January 2012 Archives

Earlier this week, I went to run an errand during lunchtime and stopped at a small neighborhood gas station. I swiped my credit card, entered my ZIP code and waited. Eventually, I was told there was a network error. I wasn't the only one. All of the customers had to go up to a kiosk and deal with a cashier and a malfunctioning network. The line was growing and people were getting irritable or leaving.

I've always wondered what would happen if a real crisis caused all network connections to go down or electricity to fail, which would prevent credit card processing from working. I love paying for gas with my credit or debit cards so that I don't have to try to predict how much I need to spend ahead of time. But maybe I should consider carrying enough cash for a tank of gas.

For plenty of great personal finance tips and advice, read on for my list of my 10 favorite blog posts from the past week.

Jan. 20 is Inauguration Day in the United States. One year from now, will President Barack Obama still be in office, or will we be watching a new Republican candidate sworn in? While incumbents are usually favored, who knows what will happen this time next year.

Read on for my list of 10 of my favorite personal finance blog posts I found in the past week.

My blog about trying to set up a Facebook app to allow my friends to share my Citi ThankYou rewards points was featured in this week's Carnival of Personal Finance hosted by Diva in Debt.

Suze Orman came out with her own debit card this week, called the Approved Card. It's received a lot of attention -- not all of it positive. Some people are aghast that a personal finance expert would push her own product to her loyal following. I have no problem with that. I don't even mind her making lots of money on it. But it had better be a good deal at the same time.

My friend says, "No Thanks," to request to share information on Citi's ThankYou Point Sharing app. Reaping the benefits of Citi's new rewards sharing program may not be as easy as it appears. Arm twisting may be necessary if none of my friends have that rewards card or any rewards points to share with me.

And who among my friends is going to be want give up their hard-earned rewards so that I can buy a tent or go on a cruise?

My friend was conned out of $4,000 from a man she met on an online dating website. Sadly, the Better Business Bureau reports that 2011 was an active year for scam artists.

It's a buyer's market in the world of real estate right now, and many of my late-20s peers are itching to snatch up a house with prices and interest rates so low. But most of us either don't have enough savings or enough credit history to qualify. According to data from the National Association of Realtors, that means that first-time homebuyers are becoming rarer in the market, and those who do buy are turning to their parents for help.

What makes me nervous about this is that if you can't afford a mortgage on your own, can you really afford a home? Owning a home means you pay for homeowner's insurance, maintenance, any homeowner's association fees and property taxes. Even if my parents did help me buy a house, I don't think I'm financially prepared to incur all of those other costs that go along with being a homeowner, and I'm worried that some of my peers who buy homes with parents' help may not realize how much more expensive overall it can be than renting.

Don't get me wrong -- I'd love to own a home someday. But I'm in no rush. I'm still celebrating the fact that I escaped the holidays without credit card debt! Keep reading for my list of my top 10 favorite personal finance blog posts from the past week.