 Category :: Personal Finance Articles |
Author :: John Campbell  |
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| Article Title :: Stored Value Cards - Prepaid Convenience |
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| You see them everywhere - gift cards, restaurant cards, phone cards and more. These stored value cards (SVCs) electronically store any funds you pay in advance to make a purchase, pay a bill or withdraw money at a later date. They're also very convenient to use.A growing number of consumers simply don't like to carry cash around or write checks anymore. SVCs are an attractive financial alternative to many of these consumers who now prefer to make a majority of payments electronically.Even employers and select government agencies are getting in on the SVC action. Some employers now issue prepaid payroll cards, project cards, corporate travel and inc (read full article) |
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| Category :: Personal Finance Articles |
Author :: John Campbell |
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| Article Title :: Stored Value Cards - A Costly Convenience? |
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| Stored value cards (SVCs) offer a convenient alternative for paying the bills or purchasing goods and services, but this convenience may come at a price. There may be a variety of fees associated with the use of some SVCs that you should be aware of before deciding which card meets your needs.Have you ever withdrawn money from an ATM machine, paid the machine's withdrawal fee, and later discovered you've been hit with an additional and unexpected fee by the issuer of your SVC? If so, you've found out the hard way about one of the many fees you may be charged for some transactions your card may be used for.There may be enrollment fees that (read full article) |
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| Category :: Personal Finance Articles |
Author :: John Campbell |
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| Article Title :: Rise of the Stored Value Card Industry |
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| Since their emergence as the newest product of the financial industry in the early '90s, stored value cards (SVCs) have become the fastest growing financial product on the market.The first SVCs were introduced by select retailers that issued them as gift cards; essentially electronic gift certificates. With a gift card, the only cost to consumers is the exact dollar value of the funds they place on each card. These first SVCs were known as "closed loop" cards, which could only be used to make purchases from the retailer that issued the card. For example, a Sears gift card can only be used at any Sears store worldwide.Other closed loop cards include (read full article) |
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| Category :: Personal Finance Articles |
Author :: Gary Simpson |
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| Article Title :: Money, Money, Money |
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| Money, money, money. No, I am not ripping off Abba's song. Rather, I am trying to get your attention to make some observations about the medium of exchange that we call... money. I guess I have your attention so I will make my points.Most of the population of the world is obsessed with chasing little pieces of paper and little round disks - the thing that represents power and prestige. Money. If you have plenty of those little rectangular paper shapes with numbers on then you are what is called wealthy. If you have few of them then you are poor.Men and women have done all sorts of wonderful things and all sorts of dastardly things to get these pieces of paper. Anything of wo (read full article) |
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| Category :: Personal Finance Articles |
Author :: Andy Warren |
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| Article Title :: What's Your Cappuccino Factor? |
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| You’ve got a secret. It may be a small one but it’s lurking there. It follows you around and you hardly even notice. How do I know? Because we all have one. We all have something that we hardly even think about because it’s become a regular habit.What is it for you? A Medio Latte to give you that kick start every morning? Or a Grande Skinny Cappuccino for that extra zing in the late afternoon? How about that White Chocolate and Raspberry Muffin that you just have to have at eleven o’clock? Or even a copy of the latest celebrity gossip magazine, a bar of chocolate or a pack of cigarettes. If you can find a small habit that you’d be willing to change for the sake o (read full article) |
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| Category :: Personal Finance Articles |
Author :: Bill G. Page |
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| Article Title :: Savings--Feast or Famine? |
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| The average American saves less than 5%. In recent months, the average savings rate for Americans has actually been negative—Americans have spent more than they earned. People in other industrialized nations such as Canada, France, and Japan save 11% to 15%. Just as your individual standard of living will decline in retirement without adequate savings, future generations of Americans will see their standard of living decline if the U.S. economy loses ground against global competition. It requires the efforts of individuals, families, corporations, and government to increase America’s savings rate.In Aesop’s fable about the grasshopper and the ant, the grasshopper ignored th (read full article) |
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| Category :: Personal Finance Articles |
Author :: Terje Ellingsen |
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| Article Title :: Tips For Achieving Financial Independence |
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| Most of us seem to forget one of the most obvious things in our life even though it is that simple; money is only a tool to help us to do what we want, to live out your dreams or goals as far as money can by them. Have you ever considered to live on little money? You can even live well with little money but the biggest benefit of living on a small budget now, is that you will be able to live a life of leisure where you can spend your time and energy doing things that you choose to do within some years. To gain financial independence whether your purpose is retirement planning or another purpose, there is more than one way to go. Roughly there are two ways to obtain it:
Re (read full article) |
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| Category :: Personal Finance Articles |
Author :: Kenneth C. Hoffman |
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| Article Title :: Your Money, My Money |
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| Are you a married couple who fights about money?The old adage that the work fills the time available
is also true with money. No matter how much we have, there is never any left over. More important is the fact that many couples argue about whose money is spent for what. These arguments can turn nasty and divisive.One simple solution is for the couple to agree that no matter who brings the money into the household, it all should go into one kitty. One joint checking account and one joint savings account is all that is needed. The result of this arrangement is a raised awareness of how much money is there to spend and a natural tendency to ask your partner for a willing (read full article) |
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| Category :: Personal Finance Articles |
Author :: Gary Simpson |
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| Article Title :: You, a Millionaire! Why Not? |
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| Look at the annual list of millionaires. Every year several magazines publish the latest list of people whose wealth exceeds $1million.Lately, because the number of people attaining this level has been increasing so quickly, the cut off point has been raised higher and higher. To restrict the numbers to a manageable level the cut off point was last raised to $40 million.Get a copy of the next list. Flip through it. Look for at least one person who is similar in age or has the same general characteristics as you. Look also for the people who have become wealthy by engaging in the same sort of things that interest you. I'll bet you can. Everyone can.Millionaires, even m (read full article) |
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| Category :: Personal Finance Articles |
Author :: John Mussi |
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| Article Title :: Household Budget |
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| Sometimes it can seem as though daily expenses are getting out of control… you know that you should have enough money to cover everything, but it just never seems to work out that way.If your financial situation seems to be getting worse with each passing month, don't despair; with the aid of a household budget you should be able to quickly get things under control again.All that it takes is a little bit of planning and the self-control to stick to the budget.What is a household budget?If you're not entirely sure what a budget is, it's simply a formal plan for the control of a household's expenses and spending. A budget allows you to plan in advance which pay (read full article) |
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