My Money Blog

October 2006 Investment Portfolio Snapshot

Posted on October 8, 2006 // 8 Comments

Here is another snapshot of my retirement portfolio as of market close 10/7. As indicated in my previous snapshot, I simultaneously sold ~$10,000 of iShares S&P 500 Index ETF (IVV) and contributed $10,000 to my Solo 401k, which I used to buy … [Read the rest]

Scottrade Launches Limited Online Transfers via Money Direct

Posted on October 7, 2006 // 19 Comments

I don't know how long this has been out, but I just noticed in my Scottrade brokerage account that there is a new service called Money Direct that allows you to electronically deposit money from a bank account. Note that I said deposit only, because … [Read the rest]

Fat Pitch Financials Contributor’s Corner Review

Posted on October 7, 2006 // 9 Comments

As I've mentioned previously, I have been enjoying a free trial courtesy of George of Fat Pitch Financials Contributor's Corner and here is my review. Basics The main premise behind Contributor's Corner is to provide "arbitrage and special … [Read the rest]

What’s The Most Expensive Meal You’ve Ever Had?

Posted on October 5, 2006 // 43 Comments

While in Paris, my friends and I decided to have a "nice French meal". While you don't have to necessarily spend big bucks to have such a meal, we were not French, not locals, and therefore we simply dressed up and stumbled into a nearby restaurant … [Read the rest]

Dealing With The Evil Big Banks

Posted on October 4, 2006 // 21 Comments

Whenever there is a discussion about a big bank like Bank of America, Washington Mutual, or Citibank, there is always someone with "XXX Bank is evil, they did [something bad] to me, stay away from them!!!" But let's face it, with thousands of … [Read the rest]

E-Loan 5.50% APY Savings Account Review

Posted on October 3, 2006 // 63 Comments

I recently opened a savings account at E-LOAN to try out the new 5.50% APY that a few people kindly pointed out to me while I was gone. Here's a brief review of the opening process and my initial thoughts. Basics This is a new FDIC-insured … [Read the rest]

Anatomy of a Personal Finance Magazine Article

Posted on October 2, 2006 // 18 Comments

Just as surely as there will be an article entitled "Lose 10 lbs On 10 Minutes A Day" or "Easy Abs For You" on the cover of Men's Health magazine this month, there will also be an in big letters "Six Stocks To Own Right Now" or "5 Mutual Funds To … [Read the rest]

Bogleheads Guide To Investing Book Review Project

Posted on October 2, 2006 // 2 Comments

JLP of AllFinancialMatters has started his Bogleheads' October Project, in which every day in October a different person will review a chapter from the book The Bogleheads? Guide to Investing. Hey, if someone reviews every single chapter well … [Read the rest]

Emigrant Direct Down to 5.05% APY – August Bonus Payouts

Posted on October 1, 2006 // 11 Comments

Emigrant Direct has lowered their rate from 5.15% to 5.05% APY. If you're interested in moving to Emigrant Direct's online savings account with no minimums, why not get up to $20 along with it? Everyone who sent me their Form #2 in August for my … [Read the rest]

Nanolicious!

Posted on September 30, 2006 // 13 Comments

The nice FedEx lady just dropped off my own brand new 2nd Generation 2GB Silver iPod Nano - free (of course) courtesy of KeyBank. Thanks KeyBank! Unfortunately, it looks like the promotion is now over. Hopefully everyone who participated gets … [Read the rest]

AmEx Business Gold Even Better, $100 plus up to 100,000 points

Posted on September 30, 2006 // 12 Comments

Update: The below promotion is now expired. The New Business Gold Rewards Card® from American Express OPEN now offers 3X points on airfare, 2X points on advertising, gas, and shipping and 1X point on everything else. The annual fee for this card is … [Read the rest]

New TradeKing $100 Opening Bonus

Posted on September 29, 2006 // 23 Comments

TradeKing, a newish online brokerage that offers $4.95 trades and no maintenance or minimum fees, is again offering $100 for opening an account with $1,000 and executing one trade using the promotional code TRADE expired!. I already received my … [Read the rest]