The senate on Thursday confirmed Ben Bernanke for a second term as chairman of the Federal Reserve. The vote came after quite a bit of fuss about “bank bailouts” and one attempted filibuster and represents the closest confirmation vote ever for a Federal Reserve chairman.

Americans are upset about what they feel was a bailout of irresponsible banks and their senators brought that message to Washington, with Senator Jim Burning (R-Ky) claiming that “A vote for Ben Bernanke is a vote for bailouts.” Click to continue →

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You’ve heard the news. In fact, you may be living the news. Since the summer of 2008, almost everybody who owns a home has seen its value dramatically decrease. Some have lost more than half of the value of their home and because of that, the nation and the world has seen the overall economy seriously degrade.

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Thinking back to my childhood, one of my not-so-fond memories was the one that many kids have. It was my first bike. The training wheels were nice but it became time to man-up, as my father said, and go to two wheels. My father and I made plans. “This coming Saturday, we’re taking them off”, he said with his stern fatherly voice. I knew I had no choice.

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“It’s a traders market”

It may be the new normal. The advent of computer or electronic based trading has allowed for millions of stock transactions per second and with the 24 hour fast paced news cycle available to us in many different formats, the stock market has changed in two important ways.

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I don’t want to sound rude and I don’t want to offend the many hard working Realtors who are doing a great job of helping people find their dream home but maybe you have noticed the same thing as me: When I look in every corner of my world, there is a real estate agent.

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If you watch the financial news channels or read the business section of your local newspaper, you may have noticed something that is important to you as you make financial decisions: nearly all of the business news that you will read, view, or hear is sensationalized.

Don’t take my word for it. As I write this article, the stock market has had a dramatic move up. In fact, over the past 7 days, there have been triple digit gains in the Dow Jones Industrial Average. As I watch the financial news channels, nearly all of the stories talk about how the recent economic downturn may be over and recovery and prosperity may be here to stay.

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What is the meaning of discipline? You can look it up in the dictionary, you can ask twenty of your best friends, and you can find it on every school age athlete that wears his football t-shirt from last year. The word is thrown around everywhere you go and, at least in my experience, we look at what it means from an emotional angle but not a realistic or objective way.

Today, I want to use this word in the context of your finances. What does it mean to hold financial discipline? For those who have achieved the financial freedom that you wish you had, what are they doing or what did they do to get there?

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I remember my first computer. My father brought it home from work. It was from some company named IBM. I had never heard of them and for that matter, I had never heard of a home computer. I saw pictures of computers that were the size of small homes and I was excited at the thought of seeing one in my own house…a smaller one of course.

It was in 4 boxes, each one being a little heavier than the last. When we opened the box, what I saw was a whole lot of metal. It was thick, heavy, bulky, and the keyboard made a really loud clicking sound every time a button was pushed. I can still feel the crisp, clickety sensation of that old IBM model M keyboard.

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It’s about that time of year again. A fresh crop of high school graduates and their parents are heading to the discount stores to buy all of the college dorm room essentials. Food, bedding, electronics, office supplies, and a retro looking lava lamp are only a few of the must-haves for every college student.

Maybe you’re one of them. If so, congratulations on getting a part of your house back! Your days of freedom are getting closer and closer but along with buying your college bound child a brand new laptop computer, you have another job to do that is far more important. You have to have, “the talk.” No, not the birds and bees talk, hopefully you already had that one. I’m talking about the money talk.

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I love a good ball game. Here in town, we have a local baseball team. It’s not a professional team but the games are always sold out. Even season tickets aren’t available. There’s a waiting list that reportedly stretches years in to the future, so I’m told.

Still, I can normally get my hands on a pair of tickets a couple of times per year but there’s one thing I’ve noticed about baseball games and really, all sporting events I have attended: They cost a lot of money. Not only are the tickets expensive, but everything else is too.

Maybe you’re not looking to be rich but I bet you’re looking to either become or remain financially secure. In order to do that, you have to learn to be a cheapskate. I’m not saying that you should lie, cheat, or steal. Far from it, but what I do want you to do is not overspend. With that in mind, here are a few ideas to save money at the ballpark this year.

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Millions of people around the world have felt the pinch of the economic downturn. As unemployment rises, more and more people find themselves without a job. Many of those people find also their financial health quickly deteriorating.

This economic cycle has played out many times throughout our history. Unfortunately, the economy often improves faster than the damage that it did to the average family. Maybe you are one of those who has fallen victim to unfortunate economic conditions in the past but now you have began the rebuilding process and with that comes a new job in a new community.

With a new job often comes relocation and with relocation comes a new problem: You need a mortgage but have damaged credit. The good news is that the bad news may not be as bad as you think.

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If you’ve ever signed for a mortgage, or any other loan for that matter, you may be familiar with the 3-Day Right of Rescission. It’s a right granted to all borrowers to change their minds after the loan papers have been signed. There are limits of course, but the goal is to give the borrower just a bit of time after the papers have been signed to change his or her mind. It’s an added measure of protection and, as a current or future borrower, it’s your responsibility to understand how the law protects you.

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The refinance boom of the early 2000’s saw the rise of a number of non-conventional mortgage options for homeowners. For most borrowers these mortgages are not the best option. However, depending on your situation, you may benefit from one of these non-conventional loans. One of the simplest, but most often misunderstood is the balloon mortgage.

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Below are links to some of the major laws that govern financial institutions and protect individuals in their financial dealings. You can find more information at http://www.federalreserve.gov/pubs/complaints/complain2.htm.

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The following is consumer information provided by the Federal Reserve Board at http://www.federalreserve.gov/consumers.htm, or by clicking the specific topic links below:

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CNBC is airing a special on the business behind the Kentucky Derby, where the best three-year-old thoroughbreds compete at Churchill Downs in a mile-and-a-quarter race with a $2 million purse. Here’s a bit from the CNBC website:

The Kentucky Derby is the longest running sports event in American history. Now, a cherished pastime is a multi-billion dollar industry. From the champions to the big business of on-line betting, the Run for the Roses has become the icon of American horse racing.

CNBC Originals takes you inside the winner’s circle where legends are born and millions are made.

Catch the special tonight, Thursday, April 30th at 9pm eastern time. If you miss it tonight, check your local listings as CNBC always runs these specials several times over the following days.

From CNBC.

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From CNBC’s website:

CNBC takes you aboard a city at sea where passengers are enticed to spend big money…but can this fast growing segment of the travel industry navigate the rough seas of a slumping economy and stay afloat? Correspondent Peter Greenberg takes you cruising for profits.

Check your local listings for showtimes.

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Tonight CNBC is (re)airing an amazing show called “Marijuana Inc.: Inside America’s Pot Industry.” CNBC has aired the special a couple times now, but if you’ve missed it, or haven’t heard of it yet, you should check it out. It’s an interesting look into what CNBC calls a “thriving industry…raking in what’s estimated to be tens of billions of dollars nationwide.”

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According to an article by the Financial Times, Alan Greenspan has converted to the dark side of those promoting nationalization of private assets, specifically banks. The article quotes Greenspan as saying “The US government may have to nationalize some banks on a temporary basis to fix the financial system and restore the flow of credit.” This coming from the former 19-year Chairman of the Federal Reserve and the man viewed by many as the champion of laissez faire capitalism. The ship is definitely sinking.

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The sluggish economy is certainly affecting a lot of people these days, and if it’s not affecting you directly, you’re probably cutting back a bit on spending just to be on the safe side…good for you. Nonetheless, we can’t stop shopping completely…we have things we need that just can’t wait. So how do we save money on the things we need to buy? How about asking?

It’s as easy as asking the right questions

It’s so simple, most people don’t even think about it. Next time you’re out shopping for something, try asking if you can get it for less. What you’re shopping for really determines how you ask, so let me give you an example so simple I almost forgot to do it myself.
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