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• Credit card fees and fine print: What's in your wallet?

  Posted Jul 30 2008, 05:26 AM by Karen Datko
  Filed under: Debt, Banking, Credit, The Dough Roller
  Rating:

  This post comes from partner blog The Dough Roller.

  Credit card companies are masters of marketing. From cash back to travel rewards, and 0% introductory rates to gas rebates, credit card companies have turned a once fledgling industry (remember MasterCharge?) into a multibillion-dollar juggernaut.

  While taking advantage of credit card rewards can be a financial boon, care must be taken that fees and default interest rates do not ensnare us. Let's take a look at those fees and interest rates by examining a popular credit card -- the Discover More card, Wildlife Edition.   Read More...

  Discuss ( 11 comments) 3,633 Views Digg this | Email this | Link to this

• Here's the real deal on Dave Ramsey and debt

  Posted Apr 16 2008, 06:43 AM by Karen Datko
  Filed under: Debt, Banking, Spending, The Dough Roller
  Rating:

  This post comes from partner blog The Dough Roller.

  As much good as he does, Dave Ramsey drives me nuts with his extreme views on debt.

  Ramsey, as he readily admits, did some really stupid things with debt. Leveraged to the hilt on bad real estate deals, he went bust in a way most of us could never imagine. As a real estate investor, my leverage and borrowing comes nowhere near the toxic level Ramsey went to.

  Why? Because Ramsey's personality is one of extremes. Much like an alcoholic, he could not control his use of debt. He got one taste of that leverage, and he was borrowing before noon ever day.

  Dave Ramsey is a recovering debtaholic

  Now he is a recovering debtaholic. Like a recovering alcoholic, he should never borrow again. Why? He just can't handle it. Put Ramsey and debt together, and something really ugly develops.

  OK, fine. But why should that apply to all of us? It's as if a recovering alcoholic were telling the rest of the world never to have a glass of wine. In other words, what works and doesn't work for Ramsey may not apply to everybody else. Of course, there are those who, like Dave, can't control debt and should avoid it just like he does.

  But debt, if used wisely, can greatly improve your finances, can increase your financial freedom in the long run, and can greatly improve your balance sheet.   Read More...

  Discuss ( 76 comments) 19,565 Views Digg this | Email this | Link to this

• Bill collectors calling? Time to notify the phone police

  Posted Feb 12 2008, 01:03 PM by Karen Datko
  Filed under: Debt, Credit, The Dough Roller, Karen Datko
  Rating:

  Our partner blogger The Dough Roller got a phone call from someone claiming to be a bill collector. He said Dough owed on a Capital One credit card. However, Dough and Mrs. Dough have never had a Capital One credit card.

  "The conversation quickly went downhill, and we asked him not to call us again," Dough writes. "His response was classic -- 'What are you going to do, call the phone police?'

  "Yes, that's exactly what I'm going to do," Dough writes, and he explains how.   Read More...

  Discuss (no comments) 697 Views Digg this | Email this | Link to this

• Contracts 101: Big print giveth and fine print taketh away

  Posted Feb 06 2008, 05:24 AM by Karen Datko
  Filed under: Debt, Housing, Spending, The Dough Roller
  Rating:

  This post comes from partner blog The Dough Roller.

  Many years ago I was a buyer for a large pharmaceutical company. My boss had worked at the company for many years and was a man of great experience. As he taught me to negotiate contracts, he constantly reminded me of this one eternal truth: Read the fine print. As he put it, "The big words giveth, and the small words taketh away."

  Well, that advice is as true today as it was 20 years ago.

  Last year I received in the mail an offer for what appeared to be a really low interest rate on a mortgage. The offer was from Countrywide Home Loans, which seemed to me at the time to be a reputable mortgage company. The letter was promoting a "PayOption ARM."

  Here is what the big print giveth:   Read More...

  Discuss (no comments) 549 Views Digg this | Email this | Link to this

• Think like Mr. Spock but act like Captain Kirk

  Posted Jan 09 2008, 06:00 AM by Karen Datko
  Filed under: Investing, Debt, Saving, The Dough Roller
  Rating:

  This post comes from partner blog The Dough Roller.

  

  Sound personal-finance and investing decisions flow from two things -- knowing the numbers and knowing ourselves.

  If we know the numbers but not ourselves, our decisions will look good on a spreadsheet, until our real-world decisions deviate from the plan. If we know ourselves but not the numbers, our decisions may feel right, but will lead us down the wrong path.

  What's the answer? We need to think like Mr. Spock, but act like Captain Kirk. Allow me to explain.   Read More...

  Discuss (no comments) 1,305 Views Digg this | Email this | Link to this