Go Big or Go Home – Why Success Requires Bold Decisions

Posted by The Happy Rock on February 29, 2008

“Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results”

– Albert Einstein

The truth in that little statement is profound. If we truly want to succeed in our financial life and with our life goals in general, we must be willing to fully commit to our dreams. Often we don’t do much more than give lip service to the big things in life. Now, if you are happy have average or slightly better than average results, than go right on doing same things as everyone else. If you keep using those credit cards, leasing cars, buying cars and houses that our over our price range, spending frivulously, and not saving we can expect to end up like everyone else. If you don’t want to end up like everyone else then we need to stop acting like everyone else.

Sell the truck that you have a $20,000 loan on.
Move to a place that will help you accomplish your dreams.
Cut up the credit cards and stop using debt.
Take a second job for a little while to get out of debt faster.
Stop worrying about what people think or how much they have.
Hang out with friends that will challenge you, not bring you down.
Drive a reliable beater.

The list could go on and on and on. Personally, I don’t really care what the exact decision is…but that you are paying attention and making intentional bold decisions to advance you towards your dreams.

What bold decisions have been running from?

Post your recent bold decisions in the comments sections as public declaration and an added level of accountability.

Here are my bold decisions.

» Filed Under About Me, Friends, Living with Purpose, Motivation

Don’t Let Your Credit Card Ruin Your Debt Reduction Progress

Posted by The Happy Rock on February 22, 2008

If you are in debt, you most likely know that access to your credit card is probably what got you there. If you are one of those people, just admit and live with it. It’s ok. Most of us have been there, but the true test is to learn from it.

Many of us get to the point were we are tired of being weighed down by our debt and begin attempting to undo our self inflicted damage. The thing is that most of us try to accomplish this without removing the tool that got us there. Removing the tool doesn’t have to be a forever thing, because the real point of getting out of debt is to change our behavior and our relationship to money. We create true change so that we don’t find ourselves making the same mistakes. In order to change our behavior though, it is often necessary to remove temptation while we regain our strength and perspective.

“But I love my credit card. It’s like a security blanky. What about my reward points? What if I get in a pinch and I need it?”

Sometimes truly important decisions in life require making bold moves. The change in perspective will do wonders for getting out of debt. Instead of riding the roller coasting in and out of debt, it might just change your wealth forever.

If you are really that nervous or don’t think it is necessary, just give it a try. Cut the card up, shred it, whatever. If you really miss the credit card, you can get a new one in a few months. There will always be credit card companies willing to let you use their money to get into debt; it makes them billions not you!

For most I think it will be an eye opening experience, one that might just truly change your life.

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» Filed Under Credit Cards, Debt Elimination

What Happens When Your Wife’s Debit and Credit Cards Get Stolen

Posted by The Happy Rock on February 20, 2008

We found out last night. That’s right, when I opened Quicken last night to reconcile the days transaction I noticed a $1.59 charge from a local Wawa. I consulted with the Rockette and we noticed that her whole purse was missing. Mild panic sets in, and we begin to retrace our days. The purse was most likely stolen from our car while parked outside our condo.

I logged onto the ING Direct website only to notice 4 other posted transaction and about 10 pending transaction that weren’t ours. The charges were the aforementioned Wawa charged for $1.59, $90 from a local Target, 4 iTunes purchases for about $140 dollars, two TWX AOL SERVICE fees for $1.00 each, zubill.com for $29.95, lookuppay.com for $1.95, and 4 gas purchases for $60 dollars. 330 dollars in the span of one day. Luckily I check the account regularly so that I caught the fraud before more was spent.

There were a total of 3 debit cards and one credit card in her wallet. I quickly checked them all. Nothing on our Sunoco Credit Card, nothing on our NJM Bank debit card, and one Bed Bath and Beyond charge for $71 on our Wachovia check card.

The Rockette crawled out of bed, and we began calling all the cards one by one to report them stolen. We were on the phone the longest with ING, but the agent was kind enough to dispute the charges for us. Otherwise you can click on the little icon on the left side of the charge in the Electric Orange register to find out more information. This brings you to a screen with more transaction details where you can find a link to dispute the charge. Wachovia also quickly put in a dispute for the one charge over the phone. The whole process took about 45 minutes to cancel all of the cards.

The one thing that is helpful for people to realize is that you receive the same level of fraud protection with a debit card as you do with a credit card. Visa and Mastercard offer the same protection, except that with a debit card the money is already out of your account while the charges for credit card should be disputed before you have to pay any money. Both Wachovia and ING Electric Orange said they would credit the fraudulent amounts back into the account in a few days while the disputes are going on.

Hopefully, all the disputes clear fine and we don’t have any other issues. Crisis averted with hopefully just mild damage. Protect your wallets!

» Filed Under Credit Cards, ING Electric Orange

Save Money By Always Asking For The Fees To Be Removed

Posted by The Happy Rock on February 18, 2008

It wasn’t long ago that I can remember just complaining whenever I got charged fees by a company not knowing that I could do anything about it. Now I know that the consumer does have power. Every fee or even purchase prices that I come across now get questioned. The old adage of ‘what’s the worst that can happen’ is very appropriate. The company can say ‘NO’, but most likely they won’t.

Here are a few examples from the very recent past :

NJ Division of Taxation – I mentioned that I had a problem with my 2006 NJ taxe s and they wanted to charge me over $300 dollars in penalties and interest. Well, a quick email and then a follow up letter reduced the bill about 72% to under $100 dollars.

Comcast – Installation fees and monthly services costs slashed through one phone call and a threat of cancellation. Call Comcast and save money.

Verizon Late Fee – One quick phone call got a $5.00 late fee removed with no arguing.

Those are just a few examples from the last month or two, but the list includes endless fees that you thought you couldn’t get away from paying including bank charges and credit card fees. Often just asking the clerk at stores if there are any available coupons will get you discounts. The moral of the story is….JUST ASK!!! Don’t be afraid that they may laugh(sometimes they do), but try it, make it habit and you will be pleasantly surprised.

» Filed Under Frugality, Money Savers

Things I Didn’t Think About As A Renter – Top 10 Hidden Home Ownership Costs

Posted by The Happy Rock on February 16, 2008

Our culture constantly bombards us with the message that home ownership is the pinnacle of financial maturity and success. The problem is that there are a lot of factors and costs that are hard to anticipate as a renter. Don’t get me wrong, there are numerous wonderful benefits to home ownership like tax breaks and the freedom to do whatever you want with the property, but it isn’t necessarily the obvious winner over renting.

Below are my top ten hidden costs that I experienced since making the transition from renting:

Property Taxes – They started at $190 a month and are now $278. A 46% increase in 4 years. This is for our 900 square foot condo in South New Jersey.
Association Fees – $100 a month when we started. $200 a month now. A 100% increase in four years.
Sewer Bills – $25 a month
Maintenance Costs – Since we bought a tiny 8 year old house we haven’t much, but things like new faucets and dryer vent cleaning do add up.
Hassle Factor – When the refrigerator breaks as a renter, you call the landlord and it should quickly be replaced at no cost. As an owner you must quickly rush to the store and buy a refrigerator yourself.
Utilities Formerly Covered By Rent – When I was renting we were shielded from the true costs of thing like water and gas, but these can run hundreds of dollars a month depending on the house.
Mortgage Interest and PMI – I know there is a tax write-off, but it is depressing to see 80% of you mortgage payment going to interest. Plus, to get a tax right off you have to give the bank thousands of dollars a year. Giving your money to a charity of choice gets you the same write-off, but your money goes to a good cause. For Private Mortgage Insurance we were paying $50-80 a month, because we didn’t put 20% down. Luckily our house appreciated fast and we were able to get rid of that cost.
Closing Costs – Renters rarely realize how big a check you need to write at closing, often thousands of dollars that isn’t part of your down payment.
Desire To Upgrade and Furnish – When you rent your desire to paint and buy decorations is usually tempered, because you know the place isn’t yours. Once we had our own place, we wanted to paint, decorate, upgrade, and furnish. Often more than once in the same room.
Stuck Factor – With renting you can up and leave at any time. With a house, you have to sell before you can do anything. If the market is down or prices drop, you may even be stuck in your house or have to shell out money at closing to sell it.

Owning a house brings a lot of joy and freedom, but there are definite benefits to renting that often get overlooked when you get enamored with wanting to own a home. I know I didn’t have a good sense of what owning a house entailed. I am glad that we learned these lessons with a small inexpensive house!

» Filed Under Materialism, Real Estate

Free Download : Suze Orman Book Women & Money From Oprah

Posted by The Happy Rock on February 13, 2008

Updated – June 26th 2008

Oprah had Suze Orman on today, June 26th and is offering the free download of Women & Mone y again until 8pm EST on June 27th. Click here to the Oprah site and look for the Women and Money link half way down the page. It is available in English and Spanish.

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Original Post

For those readers like Suze Orman or those who want a free electronic copy of here book Women & Money, click here to head over to the Oprah site and download it before 8 PM Eastern on Thursday February 14th.

» Filed Under Frugality, Women

Free 80 Hour Dual Tuner Series 2 SD Tivo Promotion Through Kidzone

Posted by The Happy Rock on February 9, 2008

Just purchase a one year of service and you will receive brand new 80 hour Series 2 Dual Tuner SD Tivo DVR free of charge. This is not even a free after rebate program, but a free at checkout promotion. The deal calls attention to TiVo KidZone, a service that Tivo created with the help of the Parents TV Council to help tailor you child’s TV viewing habits. For each new purchase using this promotion Tivo will send the Parents TV Council $25.

If you decide to take advantage of the deal, please considering using my email address in the Tivo Rewards referral email section during the sign process. It can viewed as a way to give back for helping you find the deal. It will give me a few Tivo points to spend in their store. Use the email in the TIVO rewards referrer box during signup.

The offer runs from September 20, 2007 to April 5, 2008, or while supplies last. You can view the Tivo deal by clicking here
and the deal terms here

You can even get another $12.50 off by using a cash back rebate service like Mr. Rebates. $10 for the Tivo referral and $2.50 as a sign up bonus, although you can’t cash out until you earn $25 dollars. Just use the above link to sign up, and then go here and follow the instructions. I will cover a review of their services in a future post.

I actually grabbed a free box and a one year subscription on Thursday. Took about 3 days to get here and it is already hooked up and working perfectly. The $10 has already shown up in my Mr. Rebates account.

» Filed Under Money Savers

Excercise For Free – Tips For Inexpensive Workouts

Posted by The Happy Rock on February 6, 2008

Below is a guest post from Brooke. Brooke is a PF blogger over at Dollarfrugal.com, a site for people looking for innovative ideas and encouragement for living frugally. If you like this article, consider checking out her RSS.

Physical health is extremely important and cutting costs shouldn’t be a factor when deciding whether or not to exercise. It’s very simple to break down the ways to exercise, as there are two types of exercise: aerobic and anaerobic. Aerobic is anything involving cardio or an activity that raises the heart rate for a sustained period of time. Anaerobic is weight-bearing activity. Here are some kid-friendly ideas to get you started without costs:

Aerobic

Go for a fast-paced walk or jog. Increase your distance gradually and work in speed drills every couple of days (“I’ll keep up this faster distance for two more light poles”). Once you get fast enough, your kids can probably ride their bikes at a slow enough pace to stay with you.
Jump rope.
Jumping jacks (if you don’t have a rope).
Arrange a pickup game of football with some friends – the more competitive your friends, the better!
Go for a hike at a local state park.
Ride bikes with your kids on a local trail.
Challenge your kids to a run at a local track. I love to challenge my son (10 years) to a 2-lap race. I run regularly, but he doesn’t understand pacing himself. He is pooped by the second lap! ½ mile! Or try teaching them about baton handoffs and see if they can accomplish a good handoff (bring a paper towel tube to practice).
Do your own yardwork/housework. I never did understand how some people pay a gym membership, then pay someone to do their yardwork and housework.
Stairs if you have them in your house. Try just running up and down them twice every time you would normally run up them once. Extra calories! Bleachers work well for this if you have a high school stadium nearby.
Here comes the hard one – go to the mall for a walk and only window shopping. The old people must be doing it for a reason!

Anaerobic

One of the things they can’t take away from you is your body weight! Use it! Do pushups, sit ups, chin-ups on the monkey bars, squats. Be creative!
Check-out a yoga video from your local library. If they don’t have videos, study yoga books (it’s just harder to study yoga books and try to pose while reading!). This suggestion is for the guys too. I’ve never felt so relaxed and strong as after a yoga session.
Repetitive motions while you’re doing other things. If you’re standing at the stove, preparing food, do leg lifts. Holding a glass of water isn’t hard – until you hold it for 10 minutes. Then it’s heavy!
Lift up your kids and carry them around with you. My son is small for his age, but I’m always lifting him up, just to prove to myself that I still can! It’s fun to do curls (bicep curls) holding on to him – he just giggles!
Do pushups or situps every time you enter the house/leave the house or a certain room. Start with ten and build up from there. Your kids will love it!
Do the same as above, but do it every hour on the hour at work. Get up from behind your desk to break the monotony.
Climb a tree with your kids. If you don’t have kids, just climb a tree. Quickest way for me to feel like a kid again!
Do planks, wall-sits and other isometric exercises. Isometric exercises are exercises where you are not moving, but you’re again using your body weight to stress the muscle.
If you know someone that owns a construction or landscaping business, ask if they need a laborer on Saturday mornings. Money + calorie-burning = good!
Do sprints at your local track or on your bike. This article has some good ideas for sprints.

As always, consult your doctor before beginning an exercise regimen.

» Filed Under Fitness, Guest Posts

The Benefits Of A Decent Interest Rate In Your Checking And Savings Accounts

Posted by The Happy Rock on February 2, 2008

Hooray for ING Direct. I made $1000 dollars of income in 2007 with no effort! I just got my tax sheet for my ING accounts and saw that I made $99.77 from interest from my checking account and over $900 from our dozen or so ING savings accounts. I would have made $200 from the Electric Orange account, since my first direct deposit was the first week of June. Not bad at all.

Now, because of the Fed’s willingness to tinker with rates at the drop of a hat, the interest rate on the checking is currently 2.25% and 3.4% for savings. The rate when I signed up was close to 4% for checking and closer to 5% for savings, so I won’t expect to make nearly as much this year. I still can’t argue, since I had been earning nothing on that money for years.

The other side benefit is that transfers between Electric Orange Checking accounts and ING savings accounts are instant, rather than the 2-3 days that it took when I had a linked checking account. So not only am I making money while the deposit sits in my checking account, I am also making money during the 2-3 days while the money used to change hands.

ING Direct is awesome. Best account interface that I have used, perfect stability and a reputable name with a long history. Some people like to chase the best rate; I prefer the simplicity and stability of sticking with a competitive trusted friend.

On a side note, if you have any questions about my ING setup or ING directly, just leave a comment. Also for those that do not yet have an account at ING, you can get $25 free dollars just for opening an account with at least $250. I will also get $10 for the referral. Just Email Me, and I will send you a referral email.