Our home improvement comes with a little bonus for us. However, not all home improvement efforts are as successful. In fact, reports Forbes, there are some home “upgrades” you think are improving your home’s value, when they really aren’t.

Which Home Improvements are Practically Worthless?

Before you get that home improvement loan or line of credit, stop and consider why you are making the upgrade, and whether or not it will really improve the value of your home. Here are six items the Forbes article points out are practically worthless when it comes to boosting your home’s resale value:

• Swimming Pool: It can actually be more of a hassle than it’s worth to have a pool at your home home. Some potential homebuyers will decide not to buy, just because they don’t want to deal with the maintenance costs and liability that come with a pool.
• Overbuilding: Creating an addition to your home can make it stand out in your neighborhood. If your home is “worth” $250,000 at the end of your efforts, says Forbes, and most homes in the neighborhood sell for $150,000, you might actually be at a disadvantage.
• Extensive Landscaping: While a nice yard can get people to stop, it doesn’t actually increase your home’s selling price. A discerning buyer understands how much costs to upkeep such landscaping — and may not want to mess with it.
• High-End Upgrades: Forbes points out that these upgrades can help a high-end home, but they aren’t as helpful in a mid-range home, where something like granite countertops may look out of place with the linoleum flooring.
• Wall-to-Wall Carpeting: After reading this, I was glad that we replaced some of our carpeting with wood. Apparently, many people are concerned about carpeting, and its potential health issues.
• Invisible Improvements: Plumbing and heating upgrades make the house livable, but they probably won’t add to your home’s selling price.

Does that “Upgrade” Really Add Value to Your Home? was originally featured on Quizzle Wire

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Started way back in 2006 with the post 50 Homemade Gift Ideas – From Around The Web, Mr. and Mrs. Not Made of Money have created a site encompassing most all personal finance topics while offering their readers value in every post.

The most recent post as of this writing is How To Save Money With BOGOs (Buy One Get One Free) Sales, something that many grocery stores around the country have started implementing. We use that method of shopping as much as we can; it saves real money and allows us to stock on our favorites when they go on sale.

With nearly 5,000 followers on Twitter, you’d be remiss to not add Not Made of Money to your favorite RSS reader!

Personal Finance Blog of the Week – Not Made of Money was originally featured on Quizzle Wire

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Baby Boomers – a generation of Americans born between 1946 and 1964 – did a lot of hand-wringing during the recession that took root beginning in 2008. Many watched their retirement accounts lose thousands in a matter of months and the value of their homes plummet. Financial experts and pundits alike wondered if the Boomers would ever be able to retire, given the loss of wealth they experienced over the course of the Great Recession.

But CNN Money, reporting on new data provided by the Pew Charitable Trust, suggests that we were all worrying about the wrong generation. According to Pew, Generation X – those born between roughly 1966 and 1978 – are actually in much worse shape post-recession than their Boomer parents. The Pew study found that a combination of factors, such as lower retirement savings at the start of the recession, unemployment as a result of the recession, and high debt loads from credit cards and student loans, have put Gen X in a much more precarious financial position than Boomers. According to CNN Money, financial experts project that if Gen Xers don’t start addressing their financial shortcomings, many are on track to retire with enough savings to provide only half of their pre-retirement annual income. While the net worth of Boomers did take a substantial hit during the recession, many have seen some of their wealth bounce back in the past year, and most carry less debt than typical Gen Xers.

Gen X and Gen Y (those born between about 1980 and 2000, also known as Millennials) will need to be vigilant with their finances if they hope to retire with any type of retirement security. This means avoiding debt, investing early, and, above all, staying employed. But in a still-rocky job market and with record levels student loan debt, many younger workers find this advice difficult to follow.

What’s your best wealth-building advice for Gen X and Gen Y?

New Study Shows That Gen X Lags Behind Boomers In Projected Retirement Security was originally featured on Quizzle Wire

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Considering that at the time I began to make these goals I was carrying boatloads of credit card debt and student loans, it’s easy to see that I had my work cut out for me.

Over the course of two years, I buckled down, got my financial house in order and aggressively paid off my debt while also saving a down payment. It wasn’t easy, but it was completely worth it. As I began to investigate my options for mortgages, I stumbled upon the idea of a blended mortgage (sometimes called a combo mortgage).

After working so hard to save my money, I didn’t want to have my down payment fund wipe me out completely even though I had a full 20% saved. So when the banker I consulted explained that a blended mortgage was an option for me to not put a full 20% down but still avoid PMI, I was intrigued. Here’s what I learned—and why I chose to take out a blended mortgage when I bought my condo:

Avoid PMI with a Blended Mortgage

Yes, it is possible to avoid PMI without having an FHA loan or some other government-assisted program carrying you through the buying process! Basically, the blended mortgage is two mortgages taken out on the same property. Not to be confused with a HELOC, there is mortgage #1 and mortgage #2 that your single payment will be paid into.

The first mortgage is taken for 80% of the value of the property and the second will depend on how much you want to put down—usually they range from 5%-15%. I opted for 5% on the second mortgage so I’d still put 15% down. This allowed me to have a healthy emergency fund in-tact, have money for any repairs when I moved in and cover all moving costs.

More Options, Lower Rates

Besides avoiding PMI, a blended mortgage also affords you the opportunity to have more loan options AND to lock in lower rates. One caveat is that the second mortgage will automatically be at a higher rate than the first.

I avoided paying crazy interest rates forever by paying as much extra as I could on the second mortgage for the first 1.5 years, then refinancing once I was under the 80% equity mark. Upon refinancing, I rolled everything into one traditional mortgage and locked one of those crazy low rates we’re all enjoying right now.

Have you ever heard of — or taken out — a blended mortgage?

Singing the Praises of a Blended Mortgage was originally featured on Quizzle Wire

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Yahoo! Finance, using data from a survey by FindLaw.com, reports that close to one in four Americans has never checked their credit report. Credit reports contain important information about a consumer’s history with handling credit accounts – such as credit cards, mortgages, and auto loans – and are used to determine a person’s overall credit score, an important number that has implications in our financial lives.

According to the Federal Trade Commission, nearly 20% of credit reports contain errors, so the fact that so many people neglect to check their reports is troubles many personal finance experts, who typically recommend checking one’s credit report at least once per year.

The FindLaw.com also noted demographic differences in Americans’ habits when it comes to doing their due diligence with their credit reports; for example, 82% of women reported checking their credit reports at least once, compared to only 75% of men. Also, low-income Americans were less likely than those with higher incomes to have ever combed through their credit reports. Only 14% of those surveyed who made more than $75,000 per year admitted to never having checked their credit reports.

It’s important to recognize that many institutions beyond just banks use the credit report as a gauge of responsible behavior; for example, landlords typically check a potential tenant’s credit before leasing an apartment. It’s also becoming increasingly common for employers to run a credit check before granting an applicant a job. The upshot to all of this is that inaccuracies in credit reports need to be addressed immediately in order to prevent encountering unnecessary difficulties in day-to-day life. However, this is impossible for consumers to do if they’re not performing regular checks of their own credit reports.

How often do you check your credit report? If you’re about to say ‘never,’ make today the day you take this important step!

Nearly 25% of Americans Have Neglected to Check Their Credit Report was originally featured on Quizzle Wire

Quizzle.com is the easiest way to get a complete understanding of your credit. Visit Quizzle.com to get your free credit report and score. No credit card or social security number necessary!

Everyone wants to spend their money as wisely as possible, so we can purchase as much happiness as possible with the finite resources at our disposal. This is a complicated endeavor—which is why our column is here. There are two main sources of this complexity: The millions of products and services out there to buy, and the mysteries of human psychology.

TMI?

For virtually every type of purchase we consider making—a cell phone, a brand of makeup, a car with the various options available—there is an enormous amount of information that could be considered. Just deciding which electronic devices to buy could be a full-time job, if we did all the research that could be done on this.

How do people get their arms around these decisions? It turns out there are two basic strategies, which correspond to two basic personality styles. And it turns out that our happiness with buying decisions depends partly on whether we are a maximizer or a satisficer.

Maximizers

Maximizers try to learn everything they can about the products they could buy when they make a purchase. These are the folks who do their research: The identify all their options and investigate each one, carefully examining the seams of all the suits on the rack, talking extensively with salesmen at auto dealership after auto dealership, spending lots of time reading Consumer Reports and reviews on the Internet, and so forth.

By the time they make their purchase decision, maximizers know pretty much everything there is to know about the advantages and disadvantages of the brand they decide to buy. They also know a lot about the advantages and disadvantages of the possibilities they let go. Maximizers make very well-informed choices—which itself has advantages and disadvantages.

Satisficers

While maximizers try to make optimal decisions, satisficers organize their shopping around the idea of good enough. When they look at all the alternatives out there and all the information about those alternatives, they throw up their hands, figure they don’t have time to sort through all that, and come to some quick but reasonable decision about what to buy. Satisficers might just buy the most popular brand, or they might ask a friend or family member whether they are happy with their cell phone or lawnmower, and if the answer is yes, go with that.

Satisficers make their purchase decisions quickly, without knowing more than basic information about the products they buy, and without knowing much at all about the alternatives they forego. Lazy? Perhaps. Satisficers probably have more leisure time than maximizers. But don’t they suffer for it by ending up with products and services they don’t really like? Actually, no.

Which Works Better?

It depends what you mean by “works.” Maximizers might eventually buy the products that are most perfect for them, but it’s a hollow victory, because they end up less happy with their purchases.

The psychologist Barry Schwartz and his colleagues have performed a number of studies that make this point. In one experiment, they set up two booths that sold chocolate: One offered 6 varieties to choose from, and one offered 30. After shoppers made their selection, they were asked to rate their satisfaction with the purchase. The shoppers who chose from 6 options were significantly happier with their chocolate than those who picked from 30.

It works with dating, too. Research on online daters has found that maximizers do more labor-intensive and extensive searches than satisficers, but they do not end up happier with their dates; they end up less satisfied. Single people in the world’s most sophisticated and glamorous cities, such as New York and London, have a particularly hard time deciding on someone to marry, because there are so many possible mates, and how can you decide until you’ve examined all the possibilities?

Roads Not Taken

Most people are maximizers in some situations and satisficers in others; it’s a question of degree. Of course we should spend some time thinking through our shopping decisions, and important choices, like a house and mortgage, should be made with lots of care and attention. But the modern marketplace presents us with an array of options that is unparalleled in human history and way beyond the information processing capacity of normal human beings. Much of the decision-making we could do just isn’t worth the time, because the major competitors in each product niche are approximately as good as each other, and the differences between them aren’t worth obsessing about.

Satisficers settle for what is good enough and don’t worry about the possibility that there might be something better out there. Because they don’t know much about the products they passed up, they don’t drive themselves crazy thinking about what is missing from the purchase they did make. As a result, satisficers are happier than maximizers and less prone to depression. So don’t pour more energy into your spending decisions than they require, and you’ll have more time for the good things in life.

Dr. GoodCents: When Less Really Is More – Maximizers and Satisficers was originally featured on Quizzle Wire

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If you’re planning to pack up the car, cooler, kids and head out of town – you’re not alone.

It’s estimated one in three Americans will hit the road or take flight this Memorial Day weekend.

Ultimately, all this travel talk is good for the economy, but it could burn a big hole in your wallet if you’re not careful.

Family vacations when I was a kid
Picture this: A father, mother, son, daughter, and two dogs (a giant German Shepherd and feisty Shih Zsu) in a jam-packed pick-up truck, towing a pop-up camper down the freeway. Sound interesting? It was. Whether we were heading to our family cottage in Northern Michigan, or setting up shop at a campground somewhere, that was my family – and that is how we did family vacations.

My brother and I were fortunate, we got to experience some really cool places and travel a lot as kids – but that’s because my parents did it all on a budget. And, now that I’m (cough, cough) a grown-up and travel on my own, I’ve taken my parents travel tips with me into adulthood.

Tip 1: Pack a cooler
Fast food and restaurant pit-stops can bust your budget, so before you head out hit your local fruit market and deli to stock up on fresh fruits and veggies, as well as bread and lunchmeat for sandwiches.

If you do decide to hit the restaurant scene, ditch the tourist traps and head to the places where the locals go. Not only will you avoid long lines, you get the real feel for where you are, and a lot of times better food at lower price.

Tip 2: Vacation with friends and family
Splitting the cost of everything helps make vacationing a whole lot cheaper. For example, drive together and split gas money, or rent a house and split lodging. It’s also a way to spend some quality time together.

Tip 3: Take advantage of free stuff
AAA offers free travel books and guides to its members. The guides are packed with information on 7,400 destinations, including maps, attractions and events. If you’re already a AAA member make sure to carry your card and take advantage of the ‘Show Your Card & Save’ discount program. You can save money on a variety of things, including food and travel.

Tip 4: Hit the pavement
Once you reach your destination grab a bike or walk, not only are you saving money on gas, you get to experience everything first hand and not through a car window. If walking isn’t an option try using public transportation – you’re saving money on gas and eliminating parking lot hassles at the same time.

Tip 5: Keep track of your spending
Don’t rack up high balances on your credit cards or get in way over your head. You want to have fun, but if that fun is going to break the bank, you may want to find a cheaper alternative.

For the fliers
It didn’t matter if we were traveling across the country; family vacations were always a road-trip for us – but if flying better suits your fancy check out the airlines that offer weekly e-Saver emails.

Be forewarned, the emails can get a little excessive, but if you score a great deal the savings definitely outweigh the annoyance.

Simple tips for traveling on a budget was originally featured on Quizzle Wire

Quizzle.com is the easiest way to get a complete understanding of your credit. Visit Quizzle.com to get your free credit report and score. No credit card or social security number necessary!

But if you’re in the market to rent this summer, finding an affordable rental can be nightmarish. Whether you live in a major city or the suburbs, it’s becoming more and more difficult for renters to find affordable renting options; with fewer people buying homes and more people opting to rent, demand for vacant rental properties is high. Unfortunately, this gives the upper hand to landlords when it comes to pricing.

Yet despite this favorable market advantage for landlords, you shouldn’t take the price of a rental listing at face value. Even in a tough rental environment, there are still opportunities to negotiate your rent. Negotiating your rent takes a lot of confidence and some extra effort upfront, but it could save you hundreds of dollars on your lease and help you secure that new apartment that’s at the top of your list.

Here are three simple steps to help you negotiate your rent with a prospective landlord:

Arm Yourself with Information

While any landlord will tell you that he’s offering a fair price on a rental property, make sure you know the exact market value in your area before you meet with a prospective landlord. Free websites like Rent-O-Meter aggregate local rental data and show you how one rental compares to other similar rentals in the area. While you’re researching pricing, make sure that you also understand the demand for rentals in that neighborhood. Check for local vacancies online or ask the landlord how long the rental unit has been on the market. The more desperate a landlord is to rent, the more likely he’ll be willing to negotiate. Finally, be sure to bring all of this information to your first meeting with the landlord so you have the statistics at your finger tips.

Be Responsible and Be Prepared

If you’re preparing to meet and negotiate with a landlord, be sure that you bring your key financial statistics, as well. It’s easy to demonstrate that you would be a responsible tenant by showing up with the right information and the right paperwork (like a prefilled rental application form, a copy of your driver’s license, rental references and your bank account information). I’ve also found that going the extra mile can make a great first impression; in the past I’ve printed out my credit report and brought it to my initial meeting. It’s helped show prospective landlords that I’m responsible, proactive and extremely interested in the rental.

Know Your Options and Your Breakpoint

Now that you’ve armed yourself with information on rentals in the area, you can begin the negotiation process. In your research, you may have found that the price of this rental property is fair compared to others in the neighborhood, or you may encounter a landlord that’s completely unwilling to lower the rent based on the evidence you’ve presented. If that’s the case, there are still other strategies you can use to help you secure a better lease.

One option is to ask for a longer lease in exchange for a discount on your monthly rent. This is an appealing option for landlords that want to avoid the hassle of finding a new tenant every year. Another strategy, if you can afford it, is to offer to pay more rent up front. If you can afford to pay three or six months of rent in advance, you may be able to negotiate a more favorable monthly rental rate. If all else fails, try asking for a smaller concession, like a free parking pass or a discount on the move-in fee.

Have Other Alternatives

Ideally, you’ll have other options for where you’d like to live before you begin negotiating a rental agreement. Your leverage in any negotiation relies on your ability (and willingness) to walk away, so be sure to have other well-researched options in your backpocket.

Even if you don’t have another rental that you’re considering or you don’t think you have the leverage to negotiate for more, just remember: it never hurts to asks!

How to Negotiate Your Rent was originally featured on Quizzle Wire

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Copper Beech Farm, an estate with views of Long Island Sound, also includes tennis court, pool, carriage house, guest cottage, and more. There’s an entire floor in this 12-bedroom home meant for staff. And all you need to enjoy this estate is the ability to qualify for a $190 million mortgage loan.

Historical Property with Few Owners

One of the qualities many homebuyers look for is a property that has had few owners. According to SFGate, the Copper Beech Farm has only had two owners. The estate was built in 1896 and bought in 1904 by the daughter of a steel magnate. Harriet Lauder lived in the home for 75 years, when it was sold to John Rudey in a deal that took place off-market.

Now the home is on the market, and the asking price is $190 million. Some estimates value the property at above $200 million, since much of the land could be subdivided and become even more profitable.

Will the Home Really Sell for $190 Million?

Of course, just because you ask for certain price, it doesn’t mean that you will get it. The home might come down in price at some point in order to get the sale.

Anyone who buys it, though, will have to show that it is affordable for them. And he or she probably ought to have good credit to boot. You can’t close a deal on that scale, even if you get the price down below $190 million, without showing a certain amount of financial ability to handle it.

No matter the size of mortgage you are looking for, make sure you check your credit beforehand to make sure that you qualify for the mortgage you want.

Aerial. Photo Via David Ogilvy.com

Most Expensive Home in the U.S. on the Market for $190 Million was originally featured on Quizzle Wire

Quizzle.com is the easiest way to get a complete understanding of your credit. Visit Quizzle.com to get your free credit report and score. No credit card or social security number necessary!

After college, many college graduates walk into one of three realities:

1. A good job and few bills to pay (no kids or mortgage yet), which yields quite a bit of extra cash
2. No job or an okay job and a pile of student loans and credit card debt, or
3. Some blend of the two

Regardless of your new personal financial reality this is a pivotal moment for the future of your finances and your credit score. Here’s a very important good credit checklist that you should closely follow during this critical period.

1. Check Your Credit Score and Report Regularly

Whether you have a pile or debt or cash–your credit report is going to be the ticket to your success. Check it regularly!

This is especially important for college graduates. Chance are you haven’t been paying much attention to your credit score. At the same time your credit history is relatively new. These two factors combine to make any mistakes on your credit report very costly to your credit score, and mistake happen frequently.

2. Pay Bills On Time, Every Time

The number one factor that affects your credit score is how well you pay your bills. Pay all your bills on time, every time.

Setup payment reminders in your calendar. Even better, setup automatic payment to your credit cards and loans. Do whatever is necessary to make sure you make full and on time payments every month.

3. Be Smart When Buying with Credit

Another big part of building good credit habits (that turn into excellent credit scores) is to carefully control your spending.

Make smart purchasing decisions. Think carefully about big purchases and consider saving for them. Do you really need it this month if it means you must use a credit card to afford it. Few things are.

If you can’t pay off your credit card balance every month, think extra hard. You are accumulating debt at a high interest rate, even on the best of credit cards. Any item purchased on a credit card that can’t be paid off in a month or two is probably just going to get you into trouble.

4. Better Credit Scores Save You Money

Your interest rate on credit cards, car loans, and mortgages are directly related to your credit score. The higher your credit score the less you pay–hundreds, even thousands less.

And it doesn’t stop at credit cards and loans. Utility companies will wave deposits, cell phone providers will give you better plans, and insurance companies will lower your deductibles.

5. Emergency Credit Card

If you don’t already have a credit card it’s probably time to get one. Now that you are out of college and “independent” you will need a safety net for contingencies.

I recommend having at least two credit cards. The first should be your everyday credit card. One that you use for daily purchases such as gas, the occasional online purchase, and NetFlix subscriptions (hey, I still love them). The second card should be for emergencies. I would put one small recurring purchase (maybe that monthly Netflix subscription) on the card to keep you in the habit of paying and preventing it from being closed by the creditor, but keep almost 100% available credit.

Emergency cards come in handy when life takes a wrong turn and you end up needing to replace the transmission in your car unexpectedly.

6. Ask for Lower Interest Rates

Depending on when you got your credit cards and what your credit score was at the time, you could be paying too much right now.

As you start watching and proactively improving your credit score you should be entitled to better interest rates. However, most credit card companies are going to just start handing out lower rates and better rewards without you asking.

Every six months call all your credit cards and ask for a better deal–interest rates and rewards. It’s just another benefit to a good credit score and being a good paying customer; expect it, ask for it.

7. Lower Insurance Rates

Good credit saves you money in a lot of different ways. Insurance is another big one.

All insurance uses your personal credit report to help determine their risk and your premium. The most obvious of insurance is what you pay for car insurance. Improve your credit score and shop for new car insurance. You will be shocked the difference it makes in your premiums.

8. Keep a Clean Report and Lower Your Rental Fees

Here’s another less obvious money saver–what you pay for rent. Increasingly property managers and landlords are using your credit information to determine your security deposit and monthly rent. Ignore your credit and risk having to come up with a lot of money upfront and paying more per month.

As you venture out of the college dorm and into your first apartment or home rental make sure your credit is as good as possible. And like everything else, as your credit improves try to renegotiate what you’re paying.

9. Pay Off Your Loans

If you’re like most new college grads you will graduate with debt–student loans and credit cards.

Debt is always an anchor weighing down your credit score. The faster you pay down debt, the better. Credit utilization, or the amount of debt you have compared to the amount of credit you have available is a big factor in your credit score. Your objective is to increase your available credit and decease the amount of credit you use (debt).

The trick is getting ahead of the debt. If you have various student loans from different sources, consolidating could reduce your monthly payments. Whether it be credit cards or student loans, call your creditor and ask for a better deal. If you have been paying there is a good chance you can get a break.

10. Job Hunting? Credit Could be a Factor

A good credit history touches your life in way you would least expect it. Looking for a job? Your credit history could be a part of the screening.

Companies love new college grads–they’re smart, affordable, and hungry to do big things. However, many companies are now using credit information in the human resources screening process. Don’t let poor credit behaviors trip up your dreams before they begin.

Are you a new college grad? What are your questions? Leave a question in the comments and we’ll discuss.

Monday Motivation: 10 Credit Tips for College Graduates was originally featured on Quizzle Wire

Quizzle.com is the easiest way to get a complete understanding of your credit. Visit Quizzle.com to get your free credit report and score. No credit card or social security number necessary!