Gold Price Shakeup and Links

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The price of gold took a big hit a few weeks ago.

In the last 30 days the price has dropped from a high of $1,606 to a low of $1,360.  The drop was significant and only over a few day period.  The price has since rebounded a bit to $1,453 but that is still a drop of $153 or 9.5%.

Those that are pro-gold used it as an opportunity to buy even more while detractors pointed out the instability in the price of the commodity.  If you were able to snag more gold at $1,360 you have since earned a return of 6.8%.

No matter how you feel about gold you need free cash available to be able to purchase some. That means taking care of your finances, which these articles will help you do:

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Should You Ever Cosign a Loan? Probably Not

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One of the absolutely most risky financial decisions you can make is to cosign a loan for someone.

The FTC has even done research to show consumers exactly how atrocious of a decision cosigning a loan is.  It can be really hard to turn down the need to cosign a loan; usually the person asking you is a relative or very close friend.  They are promising that it won’t be a big deal and they’ll be able to pay on time.

But is that true?

Should you ever cosign a loan?

For anyone?

Ever?

The Risks of Cosigning a Loan

Here are three risks of accepting the offer to cosign a loan.

The Person Asking is a Credit Risk

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Blue Cash Everyday ® Card from American Express – Review

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American Express has a great card in it’s “Blue” family – the Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express.

This is a nice no-nonsense cash back card that’s easy for people to understand.  These days that’s getting harder to find as credit card companies make their rewards harder to get or increase the annual fee to make up for the benefits of the card.

Here are some basics of the Blue Cash Everyday Card:

  • Earn 100 Reward Dollars after you make $1,000 in purchases in the first three months of Cardmembership.
  • Earn Cash Back: 3% at US supermarkets, up to $6,000 per year in purchases, 2% at US gas stations & select US dept stores, 1% on other purchases. Terms and limitations apply.
  • Cash back is received in the form of Reward Dollars that can be redeemed as a statement credit.
  • Simple and Straightforward: With the Blue Cash Everyday Card, you can start earning cash back. No rotating reward categories. No enrollment required.
  • No annual fee, 0% intro APR on purchases for 12 months. After that, your APR will be a variable rate, currently 12.99%-21.99% with flexibility to pay over time.
  • Terms and Restrictions Apply.

Let’s take a look at what the Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express has to offer.Continue Reading

The Dark Side of Health Care – Paying Extra Because of Our Health

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There’s no doubt that obesity is an epidemic in the United States. 

Our children may be the first generation to live shorter lives than their parents thanks to obesity and the many related conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure, cancer, and heart disease.

Among adults, according to the CDC, 35.9% of U.S. citizens ages 20 and older are obese.  Another 33.3% are overweight, but not obese.  That leaves slightly less than 31% of United States citizens who are at a healthy weight.

It doesn’t take a scientist to understand that those who are chronically obese or overweight will likely cost a company more in health care.

In addition, those workers are absent from the work place more often.  “A 2011 Gallup survey estimated obese or overweight full-time U.S. workers miss an additional 450 million days of work each year, compared to healthy workers, resulting in more than $153 billion in lost productivity” (Wall Street Journal).

While we may consider obesity a personal issue, each person’s obesity and related health issues affect not only themselves, but their employers and their families.

Should You Have to Pay Extra for Health Insurance If You’re Overweight?

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What Should You Do If You Are Audited?

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It’s the ultimate financial nightmare: What if you are audited?

Many of us live in FEAR of a possible IRS audit.

However, less than 1% of taxpayers are audited each year.

Some audits come because of red flags that the IRS recognizes, and others are simply the result of random chance.  In many cases, all that is needed is for you to mail in some documentation that backs up your claim of a deduction or credit.  Getting an audit letter is no reason to immediately panic.

But there is always the chance that you have to go through a more difficult tax audit.

If that happens, though, you have options:Continue Reading

Credit Report Versus Credit Score – You Better Know the Difference

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I hear a lot of people interchanging the term credit report with credit score.

I do it myself.

But there’s a Big Difference between the two.  See how I bolded that there?  That’s how important it is.

Knowing the details of a credit report vs a credit score will help you better understand your credit.  And that can help you save money!

Differences Between a Credit Report and a Credit Score

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The New Job Market: Temporary Jobs and Freelancers

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One of the challenges facing many job-seekers is the fact that the job market has changed quite a bit in recent years.

The recession that accompanied the recent financial crisis led to a rise in temporary jobs and freelancing jobs.

However, these are no longer jobs that people do to “get by” until they find something a little more permanent.  Indications are that these are becoming the permanent jobs.

Temporary Jobs and Freelancing are the New Job Market

Staffing Jobs on the Rise

The American Staffing Association releases data from a quarterly survey about trends in the workplace.  For the third quarter of 2012, there was a year over year increase of 4.3% in staffing jobs.  The latest data represent the 11th consecutive quarter that staffing jobs have grown since 2009 and the technical end of the recession.

Temporary positions are on the rise, in part, because freelancers, temps, and adjuncts cost a lot less than full-time regular workers.
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Where’s My Tax Refund? How to Check the Status of Your Tax Refund

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When you are expecting a tax refund, it is normal to file a little bit early.

The very next thing you say once you file is “where’s my refund?”  We can’t wait to get that money owed to us.

Indeed, many people have already received their tax refunds.

When you get refunded depends on two main factors:

  1. How you filed (mail or e-file)
  2. How you receive your refund (paper check or direct deposit)

If you mail in your tax return, and opt to receive your refund in the form of a check from the United States Treasury, it can take as long as two months or more to see your tax rebate.

This is the combination that takes the longest.

You can speed things up if you decide to e-file when receiving a paper check, or to get your tax refund via direct deposit if you mail in your return.

However, it still might take as much as a month to get your tax refund.

In order to get your tax refund in the shortest possible time, you should e-file and opt for direct deposit.  You can get your tax refund in as little as seven days when you do this.
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Citi ThankYou Preferred Card – $150 in Gift Cards | Review

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How would you like a credit card that offers rewards as well as a nice 0% introductory APR on purchases and balance transfers?  Add to that a $150 gift card bonus?

Sounds interesting, right?

This is what the Citi ThankYou® Preferred Card is offering.  Join me as we walk through what the card offers…

The Citi ThankYou Preferred Card

Let’s start with a basic overview of the card:

  • Earn 15,000 bonus ThankYou Points after $1000 in card purchases within 3 months of account opening – enough for $150 in gift cards or other great rewards!
  • 0% intro APR on Balance Transfers and Purchases for 12 months.  After that, the variable APR will be 12.99%-22.99% based upon your creditworthiness*
  • Earn 1 ThankYou Point for every $1 you spend on all purchases
  • No expiration and no limit on the points you can earn
  • Redeem ThankYou Points for merchandise, travel rewards, gift cards, cash and more
  • Earn extra points when you shop through the ThankYou® Bonus Center, a network of 600+ retailers you know and love
  • Travel with ease and enjoy global acceptance with Chip Technology
  • No annual fee*

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When Does It Make Sense to Automate Your Finances?

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Automating your finances is one way of simplifying your financial life.

When your automate your finances you use your bank, credit card, or service provider’s website to set up automatic transactions on your behalf.  You can automate paying your utility bills, paying your credit card, investing your retirement funds, and many other tasks.

Finance automation is often touted as one of the top ten things you should do to improve your finances.

While having your bills paid on time does help you save time and avoid late fees, completely automating your finances is foolish and nearly impossible to do.

How Automating Your Finances Improves Your Finances

Late fees.  Overdraft fees.  High interest rate penalties.  Missed payments.

All of these items are the result of mismanaging your finances.  Missing one payment can result in your interest rate on your credit card going sky high.  Missing the payment due date on any bill will automatically reward you with a late fee on top of what you already owed.

In short, mismanaged finances end up costing you thousands of dollars with all the fees and higher interest rates you pay.
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