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Report: Credit CARD Act of 2009 Good For Consumers

by Flexo

According to the Center for Responsible Lending, the Credit CARD Act of 2009, which designated the Federal Reserve Board to introduce new regulations for the credit card industry, has been successful in increasing transparency for consumers. As a result of the new regulations, the actual interest rates cardholders pay is now closer to the advertised ... Continue reading this article…

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Are You Still Waiting for the Homebuyer Tax Credit?

by Flexo

The first-time homebuyer tax credit was a major incentive that the government, in collaboration with the real estate industry, initiated to stimulate the economy. It’s understood that the tax incentive worked in the short-term, encouraging more home purchases for a period of time that continued to be expanded by Congress. Nevertheless, the housing market continues ... Continue reading this article…

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Personal Balance Sheet, May 2011 ($844,136, +9.6%)

by Flexo

Over the past few days, I considered making some drastic changes to the way I report my finances at the end of each month. I’ve been trying to decide whether it makes more sense to separate my business accounts from this report and report the numbers separately as I did a few years ago, remove ... Continue reading this article…

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S&P 500 Return Beats Super-Rich Investors in 2010

by Flexo

The year 2010 was an anomaly. Usually, the members of the Institute for Private Investors, a country-club type of investment group that only welcomes you if you have $30 million in investable assets, beats the S&P 500 benchmark in terms of average annual returns. Looking at the latest ten-year average return, that’s what we see. ... Continue reading this article…

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TrueEarnings Card from Costco and American Express Review

by Flexo

In 2009, Congress passed enacted laws that require credit card issuers to be more direct with their terms and conditions. Companies can no longer get away with double-cycle billing and hidden fees, which were costing customers millions of dollars every year. There are still a few items found in the fine print that customers often ... Continue reading this article…

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TradeKing Review

by Flexo

Launched towards the end of 2005, TradeKing is a relatively young discount brokerage when compared to many of their competitors. TradeKing, more than any other brokerage, is more in tune with today’s social networking and social media trend. This online trading network is somewhat of a forum just for investors, where they can connect with ... Continue reading this article…

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The Good Side of Stocks’ Lost Decade

by Rob Bennett

This is a guest article by Rob Bennett, a personal finance journalist and author of the blog A Rich Life. Rob developed the Passion Saving approach to money management; Passion Savers save not to finance their old-age retirements but to enjoy more freedom and opportunity in their 20s, 30s, 40s, and 50s. Most view the ... Continue reading this article…

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Last Minute Tax Filing Tips

by Flexo

With one week before the deadline, many people are just starting to think about filing their tax return. The problem I’ve often encountered with waiting to the last minute is it’s easy to miss important items. Many years ago, I filed in the manual style: my only tools were a calculator and pencil. Although my ... Continue reading this article…

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