What Is Your Financial Fear?

Posted by SingleGuyMoney | 11/30/2009 09:45:00 AM | , | 3 comments »


Image Courtesy: starsalive

In the last 1-2 years, the economy has certainly given us several things to be fearful of. Many people thought they had a secure job only to find that the next day, they were being given a pink slip or told that the company was going bankrupt. Many people thought that their home would almost certainly increase in value instead of the value dropping like a rock.

If you are like me and watched the value of your 401k disappear right before your eyes, that probably caused you some financial fear and a few sleepless nights. I can't even imagine the fear and anxiety of those that were close to retirement.  

It seems that many of us are only 1-2 paychecks away from bankruptcy. Most of us have no savings to fall back on if there was a major emergency. If you are currently in this situation, it is probably causing you to be fearful of the "what if's" in life.The good news it that the bad economy has caused many of us to start saving a little bit more. Hopefully, the trend will continue once the economy picks back up.

What about me, what do I fear? I have an irrational fear of running out of money. I fear some major emergency could come along and wipe out my savings. I fear not being able to pay my bills and losing my home. I fear that I will end up living on the street because I couldn't make my mortgage payment. I fear that if I were to run out of money, I would have no one to help me pick up the pieces. I know this is irrational because I have a great friends and an even greater family who would help me out as much as possible but I just can't shake that fear.

I just don't want to risk it and as a result, I hoard money. If you've seen my Savings Challenge posts, you know that I have a goal of saving at least $50,000 in my savings account by December 2010. I'm pretty confident that barring any major emergency, I can make this goal. Once this goal is completed, I will probably bump up the amount to $75,000 and eventually $100,000 by the time I am 35.  I think once I've saved six figures, I will feel a little better about my fear of running out of money.

What is/are your financial fear(s)?



Update: The offer has been extended but can be withdrawn at any time.

I'm sure you've seen all the Black Friday "deals" out there for spending money. ING Direct is doing something a little bit different this year and having their own Black Friday deal...and this is a good one. I wish I didn't already have an Electric Orange account so I could take advantage of this!


Open an Electric Orange account and get $121 account opening bonus. I'm all about free money and this is a good one. Why $121? Well according to ING, this is the average amount consumers pay in overdraft fees each year.



To get the $121 bonus, you need to follow 2 simple rules:
  1. Open an account today using the code "EOSAVE". 
  2. Use your debit card to make 3 signature transactions (choose credit instead of debit) within the first 45 days. 
  3. On day 50, ING will deposit $121 into your account. 
ING Direct will withdraw this offer at any timeOpen your account NOW.

They are also offering a 12 month CD @ 2%.  

A Thankful Holiday Season

Posted by SingleGuyMoney | 11/23/2009 06:00:00 AM | | 2 comments »


Image Courtesy: babasteve

This week, I'm taking some time off to visit with family and friends and just get away from work for awhile. I will be working Mon-Wed and then I will be on vacation until December 7th.

It's that time of year when most people stop to reflect on what they are thankful for in their life. Personally, I know I have a lot of things to be thankful for. I have great friends, a loving and supporting family, a stable, well paying job with benefits. The bills are paid and I don't have bill collectors hounding me every minute. I have money in the bank to cover "almost any" unexpected emergencies that may creep up.

I won't posting on the blog this week so here are a few recent articles you may not have seen:
I will be back with a new post next week - Monday November 30th. I hope all of you have an healthy, happy and safe Thanksgiving! Have fun and enjoy the time that you have with your family.

What are you thankful for?