Carnivals

Festival Of Frugality #403 – My First Carnival Edition!

I’ve been submitting articles to carnivals for several months now,  but I’ve never hosted one here on CleverDude.  So when the opportunity to host the Festival Of Frugality came along I immediately agreed.  The best part of hosting a carnival is being exposed to such a large number and variety of new personal finance blogs filled with motivation, inspiration and tips to help my finances.  Read through the list, and I’m sure you won’t be disappointed.

If you’re a blogger, and you’d like to be a part of next week’s Festival Of Frugality, submit your articles by filling out the form here.

Christopher presents How about a personal loan posted at This That and The MBA.  What would you suggest as the best course of action in this situation? If you have been following my blog for the great length of time that it has been around, ok since last week, you would know we recently became a two income household.

Dollar presents How To Make Money Online Reading Emails posted at Easy Extra Dollar.   With the economy in a slow decline, you could be one of the individuals who are looking for a way to earn a little extra money on the side with online work. One great way to do this is to make money online reading emails. In many instances, this simply requires you to look through an email and click on the link they provide, after doing this you keep the new window pulled up for a certain duration of time and you can get paid

Stuart Laing presents 6 Zero Cost Ways To Improve Your Mood posted at Daily Money Bucket.  If you want to improve your mood, the solution doesn’t have to involve spending money. So here are 6 ways to improve your mood that you won’t regret in the morning.

Daniel presents The Boom in Posh Pawnbrokers posted at Make Money Make Cents. If you watch any TV at all you have probably at least glanced at some of the myriad Pawn reality shows that have become so popular as of late. Cash poor but asset rich Americans are turning to pawn brokers for short-term loans, something that has been dubbed \”high-class pawn brokering.\”

Oscar presents Why You Should Buy A House Before 2014 posted at Money is the Root. If purchasing a new home is something that you are planning to do in the next year, making that purchase during the last quarter of 2013 might just be an excellent idea.

Jay presents Avoid these Fuel Saving Devices that simply Don’t Work posted at Daily Fuel Economy Tip. Many of the devices on the market today lay claim to some overlooked factor that car manufacturers or gas producers do not want you to know about, something that is usually small and which should they claim to have figured out how to exploit.

Matt presents Guard Your Retirement Income with these Comprehensive Tips posted at Budget Snob.   One sad fact that all people nearing or already in retirement have to deal with today is that income during retirement is lower than it has ever been in the last 60 years.

Jack presents Credit Mistakes that Older Americans are Making posted at Money Saving Ethics.  The cost of healthcare is rising, pensions to supplement Social Security have been going away for quite some time, savings are not growing due to lower interest rates and, most significantly, credit debt has seen a huge rise. Here are some of the biggest mistakes that older Americans are making with credit.

Amy presents Are you Throwing Money Away? If You do These 3 Things, Yes posted at Money Mishaps.  Science magazine just published a study that found that, if you are poor and also mismanage your money, it is possible that you might be able to make good financial decisions but more than likely you have trapped yourself into a vicious circle and cannot.

Justin presents A Collection of Some of the Best Apps for your Smart Phone posted at Digit Fox.  There are apps for grocery lists, games, calendars, notes, news and practically anything else you can think of. (Seriously, there is an app for practically everything!) Here are our favorites.

Lenny presents Investments That Aren’t Really A Very Good Investment posted at Best Money Saving Blog.  Everyone wants to make as much money as possible with as little effort. That is not always possible of course and, when it comes to financial planning, you need to be aware that all investments are definitely not created equal.

Hadley presents As Stocks Approach Record Highs, The Market Is Looking Rather Complacent posted at Epic Finances.  As the market nears a historic high on the S&P 500 some analysts are concerned that it is looking a bit complacent. Maybe even bored.

Andrea presents 3 Tips for Saving Money on Your Internet posted at So Over This.  Anyone who pays for Internet knows how costly it can be to stay on top of the bills each month, especially in a society that leaves a lot of web surfing to be desired.

Bob presents Is there a Money Wasting Hole in your Budget? posted at Dwindling Debt.  The possibility that you have flaws or holes in your budget is actually quite high and, sort of like a leak under your sink that you do not know is there until you start smelling the stink of rotting plywood, you probably haven’t even noticed them.

Lily presents How to Invest like an Old Pro (even if you’re a Young Amateur). posted at Paying Debt Down.  Something that your Wall Street broker never wants you to find out is that investing like a Pro is actually pretty easy. The fact is, practically anyone can put together a portfolio that is well diversified with stocks, bonds and other investments with only a small amount of effort.

Katie presents Benefits of a Budget posted at IRA Basics.  Budget. It is a dreaded word, not one that instills ideas of grandeur and immense fun. It is also a word that is often neglected, an idea that most of us would rather not think about.

Sam presents Tips to Get your Social Media Marketing on the Right Track posted at The New Business Blog.  Social media is the new darling of the online marketing world and, if you are keen on tapping into the people, and the power, of social media, you’re going to need a plan.

Marissa presents Saving Money on Gluten Free Products posted at Finance Triggers.  Gluten is wreaking havoc on diets these days. Most people think that this is a new trendy diet, and while it is not really a new ailment, but one that has been plaguing people for years.

Marissa presents Proactive Ways to Lower Car Insurance Rates posted at Thirty Six Months.  Rather than accept the first sky-high quote that comes your way, it is important to compare your options carefully and take a few proactive steps to lower your rates.

Buck Inspire presents MommyCon 2013 and Babywearing World Record Attempt posted at Buck Inspire.  Now that summer is over, baby event season will be in full swing. Next up, MommyCon and the Babywearing World Record attempt.

Monica presents Government Shutdown: Everyone Needs An Emergency Fund posted at Monica On Money.  At this point, we all know about the Government Shutdown and how much it affects us directly and indirectly. But for now, on the positive side, this is a reminder to reflect on our own personal finances.

Holly presents And……We’re Renting a Home posted at Club Thrifty.  We have not found a house we want to buy….we were renting a home instead.

Barbara Friedberg presents How To Build An Investment Portfolio Using Asset Classes posted at Barbara Friedberg Personal Finance.  This multi-part series will walk you through, step by step, how to maximize your investment returns using asset classes investing.

FI Pilgrim presents The High Price of Fanaticism posted at FI Journey.  Being a fan or follower of any kind of mainstream media, news, entertainment or sports team has some hidden costs. Is fanaticism worth all that?

GD presents Life Insurance and Taxes posted at MLIQ123.  Is life insurance taxed? Is life Insurance tax deductible? What about estate taxes, death benefit payouts, and premiums – how are all these aspects of life insurance treated by the IRS? Check out our guide to answer the most important questions you’ll have about life insurance and taxes.

Connie presents Stay Healthy, Save Money posted at Savvy With Saving.  There has been a lot of talk about Obamacare and while I am not going to insert my two cents here, it has gotten me thinking about my health a lot lately.

Natalie presents Building my Brand in Freelance Writing posted at Debt and the Girl.  I consider myself extremely lucky. I have had this blog for over a year and its finally a place that it making money.

Alexa presents How to Write a Blog Post in Twenty Minutes posted at Single Moms Income.  As a freelance blogger one of your big income factors is your speed. If you charge $20 for a blog post and it takes you an hour to complete it you’ll only make $20 an hour. If you can complete two or more blog posts in an hour you’ll easily be able to make $40 an hour or more.

Alexa presents 5 Drastic Ways to Free Up Money for Debt Repayment posted at Defeat Our Debt.  It could take months of years to pay back your debts. If you’re serious about eliminating your debt you may need to make some drastic changes.

Bryce presents Best Prices for Books posted at Save and Conquer.  Whenever I want to purchase a new or used book, I almost always check Amazon.com first. There are several other websites that most people don’t seem to know about, who’s prices are often lower than Amazon’s used resellers.

SavingMentor presents Do You Really Care Who I Am? posted at How To Save Money.  There’s nothing really all that interesting about me. There. I said it. I’m just a normal guy working as a software developer who lives in a small city, makes a normal middle class income, had a pretty privileged upbringing, and who has a passion for not wasting money when I don’t have to.Spending all kinds of money on ridiculous things that add real value to your life is A-OK with me, that’s why I am all about spending as little money as possible on your day to day living expenses.

Corey presents Why You Should NOT Calculate Retirement Income off based on Income posted at 20s Finances.  When calculating how much you need in retirement, you should not use your current income. Find out what you should use to be prepared.

Luke presents Income Investing – Looking Beyond Stocks and Bonds posted at Learn Bonds.  In this 4th article in our series on income investing, we explore opportunities for income investors outside of stocks and bonds.

TZ25 presents Starting Up A Roth IRA For Kids posted at Entertainment Timez.  My son now has earned income and we are starting up a Roth IRA for him to participate in. Read why are are starting a Roth IRA for Kids!

Maria presents The Best Ways to Start Investing While Still in College posted at The Money Principle.  It is never too late to start investing so you may as well start while in college; still have to do it right.

SBB presents Balancing Act – Why Reconciling Your Bank Accounts is so Important posted at Simple Budget Blog.  Balancing your bank accounts is an important part of your budget. Don’t believe us? Read here to learn why it can help you.

SFB presents How to Get Ready Financially For a Baby posted at Simple Finance Blog.  Now that you got the good news and are eagerly awaiting the arrival of your bundle of joy, you will soon realize that the nine month long period is never enough to be fully ready for a baby.

Don presents Saving Money and Saving the Environment posted at MoneySmartGuides.  Regardless of whether you feel that the global warming phenomenon is real or made up, you cannot argue that we throw away and waste a lot of stuff.

Tushar Mathur presents Ideas for Cheap Halloween Costumes posted at Everything Finance.  Whether you’re thinking of putting together a cheap Halloween costume for your company potluck or needs some ideas for Halloween costumes for your children

Tushar presents 5 Ways to Earn Money on the Side posted at Earn More and Save.  You’re busy. I get it. You want to earn extra money but don’t have enough time to dig through a pile of ideas to find the perfect one. Luckily, choosing a side job doesn’t have to be hard. You can and should do something you enjoy to bring in money on the side.

Mike presents The Financial Benefits of Sharing a House posted at Personal Finance Journey.  How sharing a house or apartment can benefit you financially and save money for bills rates and repayments.

Daisy presents Buying Your First Home posted at Suburban Finance.   Home buying advice for buyers to follow for a successful purchase of a home.

CAPI presents The Importance of Knowing Your Net Worth posted at Creating a Passive Income.  Most people may not necessarily know what their net worth is. Your net worth is the difference between the value of what you own and what you owe.

Crystal presents How Being A Credit Card Delinquent Saved Me Thousands of Dollars! posted at Budgeting in the Fun Stuff.  This is his personal story about Lyle at the blog: The Joy of Simple battle with credit cards and what he has learned.

MR presents Was the Removal of the Uptick Rule Stupid? posted at Money Reasons.  The Uptick Rule was removed back in 2007 after a pilot study said that no manipulations occurred.This is what the pilot study found The general consensus from these analyses and the roundtable was that the Commission should remove price test restrictions because they modestly reduce liquidity and do not appear necessary to prevent manipulation.

Hank presents 7 Steps For Financial Success To Build A Solid Future posted at Money Q&A.  Achieving financial success is a great part of the American dream, but it’s not easy to do if you aren’t focused on the goal. Real financial security doesn’t come about by accident. These careful steps for financial success will help you build a solid financial future.

Tushar presents 4 Financial Steps To Take As You Prepare For Baby posted at Finance TUBE.  So, you have decided that you want to have a baby. There is nothing more exiting in seeing your new baby born first time however before you get ahead of yourself taking care of some of the financial matters before you conceive can make the entire pregnancy and the months after go more smoothing.

IMB presents Investing for Q4 2013 posted at Investing Money.  Unsure what your next move is in investing? It’s always safe to look at history. Read here for information.

Rich presents What is a Stock? posted at Growing Money Smart.  What is a stock, is one of the first financial lessons I taught my kids!

Suba presents 6 Reasons Your Stuff is Worth Less Than You Think posted at Broke Professionals.  My Aunt and Uncle, now in their nineties, loved their things. They tend to cherish their possessions, but should they?

Ryan presents What Happens if the Government Shuts Down? posted at Cash Money Life.  What happens if the government shuts down due to the current debt ceiling crisis? The government must pass a budget and spending bill by September 30th.

Cat Alford presents The Government Shutdown and The Extreme Importance of Emergency Funds posted at Budget Blonde.  If you’ve been reading my blog for a few years, you might know that I was a United States park ranger before I moved to Grenada. I was an interpretive ranger, which meant that I worked at numerous sites around Richmond, Virginia creating history programs and giving battlefield tours. It was really awesome.

Jacob presents How to Solve a Cash Flow Crisis and Prevent Your Business from Flat Lining posted at AllPersonalFinance.  Cash is the life blood of any business and once the cash flow dries up, not even CPR will be able to bring it back to life. It has been estimated that around 90 percent of small business fail because of cash flow problems and even profitable companies can end up filing for bankruptcy… Read more on my take on how to solve this common snafu.

Mrs. Accountability presents 6 Common Mistakes to Avoid with Annuities posted at Out of Debt Again.  Annuities are one of the most popular investments made by investors under 44 years of age.

Jester presents How Much Money Can You Save By Breastfeeding? posted at The Ultimate Juggle.  Babies are expensive – breastfeeding can save money. Read my personal analysis and see how much I saved this way.

Kyle presents Advice for Small Business – Sort out your Business Energy posted at The Penny Hoarder.  Most small and medium businesses are failing to manage their business energy costs. Business energy includes gas and electricity. The business energy market is not the same as the consumer market – prices are higher for businesses and contracts longer.

Corey presents Money Doesn’t Grow On Trees: What to Do When You Need More Cash posted at Steadfast Finances.  It’s a horrible feeling when you’re short on cash but still have the household bills to pay. You’re probably starting to worry about how you are going to afford them, as skipping payments could cause irreparable damage to your credit rating. Unfortunately, money doesn’t grow on trees – but there are a few things you can do to get more cash and make it through your monthly bill cycle.

Debt Guru presents Mortgage Hunters: How to Find an Affordable Mortgage posted at Debt Free Blog.  Are you looking for ways to secure an affordable mortgage? It may seem daunting, but it is actually quite attainable, so long as you know where to start.

Wayne presents What You Need to Know About Flood Insurance posted at Young Family Finance.  Do you need flood insurance? It could be a saver if you’re in an area prone to floods. Here is some information to make that determination.

Mr. Frenzy presents Moving Out: When You’re Ready to Buy a Home posted at Frenzied Finances.  Home-owning can quickly turn into a nightmare when not prepared. There are several factors to consider when deciding when you’re ready to buy a home.

John presents How to Buy Halloween Costumes and Not Break the Bank posted at Frugal Rules.  We spend over $8 billion on Halloween costumes each year in the States. With a little creative thinking and a desire to be frugal you can find a great Halloween costume and not break the bank in the process.

Claire Murdough presents Following a Financial Plan While Living Paycheck to Paycheck posted at ReadyForZero Blog.  Living paycheck to paycheck can make it feel impossible to strive for anything more than just meeting your basic needs. this post talks about how to turn a paycheck to paycheck budget into one that allows you to also work towards higher financial goals.

Nick presents How to Avoid Lifestyle Inflation posted at Modest Money.  For those not familiar with the term “lifestyle inflation”, it simply means that human beings have a tendency to increase their expenses when their income increases. The key though is in making sure it doesn’t keep pace with your income growth.

Pauline presents September blog income and stats recap posted at Make Money Your Way.  This is my September blog income and stats recap.

Ray presents 10 Inexpensive Fall Activities for the Family posted at Squirrelers.  Fall can be a great time to enjoy inexpensive family fun, including 10 frugal ideas shared in this post.

Miss T. presents How to Save Money by Greening Your Wardrobe posted at Prairie Eco Thrifter.  these tips on how to save money by greening your wardrobe will really help you to keep those extra dollars in your pocket.

Lazy Man presents The Best Frugal Baby Toys I’ve Found posted at Lazy Man and Money.  One of things we’ve learned is that our young son is not impressed by expensive toys, yet. In fact, he loves a lot of really cheap toys.

Little House presents How to Live in an Expensive City without Going Broke posted at Little House in the Valley.   I’m offering some real-life solutions for staying in the expensive city.  So let’s look at what you actually have control over.

Paul @ The Frugal Toad presents What You Need to Know About Reverse Mortgages posted at The Frugal Toad.  Reverse mortgages are becoming more popular as the baby boomer generation ages and gets into retirement. There are some restrictions on reverse mortgages, so the target market is much smaller than a traditional mortgage offering. While these special loans are growing, there are some particular pros and cons that should be considered before applying for a reverse mortgage.

Harry Campbell presents How Not to Negotiate a Job Offer posted at Your PF Pro.   I’ve dropped some hints here and there, but now it’s official. I got a new job and I’ll be going back to work on November 1st. After it’s all said and done, I will have taken a 3 month hiatus from work in order to recharge, build up some of my online businesses and just live life. It’s been a great few months but now it’s time to get back to work so that I can start paying off my fiancee’s rapidly accumulating debt.

Harry Campbell presents “Build Side Income When You Have a Day Job “ posted at The Four Hour Work Day.  For those of us that work full time, the nice thing about a day job is the stability. At most companies, you clock out after 8-9 hours and call it a day. I would never work more than 40 hours a week if I wasn’t getting paid for it but that’s just me. And even though I bitch and complain about my old cubicle job all the time, there are much worse jobs on this planet that pay a lot less and require you to work a lot harder. How hard is it to sit behind a desk for 8 hours and browse the internet for part of that time?

Glen presents How the CARD Act is Saving You Money – A New CFPB Study posted at Credit Card Smarts.   The CFPB released a report recently showing that the CARD Act of 2009 has been working to help consumers save on credit card fees and penalties.

Kristen presents 35 Tips to Save Money on Food posted at My Dollar Plan.  Food is a huge line item in a budget so use some of these tips to save!

Emily presents Perfect Articulation of Plastic as Real Money for Young People posted at Evolving Personal Finance.  Are young people exempt from the truism that people spend more using plastic than cash?

MMD presents Niche Website Update 10 – NS3 is a Failure (So Far) and I’m Glad posted at My Money Design. My latest niche website development, a micro site with less than 10 pages, is doing terrible! Much to my surprise, I’m happy with that. Here’s why.

MMD presents The Average Retirement Savings in America Are Not Nearly Enough posted at IRA vs 401k Central.  According to Fidelity, the average retirement savings for 11.8 million 401k balances in America is just $74,600 – equivalent to only a year’s salary. That simply isn’t going to cut it!

Mr FD presents Want a Checking Account Bonus? Get Ready to Jump Through Hoops posted at Financial Debauchery.  You know banks aren’t just being nice when they offer a checking account bonus. There is something in it for them or else they wouldn’t do it.

DW presents The 10 Best Money Making Opportunities from Blogging posted at Great Passive Income Ideas.  The traffic that visits your website each day could be your ticket to best money making opportunities available on the Internet. Try these strategies to use it to your advantage!

GD presents Should You Buy Return of Premium Life Insurance? The Pros and Cons posted at MLIQ123.  Ever heard of free life insurance? Thought it was a myth? Check out our guide on return of premium life insurance and the pros and cons of a policy that refunds all your premiums if you outlive the term period. Is ROP term life insurance right for you?