Best Personal Financial Planning and Personal Investment Articles this Week from Personal Finance Blogs
Carnival of Financial Planning - Edition #118 - December 4, 2009
Welcome to the December 4, 2009 Edition #118 of the Carnival of Financial Planning.
The Carnival of Financial Planning takes a long-term view of personal financial planning for individuals and families. We focus on efficient and sustainable personal financial planning practices that can lead to lifetime financial security.
This edition is arranged by subject heading, so that you can browse efficiently.
Enjoy!
The Skilled Investor, Editor
Budgeting
Four Pillars presents Get Out Of Debt With YNAB – You Need A Budget Financial Software Review posted at Quest For Four Pillars, saying, “Indepth review of You Need a Budget software.”
FMF presents Mindless Spending: Frequency Matters More Than Height posted at Free Money Finance, saying, “Controlling your spending — even “small” expenses — is a key part of growing your wealth.”
Estate Planning
The Financial Blogger presents Estate Planning: 5 Reasons Why You Should Have A Professional Among Your Liquidators posted at The Financial Blogger, saying, “managing an estate is more complicated than simply writing a few checks! Fortunately, for those who can afford it, you can name a professional among your liquidators.”
Jeff Rose presents Your Estate Planning Checklist posted at Jeff Rose.
Financial Planning
Bucksome presents Year End Financial Planning posted at Buck$ome Boomer’s Journey to Retirement, saying, “In between holiday events take care of these year end financial planning tasks.”
Super Saver presents Spending because of Stimulus Money? Not Us. posted at My Wealth Builder, saying, “Although we qualified for the Cash for Clunkers and the new Home Buyer’s Credit program, we passed on on participating, for one simple reason — if we needed it, we would have already bought it.”
Dividend Tree presents Building Core Competency for Long Term Survival posted at Dividend Tree, saying, “whether it is running a business or individuals’ investment portfolio, it is important to build a core competency for long term sustainability. In my case, I focus on good quality companies that consistently pay or have potential to pay growing dividends over time.”
Chris presents Property and money: 20 tips any married woman must read (part 2). posted at Home I Own.
Roshawn Watson presents Are Wealthy People Dishonest? posted at Watson Inc, saying, “Are the wealthy dishonest? While it is certainly a fair question, it is also a polarizing one. The typical dichotomy is that there are some who feel like there is absolutely no way for honest people to get ahead financially while the wealthy often feel maligned for their prosperity.”
Susan Saverton presents Financial Planning Pasadena California posted at Pasadena Financial Planners, saying, “Set your personal investment asset allocation according to your personal tolerance for investment risk. Allocated percentages to asset classes would tend to slowly change with the years, and thus it is key to decide correctly from the beginning.”
Financing a Home
Darwin presents USDA Home Loan Program – The 0% Down Bonanza You’ve Never Heard About posted at Darwin’s Finance, saying, “Get this - the USDA Home Loan Program – The 0% Down Bonanza You’ve Never Heard About…and the government’s the one sponsoring it! You’d be surprised, you may actually qualify.”
Susan Tiner presents Financial Organizing Soap Opera Episode #4: Owner-Builder posted at Brain Dead Simple! Financial Organizing, saying, “Heather learns about a first-time home buyer service to avoid.”
Ben presents House Hunting Tips for Busy Parents posted at Money Smart Life.
Brandon Laughridge presents FHA Down Payment May Rise Soon posted at Mortgage Loan Place Blog, saying, “It could much harder for new home buyers to secure any sort of mortgage in 2010 with the recent shakeup in FHA financing options.”
Roshawn Watson presents Should You Buy A House Outright? posted at Watson Inc, saying, “Suppose you find yourself in the somewhat unique predicament of having the resources to purchase your house outright without a mortgage. Is it then financially-wise to make the purchase?”
Alex Fotopoulos presents When to Refinance a Mortgage? posted at My Trader’s Journal, saying, “Some key points to consider when refinancing your home.”
Financing Education
Joe E presents New Loan Forgiveness Program for Law School Students posted at Consolidating Student Loans Online, saying, “A brand new loan forgiveness program for law grads could make it much more affordable for students to go back to law school. So far, two universities have adopted the program, but the hope is that many more follow their lead.”
Praveen presents Will Education Follow the Housing Bust? posted at My Simple Trading System, saying, “Tips for students to avoid excessive loans and debt”
Health Care
Patrick @ Cash Money Life presents Open Enrollment Health Insurance Options posted at Cash Money Life, saying, “what you need to know about the common health insurance options available from most employers during the open enrollment season.”
Jeff Rose presents What’s the Best Health Savings Plan For You? posted at Jeff Rose.
Patrick @ Military Money presents Open Enrollment Window Open for Some posted at Military Finance Network, saying, “Open enrollment is the only time of the year that many people are able to make changes to their health insurance elections. Make sure you take advantage of this time to select the best health care option for your needs.”
Income
Dividend Tree presents Three Companies with Sustainable Dividends posted at Dividend Tree, saying, “Even in soft economic environment, there are companies out there that are continuing to increase dividends for their shareholders. While dividend increase is good, it is more critical to make sure we understand that companies can sustain their dividends.”
Investing
Zach Scheidt presents Netsuite Investors Begin to Doubt Growth posted at ZachStocks, saying, “Netsuite Inc. (N) has seen revenue growth trend significantly lower. The cloud computing technology firm is trading at an excessive price given its growth prospects and the aversion to risk we are seeing in the market.”
One Family presents Fair Isaac Corporation (FICO) - Stock Analysis posted at One Family’s Blog, saying, “An analysis and recommendation of Fair Isaac Corporation (FICO) stock.”
Carlos Sera presents A Tale of Two Titans; Financial Tales posted at Financial Tales, saying, “A question that always comes up, regardless of age, is how do I allocate my money once I start a savings program? The question soon morphs into how do I allocate my money after I have been saving for some time? I believe in simplicity. The combination of simplicity with mathematical elegance leads to a powerful solution that is within the grasp of most investors and most importantly, because it is comprehensible has a high likelihood of sustainability.”
Zach Scheidt presents Blackstone Sees Improving Trends posted at ZachStocks, saying, “The Blackstone Group, LP (BX) reported earnings and the stock is trading sharply higher. The environment is improving for the private equity company as liquidity and risk premiums increase.”
Praveen presents Just Bought Hyatt Hotels (H) posted at My Simple Trading System, saying, “About Hyatt’s recent IPO and why its a good stock.”
Jules Wells presents Best Investment Strategies posted at Best Financial Planning Software, saying, “Investing often seems almost unfathomly complex, however your best investment strategy will tend to be a simple and straightforward investing strategy.”
Tomas Escent presents Investment Management Strategy posted at Nerds on Wall Street, saying, “A Hitchhiker’s Guide to Wired Markets. In this funny financial book, there are no robots parking your car millions of times, however, right now in milliseconds robots trade millions of shares.”
mrs laughton presents The Definitive Guide To Real Estate ETFs: Real Estate ETF Investing 101 posted at ETFdb.
My Journey presents How do the Morningstar Star Ratings Work? Are Morningstar Ratings Accurate? posted at My Journey to Millions, saying, “How does the Morningstar Mutual Fund Star system work? An easy Explanation of that system”
MoneyNing presents How to Get Your Wife to Invest posted at Money Ning, saying, “Talk and discuss. Learn how to get your significant other to invest!”
Frank Vertin presents No Load Funds posted at Best Index Funds, saying, “When you buy an S & P 500 index mutual fund through a broker or investment advisor you can increase substantially your purchasing costs, while you drive up your recurring annual expenses through asset management and other fees. Financial advisors most often will not recommend to buy index mutual funds with very low fees.No load, low cost index mutual funds don’t pay financial brokers and advisors nearly as well as front loaded, high fee, active mutual funds.”
Steve Alexander presents Quick Take: Nathan’s Famous Inc (NATH) - MagicDiligence posted at MagicDiligence - Optimizing Joel Greenblatts Value Stock Strategy, saying, “Yes, it’s the company that sponsors the hot dog eating contest. It’s also a Magic Formula small-cap stock worth biting into, with a cheap valuation, good business model, and strong balance sheet.”
Dividends4Life presents 9 Dividend Stocks Working Hard During The Holidays posted at Dividends Value, saying, “Due to the Thanksgiving holiday, not much is happening at the office. However, there are still many working for me today. It is great to know while I am relaxing with family and watching the big game, my Dividend Stocks are hard at work providing me an additional income stream.”
The Smarter Wallet presents Scottrade Review: Best Online Brokerage posted at The Smarter Wallet, saying, “On scottrade, a popular stock brokerage.”
Larry Russell presents No Load Mutual Fund posted at Best No Load Mutual Funds, saying, “Don’t bother to frantically move your assets from one mutual fund to another or from one ETF to another. Investment research has repeatedly showing academic studies that performance chasing is a bad strategy the most ofter will yield inferior returns.”
The Financial Blogger presents Note to Myself: Key Points to Investing During a Bear Market Part1: Remember High Yield Bonds posted at The Financial Blogger, saying, “This is what I am doing with the recent market crunch of 2008. Some people generated amazing returns by taking little risk. Here’s how they did it:
Steve Patterson presents FastSwings - Blogs - Federal Reserve Sees Economic Improvement and Some Jobs posted at FastSwings, saying, “I still feel the best way to play the economic recovery is purchase Ultra S&P 500 Proshares ETF (SSO).”
The Skilled Investor presents Investing Strategies posted at Personal Financial Investments, saying, “Investment costs which are clearly measured, like fees deducted on your monthly investment statement. Most investors are no aware of opportunity costs that arise from sub-optimal investing practices. Opportunity costs like these are much greater than more costs and investment fees that show up on their statements.”
Tushar Mathur presents Can’t Control the Markets? Try controlling the Costs posted at Everything Finance, saying, “As 2008 proved, the financial markets are prone to unpredictable periods of turbulence. That can make investing feel a bit like a roller-coaster ride. The disappointing results that many mutual funds posted in 2008 and at the outset of 2009 may have left you feeling concerned over your financial future. You’re not alone.”
Managing Debt
FMF presents Know Your Rights Against Debt Collectors posted at Free Money Finance, saying, “Thoughts on how to handle debt collectors.”
MoneyNing presents Are 0% Balance Transfer Credit Cards for Life Possible? posted at Money Ning, saying, “Is 0% balance transfer for life really possible? Find out what people are saying and a reader that actually has one of these cards!”
Miscellaneous
nissim ziv presents Can a Hobby Work For You? Turning a Hobby into a business posted at Job Interview Guide, saying, “Many have heard of great success stories from those who quit their day jobs to pursue active and lucrative hobbies from home. Is this choice right for you?”
Joe Plemon presents What to do With $60,000 posted at Personal Finance By The Book, saying, “A senior citizen couple has $60,000 in a savings account and want to know how the money could be better used.”
Steve Faber presents Preventing Identity Theft - The Next Level posted at DebtBlog, saying, “Identity theft is a heinous crime whose repercussions can last for years. Here are some powerful strategies to help prevent you from becoming a victim.”
Peak Personal Finance presents Tips for Better Holiday Shopping posted at Peak Personal Finance.
Frank Knight presents How to Stop Identity Theft posted at Best Financial Planning Software, saying, “You need to be proactive and take easy steps to prevent becoming a victim of identity theft. Identity theft is increasing dramatically and it takes a huge amount of time to clean up the mess once you get hit with identity theft.”
No Load Bond Funds presents Bond Mutual Funds posted at Bond Index Funds, saying, “There is not good reason to invest in bond mutual funds and ETFs with higher fees. Pick the lowest cost broadly diversified index mutual funds and get better results and more sleep.”
Tom @ Canadian Finance Blog presents 10 Ways To Reduce Your Cable Or Satellite TV Bill posted at The Canadian Finance Blog, saying, “With the majority of households looking for ways to cut their expenses, television might be the first non-essential bill you’ll want to look at. Fortunately there are a few ways to save money on your television bill.”
Susan Saverton presents Personal Investment Management posted at Family Financial Planning, saying, “You need a system that is efficient with respect to your time and your costs, when to develop, implement, and track a personal investment plan.”
Dorian Wales presents A Temple Restaurant and a Clearing House for Tickets – Two Observations of New York City posted at The Personal Financier, saying, “New York City is my favorite destination in the world. Any opportunity to visit again, whether on business or pleasure is a joy. With each visit a new light is shed on some other aspect of the city. I’d like to share two such spotlights with you.” (Editor’s note: Dorian is right about Peter Luger. Best steakhouse around.)
Retirement Planning
Super Saver presents Why I Consider Myself Retired posted at My Wealth Builder, saying, “Since I retired while still in my forties. I know that some people questioned whether it was really a retirement or whether it was just simply a job resignation, followed by unemployment.”
Peak Personal Finance presents 3 Tips for Stretching Your Retirement Account posted at Peak Personal Finance, saying, “Tips to make your retirement fund last longer.”
FMF presents The World’s Best Places to Retire posted at Free Money Finance, saying, “One way to make your retirement savings go farther is to retire overseas.”
Top Stock Mutual Funds presents Best Stock Mutual Funds posted at Top Index Funds, saying, “This article discusses the 10 ten very low cost stock index mutual funds that track the Standard and Poors 500 large capitalization stock index.”
Frank Knight presents Roth Retirement Planning posted at Financial Planner Software, saying, “One of the most complex personal financial decisions is whether to invest in a Roth IRA or Roth 401k versus their traditional retirement account alternatives. For most people, Roth accounts do not make sense financially. For a minority, they are a good deal, but you need sophisticated financial planner software to do the analysis for yourself.”
Risk Management and Insurance
Patrick @ Cash Money Life presents Save Money on Auto Insurance Rates posted at Cash Money Life, saying, “Tips on how to save money on your auto insurance rates, including multi car discounts, multi-line policies, defensive driving courses, and more.”
jim presents Finding Affordable Self Employed Health Insurance posted at Blueprint for Financial Prosperity, saying, “As a self-employed person, finding affordable and reputable medical insurance can be a big challenge.”
Patrick @ Military Money presents COBRA Benefits 2009 Economic Stimulus Recovery Act posted at Military Finance Network, saying, “The 2009 Economic Stimulus Plan includes additional COBRA and unemployment benefits.”
Savings
KCLau presents Are You Rich in Internal Assets? posted at KCLau’s Money Tips, saying, “pay attention to the internal assets”
ReliableWriters presents Should You Use Your Emergency Fund for Holiday Shopping? posted at Deposit Accounts.
Four Pillars presents $8,000 Credit For First-Time Homebuyers Extended 6 Months – Not Increased To $15k posted at Quest For Four Pillars, saying, “Home buyers credit extended 6 months.”
KCLau presents Caring for the Elderly posted at KCLau’s Money Tips, saying, “Problems faced by the elderly”
Taxes
Jeff Rose presents First Homebuyer Tax Credit posted at Jeff Rose.
Robert D Flach presents Deducting Expenses for Rental of a Mixed Use Vacation Home posted at The Internet Guide to IRS Schedule E, saying, “A Christmas present from The Wandering Tax Pro - a new tax blog for taxpayers with rental property!”
That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of Carnival of Financial Planning using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
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