Hi and welcome to the 180th Carnival of Personal Finance.  This is my first time hosting the Carnival of Personal Finance and I’m excited to do so!    If you are interested in hosting or submitting to the Carnival please check out the website.

My name is LAL and I’m a twenty-something DINK writing about my journey to one day live large.  I write about personal finance in hopes of finding financial freedom.  Please look around and explore the site.  These are a few of the more popular posts so check them out as well:

• Is spending wrong?
• Is $250k/year Rich?
• When a sale isn’t a deal
• Why aren’t we honest?

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…..I would be very grateful! But onto the 180th Carnival of Personal FInance!  This was a huge carnival and I’m tired.  So I decided to put pictures of World Currencies.  I love looking at all the pretty colored money.  It looks like monopoly money.  What do you think about other countries currency?

Editor’s Picks

Of course the US dollar is top of the heap, but is it really?  What is our dollar really worth?  Later on we have many posts discussing the value of the US dollar and the current state of our economy, so check them out.  But these are my favorites of the group at large.

• Dorian Wales from the Personal Financier writes about “Surprising (and Promising) Aspects of the Financial Crisis.” I had no idea our finances affected what sort of Playboy Playmates we liked to look at.  Who’d have thunk?
• Marc from JustThrive from Good to Grow talks about “Note to Friends and Family: I prefer Cash“.  He explains why gift cards cause people to spend more than cash. Personally, I find it’s annoying because the GC are for stores I wouldn’t shop at anyway.
• Chris Holdheide from Stumble Forward asks the question “Can you control your finances or do they control you?”  I think anyone reading this blog or carnival is in control or gaining control of their finances.  You wouldn’t be here educating yourself otherwise.  But it is food for thought.
• Beyond Paycheck from Beyond Paycheck to Paycheck talks about “Traffic and Spending together on the Ones.”  Having lived in Southern California, most people are in complete acceptance of traffic as a way of life.  I like the metaphor using traffic for being stuck in debt, and accepting it as a way of life.
• Kevin from the Red Stapler Chronicles gives us some economic humor in “The 12 days of Christmas During a Recession.”  I can’t believe it’s Christmas already.

Frugal

The Japanese Yen is sort of boring.  But the Japanese have tons of coins instead of bills for up to ~$5.  It’s actually a very frugal move because coins last longer in circulation than bills. I wonder if a $1 coin will catch on in the US?  These posts give you tips to save money this holiday season.

• Kay from Don’t Mess with Taxes talks about “Penny Wise, Pound Foolish Shoppers“.  She talks about an article in the New York Times which discusses how people are trying to save 10 cents on a box of crackers but forget their cable excesses.  I agree, which is why the biggest things to cut are typically rent/mortgage and car payments, before food.  Check out the article.
• Jimmy from Wealth is Boring writes “Reduce your Electric Bill with a Programmable Thermostat“.  He gives great tips on what to look for and which models to consider when installing a programmable thermostat to save on heating costs.
• Andrea from Fools and Sages explains “How to increase your airfare“.  As someone who would have to pay over $1k to go home this holiday, it adds up fast even without all the extras.  The truth is there is a cost to traveling at the holidays that cannot be circumvented.  Ugh.
• Shelley Elmblad from About.com Financial Software Blog gives us the frugal tip “Find Free Shipping or Cheap Shipping“.  She researched and gives us a link to 5 online tools to finding free/cheap shipping this holiday season.  Imperative if you are like me and avoiding the malls.
• Bob Vineyard, CLU from InsureBlog gives us a frugal health insurance tip in “Attention Blue Cross Shoppers“.  He says that you can use your card for discounts at participating providers so check your plan out carefully, though this will not prevent BK in case of major events.
• The Broke Family from BrokeFamily.com shares “Couponing Series Part 1“.  Using coupons they are saving 50% on their grocery bills!  Great job. I wonder though do you spend a lot of time organizing coupons and planning out trips?
• Another frugal couponer Chief Family Officer from Chief Family Officer writes about “A great example of the Power of Couponing.”  I am still wondering what is the cost of multiple store shopping?  I too get tired after a couple of stops.
• Dave from Money Under 30 lists “53 cheap Christmas gift ideas“.  My idea?  Nothing. I asked my friends in college (who are still friends) can we stop gift exchange?  They loved the idea and now 10 years later we still wish each other a Merry Christmas I don’t have to shop except for family.  Nothing is better than cheap.
• Jim from Free by 50 gives us tips for “Saving energy from your Christmas lights display“.  I had no idea there are solar powered Christmas light, cool!  Check out the post for idea.  Thankfully I don’t decorate for Christmas.
• RC from Think Your Way to Wealth gives us leads on “Guide to finding Black Friday Deals Ahead of Time.”  Cool, but I wonder how much shopping people will be doing?

Career

The Chinese Yuan is very pretty and colorful.  Right now it’s a fixed exchange rate, but how much longer?  I wonder when the currency will stop being controlled by the government?  Previously to the Chinese Yuan, there were provincial money, and in the 1920s, the Chinese Government began to nationalize the money.  These next posts are useful if you are job hunting or think you might be soon.

• Broke Grad from Broke Grad Student talks about “Engineers are bringing sexy back.”  He says that instead of finance jobs, engineering is becoming the hot major again.  I have to agree, but engineer has always been the highest paying job with a bachelor’s.
• Hedy from Penny for my Thoughts discusses “Termination Travails – Health Insurance and other benefits“.  Unfortunately she had to pick up COBRA because her new job’s benefits didn’t kick in until the month after she started. This is why insurance should be separate from our jobs, but not individual policies or we could all end up paying an exorbitant cost.
• Kyle from Amatuer Asset Allocator gives us tips for job hunting in “How to write a cover letter that gets you the job.”  A cover letter really is an important part of your application process if you are not being “referred” to job by a contact.  The number one way to get a job is to know someone at the company.
• The Studenomist from Studenomics explains the “Adversity Quotient“.  It’s a person’s ability to bounce back in the face of adversity.  She says the higher it is, the better worker you are because you keep on going.  What do you think?

Money Management

This is a picture of the Swiss Franc. I guess you could call the Swiss the money managers of the world.  They ask no questions and are famous for “Swiss Banking”.  Will this banking crisis affect them and cause them to change their banking laws?  Also it’s the last remaining “franc” issued in Europe, now everyone else is on the Euro.  So be good money managers like the Swiss.

• Sun from The Sun’s Financial Diary talks about “NCUA Insurace is as good as FDIC insurance“.  To be honest I thought it was the same thing.
• Jim from Blueprint for Financial Prosperity lists “13 quick ways to make extra cash“.  I like his list, but this year I’ve heard most stores aren’t hiring seasonal workers because they’ve had so many cuts.   And breaking into a business like dog walking, handyman can be difficult because it’s by word of mouth.
• Ron from The Wisdom Journal continues the money generating theme and writes “7 quick ways to make $500 in 30 day“.  Uh, personally I don’t think I can physically donate plasma twice week. I bruise terribly and every time I donate it looks awful.  I could however eat rice and beans no problem.
• GTE from Getting To Enough documents “Switching from ING Direct to Capital One“.  He’s a better man than me, I let laziness dictate my staying with BofA and HSBC rather than chasing the best interest rates.
• Lise from Frugal in the Fruitlands talks about “Visualizing $10,000 Extra in your life.”  She talks about how she’ll visualize making more money and what she would do if she did.
• Sam from Fix My Personal Finance talks about “How to Boost your Savings“. He suggests getting rid of debt to save.  I think that for some people they aren’t in debt, but can’t save because the problem is too high fixed expenses (rent, mortgage, cable, health insurance, etc) make it impossible to have extra cash, though they aren’t in debt.
• Richard from Student Scrooge asks “Are gift cards a bad idea now?”  I hadn’t even considered that gift cards couldn’t be used.  How can a retailer take the givers money and then not honor it?
• PT from Prime Time Money gives us “2 Reasons people are not saving enough money.”  He says due to lack of automated savings and being too easily accessible. I say it’s because people don’t want to.
• Middle Way from Early Retirement the Middle Way talks about “Wedding Bells”.  She explains the financial reason she got married by an officiant.  I did too, but I also had my “big wedding” a year later.  Weddings aren’t for the couple, it’s for everyone else.
• Ryan Suenaga from Uncommon Cents talks about “the Not-so-easy Part of Personal Finance“.  It is about changing behavior, which definitely isn’t easy, or else I’d be 120 lbs without trying!  LOL.
• Mike from Four Pillars talks about “Financial Education in Schools – Is it realistic?”  He says it’s not.  But I have to argue, when every person in debt says “they had no idea how a credit card worked, or what balancing a checkbook meant”, I’d have to put that down as basic knowledge that should be taught.  If you charge a purchase, you have to pay for it.  Sounds like common sense but it’s not.
• Pete from Bible Money Matters tells us about the “Unintended Consequences of doing a  Budget.”  It has a lot of positive consequences for them including not arguing about money.  I like the term spending plan better because it sounds less constrained.
• Greg Keene from Managing Money God’s Way explains “Developing a Budget with an irregular income.”  He makes the suggestion of prioritizing your debtors. I think you need to set aside the extra income you make some months for months where you don’t make enough.
• Mr TML from Tough Money Love suggests “This year give the gift of Personal Finance Education“.  He says forget consumerism and give your family what they really need, a personal finance education.
• BB from Beating Broke talks about it being “Almost time for a Winter Financial Checkup.”  He says now is the time to review your finances because people tend to overspend at the holidays.  I’d rather not look this year and just not spend.
• Carson Brackney from Personal Finance Analyst compares “Errol Flynn, Gloria Steinem, Psychology, and Personal Finance.”  He says that we all need to get a grip on our financials, but it’s a war for some and a ride for others.
• The Silicon Valley Blogger from The Digerati Life says “Keep your money safe: Online Bank Accounts and More Saving Options.”  She gives us some choices for keeping our money safe.
• Blogging Banks from Blogging banks reminds us “Is your bank FDIC insured?”   There’s a link to the FDIC website to look for your bank.
• Bob from Christian Financial Help gives us the tip “Easy $20 for ING checking customers.”  All you have to do is use your debit card 5 times in November and get $20 in December.
• Hustler from HustlerMoneyBlog gives us the heads up on “Ohio 529 College Advantage $25 Referral Bonus.”  He also says you can earn 2% cash back from HSBC with their weekend credit card.

Taxes

A picture of the Great Britain Pound. The word pound originates dating back to Anglo-Saxon times when they weighed out gold as a measure of currency.  Obviously they were ahead their time.  It’s been said that British pay a lot more taxes than Americans.  Until a British coworker told me it’s really only about 5%.  And that 5% is for universal healthcare.  I wonder what do we pay for healthcare, and I think on average it’s more than 5%.

• MoneyNing from Personal Finance Blog by MoneyNing explains “Dependent Day Care Flexible Spending Account.”  A must read for people with children, it explains how to use Dependent FSA to save on taxes.
• Aryn from Sound Money Matters suggests “Do Year End Tax Prep in November.”  A little planning could save you on penalties in April. I agree, but I do mine before the 1/17/09 deadline for final quarterly estimated tax payments.
• A second reminder from Todd of Harvesting Dollars about year end tax strategies in “Consider Year End Tax Strategies.”  Todd’s reminding us to harvest our capital gain losses to minimize our tax burden.

Credit and Debt

This is a picture of the Euro. It is used in 15 different countries across Europe, and accepted at another 5 countries and has treaties with 6 more countries. So it’s the most widely used.  I can’t help but wonder if we’ll move one day to an international currency?  Will we still have large consumer debt in the US?  Since Europeans have substantially less debt.  These next posts might help you deal with debt as well.

• The Happy Rock from the Happy Rock talks about the “Fundamental Problem with Debt Consolidation.”  He says debt is the symptom of the problem. The problem is the attitude and behavior that got you into debt.
• Intelligent Speculator from Intelligent Speculator talks about “Too Little, Too late for Banks.”  He says the US banks are tightening their credit card lending practices now, and wonders why?  Didn’t they realize sooner that people couldn’t afford their debts and wouldn’t be able to pay them back?  It’s too late he says.
• Mr. CC from Ask Mr. Credit Card talks about “Children and Identity Theft“.  He says children are especially susceptible to ID theft, and you should be monitoring their credit reports as well as your own.  Wowsa.
• Tyler Metzger from Taking Charge explains “How credit card debt motivates me.”  He explains how he’s taking the first steps in managing his money because he’s ashamed of his spending.  Everyone’s gotta start somewhere and sometime.
• Green Panda from Green Panda Treehouse presents “How to Fix your Credit Report and Raise your Credit Score.”  Definitely everyone should check their credit reports once a year and fix errors.
• DR from the Dough Roller gives us a lovely run down of “Small Business Credit Cards Complete Reference Guide.”  Most small businesses run on credit so this is probably a must read for any business owner.
• Fire FInance from Fire Finance gives “Four Quick ways to Build a Strong Credit Score.”  I agree, except maybe you don’t have to monitor your score too much, maybe annually.
• TCT from the Credit Toolbox suggests “The 7th step to repair bad credit?  (don’t do it again).”  He says in order to repair bad credit, you must change your spending habits. I agree, but like dieting, sometimes it takes a few tries to change your lifestyle.
• Debt Freedom Fighter from Discover Debt Freedom talks about “3 simple methods to saving money on your credit card.”  If you pay off your card and pay the bill as soon as it comes, why do you need to use it sparingly?
• Emiley Thacker from The Smarter Wallet suggests “Going Shopping?  Avoid the Layaway Plan.”  She says that fees and lost discounts aren’t worth it, instead save up CASH!  I have to agree, but I think lawaway is better than charging it on a credit card you can’t pay off.
• The Credit Addict from Creditaddict.com gives us the heads up about “Citibank Rate Increase.”  I got the letter but threw it away because I don’t carry a balance, maybe I should have opted out.
• PER from Personal Finance Reviews alerts us to “Discover abruptly canceled Holiday $20 Bonus Promotion.”  I had no idea it was even going on!

Real Estate

Our neighbors to the north, Canada has also has monopoly money currency.  When my DH first moved to the states he would become frustrated that he’d actually have to count money instead of peaking in his wallet and checking out the colours and knowing what he’d have. But color blind Canadians like my roommate saw no benefit to the colour coordination.  Anyway the Canadian government stepped in just as the Canadian banks were starting to get out of control with their mortgage lending. It prevented a large crash, but I’ve heard it ended up just stagnating the market, likely for a long time. I wonder who will get out first, the USA or Canada?

• Dan Melson from Searchlight Crusade explains “You’ve got a great offer, but can the buyer Consummate it? (Cash to close).”  He explains why people with down payment rarely pay above asking price.  Interesting insight into the world of real estate.
• Rob from TWA’s Real Estate Investing School gives us “20 Tips to becoming a more profitable Real Estate Investor“.  I really enjoyed the list, but I think that having a rental that turns a profit is the number one tip.  A property that loses money in rent is a losing proposition.
• J. Money from Budgets are Sexy talks about foreclosures hitting home in “So last night I hear that a neighbor was just foreclosed upon.”  He is cursing that irresponsible neighbors are driving down his prices.  So what should we do?  Is she someone who walked away because she could or was driven from it?
• Clint from Accumulating Money gives us the lowdown on “Reverse Mortgage Information.”  Like I’ve said, it’s not a great product but there is a market for it.  People who failed to save for retirement but refuse to acknowledge that and move out of their homes.

Investing

This is a picture of the Brazilian Real. I have never this currency before and thought it cool.  Also right now I’m still investing internationally, and Brazil and South America is one of the places I like better than Europe. I think that Europe is in the same trouble the US is in with credit, but the emerging markets, there is less credit and banking problems because it isn’t fully established yet.

• The Financial Blogger from the Financial Blogger asks “Is it time to celebrate for Yahoo?”  He says the resignation of CEO Terry Yang stimulated an increase in the market value of Yahoo.  Does this mean it’s time invest and jump on board?  He says wait until the next CEO is announced.
• InvestingSchool from Investing School explains the basic investing concept “Price to Earnings Ratio“.  This is typically the first ratio investors look at when deciding to invest.  So go on by to refresh your knowledge.
• Dividend Growth Investor from Dividend Growth Investor asks the question “Is negative dividend news good for the stock price?”  He investigates the market inefficiencies to determine if dividend paying stocks that cut or freeze dividends drop in price.  I’d say yes, but I’m not a dividend investor.
• D4L from Dividends4Life explains how to “Measure Dividend Stock Investment Risk Profile“.  He weights each individual stock by it’s qualitative risk and ranking.  I think that dividend paying stocks are nice, but when investing in individual stocks I prefer to be riskier and leave dividends more to my bonds.
• ABC from ABCs of Investing explains “Target Retirement Funds.”  A must read for newbie investors. It’ll gives you an idea if a target fund is for you.
• Dan from Everyday Finances asks if it’s “Time to make a Killing in Ford/GM Bonds?”  He suggests that now might be the time while the Big 3 are in junk bond status.  Potentially you could quadruple your money, or end up broke in bankruptcy.  Which side do you bet on?
• Ben from Money Smart Life reviews “Trade King: an Online Brokerage Review.”  I’m tempted to move from Firstrade, but my DH refuses to keep chasing the “cheapest” brokerage and prefers to stay put.  What do you think?
• Paul Williams from Crackerjack Greenback present “What Does a Diversified Portfolio Look Like?” This article discusses what a diversified portfolio looks like and talks about how you can use Vanguard to set up such a portfolio. I like the fact he discusses a properly allocated porfolio looks like and can still be cheap, ie $135/year in fees.

Economy

This is a picture of the Lira.  Our neighbors went to Italy this year and brought back a $1 Lira. It is currently mainly used in the middle East like Turkey, Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan.  I wonder why they haven’t switched to the Euro?  But maybe with the state of the European Economy it’s better to have not because otherwise their currency would be majorly devalued.

• Nickel from FiveCentNickel gives us “Ted Turner’s take on the Economy.”  He says why bailout companies they’ll just run through it quicker. And he says that we’ve been living beyond our means for a long time.  Problem is consumer spending drives our economy.
• Junger from Online Savings Blog talks about “the Violent Demise of the US Dollar“. He says that savings is the key to getting out of our financial predicament.  If only.
• PFincome from Passive Family Incomes asks “Should we let General Motors Fail?”  They are in favor because of personal relationships with the auto industry.  And yet even the author admits there are major problems in the current system.
• VH from Funny about Money asks “Is frugality unAmerican?”  Yes, that’s what drives our economy, consumer spending. I am not sure if we know how to curb it and what would really happen if we did.
• Andy from Saving to Invest suggests “Things should get better by 2010.”  He has a cool graph of the OECD economic predictions for the next 2 years, and ask if we agree. I think by the end of 2009 we might be stabilizing all economies.
• My Journey from My Journey to Millions talks about why “A second stimulus package won’t solve your problems.”  I agree.  But perhaps for the majority of people earning the median salary of $48k, it could make a difference.  What do you think?>
• Matt from American Consumer News talks about “Economic Woes causing Consumers to rethink credit choices.”  He says everyone is becoming a more savvy consumer, and loans are still out there for people with “good credit”.
• Lisa Spinelli from Greener Pastures asks “Freddie Mac…When are you coming back?”  She says that the new bailout program starts December 15th, so maybe they can make loans in the new year?

Miscellaneous

Finally the Russian Ruble. Has anyone seen this?  I just thought it cool because the ruble used to be used throughout the Russian empire.  However with the splitting up of the Russian Federation, some have turned to the Euro instead.

• Cap from StopBuyingCrap.com reviews the “website Quizzle.” It looks like a cool site with free credit report and score, home valuation, etc.  I will check it out later when I have more time.
• Brooke from Dollar Frugal asks the question “Is school lunch worth it?” Paying $2 for lunch that looks like that, NO WAY!  I have no idea how to get your kid a warm lunch, but Yuck.
• FMF from Free Money Finances asks “Do you tip for takeout?”  It seems to have stimulated a large number of commentors on both sides of the issue.  Where do you stand?
• As a followup to FMF’s question, David G Mitchell from Saving Advice talks about “My Tipping Philosophy.”  He does not tip for takeout to answer FMF’s question.  And I too have noticed an increase in tipping expectations, what’s up with that?

Thanks for coming by to visit the carnival, I hope you had a great time. Be sure to enter to win Killing Sacred Cows by leaving a comment as well by Wednesday Evening!  I’m hosting next week’s Festival of Frugality, so please submit a post.  Also please stop by again or subscribe to my blog via RSS or E-mail.