Steadfast Finances

 Auto Sales,Bargain Hunting,Financial Crisis         2 comments

60 Minutes just aired one of the best video segments I’ve seen (to date) that sheds some new light on the 700 Billion Dollar Bailout Question in regards to Wall Street: What caused the current financial crisis? In the segment, 60 Minutes tapped credit market expert (Jim Grant from Grant’s Interest Rate Observer) to delve [...]

 Bargain Hunting,Personal Finance         4 comments

Microsoft’s Live Search Cashback program is for real, and it saved me 20% on my new laptop. I was initially skeptical of Microsoft’s claim that simply using their Live.com search engine would actually save me money, because quite honestly, it’s a pretty desperate business move for Microsoft to throw away cash in the hope of [...]

 Financial Crisis,Market Themes         8 comments

Many people are under the assumption that Wall Street‘s business transactions, particularly the transactions requiring a liquid credit market, have little to no affect on our daily lives. This is a false assumption. In fact, so many details of our daily lives are impacted by Wall Street that it is difficult for me to even [...]

 Banking,Financial Crisis,Index Funds,Investor Psychology,Market Themes         1 comment

Earlier today, I heard a financial journalist say one of the most peculiar statements I’ve ever heard about a down day in the stock market. It’s good to have something bad happen to keep you on your toes. I’m not sure who came up with that old adage, but I’m not sure a 778 point [...]

 Education,Personal Finance         9 comments

  As if the cost of college tuition wasn’t prohibitive enough, the most basic of college essentials – the college textbooks - has steadily been increasing over the last 2 decades. According to data published by the General Accountability Office (GAO), the price of college textbooks has risen an average of 6% per year since the [...]

 Energy crisis         No comments

Normally I consider American politics about as entertaining and blog worthy as whales humping on The Discovery Channel.  But I recently stumbled across a quick 4 minute video on Presidential speeches (pre and post Presidential election) documenting just how worthless political rhetoric really is when it comes to Presidential candidates making promises to eliminate/reduce our [...]

 401k,Financial Crisis,Index Funds,Retirement,Roth IRA         1 comment

It would appear that the majority of Americans with retirement accounts have really been sweating it out during this latest round of Wall Street negativity. The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Fidelity’s website saw web traffic increase 25% higher than it’s all time high last week amid the flood of negative financial news.  Similarly, [...]

 Debt Reduction,Saving for College         2 comments

I know times are tough, but I never thought I would ever hear of a young woman purposely selling her virginity to the highest bidder. Apparently, a 22 year old Sacramento State college graduate going by the stage name of Natalie Dylan will place her virginity up for auction at the infamous Nevada Bunny Ranch.  [...]

 Buy on the Dips,Index Funds,Investing 101,Retirement,Roth IRA         No comments

The S&P 500 is a rock!  After all that transpired on Wall Street this week, the S&P 500 only changed 3 points in 1 weeks time. Just 3 tiny little points on the upside. With all the drama, the bankruptcies, the bailouts, and of course, the realistic possibility the U.S. economy could have fallen even [...]

 Bargain Hunting,Energy crisis,Investing 101,Personal Finance         1 comment

Once again, the old pro is showing us how finance is done! Warren Buffett has made a bid to buy Constellation Energy Group (NYSE: CEG), the largest wholesale power seller in the U.S., after the company’s stock has fallen as much as 80% in value in less than 1 week. Talk about the ultimate bargain [...]

 Financial Crisis,Index Funds,Investing 101,Mutual Funds         3 comments

With smoke from the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy still lingering, most everyday investors like you and I are in a state of hypersensitivity regarding their investments and retirement accounts. Rightly so, because anyone who held an index fund, or any other investment for that matter, probably took a nasty hit after yesterdays 500 point drop in [...]

 Banking,Financial Crisis,Online Savings Accounts         6 comments

Human nature is a curious thing to watch when you stand back, remove yourself from the situation, and just observe.  If you have ever practiced the art of “people watching” sitting at a park bench or having lunch in a food court, you know exactly what I’m talking about. This morning, as I watch Lehman [...]