Archive for January, 2007

For those of you who don’t know, XDrive is an online backup service offered by AOL. You can get 5GB of storage for FREE (or for $99 a year you get 50GB). They offer both a web based file upload system or a program that you install on your PC. Whats nice about XDrive is through their interface you can send a outbound fax for free with no advertisements and I’m going to show you how using the web interface.

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The Carnival of Personal Finance #85 is up over at FiveCentNickel. There are 57 articles to chose from covering a variety of different topics.

Carnival Link

Received an email from my current high yield savings account of choice, HSBC Direct, stating that from now through April 30th they are offering 6% APY on new funds in your account. Wish the promo period was a bit longer, but overall still a very good deal.

Until April 30, your HSBC Direct Online Savings Account gives New Money 6.00% APY*. So if you have money elsewhere, it’s time to move it. You’ll maximize your savings and reach your goals and dreams faster.>

During the New Money promotion, deposits from outside of HSBC earn a market-leading 6.00% APY*. That’s 11 times what traditional savings accounts offer.** And checking accounts obviously can’t compare.

You’ll earn up to $150 in just 3 months on every $10,000 of New Money deposited. And, with compounding interest, your savings will continue to grow even after the promotion.

There’s no reason to have your cash lying around anywhere else. >Log on to move your money into your HSBC Direct account now, and earn 6.00% APY* for as many days as you can until April 30.

So if you have some extra cash lying around, now might be the right time to pop it into your HSBC Direct Account.

HSBC Direct

I was recently interviewed by Bryan C Fleming (the home of the Million Dollar Savings Club) and its up over on his site.

Interview Link

For those of you who don’t know about his Million Dollar Savings club, its basically a collection of people who vow to save $3 a day and place it equally in three piles: One for saving, One for Investing, and One for giving away. Check it out!

Saw this site this morning and thought it was a pretty interesting idea. Basically you put the barcode info in from your shopping or club cards and click ‘create your card’ and it will create a credit card sized printout of all your barcodes on 1 card. Very interesting idea, especially if you have a wallet full of store cards. I’m not sure what stores acceptance policies is on these (for instance I thought BJ’s Wholesale Club had your picture on the card) but worth a shot.

Here are some of the cards accepted automatically on the site, and there is a space to add your own custom barcode.

Just One Card

Credit card balance transfer is a good offer for you!

Now through February 19, 2007 get 12% off a single item at Bestbuy with this reward zone coupon. You have to be a reward zone member, which is free to sign up for. Only valid on certain products and a lot of exclusion apply, see the fine print below.

Offer valid through February 19, 2007.

Offer valid in the following categories: TVs & More: TVs $399 & up • DVD players and recorders • Tivo® and DIRECTV® hardware • receivers, speakers and home theater systems • shelf systems • home theater remote controls Computer Accessories: DVD-RW drives • flash and external hard drives • notebook accessories • printers $149 & up • scanners $99 & up • computer networking • computer speakers, mice and keyboards • PC cameras • PC gaming controllers • digital recorders $99 & up • surge protectors • computer flash memory • computer cables • graphic and sound cards • computer software • blank digital media and blank video media • ink cartridges • printer docks • paper Cameras & Accessories: digital cameras $279 & up • digital camcorders $279 & up • digital camera accessories • blank mini-DVD media • blank video media • camcorder accessories • camcorder batteries • blank camcorder media • premium photo services Music Players & Accessories: MP3 players and accessories • car audio • satellite radio hardware • musical instruments • CD/DVD storage Phones & Accessories: phone cards • cordless phones • answering machines• landline phone accessories • 2-way radios • cellular phone accessories • pay-as-you-go phones Appliances & More: major and small appliances • shavers • vacuums • microwaves • batteries • toys • mobile electronics • navigation

Markdowns taken from regular prices with your Reward Zone® program membership.

Excludes Bose®, KEF®, JBL and Shure audio products; TVs 37″ & larger; DIRECTV® service; digital SLR cameras; Apple® products; satellite radio service; Cinema Systems; Sony XBR®; HP ink and paper; high-definition camcorders; Zune devices; digital music download cards and services; Roland, Boss & Edirol musical instruments; special order, clearance, demo and open-box items; Gift Cards; taxes; Magnolia Home Theater products: Bose®; SpeakerCraft®, Sonos, Vienna Acoustics, Tivoli Audio, MartinLogan, BDI furniture; installation services, Magnolia Guaranteed Performance Agreement and special order merchandise. Selection varies by store. Limit 1 offer per coupon, per household. Not good in combination with any other coupons or offers. Valid only at Best Buy stores in the U.S.A. Valid on in-stock items only. No rainchecks. No dealers. Coupon must be presented at time of purchase. No copies. No Cash Back. Cash value is 1/100th of 1 cent. Coupon valid through 2/19/07.

COUPON LINK

I always see a ton of information on personal high yield savings accounts, yet very little on business accounts. For those that like to keep their business and personal accounts separate I thought I would post a few good offers on high yield savings accounts. Rates are as of today (January 22, 2007).

If anyone knows of any other good deals feel free to comment.

Capital One Business Money Market

• 4.80% APY
• No fees and no minimum balance
• Site says no ACH available, but some have said there is ACH on the account.

Even better if you are a Costco member and have some cash…

Capital One & Costco Money Market Account

• 5.20% APY
• $5,000 minimum deposit to open
• Costco Executive Members receive $25 when they open their first Money Market account
• Must be a Costco member to apply for this account

Fidelity Account for Businesses

• Can invest in the Fidelity Select Money Market Fund (FSLXX) which is currently 5.08% APY
• Can purchase stocks and mutual funds as well with the account.
• Minimum to open: $2,500, No annual account fee
• Not FDIC Insured

Advanta Money Market Account (Open To Businesses)

• Tiered Rates
  $100 to $999 - 4.75% APY
  $1,000 to $9,999 - 5.10% APY
  $10,000 to $49,999 - 5.15% APY
  $50,000 to $99,999 - 5.20% APY
  $100,000 and above - 5.25% APY
• Minimum Deposit: $2,500
• $15.00 Monthly Service Charge if average daily balance falls below $100

Staples has their 12% off instore purchase coupons up for Jan 20 - Jan 23. Just print it out and bring it to your local Staples store.

We’re giving you 12% off just about everything in-store* from January 20 – January 23. Print out this email and present it in the store to get your special savings.

*Offer good in Staples® stores in-stock inventory only. Excludes personal computers, laptops, build-to-order computers,gift cards, phone cards, and postage stamps. Price matching on competitor products will not be permitted. For your personal purchases only, not part of your corporate contract. No cash or credit back. Valid January 20 -23, 2007, only. Cannot be used with any other offer.

Staples Coupon Link

Discover is offering 5% cashback bonuses on certain categories of purchases throughout the year just for purchasing your card. So if you have a Discover card and are going to be making any of the following purchases you likely won’t find a higher rewards offer anywhere.

Here are the current and upcoming promotions:

Now - March 2007
- Airlines
- Cruises
- Hotels
- Car Rentals
- Amtrak® Trains
- Greyhound® Buses

April - June 2007
- Apparel
- Home

July - September 2007
- Gas
- Theme Parks
- Museums
- Zoos

Discover Cashback Bonus Homepage

I’ve owned some direct stock investments for quite some time through Equiserve which recently was bought by CompuShare. I’ve had online access through Equiserve for a year or 2 and now CompuShare wants me to convert each stock into a unique CompuShare account with a different username and password. It seems like it would be much easier if I could just create one account and then add all the stocks to this once account.

Well according to them I cannot do this online. I have to send a letter to them with my account information and they will consolidate it in 6-8 weeks!

In the meantime I don’t have access to my account online which is a real drag.

For those that don’t know, Upromise is a program where you earn money towards college by buying things you do anyways. Basically you link your credit card or grocery store card to your account and when it detects you have purchased an eligible item it gives you a % back in your account which you can transfer to a 529 plan or request a check. Things like Domino sugar, Kleenex, Old Spice deodorant, and thousands of other items - as well as restaurants on online stores.

It doesn’t cost you a thing, and there is nothing for you to do once you sign up and add your cards. I’ve had it for a few years now and have racked up about $50 in savings. Doesn’t seem like a lot but hey, free is free and it didn’t really take any effort.

Use promo code ‘BN5‘ to get $5 free for signing up!

Upromise - Turn your everyday spending into college savings

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Its tax time! The IRS has published their yearly list of sites that will allow you to E-File your taxes for free if you meet certain requirements. Most notably:

• If the amount is not specified, Free File services are limited to taxpayers with an Adjusted Gross Income of $52,000 or less; or otherwise as noted

• Fees for state tax returns may apply; however, some companies offer free state tax return preparation and e-filing

So if you have an AGI under $52k should be pretty easy to find a place (I’d say out of the list TaxAct and TaxCut are the most well known).

IRS Website Link

Yo It’s Me is offering a FREE $5 prepaid Mastercard just for filling out a form on their site.

Yo, Try it now for FREE!
For a limited time, we are releasing $5.00 Prepaid MasterCard’s – for free – to people who don’t already have a Yo Prepaid MasterCard. (One card per mailing address, please). There’s no catch – We just want as many people as possible to experience the excitement of Yo!

Use your free $5.00 Yo Prepaid MasterCard anywhere MasterCard is accepted – even online! Buy lunch, or a couple of cold ones. Rent a movie, or download some music! Try it, and you’ll see how having your own Yo Prepaid MasterCard is handy, fun, and easy!

If you love it (and we know you will), you’ll have an opportunity to sign up for a personalized, fully functional, and loadable Yo Prepaid MasterCard.

Available without a credit check or bank account, Yo Personalized Prepaid MasterCard® can be used with a PIN at ATMs, with a signature at stores, or for online or phone orders. It’s easy to load, easy to use, FDIC insured, and secure – and can even be used for direct deposit from your employer!

Sign Up Here

I just did it, hope it comes!

I wrote about Monoprice and their Ebay Store in my Why You Should Never Buy A Video Cable Instore article, but I just wanted to give everyone a real life example of how their products are cheaper if you can find what you are looking for.

I needed a 25ft Component Cable for a friend and checked Monoprice.com. Their run of the mill cable was $9.55 plus 7.63 shipping for a total of $17.18. So I decided to check their Ebay store to see if they had it. Low and behold they had it for $4.95 plus $6.95 shipping for a total of $11.90 - a $5.28 saving (over 30%).

So if you are going to order some cables from Monoprice it pays to check.