After writing about the guy who lost $600,000 on Deal or No Deal and then the woman scammed out of $400,000 by the Nigerian demi-god of confidence men, I thought it was only fair to tell a happier tale. This one is of a 19 year old named Taylor who has the day of his life with Drew Carey and The Price Is Right.

If that stroke of luck isn’t good enough, read this story about Michael Paul Larson learning the patterns of the board in Press Your Luck, an 80s game show, and walking out with a bunch of cash and prizes. First, the story is absolutely true. Next, read the amazing story about how he won $110,237 in cash and prizes back in June 1984 (that’s $229,782.08 in today’s dollars and back in an era where the prizes were much much smaller).

See? It’s not all bad news and schadenfreude here.

Did you know that you can request to have your mail held through a form online? I had no idea! This saved me a trip to the post office (and a 15 minute wait in the line that is always there regardless of when I go).

You can get same day service if you submit it by 2:00 AM CST! The service is limited to certain zip codes but fortunately mine was included. Scratch that one off my list of errands today.

Online services FTW!

USPS Hold Mail Service Form

… where would you go? And why?

I’d go to the future by about two hundred years so I could get try one of those super-dehydrated pizzas like in Back to the Future. I’d like to know if that stuff was really possible or was it just Hollywood magic!

(Photo: f1rstborn)

This edition of PFBlogger Spotlight takes a look at one of the most enterprising personal finance bloggers out there, Pinyo of Moolanomy. In addition to running a popular personal finance blog, Pinyo works hard at putting together a social media site focused on personal finance, PFBuzz, as well as a bustling forum, carnival, network, and other blogs! I have no idea where he finds the time but he does and does it well.

I had a chance, earlier this year, to interview Pinyo and for the series.

(read full article…)

Today is our annual day of giving thanks and eating ridiculous amounts of food and we will be no different! I want to thank everyone who reads, comments, lurks, links to, is linked from, and interacts with my little website over the past year and hope that we can continue to do it for another year or two (or ten!). It’s because of you that I’m able to continue doing this and for that I thank you.

Please have a safe night, please stop on by for a little light hearted Your Take post for tomorrow, and then have a great weekend!

(Photo: hammer51012)

My first concrete memory of E*Trade was during a half-time commercial from a Super Bowl many years ago. The commercial was that of a monkey dancing for about twenty seconds followed by a single line flashed across the screen, “Well, we just wasted 2 million bucks. What are you doing with your money?”

Back then they were primarily a discount brokerage that offered extremely cheap trades compared to full service brokers. Since then, they’ve expanded into banking and now offer one of the most competitive interest rates available in a high yield savings account.

E*Trade Bank Account

The online interface is very quick and intuitive. It seems as though the experience they’ve had running a brokerage website has come in handy for the banking, as banking services are often simpler and quicker than brokerage services.

E*Trade offers online bill pay - a feature you don’t often see in savings accounts. I haven’t enrolled but I can’t imagine it works any differently than any other bill pay service. Online bill pay is a great way to reduce hassle in your life (and saves you on postage!) and I use it extensively through my regular checking account. If you could move all your bill payments to this savings account, you could maximize your interest earnings on those funds.

What’s nice about E*Trade, which puts them in the ease of use category of ING Direct, is that it’s a cinch to open up new accounts. While you don’t get the full versatility of ING Direct, where you can open up any number of savings accounts, it’s a lot easier to open up a CD or brokerage account than at a bank like HSBC Direct. What’s also nice, and standard amongst online banks, is that transfers between accounts is instantaneous (unless there is a bank holiday).

Another great feature of E*Trade is that you can link multiple online banks together electronically. Many other banks offer this but from time to time you’ll get one that will require you to send in paperwork and a voided check (Emigrant Direct and Dollar Savings Direct require this).

E*Trade Brokerage Account

One of the greatest features about E*Trade Bank is that it’s so easy to link up a E*Trade Brokerage account. The brokerage side of E*Trade is pretty good, having won several awards in the last few years. In 2008, they were named Smart Money’s best discount broker for the second year in a row and Top 10 by Barron’s online broker survey. More importantly, they didn’t score poorly in any of the categories listed.

You can buy bonds, mutual funds, stocks, options, basically anything you could want through the brokerage account. The only complaint I have is that E*Trade doesn’t give you real time quotes on the buy screen, it gives you delayed quotes. It’s 2008, I can’t imagine real time quotes are all that more considering you can get them for free anywhere. I’m not a hardcore trader, though I did day-trade AIG earlier this year, but I’m overall happy with E*Trade.

If you’re looking for only a brokerage account, I think you would do just as well with someone like TradeKing - cheaper trades ($4.95 vs. $9.99), just as many accolades (my TradeKing review). However, coupling the bank and the brokerage together makes E*Trade a solid choice if you’re looking for both.

That Super-Bowl Commercial

And, thanks to the power of the internet, you can watch that commercial on YouTube!

Mona Vie. One of my friend’s wife was targeted to join Mona Vie. I’ve seen a lot of references to both Mona Vie and one of the components in its mixture, açaí, but never really looked into it. I knew that it smelled fishy, in part because its a classic multi-level marketing program, and that alone gives me reason to pause. However, I wanted to take an objective look at it, since there are a lot of MLMs out there and they can’t all be bad right?

Multi-Level Marketing / Pyramid Schemes

Only two words are needed to describe Mona Vie, the brand name of the juice: pyramid scheme. Mona Vie is a “standard multi-level marketing program,” commonly referred to as a pyramid scheme, that relies on people marketing their products. Every time you make a sale, you earn a commission. The people who recruited you, and the people who recruited that person (your “upline”) into the program will also earn a commission. If you recruit someone into the program (your “downline”), you will earn a commission on their sales. The classic pyramid scheme.

There’s is nothing inherently illegal or disreputable about multi-level marketing programs. They aren’t illegal in the sense that Ponzi Schemes are illegal , it’s just that most implementations of MLM programs only really benefit the people at the top of the pyramid. This is because many of these programs have quotas that members need to sell and, when they can’t, members often find themselves buying the products themselves just to meet quota. Anyway, enough with the generalities, what’s specifically scammy about Mona Vie?

Mona Vie Scam?

What’s this Açaí berry juice product? It’s supposed to jump all over the antioxidant health craze people have been clamoring all over and Açaí berries are a very good source of antioxidants (most dark colored berries are, like blackberries, raspberries, etc.); that part is legitimate. The drink itself is 19 juices blended together.

There are two parts of Mona Vie that are suspect. First, many agree that antioxidants are beneficial for you but Mona Vie makes some big promises such as improving cardiovascular health, improving joint function, etc. It claims that it can cure many ailments because it contains components that have been shown to address some of them. Nothing they say is a flat-out lie but it’s like saying you can do laps in a kiddie pool. Possible? Yes. Probable? Not really.

The second part that’s suspect is the fact that the stuff is $30-$40 a ~26 oz. bottle and proponents say you have to drink 2 oz. in the morning and 1 oz. in the evening. Simple math shows that each month you’ll have to spend $120-$170 on the juice, or $1,500-$2,000 a year. If you want the benefits of these types of juices, you can get it for much much less. Oh, and any distributor has to buy 4 bottles a month. Sure you can sell them, but what if you don’t? You’re always on the hook.

Other red flags? Their CEO and founder, Dallin Larsen, is a 20 year veteran of the MLM industry and the FDA recently shut down a similar juice product operation, Dynamic Essentials distributed Royal Tongan Limu juice, for illegal business practices. Hmmm…

Finally, check out the MonaVie compensation plan, courtesy of The Fraud Files blog. There are all sorts of crazy exceptions and rules. For example, you have two legs on your “downline,” but are only paid on commissions based on the shorter of the two. It gets really complicated, really quickly, and that certainly doesn’t bode well for people who sell the stuff.

The bottom line is that you’re overpaying for a product and, if you’re a distributor, you have to buy 4 bottles a month. Do you think it’s a scam? (this site, Purple Horror, documents a lot of Mona Vie’s shenanigans)

(Photo: wmode)

This is a guest post by Cap at StopBuyingCrap.com, where Cap rambles on about personal finance, life, the universe, and everything. If for whatever crazy reason you liked this post, feel free to subscribe to his blog - supposedly you’re guaranteed to at least two worthwhile post per year.

Do you want the quickest way to mountains to debt, poor investment returns, and years after years of tax audits?

Ignore your finances.

Ignore the bills, ignore the secondary notice, ignore the warning signs that your investment allocations are too risky — ignore them all.

Having trouble making your credit card payments? Hey, it’s all good, open a new card account and ignore the old one! Falling short on your mortgage payments? Hey, it’s all good, let’s worry about the upcoming holiday vacations first!

Sounds ridiculous? Probably not.

We’ve all had those moments when we’re too stressed out to deal with the finances; when there’s too many things on the plate and too many other issues to take care of.

Procrastination? Apathy? Lack of proper financial literacy? What the case, there’s one simple solution to avoid failing miserably in taking care of your finances.

Start paying attention!

Here’s some starting steps if you’ve been ignoring parts or all of your finances:

1. Build that workable budget. It’s not impossible to build a budget that you can stick to. Here’s a quick tip: make realistic goals. Don’t try heroic measures like cutting $1,000 per month from the budget unless you’ve drastically changed your financial outlook. If an entire budget overwhelms you, try specific categories you can hit. Build a grocery budget or an entertainment budget, and get whoever else that’s part of the household involved! Need a hand to get started? Try this making a budget guide for some tips and tools.

2. Revisit your investment accounts. Whether it’s your retirement account or the college funding for your child, now’s the perfect time to reassess your asset allocation, risk tolerance, and investment goals. No idea where to start? Try Beginner’s Guide to Asset Allocation and An Intro to 529 Plans.

3. Get a close loved one involved. As with going on raids in WoW, better do the whole financial responsibilty thing with support than going solo (ignore the lame MMO reference). Ask your friends or family member to give you a helpful reminder to take care of specific parts of the finances. Setup a savings goal with a friend, or a debt reduction contest with loved ones. It’s always easier to face life’s challenges when you have the right support.

4. Use the latest tools to keep you updated. Most major financial institutions have online banking capability, with means for you to do automatic bill pays, transfers, and alerts. They can be extremely convenient and time savers. If you’re comfortable with bringing your finances further online, check out online tools such as Mint.com, Quicken Online, and Yodlee. Many of these services provide text based alerts for budgets, bills, and changes to your investment accounts — all to keep you on your toes.

If you have tips on paying attention to your finances, feel free to share. Take it from someone who has ignored their finances for almost a year and paid dearly for it — don’t do it! Make some time for your future, just a few days out of the month can go a long way towards financial stability and independence!

Sharebuilder built its reputation buy having low commissions ($4 a trade) and completely buy-in into the dollar cost averaging mantra. Much like how you have regular retirement account contributions, Sharebuilder helps you cheaply buy into positions with individual companies (back then, ETFs didn’t exist) on a regular monthly schedule. They made a good name for themselves doing this in an era when trades cost at least twice that.

Summary

Unfortunately, I think the days of Sharebuilder may be numbered as brokerage firm commissions get lower and lower. TradeKing now offers $4.95 commission trades, a mere 95 cents more than Sharebuilder with the option of trading whenever you feel like it. That being said, Sharebuilder still offers tools like the ability to buy fractional shares, regularly scheduled transfers and orders - all of those features take away the hassle of managing a dollar cost averaging strategy yourself.

If you want to dollar cost average, Sharebuilder is the best brokerage to work with.

Account Features

I mentioned some of the features that assist in dollar cost averaging and they are:
Buying fractional shares: To my knowledge, no other brokerage allows you to buy fractional shares of stock. Mutual fund companies, like Vanguard, will let you buy fractional shares of their mutual funds, but I don’t know of any that will let you buy half a share of Google. This lets you designate $100 a month towards Google (or anything else) and focuses on the dollar amount, not the share price.

Scheduled trades: You can schedule your trade on any Tuesday of the month and each trade is a mere $4, which is still the cheapest commission available on a trade. You can participate in plans that can lower the per trade value (like a Standard plan that costs $12/mo and gives you six trades) but $4 is the base. Another nice feature of these schedule trades is that it can deduct the funds directly from your bank account. You don’t need to transfer the funds, wait, and then buy.

Free dividend reinvestment: This is another feature that plays into the DCA mantra of reinvesting dividends on the investments that pay them out. This reinvestment feature is free, which is especially nice.

No account minimums or inactivity fees: In helping with the small time DCA investor, there are no account minimums or inactivity fees that were so prevalent with many brokerages. This feature is more widely available nowadays but back when Sharebuilder started, it was unheard of.

Weaknesses

The same things that make Sharebuilder good for DCA also make it bad for typical traders. There are no real time stock quotes, not a problem if you schedule your trades ahead of time, and there is no way to set a limit order. All of your trades are made at market prices, which can be a good thing or a bad thing. Another negative is that all sales are made real time with a commission of $9.95, there’s no concept of “scheduled” selling. Finally, they don’t offer a lot of market research.

Ultimately, Sharebuilder is a great DCA brokerage and a weak everything else. If dollar cost averaging is your thing, I think that Sharebuilder is a great option. If not, it’s better to go with another firm (try one on SmartMoney’s 2008 Best Broker listing).

While much of the “Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008″ (or what some call the $700 billion bailout) probably upset you, one aspect that did make me smile was the reintroduction of energy tax credits. (You thought I was going to point out the extension to the provision that allowed racetracks to depreciate their tracks over 7 years rather than 15, huh?) The federal energy tax credit for energy efficiency was a benefit I took advantage of two years ago whenever we replaced our aging windows and sliding doors. While it’s great that the credits have returned, one unfortunate aspect is that the $500 credit limit will apply to 2006, 2007, and 2009. We won’t be able to take advantage again.

With home improvements, you have to place the home improvement in service after January 1st, 2009 and on or before December 31st, 2009. If you do anything between now and December 31st, 2008, you’ll be out of luck. I would review the Energy Star chart for the specifics of each improvement, how much you can get from the credit, before making any decisions but I’ll highlight the major ones.

The biggest bang for your buck is in the form of replacement windows and, to a certain extent, doors. For windows and skylights, you can get a credit for 10% of the cost, up to $200, for Energy Star qualified or IECC meeting windows. Labor is not included. For exterior doors, if they meet IECC standards, you can get a credit for 10% of the cost, up to $500.

Insulation is another good way to reduce energy costs without costing you a lot of money and they come with a 10% credit, up to $500. The only requirement is that they must be expected to last 5 years or have a 2 year warranty. One great place to check your insulation levels is in the attic, it’s important to have at least 12 inches of insulation. If you can see your joists, you need more insulation.

Finally, there are a few home improvements that are afforded energy credits. Compliant HVAC systems and water heaters can get a $300 credit. If you happen to live in an area with plenty of sun, solar systems can get 30% off, up to $2000 (there is no $2000 cap if is it’s a Photovoltaic system!), and are not subject to the $500 credit cap. While the credits probably aren’t enough to get you to install it, they are nice if you’ve already made the decision.