June 2011

Two of the World’s Most Exclusive Credit Cards

June 28, 2011

Due to the recent economic problems that many countries in the world have faced, many people are extremely cautious when applying for new credit, and in particular credit cards. Many of us are cautious because we’re wary of our debts, others because of high interest rates and the lack of will power when it comes […]

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When That Raise Isn’t Really a Raise

June 26, 2011

As the Fed continues printing money (delicately referred to as various rounds of quantitative easing), real inflation is alive and well.  With the economy in the doldrums and employees afraid to leave (or tied to their underwater mortgages), there’s little incentive for employers to provide raises above and beyond the bare minimum to retain the […]

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Refinancing Doesn’t Always Make Sense!

June 26, 2011

After much analysis, I came to an interesting conclusion recently when I was contemplating a refi.  See, I had held off most of last year because we were considering moving.  Now that that ship has sailed and we’re staying put, the focus naturally shifts to whether or not we should refinance. I was lucky in […]

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3 Flavors of High Yield Investments: Foreign, ETFs and Persistent Payers

June 22, 2011

Traditional income investors have been in despair for years now since the Fed adopted its zero interest rate policy and doesn’t appear to be changing course any time soon.  Conventional safe investments like savings, CDs and money markets have continued to actually lose money to real inflation and will likely do so for years to […]

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Clearing the Slate

June 22, 2011

Debt is the biggest challenge facing millions of people.  After years of accumulating rolling high interest debt and seeing their net worth moving in the wrong direction as liabilities overtake any income gains, it’s worthwhile assessing various debt solutions and tackling the problem once and for all.  This requires a mix of “acceptance”, discipline and […]

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How to Make Home Ownership Affordable

June 15, 2011

For many individuals and families, home ownership is the ultimate goal. Owning a place of your own represents a measure of economic freedom and allows you to get out of the rent cycle and into real property investment. Alas, it is a tough market these days and many have seen the values of their homes […]

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Pandora IPO Is Coming – RUN!!!!

June 14, 2011

‘Tis the season for web-based IPOs.  After LinkedIn’s (LNKD) volatile launch and the much-maligned Groupon IPO filing, Pandora is readying their IPO as well.  While I like the music service as an alternative to my Sirius (SIRI) satellite, I certainly won’t be investing in Pandora’s IPO.  My reasons are both anecdotal and market-based. Ads – […]

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How To Be Thrifty At The Petrol Pump

June 11, 2011

Petrol prices are outrageously high and likely to stay there. This is a factor out of our control, so the only thing left to do to get the expense of traveling under some kind of check and to stretch our money as far as possible. There are instances where using your credit card can save […]

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10 Dow Stocks Yielding over 3% – But How’s the Performance of Dow Dogs?

June 2, 2011

With yields on 10-Year Treasuries dropping below 3% again on worries in the EU and another lousy jobs report, it’s worth noting that there are 10 stocks in the Dow Jones Industrial Average yielding over 3%.  As compiled by CNBC this week, this table highlights 10 of the 30 stocks comprising the index with a […]

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