We finally got our internet hooked up at our house this week!  It’ll be good to get back to a regular posting schedule next week.

I’m excited for this weekend because I get to teach a class to a Young Marrieds group at church on Money.  I’ll try to post some of the content from that class in the next few weeks!

Anyways, This Week in Personal Finance takes a look at interesting articles, posts and news from the past week in the personal finance arena. 

So give these articles a click!

• Kevin at Out of Your Rut shares his experience and gives us the do’s and don’t of finding Social Media friends and followers.
• Here’s a cool story with a great point!  Being the  most driven person isn’t always the best route as you’ll find out from Brip Blap
• You might want to think twice before you order that bucket of popcorn at the theatre or a glass of pinot grigio at dinner.  Here’s CNNs look at America’s Biggest Ripoffs!
• I’ve been wanting to put this in a round up, but just kept putting it off – Eric from Living 2 Excess gives some tips for overcoming procrastination.
• Coveting is something that isn’t talked about much in Personal Finance circles, but Pete over at Bible Money Matters gives us some tips on how not to covet.

Have a great weekend!!

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Guest Post

This week I was able to do a guest post at Suburban Dollar called Navigating Your Finances.  Just like GPS looks at your current location, your destination and your direction, we too need to look at those things from a personal finance stand point. 

Where are we now, where are we going and how do we get there are the big three questions being asked with some practical suggestions on how to answer them. If you haven’t checked it out yet please do.

Friday Finance Round Up

Friday Finance Round Up is a weekly post that includes interesting articles and blog posts on money found during the week from across the web.

In no particular order:

How Healthy Are Your Finances? – CNN Money

This is a very cool financial calculator that walks you through a few questions to give you a grade on your finances.  It’s a great place to start for those who are new to personal finance and also a good place to just “check in” to see how you’re doing.

Obama Health Care Reform and Wait Times Visualization (In Lego!) – Political Math

The guys at Political Math are very creative, insightful and provide good entertainment value.  I posted their video on the National Debt Road Trip a while back also.

Government Redistribution of Wealth: Is It Right? - Christian PF

This post is designed to get you thinking about whether redistribution is right or not.  Bob doesn’t pretend he has all the answers, but tries to look at it and ask how we as Christians should view this.

Use Spending Filters to Save on Just About Everything - Debt Free Adventure

Good post on being vigilant with thinking about your purchases before you go out and spend.  Matt runs through 6 filters he uses to help them save money.

Social Media Update: Quitting Facebook, or Maybe, Quitters Do Win – Owen Strachan

Interesting post looking at the NY Times piece on people quitting Facebook and why it might be a good thing.  Basically what Owen is getting at is can we redeem Social Media and use it for kingdom purposes?  Not a personal finance post, but interesting nonetheless.

This Week’s Links

Blog Carnivals are a way of reaching a larger audience for your blog posts.  You submit your posts to other bloggers who then pick out their favorites and post them in the carnival edition.   One of the requirements of getting picked is a link back to the site that is hosting the carnival.   Here are this week’s linkbacks: 

• How Much Money Do You Need to Retire was picked for the Best of the Financial and Investing World – August Edition held at 20′s Money.
• That post was also picked for the Carnival of Pecuniary Delights #22 held at Canadian Finance Blog

 Friday Finance Round Up is a weekly post that includes interesting articles and blog posts on money found during the week from across the web.

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Average Retirement Savings by Age – Bargaineering

 ”I don’t put much stock in most “averages,” whether they’re rules of thumb or average net worth, but every once and a while it’s good to know where you stand.”

How Facebook Ruins Friendships - Wall Street Journal

“Amidst all this heightened chatter, we’re not saying much that’s interesting, folks. Rather, we’re breaking a cardinal rule of companionship: Thou Shalt Not Bore Thy Friends.”

Who’s Underwater?! A Look at US States with Upside Down Mortgages - Go Banking Rates

“Over half of all negative equity mortgages can be accounted for by just 3 states”

The Final Numbers on ‘Clunkers’ - NY Times

“The top 10 traded-in vehicles were American brands and 8 of the top 10 purchased vehicles were foreign brands.”

A Price Comparison of 10 Sandwiches – Len Penzo dot Com

“…I was curious to know which sandwiches were the most economical and which ones, if we weren’t careful, could end up putting the squeeze on our grocery budget.”

This Week’s Links

Political Calculations declared If You Want to Get Ahead Stop Taking This Path “The Best Post of the Week, Anywhere!” in their On the Moneyed Midway section.  Wow, I don’t know about that, but I appreciate the sentiment!

Your Money Relationship included Who Can You Count on For Retirement in this week’s Carnival of Personal Finance #219.

Hundred Goals made If You Want to Get Ahead Stop Taking This Path the Editor’s Pick for this week’s Carnival of Money Stories!

Wise Money Matters discussed Who Can You Count of For Retirement  in this week’s Wise Money Podcast.

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