Browse by Tags
-
Posted
Aug 11 2009, 03:17 PM
by
Karen Datko
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
Is there anything an iPhone can't do, except perhaps scrub the toilet (near the toilet bowl is not where you want your phone to be) or take out the trash?
And now, we have to wonder, could smart phones make bank tellers obsolete? (You've seen tellers from time to time, haven't you? Always helpful and smiling despite standing all day long for horrible wages.)
A privately owned bank that has one brick-and-mortar branch but serves mostly U.S. military members around the world has debuted a new feature of its iPhone app that allows customers to deposit paper checks electronically.
You photograph both sides of the check "and once you hit the send button, that image is going into our deposit-taking system as any other check would," Wayne Peacock, a USAA executive vice president, told The New York Times. At that point, you can void the check and shred it.
Many have heralded this advance. Chris Ziegler of engadget wrote, "The problem with banks, you see, is that they're one of the few remaining weak links in our ultimate goal of eliminating all human interaction. ... Fortunately, USAA ... is helping to close that loop with its Deposit@Mobile service."
Read More...
-
Posted
Jul 13 2009, 06:56 AM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
This post comes from J.D. Roth at partner blog Get Rich Slowly.
Beginning this month, Microsoft Money is no longer available for purchase. Microsoft has essentially conceded that there's no demand for the product. From the Web site:
With banks, brokerage firms and Web sites now providing a range of options for managing personal finances, the consumer need for Microsoft Money Plus has changed. After suspending annual updates of Money Plus in 2008, Microsoft is announcing today that we will no longer offer Microsoft Money Plus for purchase after June 30, 2009.
Now that Microsoft has thrown in the towel, where does that leave existing users of Money and Money Plus? Some of them are worried. I've received several e-mails about this recently, including this one from Lee G.: "Microsoft just left us in a lurch by killing Money. Any suggestions on finance software? I'm not really a fan of Quicken, but would entertain it."
First, it's important to note that Microsoft intends to support Money Plus at least through Jan. 31, 2011. Until then, you can still get stock quotes and use the software's bill-pay feature. After that time, the online functions may (read: "probably will") expire. If you're a Microsoft Money user, you still have 18 months to find a replacement. The Money FAQ offers this helpful advice to guide you (Microsoft publishes MSN Money):
A number of online personal finance management and planning tools are available, many for free, on the Web. Other software solutions may be for sale from companies other than Microsoft. For general account information and transactions, your bank Web site may provide the best solution.
It would have been nice if Microsoft had provided a list of these "personal finance management and planning tools." Since they didn't, I spent a couple of hours surveying the current options. Here are 16 powerful personal-finance programs to take the place of Microsoft Money:
Read More...
-
Posted
Jun 09 2009, 06:27 PM
by
Donna Freedman
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
Recently I opened a new checking account to get free money from the bank. Since I had the option to give the account a name I called it "Home," as in "a home of my own."
Did that really make a difference?
Read More...
-
Posted
Apr 01 2009, 08:29 AM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
This post comes from partner blog The Dough Roller.
Lately I've become overwhelmed with clutter. Everything from my office to my home to my finances is filled with unnecessary stuff.
All this stuff creates stress and reduces efficiency. Just the other day my wife and I spent one hour searching for two bills that, as we eventually learned, were at the bottom of a pile of stuff on our kitchen counter. And now I am just plain fed up with all this clutter.
So I've started embracing what Leo Babauta (famed blogger of Zen Habits) calls "The Power of Less." In his new book of the same title, he describes "the fine art of limiting yourself to the essential ... in business and in life."
That's what I'm trying to do, beginning with our finances. Here are 10 tips to help you de-clutter your finances:
Read More...
-
Posted
Mar 31 2009, 08:40 AM
by
Karen Datko
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
This post comes from Jim Wang at partner blog Bargaineering.
Banks offer a lot of services and features. You probably know most of the popular ones. Heck, you probably know most of the not-so-popular ones.
However, I am pretty certain that there is at least one thing on the following list that you didn't know about before. And if I'm wrong, I invite you to look at these "7 unwritten and often forgotten credit card secrets," and hopefully between the two you'll learn something new that will save you some money in these difficult times.
Read More...
-
Posted
Mar 30 2009, 12:56 PM
by
Karen Datko
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
Protecting the Earth can be a complicated issue. For instance, if we require cars to have better gas mileage, won't people drive just as much or even more?
Or how about this: Sometimes the carbon footprint caused by regionally grown food is bigger than that of food that's shipped from halfway around the world.
Nobody wants to pollute if they can avoid it -- and some alternatives to our usual way of doing things are surefire bets. In honor of Earth Day on April 22, consider going paperless for paying bills and getting statements and paychecks. (Read below for additional suggestions.)
The Pay It Green Alliance, a nonprofit sponsored by major banks, provides an easy calculator to find out the impact you would have on the environment by switching away from paper.
Read More...
-
Posted
Mar 23 2009, 12:54 PM
by
Joan Melcher
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
There we were in the crosshairs. We had three hours in which we could still cancel the refinance loan on our house, and an online mortgage entity was making an offer that was difficult to refuse -- a half a percentage point lower than the refinance we had signed two days before.
You might think it was a simple decision. But, as with most refinances, it was anything but that.
Read More...
-
Posted
Feb 23 2009, 08:40 AM
by
Donna Freedman
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
You know you should be building an emergency fund. Yet somehow there's too much month left at the end of your money.
A Smart Spending message board reader posting as "Eek17" suggests a fairly simple way to set aside some cash: Save one hour's pay out of every paycheck.
Read More...
-
Posted
Feb 04 2009, 12:59 PM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
"FFB" at Free From Broke was preaching to the choir when he wrote "9 reasons why you need an online high-yield savings account," although we have to admit our account is only several months old.
Whenever we look at how much interest we've earned, we could kick ourselves. Why didn't we do this several years ago?
In fact, FFB's No. 1 reason for going online with your savings is that "brick-and-mortar interest sucks."
Read More...
-
Posted
Jan 22 2009, 12:41 PM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
Bank of America customers, here's some good news for you: If you paid an overdraft or over-limit fee after using a BofA debit card in recent years, you may be able to apply for $78.
The proposed lawsuit settlement, reported by TopClassActions.com, covers a time period from Dec. 6, 2000, to Dec. 31, 2007. It may also apply to customers of several other banks.
Other details:
Read More...
More Posts Next page »
|
