Steadfast Finances

 Personal Finance,Retirement         No comments

Retirement is the culmination of everything we worked hard for throughout the first two-thirds of our lives. It is the time when we can truly start to enjoy the fruits of our labor. Well, ideally, it should be. But what if, before you even start to enjoy your rest and freedom, you discover certain financial obligations that you never even considered before. You find out too late that there are hidden expenses that you still need to pay for regularly. That will surely burst your bubbles fast on your last day on the grind.

 Economy         2 comments

Inflation is not something new to most of us. It is a term we often hear and read in the news. Still, many people do not really understand it. The question you want to ask are: how can you lessen inflation’s negative impact in your life and on your future? Before we delve into how you can survive inflation, let us first take a look at inflation and its effects in general and in our personal lives.

 Economy         No comments

Welcome to 2012; it’s either time for Ben Bernanke to start QE3 or raise interest rates. Figuring out which one is the best move is not as easy as you’d think.

It was so simple when I was taking classes for my economics degree. When the economy did “X” you, as the Fed, embark on expansionary policy. When the economy did “Y” you retract the money supply. No professor ever made the point that figuring out whether economy is doing “X” or “Y” is not as obvious as you’d think.

 Frugal Living,Good Eats,Personal Finance         No comments

My secret is out. Scratch that – I doubt I’m the only one who ever figured out this frugal hack on how to turn the tables of your local grocery store’s salad bar, but being that I usually see at least one person making the same mistake every time I go shopping, I’d wager more [...]

 Career,Commodities         2 comments

When it’s tough to find a job or you’re limited to part time employment, plus up to your eyeballs in student loan debt, it would seem logical that you don”t have much of a choice but to grow your own food and hope you can turn a profit selling to the locovores. Now, Mr. Jones, [...]

 Energy Conservation,Frugal Living,Green Living         6 comments

I’ve been considering installing solar panels on my roof for several years now. The number one reason I haven’t is cost, where I fear the upfront cost won’t justify the long term savings. But to be more specific, it’s that I’m a bit wary of being an early adopter in any new technology too soon [...]

 Commodities,Investing 101         No comments

Just because you fancy yourself a momentum trader even though you’ve had your E*Trade account for a whole year, it doesn’t mean you should rush out and try to make money on whatever NBC Nightly News says is the newest game in town. By the time an investment opportunity makes it to the 6 o’clock [...]

 Commodities,Personal Finance         No comments

Hooray for quantitative easing… By the fall, people will most likely be paying more … as rising prices hit most consumer goods, say retailers, food companies and manufacturers of consumer products. Cotton prices are near their highest level in more than a decade, after adjusting for inflation, and leather and polyester costs are jumping as [...]

 Consumer Education,Frugal Living         No comments

Here’s a first for me… I actually found myself saying “I should shop more at Wal-Mart” while reading this NYT article on the mega-retailer pushing for cost reductions on healthier foods. The plan, similar to efforts by other companies and to public health initiatives by New York City, sets specific targets for lowering sodium, trans [...]

 Commodities,Gas Prices,Infographics & Chartology         No comments

Right on cue, I’m starting to field reader questions about commodities. In particular, are companies who sell oil, fertilizer or any other raw commodity might need to fuel their rapidly growing economy. Making money is always the prime objective, just remember that the last time these were in play — the 2008 commodities bubble — [...]

 Consumer Education,Infographics & Chartology,Personal Finance         1 comment

2010 will likely be remembered as a year of the melt up recovery and as a return to all things financially sanguine, but for commodity traders and chartists who keep watchful eyes on the commodities market, 2010 could arguably be considered a year where inflation (perhaps even hyperinflation) took home the blue ribbon. The only [...]

 Advertising,Consumer Education,Economy,Infographics & Chartology,Politics         3 comments

I ran across a great Op-Ed article in the Washington post over the current food culture war: organically raised meats & veggies vs. industrially manufactured foods, the millions of dollars spent on lobbying Congress for continued food subsidies, as well as multimillion dollar marketing campaigns to retain as much of the current market share as [...]