Tuesday, February 19, 2008

Not Impressed With E-Trade

Ok, so I opened this blog talking about saving and determining which virtual bank that I was going to go with to start that savings plan. As you know, I choose E-Trade. And I made a fatal mistake. I focused on one singular aspect when I was making my decision...interest rate.

So what exactly has happened that has made me decide that I have made a mistake? Nothing major. My initial $25 deposit was taken from my funding account, just like E-Trade stated. I received a huge package in the mail detailing my account information, again, just as E-Trade stated. But when I log into my E-Trade account, it states that my account balance is $0.00.

Now, at first, I thought, "Oh, it will just take a few days before my initial deposit is reflected online." And then a few days turned into a week. A week turned into two and then, I finally lost my patience, after two weeks mind you, that I needed to really look and try to find out just where the heck my $25 was located at.

I realized after much searching, that my login to E-Trade took me to the investing page and since I did not have an investment account with E-Trade, of course my balance would be zero. But then I really looked around and found that I needed to allow access to my online account by entereing my social security number, account number, and zip code. So let me get this right, I opened the account online. I deposited money through an online transfer, but I need to sign up to access my account online? Didn't I kinda, sorta, I don't know, done that already? I mean all the entering of information and emails and stuff, doesn't that give you the level of security that you need.

Look, I am all for keeping my money safe. But extra steps to verify information that is basically already verified is not necessary.

And after careful review of the lack of usability of the site in general from opening the account to accessing the account online has been woefully un-user friendly. So, while I was buying because the rate HAD BEEN 4.40% and now stands at 4.10% because of the Fed rate cuts. I am now selling because, frankly, I don't need the headaches.

So, as of today. I am sacking E-Trade and moving my alliances to ING Direct. I had used ING years ago when virtual banking was just getting started and ING was basically the only "known" name at that time. I closed the account after a year because I wasn't really using it. Now it is time to give it another shot. I will take usability over an additional .70% in rate. At this time, I don't have the kind of money that will make the difference meaningful at this time. When or if, it does become a factor, well, we will have to cross that bridge when we get there.

Friday, February 15, 2008

Your Credit Part II

In Part I we discussed the anatomy of a credit score. In today’s installment I will be discussing how you can get a copy of your credit report and ways that you may be able to increase your credit score.

The federal government allows you to access your credit report annually for free. There are many websites and television commercials that tout free credit reports. Be aware most websites and television ads want you to sign up for some other service that does have fees associated with them.

The official site is www.annualcreditreport.com. I also have the toll free number and mailing address for those that are interested. This will get you access to review your credit report. This site will not give you credit scores for free. Why bother if no score is given?

1) First and most important, is the information listed on the credit report correct? Can you verify each account listed and agree with approximate payment and balance? Do you see anything that is outdated and should be removed? Are there errors on the report?

2) You can see your payment history. You can see how the companies have reported your payments. Have you had one 30 day late or three on that car loan since it has been opened?

3) Helps establish a game plan. By seeing your credit it can help you determine whether you are ready to buy a home or if you need to work on your credit before applying.

If you want to purchase your credit score at this time you can. Here is an interesting site that gives some insight on how the scores are considered. As you can see, different agencies consider scoring differently. In today’s mortgage environment, which is changing rapidly, having a score of 680 or better is preferred. If you have a score lower than 680, it does not mean that you will not be able to obtain a mortgage. Many factors are also considered besides credit score. They include your down payment amount, (see Saving Makes a Difference) and your debt to income ratios.

So you have seen your credit and score? How do you make it better.

  1. Make your payments on time. Get current if you are behind on any debt and stay current.
  2. Pay down credit card debt aggressively. Focus on credit cards that have balances of over 50% of the available line. Do not close cards that have zero balances Credit scoring also considers all balances vs available lines of credit. Closing an account lowers you available credit.
  3. Don’t apply for new credit. If your goal is to buy a home in the coming months, avoid getting additional debt. Not only will this not show additional inquiries on your report but also keep your debt to income ratio lower, allowing you to qualify for more home.
  4. Get errors corrected on your credit report.

Wednesday, February 13, 2008

Your Credit Part I

Note: This was originally posted at another blog (mortgagebullet.wordpress.com) but I no longer post at this blog. I am the original author of this post.


You hear so much about it and you know that credit can make the difference in getting a preferred rate or having to deal with a high rate of interest on anything from housing, cars, insurance, and credit cards. But do you know what makes up your credit score?

There are many different types of credit scores. We are going to focus on traditional credit scoring models that are used for mortgage transactions. Scores can range from 300-850. The average credit score in the United States is 677.

Anatomy of a Credit Score
35% - Past Payment Performance
30% - Credit Utilization
15% - Credit History
10% - Type of Credit in Use
10% - Inquiries

Past Payment Performance – is just as it sounds. How well you have you paid your debts? A creditor will report your loan as current as long as you pay your bills within 30 days. Any longer than 30 days and it will be reported late with the credit reporting agency. The last 12-24 months history weighs most prominently on your score.

Credit Utilization – is how you use your credit. If you have credit cards, what kind of balance do you have in relation to the amount available. If you are over 50% of available balance, it is considered high. Have you added new credit recently? That may also play a roll in your credit score.

Credit History – is how long you have had your credit. The longer you have had credit, the better to determine how you handle life’s ups and downs.

Types of Credit in Use – Do you have a mortgage loan, a car loan, credit cards, or finance companies listed on your credit report? Too many credit cards or use of finance companies (example of a finance company loan is if you take store financing for furniture) can negatively impact your credit.

Inquiries – How many times have you had your credit pulled. It can show that you are applying for credit in many places and may have loans or credit cards that are not yet showing up on your credit report. If you have your credit pulled a number of times within a short period (14-30 days) of time when shopping for a mortgage or car, the credit reporting agencies will only count it as one inquiry.

Sunday, February 10, 2008

Slickdeals.net Review

So this week we focused on three separate deal websites...Woot, Bargain Jack, and DealsofAmerica.

Today we will focus on my favorite deal site of them all. Slickdeals.net

What makes it better than DealsofAmerica? Which is the most similar of the deal sites that I have gone over this week. Slickdeals goes over some of the same deals that are detailed elsewhere and has the same coupons that are listed on DealsofAmerica. The big difference to me, is the community.

That's right. The community on Slickdeals is robust and extremely helpful. They will rate the deals and give feedback such as was there another deal out there that may be better. I find the communities reviews to be very comprehensive and well thought out for the most part.

Check out the "forum" area of this site. These two areas are my favorite.

Slickdeals also lists freebies. It lists what sites are giving away free samples of their products. However, if you do get into this service, please realize a number of these companies listed are small companies trying to grow their business. Only sign up for a freebie if you think that you may invest some of your hard earned money if you like their product.

Also, something that is fun is games that companies offer and give away free stuff. These can be grand prize type giveaways including vacations, cars, and cash or just instant win type games where you may win free shipping, a small coupon, or a candy bar. These can be time consuming but it can be addicting. I have spent just a small amount of time since I found slickdeals a few years ago. The biggest thing I have won is something from Bacardi Sliver which included a t-shirt, an umbrella, a beach bag, and a couple of other miscellaneous things.

Because of the active community and extra features that Slickdeals features it rated a 5 out of 5 stars by Deals That Matter.

Next week I am going to focus on your credit including what makes up your score, how to improve your score, and recent changes that you need to know about regarding credit scoring.

Friday, February 8, 2008

Review of DealsofAmerica.com

We have visited both Woot and Bargain Jack this week. These two sites are focused almost exclusively on one deal a day sites and sales. But there are more to deal sites than just one sale, on one site, each day.

That is where DealsofAmerica comes in.

Deals has it all. Hot deals, coupons, credit card offers, free after rebates, and a compare prices area on it's site.

What makes Deals really special, is that it does not just give you that a product is on sale, but what coupons and codes that can help you save additional percentage, a flat dollar amount, or even get you free shipping.

Right now the site is featuring it's Valentines Day Gift Center. You see a lot of merchandise from ice.com. Anyone notice the $15 off $20 order with coupon code from 1-800-flowers.com? I'm not linking it. I hate to inform you, you have to do a little work too.

To my knowledge, they are one of the first sites that list Black Friday deals from any number of stores.

Take some time to really go through the coupon portion of the site. It is very in depth and you will fantastic deals that you would be very hard pressed to find on your own.

My take. DealsofAmerica is a 4.5 on a 5 star scale.

And yes, I have a 5 star review for you on deal sites. What could it be? You'll just have to come back now won't you?

Wednesday, February 6, 2008

Get to Know Bargain Jack

Earlier this week I introduced you and implored you to visit woot!

If you haven't, well that is just a shame. Today they are selling John Daly golf clubs. You just have to read the story and product description. Priceless.

But today we move on to Bargain Jack.

Want to know Jack?

Well, Jack does 2 things very well. 1) It gives you 21 deals everyday from anything from electronics to kitchen wares and t-shirts. 2) It gives a run down of a number woot knock-offs. Ok, other one day deals sites. These sell anything under the sun.

I have found some very good electronics deals and memory cards and digital cords from these sites. I like looking around at the different sites and see what they are offering.

It is great site to peruse when it comes time to buy gifts or look at the holidays. You can find great deals on great gifts.

Bargain Jack is definitely one of the deal sites that I visit everyday. And oh yeah, woot is listed on Bargain Jack too, right along with Wine Woot, which is exactly what it sounds like, except the deal lasts a week.

Monday, February 4, 2008

What is Woot?

This week I will be detailing some of my favorite deal websites that I visit everyday.

Today, it is the grand-daddy of one day deal websites WOOT!.

What? You haven't heard of Woot? Where have you been? Not real sure what a one day deal sites are?

Let me explain.

One day deal sites are just that. They sell one item only for one day only. If they sell out within the first hour of the sale...tough, you have to wait 23 hours to see a new deal.

There are a million of these sites out there, I will be detailing some of the other ones in the coming days but nobody, and I mean nobody does it better than Woot.

Even when I don't like their offering, or the deal has already sold out, I go to the site to be entertained. I read the product description. They are great. The writers are very funny. It is a serious site that has a serious sense of humor. Don't believe me. Go buy a leak frog. Watch Woot long enough you will see them. And then you will understand.

And once Woot has had enough of their daily deals, they do the Woot-Off. This is where it gets fun! They put a product up until it sells out and then the move onto the next deal. Products can sell out in minutes or if a Woot-Killer can take hours. But the crown jewel of the woot-off is the Bag of Crap. Normally you wouldn't clamor for a Bag of Crap but here you do. The people at Woot sell a mystery bag that is filled with pens, rubberbands, and possibly high end electronics. You don't know but it could be something really good.

So check it out. You can find great deals and wonderful entertainment.

Deals That Matter is not affiliated with Woot.

Friday, February 1, 2008

When to Refinance

I have had an interesting week. A trip to the ER and a crazy week at work.

So rates are lower, right? If this is supposed to be a deal site, helping you save money including refinancing your home needs to be included.

Here are some of my tips if you are looking at refinancing your home.

Do you knnow what your goal is? And no, saying that you want the lowest monthly payment possible is not the best goal in the world. That can lead to a bad loan product.

You need to balance the 3 main reasons for refinancing both their pros and cons.

1) To reduce your mortgage payment. It is called a rate and term refinance. Can you refinance and keep your mortgage term roughly in line with it's current schedule and lower your payment? If you can, how much money would you need to save on a monthly basis to justify any closing costs involved? For example, is it worth it to save $30 a month but extend your term 2 years and have $1000 in closing costs? Probably not, but $75 a month possibly would. You need to decide.

2) Shorten your term. Can you refinance and reduce your mortgage term and keep your mortgage payment similar to what it is now? If you can with minimal cost, it may make it worth.

3) Consolidate or cash out on your mortgage. Credit cards, medical bills, unsecured loans anyone? If you have the equity and have a cash crunch, refinancing to consolidate your debt may be worth it. But do you really want to pay for the $2500 unsecured loan for the next 30 years?

A good rule of thumb is to save at least 1% over your current interest rate and re-coup the closing costs within a 2 year period.

If you have questions or just want some advice from a mortgage professional, such as myself, drop me a line. I'd be happy to discuss your situation and help you determine what makes the most sense in your situation.

Monday, January 28, 2008

An Interesting Way to Save

For those of you who do not know, I am a mortgage loan officer. I get to see a number of ways people are able or unable to handle their finances in a way that most people are never able to see. I see tax returns, bank accounts, credit, you name it. I see it.

A few days ago I ran across a man that had a very interesting way of saving money. Everytime he deposited his paycheck he would buy a savings bond. One the first paycheck of the money he would purchase a $100 savings bond. One the second paycheck he purchased a $200 savings bond. And it just so happened that I reviewed his account where he received 3 paychecks during the month and he purchased a $500 savings bond at that time.

So every month he was guaranteed to save at least $300. When I questioned him on why he decided to utilize a savings plan that was fairly uncommon, his answer was amazing.

This individual had been incarcerated for 13 years. He had been back out on his own for just the last two years. He had been a thief. He had been arrested multiple times. He never knew how to use the money he had. He said that he was concerned that he would be unable to handle his money now that he was a free man. When he purchased the bonds he was taking the money out of his account just like it was any other expense. It was never in the account for him to use. He was "paying himself first" as many good frugals know.

Well, that was a good story of someone who was setting their life straight but then he gave me the kicker. He said that the bonds also gave him a boundary. It helped him to determine what was important and what was not. Whenever he was tempted to cash in one of the bonds, he knew that he would have to make a trip into the branch, talk to a manager or assistant, who would then have to enter all the information on the bond to determine it's value, and only then could he receive his money.

He actually made a physical barrier to his money! He couldn't spend the bond at a ATM or pay for dinner with it. It wasn't "money" until he made the trip to the branch to cash it in. He would have to make a special trip just to cash in the bonds.

Now, I don't advise anyone to save using bonds. There are many vehicles that will accrue interest in better ways, faster. But the idea here is clear. Open an account that if you are tempted to use it, there is some barrier in your way. Open a savings account with no ATM card. Open an online account where you have to make transfers and may experience a slight delay to get your money. This will allow you time to make sure that you are accessing the money for the right reasons and not spending on impulse.

Sunday, January 27, 2008

What To Do With Tax Rebate Checks

All of us are aware by now that the government is going to put some tax rebate plan in this year. We have heard the details and now are just waiting for the formal announcement to be made.

In my case the proposed tax rebate would equal $2,100. I am married ($1,200 for married couples) and have 3 children ($300 per dependant). Your tax rebate check may differ in amount based on your personal circumstance.

Checks will be received starting in May (from what I hear) and may take up to 10 weeks from when the IRS actually starts mailing the checks out. So expect May to July for delivery.

All of this assumes that the tax rebate plan goes through as expected.

Well of course the wife and I had some time to talk about what we are planning on doing with our tax rebate check. Now, you may be saying, "Deals....you have been writing about saving money, why don't you stash the cash in that E-Trade account that you set up?" The answer here is fairly simple. Our government is giving us these rebates WANTING us to spend it. That is the reason they are being sent out in the first place. Our economy is struggling and these rebates are meant to give some kind of boost in consumer spending.

Here is my problem. A good portion of what we are getting back, I have already spent. Before Thanksgiving Circuit City ran a special on HDTVs with no interest for 18 months. I sprang for a $1200 42' flat screen Vizio that I absolutely love. This was not a no interest, no payment for 18 months...just no interest, so we have been making payments on the television. By the time we get the rebate checks I foresee us owing $900-1000 on the TV still. Since I know that these rebate checks are coming...I'm not going to pay more than the minimum required at this time. So figure that we will have about $1100 remaining after we pay off the television.

This is what the wife and I plan to do.

1) $600 goes directly to the school shopping season. Clothes, shoes, supplies, sign up, registration, books, etc, ad nuseaum. Who said public school is free? Now $600 may be too much for what we need when that time comes...but at the same time, it just might not be enough but it is a very solid start.

2) We are going to split the remaining funds between us. So my wife and I will each have roughly $250 to spend. I really would like my wife to just absolutely blow this money on herself only. She is worth it. It is what the government wants her to do afterall.

3) As for me. I haven't the foggiest on what I would spend on myself. I have a very sneaking suspecision that I am going to buy a new bike for my oldest. Maybe a new chair for the desk (combining it with some gift cards that I have) and maybe a video game or something like that for me.

4) If there is anything remaining, it will go to one of the funds...the vacation fund, the emergency fund, or my brand new E-Trade savings that I opened. By the way, the money has come out of my account and I have received an email from E-Trade confirming that my account is open and ready to be looked at. I haven't had a chance to log in yet. I will give you more feedback once I do.

Saturday, January 26, 2008

Deal of the Weekend

Not only are we trying to build a normal savings pattern here at Deals That Matter, we also want to try to help you find the best ways to save more money when you have to spend.

Like many of you out there, I have kids. And the fact of the matter is, kids need clothes. And kids need clothes all the time. They outgrow what you just bought before you know it.

One of my favorite places to shop is Kohls. Why? Well, if it is not on sale this week just wait until next week! They seem to rotate what half of the store is on sale.

Here is the deal of the week from Kohls.

Huge clearance sale on kids clothing. Sorry, I just found this deal today and it ends today too, so you have to move fast.

This sale features up to 70% clearance. You can also get jeans boy and girls 2 for $20. Kohls normally shipping is $.99 but they are offering free shipping for orders over $75.

Happy shopping!

Thursday, January 24, 2008

Wants, Needs, Emergencies, & Your Money

I ran across this post from I've Paid For This Twice Already (love the name).

It is about this frugal blogger's draining of her emergency fund and needing more to be able to have her wisdom teeth removed. And she is going to tell the dentist that she isn't going to do it until she has the funds to pay for the procedure!

You go!

But she is embarrassed about having to do this. Aren't we all? When we have to fess up and actually tell the reason we aren't going to do something is...."I don't have the money." It is uncomfortable at best and can lead you do the road to more debt at worst.

But we all have things come up that have to take priority in our financial lives, car repairs, children's field trips, dental work, whatever, that changes the whole plan. But just because your current plan has been blown to pieces, doesn't mean that you pack it in and give up.

Sometimes, even the needs have to wait. Twice Already Needs to have her wisdom teeth removed. But even this need can wait, at least for the moment. So if you can put off your needs in some cases. Just think what you can do for the wants!

Wednesday, January 23, 2008

Opened My E-Trade Savings Account & Review

I opened my online E-Trade account this evening and made sure that my initial $25 deposit was heading in the new accounts direction. I had been planning on waiting until I got paid on Friday but I thought it was ok to open the account and make the deposit just a few days early.

The first thing I noticed is that the rate the savings account pays has dropped from 5.05% APY to 4.40% APY. Darn Ben Bernanke and the Fed!

My experience was ok. It was not quite as user friendly as I would have liked. When I clicked on, "Open an Account" it took me to an area to enter my personal information and set to get my user name and password completed.

Then, onto a page that led basically to nowhere. It took me a couple of false starts to actually get to where I was to determine what kind of account I wanted to open with E-Trade. I had to enter all the same personal information (pretty frustrating) and additional information such as social security and other tax relevant information.

Then I could finally enter my external account and get the account officially opened. Once on the confirmation page E-Trade gave me a timeline including that I should be getting some kind of "kit" in the mail in the next 5-7 business days.

I'll keep you updated and see how the experience is once everything is up and running.

My initial reponse, on a 5 star scale, would be about 2.25 stars. Not overly impressive and I lost some of my excitement because I became frustrated with the site.

Hopefully, the future looks brighter than today!

Tuesday, January 22, 2008

The Start of My Savings Plan

Why was the first real post regarding online savings banks? I touched on this before but it is important. If we are going to save money, we have to make the most of it.

So I have identified who I want to use for my online savings account we need to be able to fund that account right?

Well, next is to figure out how I am going to fund this account and how much is going to it. I have decided for the time being, since the stock market is not fairing very well and I do not anticipate to improve in the next 6 to 12 months, I think investing in a high yield savings account is the way to go.

Here are 3 ways that I plan on funding this account in the short term.

1) I have roughly $50 per pay check placed in my savings account directly. I want to keep enough in this account to be able to have access to a small amount of emergency funds if I need it. So I have started a nice little base of about $250 in that account now. My wife and I have a separate account that we call, "The wedding account" even though we have been married for 5 years for our larger true emergency account. Nothing comes out of "The wedding account" unless we both agree. Therefore, having a smaller emergency fund for my own purposes is needed.

Now that I have a small base built up, I can start to use a portion of that automatic savings and redirect it to E-Trade. I plan on moving $25 per pay check. I am going to set this up automatically so I don't even have to think about it.

2) I have ghostwritten for a website for a couple of mortgage originators (loan officers) in Arizona. I have been on break from that since the end of November but have been in contact with my contact and he promises me that starting in Feburary that he will again start accepting posts from me. He pays me $15 per post. I normally give him somewhere around 2 per week and receive my payment every two weeks.

He has discussed a much bigger project that could lead to more income, though he has been very vague with details so we will have to wait and see.

I use the first installment and put it towards car insurance. The second installment will now be up for grabs. I have yet to decide if all of this will be put toward the E-Trade account or if I am going to put it into the 2010 cruise fund that the wife and I have. I can split it between both, and that seems more likely.

I do not want to count on this income as it could stop nearly at any time, though being in the mortgage industry, I'm sure I could replace most if not all the income from this gig with a little research. But being that it could end, I do not want to set up an autodraft for these funds.

3) I hope that this and my other blog www.financialbullet.com will continue to generate a little money. I'm not aiming for the stars but just a nice little amount each month. If it cracks $30 per month each, I think it would be a good start. These funds would either be A) used to produce more traffic for each site using stumbleupon or adwords. Or, B) Be placed into the E-Trade account.

Again, that this income is not reliable, I would not set up an autodraft on my accounts.

So between these three streams, hopefully, I can deposit $100 per month in this account. While modest, if my ghostwritting and blogs increase, my deposits could increase significantly.

So, were off! Let's start saving together!

Monday, January 21, 2008

Virtual Banking and Savings Rates

Ok, so if we are going to make it a goal here at Deals That Matter to save money, we have to make the most of the money we save. That means we must find good rates for the money we save. The best way of doing that at this time, that I know of is using a virtual, or online bank.

I have compared three of the larger online banks that tout higher interest rates.




HSBC, which offers a rate currently of 4.25% with no minimum balances, total online access, unlimited bank accounts that can be linked and only a $1 deposit to start with is a good place to start.

Please read this review of opening a HSBC Direct account here. This process seems a little to involved and time consuming for me. But I guess that it is in the name of security. I just think that it is odd for an account opening to take almost two weeks for the author to be able to view/access his accounts.

Too much hassle for a good rate, just not the best right now.







ING is probably the original online bank. I had an account way back in 2001 with them and had nothing but good things to say. I guess that I also currently have an account with them that the company recently acquired Sharebuilder.

Right now the rate is 4.10%. Also no minimum is required to start an account.

Customer service is all about security. I don't know about the rumors that were spread about the company closing accounts for customers that caused too much work for them.

But right now, the winner of the online banking savings rate is........






E-Trade is offering a whopping 5.05% savings rate with no minimums. Their rate has stayed constant while the others rates have dropped as the Fed has cut interest rates. The company is trying to win back some business.

You're seeing a lot of television commercials touting 1,000 new accounts opened per day. Why such a big push? Well, the companies stock tanked after they too announced they were neck deep in all that sub-prime mortgage write off stuff that has been sweeping many of the big banks.

So E-Trade needs the business to help restore their investor confidence. The savings rate they currently offer is just on off shoot of that need.

There are many other banks out there that would love to compete for your savings. You may even know of a few that can offer even better deals that what I have posted here. Let us know. Again, we want to make this a community.


Full Disclosure: Deals That Matter is not affiliated with any of the companies listed in this article.

Sunday, January 20, 2008

Welcome to Deals That Matter

Welcome to my new blog that will have many simple desires.

1) I want to be able to help you save money.

2) I want to be able to make the money you save make more money.

And finally

3) I want to help you find the best websites out there that will help you spend less money when you finally want to use some of that money you have saved.

How am I going to help you do that? Well, you're just going to have to make a return trip back here aren't you?

So I guess the best way to describe this blog is a personal finance site. But I want it to be more than that. I want this to be a community. Feel free to share your ideas.

I will give my post my first suggestion tomorrow. I look forward to a bright future and awesome opportunities to offer!