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

November 2006

Welcome Readers from U.S. News & World Report

by Luke Landes

I was interviewed for a piece about blogging about retirement the other day, and the article has now been published on U.S. News & World Report’s online edition. If you are visiting Consumerism Commentary from the article, welcome to the website! Check out my retirement posts or find out more about me and Consumerism Commentary. ... Continue reading this article…

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ShareBuilder Offers Options Trading

by Luke Landes

If you’re interested in risky trading rather than long-term investing, ShareBuilder [affiliate] is now offering options trading. They offer covered calls as well as buy calls and puts. There don’t seem to be any fees above and beyond ShareBuilder’s standard trading fees and commissions. ShareBuilder offers a short guide to options for those who are ... Continue reading this article…

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Weekly Blog Round-Up

by Luke Landes

Here are some of the items I found interesting this week from the MoneyBlogNetwork and beyond. Free Money Finance wonders when people will learn that you can’t beat the market over time. Five Cent Nickel rounds up a number of rewawrd credit cards. AllFinancialMatters has an informative guide to inserting refreshable stock quotes into Excel. ... Continue reading this article…

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FreeCreditReport.com is a Scam!

by Luke Landes

Updated: Get Out of FreeCreditReport.com’s “Triple Advantage”. This isn’t the first time, but now the State of Florida Office of the Attorney General is investigating FreeCreditReport.com. You’ll notice I don’t link to the site. This site, run by credit reporting agency Experian is taking advantage of the ruling that anyone can receive a free annual ... Continue reading this article…

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Extreme Savers Greg and Tara: We Have Some Things in Common

by Luke Landes

CNN Money seems to have switched its focus from “Millionaires in the Making” to “Extreme Savers,” and today they have an article about Greg and Tara Black. They earn $48,000 and live in Charlottesville, Virginia. They shop at Kohls and JC Penney for clothing, as I do. Their entertainment comes mainly from Netflix, of which ... Continue reading this article…

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I’m the Chief Financial Officer of My Own Life

by Luke Landes

My friend J.D. asked me to write a little about how and why I assemble and publish my monthly financial updates and how the idea of looking at your personal finances from a quasi-business point of view helps gain perspective. What resulted is now a guest post at one of my favorite money-related blogs, Get ... Continue reading this article…

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US Airways and Delta Airlines Might Merge, My Flight Unchanged

by Luke Landes

This story attracted my attention because I am getting ready to flow from East Coast to West on US Airways next Monday. US Airways is looking to purchase Delta Airlines, which is bankrupt, for $8 billion in cash and stock. Any merger won’t affect my flight, although it would be nice if the airline lift ... Continue reading this article…

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What is Your Biggest Weakness? With a Giveaway!

by Luke Landes

When I had the chance to interview a prospective supervisor I avoided asking this question, but every interview I’ve had in which I am the one auditioning for a position, I’ve been invariably asked about my weaknesses. Fortune Magazine is tackling this question. Dear Annie: After a detailed conversation about what I’ve been doing, the ... Continue reading this article…

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Robert Kiyosaki on GuruWatch

by Luke Landes

Vince wrote up a great review of Robert Kiyosaki’s latest Yahoo column, Staying Safe from Financial Predators. Perhaps he needs only look within.

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My Company’s Stock Purchase Plan, Take 3

by Luke Landes

Recently, I’ve written about my company’s new stock purchase plan. My employer is giving all employees a chance to purchase up to 10 percent of their salary in company stock at a 15 percent discount of the lower of the beginning or end of each quarter. Yesterday, I made my election official. I will be contributing the ... Continue reading this article…

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My DreamHost Account Was Hacked

by Luke Landes

I received an email from the DreamHost abuse team — DreamHost is the company that provides the web services for this website, pfblogs.org to an extent, the MoneyBlogNetwork and its forums, and a number of others. They made me aware that my web space was being accessed by a computer user in Romania. The user ... Continue reading this article…

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7 Ways to Save Money While Maintaining Your Extravagant Lifestyle

by Luke Landes

If you haven’t noticed, I’m a fan of long post titles. Anyway, as the title says, here are seven ways you can save money while maintaining your extravagant style. After all, isn’t that what everyone wants? The best of both worlds? If you love living beyond your means, follow these guidelines and both worlds will ... Continue reading this article…

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The Carnival: Looks Like You’re Gonna Need a Bigger Blog

by Luke Landes

The latest Carnival of Personal Finance has been posted at A Geek’s World, and it’s a big one. F.D. Bryant with his blog was one of the first participants of the first Carnival of Personal Finance in June 2005. In the the 74th edition, posted last night, there were quite a few entries. Some of ... Continue reading this article…

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Review: The Smartest Investment Book You’ll Ever Read by Daniel R. Solin

by Luke Landes

I recently finished reading The Smartest Investment Book You’ll Ever Read: The Simple, Stress-Free Way to Reach Your Investment Goals [Amazon affiliate] by Daniel R. Solin. It’s a relatively short book with one simple point: For most people, investing in index funds is smarter than investing in actively managed mutual funds. The chapters are short ... Continue reading this article…

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Quick Update: Picked Up My Car from Repairs

by Luke Landes

To wrap up my latest vehicle-related saga, I picked up my car yesterday. The repairs took almost two weeks, but the shop did an excellent job. The suggestions from readers helped (thanks!) as I inspected the car before paying the bill. I took the car for a test spin to make sure there were no ... Continue reading this article…

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Revisao Semanal do Artigo (Weekly Blog Roundup)

by Luke Landes

Estão aqui alguns de meus artigos favoritos desta semana passada. * Chame Seu Cartão de Crédito Antes das Compras Grandes * Reparando da Erros de Contribuição de Roth IRA * A Mais Melhor Planta 401k * Escola de Auctioneering: Dia 1 * Fundos Mútuos da Carga Contra Nenhum-Carga * Pergunta do Dinheiro de Suze Orman ... Continue reading this article…

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Mapgirl Moves Her Fiscal Challenge and Makes the Switch

by Luke Landes

Mapgirl, the blogger behind the excellent personal finance blog, Mapgirl’s Fiscal Challenge, has moved from BlogSpot and Blogger to WordPress. I’m very excited about the move because I enjoy her blog and it will hopefully be more stable on the new server and because I helped her move through my “Get Away From BlogSpot” project. ... Continue reading this article…

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What’s in House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s Investment Accounts?

by Luke Landes

Although I share my investments and my net worth, I am far from being a politician in the spotlight. On the other hand, Nancy Pelosi, the new Speaker of the House of Representatives, is required to disclose her investments. I found her disclosure via Seeking Alpha and pfblogs.org. Pelosi and her husband have a number ... Continue reading this article…

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Where Do Hedge Fund Professionals Spend Their Money?

by Luke Landes

Breaking into the hedge fund industry is a sure way to find yourself with a large income. Culture seems to dictate that most of that income will be spent and not saved. After all, you have to look the part and live the life. If you had to guess, where would you say the hedgies ... Continue reading this article…

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Enrolled in My 2007 Employee Benefits

by Luke Landes

Today was the deadline to enroll in my 2007 employee benefits, so I took some time to do so. It wasn’t necessary for me since my options are staying the same as my 2006 selections, but it did give me an opportunity to compare the prices. The HMO medical program sponsored by Aetna increased from ... Continue reading this article…

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