our cultural dependence on debt, however, there are many [...]
I think that on the whole, most Gather Little by Little readers are not major credit card users, so most of you will not notice any credit card changes. Last Monday, several new laws regulating credit cards went into effect. I listed the changes in a post here at GLBL a couple of months ago. [...]
Recently, I read a report about prepaid debit cards and their use. I was surprised to learn that more than 60 million Americans are using this alternative to a bank checking account. And most surprisingly, prepaid debit cards are not only used by people with poor credit. In some cases, it is the best way [...]
A while ago, Larry wrote a very interesting post about how to start an online store. He well defines the right way to start your online store. I also share his point of view on making more money in order to pay back debt faster. While reducing your expenses is always a good budgeting exercise, [...]
Since the major cut in the interest rate back in 2008, we haven’t heard much about the FED cranking up the intraday rate so far. However, with recent GDP stats (5.7% annualised rate for the last quarter), we will surely hear some whispered rumors about the prime interest rate going up.
What is the intraday interest [...]
In February of 2010, the new Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility and Disclosure Act will go into affect. If you do not use credit cards, you will not be directly affected by this change. The only changes that you will see are higher fees on your regular bank usage as financial institutions try to find other [...]
In recent times, I have been receiving email from Chase and their “fabulous” new concept: Chase Blueprint. I was a bit reluctant to look into this “new concept” as I wondered how it could really help a person to manage his debt better… especially since the idea came from a bank
However, I have [...]
Christmas is not my favorite holiday. I enjoy the spirit and the meaning of the season. I am all in favor of celebrating the birth of Christ and I am not all that opposed to a fat man sliding down my chimney to steal my milk and cookies. However, the stress of gifts, gift giving [...]
As I previously mentioned, most of the growth present in the US economy is coming from the money injected into our capitalist system by the Government. The housing market hasn’t seemed to pick up that much and the real unemployment rate is closer to 17% than 10% (unemployment rate doesn’t count people that are on [...]
I have been doing a lot of thinking about family finance and especially the financial relationship between a husband and wife. I do not have all of the answers to solve every problem in this area, but I thought I would share just a few thoughts:
Family finance is about priorities. Both the husband and the [...]
Wikipedia defines a vice as a practice or a habit considered immoral, depraved, and/or degrading in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refer to a fault, a defect, an infirmity or merely a bad habit.
Recently, I spent some time thinking about how much money I spend on things that I really do [...]
Many people in today’s economy are struggling to stay afloat. They are working to rein in their spending and get their finances under control, but when they see the amount of debt they have, or the 0 balance in their savings or retirement accounts they feel overwhelmed. The good news is that regardless [...]
I’m sure it’s happened to you. A birthday, holiday, or special occasion is coming up for someone in your life, but you have no clue what to get them. For all but the closest of my family members this happens to be frequently. It’s even worse for my parents and in-laws as they generally have [...]
I have been a customer of ING Direct for several years now and although there are other banks that are offering higher interest rates, I will always keep the majority of my savings money there. I know that many people like ING’s Electric Orange checking account, but I personally do not use it. I prefer to [...]
Ever look at your bank account and ask “Where in the world did my money go?” I do that often. As a matter of fact, my wife and i were looking at our checking account balance the other night and asking that very same question. Fortunately for us, we budget and I track all of [...]
