I live differently than most. What are some of the things I do differently? I don’t watch cable TV. I don’t have a smart phone. I don’t have texting on my cell phone. My wife is a stay-at-home wife. I work an ordinary job. We run several online businesses. I’m currently in college. I’m 6′ … Read more
Complaints about UK energy companies have been steadily falling in recent months and customer watchdog, Consumer Focus, has pointed out that the first quarter of 2012 had seen a massive 7% more customer satisfaction than its predecessor in the late quarter of 2011. The average amount of complaints per 100,000 customers was only 77 people … Read more
If there is one thing that the economic downturn in 2007 provided, it was exciting new ways to go bankrupt. There is nothing quite as thrilling as the “sledge-hammer-to-the-face” feeling when you realize the world has bested you at everything and you have earned the right to wear their dunce cap. Along the road to … Read more
It was a dark stormy night, and I was tired. Ready to head off to sleep, the storm finally broke, and I headed out with my dog in tow. She seemed just as tired as I was, but then something changed. I heard a hiss that sounded like someone released the pressure from a pressure … Read more
I’m always on the hunt for new information. Often, that information is in the form of books, especially business books. I’m a huge fan of real, physical books, but lately I’ve had need for more portable books for various reasons. This is where eBooks come to save the day. I love the portability of eBooks … Read more
My father-in-law wanted to do something nice for his wife, so he decided to purchase flowers for her. He decided to use a very well-known company: ProFlowers. They’ve done plenty of marketing, and established their name among the handful of well-known, online floral retailers. He decided that he wanted to purchase their “Lavish Roses” bouquet … Read more
I know I’m a bit late to the party, but earlier today I was thinking of the TSA and how people have felt about them lately and I couldn’t help but to chuckle at the idea of writing a finance article relating to them. So, while it’s a bit tongue in cheek, here are 5 … Read more
While I was speaking with my father today, I learned that he got to feel the collective sting of “Free Checking”, “Rewards” and the Durbin Amendment. He was surprised to find his account $35.00 lower than he expected! Clearly a mistake, he approached a teller to inquire about why his account was lower than expected. … Read more
Recently, we unveiled our new Mortgage Calculator. Our mortgage calculator has a couple of great benefits: It charts the payments so you can see the principal and interest. It provides the monthly payment amount. It has a mortgage amortization schedule. You can include additional principal payments. It doesn’t require multiple screen loads like most calculators, … Read more
We’ve finally finished our new Mortgage Calculator, and we’re very proud of it! The mortgage calculator was a lot of work, but we’re happy the day is here to unveil it. We did our best to make the mortgage calculator functional, intuitive, and aesthetically pleasing. We hope this is helpful for you, and if you have any … Read more
Sometimes success seems like it is miles away. It doesn’t matter what you are doing: Starting a business Completing School Making Money Getting out of debt or even performing simple tasks Maybe it’s something you have done a million times before without any trouble, or perhaps your task is something brand new, scary, and everything … Read more
With the Olympics bringing an influx of visitors to the city in July, many Londoners will make extra money by renting out a spare room over the summer. For the rest of us, it’s a reminder that there are plenty of opportunities to let a spare room during sporting and cultural events, to help make … Read more
If you’ve had the pleasant experience of visiting a car lot, or furniture store, then you know what a high pressure sales situation feels like. Read about another one of my recent personal experiences with pushy sales people when my wife and I went to a furniture store. A few weeks ago, I received my first … Read more
Home appraisals are a fact of life for buyers, sellers and anyone who needs to refinance a mortgage loan. It’s the appraiser’s job to make sure that the lender doesn’t become overextended by providing more money than the property is worth. If the appraiser’s opinion isn’t in harmony with an agreed upon sales price, that … Read more
Since 2006, the U.S. Postal Service, U.S.P.S., has increased the price of stamps four times, going from 39 cents a stamp to 45 cents a stamp. Now, only a month after their last price increase in January, U.S.P.S. released their plans to increase the stamp price to 50 cents a stamp, a whopping 11% jump! … Read more
Identity theft is a big problem in America. It’s estimated that it’s about a $3 trillion per year problem, to be specific. Identity theft can hurt credit scores, cost you money, and even harm your reputation. While there are a number of scenarios that identity thieves might use to get personal information and take advantage … Read more
I’ve written about customer service in the past, but I wanted to bring it up again as it is a vital piece to your business. One specific aspect I want to talk about is the “it’s not my job” mentality that lots of businesses seem to suffer from. Customer Service Is Everyone’s Job Your business … Read more
Regardless of your financial situation, there’s a good chance that you’ll need to get a loan at some point in the future. This could come in the form of a mortgage, a student loan, an auto loan or a small business loan. While these loans are for different purposes, the process of applying and qualifying … Read more
Each year, consumers are deluged with commercials and songs about free credit reports. I have a contact at the Better Business Bureau who wanted me to help spread the word about this. This article is absolutely in no way a commercial article, and I’ve received no funding for posting it. The information contained in it … Read more
Guest Post by Ed O’Brien There are many consumers searching for the ideal way to pay down their debt to have more financial freedom and improve their credit. While there are varied ways and methods for eliminating debt effectively, no one program will work for every consumer. The first step in effective debt relief is … Read more
This last week, I was on a staycation. If you don’t know what a staycation is, it is a vacation where you stay at home. Staycations have become more popular lately as the economy has tightened everyone’s’ wallets. With less money to go on cruises, road trips, flights to exotic locations, and extravagant theme park … Read more