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

2012

TurboTax 2012 Online Review

by Luke Landes
tt-featured-img

This is a relatively long review of TurboTax 2012 Online, software for completing tax forms and submitting them to both the federal and state authorities. I’ve updated the review to reflect the changes to the software in 2012 (for filing 2011 tax returns). Recently, the IRS began accepting federal tax returned filed electronically. Even before ... Continue reading this article…

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Local Currencies to Replace the Dollar in Communities

by Luke Landes
Dollar currency

It may be illegal for states to print money for commerce, but local communities have no such restriction from the federal government. And in some communities, local currencies have been successful, at least in gaining the support of some retailers and consumers. There’s no law of nature that says that an economy functions best when ... Continue reading this article…

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Cash Back Rewards Stolen

by Luke Landes
Burglar alarm

Using cash back credit cards is rewarding in two specific ways. First, you’re earning money when you spend. That’s the obvious part. But when you know that you’re getting a rebate when you use your credit card, you also feel better about spending than you would otherwise. Feeling good can be dangerous, as you might ... Continue reading this article…

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Podcast 145: Protecting Individual Finances in a Marriage

by Luke Landes

Today on the Consumerism Commentary Podcast, Tom Dziubek talks to Jenny Kerr, founder of The Jenny Pincher. Jenny talks with Tom about how married women can better prepare themselves financially for a divorce. Some of the items she discusses are keeping individual checking accounts, knowing where the money is and being prepared to start a ... Continue reading this article…

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The Role of Money in Choosing a Relationship

by Luke Landes
Relationships couple

Do people have any kind of control over whom they fall in love with? Perhaps Cupid’s arrow strikes randomly, and there is no choice but to obey the heart — or chemicals in the brain — or sexual urges. But once that initial response has subsided, if you and your partner are headed for a ... Continue reading this article…

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Improve Your Child’s Cognitive Ability for Income Potential

by Luke Landes
Rubik's Cube

There’s a chance you could become a multi-millionaire after repeatedly slamming your head into other people and suffering through the resulting mini-concussions and minor brain damage, but not everyone can be a professional football player in the NFL. There’s a safer and less harmful path toward financial independence. Cognitive ability is an important part of ... Continue reading this article…

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The Best Cash Back Credit Cards, May 2013

by Luke Landes

Cash back credit cards can help consumers practice responsible spending while earning a little extra for their efforts when used properly. It wasn’t long ago that the best cash back credit cards were offering rewards as high as 5 percent for purchases, and we are seeing a return of those types of offers. Certain cash back ... Continue reading this article…

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She Spends Less Than She Earns: Zooey Deschanel

by Luke Landes
Zooey Deschanel

It’s not often that a young, female star of music, movie, and television can avoid financial scrutiny. Tales of financial woe tend to be much juicier, anyway. It’s not difficult to remember the Britney Spears train wreck. She couldn’t handle earning more than $700,000 a month. At least her antics kept her in the news. ... Continue reading this article…

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Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Wants Payday Loan Feedback

by Luke Landes
Check

While the mainstream financial industry has faced a dizzying array of government and quasi-government regulations through most of the last one hundred years, non-bank financial products have, for the most part, evaded regulations. Catering to lower-income communities, payday loan storefronts and check cashing establishments have managed to justify their business models. The more desperate you ... Continue reading this article…

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Buy Airfare Six Weeks in Advance

by Luke Landes
Airplane

Airlines Reporting Corporation (ARC), a company that processes airline transactions for travel agents and consumers, has analyzed 144 million transactions for domestic flights in 2011 to better understand airlines’ pricing schemes. The study found the lowest fares were available six weeks in advance of the departure date. I’ve always been under the impression that the ... Continue reading this article…

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The Lonesome, Pet-Free Life

by Luke Landes
Rupert

For almost as long as I’ve been living without a human roommate, I’ve enjoyed the company of my cat, Rupert. I adopted Rupert from my friend who determined his newborn daughter was allergic to cats. He had already owned Rupert for a long time, and I knew I’d be the cat’s new owner for the ... Continue reading this article…

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Fix the Tax System By Taxing Consumption

by Luke Landes
Ferrari

An elegant answer to the over-complicated tax system is to shift the basis of the system from income to spending. There have been a variety of proposals to make this happen. It’s the core of the so-called Fair Tax and Herman Cain incorporated its concept into his 9-9-9 tax plan. Other proposals have called for ... Continue reading this article…

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Podcast 144: Best Things to Buy During Winter

by Luke Landes

Today on the Consumerism Commentary Podcast, Bryan J Busch talks to Andrea Woroch, consumer savings expert. They discuss when and why it can be smarter to shop for certain items during the winter. Consumerism Commentary Podcast Best Things to Buy During Winter: S06E17 / 170 Download – RSS – iTunes Table of contents [00:00] Introduction ... Continue reading this article…

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How Is Your Budget Doing These Days?

by Phil Cioppa

This is a guest article by Phil Cioppa of Arbol Financial Strategies, LLC. Phil has over 10 years of financial service experience and specializes in asset management strategies, insurance planning and taxation issues. A budget is an important part of any financial plan, and right now is the best time to take another look at ... Continue reading this article…

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Kodak Files for Bankruptcy

by Luke Landes
Kodak Portra

There were rumors and predictions for a while, but today it’s official. Kodak, the company that revolutionized film photography and adopted digital photography early, has declared bankruptcy. The company has been struggling since the 1980s; I’m surprised it survived this long without filing Chapter 11. That’s what the company chose to do today, with debt ... Continue reading this article…

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Frugal Employers Will Lose Their Talent

by Luke Landes
Paycheck

During the recession, my employer, a firm in the financial industry, eliminated raises for employees at the Vice President level and above for one year. The company, although continuing to perform well compared to its peers, cut back bonuses and other benefits. It’s easy for employers to demand higher productivity for less compensation when the ... Continue reading this article…

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$362,000 in Income: Not That Much for Mitt Romney

by Luke Landes

It’s no surprise that politicians have difficulty relating to their constituents. When Mitt Romney was asked about his finances, he admitted two facts that would sound strange to most listeners. Romney considers what he earned from speaking fees in one year, $362,000, as “not that much.” Like most individuals who earn most of their income ... Continue reading this article…

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5 Reasons to Beware 401(k) Retirement Plans

by Luke Landes
Cubicle

Financial planners just love promoting 401(k) retirement plans. They have quite a few benefits, notably a tax deduction for contributions as well as a tax deferral for contributions and earnings. They’re also one of the most popular vehicles for introducing the working middle class to the stock market, something that might not have been accessible ... Continue reading this article…

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Save Money: Break Up Before Valentine’s Day

by Guest Author
Valentine's Day

This is a guest article by Jennifer Calonia, Junior Editor at GoBankingRates. In the article, the author encourages couples in failing relationships to break-up before holidays and their obligatory expenses are imminent. While it may sound like the antithesis of romance, calling it quits with your other half before the Valentine’s Day can be advantageous ... Continue reading this article…

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How to Solve the Financial Literacy Problem

by Luke Landes
Kid with money

Many Americans experience financial jeopardy at some point in their lives, and experts share an opinion about a strong cause: there’s no formalized way to learn how to use money properly, so most people must learn by experience, making mistakes as they learn what is necessary for building a solid financial foundation. It would save ... Continue reading this article…

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