As featured in The Wall Street Journal, Money Magazine, and more!

February 2006

Flexo’s First Giveaway

by Luke Landes

Last week, I reviewed David Bach’s The Automatic Millionaire Homeowner: A Powerful Plan to Finish Rich in Real Estate. The publishing company sent me a new hardcover copy of the book (the distribution version, not the prerelease copy I oriingally received) and I’d like to give it to a reader who is interesting in purchasing ... Continue reading this article…

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Carnival is Up!

by Luke Landes

The latest Carnival of Personal Finanice is up at Free Money Finance!

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Comcast Neglected To Mention

by Luke Landes

I decided to take advantage of Comcast’s offer for a free upgrade from 6 Mbps to 8 Mbps internet service more than a week ago. (Wow, what a long way we’ve come since I was running a dial-in bulletin board system on an 8088 IBM clone at 1200 bps.) When I called originally, they said ... Continue reading this article…

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Visualize Your Debt Payments

by Luke Landes

If you’re a visual person, you may like this debt repayment calculator I discovered via Consumerist. After you input the terms of your debt (only one account at a time), it presents a colorful timeline of your payments and end-of-year totals.

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Everybody Look What’s Going ‘Round

by Luke Landes

Here sre some interesting posts from the MoneyBlogNetwork and more this past week. * AllThingsFinancial has a review of David Bach’s Automatic Millionaire Homeowner, which I also reviewed here. * Free Money Finance has some suggestions about how to keep your brain in shape. * Five Cent Nickel discusses a surprise reduction in his monthly ... Continue reading this article…

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More Articles, Less Time

by Luke Landes

Here are some articles I’ll want to personally revisit later, though I can’t promise I’ll devote a blog entry: * 30-year mortgage rate htis 2006 high [CNN] but housing starts are way up [Marketwatch]. * Three myths about foreclosures: A spike is coming, foreclosed houses are huge bargains, and anyone can make money [Money Magazine]. ... Continue reading this article…

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Ben Stein Protects America

by Luke Landes

Thanks to AllThingsFinancial, I came across this piece by Ben Stein, who I’ve mentioned fairly often on this blog. I like Ben Stein even though we don’t always agree on every issue. In his new column in the New York Times, Ben talks about the huge disparity between worker and executive pay. He provides some ... Continue reading this article…

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We Don’t Need No Steenkin’ $1,000,000 for Retirement

by Luke Landes

It’s Liz Pulliam Weston against the experts and pundits in the biggest battle since Apolo Anton Ohno grabbed someone’s skate while competing in the short track speed skating competition. In this article Weston takes prognosticators to task for claiming the sky is falling when it comes to preparing for retirement. No one really knows how ... Continue reading this article…

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Welcome New Readers!

by Luke Landes

It’s about that time when I like to introduce myself and Consumerism Commentary to any new readers who happen to stop by. If you’ve been reading for a while, but you’d like to know a little bit more about me and this blog, now is your chance.

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A Look at The Automatic Millionaire Homeowner by David Bach

by Luke Landes

A while ago, I received an advance copy of The Automatic Millionaire Homeowner by David Bach. This was the first book by Bach that I’ve read, and I’ll share my opinion now.

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Reading for the Drive Home

by Luke Landes

Perhaps I’ll focus on one or more of these articles tonight. * The best ways to negotiate a higher salary. * $1,000,000,000,000 in assets under management for the new Merrill Lynch/BlackRock merger. * Seven steps to stellar credit. This reminds me it’s time to order my next free credit report. * Here’s Yahoo Finance’s collection ... Continue reading this article…

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We’ve All Made Mistakes and Jonathan Collects Them

by Luke Landes

MyMoneyBlog has the Reverse Carnival of Money Mistakes. Sometimes it takes a mjor mistake to turn someone around to face the right direction. Looking back at our own mistakes helps us grow, but looking at others’ gives us the benefit without the risk.

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5% APY on 12-Month CDs!

by Luke Landes

If that title gets you excited, you’ll be happy to know that more and more banks are offering 5 percent interest yield (or higher) on certificates of deposit (CD). CDs are a little less liquid than a straight savings account, which means there may be a penalty if you withdraw your money before that 12 month ... Continue reading this article…

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Seven Tax Mistakes You Might Make, Part 2

by Luke Landes

It’s tax season, and I’m double-checking my return before filing. I’m checking for seven typical mistakes. I began mentioning MSN’s seven tax mistakes earlier, and now I’ll finish up those thoughts. 4. Getting married. According to MSN, a “marriage penalty” still exists. “[T]wo individuals who each earn $70,000 in taxable income [and file as a ... Continue reading this article…

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Seven Tax Mistakes You Might Make, Part 1

by Luke Landes

First of all, I finished my taxes over the weekend. I started out using Turbo Tax Online, which I have used for the last three years. I decided to look around for better deals, and I’ve settled on Tax Act for now. I may not file online, however. While my initial estimates had me owing ... Continue reading this article…

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Overnight Reading

by Luke Landes

It’s time for me to get some sleep, but if you’re still awake and looking for some reading, here are some news and notes. * Enron sold future revenues of one of their businesses, and it was like one more hit of crack cocaine. I can’t get enough of colorful similes. * Money Magazine’s Best ... Continue reading this article…

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Time To Buy Gold Or Not?

by Luke Landes

The price of gold has been high. In fact, it hit a 25-year high recently. Everyone saying it’s time to buy and that prices will go only higher. Everyone is also warning investors to stay away. A pair of articles on MSN Money give you the option of choosing your point of view while having ... Continue reading this article…

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Don’t Buy Stuff You Cannot Afford

by Luke Landes

That’s the advice of the decade, isn’t it? Well, it’s also a pretty funny Saturday Night Live skit with Steve Martin. The skit’s a parody of those book infomercials for financial products we see all the time. Looking a little deeper, it’s also a slight commentary on the marketing of common sense. Well, I saw ... Continue reading this article…

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Open Trading Window, Increased Contribution

by Luke Landes

Yesterday, the trading window opened for my company stock, so I decided to take the opportunity to increase my 401(k) contribution. Even though raising my contribution from 4 percent to 6 percent of my salary doesn’t affect company stock (employer matching contributions, which are half invested in company stock, half invested following my allocation rules) as the ... Continue reading this article…

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Blueprint Interviewed

by Luke Landes

If you get a chance, check out the Money Blogger Podcast interview with Jim from Blueprint for Financial Prosperity. I can’t get enough of these podcasts… keep them coming!

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