Want a low cost geek hobby? Build your own Transformers costumes and then participate in contests! For some reason I found the video extremely hilarious. Although the Optimus Prime costume at the end is pretty cool.
Apr 182007
Last month I got 3 checks from Chase totaling $50. Two Chase fraud detector checks at $20 and one payment protector at $10. I read the terms and decide if it’s a free trial, it’s basically free money if I cancel within 30 days. Even if I forget to cancel in 30 days, the cost of these plans per month is less than the check they give so you still slightly profit if you forget to cancel after 30 days.
I figured it would be a big hassle to cancel but I called Chase Fraud Detector at 1-800-774-8414 and waited on hold about 30 seconds. I then had to sit through a speech about great Fraud Detector was and how I’m a bozo if I don’t keep it. Just keep repeating “no thanks” and you should be fine. The CSR cancelled both my accounts and I should be receiving two cancellation letters soon. I then called Chase Payment Protector at 1-888-314-4371 and guess what? No sales pitch about why I should keep the program. They just asked why I wanted to cancel and I said I don’t carry the balance so there’s no point in keeping it.
Seeing how easy the free money was, I wished I didn’t throw away all those other checks from Citi and previous Chase checks.
Apr 162007
Fresh Monday gooodies.
Zillow is banned from giving Zestimates in Arizona by the state regulatory board citing lack of appraisal license. I think it’s idiotic as Zestimates are automated as Zillow says and people don’t use Zillow in favor of a formal appraisal.
An article over at Slate entitled “Spend Every Dime!” which attempts to explain why US Tax Policy makes savings a sucker’s game. Personally I disagree with this sentiment as people who DO save come out ahead.
CNN Money finally stopped putting articles about million dollar cars and accessories in the personal finance section and rightfully put them in the new luxury section.
CNN Money has another ridiculous “Millionaires in the making” story about a couple with no kids, living in Texas, and makes a combined $145,000 in income plus $40,000 in bonuses. How about a story where the couple makes less than the median income and are on the path to being millionaires?
Golbguru writes “Yes, there are educated people that think like this” in that even some “educated” people lack personal finance basics. It really goes to show you common sense isn’t always common knowledge.
Carnivals, Festivals, etc.
The Carnival of Money, Growth & Happiness #2
In my total history of being on eBay, I’ve sold about 50 items and maintained a 100% feedback rating. However, in several months, I plan to list tons of stuff on eBay and I’m afraid having a low total number of feedback will hurt me even though it’s 100% positive.
So my plan is to sell an ebook for 1 cent. The ebook explains the premise of why sellers do 1 cent listings (basically for positive feedback). Everyone that purchases the ebook and leaves positive feedback will receive positive feedback in return. Please note that I’m not making ANY money off of this as eBay listing fees and PayPal fees will eat into all sales. I will come out slightly negative but the point is to gain feedback. You might enjoy the entertaining reading material too. It’ll only cost you a penny for a positive feedback on eBay and you’ll be helping out this college kid with his small business ventures. Buy the ebook for $0.01.
This is an update in my million miles quest.
I finally got my UFB Direct account kit in the mail on Monday. I added the accounts to PayPal and verified them yesterday. The next step is to send in the signature form and deposit $200 into each of the accounts. I should then get credited 1,000 miles for each account.
Here’s how I can earn more miles for the mileage checking.
For an additional 5,000 miles I’ll have to use the bill pay service for 12 months.
For an additional 5,000 miles I’ll have to maintain 3 months of direct deposit.
For the mileage savings I’ll have to maintain 3 months of direct deposit to earn an addition 5,000 miles.
I think the best solution here is to use PayPal to push as a direct deposit for 3 months and see if the 12 months of bill pay can be done without much hassle.
I found another deal on Gummy Worms and Trail Mixes courtesy of Find That Discount!.
I ordered a case (12 packs) of Harmony Sour Gummy Worms and the trail mix for all those hours I spend on the internet trail.
Apr 122007
This week’s edition of “money lessons” is about the difference between being cheap and being frugal.
Being “frugal” and being “cheap” to me are two different things. Here’s how I define each of them:
In being frugal you make responsible choices with your money with the goal of getting the most for your money. However, you don’t mind spending money on those you care about and for enjoyment of life. You’re able to separate your needs from your unnecessary wants.
In being cheap you’re a miser when it comes to everything. When you give people rides in your car you demand they pay you for gas. People would describe you as stingy. Your saving money sometimes comes at the expense of others.
The difference between being frugal and cheap can be seen in this example: Say you only have $10 on you and you go out to eat with a group of people. The entre costs $8 and soda costs $2. A frugal person would order the entre and have a glass of water so they can chip in $10 to cover tax and tip. A cheap person would order the entre and glass of water and pay only $8 and let others pick up the tax and tip.
My parents are the best frugal people I can think of. They drive a 10 year old car, pack their own lunches, etc. However, whenever we go out to eat for any occasion, they always offer to foot the bill and don’t mind doing so at all. They always want to go on family vacations and don’t mind spending money on those things. They donate a healthy portion of their income to charity. The one thing they hardly ever do is buy new clothes for themselves. They feel it’s an unnecessary expense when the clothes they have are perfectly fine.
Being frugal is saving money and building wealth without being a miser. I wasn’t always a frugal person. I use to blow my money recklessly on things I didn’t need at all. I look back on those high school days and regret doing a lot of those things. The worst part of it all? Blowing money on expensive gadgets, clothes, etc. didn’t really contribute to my enjoyment of life all that much. I would’ve been perfectly happy without all those things. I would’ve had a higher net worth too. I earned thousands of dollars in part time jobs during high school and I had nothing to show for it.
So why did I choose to change my reckless spending ways? Because I wanted to get a head start on my life. By giving up unnecessary expenses (clothing purchases, latest gadgets, etc.) and keeping other expenses (hanging out with friends, netflix, etc.) I could still enjoy my youth but build some net worth at the same time. I also figured that at this point in my life, where I have no real expenses (no mortgage, no kids, etc.), would be the easiest time to start. If I started on the path of getting money to work for me, I wouldn’t have to work for money my entire life.
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“Money Lessons” is a series of posts published every wednesday on various subjects that detail what I’ve learned or how I view that certain subject. View all “Money Lessons” posts.
Cluj wrote:
I read your article on margin. I have a question. The interest rate that you have to pay for a margin purchase, do you have to pay that no matter how long you hold the stock. Say I purchase 3000 bucks over my cash holdings at an interest rate of 7 percent. Do I automatically owe 210 no matter if it is just a daytrade or does it act like a bond and charge like 1.75 % each quarter.
I guess I should have been more clear in the original post. Generally, margin interest calculated mostly depends on your broker. Most brokers should charge interest the following way:
(interest rate/365 days)*(amount being borrowed)*(number of days borrowing funds)
At 7% for $3000 you get (0.07/365)*($3000)*(days). You’ll only pay 7% exactly if you hold onto the loan for 1 year. If you’re daytrading the interest charge is minimal. As long as your holdings beat 7% annually, you “win” in the sense that you came out ahead using someone else’s money.
Yerrrrrrrrrrrrrrp.
Check out this deal:Case of Fantastic Soups for $9…
Each case contains 12 so that’s 75 cents per cup. Free ship on orders $25+.
I picked up Tuscan Tomato and Shells, Classic French Onion, and Spicy Thai.
I’ve recently talked about how buying on margin magnifies your upside as well as your downside and I’ve decided that there’s a particular investment in which I’m extremely comfortable in borrowing money to invest in.
Montpelier Re (MRH) is a reinsurance company that was hit hard by the aftermath of hurricane Katrina. In 2006, the year following Katrina, was a favorable for reinsurance companies in that there was little to no hurricane activity. However, investing in MRH isn’t about betting on the weather at all. Selling insurance is about pooling of risks in a ratio that is favorable to the insurer. I don’t think any insurer had a model that predicted a catastrophic event like that of Katrina. However, MRH is lessening their exposure to high risk areas and has built book value considerably in 2006 even with less net premiums. Ultimately I think hurricane scares are depressing the price of the stock which historically trades for 1.4 times book value. Currently MRH trades for about 1.1 to 1.2 book value.
So why did I decide to pull the trigger on MRH? I see a lot of value. I already got in last year around $16.78 or so and I think the upcoming earnings report on April 25th should mitigate a lot of fears about the reinsurance environment MRH operates in. Currently I’m being charged 10% interest on my margin loan so MRH will have to increase in price at least 10% for me to break even. After the earnings report on the 25th I’ll make a decision on whether to hold the stock long or short term.
Note: These are my personal reasons for investing in MRH. Do your own research before investing in any investment.
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