October 27, 2009

Personal-finance blogs roundup

My "future posts" folder is getting crowded, so here's a quick roundup of some Personal Finance blog posts I've been sitting on for a while:

3 Reasons to Run from Debt Settlement Companies: "You may have seen ads on TV featuring companies that claim they can 'repair' your credit. They tell you that you won't even have to pay all that you owe to creditors because they’ll negotiate your debt down to a smaller percentage..."

The Spending Habits of the Average American: "Last week, a site called Visual Economics posted a chart showing where the average U.S. consumer spends her money. Here's the chart in question, which has been making the rounds of the internet..."

How Credit Cards Are Getting Meaner: "What's going on inside the minds of credit card companies now that the CARD credit card reform act is coming down the pike? A customer service supervisor for a major credit card company emailed us to give us the low-down: reduced grace periods, cutting credit lines, increased fees on balance transfers, and, of course, jacked up APRs..."

How to Negotiate and Lower Your Bills: "We've recently been looking at our expenses to see if we can lower any of our bills. So far, the results have been promising. Earlier this year, we cut our car insurance bill in half. We also noticed that our cable and internet bill went up, so we called our provider. After speaking with customer service, they extended our promotional rate for another year. That 5-10 minute phone call saved us around $150..."

iSave: 50 iPhone Apps to Help You Save Money: "It's easy to get behind on your budget or lose track of your daily spending when you're on the go all day long. But what if you had the opportunity to take all of your financial tools with you on the road? These 50 iPhone apps make it possible to save money all day long without having to save every receipt, carry around a heavy calculator or check in with your broker every half hour..."