Believe it or not, there’s always some hapless individual who floats on cloud nine during his vacation, then comes home not only to dirty laundry but also to huge credit card bills and finance charges.

That mad rush to “get away from everything” can cost you quite a lot if you’re not careful – and make it easy to forget how dreamy that vacation was.

Here are some banking traveling tips from our personal finance feature today:

[Read the rest of this entry »]

Guess what? I’m already planning the long weekend holiday breaks in December and where the family will go when summer break comes. I know, I know, that’s like four months and eight months away, but planning hammers down costs compared with flying on a whim!

Bohol looks promising…

Of course, we are Boracay babies so that’s definitely still on the list…

[Read the rest of this entry »]

A couple shows a unique way of celebrating getting out of debt. Uhh…I’m not really sure if you should try this at home, but it sure is amazing to see.

Our personal finance article for today has been long awaited by many INQUIRER.net readers.

Credit card debt is a common problem. Being mired in debt does not mean a person is evil – it only means that person has not managed money well in the past. That’s all…

So, what to do when you’re already in the clutches of a debt collector? Being badgered by someone to pay credit card debt is depressing and demeaning especially when they start talking to your officemates, your relatives and even your boss! This article lists down ways to deal with it, but my favorite tip is to call them first before they call you.

[Read the rest of this entry »]

I’m almost always in a rush when I’m at the grocery store, so I hardly listen to hurried invitations from cashiers to get my raffle coupons. Supposedly, these raffle coupons will give me the chance to enter the rank of millionaires.

“What kind of marketing gimmick is that anyway?” I asked with disdain over the weekend, during yet another foray into the consumer haven that is SM Hypermarket. I was trying to follow my own personal finance advice after all, and that is to get in, buy the stuff I need, and get out as quickly as I can :-).

Apparently, however, this marketing gimmick is more popular than I thought. Have you noticed how many raffle gimmicks are out there?
[Read the rest of this entry »]

Azi sent this comment on my previous post on Costly mistakes when using a credit card.

Can you please explain the computation (of finance charges)? How can my interest become higher than 3.5%?

Most Philippine credit card companies compute finance charges using the average daily balance method. Here is an actual example. Don’t ask me who owns this credit card :

[Read the rest of this entry »]

I’m playing catch-up with a grin on my face, seeing that this blog has been active despite my absence last week. What a magnificent thing it is to see people sharing experiences, knowledge, and skills unselfishly with each other. Thank you!

Last week, INQUIRER.net’s personal finance section featured an article on money lessons for children. Some of the advice may surprise parents. Instead of the traditional “teach children how to do with less”, the article talked about giving children extra allowance so they would learn to budget their extra money. It talked about teaching children the importance of saving, investing, keeping good records, of being content with what they have, of being good stewards of their belongings, of learning how to give to others and enjoying the fruits of their labors so they will not turn out to be misers.

Good, basic advice. Unfortunately, they will all be useless without consistent practice. Let me explain.

[Read the rest of this entry »]

Last month, when I was about to pay my credit card bill with the combination of a check and cash I had in my wallet, I found that I was P2,000 short. Since I still had a few days before the actual due date, I made a mental note to pay the rest the following day.

And promptly forgot about it.

The following week, I went shopping with my kids. I had some guilt-free money to spend. After buying stuff for my kids, I bought hubby some management books. I’ve had my eye on those titles since last year and wanted to surprise him. Bought myself some stuff, too, of course hehe. I was actually proud of myself. This was programmed spending. This was good.
[Read the rest of this entry »]

A finance professional last week told me he had a great tip for MoneySmarts. He said the 0% interest rate promotions are a sham. Yep — a clever cover up, a daring deception, a trap for the millions of unsuspecting shoppers in this great big mall of a country.

Unfortunately, he declined to be identified, but he was willing to explain all the details. So MoneySmarts went money myth busting to find out if his claims were for real.

Hot glue gun stuck to the end of my nose! I was surprised how easy it is to make money in this country. Here is what I found.
[Read the rest of this entry »]

Have you seen some credit card advertisements lately? Charge your monthly expenses…no need to worry…you can pay only five percent of the total…and we will still consider you a good client.

Isn’t that just great? *one eyebrow going up*

Just paying the minimum amount will make you vulnerable to a compounding sinkhole that will suck in your money with the force of a hurricane. There is a personal finance advice that says: Pay as much of your credit card balance as you can, if not the total amount. Let’s put this to the test to find just how much it can save you.

[Read the rest of this entry »]