My Money Blog

Taxes Are Done + Some Useful Links

Posted on April 1, 2006 // 2 Comments

What a wonderful way to spend a Saturday! Ugh. At least now I've figured out that I can contribute $2,500 to my 2005 SEP-IRA. I plan to open one up at Vanguard by the April 17th deadline and then merge it with the rest of my Traditional IRA funds. … [Read the rest]

How To Underwithhold Taxes Without Penalty

Posted on March 30, 2006 // 9 Comments

Q: How do you know when you've been at this too long? A: When you you are halfway done on a post about how to underwitholding taxes without paying a penalty, only to find out you've already done it! Check out my post on April 23rd of last year - … [Read the rest]

Capital One 360 Raises Rate to 4.00% APY

Posted on March 30, 2006 // 9 Comments

This is on the eve of the end of their Winter Save Up Sale. Chart updated. … [Read the rest]

Still Haven’t Done My Taxes Yet

Posted on March 30, 2006 // 15 Comments

April is almost here, and I haven't finished doing my taxes yet. Tsk, tsk. I'm actually about 90% done with my return, but I am still trying to track down every single receipt possible in order to reduce my tax liability. They are legit business … [Read the rest]

Citibank’s Capital One 360 Clone – 4.50% APY

Posted on March 29, 2006 // 19 Comments

This is interesting - Citibank finally fully rolled out its e-Savings Account, which has no minimum balance requirement and currently pays 4.50% APY. Why not just call it CitiDirect? It's not the highest rate for a no-minimums online saving … [Read the rest]

What Are Your Luxuries?

Posted on March 28, 2006 // 42 Comments

Well, it is quite apparent that saving money is a personal issue, as was shown when I explored buying generic brands or shared about my free haircuts. I certainly didn't expect so much reaction from that! On the flip side, I'm sure even the most … [Read the rest]

Banks That Do And Don’t Pull Credit Reports

Posted on March 27, 2006 // 24 Comments

Obviously, whenever you apply for a credit card you expect them to perform a credit check, which will ding your credit score a bit temporarily. But sometimes even opening a savings account can cause a hard inquiry. I figured I'd share based on my 3 … [Read the rest]

Deconstructing My 3 Free Credit Reports

Posted on March 26, 2006 // 15 Comments

For some reason, I felt like I should check all of my credit reports today. I think it was because I knew my new landlord had run our credit, and I also haven't checked them in a while. Remember, the government mandates that everyone gets 1 free … [Read the rest]

Moving Six Blocks

Posted on March 26, 2006 // 10 Comments

Well, after enduring what felt like a decade of yanking us around, we found another rental we like in the same neighborhood and put in our 30-day notice instead of waiting to be kicked out. The new house and rent are very similar. We made sure to … [Read the rest]

Emigrant Direct Signup Bonus Update – February Payouts

Posted on March 25, 2006 // Leave a Comment

Everyone who sent me their Form #2 in February for my Emigrant Direct Referral Bonus should have been paid last week. If not, please e-mail me. Thanks to all who participated, I paid out over $100 again this month. … [Read the rest]

Word of Mouth and Semi-Passive Income

Posted on March 23, 2006 // 15 Comments

I am still doing some part-time website consulting on the side, and it is simply amazing how many people are interested in hiring me. Almost every new person I casually meet with a small business, when I say what I do, I get "Hmm.. you do websites? … [Read the rest]

Why Not Invest Entirely With ETFs?

Posted on March 23, 2006 // 27 Comments

I'm still pondering my portfolio options (one, two, three), but a good question is why I'm not looking more seriously into using ETFs instead. To be sure, there are plenty of good reasons to go with either mutual funds or ETFs. Besides wanting to … [Read the rest]