Top 5 Craigslist Scams to Avoid

If you are looking to buy an item online, Craigslist is a great place to start your search. You can find a wide variety of items for sale at discounted prices, such as tools, small electronics, furniture, and large appliances. You can also find apartments for rent and automobiles for sale – maybe even a job!

However, the site is frequented by predators, folks who have developed rather ingenious scams to take your money. Unlike eBay and Amazon, you do not have the option to review seller feedback ratings. As it says on the home page of Craigslist: buyer beware.  Read more...

5 Important Things I Learned First-Hand About Buying a House

Things Every Home Buyer MUST Keep In Mind

If you follow me on Twitter, you probably know that I am starting Pharmacy School in June in Phoenix, Arizona (actually Glendale, a suburb of the Phoenix). The process of moving out has led me to purchasing a foreclosed house 3 miles from my school. I am currently in escrow and the house will be mine on May 25th.

The process of searching for homes, interacting with real estate agents on both sides, and the entire process has allowed me to gain valuable experience that I can share with you.  Read more...

7 Great Qualities Shared by the Rich and Successful

This is a guest post from Galina Vardanyan. Galina has lots of experience investing in stocks and financial blogging and volunteered to write this motivational piece for SmarterSpend readers.

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Most Rich People Share a Few Common Traits

There are several qualities that are shared by almost everyone who has “succeeded” in their career or hobby. Most of these skills can be acquired by everyone and must be closely followed. If you have ever wondered about the answer to the following questions, this article is for you:

What makes rich people “rich”?  Read more...

Joining the Yakezie Challenge

Today I have decided to join the Financial Samurai‘s Yakezie Challenge. The goal of the Yakezie Challenge is to use networking and lots of promotion to raise the Alexa ranking of participating personal finance blogs to under 200,000. Of course, more popular sites that have a ranking already under the goal benefit too as their ranking increases as well.

Currently, our ranking is 795,000 for the past 3 months but a stronger 404,000 for the past 1 month. Of course, this is still way below the goal, but we have a few months to reach and hopefully surpass it.  Read more...

How to Finance Your Graduate School Education without Loans

Know your options before you take out a loan.

Everyone knows that Bachelor degrees don’t carry the same weight they did 10 years ago and entry level professionals in today’s economy are urged more and more to have some kind of graduate degree to be seen as competitive job applicants.  Read more...

10 Ways to Raise Your Credit Score

A good credit score can be a very important factor for success. It shows lenders that you are a trustworthy borrower and that you will repay back your loans. Without a good credit score, you won’t be able to borrow a car, a house, or even start a new

A good credit score is considered something over 720 and an excellent score is around 780 – 800 and above. However, a credit score under 600 is considered poor.  Read more...

15 Simple Ways to Make Extra Money

During a recession, where jobs are scarce and unemployment is high, extra money is something most people can look forward to earning. Besides the conventional jobs, there are many things you can do that can earn some money.

Ever since high school, I have been making great money without having a regular job. I have been resourceful, doing research on what kinds of jobs and services are in demand, and doing freestyle work.

I currently web design part -time and do some tutoring for most of my money.

Here are some easy ways for YOU to make extra cash.  Read more...

Ten Money Saving Fast Food Promotions

The average American spends $7.58 on fast food per day- translating to close to $2500 a year per person. That’s a lot of money (and probably a lot of calories). Assuming we can’t change our eating habits, we can try really hard to change our spending habits.

I have searched the Internet and local magazines for the ten best fast food promotions (and coupons) that will surely save you money.  If you know some more, please let me know and I will incorporate them into a future article.

1) Wienerschnitzel – Special Offer Coupon: Free Medium Drink

URL: http://wienerschnitzel.com/email/coupon.html  Read more...

What is the criteria for a personal loan?

I have received numerous e-mails from readers asking about the eligibility criteria for a personal loan. There is no straight answer to this question as all financial institutions have different screening processes.  There are no two people alike, and the same thing happens to financial situations. The market offers an incredible variety of financial products and thousands of applicants apply for them every day, thousands of incredibly varied applicants. Is there any particular factor which might trigger a lender’s desire to fund a person’s project? You might be thinking that this question can easily be answered in two words: “good credit”. But that is not all, the percentage of loan applicants with good credit is lower than you might think. Before the credit bust, having a high credit score virtually guaranteed the applicant a loan. Nowadays, numerous other aspects, such as assets, employment, salary, and age are taken into account.  Read more...

Student Loan Tips and Secrets

Before taking out a student loan, it is a good idea for parents and students alike to read more about the benefits and disadvantages of each type of loan (whether personal, private, or government subsidized) in order to ensure a smooth transition after graduation.

Let us dissect the benefits and possible uses for each of the loans in order to help you narrow down your choices.

There are three types of student loans you can apply for: Federal, private, and personal student loans.  Read more...