Making Fun Of Late Night Infomercials Using Hotties With Assets To Sell Get Rich Schemes

By MoneyBlueBook

I often work on the computer late into the evening and most of the time I keep my television set on as background noise. Usually there isn't much programming going on in the wee evening hours - that is, except for the inescapable torrent of Girls Gone Wild commercials which seem to flood their way onto the airwaves after midnight whether you like it or not. The other types of shady programs that seem to craw their way onto my TV screen at night are the sleazy late night infomercials selling all sorts of silly products from male enhancement pills, to expensive audio tapes on how to get rich quick while working in your pajamas. While some of the commercials are tastefully done, hyping somewhat useful products like fruit juicers or portable infrared ovens, most them are repetitive scams designed to get you to part with your money fast.

Exposing Money Making Get Rich Quick Infomercials

When most people have gone to sleep, the roaches come out to play. The vast majority of late light commercials fall into the slummy get rich quick category. Most are slickly produced sales pitches for useless packages containing rehashed literature and DVD tapes about how to earn big bucks flipping houses, dabbling in cash flow notes, or making money on eBay. Of all the late night infomercials, the one that really sticks in my mind is the so-called Shortcuts to Internet Millions gimmick being hawked by a guy named Jeff Paul. It's not the fact that he is selling information that

By MoneyBlueBook

Updated List of Business Credit and Charge Cards Offers Below!

Like most small business owners, I have my eyes on the prize with expectations based on the potential of future expansion. While my current small home business is still in the early growth stages and has not developed to the size where I needed to incorporate, I decided early on that now was a good time as any to start keeping my personal and business expenses separate by taking advantage of the expense tracking and management benefits afforded by business credit cards.

Whether you are a small business owner who works from your own home, or have your own dedicated virtual office setup, there may eventually come a time when you will need additional cash and credit infusion to pay for business expenses such as inventory, office supplies, or utility fees including wireless services. More than half of all small businesses currently use credit cards to pay for expenses, but less than half of the users utilize business credit cards. While most seem content on relying on their existing consumer cards, there are a number of key reasons why it's better to use business credit cards under your company's banner.

For those running a business as a sole proprietorship like myself, you may have already applied for an Employer Identification Number (EIN), sometimes referred to the Federal Tax ID. If so, you will need to enter it when applying for a business credit card.

By MoneyBlueBook

This week I participated in the Carnival of Personal Finance at The BagLady where my article about choosing the right Roth IRA broker was included.

Here are a few other personal finance and frugality articles around the blogosphere that I enjoyed reading this week. Please have a look:

• Paid Twice - shares the unfortunate mindset that she used to have that led to her string of "dumb purchases".

• Moolanomy - provides a very practical list of 40 Alternative Income Ideas and Resources. Most are common-sensical, but those type of money making ideas are usually the easiest and quickest to implement for the average person.

• Cash Money Life - is offering a nice compilation eBook for download based on the pooled online written work of a number of personal finance bloggers. The book contains useful financial commentary, categorized according to different stages in life.

• The Simple Dollar - is running a popular Ask Me Anything segment in which you can ask Trent the PF blogger any question imaginable. Some of the question comments are personal finance based, while others are just plain philosophical or goofy. I submitted a few questions in the comment section but I highly doubt he'll respond to mine - I asked a few pretty controversial ones.

• Free Money Finance - is refereeing a March Madness style matchup of personal finance articles. I didn't submit an entry but you can still go vote for your favorite articles.

• Clever Dude - shares his decision making process in regards
  

By MoneyBlueBook

Not too long ago I went on vacation in East Asia. While I was there I had the fortune to be accompanied by local friends who could spot me so I didn't need to convert my American dollars into local currency. However there were at least two occasions when I glanced upon several beautiful small wooden art pieces that I wanted to buy. While I had a few local currency bills on me, it wasn't enough to buy the slightly expensive art pieces. So I had to resort to what I ordinarily would do back home in the United States - pull out my trusty cash back credit card. Fortunately, I had the foresight prior to traveling to another country, to research and familiarize myself with credit card foreign currency exchange fees.

Watch Out For Hidden International Credit Card Foreign Currency Exchange Charges

While foreign currency exchange fees are now generally listed and disclosed by credit card companies, card issuers rarely publicize these hidden charges, preferring to leave them in the fine print. While some complain that the majority of these interchange fees are not used to process the actual currency exchange, but rather used to fund credit card reward programs and other direct advertising campaigns, the real concern is the lack of education when it comes to incurring these fees. Frequently, consumers who use their credit cards overseas come home to the unwelcome surprise of costly fees on their billing statement.

The foreign currency transaction fee for credit card purchases is comprised of two parts -

By MoneyBlueBook

Reward credit card and cash back rebates are great because you get to earn money and receive what is essentially a discount for making ordinary everyday purchases. Today I decided to review my credit card accounts and convert some of my accumulated reward points into usable cash back and retail gift cards. For my versatile Fidelity Investment Reward Card, which earns me 1.5% back on all purchases, I converted 5000 World Points into a $75 deposit towards my linked Fidelity trading account. I also redeemed 40,000 of my total balance of 46,155 Citi Thank You points into four wonderful $100 retail gift cards. I chose to receive high value rewards with the best ThankYou redemption value, and picked out gift cards from Marshalls, Macy's, and Gap. Looks like I'll be going bargain clothing shopping again in the near future in about 1-3 weeks when they arrive.

Am I Supposed To Report Credit Card Rewards and Cash Rebates On My Tax Return?

My reward redemption routine is a ritual that happens at least once every year. Over the years, I've earned quite a tidy sum of credit card rewards comprised of cash back, rebate points, airline miles, and gift cards. But I've never listed the earnings as taxable income on my federal income tax return or reported a single cent of my rebate earnings to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). I simply haven't given it much thought until recently. For the last few years I've probably pulled in at least $3,000 worth of personal credit

By MoneyBlueBook

Updated - The IRS has released the official 2008 Economic Stimulus Payment Schedule.

Also, read about the prospects and chances of an Obama stimulus check for 2009.

Based on the substantial traffic and comments I've been receiving for the article I wrote explaining and breaking down the details of the 2008 Stimulus Rebate Package, it's clear that everyone in the United States is concerned about their rebate checks. Everybody wants to know how large their own tax rebate check will be and when they can expect to receive it.

There are many questions to be answered and I've been trying my best to respond to them all. While most questions have been straightforward, others have been slightly more complicated with issues relating to Chapter 7 and 13 bankruptcy filings, or issues relating to wage garnishment and student loan liens. But I will continue to do my best to answer your flurry of tax rebate comments and e-mails.

Visit The IRS Website For The Official Source Of Tax Rebate News and Updates

While I can't necessarily state that all answers that I provide are definitive, I do try my best to answer accurately based on research and reasonable information. One thing I have noticed is the vast amount of misinformation and speculation that is available on the internet. There seems to be much conjecture and rumors surrounding the tax rebate, particularly as it relates to timetable and the order that the checks will be sent out. I wish to remind readers that the only definitive source