My Favorite Personal Finance Posts This Week

Here are some of my favorite posts from the Personal Finance World this week:

These two posts are two of my favorites, because it shows that with a little education, a little luck, and a lot of hard work and dedication, anyone can meet their goals and improve their financial situation. Here are two Personal Finance bloggers who just reached very significant milestones:

Tricia from Blogging Away Debt - Credit…Card…Debt..Under… : Tricia just reached a very important milestone on her journey out of credit card debt – she just paid down another card and her total is under $20k for the first time. Congrats, Tricia, and good luck knocking down the rest of it!
Flexo from Consumerism Commentary – I’ve Surpassed My First Significant Milestone: Flexo reached a net worth of over $100,000 for the first time! Congrats Flexo! He has set his next net worth milestone markers at $250k, $500k, and $1,000,000. (I just wanted to type that last number in its entirety, because it looks so pretty. ) Flexo also has milestones for eliminating all debt and reaching $100k in retirement funds. Way to go, and good luck reaching your milestones!

Here are some more articles that I recommend:

My Money Blog - Subprime Mortgage Troubles Caused by Both Bad Lenders and Bad Brrowers, and Mighty Bargain Hunter – Borrowing One’s Way to Prosperity Doesn’t Work: Johnathan from My Money Blog and MBH highlight an article from the Wall Street Journal where the subjects are facing foreclosure on their home and blame the bank for their problems. Yes some of the loans were subprime loans and now the rates have dramatically increased. But were the loans even necessary in the first place? Read the article then ask yourself a few important questions: When faced with a declining and uncertain job market, should you do a $20,000 kitchen remodel, drive a luxury SUV, and install a koi pond in your backyard?
Consumerism Commentary – 5 Good Reasons to Avoid Debit Cards: Flexo gives us a few reasons why people shouldn’t use debit cards, but mostly it comes down to freeing up funds, protection, and rewards. More and more, I am beginning to think along these lines, even though I recently wrote a post supporting debit card use: Debit Cards – Take Them or Leave Them? I still think debit cards are good for those with a lot of credit card debt or no credit history, but credit cards do have their advantages. Read Flexo’s post for more info.
Blueprint for Financial Prosperity – If You Won the Lottery Would You Tell Anyone?: Jim asks this question and elicits a broad range of responses. Personally, I would avoid telling most people, they just don’t need to know. I recommend reading his post to see how others feel.
Five Cent Nickel – Bill Me Later: Nickel writes about how many on-line companies are offering their customers the opportunity to make purchases on-line and instead of paying right then with a credit card, they receive a paper bill in the mail. They do this because many people are concerned about making credit card transactions on-line. Sounds good right? Actually, the site requests your social security number and other information, then opens a credit line with their company. Read the articles for the details, but in my opinion, it’s not a very good deal for the consumer.