Personal Finance Is Personal

Personal finance is personal. That's a nice quote I first heard from Fitz Villafuerte. When he used it, and when I repeat it, usually it's in the context of people having to make their own decisions when it comes to how they will invest. But apparently it's a bit more than that.

A while back, I read a post in facebook from a finance coach. I may be taking things out of context, but what I read was his reason why he charges a fee for his advice.

He brought up a good point. Basically he says he charges a fee because he wants to work with people who are serious about getting their finances in order (not his exact words, but that was the gist I got). If you're willing to pay, then you are taking your finances seriously.

This mindset not only applies to a coach's advice. This can also include buying books and attending paid seminars.

I obviously have a different view.
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Free Personal & Family Financial Planning Course

Don't worry, I'm not selling anything. I'm not hyping a seminar either.

This personal & family financial planning course is one of the free courses you can take in Coursera.

I first learned about it when Rox mentioned it in her blog. So being the quick-acting guy that I am, I promptly installed it on my phone two years later - and then waited a few months before searching for a course.

Despite myself, I eventually did enroll in this course. It's not the Fundamentals of Financial Planning that Rox enrolled in, but it's actually pretty good too.
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What Causes Economic Bubbles?

Do you remember a while back, when news was circulating that the Philippine economy might be in a bubble? It made a lot of waves because the US real estate bubble and the resulting financial crisis was relatively still fresh in everyone's mind.

Nothing that bad has happened so far, so maybe all is well after all. But have you wondered what causes economic bubbles?
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Your 13th Month Pay and You

One of the benefits of working here in the Philippines is that, by law, you get a Christmas bonus - your 13th month pay.

But did you know that you don't actually get your one month's salary? You wouldn't think so from it's name, but in almost all cases an ordinary employee doesn't actually get one month's worth of salary.
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Insurance You Don't Need

A while ago I read an article on Yahoo Philippines about saving money by avoiding some unnecessary, though not necessarily frivolous expenses.

I browsed through the comments and was surprised to see that a mini-argument was brewing about the necessity of life insurance.

The article was saying you could save money by not buying insurance you don't really need. A couple of commenters were insisting that insurance is always a necessity.

So that got me thinking, are there really insurance you don't need? And is life insurance always necessary?
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Risk Reward Ratio

In an earlier post, I talked about position sizing. Basically, if you don't want to lose your shirt in the stock market, you have to buy "smartly" - never placing a good portion of your money on a rather risky stock.

That tells you how much of a stock to buy. But how do you know if that stock was worth pursuing in the first place? That's where the risk/reward ratio comes in.
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CMAP and You

Last time, I wrote about the CiC and the possible new role our credit information and history will play in our finances.

However, as a source of credit information, it's not unique nor even the first in the Philippines.

For about 80 years now banks, credit cards and other lenders could get credit information from CMAP - Credit Management Association of the Philippines, Inc.

So what's CMAP?
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The Credit Information Corporation and You

Last time, we tackled the establishment of the Credit Information Corporation, and what having an individual credit rating means for ordinary folks like us.

So now that it's here, here's a Q-and-A style run down of what we can expect.
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Credit Ratings and You

If you're reading personal finance blogs and/or searching for finance/money related articles on the net, then you've probably seen ads or spam for it.

Get a free credit report. Know your credit rating - or fix it, raise it, or whatever.

It's mostly a U.S. thing (or some other foreign country like the U.K.). There's no such thing here in the Philippines - until now that is.
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Time Value of Money

Time is money. It's an old saying and easily understood.

However, the time value of money is something that takes a bit more explaining - including formulas and whatnot.

But here's a simple and short (3:36) video from TED-edthat explains it.
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Pag-ibig Housing Loan

As I mentioned in my earlier post, there's a few important things that are left unsaid on the Pag-IBIG official site. It's instead discussed in the loan counseling session that you're required to attend first. (note: I've read elsewhere that it isn't required anymore. I would still attend though, because of the info shared there that might not be on their site.)

I haven't attended myself, so I relied on two coworkers who have attended and loaned from Pag-IBIG. (I'll post an update once I am able to attend the seminar/orientation)
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Pag-IBIG's benefits

I've been digging up on Pag-IBIG (HDMF) trying to find out more about it's housing loan. But along the way I stumbled across a few cool facts.

Did you know that Pag-IBIG actually stood for Pagtutulungan sa Kinabukasan: Ikaw, Bangko, Indusria, at Gobyerno?

And did you know that you could withdraw everything you've contributed to the fund? Including the part your employer contributed (if any)? And also including all dividends earned?
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Cash In A Flash - Money Trap or Good Deal?

You've probably come across the multitude of fliers being handed out.

Is it a money trap or a good deal?
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9 Debt Payment Techniques

Paying off debt, at it's core, is pretty simple. Just fork over money equal to the debt, right?
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7 Signs of Great Personal Finance Management

Disclosure: I adapted these from 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey.

Most of the time you know your finances are in good shape if you have money - little to no debt, positive net worth, etc.

But to get there, there's a whole host of tips, rules, guides, advice, etc. that you can follow. But how can you judge if you're really doing great?

Maybe you're following some rules and ignoring others.

Maybe you're actually doing the right things now, but your finances are just bad because it took a beating from the time when you weren't so responsible.

Maybe you're an uber-sophisticated investor, but your family is strictly savings-account-only. If your finances are entwined, how do you evaluate that?

When investing (in anything), having a good system, process, or set of guiding principles is the best way to ensure long term success. The same is true for almost everything else in life, including personal finance.

So I figured these 7 habits would make great "road signs" to let you know you're on the right path, regardless of the current state of your finances.
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5 Ways To Beat Inflation Without Chasing Capital Gains In The Stock Market

A lot of times, the stated goal for investing is to beat inflation.

But to me personally, that rings hollow when I read that their solution is to get into the stock market and chase capital gains. Most likely, they just want more money and the inflation rate was a no-brainer excuse.

That may sound harsh or judgmental. But I should know; I did it too.

And to prove it, here are five ways to beat inflation without chasing capital gains in the stock market. If they're un-appealing, then most likely what we want isn't really to beat inflation.
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The Complete Guide To Avoiding Scams, Cons, And Other Money Pitfalls

Everyone wants (sometimes, actually needs) a bigger income. It's hard to earn such extra income, but sometimes it's made even harder by things that pretend to be investments but aren't. (hello pre-selling condos!)

That's particularly true for networking opportunities. Networking is perfectly legitimate, and though I'm no good with it myself, I realize people do make money from it.

However there are mulit-level marketing groups that are really just pyramid scams. By now, hopefully everyone knows how to spot them: you make money mostly (if not solely) from recruiting - or getting "downlines".

But if a friend you know or even trust joins one, and it sounds legit, how can you check and be sure?
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7 Behaviors That Silently Affect The Way We Handle Money

Our mind is a funny thing sometimes. The same reality, if perceived differently can result in different decisions or outcomes. What do I mean?

Take for example the money in your wallet. As you've probably heard, if you want to save money or just spend less, have bigger denominations in your wallet.

Now there's no reason that should be effective. After all, Php1000 is Php1000, whether it's one Php1000 bill, 2 Php500 bills, or 50 Php20 bills. But in reality it's easier for us to spend those small bills than see a Php1000 get broken down.

It's called the Denomination Effect.

And it's not the only "irrational" behavior we have when it comes to money.
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