Roundup

January 2nd, 2009 Ashley

A few days ago, I was walking in our neighborhood with my 7 year old daughter.  Sitting out by the sidewalk was a metal filing cabinet with a sign that said “Free” being held up by a rock.  My daughter said “Oh, look!  They are giving that rock away for free!”  I said “No….”  She replied “Oh, the house is free.”   LOL.  Luckily the housing market isn’t quite that bad!

Oh also… I’m going to be out of town coming up here soon.  If you would like to write a guest post for me shoot me an email.  Diaperbagdiva[at]gmail.com.  Thanks!

Happy New Year and Happy 1st Blogaversary!

January 1st, 2009 Ginger

photo credit: ginnerobot

Well December 17th 2007 marked the day I got started with this blog as a personal finance blog for women but I wanted to celebrate it today.  I purchased this domain back in 2003 after reading the book Girls Just Wanna Have Funds, and, inspired by my own need to address personal finance issues from a woman’s perspective, this blog was born.

Many have asked what’s the point of such a blog, doesn’t money mean the same thing to everyone?  After all, it isn’t green to men and pink to women.  Tis true, but understanding and taking charge of your finances often has different implications for women and men.  I don’t write articles that are just laser analysis of current financial news but I try to broach it from the perspective of a woman who needs to know what this means to me, as a woman.

Happy New Year!

January 1st, 2009 LivingAlmostLarge

Hope everyone had a fantastic night and an even better 2008!  Glad to welcome 2009!  But have a wonderful day with your families, I will!

New Years Resolutions for 2009

January 1st, 2009 Ashley

I’m all about keeping resolutions simple.  I used to get all crazy and make a bunch of complicated resolutions.  But come January 3rd they had been forgotten.  So now I try to just make one.  And really it’s more of a goal than a resolution.

Last year my New Years Resolution was to get wills.   Which I’m proud to say was actually done!  (You can read about it here.)  It wasn’t hard at all once we got our butts in gear.  Basically just laziness and cheapness is all that was keeping us from it.

I want to make a resolution to pay off my husband’s car, and start a car fund.   But I don’t know if that is reasonable in this economy.  We owe just over $4,000 on his car.   We would have to pay an extra $73 per month towards it to get it paid off this year rather than next.  Which may or may not be doable.  The car fund would really be a struggle.  The economy really needs to pick up here if we are going to be able to do that.  My husband needs some overtime before we can start putting extra money into savings.

Quick Tip: Cull your coupons

January 1st, 2009 Ashley

Quick Tip:  Sort those coupons!

I just went through my coupon drawer and about 90% of the coupons in there expired today, being the last day of the year and all.  It’s a great way to start fresh in the new year.  A nice clean and organized coupon drawer.  Let the savings begin!

Pic by: Bramus

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Make Your January 1, 2009 Home Mortgage Payment Today to Cut Your 2008 Taxes

December 31st, 2008 Penelope Pince

I know I should have thought to post this earlier, but only just remembered to pay my own mortgage now instead of tomorrow. If you own a home and have not yet made your mortgage payment due on January 1, 2009, do it now before 2008 is over. This could cut the income taxes you will have to pay in April 2009 for you may be able to take a deduction for mortgage interest paid in 2008.

I am not a tax expert and there are some limitations, but here is a link to an article on MSN Real Estate which might tell you if you would benefit from doing this:
Early year-end mortgage payment could cut taxes

If you pay your mortgage online, do it now as our bank’s website is super slow today, perhaps due to the rush to customers trying to get their payment in before the year ends.

2009 Goals

December 31st, 2008 LivingAlmostLarge

Last day of the year and I guess we’re writing goals.  Most people write new year’s resolutions, so why not join in?  It can be a simple list of a couple of goals, or detailed outlined strategy.  I’m going to mix it up this year.

Unfortunately we failed on our goals from last year.  We took our $4250 in student loans this fall, and anoher $4250 this spring.

1. DH keep job, LAL find job - explanatory right?
2. Maximize retirement accounts
3. Have baby
4. Start paying off DH’s loans, he could finish in 2009 so we should be prepared.

I guess that’s it for us.  Nothing huge or exciting.  What are your goals for the year?

December in Review

December 31st, 2008 Ashley

Another month gone by, really another YEAR gone by!   I’m thrilled to say that December was one of my best months ever, traffic wise.  Love it!  I would like to give everyone a great big THANK YOU!!  I also had a bunch of new subscribers this month.  So hello to all my new readers!  Glad to have you on board.

Here were the 10 most popular posts of the month:

10 Holiday Budget Busters
10 Tips to get your house sold
Ingvar Kamprad: The founder of IKEA
Gift Cards at Costco
Warren Buffett
Rate Cuts: What does it mean?
Don’t let the news replace your reality
My Gallons
What the Government should be doing in a recession
A Trip to Costco

Here are my top 10 referrers for December:

Guest Post - Controlling your credit spending, one month at a time

December 30th, 2008 LivingAlmostLarge

This is a guest post from Mr. CC from Ask Mr. Creditcard. Mr. Credit Card answers reader’s questions about credit, debt and credit cards each day on Ask Mr. Credit Card’s Blog. You are invited to grab his free RSS feed for more tips on credit management. I encourage you to check it out!

Controlling your Credit Spending, One Month at a Time

Whether you are paying your credit cards off in full every month, or you are paying a balance, let me share with you some tips to help you to manage your cash flow and control your spending.

1. Consolidate - Most people carry many credit cards. If your limit on one card is high enough for your day to day needs, then try to consolidate your spending in to just one Visa or Mastercard. If your primary card is an American Express, then use your Visa or Mastercard merely as a backup.

Holiday Blog Carnivals

December 30th, 2008 Penelope Pince

Pecuniarities participated in 3 blog carnivals last week.

• The Carnival of Personal Finance #184: From the Land Down Under was hosted by Saving to Invest who spent his Christmas holidays in summery Australia. This edition included my post on our plans for a frugal Christmas: Frugal Christmas: Skipping the Tree and Presents This Year.
• The The 157th Festival of Frugality: The Queen’s Speech Edition was hosted by Miss Thrifty all the way from the Mother Country and included the Queen’s annual Christmas message which has been a tradition since 1932, as well as an alternative for those who can’t be bothered to watch the Queen. Madoline’s post, Using Nature’s Gift Wrap: The Eggshell was selected as an Editor’s Pick in this royal edition. Double thanks for the honors!
• The 44th Money Hacks Carnival - The Merry Christmas Edition was hosted by Where You Are Now and included my post on how Gifts Cards Could Be a Blessing This Christmas.

Well, that’s all for this week. Hope you had a wonderful Christmas and enjoy your New Year’s festivities.