Category: Announcements

I just finished booking a hotel room in downtown Toronto using Priceline.com. I was curious about how Priceline worked and how much money it would save. Unfortunately, I made a mistake when I entering the bids and ended up with an extra hotel room which cost me $116. Oops!

Oh well – I’ll be posting on the experience in a few weeks.

On with the links

Landlord Rescue had a good post called 11 Biggest lies in real estate investing.

Financial Uproar came out with another edition of Hot blogger chicks gone wild.

How to save money asks Is this morally wrong? He bought an item, started using it, noticed the price went down, bought another item at the lower price and then returned the new item with the old (higher) receipt.

Million Dollar Journey had a guest post which explains why a strong loonie doesn’t mean lower prices for imported products.

Larry Swedroe asks if Bill Miller’s stock picks will make you rich. Miller was an “allstar” money manager for about 15 years. Then he was one of the worst managers.

Retire Happy blog has a new allowance/work for pay program for his kids. I really like this idea.

Boomer and Echo is sad because Everyone is going to Vegas except him. 😉

Rob Carrick is Singing the home insurance blues. Rob says that you should change insurance companies every year to save money.

Krystal wrote a great post called It’s your job, but is it your passion? You don’t need the perfect job to have a great life.

I recently found this amusing blog called Spousonomics. It’s hard to describe, but it basically talks about relationships and economics in a very funny way.

Dianne Nice tells How to get good deals on children’s sports. I need to bookmark this one.

Michael James says that the safety of 5-year fixed mortgages is exaggerated. Great post.

Canadian Personal Finance blog says you can call the CRA. I do this all the time – very helpful.

Oblivious Investor shows How to plan for uneven retirement spending.

Canadian Capitalist notes that Home insurance premiums are going up.

And finally – I always thought I had the dullest blog in the world. Apparently, that is not the case.

More links

• Vanguard: What Makes Them Unique?
• This is Why You Can’t Make Money in the Stock Market
• SEP IRA – Contribution Limits and Deadlines
• Increasing Our Extra Mortgage Payments
• Guide For Life After College
• 7 Proven Credit Builders
• The P’s of Evaluating a Financial Advisor
• Where to Keep Your Emergency Fund — Nowadays there are not as many options as in the past for safe investments with moderate returns. But here are a few safe places to create your “rainy day” fund.
• How to File an Amended Tax Return
• Mortgage Applications Rise Even As Rates Inch Up. Is It Time To Buy Or Refinance?
• 10 Best Home Based Businesses
• When is it Best to Itemize Your Taxes?
• How to Negotiate Your Medical and Dental Bills – tips from an insider for saving money on your medical and dental bills.
• What To Do with Your Tax Refund. Ideas for responsibly using your tax refund.

Ok, it’s official – I’m tired of winter and can’t wait for Spring and Summer.

On with the links

Beating the Index had a great analysis of oil in the Middle East and Canadian oil producers.

The Globe & Mail wrote about helping people with agricultural, rather than just giving them food.

Dianne Nice from the Globe & Mail has 6 tips for helping your child learn about money.

Financial Uproar wrote a great post about the beginning of the end for Walmart.

Canadian Financial wonders if the 4% retirement withdrawal rule is all that safe.

Oblivious Investor looks at How much money should I save per year for retirement.

Retire Happy blog says you might need a million dollars to retire, or you might not.

Canadian Capitalist highlights some notes from Berkshire Hathaway annual report.

Boomer and Echo asks Where do you get your financial information?

Larry MacDonald says that Ethanol subsidies are making him hungry.

Tom Drake wrote about Canadian Tax Software Options

Michael James explains why low income people should file tax returns.

Million Dollar Journey’s net worth just keeps going up.

Carnival of Personal Finance

More links

What A Financial Advisor Can And Cannot Do For You
Picking Mutual Funds: Don’t Just Look at the Winners
The Mortgage Tax Deduction Myth
8 Reasons To Use Your Credit Card
Commonly Missed Tax Deductions
How To Teach Kids About Money And Get Results
How to Start a Business with No Money | Want it Bad Enough?
Zions Bank Review
Save Money By Joining a CSA
Spousal Benefits and Social Security Strategies for Married Couples – When it comes to Social Security benefits for a married couple, choosing the right strategy matters.
The Best Airline Miles Credit Cards
Why Chasing Bank Interest Rates is a Waste
Don’t Chase High Dividend Stocks
The Case for Automating your Finances

The good people at Intuit sent me a copy of Quicken Home & Business as well as Quicken Cash Manager, both of which I’m going to give away.

I gave the Home & Business a test run and was quite impressed.  It’s a really good money management software program.  I didn’t try out the Cash Manager, but I’m sure it’s quite wonderful as well.

The Home & Business retails for $109.99 and the Cash Manager retails for $44.99.  Now that I’ve looked up the prices, I’m starting to have second thoughts about giving them away. 😉

The draw is only open to email subscribers. By signing up, you will receive an email containing all future posts from this site.  You can easily unsubscribe any time.

To enter either:

• Sign up for the email subscription and leave a comment on this post.
• If you are already an email subscriber, just leave a comment on this post.  Make sure you use the same email as you used for the email subscription.

Please note – If you have never commented on this site before, there will be a delay in posting the comment.

The contest will close Thursday, March 3 at 8:00 pm EST.  Good luck!

Contest open to Canadian residents only.

Your email is private information and will not be used in any way, shape or form except to deliver the new posts to your inbox.

TurboTax winner

The winner of the big TurboTax draw was none other than the fabulous Amy!  Congrats Amy – May your tax return be very large this year (even if that is an indicator of poor financial management).  😉

On with the links

Canadian Mortgage Trends puts the number of mortgages in arrears into a proper context.

Bob Bly has a complaint about people who want his free time.  I get this all the time – people ask me questions and then don’t even say thanks.

Boomer & Echo determined how much it costs to stage an outdoor hockey game.  Pretty expensive!

Retire Happy had a good article about excessive private banking fees.  I’d argue that business accounts are another cash cow for banks.

Andrew Hallam thinks that we should learn from the Boomers’ mistakes.  Perhaps they just spent too much?

My buddy Kerry let me know about a new Swiss Chalet 24-hour chicken tv channel.  I have to admit – I absolutely love Swiss Chalet and will probably watch it religiously.

Million Dollar Journey wrote about Yield chasing.

Larry MacDonald is thinking of diversifying into the US.

The Oblivious Investor says that Asset Allocation is a sloppy science.

Michael James reviews Gail Vaz-Oxlade’s book – Debt-Free Forever.

My daughter is almost three and likes to repeat pretty much everything she hears. Recently she was watching a dinosaur show where they mentioned “predators in the forest”. Now she keeps warning us of the “creditors in the forest and other meat-eaters too”. 🙂  Ok, maybe you had to be there.

On with the links

Krystal from Give Me Back My Five Bucks lists her 8 favourite financial bloggers. Guess who made the list?

Ever been dangled?  I have.   When someone gets you to do something on the promise of future awards = You’ve been dangled.

Million Dollar Journey had a good post on Canadian stock screeners.

Canadian Capitalist says you can save money by flying out of an American airport if you are traveling to an American city.

Moneyville has some advice about what to do with all that free time in retirement.

Adam Goodman tells about some friends who budgeted $25,000 for their wedding – and spent $60,000.

Boomer and Echo says that inflation rates are not as bad as they seem. I agree – nice to see some reasonable commentary about inflation.

Oblivious Investor wonders if you should you trust financial simulations?

Dakshana Bascaramurtry wrote about silly extended warrantees. Great idea that the price of the warrantee could be indicator of the product reliability.

Michael James doesn’t like currency-hedged US stock funds and ETFs. I completely agree. Note that it also applies to any foreign country, not just the US.

Larry MacDonald hosted a funny quiz to see if you and your spouse are financially compatible.

Retire Happy blog asks if RRIF minimum withdrawals should be lowered? This is a bit of a non-issue, in my opinion, but some seniors would benefit with lower minimums.

The Financial Blogger claims he turned down $250,000. Find out why.

Rob Carrick interviewed the author of Moolala – Why smart people do dumb things with their money.

Dianne Nice from the Globe & Mail says that students need an education in debt repayment.

Investing Thesis hosted the Canadian Investing Carnival.

More links

Children and Allowance: Flat rate or chores based?
Total Bond Market Fund or Treasury Bonds?
Do You Have to Pay Taxes on Unemployment?
Is It Time To Consult A Financial Advisor?
Can You Afford to Stay Home?
Education Tax Credits and Deductions
H&R Block At Home™ Online Tax Software – Review
Determining Asset Allocation by Age
If You Itemize On Your Taxes You Can Now File Your Returns With The IRS
When Will I Get My Tax Refund
IRS Refund Schedule

The good people at TurboTax Canada (formerly QuickTax) have offered to give away a copy of their tax software to one lucky reader of this blog.

This contest is closed!

I’ve used TurboTax and it is very good.  You can do the “interview” mode where the software asks you a pile of questions and will remind you of various information you need.  It will also fill in all the correct forms.  You can also go “old school” and just fill out the forms directly.

This particular software is the standard version which retails for $40.  You can complete up to eight returns.

The draw is only open to email subscribers. By signing up, you will receive an email containing all future posts from this site.

To enter either:

• Sign up for the email subscription and you will automatically be entered in the draw or
• If you are already an email subscriber, just leave a comment on this post.  Make sure you use the same email as you used for the email subscription.

Please note – If you have never commented on this site before, there will be a delay in posting the comment.

The contest will close Thursday, February 17 at 8:00 pm EST.  Good luck!

Your email is private information and will not be used in any way, shape or form except to deliver the new posts to your inbox.

Weight is holding steady at 180.5 pounds this morning. I’m still dieting, but I’ve decided not to be so hard-core. I lost about 10-11 pounds in about 5 weeks. While my methods were effective, they also made life quite miserable for a while.

My fave articles of the week

Reader Mark has a blog where he writes about funny stuff his son says and he also posts lots of cute pics of his brand new twins.

Jeff Opdyke from the Wall Street Journal found out his son’s favourite sport isn’t soccer.   A great read – I suspect that I’ll be writing something similar in 10 years.

On with the links

The Royal Commission on Canadian Financial Literacy released their report this week after 18 years of study:

• Ellen Roseman thinks it is ridiculous that the financial industry is expected to help with financial education.
• Rob Carrick says that more disclosure from financial companies would be educational.
• Gail Vaz-Oxlade knows the key to financial literacy is being able to reach the right people.

Broke Professionals had an interesting story about a house deal that fell through.  It seems that you just can’t trust real estate agents (or sellers).  😉

Mike Piper had a good post about protecting your private computer files.  This is good to know – if someone steals your computer, they will have access to any unprotected data on the hard drive.

Naked Capitalism wrote about the specious logic of Wall Street pay.

Ted Rechtshaffen wrote about how to deal with the sequence of returns problem in retirement.

Michael James says that most investors have a mental block on RRSPs. Very good article and very true.

Young and Thrifty compares TFSA vs RRSP accounts.

Million Dollar Journey has an ETF primer.

My Own Advisor wants to know how much people in their 30’s are contributing to RRSPs.

Retire Happy blog is tired of the RRSP vs TFSA debate and says to just do both of them (and then shut the hell up).  😉

Boomer and Echo says it is tax time. Oh goody!

Canadian Capitalist wonders why some government benefits are not being claimed. I think the government should do more to make sure this doesn’t happen.

Larry MacDonald talks about the T1213 form and how it can improve your cash flow.

Extra links

• Home Security System in Canada
• 7 Money Traps to Avoid — There are plenty of pitfalls that can result in wasting money instead of getting the most out of it. Make sure you are avoiding the following 7 money traps.
• 6 Wealth Building Strategies While Living Paycheck to Paycheck — In order to ensure your future financial house is in order and that you can retire more than comfortably, here are the 6 most common strategies for building wealth that everyday people can incorporate into their existing financial practices.
• How does getting Married Affect My Taxes?
• Investing Life Insurance Proceeds
• How Much Work Is Do-It-Yourself Investing?
• How I Make Money From Blogging: My Top Income Sources
• Roth IRA Conversion Rules 2011
• States Without State Income Taxes
• How Forex Trading Works
• Netflix Free Trial Offer. You can get a free one month trial to Netflix if you are a new customer – great way to save some money!
• IRS E-File Refund Schedule. The IRS publishes a schedule for when it will send out refunds for those who E-Filed their federal tax return.
• 4 Easy Ways to Fund Your Scottrade Account
• Book Review – Your Money Ratios: 8 Simple Tools for Financial Security
• Changes on the 1040 IRS Tax Form this Year…How Does It Affect You?
• Continental Airlines OnePass® Plus Credit Card from Chase – Miles and More – Review
• Bailing Out Family and In-Laws
• New 2011 Tax Rules for eBay Sellers: The 1099K
• You’re In College? Tips To Get A Financial Head Start
• Quick Small Business Tips

I was notified recently by Questrade discount brokerage that they were making a number of improvements to their website and service, effective today (Feb 7, 2011).

The biggest improvement is that you can now see your balances, positions and transactions in the MyQuestrade.com screen. Previously you had to log into the Penson site to see any financial information.

This was a big complaint of mine and many other investors – I’m really glad they are finally fixing it. You still need a separate login to access the trading webpage, so perhaps removing that extra login could be a future project.

Here are some other changes:

• Dividend purchase plan – More stocks and ETFs will be included in this program.
• Account setup will be streamlined – Opening multiple accounts will be much easier. Information you provide for the first new account will be used to pre-populate the application form for any subsequent new accounts.
• New account numbers – This isn’t an improvement (unless you had an unlucky account number), but it’s important to be aware of this. If you use a bill pay function to fund your account, they will have to be modified to reflect the correct account number.

Read my Questrade discount brokerage review.