Howdy!  Here are the on-topic submissions for this week’s carnival:

• Bargaineering hosts a guest post on how to sue debt collectors.
• The Smarter Wallet shares some first-hand experience with debt collection practices.
• The Digerati Life runs through options for debt consolidation loans for people with good credit.
• Studenomics asks if student loan consolidation is right for you.
• Ask Mr. Credit Card has a radio interview with Lending Club, with an emphasis on debt consolidation.
• Budgets Are Sexy wouldn’t mind moving back in with the ‘rents to pay down debt.

Thanks!

Follow me on Twitter for random acts of Mighty Bargain Hunter

Welcome to this week’s Carnival of Debt Reduction! I’m very pleased that more of the submissions are on-topic. This is a very good thing, and I know it will benefit everyone concerned, from readers to submitters to hosts, to have a more on-target carnival each week.

Here are this week’s debt reduction posts, with the personal debt reduction stories up top:

• The Good Life on a Budget has paid off a car loan eight months early! Congrats!
• Man vs. Debt has a post from a reader on how they paid off their $15,000 debt by selling their stuff on eBay.
• Digerati Life has a post from a guest contributor that reduced debt with a loan modification.
• Reduce Debt Faster outlines three good ways to lower your credit card payments.  (Hint:  It never hurts to ask!)
• PT Money has an interesting question from a reader with a bit of debt problem that isn’t really her own overspending.
• Damon Day shares a sad story of a woman hit with a debt settlement nightmare.
• Christian Personal Finance gives four ways on how to pay off your mortgage early.
• Bargaineering has a post from Kyle from Suburban Dollar on telling the difference between first- and third-party debt collectors.
• Cash Money Life suggests this question as a wake-up call:  “Do you know how much interest you are paying each month?”
• Clear Choice Credit Cards posts a debt elimination guide.
• Your Money Relationship stirs up the good debt vs. bad debt question, with an anecdote on student loan debt.
• Eliminate the Muda has an interesting take on debt consolidation.

Again, thanks everyone for the on-topic posts.

One last thing:  If you’ve got debt questions, head over to Cash Commons and ask them!  They can even be as specific as this one.

Have a great week!

Got money questions? Ask them at Cash Commons

Happy Columbus Day, everyone!  Here are the articles for this week’s Carnival of Debt Reduction.  At the top are the posts by people who discuss areas of their personal debt reduction, which is what the carnival is all about:

• Modern Tightwad is deprioritizing her debt payoff in pursuit of some other goals.

And other posts closely tied to debt reduction:

• Free Money Finance lists a couple of suggestions for deciding when to pay off your mortgage.
• Bargaineering shares a guest post on debt validation, which is a lender’s response to a debt collection dispute letter.
• Man vs. Debt has taken the plunge and told credit card companies exactly what they can do with their rewards.
• The Digerati Life discusses the pros and cons of debt settlement companies.
• Financial Methods asks a simple question: What would you give up to get out of debt?

Thanks for checking out the articles this week.  Also, if you have a debt reduction question, you can ask it over at Cash Commons!

Hot hot hot money questions at Cash Commons

Hi everyone, and welcome to this week’s Carnival of Debt Reduction. There were more good articles submitted this week than are shown below, but only a small number of them dealt directly with (a) personal debt reduction stories or (b) how to reduce consumer debt:

• No Credit Needed dispenses with a lengthy introduction and jumps right in with a six-step process for eliminating credit card debt.
• Free Money Finance recounts a story of how one couple paid off their mortgage.
• Financial Methods confesses that there’s no such thing as the debt fairy.
• Clear Choice Credit Cards runs through seven tips for reducing credit card debt.

I’ll include some of the other articles in a roundup later this week, but if your post wasn’t included, please revisit the submission rules and rest assured that it’s absolutely nothing personal.

Have a great week!

Hot hot hot money questions at Cash Commons

(This post is a bit off-topic but I want to get the word out quickly on this.)

I’ll take time now to thank Debt Sucks for hosting this week’s Carnival of Debt Reduction and also for his next post on why he’s never, ever hosting a blog carnival again.

I’ve been watching as hosting carnivals has gotten to be more and more work for very little reward.  There were thirty submissions to Jake’s carnival this past week, and he included only four of them.  He deemed the rest to be spam, off-topic, or astray of the rules that I had set up.

And I applaud him for holding a high standard like that.  Carnivals have gotten out of hand with the volume of submissions, and if these things are to remain useful and viable, the rules have to change.

BlogCarnival.com has done a lot to make the blog carnival popular.  There’s a flip side to that popularity though:  blog carnivals are easy one-way links for the submitter.  Intentionally or otherwise, it’s become too easy for people to submit to carnivals there.  There is no limit to how many times a particular URL can be submitted at BlogCarnival.com.  What’s more, I know of services that will submit one link per week to between ten and fifteen carnivals through BlogCarnival.com, for only $25 per month!  This is possible because there is standalone software that automates the submission process.

So, starting as of about 25 minutes ago, I’ve deactivated the submission form over at BlogCarnival.  The only way to submit to the Carnival of Debt Reduction is now through this submission form on the carnival’s website.

I’ll also be encouraging hosts to be more selective about what posts they include.  Free Money Finance has a good thing going with the Best of Money Carnival.  It was a breeze to host that one.

What I’m hoping this will do is reduce the number of submissions from search-engine optimization companies on behalf of paying clients.  They’ll still be able to do it if they really want to, but now they can’t just click a button to submit a post to the Carnival of Debt Reduction.  They have to come over to the form on the website and do it all themselves.

I’m hoping that’s too much work for them.  I’m also hoping that it’s not too much work for people from whom I actually welcome submissions.

(If you already submitted your post for next week’s Carnival over at BlogCarnival.com, don’t worry, it got through.)

OK, back to regular content.

Hot hot hot money questions at Cash Commons

I’ve hosted a number of blog carnivals over the years, and I really like the way FMF has set up the Best of Money Carnival.  It’s been very enjoyable, and easy, to host this one.  The Best of Money Carnival, as the name implies, highlights the best personal finance posts from the past two weeks in a top-ten-countdown fashion.  This week, vis-a-vis KC & the Sunshine Band, I’ll introduce the posts, and tell you why I liked them.

Number 10: Confessions of an online poker player, posted by an anonymous professional poker player over at Budgets are Sexy.

Why I liked it: I had read this post before I knew it was submitted to the carnival, and it was fascinating reading.  First, it’s a business that has to be learned.  Second, it’s work, just like any other profession.  Third, knowledge is power, just like everything else.  “Poker is the hardest way to make an easy living,” J. Money of Budgets are Sexy wrote in his submission.  Anyway, a neat read.

Number 9: Carnival of Debt Reduction:  The Federal Debt and Deficit Problem Issue, posted over at Ask Mr. Credit Card.

Why I liked it: Seriously, it’s not for self-serving reasons – yes, I do manage the Carnival of Debt Reduction! – but beyond that it’s an involved post even without all of the debt reduction links.  Lots of data for your perusal.  (No, Mr. Credit Card, you weren’t hallucinating.  It was a good post!)

Number 8:  Can you benefit from energy efficient rebates? posted at Frugally Green.

Why I liked it: It’s a nice outline of which energy-efficient upgrades are eligible for the rebate.  Though when somebody gives me something like a tax break I have to ask why, there’s little reason not to take it if it doesn’t make sense all around.  The last paragraph of the post gets back to the real message though:  “Even without the incentives being offered to us, we should carefully consider the cost savings and benefits that we can realize by purchasing more efficient products.”

Number 7:  The Labors of Labor by Wench Wisdom.

Why I liked it: This post comes after the recent minimum wage increase in the United States, and calls people to action to improve their own lot rather than fight for higher minimum wages:  “The answer to these maladies doesn’t lie in unionization, but rather a trip to the mirror—the fate of your continued employment and rate of pay depends on you …”

Number 6: How much money do you need to retire? by Redeeming Riches.

Why I liked it: The conversation at the beginning of the post is good.  It reinforces the rest of the post.  The main point:  “The short answer to the question, ‘How much money do I need to retire?’ is ‘It depends’.  Because every person and situation is different there are just no hard and fast rules to help determine what’s appropriate.”

Number 5: Searching for an inexpensive new couch by Two Pennies Earned.

Why I liked it: Straightforward, complete illustration of all the nooks and crannies they looked for their new couch, plain and simple.  Lots of lessons learned!

Number 4: Have You Ever Had A DEBT FREE Christmas, And Will You Accept My Challenge? posted over at Enemy of Debt.

Why I liked it: Perfect timing on this post!  Who knows how early retailers will start thinking about Christmas this year?  This post beats the “Holiday Merchandising Season” to the punch.  I also like the call to action distilled to a fill-in-the-blank checklist.

Number 3: Make money writing for Hubpages, posted by Christian Personal Finance.

Why I liked it: ChristianPF followed through on something I dabbled in a couple of years ago.  Anyway, the tradeoff between writing, and maintaining, your own content and posting content to a ready-made audience is interesting.  Seeing how the latter works was a bit different than I expected.

Number 2: My jobs, I get my dream job, posted by Free Money Finance.

Why I liked it: I’ve been blogging almost as long as FMF and I know for a fact how hard the guy works.  He posts a lot and stays squarely on the pulse of personal finance.  The frequent links to the mainstream articles are great, but his real gems have been his original posts.  This is one of them.

Number 1: Faith-Based or Socially Responsible Investing – Delusions of Righteousness, posted by Provident Planning.

Why I liked this one the best: Socially-responsible investing is not immune to marketing.  What makes marketing this kind of investment very touchy is that it needs to address people’s faith.  This post takes a very clear stand on which common claims are reasonable and which aren’t.  I’m not sure I agree with all of what he says, but I agree with some, and in any case Paul Williams sticks his neck out far enough to earn this week’s Best of the Best title.

Well, there you are!  Thanks to everyone who submitted posts this week.  I had lots of fun with this Carnival!  Enjoy the rest of your week.  If you enjoyed this post, I invite you to subscribe to my feed or follow me on Twitter.  Peace!

(Photos:  *Vintage Fairytale* and faeryboots)

Hot hot hot money questions at Cash Commons

There is still time on the West Coast for celebration of Waffle Iron Day.  My apologies for posting this so late in the evening.  Please don’t batter me.  This Carnival of Debt Reduction will feature fun facts regarding the humble waffle iron and the scrumptious breakfast treats it produces.

Personal debt reduction stories

• Crapped Out on Credit shares a very personal story of the toll that a gambling addiction can have on one’s finances.

The waffle is old.  It dates back to 14th-century Greece!  The Greeks at that time topped their waffles with cheese and herbs instead of syrup and whipped cream.

Debt-related resource posts

• Bargaineering explains how debt settlement works.
• Free Money Finance gives five ways to make paying back student loans less painful.
• Five Cent Nickel has some thoughts on paying off the mortgage early.
• Debt Goal discusses overdraft protection and its impacts.

“Weird Al” Yankovic is no stranger to the waffle.  (He’s not a stranger to much of anything edible.)  In one of his songs, he was convinced that he had to make a model of the Eiffel tower out of Belgian waffles.

• Bill Eater calls us to action, telling us to stop dragging our feet, and get out of debt.
• Leave Debt Behind has three surefire ways to raise your credit score.
• Credit Card Assist differentiates a soft and hard credit inquiry.
• Dough Roller lists hard-to-find 0% balance transfer offers.
• Canadian Finance Blog discusses Debtors Anonymous.
• Prime Time Money answers readers’ questions about clearing up credit report errors.
• Out Of Debt Christian has a take on MJ’s financial legacy.
• Ask Mr. Credit Card answers some questions about bankruptcy and credit.
• Debt Tips wonders why debt settlement has a bad reputation.

Waffle Iron Day breaks the monotony of the five otherwise waffle-holiday-less months between International Waffle Day (March 25th) and National Waffle Day (August 24th).

Generally good ideas to save money so that you can reduce your debt

• Frugally Green discusses energy efficiency, appliances, and saving money.
• Budgets Are Sexy lives like he’s broke.
• Christian Personal Finance reviews Upside Living in a Downside Economy.
• Money Ning recommends doing the entrepreneurial side hustle.
• Wealth Pilgrim shares the best, and cheapest, wedding present you can give anybody.
• Money Smart Life suggests not being lazy during the lazy days of summer.
• Savings Toolbox has six tips for saving money on life insurance.

Waffles with either peaches or spiced apples on top are my favorites.  (Please don’t mail any to me, though.  The thought is good enough.)

• My Dollar Plan reviews You Need A Budget.
• Personal Finance Analyst gives ways to reduce debt without tightening one’s belt.
• Almost Frugal asks how we judge success.
• Miss Bankrupt chats on frugal lunches.

And just for fun … the talk like a banker word search!

That’s it for this week.  Thanks for reading!  Please consider stumbling your favorites if the posts spoke to you.

Next week Rocket Finance is host, and the following week No Credit Needed will be hosting Carnival of Debt Reduction #200!

(Photo: Wallslide)

Hot hot hot money questions at Cash Commons

It’s always enjoyable to host and see people’s submissions for the Carnival of Personal Finance.  I always learn something new.

It’s hard to believe that this is Carnival #201.  It continues to get more popular.

We’re in the second half of Financial Literacy Month.  Have you seen my series on getting back to basics?  If you enjoyed that, you might also enjoy subscribing to my feed or following me on Twitter.

Anyway, here are this week’s included posts, categorized for your viewing pleasure.  I hope you learn something new, too!  Next week, FIRE Finance is on the slab.  Have a great week!

Money Management

• The Paycheck Chronicles gives ten good ways to shop safely online. The Internet’s a great place to find deals, but be smart!
• Wealth Pilgrim asks, “Who will spend your beneficiary’s money?” Just setting up a trust isn’t enough.  He explain what else is necessary.
• Uh oh!  Moneymonk is mad at Suze Orman! Whatever did she do to you, Moneymonk?
• Quest for Four Pillars has some sources for free tax filing software for (Canadian) students and low-income folks. “Canadian deadline is Apr 30 so it’s still applicable,” he says.
• Suburban Dollar has a bread-and-butter tutorial on  budgeting and knowing your spending. Good checklist of spending categories  there.
• Bargaineering (or, the blog formerly known as Blueprint for Financial Prosperity) discusses the government’s Making Home Affordable Mortgage Refinance & Modification Program.
• Sound Money Matters runs through  the dos and don’ts of combining finances after the wedding. (Combining our finances was something I did without thinking because it was what my parents had done, and it worked out all right for us, but it just as easily could have backfired.)
• Personal Finance Start-Up Blog chats about high-interest rate checking accounts. (And about the Braves.)
• American Consumer News advises proceeding with caution when adult kids want to return home.
• Ask Mr Credit Card responds to some readers’ comments about his take on Suze Orman’s advice.
• Free From Broke advises discussing your finances before tying the knot so that money doesn’t ruin the marriage.  (And I’ll add keep discussing it after tying the knot, too!)
• Cash Money Life says to give generously, even (especially?) during rough times.
• Beating Broke contends that personal finance is a life skill.
• Five Cent Nickel hosts a guest post containing lessons learned on a shuttle ride at the car dealer.

Frugality

• Free Money Finance highlights Nicolas Cage as “one more example that you CAN spend it all no matter how much you make.”
• Christian Personal Finance lists six things you can buy that will pay for themselves in a year.  (One of them surprised me.)
• 6Bubbles runs through a few questions to ask when deciding whether to buy that sale item or not.
• And Art of the Coupon, hot on their heels, outlines five questions to ask before any purchase.
• What’s frugal, and what’s just cheap? My Findependence Day delves into this topic.
• Fine-Tuned Finances weighs options on whether to fix that old computer or buy a new one.
• Fiscal Fizzle (great name!) runs through seven ways to stop eating out from killing your budget.
• Christian Money Mountain suspects gas prices are on the way up again and gives some mileage-improving tips.
• Almost Frugal goes back to the frugal basics and talks about controlling spending.
• Budgets are Sexy wonders if coupon lovers are treated differently by employees.  (If I even suspected that a business didn’t like me using a coupon, I’d probably never go back.)
• Penny For My Thoughts discusses menstrual cups as a recession beater. (This is beyond my experience, of course.)
• Savings Toolbox asks how efficient CF bulbs are.  (Apparently efficient enough to pay for themselves in a year.)
• PayLessForFood explains why now is the perfect time to try store-brand products.

Saving

• Million Dollar Journey recommends banking your raises.  (Very sound advice.)
• Finance for Physicians outlines some moving tips specific to new physicians that can save money and hassle.
• My Life ROI gives some ideas on what to do with all of that extra money. (Fortunate position to be in, no?)
• Erik Folgate describes some automation and subaccount magic you can do with your ING savings account.
• Automatic Finances reinforces this by giving five reasons you should be automating your savings.
• PennyJobs wonders if  a depression is inevitable.  (Love the smoking analogy in this post.)

Finance

• Always the Planner explains what financial security means to her. (I understand the save-too-much thing.)
• Good Financial Cents outlines seven questions to ask your financial planner.
• InsureBlog advises looking into DI PDQ ASAP, because “all the great finance tips in the world can’t help you if you lose your income.”
• Pecuniarities challenges us: “If  you’ve never fallen off a horse, you just haven’t ridden enough.” (Try to brace yourself for the falls, though!  This isn’t an excuse to file for bankruptcy!)
• Out of Debt Again predicts that your check should get bigger in April, and explains why.
• Green Panda Treehouse shares tips on saving money on health insurance, doctor visits, and prescriptions.
• Deposit Accounts brings a gardening analogy to bear on the concept of reducing debt and increasing saving.

Investing

• Triaging My Way To Financial Success (yes, he’s in healthcare!) shows how to determine a master portfolio allocation.
• ABCs of Investing gives a brief description of investment policy statements.
• FIRE Finance visits an old friend:  the Rule of 72.
• Dividends Value analyzes Nucor Corporation and Caterpillar in the context of the recession and how they responded to it.
• Money Ning discusses the impact of costs on mutual fund returns.
• Darwin’s Finance (survival of the fiscally fittest?) wonders if Advanta high-yield notes are worth the risk.
• Stock Trading To Go is skeptical of bear market rallies.
• Dividend Growth Investor presents some covered call option strategies for hedging against losses.
• Chief Family Officer suggests a way to avoid getting killed by one rotten investment.
• Financial Highway gives an insider view on advisor conflict of interest.
• Generation X Finance is wary of trying to time the market.
• Go To Retirement discusses the risks and benefits of owning gold for retirement.
• Prime Time Money talks on the topic of tax-deferred and tax-free retirement plans.
• Modern Gal wonders how various markets will hold up under inflation.
• The Sun’s Financial Diary has a discount broker comparison.
• IntelligentSpeculator has an, ummmm, unusual investment opportunity.  (”I take it you’re not Capt. Crunch, sir?”)

Reviews

• The Smarter Wallet reviews Microsoft Money and discusses a bunch of the features of the program.
• The Digerati Life show whether TradeKing measures up to the competition.
• Harvesting Dollars wonders if the Bank On Yourself strategy is for real.
• Personal Finance Software Reviews reviews NeoBudget.
• Beyond Paycheck to Paycheck would have liked a little more out of UPromise.  (What do you think?  I haven’t gotten much money out of UPromise, but it’s a cash-back program, so I’m not too worried.)

Budgeting

• Paying For Retirement explain why he uses Mint.com for his tracking.
• Man Vs.  Debt just doesn’t get the concept of married with separate finances.
• Studenomics has some experience with making sure that budgeting works and shares.

Credit and Debt

• Sense to Save characterizes charging her honeymoon was a big financial blunder.  (Perhaps, but I wouldn’t be beating myself up too much on this one.  At least she doesn’t regret the honeymoon.)
• Taking Charge recommends a physical reminder to think before swiping that credit card.
• CreditCardAssist observes the sentiment turning against credit cards.

Real Estate

• Erica Douglass has some talk on investing in real estate.
• Funny about Money wonders if real estate: is looking up.
• Apply For Credit discusses whether avoiding payments on your mortgage is a good idea. (I hadn’t heard of this as a strategy, but the conclusion seems right.)
• Growing Money posts an update on their Philadelphia rental property.
• Stop Foreclosure Blog has ten fatal mistakes homeowners make.
• Canadian Finance Blog presents a cheaper way to buy timeshares.
• First Recession sees an interesting silver lining to the economy: It’s a renter’s market.

The Economy and Career

• Weakonomics gives an overview of the Massachusetts economy.
• PlinkPlink can talk the recession talk complete with buzzwords.  Can you?
• Passive Family Income outlines the benefits of home-based jobs.
• The Personal Financier gets all deep and stuff, and explores the irony of human nature.
• Money Beagle asks if the Sunday paper is going extinct.
• Tough Money Love questions whether the billions in aid to the states are doing any good.
• Kids & Money has a quickie on summer jobs for kids.

Taxes

• Yielding Wealth likes getting back as little as possible on her tax return.
• Uh-oh:  Steadfast Finances reports that local governments are starting to charge for accident response. (We’re going to see more of this, I think.)
• Greener Pastures observes that state budget shortfalls mean higher taxes.
• The Happy Rock does a gross-income retrospective.
• M is for Money explains tax write-offs for 401(k) losses.
• My Dollar Plan answers some last-minute tax questions.

Other

• Money Young asks: “Are you living for today or tomorrow?”
• Keep My Dollar presents eight ways to keep your car running well.  Maintaining a vehicle properly will make it cost less.
• Amateur Asset Allocator is keeping the recession in perspective.
• Stumble Forward sheds light on five flags that you might be looking at a scam.
• My Journey to Millions gives some tips for planning for a child with special needs.
• The Strump is finally getting a will.
• Poorer Than You shows how to file the free application for federal student aid without parental information.
• Not strictly personal finance but I love this guy’s enthusiasm:  Punch Debt In The Face does successful blogging, BTTF style. This guy does money rap for hire, too.

Hot hot hot money questions at Cash Commons

Hello, and welcome to the Carnival of Debt Reduction!  Sunday saw the beginning of Daylight Savings Time in the United States, which meant a lost hour of sleep until the fall.  Enjoy the later sunsets, and enjoy the carnival!

• Peak Personal Finance talks about the pitfalls of renting to own.  This is not something you want to get into if you’re trying to reduce your debt.
• Pimp Your Finances shares his February update for his debt reduction.  Lots of progress!  Great job!
• Money Ning pens a somewhat philosophical post that puts wealth (a fruit of debt elimination) into perspective.
• Bargaineering reveals the best used cars for college students to own.  No need to add lots of auto debt to student loans.
• DebtGoal runs through a few what-ifs with home modification loans.  Tying consumer debt to your house is not something to be done lightly.
• Gather Little By Little describes the phrase that’s taking the personal finance blog circuits by storm: debt snowflaking!
• Credit Card Assist posts a good resource on evaluating credit counseling agencies.
• Leave Debt Behind tells how to pay down your debts quickly.  (Not surprisingly, one of the suggestions is to stop spending on things you can’t pay with cash.)
• Money Smart Life shows how to avoid getting feed to death.  Every little bit helps.  Call it a snowflake!
• ChristianPF gives a summary of financial goals for 20-somethings.  The first one has to deal with debt reduction.
• American Consumer News suggests that it’s not the best to default on your car loan.  (Yeah, well duh, but some alternatives are given as well.)
• Savings Toolbox gives a few ways why online savings accounts make sense.
• Studenomics reveals the main reason so many young people are in debt.



• Learn Financial Planning gives seven things to remember when buying a car.  Be sure to keep your debt reduction goals in mind!
• Digerati Life tells how to lower your car insurance costs.  A few bucks a month is a few bucks a month toward debt repayment.
• The Smarter Wallet discusses upside-down mortgages and walking away from them.
• No More Spending asks if your budgets has as much fat cut off as it could.
• Sun’s Financial Diary spreads the word about new tracking features on Quicken Online.
• Tough Money Love breaks it to us: There are no secret programs for credit card debt.
• My Dollar Plan discusses home downsizing.  This isn’t an option for everybudy, but if the writing’s on the wall, why not?
• Personal Finance Analyst shows how to pack a little more snow on your snowball.

Thanks for reading, and have a great daylight-filled week!

(Photo: Randy Son Of Robert)

Hot hot hot money questions at Cash Commons

Welcome to the Carnival of Personal Finance!  It’s officially Cyber Monday 2008, the online doppelgaenger to Black Friday.  This term was coined by the American Retail Federation three years ago after a majority of online retailers saw their sales go up the Monday after Thanksgiving.  Snopes found that the busiest online shopping day is not Cyber Monday but a couple of weeks after.  Regardless of whether online shoppers are only lukewarm about today, one thing’s for sure: there’s way less danger of getting injured by an online shopping cart.

So enjoy the Carnival, and head over to Amazon or eBay with full assurance that the Internet will completely protect you from e-bruising by other online shoppers!

Posts on Budgeting

• Mighty Bargain Hunter gives ways to save on food, clothing, and shelter.
• Canadian Dream: Free at 45 reveals his spending weakness.
• Studenomics asks if you’re cash-strapped this holiday season.
• M is for Money talks about zero-based budgeting.
• Green Panda Treehouse asks a hard question: “Do you pay your mortgage or your medical bills?”
• Penny Jobs asks a good question for tough times: “What can I cut back on?“

Posts on Career

• Economic Crunch runs through a checklist for taking advantage of benefits on a new job.  (These things can be a nice supplement to your salary.)
• Monagomoney offers parallel advice with five things to do if you get laid off.  (Hopefully you’re not needing both this advice and the previous advice in the same day.)
• Dog Ate My Finances (ha!) will take Common Sense for $200, Alex.  (Note:  Careful punctuation is crucial in this blog’s tagline.  Imagine, if you will, a misplaced colon: “Mid twenties.  Big salary.  Paying for some mistakes:  a wedding, and life.”  The name would then have to be changed to Alimony Ate My Finances.)
• Beating Broke asks: “What is freedom worth?“

Posts on Credit and Debt

• Free From Broke chats about medical treatment and how it can affect your credit.  (Especially if the costs are big.)
• Credit Toolbox discusses some aspects of refinancing consumer debt.
• Blueprint for Financial Prosperity has a list of 0% balance transfer offers.  (Fifty different offers.  You should be able to do a 0% transfer of the national debt with this volume of plastic.)
• Ask Mr. Credit Card: “Should teenagers have credit cards?”
• Discover Debt Freedom has some advice for someone trying to get out of debt for the first time.
• Single Guy Money has a credit score checkup.
• My Family’s Money talks about two states’ propositions on payday loans.
• Destroy Debt discusses debt settlement and some factors to consider before doing it.
• Think Your Way To Wealth gives a closer look at the Baby Steps plan.
• Debt Goal tells how to say “no” to your children this holiday season correctly.

Posts on The Economy

• Wide Open Wallet has some ideas as to what the government should be doing during the recession.  (I have my own thoughts but I like to keep this blog clean.)
• Everyday Finance – the Blog of a Thousand Tabs — has some choice words to say about repricing employee stock options.  (Ahh, stock options.  What a cool dream.)
• Amateur Asset Allocator postulates on what a privatized social security system would look like.
• Funny about Money observes that the Dow is up, in spite of it all.  (Yeah, I don’t buy it either.  The market’s always right, but remember, it’s still down over 5,000 points from its high.)
• Frugal in the Fruitlands reviews The Two-Income Trap.
• The Sun’s Financial Diary reports on the extent of the malaise in the banking industry.
• Earn What You Spend discusses some of the relevant financial news as the incoming administration gears up.
• No Credit Needed questions whether spending patterns are in line with the direction the economy is heading.
• Brip Blap gives a superb answer to the question: “Do you need a bailout?“

Posts on Finance

• The Strump wonders why we don’t like to talk about money.  (It’s dangerous, especially if you were wise enough to sell your stocks a while back.)
• InsureBlog discusses discounts and medical plans.
• Accumulating Money talks about Social Security insurance.
• Harvesting Dollars suggests making this year’s bonus season different.  (Assuming you get a bonus, of course.)

Posts on Frugality

• Just Thrive explains three rules for giving the perfect gift without necessarily spending a lot of money.  (Money is tight, so make the most out of your gift-giving.)
• Debt Free Saver has a very simple suggestion for holiday gift-giving.  (It gets back to the basic of gift-giving!)
• Money Ning asks whether we always think that saving money is worth it.
• Monroe on a Budget rattles off some practical Christmas gift ideas.
• The Smarter Wallet has some tips for the early-bird traveler.
• Online Saving Blog tells how to avoid the Black Friday hype.
• Uncommon Cents discusses personal opportunity cost.

Posts on Investing

• Investing School explains the important aspects of bond funds.  (I love how he reminds us that even US Treasuries can default. I happen to agree, but rates will go way up before they do that.)
• Crash Market Stocks goes through the basics of buying and selling options contracts.
• The Financial Blogger wonders if the Dogs of the Dow have had their day.
• Intelligent Speculator questions whether corporate bonds are really safer investments.  (Than, say, Forever Stamps.)
• Dividends4Life discusses how to manage your dividend portfolio in a downturn.
• Four Pillars discusses whether we’ve reached the death of index investing.
• ABCs of Investing gives a quick tutorial on index funds.
• Dividend Growth Investor discusses why companies should pay dividends.
• Greener Pastures talks about the Standard & Poor’s Aristocrat Indexes.
• Monevator shows how to get rich by playing a video game.  (Nice spin on things.)
• Cash Money Life recommends making some year-end retirement account moves.
• The Dividend Guy sold some dividend cut stocks.
• The Dough Roller asks if you follow the 50-50 rule of mutual fund investing.  (Click to see what the fifties are.)
• No Debt Plan continues the “No Debt Plan” series with a post on investing for retirement.  (Very nice post.)

Posts on Money Management

• Crackerjack Greenback questions whether you can really trust your financial adviser.  (It makes good sense to follow the money.)
• Smart Money Daily takes a look at whether winning the lottery is all it’s cracked up to be.  (After reading the post, I’ll probably never buy a lottery ticket.)
• About.com Financial Software lists eight good iGoogle financial gadgets.
• Wisdom Journal lays out ten economic truths we cannot ignore.
• Christian Personal Finance advocates letting your finances see the light of day.
• Sound Money Matters asks: “To gift card, or not to gift card.“  (That is the question.)
• American Consumer News doesn’t buy the two months’ salary thing.  (I don’t either.  But if I were a high-powered CEO with a yearly salary of $1, well … “Here’s your Secret Decoder Ring.  Will you marry me?”)
• My Wealth Builder lists a few personal finance strategies that have helped during times of economic crisis.

Posts on Real Estate

• Living After Foreclosure has some suggestions if you’re facing foreclosure.
• Insurance Toolbox comes through with seven practical tips for reducing your homeowner’s insurance expense.  (Some of these tips have other good side-effects in addition to lowering your insurance bill.)
• Growing Money Blog posts a rental property update.

Posts on Saving and Taxes

• Stumble Forward gives five tips to creating a stellar emergency fund.  (Covers the basics well.)
• Blogging Banks posts the best CD rates around.
• Dollar Frugal is sounding the charge and telling people to continue hypermiling.  (Great advice.  Gas prices are low because of the recession.  They’re still going to go way up as supply crunches hit.)
• The Happy Rock pits Black Friday against Buy Nothing Day.
• Deposit Accounts talks about flexible spending accounts.
• Money Smart Life compares a couple of online bank accounts.
• Saving To Invest has some end-of-year tax tips, among other things.  (Gee, I can’t imagine anyone would have capital losses this year to deduct, as kind as the market’s been to people, but just in case you do …)
• Online Banking Blog shows how to choose the best bank account.

Other Posts

• Happiness is Better lists three keys to banana-free living.  (Sounds a-peeling.)
• Curious Cat discusses a financial Thanksgiving.
• Free Money Finance asks if you’re using your dollar coins.  (All the time, man!)
• Chief Family Officer has an emergency preparedness checklist for personal finance matters.
• Digerati Life wonders if there’s any good time to start a business.
• Budgets Are Sexy is uber-tempted by sales e-mails.
• Living Almost Large asks if one should feel guilty for success.  (Absolutely not!)
• Prime Time Money gives six ways to argue less about money.

Hot hot hot money questions at Cash Commons