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

2007

This Month in the Archives: Money Gifts, Cyber Monday, and the Season for Giving

by Luke Landes

For a taste of old-time Consumerism Commentary, peruse these articles from the second half of November in prior years. From November 2006: * Extreme Savers Greg and Tara: We Have Some Things in Common * FreeCreditReport.com is a Scam! * Money-Saving Tips for Shopping Online * Wesabe, Web 2.0 Tool for Tracking Finances: Useful or ... Continue reading this article…

0 comments Read the full article →

Weekly Blog Roundup I, Guest Posts and Personal Stories

by Luke Landes

I’m using this weekend to work up the willingness and readiness to return to the office on Monday after a week of vacation. I hope you enjoyed the guest articles featured at Consumerism Commentary this week. * Consumption is Investment (from Mrs. Micah) * 3 Things You Need to Know Before Giving to Charity (from ... Continue reading this article…

2 comments Read the full article →

Black Friday and CVS Savings

by Sasha

My “Black Friday” shopping started yesterday at 8 a.m. after I’d readied my 26-pound turkey (we had 22 people planned for Thanksgiving this year) for its 6-plus hours in the oven. Instead of crawling back to bed whilst the scent of roasting turkey filled the house, I had a mission in mind. Earlier in the ... Continue reading this article…

2 comments Read the full article →

Happy Thanksgiving!

by Luke Landes

When it comes to holidays usurped by consumerism and with a backstory that begins to border on mythology rather than history, Thanksgiving is one towards the top of the list. These days, I try to take what I can from holidays without getting involved in any controversy. For me, Thanksgiving gives me a chance to ... Continue reading this article…

4 comments Read the full article →

Year-End Tax-Saving Move: Time Your Bonuses

by Luke Landes

Here in the United States, it’s Thanksgiving. I hope all readers are able to spend time with their family or friends. I’m still in California visiting my relatives and enjoying a relaxing vacation. Well, it’s relaxing in some sense. I’ve actually been working hard at moving some of my major websites, like pfblogs.org and the ... Continue reading this article…

0 comments Read the full article →

After Black Friday, Retailers Face a Less-Than-Joyous Holiday Season

by Sasha

Each year without fail, a relative of mine loads up on Best Buy stock just before the holidays. “It’s a sure thing,” he boasts, “because the stock always climbs from the Christmas revenue.” But even with all the earlier-than-ever Black Friday sales and hubbub this year, including the aforementioned Best Buy issuing tickets for its ... Continue reading this article…

0 comments Read the full article →

Year-End Tax-Saving Move: Tax Breaks for Saving

by Luke Landes

The government, when not encouraging spending to spur the immediate economy, encourages saving to keep the future economy on target. This encouragement comes in the form of tax breaks given for directing money away from consumerism today towards retirement (consumerism later). The first tax break you can get, and generally should get, is for a ... Continue reading this article…

1 comment Read the full article →

How to Turn $500 Into $7 The Hard Way

by J.D. Roth

This is a guest post from J.D. Roth, who writes about personal finance and related topics at Get Rich Slowly. Back in our young and foolish days, my wife and I bought a set of encyclopedias from a door-to-door salesman. This was in 1995, at the very cusp of the digital age. We had been ... Continue reading this article…

14 comments Read the full article →

Year-End Tax-Saving Move: Reduce Capital Gains

by Luke Landes

As the year draws to an end, I start turning my mind more towards taxes. I’ve been thinking about taxes this entire year, as a matter of fact, thanks to my underestimation of income. I believe I’ve made the adjustments necessary to avoid facing a large tax bill and penalty, and CNN Money has provided ... Continue reading this article…

4 comments Read the full article →

ShareBuilder Acquired by ING Direct

by Luke Landes

I received this email last night, and it was news to me. I’ve had no problems dealing with ING Direct, nor have I had any problems dealing with ShareBuilder. I have accounts with both companies. For a while, ShareBuilder was offering significant bonuses to those who opened accounts, and ING Direct has always had their ... Continue reading this article…

7 comments Read the full article →

3 Things You Need to Know Before Giving to Charity

by Luke Landes

This is a guest post from Steve, who writes about finance and life at Brip Blap. As the holiday season approaches, calls for donating to charity begin to multiply. Americans donate over $240 billion per year to various charities, and that’s simply in terms of money; the contributions in goods and services add even more ... Continue reading this article…

7 comments Read the full article →

Reader Question: Credit Freeze Worthwhile?

by Luke Landes

TV Girl wrote into Consumerism Commentary (and a few other blogs, so I expect to see responses elsewhere) with the following question about credit freezes: I’ve been listening to Dave Ramsey talk on his radio show about freezing your credit report, but I haven’t heard much (if anything) about this issue in the pf blogosphere. ... Continue reading this article…

6 comments Read the full article →

Year-End Tax-Saving Move: Green Energy

by Luke Landes

CNN Money is offering seven suggestions for reducing your tax, all possible before filing your 2007 taxes. The first suggestion is to “re-energize” your home. You can reduce your tax bill by up to $500 if you install insulation, windows, doors or central air conditioning that meet certain energy conservation standards. You also can take ... Continue reading this article…

2 comments Read the full article →

Consumption Is Investment

by Luke Landes

This is a guest post from Mrs. Micah, who maintains the blog Mrs. Micah: Finance and Life, in which the author is starting to deal responsibly with her $100,000+ debt. Every purchase you make is an investment. Too often we think of our purchases as consumables. Some are, like food, but even those should be ... Continue reading this article…

22 comments Read the full article →

Weekly Blog Roundup II, $1 Headphones Edition

by Luke Landes

On my flight the other day, I was pleased to learn that Continental Airlines reduced the price of its somewhat proprietary headsets for use when watching movies during the flight from $5 to $1 a set. I wasn’t too interested in seeing the movie offered, Transformers, so I just continued with my pattern of listening ... Continue reading this article…

3 comments Read the full article →

Investigation: Russ Whitney Should Resign as CEO and Chairman

by Luke Landes

For those who follow real estate investing gurus, it might be interesting to note that Russ Whitney’s company, through an internal investigation, is calling for the founder’s resignation. Russ Whitney, the founder, chief executive officer, and chairman of the Whitney Information Network has in the past aligned himself with Robert Kiyosaki (of Rich Dad, Poor ... Continue reading this article…

11 comments Read the full article →

Weekly Blog Roundup I, Blogging From the Airport Edition

by Luke Landes

I arrived early to the airport for my flight to California today. When checking into my full flight, I was able to switch seats and select the exit row. I’ll have a few more inches of leg room than I would have had, had I not been able to switch. There is WiFi here at ... Continue reading this article…

0 comments Read the full article →

More Education and Higher Incomes: More Likely to Have Had Music Education

by Luke Landes

Existence of music education in one’s curriculum is related to higher incomes and more education later in life, according to a new study by Harris Interactive. Three-quarters (75 percent) of American adults were involved in some type of music program while in school. Half (51 percent) were involved in chorus while 42 percent had some type of ... Continue reading this article…

4 comments Read the full article →

Credit Card Jacked Up Interest Rate: Cancel the Card?

by Luke Landes

Kimberly Lankford from Kiplinger recently handled a question from a reader. Capital One raised her interest rate from 9.9 percent to 15.9 percent on her account, and she’s wondering what her options are. You could decline the rate change and continue to pay off your balance at the old rate… Capital One would then close your account ... Continue reading this article…

14 comments Read the full article →

10 Easy Ways to Save Money Without Much Effort

by Luke Landes

The holiday season is approaching, so I know I’ll be spending more money. I have even begun planning a vacation, and I want to make sure I can afford it. Additionally, I am projecting that my side business will make less money in the future and not allow for the career transition from full-time cube ... Continue reading this article…

21 comments Read the full article →
Page 5 of 40« First···34567···Last »