M-Network

Gather Little By Little: Lucy, you got some [financial] ’splainin’ to do!

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 03:00:30 -0800

I have been doing a lot of thinking about family finance and especially the financial relationship between a husband and wife. I do not have all of the answers to solve every problem in this area, but I thought I would share just a few thoughts: Family finance is about priorities. Both the husband and the wife should contribute to these priorities. It is our money, regardless of who may have directly earned it. My paycheck might be bigger, but Mrs. Stew does a whole lot of things that allow me ...

Mrs. Micah: 4 Lessons From My First Job – Guest Post

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 02:00:56 -0800

The following is a guest post by Bucksome Boomer, a baby boomer, who writes about her personal finance journey to Retirement. To read more of Bucksome’s articles subscribe here. I got to thinking about my first “real” job after watching Oprah and other celebrities discuss their first jobs recently. My qualifications for a real job is that it resulted in a W-2. So, that rules out allowance from my parents and babysitting. I was hired at age 15 when I didn’t have a lot o...

Cash Money Life: Qualifying Life Events

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 01:50:43 -0800

If your company is one of the many companies currently going through annual open enrollment period, then you have probably read the term “eligible life events” or “qualifying life events” a couple dozen times by now. It’s important to know and understand which life events qualify, because many people only have one chance per year to elect their health benefits unless they have a qualifying life event, which gives them an opportunity to change their benefits election...

Moolanomy: 10 Steps to Planning Holiday Spending

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 16:00:38 -0800

There are less than two months until Christmas — do you have a plan for holiday spending yet? Some people have already finished their holiday shopping. Others have been diligently saving all year long. Still others might be dreading the upcoming holiday season because of the cash outlay it usually involves. If you fall into the last group, here are 10 things you can do to make your holiday season a little less stressful. Photo by dan4th via Flickr Make a list: Create a list of all the pu...

My Two Dollars: Holiday Budgeting: Making Tough Choices In A Recovering Economy.

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 06:30:26 -0800

Recently the news has been buzzing that the Great Recession is over, and recovery is on the way. However, with 15.1 million Americans out of work and about 30% of US factory capacity remaining idle, it’s clear that the economy is going to impact many families this holiday season. According to the National Retail Federation (NRF), two-thirds of American families are going to be adjusting their holiday shopping plans. You might be tempted to pull out the credit cards and charge this year’s ho...

Gather Little By Little: Oh, the weather outside is frightful

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 03:00:56 -0800

. . . or soon will be. We used to live in one of the coldest areas of the country. Our heating bills for a 1,200 square foot house ranged from $225 and $275 a month during the winter. We now live in a state with a more mild winter and our heating bill never really goes over $100 in a month. Needless to say, in our former home, we did everything possible to hold costs down and even though our current heating expenses are not as great, we still take measures to reduce heat loss. Here are a few of...

Being Frugal: Tightwad Tuesday: Frugal Grain Grinder

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 03:00:31 -0800

In my quest to eat healthier, I’ve been wanting to try to grind my own grains. But I’ve found the cost of grain grinders to be somewhat prohibitive, especially since I don’t know if I’ll grind enough to make such a big purchase worth it. While I was visiting my good friend, Julieanne, last week, she mentioned that she was looking into getting a Cuisinart coffee grinder for grinding grains. Like me, she didn’t want to spend the money on an expensive grain mill, if she wasn’t goin...

Cash Money Life: What You Need to Know About Open Enrollment: Health Insurance Options

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 01:52:12 -0800

Open Enrollment is currently in season for thousands of employees. For most people, this is the only time of the year when they can make benefits elections for their health, dental, vision, and other company sponsored insurance plans. Most companies only give a two week window to make changes, so let’s take a look at the most common health insurance coverage options available to most employees. Open enrollment health insurance options There are several types of medical insurance, and we wi...

Moolanomy: Forex Trading Basics and How It Works

Mon, 09 Nov 2009 16:00:41 -0800

Forex trading is becoming more popular in the recent years due in part to the fact that it is more accessible to the general public. It used to be that the currency market was the province of institutions and the wealthy, but technology and other factors have made forex investing, like other types of investing, more accessible to a wider audience. However, it is important to note that forex trading is rather risky, and the currency market is quite volatile. If you have the risk tolerance for tra...

My Two Dollars: Leaving My Bank – Comparing Online Bank Accounts.

Mon, 09 Nov 2009 06:30:46 -0800

Elisa Cundiff is the guest blogger today, she is the Outreach Coordinator at Thrive, a free online budgeting tool. Every morning I review all my financial accounts on Thrive, but last Thursday, I noticed something strange: a “$3 non-Citi atm fee”. This was an additional $3 that my bank was penalizing me with for not using a Citi-bank machine. This means that I’m paying upwards of $6 every time I withdraw money from an ATM, because I live in a town where there are no Citi-bank ATMs. I c...