There was a thought-provoking NYT article about luxuries last week that pointed to a 2006 report by the Pew Research center that surveyed Americans on what they considered "necessities" versus "luxuries". Some things have become more accepted as … [Read the rest]
Daily deals site KGBDeals has a national deal of 2 Fandango.com movie tickets for $12. Each ticket has a maximum value of $12 (total $24). Supposedly has 13 days left, but with over 9,000 sold it may sell out. Valid until January 31, 2012 and … [Read the rest]
In addition to the $25 statement credit for American Express cardholders, FedEx has a separate promotion where they will be giving out $25 "Shop Small" AmEx gift cards in support of Small Business Saturday through a Facebook promotion. You'll need … [Read the rest]
Update: Also check out the Citi Forward® Card for College Students. As I was reminded in my best cash back credit cards post, the Citi Forward card is a great rewards card for those who spend a lot on restaurants and at Amazon.com. That's not … [Read the rest]
New inflation numbers are out for September 2011, so it’s time for the usual semi-annual update. New Inflation Rate. March 2011 CPI-U was 223.467. September 2011 CPI-U was 226.889, for a semi-annual increase of 1.53%. (CPI-U increased 3.9% … [Read the rest]
As you may know, there is a temporary 2% payroll tax cut in 2011. Instead of the normal 6.2% Social Security tax on gross wages up $106,800 for employees, it is only 4.2%. This is supposed to be reflected automatically in your paycheck, so most … [Read the rest]
There was plenty of discussion on simplifying the US budget to household-sized numbers, and I have nothing to add, because I have zero interest in being an economist. :) Here's one more attempt at sharing some digestible information. An … [Read the rest]
Someone sent this to me via e-mail, and I don't know the original source. From the $38.5 trillion number, that seems to refer to the budget cut deal that averted a US government shutdown in April 2011. In any case, it does make the numbers much … [Read the rest]
Citi Double Cash 2% cash back. Specifically 1% cash back when you buy + 1% cash back when you pay. No annual fee. Bank of America Travel Rewards Card Up to 2.625% cash back when redeemed towards travel. This requires Platinum … [Read the rest]
TripAlertz.com is a new site that is basically like Groupon for travel, even though Groupon already does travel. The refer-a-friend program works in that the referring person gets $10 for referring a new user. Here is my TripAlertz sign-up link. … [Read the rest]
I've enjoyed every Michael Lewis book that I've read, from Liar's Poker to Moneyball to The Blind Side. Reading his writing is as easy as listening to a great storyteller, making the most mundane subjects interesting. I've been hearing about his … [Read the rest]
Last week, the average rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage fell below 4% for the first time in recorded history. Why? The Federal Reserve and the US Government. Check out this chart that breaks down the source of new mortgage originations … [Read the rest]
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