Presenting The Carnival Of Personal Finance #125

Welcome to the 125th Carnival of Personal Finance. This week we have 74 articles for your reading pleasure and I have divided them up into a few categories. I could have made more of them, but then each of the other categories would have only had 1 post in each section. The ones that I could not fit into the categories I decided on are included in the General Money section. I picked out 5 of the articles that really struck a chord with me for one reason or another and listed them below under Editor’s Choice. Enjoy, and if you took part in this week’s Carnival, please be sure to promote it on your own site!

Diverting your money from a retirement fund to purchase a home would require much larger retirement contributions in the future to achieve the same nest egg. Lets use some real numbers to see what I mean (at The BagLady).

It goes without saying that credit cards aren’t for everyone - in fact, I think they should only be used by people who pay their balance off each month. If you fit that category, though, you should pay for as many things as you can with your card. Here’s why…(at Chief Family Officer).
I believe that if the parents are paying for the education, they have every right to set some ground rules. Unless the parents inherited the money themselves, they must be able to have some influence over what and how their hard-earned money gets spent (at Grad Money Matters).

Now that I’ve defined my goals, I need to work out next actions to be associated with pushing each one forward. That’ll require some brainstorming (at Plonkee).

This year is actually the first time I have really started work on planning for my future. As I have mentioned before, my old ways were to live for the now and worry about the future if I was around in the future.

I incorrectly thought that planning for the future meant that I could not have any fun now (at One Snarky Chica with Issues).
Notorious Practices of Payday Loan Companies (at ZooLaw Legal Blog).
Planning for your future (at CareOne Debt Management).
Those Folks Are Crazy (at Debt Sucks).
How To Buy On Ebay And Get the Best Deal (at Money Blue Book).
What a Weak Dollar Means for U.S. Shoppers (at The Authentic Bartender Blog).
Real Value Vs. Perceived Value (at Rather-Be-Shopping).
How To Get Insider Pricing (at How I Will Be Rich).
Change Our Car Buying Behaviors and Save Tons of Money (at MoneyNing).
Landlording and Screening Tenants (at Million Dollar Journey).
Real Estate: Know What Can Be Fixed and What Can’t, What’s Profitable and What Isn’t (at Searchlight Crusade).
Do you know who owns your mortgage? You probably don’t… (at WhereDoesAllMyMoneyGo)
What to Do When You’re Short on Rent (at Money Under 30).
Billion Dollar House - Ultimate Luxury or Living Hell? (at Smart Money Daily).
Determining the Minimum Acceptable Bid for a HUD Home (at Two Wise Acres).
Can We Really Afford To ‘Move Up’? (at A Penny Closer).
Moving from one tax paradise to another one (at Stock Web).
Flexible spending account : which income earner should contribute? (at Index Town).
Ten Qualities a Good Money Manager Needs Most (at Watch My Money Maker).
How I Involve My Family in Investing (at The Dividend Guy Blog).
How to Build a CD Ladder (at Cash Money Life).
Does investing in socially responsible funds cost more and is it justified? (at Money Relations.)
Afraid Of Investing In The Stock Market? (at My Wealth Builder).
How Investing Changes Your View Of The World (at Queercents).
Dow Index Drops 362.14, 2.6% - Now What!? (at My Retirement Blog).
January Effect and October Effect, Are They Real? (at Moolanomy).
Timing (at Financial Reference).
Best Advice: Gary Belsky (at Free Money Finance).
Bernanke Cuts Another Quarter (at The Agonist).
The Scale of the Federal Deficit (at Exjackly).
Enough Wealth: Financial Armageddon (Again) (at Enough Wealth).
Things You Should Know About Percentage Traps (at Money, Matter, and More Musings).
Early Retirement – Illusion or Reality (at Smart Investing & Money Management).
HSA as a Retirement Account? (at I’ve Paid For This Twice Already…).
A Free Haircut is Always a “Super” Cut (at jlogged).
Get Yourself A Frugal Education (at Frugal Journey).
My Cheaper Alternative to Starbucks (at Single Guy Money).
Do You Get What You Pay For? (at Debt Dieter).
How to Make the Best Beer in the World for Under a Buck a Bottle (at Saving Advice).
Don’t Waste $$ On Your Next Hotel Room (at Life Lessons of a Military Wife).
Keep Yourself Safe by Creating a Winter Kit for Your Car (at FinanceIsPersonal)
1 Paycheck Away (at BasenjiMom).
The decision of having a housecleaning lady (at The Financial Blogger).
Your Relationship With Money (at Journey To Financial Freedom).
Are Pennies Beneath Us? (at Blunt Money).
Seven Wonders of the Personal Finance World (at Blueprint for Financial Prosperity).
Goosing Emergency Fund Earnings (at Advanced Personal Finance).
When you stretch and stretch and the ends don’t meet (at Wise Bread).
Consolidating NewlyWed’s Finances (at 2million My Journey to Financial Freedom).
Old Habits Sure Do Die Hard (at Gather Little By Little).
It hit me like a ton of bricks (at Being Frugal).
Budget Cuts:Medical Insurance (at Real World Finance)
Rule #18: Alone and Together (at My Open Wallet).
When Money Isn’t Everything (at College of Cash).
The High Cost of Eating Healthy in the US (at Philby’s Finance)
8 steps to a six figure career (at brip blap).
She Makes More Than Me (at Money and Such).
Achieving Financial Freedom is Simple, But Not Easy (at Dough Roller).
College Admission Consulting (at Ask Dong).
Do You Have a Financial Confidant? (at One Frugal Girl).
Why Are Some People So Ignorant About Money? (at Money Smart Life).
Prosper.com: 6 Months in and Still Exceeding Expectations (at Everyday Finance).
My Silicon Valley Job History (at Silicon Valley Blogger).
Great Thought on Personal Finance (at Frugal Dollar).
What is a Secured Credit Card ? (at Ask Mr Credit Card).
Check to see if the government is holding some of your money! (at The Happy Rock).
Marriage And Money (at My Good Cents).
Adoption on the Cheap (at Graceful Retirement).
Single Page List Of Monthly Expenses - No Credit Needed Notebook Pg 2 (at No Credit Needed).

That’s it for this week’s Carnival of Personal Finance! These ought to keep you busy enough until next week’s edition over at Million Dollar Journey. If you didn’t see your post included, it was either submitted after the cut off time or it was not relevant to the Carnival. For more information about the Carnival itself and how you can host a future edition, check out the Carnival of Personal Finance homepage.