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Posted
Jan 23 2008, 05:56 AM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
This post comes from partner blogger The Dough Roller. Would you cash a 35-cent check? Two days ago I wouldn't have known the answer to that question. Now I do, and, I'm sorry to say, the answer for me is yes. Yesterday I spent 30 minutes traveling to my bank and back to cash a 35-cent check. Here's the story and what I plan to do with my spoils. Two weeks ago I received a letter from my health insurance carrier. Excited to be receiving an unexpected check, I tore into the envelope and retrieved a check written out to me for the grand sum of $0.35. I went to chuck the check into the trash bin, but some unknown and unseen force held me back.
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Posted
Oct 09 2008, 11:36 AM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
People are more than a little miffed about the weeklong hoedown AIG held for independent life insurance agents days after the government threw the company an $85 billion lifeline. More details about the gathering at the palatial St. Regis Monarch Beach Resort came out the same day the government extended a second loan, for $37.8 billion, to the massive -- and massively troubled -- insurance company. Total taxpayer bailout so far: $122.8 billion. Total cost of fun-filled week at super-posh California resort: $443,344. But get this: Despite the public outrage, AIG was going to proceed with similar get-togethers as planned.
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Posted
Jul 25 2008, 12:49 PM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
We've read about how more people are running out of gas on their way to wherever. Were they short on money for gas, or were they employing one of Punny Money's "5 incredibly stupid ways people are trying to save money on gas"? The fact is, with gas at more than $4 a gallon, auto clubs all over the country are reporting an increase in calls from stranded travelers. Some truly didn't have enough money for gas. "A select few morons are even running out of fuel on purpose -- just to get that free gallon of gas their automotive club or roadside-assistance program provides to get them going again," writes Nick at Punny Money. He's right.
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Posted
Sep 05 2008, 04:17 PM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
There's an interesting debate going on at Prime Time Money about whether it's smarter to buy a new or used car. Right now, used seems to be winning. What do you think? Before you jump in, read the exchange between "PT" and contributor "J." It's instructional and highly amusing. PT also gives great tips to use whether you're buying a new or used car. Here's a serious part, with J arguing for a new car: PRO (J): Interest rate of 1.9%.
CON (PT): The rate may be low but your monthly payment is almost certainly going to be much higher. Not to mention off-the-lot depreciation. That's money you could be using for retirement savings or your kid's education.
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Posted
Nov 05 2008, 12:51 PM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
If you're one of those people who buy individual health insurance because your employer doesn't provide coverage or you work for yourself, this news may come as a shock: Women pay much more for individual health insurance than do men of the same age. A New York Times story reported that the gap is often more than 30% and in some cases almost 50%. We're talking about identical coverage, not including the extra women have to pay for maternity care. We're comparing apples to apples. "F.F." wrote in a thoughtful post at Feminist Finance, "And no one seems to have a very good explanation of why that might be."
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Posted
Sep 23 2008, 02:21 PM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
Here's a heart-wrenching question many pet owners have to face: How much would you spend to save the life of your pet? "Free Money Finance" asked his readers that question after reading a Wall Street Journal column about the issue. Like the pet owners mentioned in the column, some of FMF's readers set a (shocking to us) limit of $100 or so. Others said they would spend $10,000 or more -- if the treatment provided an acceptable quality of life.
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Posted
Sep 10 2008, 12:14 PM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
Two encounters with illness have cost David of My Two Dollars and his wife nearly $10,000 out-of-pocket so far this year, and that's not including the $320 a month they were paying for health insurance premiums. Health care is a huge personal-finance topic, but PF bloggers rarely write about it -- unless it hits close to home. Luckily, David and his wife were able to absorb the unanticipated expenses. But, he wonders, what about people who can't?
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Posted
Sep 05 2008, 10:19 AM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
I.C. Jackson's experience with unemployment benefits is enough to make anyone cringe. After she lost her job, she took her mother's advice and applied for benefits -- even though she had been fired for being chronically late. Her claim was approved. Months later, her former employer apparently won an appeal. "I was ordered to pay back every dime of a benefit that I was told legally belonged to me," I.C. wrote at Debt Blog. "... Who knew that just like buckshot spraying from a barrel, applying for unemployment benefits could blow up in your face?"
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Posted
Apr 17 2008, 06:15 AM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
This post comes from Nora Dunn at partner blog Wise Bread. There are a number of ways to stretch your dollars simply by rearranging your finances. Here are 11 tips to help you find some extra money. Change your withholding tax. If you typically receive a tax refund each year, ask your employer to reduce the amount of tax withheld from your paychecks. I know, I know. You like getting those fat checks at tax time each year. But in reality it's an interest-free loan to the government. Your money is much better in your own pocket, thank you very much. Reduce interest rates on your debt. As cited in a previous article, if you ask for a discount by calling your credit card company, you often will receive one. This also applies to other loans. If you happen to be drowning in your finances, you can call creditors and explain your situation, and they can make concessions for you. If the agent you are talking to can't do it, politely ask for the manager, who has more clout for granting rate discounts. Refinance your car loan. If your car is less than five years old, and you got your loan through a dealer, you may be able to do better. A Web site like Bankrate.com can help you find the best loan rates in your area, and Kelley Blue Book will give you a dollar value for your car.
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Posted
Sep 28 2009, 01:59 PM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
A new Harvard study estimates that nearly 45,000 Americans die each year because they don't have health insurance -- and that's after other factors like income and unhealthy behaviors are taken into account.
"Deaths associated with lack of health insurance now exceed those caused by many common killers such as kidney disease," an article by the Cambridge Health Alliance reports.
The study says the uninsured have a 40% higher risk of death than people who have private health insurance -- like the insurance you get through your job. Or, to put it another way, a person dies because of a lack of insurance every 12 minutes.
Of course, some people neglect their health. But many, we suspect, don't see a doctor because they're afraid of the cost. Doctor visits and tests can add up to an intimidating amount, even if you're uninsured but have a good income. A CNN story put a human face on some of these avoidable deaths -- a freelance cameraman, a self-employed mother of two, and a 25-year-old woman who worked in a movie theater.
So we had to wonder: Have you put off visits to the doctor because of financial considerations?
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