My Money Blog

Sports Authority $25 off $100 Coupon: Too Bad It Excludes Nearly Everything

Posted on March 1, 2010 // 9 Comments

In trying to spend some Sports Authority gift cards thoughtfully given to me, I found a nice $25 off $100 coupon at sportsauthority.com/save if you sign up for their e-mail newsletter (which you can cancel immediately afterwards) . I thought that … [Read the rest]

Best Banks With Consistently High Interest Rates

Posted on February 26, 2010 // 33 Comments

It's one thing to find a bank with a high interest rate, and another thing to have that rate stay high. Many banks post teaser-like rates to attract deposits, and then hope you'll be lazy and stay while they gradually become uncompetitive. A post … [Read the rest]

AT&T Wireless AutoPay $20 Promotion

Posted on February 26, 2010 // 10 Comments

Looks like AT&T Wireless is offering folks a $20 gift card if they sign up for automatic payments on a Mastercard. Good for covering part of those iPhone monthly fees! You will receive a confirmation email in 1-2 days and your Gift Card will … [Read the rest]

Mint.com Wants Limited Power of Attorney

Posted on February 25, 2010 // 28 Comments

A reader recently asked me about what I thought about the fact that financial aggregation site Mint requires you to give them limited Power of Attorney when using their website. There was also a recent discussion on Bogleheads about it. You can … [Read the rest]

Grocery Prices: Name Brand vs. Store Brand vs. Organic

Posted on February 25, 2010 // 25 Comments

Here are the results of a recent study by industry research firm IBISWorld that compared the price of an average grocery cart in Los Angeles, New York City, and Chicago. In general, organic products cost about 20% more than simply name brand … [Read the rest]

Real Estate Price Trends Across United States – Zillow

Posted on February 24, 2010 // 6 Comments

How's the housing market in your area doing? You can find what Zillow thinks in their Real Estate Market Reports for many metro areas. There are lots of options to play with; you can view different metrics, change the time period, or even compare … [Read the rest]

Find The Best Charities: Best Charity Comparison Websites

Posted on February 23, 2010 // 5 Comments

With the recent natural disasters and also economic recession, many people are being extra careful to make sure their donations go as far as possible. Earlier this month, BusinessWeek ran an article Philanthropy: Rethinking How to Give which did a … [Read the rest]

Notes and Lessons from Liar’s Poker: Rising Through the Wreckage on Wall Street

Posted on February 22, 2010 // 1 Comment

Here's a book review of an oldie-but-goodie. Liar's Poker by Michael Lewis is a non-fiction account of the author's experiences as a 24-year old the 1980s who started working as a bond salesman for Salomon Brothers, one of the most powerful … [Read the rest]

Quicken 2010 50% Off Coupon Code

Posted on February 19, 2010 // 3 Comments

Quicken also sent me a 50% off link to all their 2010 products. Offer good only until 2/22/10. The following Special Offer Code was included in the e-mail: 6321762157. Download version might be better if you plan on returning? Note: Offer applies … [Read the rest]

Giveaway: QuickTax Platinum Tax Software For Canadians

Posted on February 18, 2010 //

I don't know how many Canadian readers I have, but I do have one free copy of QuickTax Platinum ($69.99 value, download version) available to give away. The Platinum version is the most fully-featured "personal" edition, and includes assistance … [Read the rest]

Could You Own Less Than 100 Things?

Posted on February 18, 2010 // 20 Comments

Another topic I've been interested in is the 100 Thing Challenge started by Dave Bruno. If you read a lot of simplicity blogs you've probably already heard of it, but it's a pretty simple idea: Live with only 100 personal possessions. You can … [Read the rest]

Cheap Airfare Links & Bookmarks

Posted on February 18, 2010 // 8 Comments

This week, the New York Times offered up two helpful articles about the current best sites for finding cheap airfares: Booking a Flight the Frugal Way by the Frugal Traveler and Sites That Do Your Fare Digging by the Practical Traveler. I guess … [Read the rest]