Welcome to the July 15, 2011 Edition #193 of the Carnival of Financial Planning.

The Carnival of Financial Planning takes a long-term view of personal financial planning for individuals and families. We focus on efficient and sustainable personal financial planning practices that can lead to lifetime financial security.

This edition is arranged by subject heading, so that you can browse efficiently. Enjoy!

The Skilled Investor, Editor

Budgeting and Economics

David Leeman presents Personal Budget Planning, The Benefits of Living on a Budget posted at Financial Freedom Advantage, saying, “Personal budget planning is essential for helping you control spending and reach your financial freedom goals. Learning how to budget money is easy and can be very rewarding.”

Kelly presents Dog-onomics: The True Cost of Owning a Dog posted at Wallet Watcher, saying, “Before you even get into the planning phases of dog ownership- what breed, what age, buying versus adopting, supplies needed, etc.- you ought to determine the costs first and foremost. According to the Bankwest Social Indicator Series’ “Family Pooch Index,” families spend, on average, $2,395 per year on their dogs. In order to determine how much your four-legged friend will cost you, the following list details a breakdown in both the initial and ongoing costs over the average lifespan of your canine.”

Financial Planning

Sustainable PF presents Our Sustainable Personal Financial Plan: The Future posted at Sustainable Personal Finance, saying, “We have come up with what we consider to be a sustainable personal financial plan. We decided to share it with everyone.”

Jacob presents What Motivates You To Be Financially Responsible? posted at My Personal Finance Journey, saying, “There are two things that keep me motivated to be fiscally responsible beyond all else – 1) keeping aligned with my Purpose Focused Financial Plan and 2) Updating my net worth and asset allocation each month. This article describes each of these in detail.”

Tom Drake presents Saving on Life Insurance Premiums posted at Canadian Finance Blog, saying, “Everyone happy with life insurance premiums? Of course not. So here’s a list of concrete examples you can use to ensure you’re paying the lowest premiums.”

Jim Yih presents Use caution before putting your kids on title of your principal residence posted at Retire Happy Blog, saying, “There are 5 reasons why is is not a good idea to put your kids as joint owners of your personal residence.”

Glen Craig presents Where to Change Your Name After Marriage posted at Free From Broke, saying, “If you change your name after you get married you have to make sure you update important documents and accounts. See where you should change your name.”

Frank Knight presents Investment Asset Allocation posted at Retirement Planning Software, saying, “When you are already there and invested in an asset class, you are following a passive asset allocation strategy. Tactical asset allocation strategy advocates suggest that you can anticipate the crowd, but flow-of-funds studies show that almost all tactical asset allocation fund flows are late money flows that chase performance after valuations have already moved.”

Financing a Home

Evan presents The American Dream Now Rents posted at My Journey to Millions, saying, “The long-held notion of the American Dream has always included owning a home with the proverbial white picket fence. Today, that dream has become unpractical for many Americans. The unstable job economy paired with the recent bust of the housing market has put home ownership out of reach for many families. Once you look past the dream, however, there are some real benefits to renting a home rather than owning it yourself.”

Income

DGB presents How To Build a 6 Figure Income Dividend Portfolio with $600 per month posted at The Dividend Guy Blog, saying, “Let’s start building the dividend portfolio.”

FMF presents How to Earn More than $3 Million in 20 years posted at Free Money Finance, saying, “MBAs from top-ranked schools can propel your career and generate substantial incremental income over the course of a couple decades.”

Miranda presents 35 Ways to Make More Money posted at Financial Highway, saying, “Even the best of times, one of the most common questions asked is, “How do I make more money?” While an increase in income can ease the way things work in your personal economy, it won’t necessarily solve all your problems.”

Kyle Taylor presents 2012 Elections: How to Profit from Them posted at The Penny Hoarder, saying, “Whatever you’re feeling on politics is, there are plenty of ways to profit from the circus.”

The Financial Blogger presents June Monthly Blog Income Report posted at The Financial Blogger, saying, “A look at the income that came in during June.”

Investing

The Financial Blogger presents TSX EX-Dividend Date and Dividend Yield posted at The Financial Blogger, saying, “Some important stock dates.”

Intelligent Speculator presents The “Hidden” Trading Costs posted at Intelligent Speculator, saying, “Stock trading costs to watch out for.”

Maxim Kazawy presents Highest Paying Dividend Stocks in Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) Sector posted at Highest Dividend Paying Stocks, saying, “Investors should allocate a portion of their portfolios to real estate by investing in Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITS). Real estate investment trusts own different types of real estate, from residential buildings & apartment complexes to commercial office space including malls, office buildings, retail shops, parking lots, etc.”

Maxim Kazawy presents Stocks that are Raising Dividends – July 2011 Edition posted at Best Dividend Stocks, saying, “Most retirees & Income investors know the value of stocks that are raising their dividends gradually over time. Dividend growth can make low yielding dividend stocks in to high yield dividend stocks over time because of the growth of dividends.”

Mike @ Green Panda presents Start Building Your Banking Relationship posted at Green Panda Treehouse, saying, “How you can build a relationship with your bank.”

Dividends4Life presents Companies Creating Real Wealth With Higher Cash Dividends posted at Dividend Growth Stocks, saying, “A stock dividend, also known as a “scrip dividend”, is a dividend payment made with stock instead of cash. Sometimes when companies are tight on cash, they will declare and pay a stock dividend in lieu of a cash dividend. Most shareholders feel like they are getting something. But are they really?”

Managing Credit and Debt

Joe Plemon presents Debt Consolidation and Debt Settlement: Know the Difference posted at Personal Finance By The Book, saying, “These two have some similarities, but, in reality, are quite different.”

Tim Chen presents Applied Bank: Tricks and Traps for Unwary Cardholders posted at NerdWallet Blog – Credit Card Watch, saying, “There are four Applied Bank credit cards, and each one has its own quirks that can end up costing unwary consumers a lot of money.”

Miscellaneous

Mike @ Green Panda presents Get the Best Deal with Your Car Insurance posted at Green Panda Treehouse, saying, “Saving money on car insurance.”

Moneyedup presents Paying for Insurance posted at MoneyedUP, saying, “One of the realities of life is that the unexpected happens. You never know when an accident will total your car, or when you’ll get sick enough to go to the hospital.”

The Skilled Investor presents Market Timing Does Not Work posted at Personal Financial Management, saying, “Always stay invested to earn risk premiums. You must have your money invested and at risk to get risk premium returns. Jumping out and in or “timing the markets” doesn’t work.”

Retirement Planning

FMF presents Using an HSA as a Super Retirement Account posted at Free Money Finance, saying, “If managed correctly, an HSA can super-charge your retirement savings.”

Crystal presents When Can I Retire? posted at Stupid Cents, saying, “Do you think to yourself, when can I retire? If you want to be able to retire permanently, here are things to consider so you know when you can retire.”

Outlaw presents Can You Contribute to a Roth IRA and a 401K? posted at Outlaw Finance, saying, “Shares my experience of simultaneously contributing to a Roth IRA and 401K, as well as the requirements you’ll need to meet in order to do the same.”

Savings

Money Cone presents Focus on Recurring Expenses to Improve Savings posted at Money Cone, saying, “To improve your savings, start by focusing on your expenses, especially those that are recurring in nature. These are the ones that slowly chip away at your savings. Even if they are small, they add up over time. Address these leaks first.”

Kevin presents Savings=Freedom posted at Invest It Wisely, saying, “Being out of debt is good, but the only way we really improve our lot in life is by saving and investing for the future! This is true both individually, and of us as a whole. These people have it rough, but they are doing great compared to people a hundred years ago. They are able to indirectly benefit from the accumulated savings and investment of other people which has led to all of the things in society which we enjoy.”

Taxes

Mike Piper presents What’s My Cost Basis for Inherited Property? posted at The Oblivious Investor, saying, “For purposes of calculating capital gains/losses, what is your cost basis for inherited property?”

Financial Freedom presents Roth Contributions, posted at Retirement Spreadsheet , saying, “The Roth tax optimization puzzle for asset conversions, as well as for annual Roth contributions during working years, is one of the most complex decisions that the ridiculously complex US taxation and retirement planning system forces upon individuals.”

Eric J. Nisall presents Withholding Too Much From Your Pay Is A Waste posted at DollarVersity, saying, “Some people think that big tax refund is a good thing, but if you take a step back and look at it logically and objectively, you will see it’s a big mistake.”

That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of Carnival of Financial Planning using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

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