Latest Articles From The Money Scribes

Does the IRS Accept Scanned Documents?

From Five Cent Nickel on Jan 27, 2012

I’ve spent a good bit of time digitizing paperwork over the past couple of years. My primary weapon in this battle has been a sheet-fed scanner, though I sometimes snap pics with my iPhone and turn them into “scanned” pdfs using JotNot. While it feels to good to be working toward ...

The Role of Money in Choosing a Relationship

From Consumerism Commentary on Jan 27, 2012

Do people have any kind of control of whom they fall in love with? Perhaps Cupid’s arrow strikes randomly, and there is no choice but to obey the heart — or chemicals in the brain — or sexual urges. But once that initial response has subsided, if you’re headed for ...

Your Take: Hard Work or Connections?

From Bargaineering on Jan 27, 2012

The WSJ Wealth Report blog talked about a Pew Research Center study that attempted to find the origins of the conflict between rich and poor, which has been playing out in the headlines lately. While the main story talked about the impression of significant conflict between the rich and poor, ...

Ask the Readers: Basic Financial Frameworks?

From Get Rich Slowly on Jan 27, 2012

One common request from new GRS readers is some sort of central location where they can find a list of introductory articles to guide their progress. This is a great idea, and I’m working on it. Some of the GRS elves are working on a “Guide to Money” that will ...

Visual Multiplication Video

From Bargaineering on Jan 26, 2012

Need to do some quick multiplication and only have pen and paper? You could multiply the old school way using numbers (gasp!) or you can just draw some lines. You’re still multiplying, just with lines instead of numbers. One gotcha is to remember the “invisible” lines for zeroes and it ...

Spare Change: Submit Your Story Edition

From Get Rich Slowly on Jan 26, 2012

Like a hibernating bear, I feel like I’m waking from a long winter’s nap. For the past few months, I’ve been dormant, not just at Get Rich Slowly but at my other sites as well. I’ve had so much happening in my personal life that it’s been tough to find ...

E-Filing Saves the IRS $3.10/Return

From Five Cent Nickel on Jan 26, 2012

As January winds down, you should have received most of the paperwork that you’ll need to file your taxes. If you’re like most FCN readers — and most Americans in general — you’ll be e-filing this year. Sure, e-filing is convenient. But guess what? It’s also much cheaper for the IRS ...

1099-MISC Issued for Bank & Credit Card Bonuses

From Bargaineering on Jan 26, 2012

If you recently received a 1099-MISC from a credit card company or a bank and wondering if it’s a legitimate form, try to remember if you opened up any new accounts for the cash or reward point bonuses in the last year. In the tiny print at the bottom, the ...

More Money May Not Buy Happiness, But It

From Bargaineering on Jan 26, 2012

People are fond of pointing out that money doesn’t buy happiness. After all, there are a number of miserable people out there who are rich in terms of finances. However, no matter how fond we are of shrugging off wealth and saying that money doesn’t matter, the truth is that ...

11 Things You May Not Know About Retirement

From Get Rich Slowly on Jan 26, 2012

This is a guest post from Robert Brokamp of The Motley Fool. Robert is a Certified Financial Planner and the adviser for The Motley Fool’s Rule Your Retirement service. Robert contributes one new article to Get Rich Slowly every two weeks, and photocopies his face and other body parts. I ...

Improve Your Child’s Cognitive Ability for Income Potential

From Consumerism Commentary on Jan 26, 2012

There’s a chance you could become a multi-millionaire after repeatedly slamming your head into other people and suffering through the resulting mini-concussions and minor brain damage, but not everyone can be a professional football player in the NFL. There’s a safer and less harmful path toward financial independence. Cognitive ability ...

Rigged Money by Lee Munson

From Bargaineering on Jan 26, 2012

If you ever thought that the stock market was a rigged game, you’ll really enjoy this book. Lee Muson uses a mixture of anecdotes and data to illustrate why “Wall Street” is putting on a rigged game and that it needs “Main Street” to play along. The basic gist of ...

Home Economics

From Five Cent Nickel on Jan 26, 2012

I have long contended that, at its most fundamental level, keeping a household’s finances in the black has much in common with operating a profitable business. In both cases, you have to try to generate the greatest revenues, while at the same time keeping expenses in check. It’s not rocket ...

The Best Cash Back Credit Cards, January 2012

From Consumerism Commentary on Jan 25, 2012

Cash back credit cards can help consumers practice responsible spending while earning a little extra for their efforts when used properly. It wasn’t long ago that the best cash back credit cards were offering rewards as high as 5% for all purchases, but that is unfortunately no longer the case. ...

1 in 8 Millionaires Audited Last Year, and

From Bargaineering on Jan 25, 2012

Who’s paying taxes? We all like to know — and we all like to make sure that everyone else is paying his or her “fair share” in taxes. One way to figure out whether or not people are paying what they’re supposed to is to take a look at who’s ...

Is a Graduate Degree Worth the Money?

From Bargaineering on Jan 25, 2012

One of the furious debates going on right now in the world of finance and money is the one over whether or not getting a college degree is “worth” it. And, of course, the debate only intensifies once you start talking about graduate and professional degrees. The reason that this ...

High Deductible Health Plans and Major Medical Bills

From Five Cent Nickel on Jan 25, 2012

I spent yesterday at the hospital. Don’t worry, it sounds a lot worse than it was… Our oldest son had to have his tonsils and adenoids removed, so my wife and I were camped out in the outpatient surgical center for the better part of the day. In the end, everything ...

She Spends Less Than She Earns: Zooey Deschanel

From Consumerism Commentary on Jan 25, 2012

It’s not often that a young, female star of music, movie, and television can avoid financial scrutiny. Tales of financial woe tend to be much juicier, anyway. It’s not difficult to remember the Britney Spears train wreck. She couldn’t handle earning more than $700,000 a month. At least her antics ...

How to Stock Your Liquor Cabinet on the

From Get Rich Slowly on Jan 25, 2012

This post is by staff writer Tim Sullivan. It’s Friday night. A few friends and I are debating whether or not to go to the college bars down the street to get a drink when my friend Steve chimes in that his apartment is just up the way, and says, ...

401(k) Contribution Matches Not Really “Free Money”

From Bargaineering on Jan 25, 2012

401(k)s are making everyone poorer. That’s the conclusion from a study by the Urban Institute in which they analyzed qualified defined contribution plans, the official category of 401(k) plans, and concluded that employers reduce worker salaries when those workers are eligible for 401(k) plans with matching contributions. Toder and Smith ...

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Wants Payday Loan Feedback

From Consumerism Commentary on Jan 24, 2012

While the mainstream financial industry has faced a dizzying array of government and quasi-government regulations through most of the last one hundred years, non-bank financial products have, for the most part, evaded regulations. Catering to lower-income communities, payday loan storefronts and check cashing establishments have managed to justify their business ...

Are Brand Named Batteries Worth It?

From Bargaineering on Jan 24, 2012

Yes. Rhett Allain of Wired did an extensive study of three battery brands (Energizer, Duracell, and a dollar store variety) and concluded that the brand named batteries are worth the added cost. Brand named contain more energy, disperse that energy better, and cost, on a joule per dollar basis, less ...

Kids & Money: Is It Too Easy for

From Bargaineering on Jan 24, 2012

We have a lot of cool gadgets around our homes. Many of these gadgets offer the chance to easily purchase apps, games and more. As a result, you might find that your children can quickly make purchases without your knowledge — simply using the devices found around your home. It’s ...

Buy Airfare Six Weeks in Advance

From Consumerism Commentary on Jan 24, 2012

Airlines Reporting Corporation (ARC), a company that processes airline transactions for travel agents and consumers, has analyzed 144 million transactions for domestic flights in 2011 to better understand airlines’ pricing schemes. The study found the lowest fares were available six weeks in advance of the departure date. I’ve always been ...

Series I & Series EE Bond Purchase Limit

From Bargaineering on Jan 24, 2012

The Treasury Department announced that, effective January 4th, 2012, you will be allowed to purchase $10,000 each of Series I and Series EE bonds per year per person. Previously, it was believed that we’d only be allowed to purchase $5,000 of each series because the annual limit was $5,000 for ...

Should You Buy Travel Insurance?

From Five Cent Nickel on Jan 24, 2012

If you’ve booked a vacation for your family lately, or sent your kid off on a school-sponsored field trip, you’ve probably considered trip-cancellation insurance. These offers generally promise to reimburse you for the vacation or field trip if you need to cancel. Are these plans worth the cost? It depends ...

The Calculus of Convenience

From Get Rich Slowly on Jan 24, 2012

For several years now, I’ve lived in a sort of financial sweet spot. After paying off my debt, I realized that Kris and I had everything we really wanted or needed, so we never had to buy much for the house (except when something broke). But now that I’m on ...

What Kind of Life Insurance Do I Need?

From Bargaineering on Jan 23, 2012

Who brings in the cash at your house? Is it you? Your spouse? Both of you? Although none of us want to think about this, what would happen if the person in your home responsible for bring home the paycheck were to suddenly pass away? What would happen if tomorrow, ...

The Lonesome, Pet-Free Life

From Consumerism Commentary on Jan 23, 2012

For almost as long as I’ve been living without a human roommate, I’ve enjoyed the company of my cat, Rupert. I adopted Rupert from my friend who determined his newborn daughter was allergic to cats. He had already owned Rupert for a long time, and I knew I’d be the ...

Mitt Romney’s Tax Plan: More of the Same?

From Bargaineering on Jan 23, 2012

Mitt Romney is now viewed as the Republican front-runner in the race for the White House in 2012. And, of course, as a serious presidential candidate, Romney needs to have a tax plan in place. Others have floated flat tax plans, but Romney isn’t one of them. Indeed, so far ...

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