An article on bankrate gives the best online personal finance advice from 8 experts.
- Be afraid when people are greedy, and greedy when people are afraid.
- first, pay yourself
- By the time you see it or read it, it’s done; it’s happened (don’t buy stocks based on headlines)
- It’s about the meaning, not the money. (investments should be tied to your beliefs)
- There’s good debt and bad debt. Bad debt is debt you have to pay for and makes you poor.
- Housing prices have gone up — get a second mortgage and pay off your debt.
- Take every piece of advice you get from any investment adviser with a barrel of salt.
- Slow and steady wins the race, and consistency matters. Get-rich-quick never wins
After reading this list, I was a little disappointed. With the exception of a few of these that I thought was good advice (the last one for example), the others were just bad, never mind that this is supposed to be the “best” financial advice from these experts. It made me realize that the so called experts are not any different than you or I. They are really financial celebrities more than financial experts. They might have made some money, but it is not necessary because they have sound personal finance discipline.
Many of us can come up with better financial advice than these financial experts. We already have the knowledge. Let’s all put it in practice today!
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{ 11 comments… read them below or add one }
I agree with you. The experts usually aren’t really experts. However, many of us know what to do but just don’t do it!
It sounds stupid but everyone is this way
That list is nothing more than a sales pitch – if you look closely at each and every one of these there is an associated product that a financial “expert” could sell you.
The Dividend Guy
Yeah, what are they talking about? Housing prices have gone up? Only if they were living in San Francisco or NYC and never left the city limits. Take a second mortgage to pay off the debt? How about paying extra on principle instead? Thanks for making me laugh today, MoneyNing
Mark
Calvin: Maybe we should be like Nike… “Just do it!”
The Dividend Guy: Hmm, you are right. You’ve got to hand it to them that they are great sales guys
Mark: No problem! I guess we should write a book ourselves too!!!
I second that Mark, taking on a second mortgage to pay other debt is incredibly stupid. Yes, the interest is tax deductible, but if you pay credit card debt with the proceeds you have traded a debt that can be discharged in bankruptcy should something happen to your job or whatever, for a debt that will consume your home should the worst happen. Stupid.
This reminds me of the student loan consolidation obsession of 5 years ago. The idea was to lock in a low rate student loan by consolidating all the small stafford and direct loans. The catch (never told by the companies sending me junk mail) is the new loan is a debt that is survivable (meaning my wife has to pay for my education if I die), while the government loans are forgivable on death. How stupid do they think I am. I wonder how many lives we doubly ruined by the loss of a loved one AND a crushing, unnecessary debt.
“pay yourself first” is the single most important piece of financial advice I’ve received over the years
I didnt know about that consolidation hidden rule thingie.
I better not die, or my wife is gonna hate me.
If slow and steady means mutual funds, I do not concur. Monkeys and their darts have been known to consistently outperform these eggheads.
Carl: Many times, we are sold on products without knowing the consequences. The student loan consolidation is just one of the many things people fall traps to. I wonder if there is law one day that somehow will require the sales people to disclose EVERYTHING (good and bad) that a particular product will entail!
Modern Worker: It’s a great advice for most people since Americans are used to spending every dollar that’s left.
Todd: Slow and steady doesn’t necessary mean mutual funds. Low cost index funds might work too
Listen to your guts before making any important financial decisions and investing in different areas are the best guarantees.
Hi,
We have two girls and we give them a set amount every month to but all their clothes, lunches out,movies, etc. There is not enough to do all they want to do only some and they still have to watch every penny. I check their receipts every month and they have to balance up or their is a penalty. Once its gone its gone. They have to give away 10% of their money and learn to budget. My parents never did this to me, thats why I do this for them. I love them.
Tim
I agreed with most of the points in that list… but I just can’t get over this one:
“It’s about the meaning, not the money. (investments should be tied to your beliefs)”
I just can’t subscribe to that. If it wasn’t about the money, no one would bother to do it. I believe in lots of companies, but I’d never invest in them…