Single Guy Money

Up to $150 in Free Money From WT Direct

2009-07-08T19:00:00.000-04:00

For a limited time, WT Direct is offering a cash bonus to new clients for opening a new savings account.

To get the bonus, here's what you need to do by July 31, 2009.

Apply online for a WT Direct account. (It's quick and easy. I opened an account with them a few months ago. Unfortunately, there was no bonus at that time.)
Deposit $10,000 or more before July 31, 2009
Keep funds on deposit through October 31, 2009

Cash bonuses are based on the following tiers:

$25 bonus for a $10,000 balance
$50 bonus for a $20,000 balance
$75 bonus for a $30,000 balance
$100 bonus for a $40,000 balance
$150 bonus for a $50,000 balance

Haven't heard of WT Direct?
WT Direct is part of the Wilmington Trust family of companies with a strong 105 year history.
The account is FDIC insured up to the maximum Federal limit of $250,000. The WT Direct savings rate is consistently among the top 5% of US Banks

My Refinance is Finally Done

2009-07-07T07:00:00.007-04:00

After about six weeks of gathering paperwork, submitting paperwork and waiting, waiting, and more waiting, my refinance is finally done!!!

I closed yesterday on my new loan. I bought my house over three years ago using 100% financing through a combination of a first and second, 5 year, interest-only adjustable rate mortgage. The rate on my first mortgage was 6.375% and the rate on my second mortgage was 8%.

For those of you that have been keeping up with the housing crisis, this type of loan is one of the causes of the problem. Some people used this loan to get into a home they couldn't afford in the first place. When the rate adjusted, they couldn't afford the new increased payment and had the house go into foreclosure or were forced to do a short sale.

I chose an interest-only adjustable rate mortgage for a number of reasons:

I knew what I was getting into. I knew that if I did not pay anything on top of the interest-only payment, my loan balance would never decrease. I reduced the balance of my loan by about $9,000 by making principal payments.
I didn't plan to stay in my home more than 5 years.
All of my closing costs were paid by my builder so I didn't have any out of pocket expenses.
If I changed my mind and decided to stay, I could refinance to a fixed rate mortgage.

I decided that I liked my home and I wanted to stay for awhile so I started shopping for a fixed rate mortgage. My rate was not scheduled to reset until 2011; but I didn't want to cut it that close. Besides, mortgage rates are at historically low rates. Since my current mortgage company was not interested in keeping my business, I went with another company.

Yesterday, I closed on my new 30-year fixed rate mortgage. I was able to lock in an interest rate of 4.875% and will save thousands of dollars in interest. Not only that, since my mortgage is now a fixed rate loan, I never have to worry about the payment going up.

Another Reason to Adjust Your W-4 Withholding

2009-07-06T06:15:00.004-04:00

Image Courtesy: jacreative

Need another reason to adjust your federal and/or state tax withholding? How about because you may not get your money back when you expect it.

Due to the recession and falling tax collections, some states are having a problem making ends meet.

One of the solutions they are turning to is delaying the payment of state tax refunds. Another cause of the delay is that due to budget deficits in many states, the revenue departments have had to reduce their workforce.

Even though they may have the money to pay, they don't have enough employees to process the tax returns. Georgia Revenue Commissioner, Bart Graham, said his department had to cut about 280 jobs since October. Of those, 150 where processors who helped file refunds. I did not have any problems getting my refund from the State of Georgia but some people who filed later in the year will still have to wait. More than 320,000 refunds still need to be processed.

What can you do to avoid this problem next year?

Adjust your W-4 Withholdings. The number of allowances you claim will affect the amount of money taken from your paycheck. The best way to determine how many allowances you can claim is to use the IRS Withholding Calculator. If you are not sure how or where to go to adjust your W-4, you should contact your Human Resources or Payroll department.

I used to look forward to getting a nice fat refund check from the government. Now, I would much rather have a larger paycheck throughout the year and get either a small refund or no refund at all.

June Site Review

2009-07-05T08:00:00.000-04:00

I can't believe the blog has been around for 2 years now. I enjoy writing the blog and I hope you guys continue to read the blog. How did things go in June?

Subscribers:
1099 on April 30, 2009
1115 on June 30, 2009
1.4% increase
You can click here to subscribe, if you haven't already.

Site Visitors:
April 9,792
June 3,161
68% decrease - Summer slowdown?

Top 10 Blogs Sending Traffic to SingleGuyMoney:
1. Wisebread
2. Fabulous Financials
3. Frugal Dad
4. Frugal Bachelor
5. Cash Money Life
6. Moolanomy
7. My Frugal Freedom
8. No Credit Needed
9. Get Rich Slowly
10. The Dough Roller

Top 5 Most Popular Posts:
1. Credit Card Issuers Closing Unused Accounts
2. I'm Keeping My Tenant Another Year..Hopefully
3. Money Question for Couples
4. Operation Repo
5. I Don't Make Enough to Save Money

The Extra Paycheck - Save or Spend

2009-07-01T06:30:00.007-04:00

Image Courtesy: Dan4th

I usually start working on my budget for the coming month in the last few days of the previous month. While working on my budget for July, I realized it's going to be a nice month for my savings account.

I am paid bi-weekly and two months of every year, I am paid three times per month instead of the usual twice a month paycheck.

Back when I had piles of credit card debt, I had to apply the extra paycheck towards my ever increasing debt or towards trying to make ends meet since my spending usually exceeded my income. Every penny of my paycheck was already spoken for by my landlord, the gas company, the electric company, the credit card and the car loan.

Nowadays, I am no longer trying to figure out how I am going to divide my extra paycheck between the various credit card balances. When I get an extra paycheck now, 90-100% of it usually goes directly to my savings account; unless I have something I want to buy that isn't included in my regular monthly budget.

After tallying all the numbers, I should be able to save over $3300 in July.
How will I save this much?

Regular $250 biweekly contributions. $750 instead of usual $500.
Savings From Extra Paycheck - $1300
No Mortgage Payment for July - $1350 (due to refinance)

The $3300+ boost will be a nice addition to my savings account since I will be pulling out about $11,000 to bring to the closing table for my mortgage refinance (more on this later).

When you get an extra paycheck, what do you do with it?

New here? Subscribe, then take a look around.

And the Winners of The Gas Giveaway Are.....

2009-06-30T07:00:00.000-04:00

Thanks to everyone who entered the free gas giveaway. It's been a great 2 years here at SingleGuyMoney and I look forward to many more.

There was an awesome response to the Free Gas Giveaway and the contest closed with 103 comments.

Without further ado, the winners are:

SavingDiva - $50 Gas Card

and

Luvdaylillies - $50 Gas Card

Congratulations you two! Please contact me at singleguymoney (at) gmail.com so I get your gas cards in the mail. Please be sure to include the name of the gas station you would like a gift card from. In my area, I have Exxon, BP, Citgo, Conoco, QT, Racetrac and Shell.

Another Free Gas Giveaway on SingleGuyMoney

2009-06-29T06:50:00.001-04:00

Image Courtesy: Nate Steiner

It's time for another giveaway!!!! SingleGuyMoney will be 2 years old this month and to celebrate, I'm giving away gifts.

I sincerely appreciate everyone taking the time to subscribe, visit and read my blog. I enjoy sharing my financial story and I hope you enjoy reading.

The Gift:
I will be giving away 2 free gas cards worth $50 each. I am funding this out of my own pocket and not supplied by any gas company. I know the economy sucks right now and it's the summer traveling season. To thank you for visiting my blog, I want to make that next visit to the gas pump a little bit easier. I know I said in the last couple of giveaways I was going to give away a book but I think free gas can be put to better use.

The Rules:

One entry per person, duplicate entries will be disqualified. - Let's make this fair.
Contest applies to U.S. residents only.
I have the final say on the contest.
I will use a random online number generator to pick the winner.
You will have your choice of a Racetrac or BP gas card. If you win and don't have either store in your area, we can discuss other options.
Be sure you leave your email address so I can contact you if you win.

How to Enter:

The contest starts Thursday June 11, 2009 and will end on Tuesday June 30, 2009 @ 11:59pm EST. I will announce the winner in a post on Wednesday July 1, 2009.
All you need to do to enter is leave a comment on this post. I want to know - if you win, what are you plans, if any, for summer travel?
If you have a blog or website, mention the giveaway for an additional chance to win. You can also Stumble, Tip, Digg, PFBuzz, etc for an additional chance to win.
I would also hope that you will subscribe to SingleGuyMoney. This is not a requirement of the contest but it would be greatly appreciated.

If you are new or haven't done so already, please consider subscribing to SingleGuyMoney to be updated when there is a new post and to find out if you won!

I'm Keeping My Tenant Another Year - Hopefully

2009-06-24T07:00:00.000-04:00

Woo Hoo! I just got the signed lease back from my tenant indicating she will be with me another year. I'm happy and a little worried all at the same time.

I'm happy that I get to keep her because she has been an excellent tenant. If she stays through the end of the new lease, she will have been with me for four years! As a first time landlord, I've been extremely lucky to get such a good tenant on my first shot. I've never had any problems collecting the rent and she only calls me for repairs when something major goes wrong.

I'm a little worried though because while we were discussing whether or not she would renew the lease, she asked if I could possibly lower the rent. She said she had been looking around for something a little cheaper but she was not able to find anywhere she would be comfortable living. She currently has an adult child living with her and he helps out with the bills. He will be moving out soon so she is worried that she won't be able to keep up with the bills after he moves out.

As much as I wanted to help her, I told her that I couldn't afford to lower the rent but in order to keep her, I would be willing to leave the rent the same instead of increasing it. She was okay with this and agreed to the new lease.

I'm crossing my fingers that we will have another year of on-time rent payments.

Credit Card Issuers Closing Unused Accounts

2009-06-22T06:30:00.012-04:00

Image Courtesy: SqueakyMarmot

If you have a credit card with a zero balance that has been laying around collecting dust for awhile, you may be receiving a letter from the credit card company soon.

Credit card issuers have been flipping the switch recently and closing unused or inactive credit cards. Unused accounts cost the company money and in a time where the bottom lines are overflowing with red ink, credit card companies are trying to cut costs wherever they can.

The credit card companies have lost so much money in the last few years, they are trying reduce risk wherever they can by closing unused accounts and reducing credit lines. According to the New York Times, credit card companies wrote off approximately $21 billion dollars in bad credit card debt in the first half of 2008.

It may not be fair, but the credit card company has every right to close your credit card whenever they see fit. You may not have read the small print in the little booklet that came with the card but it outlines all the "rules" that come with using your credit card.

How can you minimize the risk of your account being closed?

Setup recurring billing. If you have a utility bill that accepts credit cards (and there's no extra for doing so), have your bill charged to your credit card and pay the bill in full each month.
Small Purchases. Next time to fill up your tank, use your credit card instead of your debit card or cash. When the bill comes, pay on time and in full.
Large Purchase. If you have a rewards credit card and have a large bill coming that you had previously planned to pay cash for, use your credit card and reap the rewards. Keep the money in a savings account until the bill comes from the credit card and pay it off in full. You'll earn a few bucks on your savings and reward points on your credit card. I do this for my auto insurance premiums. I save the money in my savings account and pay my bill with my credit card that offers 2% cash back. When the bill comes, I pull the cash from savings and pay off the credit card.

Have you recently had a credit card closed due to inactivity? Did you try to get the account reopened?

Money Question for Couples

2009-06-17T07:30:00.001-04:00

Image Courtesy: cliff1066

I went out to lunch yesterday with one of my married co-workers. We went to a relatively inexpensive cafe and ordered a couple of sandwich combos. My friend ordered first and her total came up to $4.49. She presented her debit card to pay for her lunch but her card was declined. She had the cashier try it again and again it was declined. She then tried to use her credit card but it was also declined.

Needless to say, she was very embarrassed and confused as to why the transactions wouldn't go through. Maybe the credit card machine was not working? I think we were all thinking that until the cashier tried my debit card for both of our meals and the transaction went through immediately.

As we sat down to eat, she began to apologize for me having to pay for her meal. I assured her it was no problem and reminded her that she had bought my lunch a few times in the past. I did ask if everything was okay financially because I know things were tight for them. They have 2 children (both in private school) and her husband was out of work for several months. Thankfully, he is now employed.

We've been friends for over 5 years so I didn't have a problem asking how things were going financially. Surprisingly, she had no clue and thinks things are probably okay. She said her husband handled all the finances and she doesn't even know how to access the bank account. She sort of laughed it off but I was thinking "How in the heck can you not know what's going on with your finances"?

Do you allow your spouse or partner to handle all of the finances? Are you involved in the process at all? Why or why not?

Don't Pay For Credit Repair

2009-06-15T06:15:00.002-04:00

Image Credit: Wssst

My job requires me to travel around town a lot. The last few weeks, while driving around, I've been seeing a growing number of signs on the side of the road advertising credit repair services. Most of the signs are handwritten which for most folks would be a huge red flag. Someone who is in a bind and in need of a quick fix may actually think this is a way out for them.

I just hate to think about how many financially unsavvy people have fallen for this. Unfortunately, most of these services are a scam. You don't have to pay a company to "repair" your credit. These firms, sometimes known as "credit clinics", don't do anything more than you can do yourself for little to no cost. They have no more authority to have items removed from your report than you do. There is no legal way to have accurate information removed from your credit report.

Repairing Your Credit

The first step to repairing your credit is to check for errors in your credit report. You can pull your credit report from AnnualCreditReport.com (not an affiliate link) for free. Annual Credit Report allows you to get a free credit report once every 12 months from the big three credit bureaus - Experian, TransUnion and Equifax. You should be looking for inaccurate information such as accounts that don't belong to you, accounts reporting as past due that are actually current, or inaccurate balances. It is estimated that approximately one in every eight credit reports contain inaccurate information. Most people don't bother to keep tabs on their credit and don't know about an error until they are denied credit.

The second step to repair your credit is to make sure you keep current on all of your accounts. It doesn't matter whether it is a credit card or a electricity bill. Being over 30 days late on a credit card, loan or mortgage can send your credit score spiraling down like a lead balloon. One slip up can stay on your credit report for over 7 years!!!

Unfortunately, improving your credit does not happen overnight. It can take months for your credit score to improve. If you are in the market for a home loan or car loan within the next six months, the time to start repairing your credit is NOW!

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Financial Links:

Lending Club - P2P Personal Loans

Equifax Score Watch

Suze Orman Fico Kit

VistaPrint - 500 Business Cards for $1.99

Sunday Link Love - Free Gas Edition

2009-06-14T09:00:00.004-04:00

If you haven't seen it yet, I'm giving away gas!!! Not that kind, the kind for your car. I'm giving away 2 free gas cards to celebrate two wonderful years of blogging. The time has gone by quickly and I look forward to several more years of blogging about personal finance. You can enter the contest here.

Before you run off to enter the contest, be sure to visit the following posts I enjoyed this week:

I also participated in several Carnivals recently such as:

Thanks for visiting! Come back soon.....

Invest In Your Retirement

2009-06-09T23:00:00.001-04:00

I know the market is scary right now. Once day it's up a few points and the next day it's down a few hundred points. Granted, investing in the stock market is not for the faint at heart. One thing to remember though, if you are years from retirement, you have plenty of time to make up for those temporary losses in your 401k.

Most companies these days offer 401k retirement plans to help you save money tax-free for your retirement. If you are offered a 401k plan through your employer and you are not taking advantage of it, DO IT NOW.

If you haven't heard it already, stocks are currently at a deep discount. If you buy a stock at $10.00 per share now, it has the potential to be worth $20.00 per share years down the road.

If you currently have a 401k, don't make these common mistakes:

Using your 401k like an ATM. I've been guilty of this myself. There is no other (legal) way to get money so easily. With my plan, I can log in and go to the loan section and it will give me a preapproved loan amount and the interest rate. If I choose to borrow the money, I can have the money in my checking account in as little as 48-72 hours. By borrowing money from my 401k, I am losing the opportunity to have that money grow and compound in my account. Not only that, if you leave the company, your are required to pay the money back immediately or be subject to taxes on the money and pay a 10% penalty.

Not taking advantage of the company match. My company offers up to a 3% match when you contribute at least 5%. I've always been sure to contribute at least 5% to get the full 3% match. Not taking advantage of the matching funds is like leaving money on the table.

Too much company stock. It is certainly not a good idea to have too much company stock in your retirement account. If the company goes under, not only would do you lose your paycheck, you will lose your retirement money too. Remember ENRON!

Taking the money when you change jobs. There is nothing wrong with this if you plan to roll the money into a IRA. What you don't want to do is treat it like extra money. Remember, the IRS still won't let you have this money without hefty penalties for early withdrawal.

Not fully understanding your options. One of my coworkers has been with the company for 5 years. She did not understand how the 401k worked and only elected to contribute 1% of her pay. Not only that, she directed 100% of the money to a money market type fund. I actually spent a few hours after work explaining her 401k options and she's made some major changes. She is now contributing 5% in order to get the full company match and she has chosen a more diversified portfolio.

Debt Free Friday - First Edition

2009-06-05T07:00:00.008-04:00

Image Courtesy: emilywjones

Welcome to the 1st Edition of Debt Free Friday.

Who is celebrating the joy of debt reduction this week?

** Lulu of How I Save Money has paid off over $6000!! She will apply the savings to her debt snowball to get rid of the rest of her credit card debt. Read her post here.

** Kacie of Sense to Save paid off the car loan!!! The $277 they are saving from no longer having a car loan will be applied to savings for a down payment on a home. They paid off the loan in 18 months instead of 4 years. That's awesome Kacie, keep up the good work!

Both of the above are great personal finance blogs so be sure to pay them a visit. Have you recently paid off debt? Let me know so you can be featured in the next edition of Debt Free Friday.

How Much Has My Home Value Decreased?

2009-06-04T06:30:00.007-04:00

I heard back from my loan officer today. If you didn't see the post last week, I am currently in the process of trying to refinance my mortgage. The only thing causing a delay in the refinance is the home appraisal.

When I purchased my home in March 2006, I paid $189,140. One of the selling points the Realtor used was that I would have "instant equity". I was buying into a brand new subdivision and they were still building homes. My home was the last inventory home and the price for new homes with my same floor plan would be increased to $199,000 and above. For the first year and a half, it would be nice to pull into my subdivision and see the signs out front saying "New Homes - From the Low 200's". I'd smile and think of how I paid almost $10,000 less for my home; in just a couple of years, after making extra principal payments and the home appreciation, I'd have over $20,000 equity.

Fast forward three years to today. My neighborhood remains unfinished. I would probably say the builder finished about 75% of the planned homes. We aren't sure if the builder will finish the subdivision or sell the remaining empty lots to another builder. They closed the office/model home last week and the sign out front now says, "New Homes - From the $170's".

So how much did the mortgage lender say my home appraised for? How about the absolute highest value the appraiser could find was $175,000. Thanks to several foreclosures in my neighborhood and the crappy housing market, my home is now worth about 7.5% less than I bought it for. I know that some parts of the country have experienced double digit decreases so I can't complain too much but it is still frustrating as hell!!

The only positive thing is that I don't need to sell my house anytime soon. Hopefully, within the next 2-5 years, my home will be worth more than I originally paid.

Have you recently tried to refinance but couldn't because your home value has fallen?

Image Courtesy: glasswindow

Savings Challenge Update

2009-06-03T07:00:00.001-04:00

I haven't updated the savings challenge in a few months but the challenge is still going strong.

How am I funding the savings challenge? Once monthly budget obligations are met, any additional income goes towards the savings challenge account.

My goal is to have $50,000 in my savings account by December 2010.

January 31, 2009
Beginning Balance...............$29,452.43

Image Credit: alancleaver

Deposits:

Pinecone Surveys -- $18 (6 seperate surveys @ $3/each)
Regular Contributions -- $2,940.00
Misc Income -- $1,712.57

May 30, 2009
Ending Balance...............$34,123.00

Balance Change Amount...............$4670.57
Change Percentage........................13.7%

Amount Remaining towards $50,000 Goal = $15,877/18 months = $882.06 required amount to be saved each month in order to reach my goal.

The first three months of the year are usually good for me financially. It is easy to bulk up my savings accounts since I get my company bonuses at the beginning of the year and the end of the year. The beginning of the year is also when salary increases are awarded. I usually end up owing money to the federal government but I usually get a state refund large enough to cover my federal debt, plus some.

Follow along with me on my saving journey.

Do You Have A Slush Fund?

2009-06-01T06:15:00.008-04:00

Image Courtesy: Pixelsebi

What is a slush fund? Wikipedia defines a slush fund as "a colloquial term which has come to mean an auxiliary monetary account or reserve fund."

For me, my slush fund is kind of like an emergency savings account but for the fun stuff. Some people set aside separate savings account for vacations, cars or other occasional expenses. I am a big technology geek and buying the latest electronic gadget was one of the ways I wound up with a mountain of credit card debt.

These days, I still buy the occasional electronic gadget on a whim. Although, now the guilt is not there because I've already set aside money to cover the purchase. I just pull the cash from my slush fund.

Each month, I set aside $100 a month for the slush fund. A couple of weeks ago, I had the opportunity to take a last minute trip to the beach. The lodging was free and I only had to pay for food and drinks. I spent about $200 and I didn't have to pull the money from my regular budget and I didn't have to touch my emergency fund or regular savings. It was also nice to not have to worry about whether or not I could afford it. As long as I have money in the slush fund to cover the purchase, I can afford it. After all, that's what it's there for.

Do you have a slush fund? How much do you keep in the account?

New Feature - Debt Free Friday

2009-05-31T11:30:00.001-04:00

Image Courtesy: Clav

Getting out of debt is one of the most important things you can do to improve your financial health and secure your financial future. When I paid off my credit card debt, I wanted to tell EVERYONE!

With Debt Free Friday, you will be able to tell us about any debt you've recently paid off and I will post it on the blog so everyone who visits can celebrate your success. If you've recently paid off any debt (credit card, loan, student loan, mortgage, etc), let me know and I will post it on the Debt Free Friday page. Each Friday, I will post the results of the emails from the prior week.

Fill out the form below and be sure to include:

Creditor (Sallie Mae, Citibank, Chase, etc)

Date of Payoff and Amount Paid

What you plan to do with the money that you are no longer sending to the paid off debt

Reader Question: Should I Consolidate My Debt?

2009-05-27T06:30:00.009-04:00

I received the following email from a reader. I'll give my thoughts at the end and I'd like to get your thoughts for the reader.

"So here's the deal. I have bills beginning to pile up. I try to pay one and make good with them, but then others pile up and become more difficult to pay and its getting even worse now. I have a second job as a server, but the pay is getting worse due to summer and people going to the shore. So my idea was, in order to save my credit rating and attempt to not go into bankruptcy all while keeping my car and roof over the wife and kids (my job could actually be at stake if I do file bankruptcy), is to get a personal loan of about 20,000 to consolidate all irregular bills (ie small loan, credit cards and make current on bills that are past due approaching the 60-day mark) and have to just make one payment to the one big loan.

So, the question, do you or your readers recommend either going down that route (the big loan) and/or recommend a loan company I should go with (bank, some online credit company)? I haven't spoken to my bank or other banks just yet, but I have searched around online seeing that there are sites offering 1k-30k personal loans."

My advice, given my own personal situation, is to not consolidate the loans. I tried the same thing when I was trying to get out of credit card debt and it backfired on me. I did not change my behavior so I ended up running up additional debt on the cards I paid off and consolidated. I then had new debt to pay in addition to my old debt.

Withought knowing actual numbers regarding income and expenses, it's hard to offer any other kind of advice on how to handle the debt.

Reader, if you haven't already, I would recommend gathering all of your bills and writing them down. I would then use one of the debt calculators to determine the best method for reducing your debt. If you Google "debt calculators", you will get thousands of results.

What do you think?

Refinancing My House...Hopefully

2009-05-26T06:15:00.014-04:00

Image Courtesy: Wwworks

New here? Subscribe to SingleGuyMoney.

5/29/09 Update: I spoke with the mortgage broker and everything looks good, except the value. Looks like my home appraisal is borderline and will the deciding factor on whether or not I am able to refinance. The mortgage broker plans to review the appraisal with two other appraisers to get their thoughts. Hopefully, I'll know something by the end of this week.

I've debated on whether or not I wanted to refinance for a few months now. Rates are the lowest that they've ever been and I don't think they are going much lower.

I started the process last week with my current lender. I've been with my current lender for over three years with no late payments. Their website said that they offered a streamline refinance which meant there would be no appraisal, no income verification and minimal paperwork.

Apparently, that program is no longer available. I received a call from my current lender advising me that the streamline refinance is no longer available and I would need to "requalify" for the loan.

When I applied for a refinance with a current lender, they pulled my credit. Apparently, based on my credit score, Equifax also sent my information to another lender. The lender called me and explained they could offer me a better rate than my current lender. The company is a direct lender and they their own money which means they can offer lower rates than the big national banks.

I provided all of my information and was pre-approved with the new lender. I was able to lock in a fixed rate of 4.5% for 30 years. I received a Good Faith Estimate from the company and the fees are reasonable.

The only thing standing in the way of the refinance is the home appraisal. I need to have at least 3% equity in order to be able to qualify for an FHA loan. The appraisal was completed this past Friday so I'm waiting to find out the value of my home. I think I have enough equity but the only thing that concerns me is that sales have been slow in my neighborhood and there have been several foreclosures.

I should find out if I will be able to refinance later this week. I'm crossing my fingers hoping that my home will appraise high enough to refinance. I would be going from my current rate of 6.375% to 4.5% which would save me a few hundred dollars a month. I'm pretty comfortable with my current mortgage payment so I would continue to make the same payment each month.

Have you refinanced or attempted to refinance your mortgage lately?

Happy Memorial Day 2009

2009-05-25T10:48:00.003-04:00

I wish all of you a safe and happy Memorial Day. Thanks to all of those who fought for us.

Image courtesy of BL1961

Financial Tips For Upcoming High School Graduates

2009-05-11T06:15:00.014-04:00

Image courtesy of soundman

If you know of anyone about to graduate high school, make sure they read this post. I wish someone had referred me to a post like this or given me the advice I am about to give when I was graduating high school.

Graduating high school will be among one of the most exciting moments of your life. You no longer have to deal with teachers or your parents treating you like a child. You are now eighteen, or about to be, and you are about to make the important step towards being an adult. You may think all of your troubles are about to be over and you will be able to do whatever you want to do. NOT SO FAST.

Being an adult is not all it is cracked up to be. Being an adult means you have to be financially responsible. Mom and Dad should not have to bail you out. Financial issues are one of the biggest problems of being an adult. You have to work and pay the rent/mortgage, utilities, insurance, car payments, student loans, etc.

You, recent graduate, can make it easier on yourself when you venture out into the real world. You are currently in a unique position. You probably have no debt and maybe a little bit of money saved from a part-time job, graduation gifts, parents and grandparents, etc.

Here are 3 tips to help you make a smooth transition into financial adult life:

1. Save, Save, Save. It may seem boring or it may seem uncool but it's important. If you get $20, save $5. It doesn't matter that it is only $5. Every little bit helps and it does add up. If you start this habit early, it will help you out tremendously in your adult years. Plus, having a nice fat savings account means that when you are early in your career, you can still go out and have fun instead of worrying about how you are going to pay the bills.

**Tip: HSBC offers an free online savings account. No fees, no minimum balance. **

2. Student Loans. If you are going to college and have to take out student loans, ONLY use the amount you need. If you have extra money left over after paying for the necessities and basic living expenses, save the rest (see Tip #1). Just because you have it, does not mean you have to spend it. They will give you more than you need and while it may be cool at the time, you eventually have to pay it back. I graduated college when I was 22. Here I am at 31 and I am still trying to pay off my student loans.
Note: I know there are some student loan programs that do not require repayment but we won't go into that here. I still think the "take only what you need" motto still should apply.

3. Credit Cards. Some people say don't get one, some people think you should get one. I think you should get one. You will most likely need credit to buy a home or car once you graduate college so it is best to build your credit early. Getting a credit card in college, with a small credit limit, will help you once you graduate college. Having good credit out of college will make easier to rent that first apartment, get insurance or when a potential employer pulls your credit for a job.

If you choose to get a credit card, here are the rules:

Pay your balance in full; never pay interest.
Pay your bill on time.
Never go over 40% of your credit limit.
Don't charge more than you can pay. If you don't have the money to pay the bill in full by the time the bill comes, don't charge it. Go back and see tip #1.

**Tip: Discover Card offers a credit card especially for students. **

Note: Using a credit card requires responsibility. If you don't think you will be responsible with a credit card, don't apply for one. It doesn't matter if they give you a "free" t-shirt. The free t-shirt could cause you years of financial stress.

You may think I am just another adult spouting off advice but trust me, I know what I'm talking about. I made ALL of the above mistakes. I wish someone had told me about the three tips above when I started college. I am still working on getting rid of the mistakes I made in my college years almost ten years later. I regret all of the fun things I didn't get to to in my early twenties because I couldn't afford it. I screwed up in college financially and I had bills to pay. Every paycheck went towards bills and there were a lot of nights I had to stay home and watch television while my friends went out and had fun.

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Financial Resources (Affiliates):
HSBC Online Savings Account - 1.65% APY as of 5/11/2009
WT Direct Online Savings Account
Student Loans
Upromise College Savings

Another Reason for an Emergency Fund

2009-05-08T07:00:00.002-04:00

This is an old post but I think it is worth bringing it back to the more recent posting list. Unfortunately, this is still happening more and more in the current economic environment.

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I talked with one of my long, lost friends from college the other night. He got my phone number from a mutual friend of ours and gave me a call. It was great talking to him and we spent about two hours on the phone trying to catch up. If you know me, you know that I hate talking on the phone for more than a few minutes so two hours was an extremely long time for me. It was nice to catch up with an old friend but unfortunately, all the news was not good.

He has been working for a IT company for the last five years and is making a nice six figure salary. Unfortunately, he is also spending like he makes six figures and has a nice house, two new cars, a houseboat and a motorcycle. He is the sole breadwinner since his wife stays at home to care for their two year old child. He received an email from his boss the other day saying that they need to have a meeting. This was strange to him since he almost never has to meet with his boss. His boss would not tell him what the meeting is about but would only say that he "may want to have his financial affairs in order". My buddy states the company has laid off a few people this year but he was told that he would be okay and that his job would be protected.

My buddy is now pretty scared that he is about to be laid off. He will probably get a pretty good severance package but one that is gone, he won't have anything to fall back on. He has no savings account and borrowed from his 401k to finance his boat. If he loses his job, the money he borrowed from his 401k will need to be paid back immediately or he will owe the federal government since that money will be taxed. Even if he hadn't borrowed money from his 401k, if he were to use the money prior to retirement, he will owe taxes and penalties for early withdrawal.

How could my buddy have avoided being in this situation?

Emergency Fund. No matter what you call it, everyone needs to have cash set aside that they can get their hands on in the event of an emergency. Many financial planners recommend three to six months set aside to keep you afloat until you can get another job. Depending on your individual situation, I would recommend having six to twelve months of expenses set aside in this economy. I've set aside 8 months worth of expenses in case my employer decides they don't need anymore. I would keep my emergency funds in a simple savings account. With interest rates so low right now, you'll usually find the best rates online. I recommend WT DIRECT or HSBC for an online savings account. Both of these are free, no minimum balance accounts which means you can open them with $5 or $500 and you won't pay any minimum balance fees. (There goes your excuse about not having enough to open an account.)

If you don't currently have an emergency fund, don't wait, now is the time to start saving for the unexpected.

Live Below Your Means. My buddy makes over 100k a year but he also spends just that much. If he had only managed to spend less than he earned and set some money aside, he might be able to breathe a little easier right now. Just because you make $100k doesn't mean you don't have to spend $100k!!

There you have it. This post should be the inspiration you need to start saving. There is a good chance that your job is not guaranteed. You could get the axe at any time and you need to be prepared.

Image Credit: Daquella Manera

Still Getting 0% Balance Transfer Offers

2009-05-07T07:30:00.000-04:00

Image Courtesy of Eliazar

Apparently, the credit card companies don't see me as too much of a risk. Even though we've been hearing about numerous credit card companies suddenly reducing the credit lines of credit worthy customers just because of the places that they use the card.

The past few days, I've received three separate offers from two different credit card companies offering me low interest money because I am a "valued" customer. They want me to use their money for anything I need. Just in case I didn't have any ideas, they suggested that I could use the money to take a vacation, buy a computer, do home repairs or consolidate other high interest debt.

I thought about taking them up on the offer; not to do the things they suggested but to put the money in a savings account until the low rate expires and then payoff the balance in full. Basically, I'd take advantage of the offer to make a little extra money for myself. This game worked a lot better when the interest rate on savings accounts were over 5%.

The only catch is that the offer includes a balance transfer fee of 3%. If I took $10,000 of my $15,000 credit line, the fee would be $300. Putting $10,000 in my savings account that is currently paying 2.5%, I would have $250 after one year. By taking advantage of the offer, I would actually be losing $50.

No thanks, I'll pass on the "generous" offers this time. Next time, send me an offer that doesn't include a balance transfer fee and I'll probably take the money off your hands.

I Saved Over $900 By Getting A Second Opinion

2009-05-04T06:15:00.004-04:00

Image courtesy of daynar

When it comes to home repairs, it pays to get a second opinion. I don't think that all companies are shady or crooked but unfortunately, there are some dishonest companies out there.

I got a call from my tenant the other day because the air conditioning was not working properly. It's not too hot right now so and it generally wouldn't be an issue except my tenant has health problems and when she gets really hot, she gets sick. Needless to say, it was important to get the problem taken care of as soon as possible. I called a large local air conditioning repair company and scheduled them to go out the next day.

I had planned to meet them to go over the damages but I was too busy at work to get away. I called the company and advised them to call me once they found the problem and I would give a credit card over the phone. The tech called me within 30 minutes of being there and told me I would need gadget A, gadget B and gadget C (I forgot the names of the items) and the cost would be $1200.

Needless to say, I did not give him authorization to repair the items and told him I would need to call him back. About 5 minutes later, my tenant called me and asked what the technician said. She told me she did not have a good feeling about this guy and I should not let him do the work. I told her I would get someone else out as soon as I could. If the next company told me the same things were wrong, I would go ahead and authorize the repairs.

The next company came out and did a thorough inspection and advised me that it would cost $250 to get the air conditioning working. He sounded a lot more knowledgeable and explained exactly what was wrong. I gave him the okay and about an hour later, he called to tell me the repairs were completed. About 2 hours after that, my tenant called me to tell me it was nice and cool.

Don't be afraid to get a second, third or even fourth opinion when it comes to home repairs. Some companies will try to take advantage of an unaware buyer.

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