Does Extreme Couponing = A Good Use of Your Time?

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Extreme Couponer Value Graph

My wife has an interesting theory about the people on the show Extreme Couponing: They are really just organized hoarders!How can you not come to such a conclusion? As seen on the show, they turn their entire garage into store-like aisles full of goodies they got for “free”. They have rows upon rows of frivolous items such as +800 toothbrushes or +500 sticks of deodorant. How about the sacred 6-inch thick binder that is packed full of coupons but is still somehow categorized? My personal favorite: When they go dumpster diving looking for newspaper circulars! Heck, in one episode I saw, they even bring along their kids and friends! Yes, people do some pretty crazy things to save a buck.Before I upset any couponers, I want you to … [Read more...]

Book Review: “Higher Returns from Safe Investments” by Marvin Appel

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This isn’t another book of “buy a bunch of stocks, hold them for 30 years, and hope for the best” type of investment advice. “Higher Returns from Safe Investments: Using Bonds, Stocks, and Options to Generate Lifetime Income” by Marvin Appel delivers an alternative perspective on the risks and returns from other types of investments; namely bonds. However, he doesn’t just stop there. The book also covers a broad range of other under-appreciated investments such as high-dividend stocks, preferred stocks, and covered call options.I’ll be the first to admit: There is nothing sexy about reading a book about bonds. But after experiencing the evaporation of money during the Great Recession of 2008, I think a book with this sort of title … [Read more...]

Why Compound Interest Makes You Rich!

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Table 4

It’s one of the oldest clichés in investing: “Time” is an investor’s best friend.Unfortunately, few people ever fully take advantage of this concept or grasp just how it works. So why is “time” an investor’s best friend? In two words: • Compound interest. There’s an urban legend that Albert Einstein once said that “compound interest is the most powerful force in the universe”. If he did, he was right. Consider two scenarios:Which one would you rather have? How can it be that one is worth way more than the other?This is the power of compound interest: • Eventually you will make MORE money off the build-up of returns from your earnings than off the original money that you put in. I will show you an example of why this is. … [Read more...]

Book Review: “Aftershock: The Next Economy and America’s Future” by Robert B. Reich

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Aftershock - Reich

No, this isn’t a mistake. I didn’t just publish the same post twice. This summer, I read two separate books titled “Aftershock”. Each one was about our economy and fortunately they were both outstanding! For my review of the other “Aftershock” book by Wiedemer, Wiedemer, and Spitzer, click here.“Aftershock” by Robert Reich was a liberal perspective towards understanding our economic mess, what it could turn into, and how we can solve it. The theme of this book is simple: • Without change, the middle class will not be able to sustain our economy. … [Read more...]

Book Review: “Aftershock: Protect Yourself and Profit in the Next Global Financial Meltdown” by David Wiedemer, Robert A. Wiedemer and Cindy S. Spitzer

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Wow. That’s all I can say about this book. Wow. If everything they predict in this book is coming true, we are all in TROUBLE!Aftershock: Protect Yourself and Profit in the Next Global Financial Meltdown is a book about economic “bubbles”. In short, a bubble is when the price of something grows out of control beyond its true value. Eventually, the erratic price becomes unsustainable, and the bubble “pops” meaning that it rapidly drops in price. Bubbles are nothing new; they can be found all throughout history. Some examples of recent, prominent economic bubbles include the “dot.com” bubble and the “housing market” bubble which many of us are still suffering.This was very exciting read. It was written in 2009, and some of the events … [Read more...]

Help! I’ve Got 401k Questions! – Your Complete 401k Guide

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Your Money Ratios

Let me be the first to say “Congratulations”! Despite the intimidating packet of papers you need to review and fill out as well as the dozen 401k questions you probably have, this is a great opportunity for you!Not only will you be starting down the road to financial freedom (in other words: retirement), but you'll also be given the opportunity to make FREE MONEY! Yes, I said free money! Why is it free? 1) The money you put away comes out of your paycheck BEFORE taxes and it grows tax free until you retire! 2) Your company will likely (as a lot of companies often do) kick in a little bit extra cash in addition to the money you plan to put away. Who wouldn’t take a little extra money for free! Without further ado, let's see if we can … [Read more...]

Trying Out “The Big Secret” Stock Picking Strategy

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Businesswoman

Just admit it. You do it. I do it too. I’m talking about reading a book with reasonable advice and then never acting on any of it. Not even for a test run. It’s not that we’re lazy or not smart enough to carry it through. It’s just that for some reason it’s really hard to make that leap of faith and act on what we know we should be doing.Well, there’s always a time to start.This summer, I read the book “The Big Secret for the Small Investor” by Joel Greenblatt because I was interested in stepping up my stock picking game. If you’d like to read my book review, click here.In Part “A” of Greenblatt’s “Big Secret” plan, he concludes that: … [Read more...]

So Long Netflix

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Netflix Logo

So long old friend. We had some good times, you and I. You were always so good to me, but now things have changed, and it’s time to say goodbye.It’s not you, it’s me! I just can’t pay close to $20 a month for movies anymore. And this new plan of splitting between DVD’s and streaming online. I love them both too much to choose between them.I don’t blame you for raising your prices. “The Man” (your streaming services) raised your costs big-time, and now you’re just passing it along to the little guy (me). But every product in the world has competition, and unfortunately there’s a lot of other places out there to catch DVD’s. … [Read more...]