PT Money » Personal Finance Links

Discover More Card – $50 Cashback Bonus

PT — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 19:02:16 +0000

A new credit card change of terms just went into effect, rocketing the Discover More Card up to the top of my favorite credit cards list. Discover is currently offering $50 cash back when you sign up for the card and spend a certain amount of money over the first 3 months. They also changed the terms of the balance transfer promotion to 12 months. This is also a solid rewards card because of the 5% reward points earned in rotating categories.

Discover More Card – $50 Cashback Bonus

5% rewards points for rotating categories: travel, home, gas, restaurants, movies, and more
No annual fee
$50 initial bonus
0% for 12 months on balance transfers
This is the best balance transfer card that I have to offer. A solid rewards card too.

Personal Finance Links

Matt from Debt Free Adventure shares his experience with re-financing a home loan. Paul from Fiscal Geek talks about the single most important financial step. Amanda from My Dollar Plan shares how to save money on a wedding. Pete from Bible Money Matters shares how to open a SEP IRA. Joel from Free From Broke discusses why health savings accounts are so great. Ron from the Wisdom Journal talks about creating a family charter. Jeff at Good Financial Cents shares how to save money when moving. Ryan from Cash Money Life gives you some info on what to do when you can’t make the mortgage. I was in carnivals about debt reduction, money hacks, and frugality.

International Personal Finance Carnival #1

PT — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 17:01:41 +0000

Welcome to the first edition of the International Personal Finance Carnival, featuring top contributions from around the world. This carnival will feature articles from bloggers who are included in the Personal Finance Bloggers Map.

The next edition of this carnival will be held at Living on a Budget in early April. Visit the International Personal Finance Carnival page at Blog Carnival to submit your posts for the next edition.

The Editor’s Top Picks

United Kingdom – 5 Tactics to Avoid Overspending When Traveling from Adam at Magical Penny, saying “Traveling overseas is an exciting experience and one which will furnish you with memories and stories for many years to come. However, to make sure those memories and experiences are positive ones, you need to be able to control your money and your spending while overseas, and it can be hard to stick to a budget and watch your spending when you are on holiday. Therefore, here are five tactics which can help you avoid overspending when you are traveling overseas, while still ensuring you have a great time.”

Japan – Roth and U.S. Taxes While Working Abroad from Austin at Foreigners Finances, saying “A reader asks about investing in a Roth while working abroad. The topic then dives into how to avoid being taxed twice on income from abroad. A must-read for any American citizen working outside the country.”

United States – Do I Have a Life Outside of Blogging? from J Money at Budgets Are $exy, saying “If there’s one thing I have never regretted in life it’s traveling!”

United Kingdom – Companies paying dividends early to beat higher UK tax rates from The Investor at Monevator.

Canada – Gas Money from Tom at Canadian Finance Blog, saying “Gas money. The inevitable question for carpools, shared rides, and mooching roommates. Will they be offended if you offer?”

United Kingdom – Russian Women and Their Money from Anastasia at Living on a Budget.

Japan – What the Japanese Taught Me About Defeating Credit Card Debt from Mr Credit Card at Ask Mr Credit Card.

Others from the US and Canada

Beginner Investment Strategies from Patrick at Cash Money Life
Stock Market Basics for New Investors from Bob at Christian PF
How to Choose The Best Financial Advisor/Planner for You from Jeff at Good Financial Cents
What the Silicon Valley Startups in My Life Taught Me from SVB at The Digerati Life
What is the Marriage Penalty Tax? from jim at Bargaineering.
Cash4Gold or Cash4Suckers? from DR at Dough Roller
Dividend Achievers List – Part 1 (The Canadian List) from Frugal Trader at Million Dollar Journey

Thanks to everyone who submitted to the carnival. Hope you enjoy reading these great articles.

New Quicken for Mac Link Roundup

PT — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 22:50:53 +0000

This weekly roundup of links is brought to you by Quicken Essentials for Mac: Built Mac smart, with you in mind. If you recently converted to Mac from a PC and had Quicken for the PC, have no fear. According to the Quicken Blog, Quicken for Mac imports Windows files without a problem. Here’s more from Quicken about the launch of the long awaited Quicken for Mac.

It’s almost that time for the 2010 Quicken for Mac launch! We’re extremely excited for the launch and to keep the buzz going we are offering a $10 off Pre-order discount. The new 2010 Quicken for Mac Product has many upgrades and features that will make keeping track of your personal finances even easier. Pre-order 2010 Quicken for Mac and receive $10 off!

This last week I was lucky enough to be featured in the Personal Finance Blogger Showdown over at Budgets Are $exy. My boy J. Money pitted me against John from Mighty Bargain Hunter. John’s been around the pf scene a while and so it was nice to have even been mentioned along side him. Check out John’s new site, Cash Commons to find answers to your money questions.

The guys at Credit Card Finder rolled out another Personal Finance Comic featuring J.D. from Get Rich Slowly.

Have you ever wished you would have financed your home for 15 years vs 30 years? Or vice versa? Patrick from Cash Money Life does a great job comparing a 15 vs 30 year mortgage.

RC from Think Your Way to Wealth reminds us to keep things simple when it comes to personal finance. Check out Occams Razor, Simplicity, and Personal Finance.

Consumer Boomer asks: What’s the best IRA for You? This includes a list of the different IRA options available. I didn’t know there were so many.

My guest post party continued last week with 3 more articles: CPA vs Tax Software vs Tax Prep Company at Free From Broke, Top 10 Tax Credits to Take Advantage Of at Bible Money Matters, and Student Loans:Treat Them Right at Studenomics.

I was featured in these blog carnivals last week: personal finance, economy, and get out of debt.

Build a Biblically Based Retirement Plan: Free Seminar

PT — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 14:31:11 +0000

A quick announcement post about Jay Peroni’s upcoming seminar on value-investing and retirement. Jay has written some solid guest posts for PT Money in the past and is a regular contributor at Christian PF. He’s also a Certified Financial Planner and CEO of Values First Advisors. This looks like a great opportunity to connect with Jay and learn more about value-based investing.

Jay is offering a free seminar this Tuesday, February 16. The call will “arm investors with the knowledge they need to recession proof their assets and retirement from the uncertainties of the financial market.” More about the seminar:

“It is Jay’s firm belief and conviction that by holding fast to our Christian heritage and biblical values, everyone can build a solid financial plan for the present and future. Not only will this seminar give attendees the tools they need to protect their financial future, they will each receive a copy of Jay’s latest ebook, “10 Mistakes That Could Jeopardize Your Financial Future” as well as his Audio Mp3 Download, “Why 401ks, Annuities, and Mutual Funds are a Bad Idea”.

Jay encourages all who have concerns and questions regarding their financial planning for retirement to attend. The teleseminar will be held Tuesday, February 16 at 7:00 – 8:00 pm EST. For more information and to register, please visit http://www.jayperoni.com/seminar/seminar.html. When registering, please type in the Coupon Code: PTMONEY where indicated.”

Download These Free Financial Spreadsheets

PT — Sun, 14 Feb 2010 22:34:35 +0000

Today I thought I’d share a couple of spreadsheets with you to help you stay on top of your finances. They’re oldies but goodies. I’ve shared these individually in the past, but with the new year I though you might could utilize them both. These sheets will hopefully add to your overall financial organization efforts. I’ve provided a brief explanation about each one, and some links to download the sheets. Ignore the old website branding.

All-In-One Personal Finance Spreadsheet

First up is my all-in-one, dashboard-style spreadsheet. In general, this sheet puts all your personal financial information in one simple, printable spreadsheet. Here’s what’s included:

1. Personal Balance Sheet – This is simply a listing of all your assets and liabilities. It totals up to give you your personal net worth.

2. Personal Income Statement – This includes your income and all your recurring expenses. While this isn’t a full-blown budget, it will help you to visualize what you “have to” pay each month.

3. Financial Goals – It’s important to keep your financial goals in mind when your viewing net worth and income vs expense. This keeps the big picture in mind.

4. Online Log-in Credentials – If you’re worried about security you don’t have to use this section, but I like to have all of my log-in information in one spot so that my wife could pick up the pieces if something happened to me.

This sheet will help you:

1. See your entire personal finance situation all in one spot. I believe a necessary starting point for making the most of your finances is to know exactly where you’re starting from. This sheet will give you that view.

2. Help a loved one in the case that something happens to you. If you’re the one source of financial knowledge for you family, you need this sheet or something like it stored away safely in the event that something happens to you so that your family can take control of your finances.

Article About the All-In-One Spreadsheet

Download This Sheet:

All-In-One Financial Spreadsheet (Excel)
All-In-One Financial Spreadsheet (OpenOffice)

Monthly Expense Tracker

Up next is the monthly expense tracker. This sheet will help you avoid late payments and overdrafts by tracking all of your monthly recurring expenses and showing you how they will affect your balance at different times in the month. This sheet includes a rolling calendar of recurring monthly expenses and income, as well as, your total available balance projected out for 30 days or more.

More on how this spreadsheet will help you:

1. Avoid Late Payments – Since you list out your monthly recurring expenses by payment due date, you’ll be able to quickly reference which bill is coming due at what date.

2. Prevent Bank Over-Drafts – Since the sheet contains a running balance, you’ll be able to roughly predict what your balance will be at various points in the month. This will give you a bit of warning so you can shift some money around from a different account and avoid an overdraft.

Article About the Monthly Expense Tracker

Download This Sheet:

Monthly Expense Tracker (Excel)
Monthly Expense Tracker (OpenOffice)

PocketSmith, a calendar-based financial planner, is basically an automated version of this tracker sheet. Check it out if you want something more advanced.

While the sheets are by no means perfect, they’ve both helped me at times. Hopefully you can add them to your own financial tool belt and make some use of them too. If you have any questions or suggestions about the sheets, feel free to use the comments below…

Guest Posting Party

I’ve been doing some guest posting on other blogs lately. Something I plan to make a habit of in the coming weeks and months. Some of my latest posts include:

Should I E-File My Taxes or Mail Them? at Four Pillars.
How Do I Set Up a 529 College Savings Plan at ABC’s of Investing.
Organize Your Files for Tax Time at Finance for a Freelance Life.

Thanks to the host blogs for giving me the opportunity.

Blog Carnivals I Was In

The Festival of Frugality at Ultimate Money Blog. The Festival of Frugality at Cooking Manager. The Best of Money Carnival at The Centsible Life. The Carnival of Debt Reduction. The Rich Money Habits Carnival at Rich Money Habits. The Festival of Frugality at Ultimate Money Blog. The Carnival of Financial Planning at The Skilled Investor. The Tax Carnival at Don’t Mess with Taxes. The Carnival of Personal Finance at Cash Money Life. The Best of Money Carnival at Studenomics. The Money Hacks Carnival at Passive Income Now. The Carnival of Personal Finance at Get Rich Slowly. The Festival of Frugality at Sweating the Big Stuff.

Be on the lookout for the first edition of the International Personal Finance Carnival.

Tax Preparation Checklist

PT — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 16:13:34 +0000

Time to get ready to file your taxes. If you’re expecting a refund, you’re probably want to get that money as soon as you can. We’ve still got a couple of weeks before employers are required to send you your W-2, so you’ve got time to get ready.

I’ve put together a quick list of things you may need to file your tax return, whether you’re using a CPA or doing it yourself through a service like TurboTax, H&R Block At Home, or QuickTax (for Canadians).

Tax Prep Checklist

Your family and dependant’s Social Security Numbers
Your bank account and routing number (to have your refund direct deposited)
A list of the taxes you’ve paid during the year (estimated tax payment, sales taxes, property taxes, etc.)
W-2’s and other income tax forms (1099’s, Schedule K-1, etc.)
Homebuyer Tax Credit form 5405
IRA Contribution Info
Education information (tuition paid, student loan interest paid, etc)
Home mortgage interest paid
Medical expenses
Job search and moving related expenses
Charitable donations

Extra: For a more comprehensive list, check out this checklist put together by the folks at TurboTax: TurboTax – Tax Preparation Checklist

QuickHits

Now for a few notable articles from around the blog-o-sphere this week. Tons of links so I categorized them for you:

Frugal Tips
10 Frugal Ways to get Fit this Winter
The Best 101 Debt Busting Posts of 2009 (from 101 Frugal Bloggers)

Credit and Debt
How to Get Your Free FICO Credit Score
What the New Changes in Credit Card Rules Mean for You
How Does The CARD Act of 2009 Affect Credit Card Holders?
New Law Makes it Harder for Teens to Get a Credit Card Starting February 22
Does the World Need Yet Another Credit Option?

Investing
Is A Safe 8% Return Realistic?
The Five Best International Mutual Funds For Your IRA
2010 Roth IRA Conversion, Important Things to Know — The rule for IRA conversion changed for 2010. Learn everything you need to know and see if you can take advantage of this opportunity.

Giveaways
Don’t Forget About The Free YNAB Giveaway over at the Wisdom Journal. Ron is giving away one copy of this fantastic budgeting software in a drawing to be held February 1st. All you have to do is leave a comment to enter!
The Centsible Life Turns 1: $600 in Giveaways

Just Fun
Top 10 Money Movies of the Decade
Place Your Bets: 40 Gut-Busting Restaurant Challenges for FREE Food

Even More
How To Make Money With A Blog: A primer on how to start a blog, promote it, and make a nice side income.
5 Steps to Get You Hired as an English Teacher Abroad
You Need a Budget (YNAB) 3.0 Personal Finance Software Review
Areas to Automate Your Finances
If you liked reading Freakonomics then check out their next offering:
SuperFreakonomics book review.
Your Spouse: Financial Teammate or Financial Enemy?
Dealing with Financial Peer Pressure
What the Bible Says About Money

Carnivals

The Carnival of Money Stories at The Dough Roller
The Festival of Frugality at Yes, I Am Cheap
The Carnival of Debt Reduction

That’s about it for now. Have a great weekend everyone.

Win $50 Cash from PT Money and Other Prizes!

PT — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 17:02:09 +0000

It’s the new year and lots of friends have big things going on. It’s hard to keep track. Today I thought I’d bring your attention to some of the contests that have recently started up as well as some nice articles for extra reading.

Win $50 Cash (+$5,600) at MoneyCrashers.com

Time for another giveaway. I’m giving away $50 cash. To be entered to win this $50, you have to visit the link below and follow the rules. Oh yeah, and you’re also going to have a chance to win more than $5,600 + in other prizes. Pow!

Money Crashers 2010 New Year Giveaway Bash!

That’s right, the folks at Money Crashers are putting on a New Year Giveaway Bash. They have a huge number of other bloggers, authors, etc. participating in this massive giveaway. So head over and check out the prizes and the official rules.

It’s very easy to enter, and the content at Money Crashers is easy to absorb as well. They put together some great personal finance blog posts daily. Enjoy.

QuickHits

(round-up of good posts from the community)

Win $200 in Giftcards from BudgetsAre$exy.com

My friend J. Money, of the very cool site Budgets are $exy is starting up a V.I.P. Newsletter.

To celebrate the opening of the newsletter he’s giving away $200 in gift cards. Looks like a great opportunity to connect with some excellent content, improve your bottom line, and have a good shot at free money.

Good luck in all the contests and giveaways and enjoy the extra reading. Have a great weekend.

QuickHits: Disney World and a Last Minute Christmas Gift Idea

PT — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 01:27:06 +0000

I just returned from a week long training in Orlando, FL. It was a fun trip but I didn’t have as much time for blogging, commenting, emailing, etc. So I apologize if I’ve been a little out of touch lately. I did manage to post about the Flip Video Camera giveaway, which you should check out if you haven’t already.

The time in Orlando was great. I was able to bring the family along and we made it to one of the parks (Epcot) one night while we were there. We stayed close to the Downtown Disney area so we enjoyed that a few nights as well. Our one night in the park cost us around $100. Normally this would have cost us around $150, but we took advantage of the conventioneer after 4pm discount.

Disney World Ticket Tip: If you’re planning to arrive at the park after 2pm or 4pm, and you’re there on business, you can get reduced daily tickets at the Disney resort hotels’ gift stores. This is a benefit reserved for conventioneers.

Since we were out all week, we didn’t have time to do as much Christmas shopping as we wanted. Because it’s now past the point for most online retailers to be able to ship something by Christmas, we’re looking at alternative ideas, like the Amazon gift card.

Amazon Gift Cards

I like to use the Amazon gift card when I’m running behind and need to give something quick. Click the picture below to find out more about how they work:

There are 2 easy ways you can give Amazon.com Gift Cards in time for the holidays:

1) E-mail a personalized gift card for immediate delivery.

2) Print a personalized gift card on your home or office printer.

Visit the link above to give your gift card. You can even set it to go out on Christmas Eve or Day.

QuickHits

Buying a Home vs Renting at Studenomics
Best Personal Finance Practices of 2009 at Mrs Micah
The 10 Financial Stories of the Decade at My Dollar Plan
The guys at CreditCardFinder.com.au are back with another cool personal finance comic
Why You Might Not Want to Wait Until You’re Married with Children to Get Life Insurance at Gen X Finance
Christmas Deals this Weekend at Money Smart Life
Popular Personal Finance Books Around Twitter at Free From Broke
I Don’t Think I Get Personal Finance Blogging at My Journey to Millions
Save $2,000 or More this Year at Gather Little by Little

Blog Carnivals

Carnival of Twenty Something Finances at How I Save Money
Carnival of Twenty Something Finances at My Beauty and Fashion
Carnival of Financial Planning at Dinks Finance
Tax Carnival at Don’t Mess with Taxes
Money Hacks Carnival at Len Penzo
Carnival of Money Stories at Canadian Finance Blog
Carnival of Personal Finance at Well Heeled Blog
Carnival of Personal Finance at A Gai Shan Life
Carnival of Personal Finance at Suburban Dollar
Economy and Your Finances Carnival at One Mint

That’s all for now. Have a great Holiday week.

QuickHits: Cyber Monday Edition

PT — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 21:32:04 +0000

If you missed Black Friday have no fear. You’re sure to find a good deal shopping online for Cyber Monday. This roundup of blog posts is brought to you by the Amazon Cyber Monday Store. Check it out for the best deals this Monday (hint: they already have their best deals posted).

Quick Hits

How to Fight Your Health Insurance Claim Denial at The Wisdom Journal
Gift Cards: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly at Cash Money Life
Consider All Incomes When Calculating Life Insurance Needs at My Journey to Millions
Sccusesufl Peosrnal Finnace Deos Not Riqueire Perftceion at Dough Roller
The ABCs of Personal Finance: 26 Elementary Money Lessons at Christian Personal Finance
Share Expenses with a Friend at Sense to Save
Payoff Debt: The Hybrid Debt Snowball Fight at Debt Free Adventure
Overcoming Money Issues In Marriage at Bible Money Matters
Take Advantage of the Stimulus Tax Incentives While You Still Have Time at the new TurboTax Blog!

Blog Carnivals and Festivals

(sorry it took me so long to link back guys)…

Festival of Frugality at The Financial Blogger
Carnival of Money Stories at Mighty Bargain Hunter
Carnival of Personal Finance at Fiscal Geek
Money Hacks Carnival at Being Frugal
Best of Money Carnival at Managing Money God’s Way
Festival of Frugality at Domestic Cents
Carnival of Personal Finance at Canadian Finance Blog
Carnival of Money Stories at Gather Little by Little
Festival of Frugality at Cheap Healthy Good
Money Hacks Carnival at Gather Little by Little
Carnival of Twenty Something Finance at The Amateur Financier
Carnival of Financial Planning at My Traders Journal
Carnival of Personal Finance at M is for Money
Money Hacks Carnival at True Adventures in Money Hacking
Best of Money Carnival at Gen Y Wealth

Have a great Cyber Monday!

QuickHits: The 5 Easy Ways to Get Free Personal Finance Updates from PT Money

PT — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 06:41:52 +0000

You may have noticed I made some changes to the way I’m presenting information here at PT Money. I thought I might take a second to revisit all the ways you can get more out of this website. There’s more to it than simply bookmarking it, or trying to remember to come back each day.

You can have the content automatically delivered to you. There are main 5 ways to get my free content delivered to you. None of these 5 ways will ever cost you a dime. They’re all easy to sign up with. And you can unsubscribe from each one instantly, whenever you like. Okay, here’s a comparison so you can determine which one is best for you:

RSS

Cost: Free
How Often: 3 or 4 updates per week. You get my articles within minutes of when I post them. Typically around 6 am CST on Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and sometimes Sunday.
What You Get: The full content of my latest article. No clutter from the website or sidebar. Just the text and images from my articles. This is my favorite way to read blog posts. If you don’t really understand RSS, check this helpful video explaining RSS.
How You Sign Up: Click here for my RSS feed.

RSS by Email

Cost: Free
How Often: 3 or 4 emails per week. Typically around noon on Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and sometimes Sunday.
What You Get: The full content of my latest article. No clutter from the website or sidebar. Just the text and images from my articles.
How to Sign Up: Click here for RSS by email.

Facebook

Cost: Free
How Often: 3 or 4 mentions on your news feed per week. Typically around 6 am CST on Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and sometimes Sunday
What You Get: A small blurb about the article, picture, and a link to access my website where you can read the entire thing.
How You Sign Up: Click here to visit my Facebook page.

Bonus Content Areas:

These next two connection points will give you updates about what’s on this blog. Plus a lot more content. Still free.

Twitter

Cost: Free
How Often: While I tweet several times a day, my actual blog post tweets follow the same pattern as my RSS feed. Typically around 6 am CST on Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and sometimes Sunday.
What You Get: A small blurb and a link to my latest blog post. Plus, tweets with links to other interesting articles. Quick money tips and links to freebies. This is where I share ideas too small to create a full article. I also occasionally share a bit more personal information.
How You Sign Up: Click here to be taken to my Twitter Profile.

Cost: Free
How Often: No more than 1 or 2 emails per week. Twice a month for the actual latest blog posts roundup.
What You Get: Access to all of my e-books (yes, there’s more than 1). My 6 week series, “The 6 Key Takeaways of Personal Finance”. Latest 10 posts on the blog (you’ll get this around 2 times a month). TBD (I’m still working on more detailed content for the newsletter). I’m really excited about this new aspect to my content. And I hope to really help a whole new audience of people with this service.
How You Sign Up: Use the form below…

Let me know if you have any questions about signing up. Thanks again for reading PT Money.

The QuickHits

Listed below are some great blog posts last week from around the pf blogosphere:

A good analysis of time vs money: Is it Silly to Pay Retail to Protect the Value of Your Time?

More info about the homebuyer tax credit:
Senate Extending Home Buyer Tax Credit
Senators Agree to Extend First Time Homebuyer Tax Credit and Allow $6,500 for Current Homeowners

Good tips for the Holidays: 10 Ways to Save Money this Thanksgiving

Other interesting finds:
Finding Financial Treasure
What’s the Average Credit Card Debt in America?
My Wallet Gets Beer Goggles Too
Are You an Expert on Personal Money Management?
Don’t Lose Any Sleep Over Not Having a Good Credit Score

Also, this past week I had the opportunity to write at the Quicken Online Blog. Check out my blog post: The Proven Strategy for Making Extra Money

carnivals… Money Stories, Money Hackers, Debt Reduction, The Best of Personal Finance

PT Money » Personal Finance Links

Discover More Card – $50 Cashback Bonus

International Personal Finance Carnival #1

The Editor’s Top Picks

Others from the US and Canada

New Quicken for Mac Link Roundup

Build a Biblically Based Retirement Plan: Free Seminar

Download These Free Financial Spreadsheets

All-In-One Personal Finance Spreadsheet

Monthly Expense Tracker

Guest Posting Party

Other Notable Blog Posts from Around the Interwebs

Blog Carnivals I Was In

Tax Preparation Checklist

Tax Prep Checklist

QuickHits

Carnivals

Win $50 Cash from PT Money and Other Prizes!

Win $50 Cash (+$5,600) at MoneyCrashers.com

QuickHits

Win $200 in Giftcards from BudgetsAre$exy.com

QuickHits: Disney World and a Last Minute Christmas Gift Idea

Amazon Gift Cards

QuickHits

Blog Carnivals

QuickHits: Cyber Monday Edition

Quick Hits

Blog Carnivals and Festivals

QuickHits: The 5 Easy Ways to Get Free Personal Finance Updates from PT Money

RSS

RSS by Email

Facebook

Bonus Content Areas:

Twitter

Newsletter

The QuickHits