Best Personal Financial Planning and Personal Investment Articles this Week from Personal Finance Blogs

The Carnival of Financial Planning takes a long-term view of personal financial planning for individuals and families. We focus on efficient and sustainable personal financial planning practices that can lead to lifetime financial security. 

This edition is arranged by subject heading, so that you can browse efficiently.

Enjoy!

The Skilled Investor, Editor

Budgeting

Squawkfox presents Financial Planning Series: How to Make a Budget posted at squawkfox, saying, “This article is the introduction to a multiple part financial planning series called How to Make a Budget (the unboring way).”

Mike @ Green Panda presents 3 Tricks to Succeed When Making a Budget posted at Green Panda Treehouse, saying, “Tired of getting squeezed at the end of each month? Tired of counting your pennies and looking at the balance of your bank account on a daily basis? there are 3 basics rules to follow when writing down your budget…”

Tom @ Canadian Finance Blog presents Budgeting Tools Online And Beyond posted at The Canadian Finance Blog, saying, “One of the biggest obstacles to making and keeping a budget is not knowing where to begin. Thankfully, the Internet age has brought with it some wonderful tools designed to help you keep an eye on your spending.”

The Skilled Investor presents How to Save Money posted at Financial Decision Rules, saying, “The most dominant determinants of your long-term financial well-being are how much you earn, spend, budget, and save. Budgeting and self-control in consumption is far more important than clever investing. Expenditure control and budgeting works, while “clever” investing usually is counter-productive.”

Super Saver presents Living on a Cash Basis was a Good Experience posted at My Wealth Builder, saying, “Living on a cash basis quickly taught me financial responsibility.”

Economics

Smruti Ranjan presents Top 10 Economic Journals for Economics Scholars posted at Business News This Week, saying, “Economic journals are the best for the research scholars those can read the abstract initially and get their complete research if they wish to go further into the work.Economic Journals also avails the opportunity to submit your work online.”

KCLau presents Global Spending: How People Spend their Money posted at KCLau’s Money Tips, saying, “Results from a World Bank study entitled “Global Purchasing Power Parities and Real Expenditures 2005 International Comparison Program” spanning 2003 – 2008.”

Estate Planning

Consumer Boomer presents Charitable Gifting Rules for Baby Boomers posted at Consumer Boomer.

FMF presents Your Parents’ Estate Plan Part 2: What You Need to Know posted at Free Money Finance, saying, “Helping your parents through estate planning issues.”

Joe Plemon presents Should You Leave an Inheritance to Your Children? posted at Personal Finance By The Book, saying, “Leaving an inheritance is a dicey issue. Do you? How much? Now or later? This post doesn’t have all the answers, but will challenge your thinking.”

Financial Planning

Craig Ford presents FICO Score Matters: Sorry, Dave Ramsey posted at Money Help For Christians, saying, “This article introduces some benefits of a good credit score.”

jim presents Roth and Traditional IRA Contribution Limits posted at Blueprint for Financial Prosperity.

Roshawn Watson presents Thoughts on Escaping The Rat Race posted at Watson Inc, saying, “Do you yearn to be free…really free? What would you do if money was not a big limitation? Perhaps the primary reason for increasing your financial literacy is so you may indeed escape the rat race.”

Dividend Tree presents Building Core Competency for Long Term Survival posted at Dividend Tree, saying, “whether it is running a business or individuals’ investment portfolio, it is important to build a core competency for long term sustainability. In my case, I focus on good quality companies that consistently pay or have potential to pay growing dividends over time.”

FMF presents How to Find a Professional Financial Advisor posted at Free Money Finance, saying, “Thoughts on how to find a great financial planner.”

Frank Knight presents Roth IRAsFinancial Planning Software posted at My Financial Freedom Plan, saying, “Whether to invest in a Roth IRA or Roth 401k versus their traditional retirement account alternatives is one of the most complex personal financial decisions. Roth accounts do not make sense financially for most people. They are a good deal, for a minority, but you need to do the analysis.”

jim presents Sallie Mae Bank Review posted at Blueprint for Financial Prosperity.

DaveOzment presents Views of Money ? Part 1: Objective Setting and Simple and Advanced Cash Flow posted at Do You Dave Ramsey?, saying, “Our relationship with money will determine our success and our relationship is based on how we view money. Do Better!”

Nigel Savers presents Portfolio Asset AllocationComprehensive Financial Plan, posted at Pasadena Financial Planner saying, “Diversification means that the specific risks of businesses and other investment entities can be eliminated from a portfolio without reducing expected returns. You should diversify your investments completely and globally – now and always.”

Big Cajun Man presents Personal Finance Resolutions for the New Year? posted at Canadian Personal Finance Blog, saying, “Are Financial New Years resolutions a good idea? Yes, but make them achievable, don’t try to boil the ocean, just take small steps!”

Larry Russell presents Mutual Fund Loads posted at Top Mutual Funds, saying, “Superior past performance has simply not been shown to be a reliable predictor of superior future performance. However, low costs can lead you to the best mutual funds.”

The Dough Roller presents Change Banks in 5 Easy Steps posted at The Dough Roller.

Financing a Home

Roshawn Watson presents Is Bigger Better? Scaling Down The American Dream posted at Watson Inc, saying, “Today’s post-crash buyers are not willing (nor able in some cases) to extend themselves like before, and the impact on the housing market is substantial.”

Patrick @ Military Money presents VA Loan Eligibility and Financing posted at Military Finance Network, saying, “Find out who is eligible for a VA Loan and how much money you may be able to get in guaranteed financing. This is great information for any military veteran.”

Alex Fotopoulos presents When to Refinance a Mortgage? posted at My Trader’s Journal, saying, “Some key points to consider when refinancing your home.”

Financing Education

MoneyNing presents How to Use a 529 Plan to Improve College Savings posted at Money Ning, saying, “A 529 plan can help your college savings tremendously. Check out how the government can help contribute!”

Ryan @ Cash Money Life presents Create a Net Worth Statement posted at Cash Money Life, saying, “How to create a net worth statement and how to use it to improve your financial situation.”

Praveen presents Will Education Follow the Housing Bust? posted at My Simple Trading System, saying, “Tips for students to avoid excessive loans and debt”

Health Care

Patrick @ Military Money presents Open Enrollment Window Open for Some posted at Military Finance Network, saying, “Open enrollment is the only time of the year that many people are able to make changes to their health insurance elections. Make sure you take advantage of this time to select the best health care option for your needs.”

Income

Dividend Tree presents Three Companies with Sustainable Dividends posted at Dividend Tree, saying, “Even in soft economic environment, there are companies out there that are continuing to increase dividends for their shareholders. While dividend increase is good, it is more critical to make sure we understand that companies can sustain their dividends.”

Investing

Consumer Boomer presents Roth IRA Limits: Aged, Contributed, Phased Out, and Converted posted at Consumer Boomer, saying, “Here’s a quick rundown on all the Roth IRA limits: age limits, contribution limits, phaseout limits, and conversion limits.”

ABC presents Short Selling Stocks posted at ABCs of Investing, saying, “A brief explanation of short selling stocks.”

Steve Alexander presents Magic Formula Stock Review: Lender Processing Services (LPS) posted at MagicDiligence – Optimizing Joel Greenblatts Value Stock Strategy, saying, “Lender Processing Services is riding the historic wave of mortgage defaults, and with continuing high rates of late mortgages and a building backlog of foreclosures, business looks good for 2010 as well. But there are some real risks to consider before investing.”

Darwin presents Can a 130/30 Fund Beat the Market? You Bet! posted at Darwin’s Finance, saying, “Never heard of a 130/30 Fund? If not, it’s worth finding out since some of them can actually beat the market on a sustained basis.”

Silicon Valley Blogger presents EverkBank Review: Online Bank For High Yield Investment Accounts posted at The Digerati Life, saying, “There are some great investment opportunities we can take through Everbank. I’ve checked them out and it’s one place I go for foreign currency diversification in lower risk CDs.”

The Smarter Wallet presents How To Trade Stocks Without Risk: Try Virtual Stock Trading Systems posted at The Smarter Wallet, saying, “Use virtual trading systems to learn how to trade stocks without taking risks.”

PT Money presents Starting Up Taxable Investing posted at Prime Time Money, saying, “Why would you ever use a taxable investing account to save for retirement? In this article I discuss some reasons to do so.”

Zach Scheidt presents Mastercard Concerns for a Potential Market Turn posted at ZachStocks, saying, “Mastercard Inc. (MA) is vulnerable to a decline in consumer spending and could also be affected by weakness in regional banks. Consider a short position as the stock shows poor relative strength.”

Steve Alexander presents 5 Reasons Not to Short Sell Stocks – MagicDiligence posted at  Joel Greenblatts Value Stock Strategy, saying, “Could adding a short-selling component to the Magic Formula strategy improve results? It is possible, but there are important arguments for MFI investors to avoid the practice.”

Hussein Sumar presents How to Calculate Return on Invesment (ROI) posted at Accounting, saying, “Return on Invesment as the name suggests is a financial valuation method that determines the percent of return investors are getting from their portfolio of investments. Return on Investment is probably one of the most important ratios that companies need to keep track of in order to determine the viability & continuity of their business.”

Arohan presents Separately Managed Accounts could be a good investment management option | Personal Dividends – Money+Lifestyle posted at Personal Dividends, saying, “Separately managed accounts are a good investment management option for investors with substantial assets providing professional investment management and flexibility. They provide diversification benefits one gets with mutual funds but at the same time have flexibility to direct ones investments according to one’s own personal philosophy and tax situation.”

Jeff Rose presents Building Real Wealth: Small Company Equity posted at Jeff Rose.

MoneyNing presents Investing in Physical Gold Can Cost You posted at Money Ning, saying, “Gold is one thing but buying the physical product will cost you. Here’s why.”

Praveen presents Omnivision Technologies (OVTI) posted at My Simple Trading System, saying, “Discussion of OVTI stock”

Intelligent Speculator presents New leveraged ETF’s to suffer from less erosion? posted at Intelligent Speculator, saying, “volatility can have an important impact on the return of the ETF and as time goes by, the return will not be correlated as much with the underlying index it is intended to track.”

Four Pillars presents Use Your Cell Phone Apps To Manage Your Money posted at Quest For Four Pillars, saying, “Some cell phone apps to help track your finances”

Frank Knight presents Municipal Bond Returns Financial Planning Software, posted at Personal Finance Software, saying, “Municipal bond investments and your state and federal marginal income tax rates: Some investors hold municipal bonds in an attempt to reduce their tax burden. This article discusses the relationships between tax-exempt municipal bonds, bond market returns, marginal tax rates, and investment asset tax location.”

Frank Vertin presents Top 10 Index Funds posted at No Load Mutual Funds, saying, “Useful information on the top ten no load index funds that track the Standard and Poors 500 composite index in terms of lowest costs.”

The Skilled Investor presents Stock Market Timing posted at Personal Investment Management, saying, “Stay invested always in the securities markets to earn risk premiums. You must have your money invested and at risk to get risk premium returns. Jumping out and in or “timing the markets” doesn’t work. Professionals and amateurs are both really lousy at market timing.”

Tushar Mathur presents Can’t Control the Markets? Try controlling the Costs posted at Everything Finance, saying, “As 2008 proved, the financial markets are prone to unpredictable periods of turbulence. That can make investing feel a bit like a roller-coaster ride. The disappointing results that many mutual funds posted in 2008 and at the outset of 2009 may have left you feeling concerned over your financial future. You’re not alone.”

Tomas Escent presents Securities Trading Applications posted at Nerds on Wall Street, saying, “A little artificial intelligence goes a long way on Wall Street. If you give someone a program, you will frustrate them for a day; if you teach them how to program, you will frustrate them for a lifetime.”

BeaBu presents Cut Profits Short and Ride Losses posted at BeaBu.com, saying, “One often quoted investing and trading rule is “Cut your losses short and ride your winners”. While this is a good thing to do in most situations, there are some kinds of market conditions when it’s not as simple as it seems. With finance, no rule is 100%.”

Dividends4Life presents 9 Dividend Stocks Building Future Yield posted at Dividends Value, saying, “Having narrowly missed the tech bubble bursting, I purchased my first dividend stock on December 11, 2003. I had heard dividend investments were supposed to be safer, but knew very little else about the strategy. I was fortunate enough to accidentally buy enough good dividend stocks to learn the “secret” of dividend investing.”

Mike Piper presents Single Premium Immediate Annuity: When and How Much to Buy posted at The Oblivious Investor, saying, “Single Premium Immediate Annuities can be a useful tool for retirement planning. But when and how much should you buy?”

Managing Debt

Sylvia Blake presents American Express Blue Cash Card for Best Cash Back Credit Rewards posted at The Digerati Life, saying, “A review of a great cash back credit card.”

Abigail Perry presents Emergency funds: Yea or nay? posted at I Pick Up Pennies, saying, “The accepted wisdom is that emergency funds are absolutely necessary. But is that true?”

Big Cajun Man presents Do You Have a Financial GPS? posted at Canadian Personal Finance Blog, saying, “Do you need a financial GPS?”

The Smarter Wallet presents myFICO Coupon Code: 26% Discount on FICO Standard posted at The Smarter Wallet, saying, “Discounts on a credit reporting service.”

Sylvia Blake presents myFICO Promotional Code and Review posted at The Digerati Life, saying, “Here’s a review of myFICO products and how to get them for less.”

Keith Morris presents Credit Card Paradox: I Need You To Stop Your Payments posted at LifeTuner, saying, “Of the people who have credit cards, they either pay them off each month, or they don’t. Most of us do. But I’m here to plead for you to stop making your credit card payments each month, so I can keep mine!”

Miscellaneous

Joe Plemon presents People Are Begging for Financial Help. Five Things You Can Do posted at Personal Finance By The Book, saying, “The recession has a positive spin off: people are seeking more financial knowledge. This post gives some ideas of how to reach out and help someone.”

Pasadena Financial Planner presents Mutual Fund Performance posted at Top Mutual Funds, saying, “Compares Vanguard’s actively managed mutual funds and Vanguard’s passively managed index mutual funds. Vanguard investors should read and understand this study.”

Joe Plemon presents Reverse Mortgages Part Four: Should You Get One? posted at Personal Finance By The Book, saying, “This post (part 4 of 4) gets to the crux of the reverse mortgage issue: should you get one?”

Nissim Ziv presents Problem Solving Interview Questions and Answers posted at Job Interview Guide, saying, “When asking problem solving interview questions, the interviewer is trying to get a brief idea on several aspects related to your personality: • Your problem solving and analytic thinking skills. • Your abilities to work in a stressful environment. • How do you cope with complex situations?”

Retirement Planning

Writers Coin presents Getting Fired? Ask One Question to Get Free Money | Wise Bread posted at Wise Bread, saying, “One question can make a world of difference when you get let go from your job.”

Jules Wells presents Retirement Savings Calculator-Retirement Planning Software, posted at Fee-only Financial Planning, saying, “This article helps you understand the trade-offs between “traditional” and “Roth” tax-advantaged retirement plan contributions, including Roth 401k and IRA retirement plans. It helps with the 2010 Roth conversion decision.”

Jeff Rose presents Rules and Limits to Open a SEP IRA posted at Jeff Rose.

The Financial Blogger presents Freedom 75? posted at The Financial Blogger, saying, “Life is full of irony! While my retirement goal is to stop being part of the rat race by 35, we see more and more people working pass the “normal” age of retirement of 65. I must admit that most of us will define themselves according to our job: “Hello Mike, nice to meet you, tell me, what are you doing in life?” A) I am me. B) I am a father. C) I am a passionate man who loves watching hockey, playing golf, blogging, play soccer with my son and making pony tails to my little girl, and.. and.. bla blab la… D) I am a financial planner / web entrepreneur I can tell that most people will answer “D”. So if we define ourselves according to our job, what do we become if we quit working?”

Larry Russell presents Evaluating Roth IRA Conversions posted at Best Personal Financial Planning Software, saying, “Trying to decide about a traditional IRA to Roth IRA conversion without first having a comprehensive lifetime financial plan in place makes absolutely no sense. Without such a plan, you cannot figure out whether or not you are likely to achieve the tax savings in retirement that would warrant paying higher taxes now.”

Madison presents 2010 Roth Conversion Rules posted at My Dollar Plan, saying, “All the rules you need to know about making a Roth conversion this year.”

Risk Management and Insurance

Jeff Rose presents What Happens When a Life Insurance Policy Lapses posted at Jeff Rose, saying, “In case you ever let your life insurance policy lapse, here’s what you need to know.”

Savings

Ryan @ Cash Money Life presents Comparing Money Market and Savings Accounts posted at Cash Money Life, saying, “What is the difference between a money market and savings account, and is one a better option for emergency funds or long term savings?”

Juliana Torres presents 100 Personal Finance Posts Every College Student Needs to Read posted at Career Overview.

KCLau presents Are You Rich in Internal Assets? posted at KCLau’s Money Tips, saying, “pay attention to the internal assets”

Taxes

Consumer Boomer presents Should You Pay Your Tax Bill With Your Credit Card? posted at Consumer Boomer.

GLBL presents How to Properly Prepare for Filing Your Taxes posted at Gather Little By Little, saying, “The main causes of tax filing errors are rushing and not having all necessary tax documents on hand.”

PeakPersonalFinance presents Are You Eligible for These 5 Tax Breaks? posted at Peak Personal Finance, saying, “5 tax breaks you might not be aware of.”

Super Saver presents Being Prepared for an IRS Audit posted at My Wealth Builder, saying, “While the overall chances of being audited are less than 1%, returns with inconsistencies, certain deductions, or specific credits may have a higher chance of being audited. Here are the things I do to be ready for an audit.”

Four Pillars presents How Long Before I Get My Income Tax Refund? posted at Quest For Four Pillars, saying, “A guideline for how long you have to wait for a tax refund.”

Financial Freedom Plan presents Roth IRA Conversion CalculatorPersonal Finance Software, posted at My Financial Freedom Plan, saying, “The Roth tax optimization puzzle for asset conversions, as well as for annual Roth contributions during working years, is one of the most complex decisions that the ridiculously complex US taxation and retirement planning system forces upon individuals.”

That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of Carnival of Financial Planning using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

The Carnival of Financial Planning takes a long-term view of personal financial planning for individuals and families. We focus on efficient and sustainable personal financial planning practices that can lead to lifetime financial security.

This edition is arranged by subject heading, so that you can browse efficiently.

Enjoy!

The Skilled Investor, Editor

Budgeting

ChristianPF presents 7 free budgeting worksheets posted at Money in the Bible | Christian Personal Finance Blog, saying, “These worksheets will help you keep your budget on track…”

Abigail Perry presents Spending: Frustration and irrational guilt posted at i pick up pennies, saying, “Even the strictest budgeter will generally allow for some small treat. But, especially in the middle of debt reduction, even the tiniest indulgence can trigger an overactive guilt complex. How do you cope?”

Barry presents Learn To Survive On A $100 Grocery Budget posted at Associate Money.

Kevin presents Creating a Budget: Start with a Financial Affidavit posted at Surviving the Law School Money Crunch!, saying, “This blog post is about a document which is really helpful in beginning a budget. It is used in Colorado Divorce court, is easy to fill out and requires people to dig deep into their spending habits and finally discover where their money is going. This document is a fantastic worksheet to use when developing a budget!”

Craig Ford presents A Sneak Peak into Our Budgeting Process posted at Money Help For Christians, saying, “Introduces my personal approach to budgeting along with resources and suggestion to help people budget successfully.”

Michael Schindler presents Prepare A Budget & Save Money posted at Your Personal Finance Source, saying, “In order to successfully begin saving money, you must first put together a budget. Developing a budget will allow you to eliminate unnecessary expenses and invest this extra money to reap the benefits of compound interest. Moreover, to ensure that you will consistently save money, you should always first allocate a small percentage of each paycheck towards your savings plan.”

Joshua presents Re-Using For The Family Budget posted at Family and Parenting, saying, “Recycling is not only good for the environment but also good for your family finances.”

kathryn presents Michael Jackson’s Financial Legacy posted at Out of Debt Christian, saying, “There’s no doubt Michael Jackson lived large. With fame hitting at such a young age, fortune was not far behind. Business Week reported that Jackson supposedly spent up to $30 million a year on clothes, travel and toys for the Neverland Ranch. With the artist’s passing, he not only leaves a legacy as the King of Pop, but also a financial legacy that includes millions in debt and two very valuable assets.”

Dorian Wales presents The Personal Financier: Personal Finance Management: Budget vs. Net Worth posted at The Personal Financier, saying, “While it may be recommended to manage both a budget and net-worth sometimes focus leads to better results.”

Patrick @ Cash Money Life presents Free Online Money Management Tools posted at Cash Money Life, saying, “Here are the best free online money management tools, including Mint, Quicken Online, Yodlee, and others.”

Susan Saverton presents Living Expense Tracking Methods posted at Family Financial Planner, saying, “If you do not understand how much you spend and how much you are saving and investing, you simply do not have a financial plan. This situation dramatically increases your family’s long-term financial risk.”

Economics

Finance Tips 101 presents Car Donations ? Knowing The Facts posted at Finance Tips 101.

Roshawn Watson presents The Rich Get Poorer posted at Watson Inc, saying, “The implications of this recent recession have been far-reaching enough to put a big dent in American and world wealth. Both the magnitude of wealth and the number of millionaires decreased profoundly in 2008.”

Dorian Wales presents On Causality and Correlation in Economics posted at The Personal Financier, saying, “Causality is perhaps the most fundamental element of empirical evidence available to economists. However, it is also the source of many misconceptions due to its elusive nature.”

Silver Investor presents Debt Doesn’t Always Mean Inflation: Remember Japan posted at Gold Investing Info, saying, “The mammoth amount of government debt about to be issued does not guarantee inflation is inevitable.”

Financial Planning

MoneyNing presents Side Hustle, Self Employed, Entrepreneurship posted at Money Ning, saying, “There’s really not many overnight success. Work hard and take it one step at a time!”

Silicon Valley Blogger presents What’s The Best Savings Account? posted at The Digerati Life, saying, “Thanks!”

Big Cajun Man presents Mid-Year Personal Finance Check Up posted at Canadian Personal Finance Blog, saying, “Mid year is a good time to go over your plan for the year to see how well you are doing, so do it now!”

KCLau presents Why Robert T. Kiyosaki is a best-selling author? posted at KCLau’s Money Tips, saying, “Robert T. Kiyosaki is the best personal finance author I follow. I started reading his books back in 1999. Although some reviews you found written by readers on Amazon say that he keeps repeating most of the points, I still find them interesting every time. It works as a revision whenever he repeats.”

Susan Saverton presents Efficiency of Personal Investing Strategies posted at Family Financial Planning, saying, “When pursuing optimal financial planning and investing strategies and controlling your costs and capital gains taxes, you also need to establish a time-efficient system to monitor, adjust, and adhere to your financial plan. You need to control and limit the time that you spend on your financial planning, and you need to focus your planning efforts on the most effective activities.”

Ray @ Financial Highway presents Honeymoon Planning Tips posted at Financial Highway, saying, “It’s wedding and honeymoon planning season, here are some tips to make honeymoon planning easier for you.”

Financing a Home

Finance Tips 101 presents Tips To Help You Qualify For A Home Mortgage | Finance Tips 101 posted at Finance Tips 101.

Tallahassee Real Estate presents “My Home Hasn’t Lost Value Like Everybody Else’s!” posted at Tallahassee Real Estate Blog, saying, “Perhaps the greatest thing about the Zillow real estate survey is that we can look at past and current surveys to see the trend of homeowner “consumer confidence” as it is measured using the home as the standard. Not surprisingly, homeowners are much more aware of the depreciation that has occurred in the past two years than they were just last year. But what do they think of their home value versus that of their neighbors?”

Alex Fotopoulos presents When is it Smart to Refinance a Mortgage? posted at My Trader’s Journal, saying, “Some key points to consider when refinancing your home.”

Financing Education

Patrick @ Military Money presents Tax Advantages of 529 Plans posted at Military Finance Network, saying, “Tax advantages for the 529 College Savings plan.”

Praveen presents Students Beware! Colleges, Tuition, Loans, and Debt – Will Education Follow the Housing Bust? posted at My Simple Trading System, saying, “Tips for students to avoid excessive loans and debt”

Chris McClelland presents In the long run, college will end up hurting your savings. posted at Lucrative Investing.

Income

FMF presents Interview Lessons from a Video Contest posted at Free Money Finance, saying, “Learnings from one good and one bad video interview.”

Praveen presents Easy Ways to Generate Cash posted at My Simple Trading System, saying, “Easy ways to generate extra cash”

FMF presents How to Make the Most of a College Degree posted at Free Money Finance, saying, “Do these things to make the most of your college investment.”

MoneyNing presents How to Be a Millionaire posted at Money Ning, saying, “Several ways to become a millionaire is given but more importantly, one way is guaranteed to work (no pun intended).”

Investing

Tushar Mathur presents Can’t Control the Markets? Try controlling the Costs posted at Everything Finance, saying, “As 2008 proved, the financial markets are prone to unpredictable periods of turbulence. That can make investing feel a bit like a roller-coaster ride. The disappointing results that many mutual funds posted in 2008 and at the outset of 2009 may have left you feeling concerned over your financial future. You’re not alone.”

Marc Ryan presents IndependentInvestor.info – Morningstar’s verdict: Canada still last for mutual fund expense level posted at IndependentInvestor.info, saying, “mutual funds, morningstar, self investing, DIY investing, investor”

Puneet Kapoor presents The Art of Selection – Part 2 posted at KuberKhana -Indian Stock Fundamental Analysis, saying, “A discussion on how to select stocks. It has universal appeal.”

The Smarter Wallet presents Use Candlestick Charts, Trading Signals To Evaluate The Stock Market posted at The Smarter Wallet, saying, “We look into how to use candlestick charts to analyze the stock market.”

Tom Escent presents Introduction to Nerds on Wall Street posted at Quantitative Finance, saying, “Think of this book as sort of a Hitchhiker’s Guide to Wired Markets. There are no robots parking cars for six million years, but there are robots trading millions of shares in six milliseconds, so maybe that’s close enough.”

nickel presents Index Mutual Funds vs. Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) posted at fivecentnickel.com, saying, “Taking a closer look at low-cost index mutual funds vs. exchange traded funds (ETFs) that track the same indices.”

Zach Scheidt presents Three Investment Trends Benefiting From Cap and Trade posted at ZachStocks, saying, “Cap and Trade will likely be a negative for the economy as a whole, but there are three primary investment themes which could benefit from this legislation. Alternative Energy, Financial Exchanges, and Construction / Infrastructure.”

Zach Scheidt presents LogMeIn IPO Plans to Raise $67 million – Where Will the Money Go? posted at ZachStocks, saying, “The LogMeIn IPO will raise $67 million for the remote PC access firm. New stock offerings may boost investor confidence, but this offering could prove to be dangerous.”

Frank Vertin presents Just Buy Index Funds Directly posted at Best Index Funds, saying, “Buying an S&P 500 index fund through an investment counselor can substantially increase your initial purchasing costs and and drive up your annual management expense fees. Unfortunately, the vast majority of individual investors buy mutual funds and ETFs through brokers and investment advisers. Rarely do financial advisors recommend that you buy index funds with low fees. This is because low cost, no load mutual funds do not pay them as well as loaded, high fee mutual funds.”.

Alex Fotopoulos presents Moved MON and SLB Options to July Expiration posted at My Trader’s Journal, saying, “Alex posted details of how his options finished this month’s options’ expiration on June 19th.”

ABC presents Some Index Funds and ETFs Are Not Diversified posted at ABCs of Investing, saying, “Some ETFs and index funds are too specific and risky for a passive investor.”

Dividends4Life presents Four Stocks With Strong Dividend Growth Metrics posted at Dividends Value, saying, “When evaluating a company as a potential income investment you look at its calculated fair value, ability to generate cash, debt position and the net present value of its dividend stream compared alternative “safe” investments.”

Mike smmrs johnson presents Financial Planning Your Investments with Money Management posted at System Trading | Stocks Trading Systems.

jim presents Best Options Broker Review posted at Blueprint for Financial Prosperity.

ABC presents Different Types of Stock Market Indexes posted at ABCs of Investing, saying, “How different types of stock market indexes work.”

Dividends4Life presents Nine Stocks Giving Shareholders A Raise In The Second Quarter posted at Dividends Value, saying, “In 1985 took my first job as a staff accountant with a $21,000 annual salary. Now I am over the same department that I was hired into and entry level staff accountants earn $56,500 per year. That equates to a 4.2% annual increase. Just as employees expect an annual raise, so do dividend investors.”

Larry Russell presents 7 Ways to Pick the Best Noload Mutual Funds and ETFs posted at NoLoad Mutual Funds, saying, “Taken as a whole, the vast body of investment research studies show that there really are better approaches to buying and owning mutual funds and ETFs. You do not need to frantically chase fund performance. Performance chasing simply does not work.”

KCLau presents What is the best investment? posted at KCLau’s Money Tips, saying, “The best investment comes in many forms. I was frequently asked this same question over and over again. Let’s see how some successful people answer the same question”

The Skilled Investor presents Most Individual Investors Are Poor Personal Portfolio Managers | Personal Investment Management posted at Personal Investment Manager, saying, “Investors more easily understand investment costs that are directly measurable, such as fees deducted on investment statements. However, many investors ignore or are unaware of the opportunity costs of their sub-optimal investment behaviors. Opportunity costs are usually much more difficult to measure directly, but these investment costs can be even higher than more visible investment fees.”

Managing Debt

Four Pillars presents Balance Transfer Credit Cards – What Are They And Why You Might Want To Get One posted at Quest For Four Pillars, saying, “Some benefits and drawbacks of zero percent balance transfer credit cards.”

Ray @ Financial Highway presents Debt Reduction-Financial Planning Guide Step 10 posted at Financial Highway, saying, “Debt Reduction is the first step in building wealth, here are some strategies that can help you reduce your debt.”

Cindy Morus, The Money Mender presents Did Your Bank Flip You posted at Mend Your Money.com.

Miscellaneous

Jeff Rose presents How To Avoid Investment Fraud posted at Jeff Rose, saying, “Prevent yourself from being taken from another Madoff.”

Tyler Tervooren presents Save $550 a Year by Hypermiling posted at Frugally Green, saying, “If you want to green your life and save money doing it, start with the low-hanging fruit. A few simple changes to your driving habits can net you impressive fuel savings that you can apply to other areas of your life.”

Pinyo presents Gas Guzzler Rebate, Get Cash For Clunkers posted at Moolanomy, saying, “If you are planning to buy or lease a new car, you may want to learn about the new Cash for Clunkers bill and get up to $4,500 instant rebate from your car dealer.”

Noload Bonds presents Bond Mutual Fund Fees posted at Bond Index Funds, saying, “Simply put, if you pay higher bond mutual fund fees, then these bond management expenses tend just to be a deadweight loss to you. The best bond fund buying strategy is to pick only very low-cost no load bond funds.”

kathryn presents The 20 Best Twitter Users To Follow For Money Tips posted at Out of Debt Christian, saying, “Twitter can be a great way to get a regular flow of tips, ideas and information about money, budgeting and investing. But with so many people on Twitter, how do you know who to follow? Check out this list of 20 Twitter people to follow if you’re looking for tweets about money.”

Retirement Planning

Dan at Everydayfinance presents 401K Cuts to Matching Contributions Coming – Time to Exit? posted at Everyday Finance, saying, “This article examines an alarming trend of companies cutting their 401K matching contributions and questions how you’d handle such a move by your company.”

Jeff Rose presents Should you roll over your pension into an IRA? posted at Jeff Rose, saying, “Deciding what to do with your pension? Here are a few items to consider.”

Super Saver presents Planning to Retire Later also has Risks posted at My Wealth Builder, saying, “The option to continue working is no longer easily controlled by the employee.”

Top 10 Index Funds presents Top 10 S&P 500 Index Funds posted at Top 10 Index Funds, saying, “Buy these top 10 very low cost no load S&P 500 index mutual funds directly. You do not have to pay the heavy added expenses of buying through a stock broker, financial adviser, investment adviser, or investment counselor.”

Kristine McKinley presents Don’t Underestimate Social Security When Planning For Retirement posted at Social Security Retirement Income, saying, “Most people underestimate the impact that Social Security will have on their retirement. They either assume it won’t be there for them, or that it won’t be enough to make a difference…”

Savings

Four Pillars presents Benefits Of An Online High Interest Savings Account posted at Quest For Four Pillars, saying, “Analyzing some of the benefits of getting a good rate for an online high interest savings account.”

Patrick @ Cash Money Life presents Ally Bank Review posted at Cash Money Life, saying, “A comprehensive review of Ally Bank – formerly known as GMAC Financial. The high interest rates make Ally a great place to stash your cash while awaiting a better investment opportunity.”

Taxes

Super Saver presents How Taxes are Increasing for the Not-So-Rich posted at My Wealth Builder, saying, “Surprise, it seems that taxes are going up for those that are not-so-rich.”

Patrick @ Military Money presents Disabled Veterans to Receive $250 Stimulus Checks posted at Military Finance Network, saying, “Information about who receives the $250 economic recovery check (or stimulus check), including retirees, social security recipients, railroad retirees, and disabled veterans.”

That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of Carnival of Financial Planning using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

Technorati tags: carnival of financial planning, blog carnival.

Welcome to the March 9, 2009 edition of Festival of Stocks. As the name suggests, this festival is about stock where individuals share different perspective about stocks, analysis, experiences, learning, check lists, and narratives. Each post is a good story, so I would recommend you to take time to read all of the posts.

Michael Haltman presents The Annual Report From The Oracle Of Omaha posted at The Political and Financial Markets Commentator, saying, “By year end, investors of all stripes were bloodied and confused, much as if they were small birds that had strayed into a badminton game. As the year progressed, a series of life-threatening problems within many of the world’s great financial institutions was unveiled. This led to a dysfunctional credit market that in important respects soon turned non-functional. The watchword throughout the country became the creed I saw on restaurant walls when I was young: “In God we trust; all others pay cash.”

Jae Jun presents Johnson & Johnson Rundown posted at Old School Value, saying, “A quick rundown of Johnson and Johnson reveals the company is still in fine shape.”

Brent Mashburn presents Statistical Significance and the Magic Formula posted at luminouslogic.com.

Darwin presents Using Google Search Trends to Exploit Market Moves posted at Darwin’s Finance, saying, “This unique article highlights the method of utilizing Google Search Term Trending in order to exploit future market moves in stocks and commodities.”

Mike presents Dangers Of Leveraged ETFs posted at Bear Market Profits, saying, “The ultra ETFs have more danger than merely the leverage they entail.”

Super Saver presents Inverse (Short) ETF Portfolio Update – 3/7/09, Closed Out All Positions posted at My Wealth Builder, saying, “I closed out all my inverse ETF positions since I believe a bear market rally is coming soon.”

Manshu presents Do not use a Leveraged ETF for Hedging | OneMint posted at OneMint.

Dividends4Life presents Parker Hannifin Corp (PH) Stock Analysis posted at Dividends Value, saying, “Parker-Hannifin Corp is a global maker of industrial pumps, valves and hydraulics. Its products are used in everything from jet engines to trucks and autos and utility turbines. Linked here is a detailed analysis and commentary.”

Steve Alexander presents Why and How to Use Enterprise Value in Evaluating Stocks – MagicDiligence posted at MagicDiligence – Optimizing Joel Greenblatts Value Stock Strategy, saying, “While most stock screens use market capitalization metrics like price-to-earnings and price-to-book, the Magic Formula’s use of enterprise value is a much better choice. The how and why of enterprise value.”

Jeonard Cook presents Learn How to Sell Your Own Home: Advertise like a Pro posted at How to Sell Your Own Home.

KCLau presents Learn Money Tips playing iMafia posted at KCLau’s Money Tips, saying, “About iMafia, an application for iPhone. How it is connected to real life in terms of personal finance and how to play the game.”

David presents A Generation of Risk Aversion? posted at Pimp Your Finances, saying, “Young investors have less to lose money-wise, but we’re also at a delicate and impressionable stage. Many young people will get burned, and some may resort to a lifelong pattern of fear and risk aversion.”

One Family presents Writing Covered Calls against Employer Stock Plan Shares (ESPP, Restricted Stock, and Stock Options) – A Primer posted at One Family’s Blog, saying, “The post explains the steps involved in writing covered calls against stock acquired through employer stock plans.”

Investing School presents What is the Federal Reserve posted at Investing School, saying, “What is the federal reserve and what do they actually do?”

Patrick @ Cash Money Life presents Free Stock Trading and Investing Tools posted at Cash Money Life, saying, “Free stock trading and investing tools to help learn how to make better trades and investments.”

Erika presents Skiing in Spain: the Catalonia Pyrenees posted at Visiting Spanish Speaking Countries, saying, “You have probably heard all about the beaches of Spain; the truth is that Spain is not only all about summertime travel. The country offers a winter wonderland made possible by the Spanish Pyrenees Mountains.”

Debt Wizard presents Making Money Is Easier Than Saving Money posted at Money Help, saying, “If you are trying to firm up your finances, trying to make some extra cash may actually be easier than just saving money.”

Shaun Connell presents 7 Questions to Ask Yourself Before Buying a Car posted at Financial Planning, saying, “You’re spending several thousand dollars of your hard-earned money, so you can’t take the decision lightly. Don’t let a car dealer talk you into buying something you really don’t want and really can’t afford. Instead, ask yourself these questions before you buy the car.”

Insurance Toolbox presents Five Ways to Profit from the Down Economy | Fine-Tuned Finances posted at Fine-Tuned Finances.

Bill Johnson presents Make Money Fast posted at Make Money Fast.

Nesher presents Free trade recorder and equity curve money management system posted at Internet Stock Trading for Beginners.

Jim presents Investment Clubs posted at Blueprint for Financial Prosperity.

Ramis presents Canadian Banks Q1 Review- Why We Are The Best posted at Financial Highway, saying, “Canadian banks are the best capitalized banks in the world currently, a review of the most recent results and a look at how they have managed to survive this financial crisis.”

CreditCardAssist.com presents Things You Must Know About Credit Counseling Agencies posted at Credit Card Assist.

Steve Patterson presents Casinos/Wynn Resorts Ltd. (WYNN) Free Fall Continuing posted at FastSwings.

Jack presents The Battle Against Psystar: What if Apple Lost? posted at Silent Treasure, saying, “What if Apple lost the intellectual right case against Psystar? I see a horrifying scene: Mac Clone becomes legal, the high profit margin vanishes, deadly competition against Microsoft in Operating System market looms, and eventually the competitive edge disappears. Yes it is the worst scenario, but better Apple not lose this case at all.”

The Investor presents Stocks vs corporate bonds posted at Monevator.com, saying, “There are fundamental differences between stocks and bonds that you must understand.”

Brian McKay presents Credit Union CD Rates posted at MonitorBankRates.com, saying, “Credit unions have historically provided their members with higher rates on certificate of deposits and savings accounts.”

Dorian Wales presents The Japanese Banking Crisis of the 1990′s: Are We Facing a Similar Stagnation? posted at The Personal Financier, saying, “What can we learn from the 1990′s Japanese banking crisis and the long slump in the Japanese stock market? Are we facing a similar scenario?”

Sigrid Landau presents What Does The Future Hold For The Big Three Auto Industry? posted at A1 How To, saying, “What is the problem with the Big Three Auto Industry? Are they ever going to make a comeback from, recover from their current funk? Is now the time to take a chance to buy Ford or GM stock?”

Ryan Suenaga presents Tumblin’ Down: How My Model Portfolio Did in February posted at Uncommon Cents.

Silicon Valley Blogger presents The Dow Jones Closed At 6,700. How Do You Feel? posted at The Digerati Life, saying, “Thanks!”

That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of festival of stocks using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

Technorati tags: festival of stocks, blog carnival.

Welcome to the 95th edition of the Carnival of Money Stories. This carnival is about personal stories where individuals shares their personal finance and/or money management experiences, learning, check lists, and narrative of finance related positive attitude.

This is a collection of a diverse set of stories from fellow bloggers. In this diversity, the unity that is reflected is the “positive attitude to resolve issues in personal finance”. In this edition, there were 47 entries of which 34 were selected and are published below. Each post is a good story, so I recommend you to take time to read all of the posts.

Business

• Extraordinary Like Me presents From Rags to Riches…with only £2! posted at Extraordinary Like Me. It is a story of how a humble beginning can grow amazing things – this is the tale of how one man’s dream company grew from just £2 he found on the street, but is now a large and thriving food company in the heart of London…

General

• MoneyNing presents How to Brighten the Path to Prosperity Even in a Dark Tunnel posted at Personal Finance Blog by Money Ning. The way we look at the problem IS the problem. Light up yourself, and you can navigate any dark road. I like the positive attitude.

• Jim shows How to Pick a Financial Adviser or Planner posted at Blueprint for Financial Prosperity.

• Living Almost Large is discussing why Not refinancing posted at LivingAlmostLarge.

• Chris presents Rental Scam That Hits Landlords posted at Financial Reflections. Chris shares a cautionary tale every landlord should hear, based on what his knows from experiences as webmaster of a rental site.

• FIRE Finance discusses pros and cons of online banking in the postAdvantages of Online Banking posted at FIRE Finance.

• Steward’s online banking credentials were compromised and discusses his experience cleaning up the mess in the post Account Compromised: My High Yield Online Savings Account Is No More posted at My Family’s Money.

• MBB summarizes the yield rates of in CDs in the articleTop CD Rates For Certificate Of Deposits posted at Money Blue Book Finance.

• Dorian Wales presents Behavioral Finance in Everyday Life – The Lottery as a Case StudyThe Personal Financier. and is attempting to answer” Is lottery a tax on stupidity or are our flawed psychologies playing another trick on us?”

• David R. Lampsen presents his quest for pizza coupon at In Search of the Perfect Pizza Hut Coupon posted at Personal Finance Analyst.

• RC presents Walking the Fine Line Between Being a Spender and a Saver posted at Think Your Way to Wealth.

• Curt presents Understanding The Economy: Part 3 posted at PennyJobs.com.

• Lauren Rose presents Never Use Copy Paste for Your Credit Card Number and Internet Explorer | No Debt Anymore posted at No Debt Anymore .org. This is a good information post about how your clipboard contents from a copy and paste command can be stolen from the Internet. And that includes your credit card number!

• Middle Man is looking at the brighter side in this story I Can’t Afford It posted at Middle Man. I like the positivity coming out of this article.

Credit

• Silicon Valley Blogger presents Increase Credit Card Savings By Using Debit and Credit Cards Wisely posted at The Digerati Life. The author is sharing stories and experiences on tips with dealing with credit and debit cards.

• Mr. CC shows us When Balance Transfers Go Bad! posted at Ask Mr Credit Card’s Blog.

• Pinyo is telling us FreeCreditReport.com Is NOT Free posted at Moolanomy.

• Shana is in dilemma and is asking Is *Now* a Good Time to (Wisely) Use Credit? posted at Smart Easy Money.
  

Debt

• Dan is discussing Generation Debt: Our Children will Hate Us posted at Darwin’s Finance. The article is a sobering look at how future generations will view us for squandering exceptional opportunities.

• Todd presents The Tax Man Commeth… posted at HarvestingDollars.

• Debt Kid presents The Number One Reason You Can’t Get Out of Debt posted at Debt Kid.

• DR presents What Costs More–A Bounced Check, Credit Card Late Payment Penalty or Payday Loan posted at The Dough Roller. and is debating an intriguing and counterintuitive question “could a payday loan be the least costly option?”

Retirement

• Finance Tips 101 presents Drowning In Debt? Bad Credit Loans May Need To Be Considered! posted at Finance Tips 101.

• Super Saver learnt an important lesion from dad and discusses the story in Lessons from my Dad – Reduce Taxable Income by Contributing To IRAs posted at My Wealth Builder.

Others

• Vera Lang was inspired by cracks in the wall to write a story aboutSubsidence Insurance Risk Increases in the Year of the Ox posted at Be Safe Insure .com.

• J. Money is asking Could you comfortably spend an extra $80 today on a whim? posted at Budgets are Sexy.. and then asks another question “Does your budget allow you to make quick decisions on “extra” expenditures?” Now editor’s question to J Money: Are you a Professor?

• Momma presents Get $10 free from QVC! (totally free stuff from QVC) posted at Engineer a debt free life. and says we love to help others save money as we journey our way out of debt! Here’s how we recently got some totally free stuff from QVC! Nothing beats FREE when you’re trying to get out of debt! Enjoy!

• Amanda presents My 25% Grocery Savings Rule In Action-Part 4-Case Study #1 posted at Value For Your Life.

• The Smarter Wallet is sharing computer shopping experience in Buying A Computer? Check Our Computer Shopping Tips First posted at The Smarter Wallet.

• Patrick @ Cash Money Life is showing us some tips in How to Save Money on Your Homeowner’s Insurance Rates posted at Cash Money Life.

• Miss M presents Family Ties posted at M is for Money.

• Nickel is rejoicing a recent success and discussing it in An Emergency Fund Victory posted at fivecentnickel.com.

• Lisa Spinelli discusses development of passive income stream in Passive Income January, 2009. Goals for February. posted at Greener Pastures.

• Jamie is debating treats and rewards in the context of financial security in Debating Treats and Rewards VS Financial Security posted at zpetals.

Thank you all for taking time to read these posts. I hope you enjoyed this edition of the Carnival of Money Stories. Thanks to everyone who participated in this week’s edition. If you would like to participate again in next edition, you can submit your blog article at the carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on the blog carnival index page.