Comments on: Win You Call The Shots by Cameron Johnson

By: Tiffany

Tiffany — Sun, 27 May 2007 18:00:08 +0000

I would like to read more about adhering to simple living techniques as a means for achieving financial independence. Thanks!

By: Ben

Ben — Sun, 27 May 2007 00:36:34 +0000

One thing I think would be a big help to readers would be specific comparisons of two different personal finance options. For example should I invest in a mutual fund vs an ETF?

I think indecision holds people back from taking financial action, I know it does for me, so specific comparisons might be a good way to help people make informed decisions.

Not that you and other bloggers don’t do this sometimes, I just think more of it would be useful.

By: Jim

Jim — Fri, 25 May 2007 19:20:23 +0000

That actually brings up another good topic. “The High Cost of Romance” has a nice ring to it. I needed someone to tell me at 17 (and 19, 20, 22, 24) that my money would be better off in a savings account or a CD than being spent on a very expensive piece of jewelry for a girl whom I most likely won’t be speaking with in a year or so. Which isn’t to say small gifts aren’t great. I’m all for it. Just save the big gestures until you’re older and actually have the money to pay for it. Oh, and being in love kinda helps too. (Of course, I probably wouldn’t have listened to whomever told me this…)

By: jim

jim — Fri, 25 May 2007 12:42:18 +0000

Your second bullet point isn’t too far off either.

By: Jim

Jim — Fri, 25 May 2007 03:58:45 +0000

I would like the blogs to explain to me why I was so stupid as a teenager. Financially, of course. And to save current teens from falling into credit card debt! It needs to be in big, bold type (possibly disguised as “txt” shorthand, cause the kids dig that) and it must be concise (no attention span — see earlier parenthetical). Possibly bullet points. Those are still cool, right? Something like — CREDIT CARDS WILL RUIN YOUR LIFE. SHE’S NOT WORTH IT, SAVE THE MONEY. BEER IS BETTER WHEN OTHER PEOPLE PAY FOR IT. BANK OF AMERICA IS NOT YOUR FRIEND.

Especially the last one.

By: Jeff

Jeff — Thu, 24 May 2007 18:14:38 +0000

I agree with the above comment about posts with a Canadian focus. Canadian finance blogs are few and far between.

By: Blaine Moore (First Time Home Owner)

Blaine Moore (First Time Home Owner) — Thu, 24 May 2007 14:28:16 +0000

I’d like to see more about Finances and fitness.

Nickel, as for home depot paint secrets, watch First Time Home owner over the next couple of weeks. My wife has been writing articles while we wait for the paint to dry; I just haven’t had time to set up an account for her so that she can publish them on the site. We have been painting non-stop for the past week and a half; never again am I going to try painting 4 rooms and a hallway all at the same time (the only rooms we opted not to paint were the bathroom and office).

By: Brad Franzwa

Brad Franzwa — Thu, 24 May 2007 14:01:25 +0000

I would like to see some financial discussion about the escrow ballooning that occurs for people taking on loans for new homes. It works like this: Since the taxes due are always a year later, the initial escrowing for a loan of a new home lacks the anticipation of future taxes. New homeowners (like myself) know that taxes will go up thousands of dollars the following year, and mistakingly think that they need to anticipate the escrow going up to account for the property taxes. About 12-18 months later, the tax bill arrives to the escrow holder. Instead of raising the escrow by the monthly portion of the yearly taxes, it instead raises the escrow amount enough to pay off the negative escrow balance.
So the first year’s house payment is $1400, the next year’s payments are $2000, and the third year and subsequent years settle down to $1700 for the life of the fixed loan. My wife and I expected the $1700, but not the $2000. The only way to not pay the additional amount for year 2 was to write a check for $3600. It was a real sting for people buying new construction.

By: Edwin

Edwin — Thu, 24 May 2007 03:26:04 +0000

I’d like to see more from bloggers who have accumulated wealth for themselves and have been very successful financially. I’d like to know how they did it and what it took to get there.

By: Mike

Mike — Thu, 24 May 2007 00:14:59 +0000

More about bonus money for opening a new savings or checking account at any bank/credit union etc.

By: Justin

Justin — Thu, 24 May 2007 00:08:03 +0000

I wish PF blogs would cover more about the total cost of housing. We see so much about mortgage payments vs. rent payments, but what about insurance, property tax, maintenance.

I know it gets covered, but I’d love to see specifics like “I’ve owned my house for 5 years, and I’ve had these things go wrong and they cost this much to fix” and “remember every year you’ll be writing that nice 5k check for property taxes”

Also, some more calculations about tax deductions would be nice, especially as it relates to the advantages of home ownership.

By: keith

keith — Wed, 23 May 2007 23:01:09 +0000

I would like to see more posts about me winning and then selling this book…after using its pages for toilet paper.

By: Vinit

Vinit — Wed, 23 May 2007 22:22:52 +0000

Deriving income from multiple sources.

I’m interested in knowing what new ideas can you come up with (or your readers can think of) for making money. Like for example who would have thought 5 years before that one could make money by blogging.

By: Jen

Jen — Wed, 23 May 2007 22:05:11 +0000

I would like to see more post on how to generate PASSIVE income.

By: Brenna

Brenna — Wed, 23 May 2007 20:53:33 +0000

I would like to see more of an everyday finance situations and what the personal finance blogger has done to improve their situation.