Sunday, July 27, 2008

How interest effects monthly mortgage payments

How will a difference in interest rates change my
monthly mortgage payments? I have created a small
spreadsheet to the right which shows how your mortgage will change depending on your interest rate. However, the more interesting figure is how much you will pay in interest rate charges only-- over the course of a 30 year $500,000 loan. At 7% you will pay almost 700K whereas at 5% it will be 466K a difference of almost a quarter million dollars.

Saturday, July 26, 2008

Merrill Lynch v. E-Trade v. Scott-Trade

I have posted in the past a ranking of brokers that was published in Smart Money. I wanted to give my impressions after using 3 different brokers:

1) Merrill Lynch--Merrill Lynch is one of the most well known companies on Wall Street. They have excellent customer service and my financial advisor is not only a close friend but I trust his judgment without question. ML is great for someone that wants an advisor to manage their IRAs or Brokerage Accounts. The Fees for Stock Trades is higher than E-Trade or Scott-Trade but you are also getting full service. The thing that is not good at ML is their web-page it seems to always be 24 hours behind. The other problem is that when you look at posted (credits/debits) transactions to the account it does not show you a running balance.

2) Scott-Trade-has a good service--very good customer service--simple web-page that is easy to understand and get around. The Fees are the lowest of the three only $7 per trade. The thing that led me to switch to E-Trade has to do wit the banking features. The problem with Scott-Trade is that you can electronically transfer money into the account but you cannot electronically transfer money out. This just does not make sense. Why do they need to send you a check. If you are in need of your money quickly this is just not convenient.

3) E-Trade--has a great web-site--lot of information that is easy to access. The fees are a bit higher than Scott-Trade but the banking features are much better. You can also get one of the highest interest rates around by putting money into their Savings Accounts--3.3% currently. The good thing is that you can electronically get your money out. So far I am very happy with E-Trade.

Thursday, July 24, 2008

Speeding up Mortgage Payments

The best way to reduce your home mortgage quickly is to participate in a 26 Payment Plan. Usually these plans are free and offered by all mortgage companies. In this plan instead of paying your mortgage once a month you will pay half the amount every 2 weeks. In addition, you will make 1 extra payment per year or a 13th payment under a traditional plan. By paying every 2 weeks interest does not build up all month since you are paying more frequently.

I know that paying 1 extra payment per year can be difficult but the upside is that it will generally take 7.5 years off a 30 year fixed mortgage. If you use a mortgage calculator you will see that it will save you 10,000s of dollars.

Making PDF Files for Free

There is a great utility called pdf995---it will allow you to create a pdf file from Word, Excel etc. It is a free download.

Of course if you have a Mac it does this automatically!!!

Saturday, July 12, 2008

Free Kibble

This is an amazing idea from an amazing girl!!!

NBC Nightly News tonight showed a story about a 12 year old girl at freekibble.com who's motivation helped her to start a website that donates free kibble to dog shelters.

When you visit Freekibble.com there is question on the home page. "Click on the answer that you think is correct. Right or wrong, you win! All you have to do is click on an answer, and every day you do, we'll provide 20 pieces of kibble to Animal Shelters to help feed their hungry dogs."

Friday, July 11, 2008

A Private Dance? Four Million Web Fans Say No

This is great!!

Published: July 8, 2008

The peripatetic Matt Harding’s dancing videos have been his ticket to Internet fame, travel and a lot of impromptu dance partners around the world.


Thursday, July 10, 2008

Fare Compare

I highly recommend this new site I have come across Fare Compare.

The site allows you to compare rates between various airlines which is similar to Cheaptickets.com or Kayak.com. But what is better about Fare Compare is that it also shows you if a Business or First Class ticket is cheaper than coach.

Sunday, July 06, 2008

Taking Screenshots in Mac OS X

Here are some Tricks to take a Screen Shot on a Mac

  • Command-Shift-3: Take a screenshot of the screen, and save it as a file on the desktop
  • Command-Shift-4, then select an area: Take a screenshot of an area and save it as a file on the desktop
  • Command-Shift-4, then space, then click a window: Take a screenshot of a window and save it as a file on the desktop

Grab and Preview

Instead of using the keyboard shortcuts above, screenshots can be taken by using the Grab application included with Mac OS X. It is located at /Applications/Utilities/Grab.

In Mac OS X 10.4, the Preview application can also be used to take screenshots, by using the Grab submenu in the File menu.

Saturday, July 05, 2008

Review: Nespresso Latissima

This is a great machine--very easy to use and practical. The best part is that the milk container that comes with the machine can be placed in the refrigerator and then when you want to make a coffee you just put it back onto the machine. The quality of the Espresso and Cappuccino are excellent. And at roughly 52 cents for each coffee it is much cheaper than Starbucks. The quality is also much better.

It has a compact design. Single press button cleans milk container. Machine is an easy clean up: pods mean no messy coffee grounds.

Friday, July 04, 2008

Below are three quotes that I live my life by.....

Perseverance reveals life's wonderment - Gurumayi

Imagination is everything. It is the preview of life's coming attractions - Einstein

You make a living by what you get, you make a life by what you give -Churchill

Thursday, July 03, 2008

Creed Fragrances --Simply the Best


The House of Creed

The Creed Boutique These days, when the perfume industry is increasingly dominated by heavily advertised international brands, it comes as a refreshing surprise to discover that there still exists a discreet family-owned perfume house dedicated to the creation of highly original fragrances of extravagant quality.

Operating from it’s luxuriously appointed boutique in Paris’ 8th Arrondissement, the House of Creed has been for many years one of the best kept secrets of the perfume world, patronised by the seriously rich, chic and famous.

From Heads of State to celebrities from the film and music industries, Creed’s client list reads like an international Who’s Who. Over the years the Creed family has produced over two hundred perfumes, all original and hand-made, often creating fragrances for the exclusive use of their wealthiest customers.

The House of Creed was founded in 1760 when James Henry Creed opened his first shop in London. It rapidly became a favourite of the aristocracy and soon Queen Victoria appointed Creed as an official supplier to the Royal household.

Eventually Creed was adopted by all the courts of Europe: Napoléon III and Empress Eugénie of France, Franz-Joseph and Elizabeth of Austro-Hungary and Queen Christina of Spain. In 1854, under the patronage of Empress Eugénie, the House of Creed moved to Paris where it established a firm reputation for the rare beauty, quality and exclusivity of its fragrances.

Today Olivier Creed, direct descendant of James Henry Creed, continues this great tradition as Createur Parfumeur and President of the House of Creed. In France, or travelling abroad, he personally selects the purest rose essences from Bulgaria, Turkey or Morocco as well as Italian jasmine, irises from Florence, Tuberose from India or genuine Parma violets. Creed also manufacture their own essences using the traditional infusion technique, now abandoned as too costly by the modern perfume industry.

Wherever possible, Olivier Creed insists on using natural essences instead of the synthetic ones used increasingly by large perfume companies these days. This enables Olivier Creed, a perfectionist, to preserve the originality and superior quality of his fragrances. The components are then weighed, mixed, macerated and filtered, all by hand, before being shipped to only the finest department stores and specialist retailers worldwide. Creed fragrances offer all those who appreciate excellence the opportunity to rediscover the art of fine fragrance.

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