While it’s impossible to truthfully claim that everything has been said about the disaster that was Hurricane Katrina, there certainly has been an incredible amount of discussion on and offline. Rather than repeating what surely everyone has heard by now, I’d rather just point any giving-minded readers towards what I think is the best starting point, the Katrina Help Wiki. Another good starting point is nola.com (The Times-Picayune Online).

Before making any monetary donations to an organization, make sure you have done sufficient research. There are people trying to make a couple bucks off other people’s tragedy. Be aware of the existence of scams before signing the check or clicking the “Paypal Donate!” button.

Any investment account at a brokerage usually has an associated cash account in which proceeds from sales and dividends are deposited, usually in the form of a money market fund. According to this free Wall Street Journal article, investment banks are purposely moving investors’ cash funds into accounts that earn less than typical money market funds. This, of course, allows the banks to make more money off your account.

The good news is that there are options. Many brokerages allow you to request better accounts for holding cash. For example, the default option at E*Trade is to keep your cash in a deposit account earning 0.40% interest. They do, however, offer tax-exempt money market funds yielding up to 1.57%. That rate may not compete with the likes of ING Direct and Emigrant Direct after taxes (I haven’t done any calculations), but it is certainly a more favorable option than the default sweep account offered.

Did you know that you can easily get a $25 credit on your Verizon Wireless phone bill? I don’t recall seeing it advertised anywhere, but if a new customer lists an existing customer as a someone who referred him or her to the company, the existing customer will receive $25 to be used towards their next bill. I’ve confirmed that my $25 bonus for referring a friend is listed on my newest statement.

As home prices have risen, so have broker commissions. Thus, many home sellers are deciding to go the do-it-yourself route. There’s an informative article on CNN with some tips for those who want to avoid spending thousands of dollars unnecessarily.

The big question is of course whether the commission savings are higher than the savings one might get my having a broker fight hard for a good price, if they in fact do that. Needless to say, selling your own home would be a lot of work if you wanted to do it right.

Instead of selling a home, I’m selling books online (most of which readers here will not be interested). I’m up to almost $100 in sales after Amazon fees.

Several coins created by the U.S. Mint in 1933, worth about $1 million apiece, were seized by the government. The double eagles, originally worth $20, are highly valued because they were never circulated.

A few years ago, one sold for $7.59 million, but that one coin is also the only 1933 double eagle legal to own; hence the seizure of the others. All of the remaining coins were believed destroyed before entering circulation.

The owner-collecter found the coins in an antique shop in Philadelphia, and sent the coins into the Mint for verification of authenticity. They confirmed the identity of the coins but shipped them to Fort Knox for “safekeeping,” as they believe the coins were originally obtained illegally through a cashier from the Philadelphia Mint.

The now-prior owners of the coins are preparing to sue the government. Do they have a case?

Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan commented a few nights ago:

Nearer term, the housing boom will inevitably simmer down. As part of that process, house turnover will decline from currently historic levels, while home price increases will slow and prices could even decrease. As a consequence, home equity extraction will ease and with it some of the strength in personal consumption expenditures. The estimates of how much differ widely.

He goes on to predict a rise in personal savings and a decline in imports, while calling for economic flexibility between the United States and its trading partners. This seems to imply that the country is relying heavily on the outside for its economic stability.

Bill Fleckenstein cites growing supply and speculation and concludes the housing bubble will burst. The article is listed under the category “Contrarian Chronicles.”

The interesting question is which position is the “contrarian view?” As NYC Money notes in the comments below, we’ve been hearing about the impending stagnation of the housing market for a while. Is it really the less popular point of view? Then again, the market is acting in a manner that doesn’t reflect this opinion. Regardless, housing in many areas is overpriced, and for my own financial sake, I’m holding off.

The latest Carnival of Personal Finance has been published at the new location for AllThingsFinancial. My post about selling books online has been featured this week.

Also, my estimation of yearly gasoline expenses has been included in the latest Carnival of the Capitalists.

The rest of the country was given this benefit at varying times earlier this year, but it finally has come to the east coast. I was going to wait until September 1, the official “release date,” but as MyMoneyBlog noted, the floodgates have opened a few days early.

I’m talking of course about free credit reports. Everyone in the United States is now entitled to one free credit report each year, from each of the three consumer credit reporting companies, Equifax, Experian and Transunion.

I plan on getting one every four months in order to get a more accurate picture of how my credit report changes throughout the year.

By the way, if you want your credit score, you are going to have to pay. (You might want to try the free MyFICO Credit Score Estimator but I can’t vouch for its accuracy. The website tells me my credit score is between 720 and 770. Who knows?)

The credit report itself, without your score, is free, and it is very important to check yours once in a while to ensure all information is correct. A report with incorrect negative items can cost you thousands of dollars if you were, for example, to apply for a mortgage and get a less favorable rate than you should due to a lower credit rating.

I chose Experian as the provider my first credit report; they were the first listed of the three companies. The process took about two minutes during which I needed to answer a few personal questions in order to verify my identity. My 16-page report was immediately generated. Luckilly, there is no incorrect information on the report, but I do have two “potentially negative items” back from my days of financial irresponsibility (or absent-mindedness).

And in case you are wondering, viewing your own credit report does not affect your credit score.