Open Low Minimum Roth IRAs for Kids (Kiplinger’s).  Kids who contribute to a Roth IRA will head into adulthood with a great financial advantage.  Here are three companies with kid-friendly requirements.

How to Master the Art of Negotiation (US News).  It’s amazing what you can get if you just speak up.  We recently had a not-so-great hotel experience, so I brought it to the attention of the chain’s customer service department.  I didn’t even make a specific request, but they credited my loyalty account with 50,000 points!

5 Things I Look for In a Great Job Interview (Inc).  Words of wisdom from one who has interviewed lots of candidates.

Job Hunters Still Not Careful on Social Media: Study (MSNBC).  Your resume is a carefully crafted work of art, but what about your social media presence?

Tweet Your Way to a New Job: 8 Twitter Templates (CBS MoneyWatch).  Are you using Twitter as part of your job search?

And from the blogosphere…

What’s Next After Debt Freedom? (The Simple Dollar).  It’s always encouraging to hear about people gaining true financial freedom.  This post also reinforces the importance of Knowing the Why Behind Your Goals.

Financial Goals That Are Easy to Accomplish (Canadian Finance Blog). This list includes several important steps people often put off.  It’s well worth it to review this list and schedule these activities.

A Crash Course in Couponing 101 (One Money Design).  Good advice for getting value from using coupons without making it a second job.

The Ins and Outs of Getting and Using Your Free Credit Report (The Consumerist).  When was the last time you checked your credit reports?  Here’s how to do it and what to look for.

9 Healthy Habits to Help You Manage E-Mail Overload (Lifehack).  It’s so tempting to check e-mail throughout the day, but the advice in this post is consistent with that of other productivity experts.

Got a question or a response to any of the above?  Be sure to leave a comment.

Who else would benefit from this post?  Why not forward a link to my site? And if you haven’t done so already, you can subscribe to this blog by clicking here.  Two or three times a week, you’ll receive ideas and encouragement for using money well.

If you’re not familiar with a blog carnival, it’s a showcase of some of the best writing from throughout the blogosphere, with bloggers submitting one of their best recent posts.  This particular carnival, which features rotating hosts, has been in operation since the summer of 2005.

I thought it would be fitting to intersperse this week’s picks with quotes that feature additional words of wisdom or points to ponder.

Editor’s Picks

“The ancient Greek definition of happiness was the full use of your powers along lines of excellence.” – John F. Kennedy

There were lots of great entries in this week’s carnival, but I thought the following two were especially good.

Bob at ChristianPF shares an important idea he calls Get Your Financial Life on One Page, which recasts what can be a tiresome financial chore into an act of love.

Roshawn Watson at Watson Inc asks Do You Have the Courage to be Wealthy?, pointing to a key character trait that can either hold us back in so many areas of life or propel us forward.

Money Management

“Action expresses priorities.” –Mahatma Gandhi

Laura Edgar from NerdWallet offers some good guidance for Sticking to Your Resolutions, along with a quiz to see which of two approaches may be best for you.

SB at One Cent at a Time says resolutions aren’t enough; you need to become obsessed with what you want.  Read more at 5 Obsessions Towards Financial Freedom and Becoming Rich.

Sustainable PF offers rational ways for Beating Irrational Financial Behavior.

Jon the Saver from Free $ Wisdom shares 3 Financial Lessons I’ve Learned From Angry Birds.  Don’t worry, you don’t need to have played the game to get the lessons.

Jeffrey at Saving Advice provides Money Lessons Learned From “The Firm,” a movie that demonstrates in many ways the old adage: money changes people.

Investing

“October:  This is one of the peculiarly dangerous months to speculate in stocks. The others are July, January, September, April, November, May, March, June, December, August and February.” – Mark Twain

Diva at Diva in Debt covers the latest personal finance controversy with More Bad News for Suze Orman.

Div Guy at The Dividend Guy Blog helps clear the fog from our economic binoculars with If You Want to Know Where the Stock Market is Heading, Read the Following.

Philip at PT Money brings us up to date on 2012 Traditional and Roth IRA Contribution Limits.

FIRE Finance offers Three Good Habits of Successful Retirees, reviewing the traits of successful long-term investors.

Economy

“Government’s view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it.” – Ronald Reagan

PK at Don’t Quit Your Day Job submitted Another Salary By Major Chart, which may help those headed for college choose a productive path.

Taxes

“Did you ever notice that when you put the words ‘The’ and ‘IRS’ together, it spells ‘THEIRS?’”  – Author Unknown

Glen Craig at Free From Broke encourages us not to pay more in taxes than we have to with 10 Common Overlooked Tax Deductions.

Career

“Work while you have the light. You are responsible for the talent that has been entrusted to you.” – Henri-Frederic Amiel

Mike at The Financial Blogger shows other bloggers what’s made a big difference in his success with This Image Will Make You a Believer.

For business owners, Peter at Bible Money Matters has a helpful reminder on How to Prepare and File A 1099 For Contract and Freelance Workers.

Credit

“Before borrowing money from a friend, decide which you need most.” – American Proverb

Erik at DollarVersity opens up a bit of a debate with Are Credit Scores Still Relevant?

Real Estate

“A man builds a fine house, and now he has a master, and a task for life.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

Martin at Passive Income Now has advice for landlords in Maintaining Your Rental Property Once You Hand the Keys Over.

Frugality

“Economy is half the battle of life; it is not so hard to earn money as to spend it well.” – C.H. Spurgeon

Squirrelers offers 12 Expenses to Cut, reminding us of some discretionary spending that we may have re-categorized as essential.

Finance

“Money is better than poverty, if only for financial reasons.”  – Woody Allen

Roger Wohlner at Chicago Financial Planner offers The Similarities Between Buying Coffee and Choosing a Financial Planner.  A key to choosing well in both cases is knowing what you’re getting for your money.

Budgeting

“Planning is bringing the future into the present so that you can do something about it now.” –Alan Lakein

Dan Meyers from Your Life, Their Life explains Why We Use a Cash Budget, backing up lots of research that shows people tend to spend less when they pitch the plastic.

Saving

“In the old days a man who saved money was a miser; nowadays he’s a wonder.” –Author Unknown

Martin at Studenomics reminds us of a classic way to start building savings in What’s the Best Way to Start Saving Money Right Now?

Other

“Plans are worthless.  Planning is essential.” – Dwight D. Eisenhower

Money Beagle has ambitions to get lots of stuff done this year.  Hence, My List of 500 Things To Do This Year.  It may sound overwhelming, but when you break the idea down month by month, it may just help you stay organized, reduce clutter, and avoid buying things you don’t need.

Thanks to everyone who submitted posts for this week’s carnival.

Keeping Your Online Accounts Safe (CNNMoney).  Sure, it takes some extra work to follow these guidelines, but it’s wise to stay vigilant about online security.

Money Milestones: What Kids Should Know About Money and When (Time).  No, your three-year-old doesn’t need to know about Roth IRAs, but there are some things about money kids can learn at that age.  Here’s your guide.

401(k)’s Not Working for Gen Y (MSN). For young people, playing it too safe with your retirement savings is one of the riskiest things you can do.

The Best Ways to Teach Your Kids to Save (Main Street).  Interesting to see the not-so-obvious benefits of opening savings accounts for our kids.

Credit Information That’s Really 100% Free (MSNBC).  I agree with the author of this one – if you’re going to try one of the free credit score services, go with the one that doesn’t require your full Social Security number.

And from the blogosphere…

Five Resolutions for Aspiring Leaders (HBR Blog Network).  Good career management advice – whether you’re young or…more experienced.

How I Fed My Family for $100 a Week (LearnVest).  Proof that it’s possible to manage the grocery store tab without superhuman effort.

What Easter Island Can Teach Us About Money (Wise Bread).  No quick tips on how to save a buck or two in this post – just a great, thought provoking read about the dangers of short-term thinking.

8 Frugal and Fun Martin Luther King Day Activities for Kids (Money Crashers).  Make Monday more than a day off from school for the kids with these free or low-cost ideas for helping them understand what this important holiday is all about.

Frugality Advice From Millionaires (Get Rich Slowly).  I don’t really consider this to be frugality advice (you probably know I’m not crazy about the idea of frugality); it’s simply good solid money management advice.  Just as was shown in the book “The Millionaire Next Door,” most of the habits and practices of those who win with money are those that most of us can practice.

Got a question or a response to any of the above?  Be sure to leave a comment.

Who else would benefit from this post?  Why not forward a link to my site? And if you haven’t done so already, you can subscribe to this blog by clicking here.  Two or three times a week, you’ll receive ideas and encouragement for using money well.

Patient People Have Higher Credit Scores (US News).  Just one more of the many benefits of delayed gratification.

Five Tips for Raising Money-Smart Kids (Bankrate.com).  Which one is toughest for most parents?  I vote for “Don’t bail them out.”

Five Commonly Asked Resume Questions (US News).  If you’re polishing up your resume in preparation for a job search, here are the answers to questions that may be on your mind.

Five Overused Resume Phrases (Forbes).  Are you an innovative thinking, effective communicating team leader?  Uh-oh.

New Study Shows Architecture, Arts Degrees Yield Highest Unemployment (Washington Post).  The idealist in me says students should still follow their passions.  Someone who’s exceptional at a job where there’s not a lot of hiring should do better than someone who’s mediocre and not passionate about a job where there is a lot of hiring.

And from the blogosphere…

Four Online Secrets for Getting Amazing Flight Deals (Mashable).  Chicago to NY for $54 roundtrip, anyone?

5 Unusual Ways to Raise Successful Children (Get Rich Slowly).  Not the usual advice.  Some really good ideas here.

11 Things That Are Worth the Money (Wise Bread).  Like home maintenance, which is on the list, I would add vehicle maintenance.  As the old commercial used to say, you can pay me now or you can pay me (a lot more) later.

How to Manage Common Productivity Traps For Improved Productivity (Stepcase Lifehack).  Good ideas for getting more done with less stress.

Avoiding Lifestyle Inflation (The Simple Dollar).  The points about maintaining friendships with people who have similar values and living in a neighborhood where people have a similar standard of living as you do are huge.  Our environment impacts our finances more than we realize.

Got a question or a response to any of the above?  Be sure to leave a comment.

Who else would benefit from this post?  Why not forward a link to my site? And if you haven’t done so already, you can subscribe to this blog by clicking here.  Two or three times a week, you’ll receive ideas and encouragement for using money well.

5 Ways to Get Rich, Or Poor (via MSN).  A great research-based look at five choices that make the biggest difference in our financial success.

Education Impacts Work-Life Earnings 5 Times More Than Other Demographic Factors (via U.S. Census Bureau).  We can’t do anything about our race or gender, but there’s a lot we can do about our education.  And that’s good, because it matters – a lot.  Now, if only it was easier to pay for college.

Talking to Your Teenage Girl About Finance (via US News).  A lot of this advice applies to teenage boys as well.

9 Myths on How to Build Better Credit (via Bankrate).  Will closing a credit card account will boost your score?  Find out, and gain 8 other insights into the mysteries of your credit score by reading this article.

9 Snap Judgments Managers Make in Job Interviews (via Yahoo! Finance).  Good insights for anyone looking for work.

And from the blogosphere…

12 Frugal Compromises (via Wise Bread).  Regular readers know that I don’t like the term “frugal.” However, as this article points out, there is a land somewhere in between free spending and tight fisted.

Involving Children in Household Money Management (via Consumerism Commentary).  Good (and even radical) thoughts on why and how to include kids in real-world financial decisions.

Raise Your Children to Be Generous: 3 Important Tips (via Christian PF).  Sound, practical advice from an author whose kids caught the generosity bug.

Ways to Shrug Off a Stock Market Slide & Reduce Market Anxiety (via Digerati Life).  Blood pressure-lowering thoughts for tough economic times.

10 Key Characteristics of Debt-Free People (of Modest Means) (via Len Penzo).  More proof that using money well isn’t rocket science.

Got some feedback on any of the above?  Be sure to leave a comment.

Who else would benefit from this article?  Why not forward a link to my site?  And if you haven’t done so already, you can subscribe to this blog by clicking here.  Two or three times a week, you’ll receive ideas and encouragement for using money well.

Many Prescription Drugs Are Getting Cheaper Soon (via Main Street).  Good advice on getting the best prices for your meds – especially helpful for those who have lost their health insurance through the recession.

Are Credit Scores Worthless? (via NY Times).  I always get lots of questions about credit scores in during workshops.  This debate between a blogger who takes issue with the way credit scores work (or his perception of how they work) and a credit industry expert sheds some helpful light on the topic.

5 Things You Can Do To Land The Interview (via US News).  Good practical advice for job seekers, including one idea that should improve your odds of getting hired from 1 in 33 to 1 in 4.  And while you’re at it, don’t forget these two essential steps for finding a new job.

Stay Tough, Stay Employed (via CNNMoney).  Helpful research about who’s most likely to stay employed, including some interesting parenting advice (hint, make sure your teens get a job!).

Budgeting While You’re In College (via MSNBC).  Are you heading off to college this fall or do you know a college student?  This is a good guide to building one of the most helpful financial habits.  Discovering that a budget leads to financial freedom is a great lesson to learn early in life.

And from the personal finance blogosphere…

How to Use Bill Reminders (via Mint).  Regular readers know that we use Mint in our household.  This article describes how to use Mint’s newest feature.  If you’re thinking about using Mint but are still concerned about security, learning about the steps Mint takes to keep user info safe may ease your mind.

Preparing for Your Next Act (via The Simple Dollar).  Good thoughts on getting set, financially and otherwise, for what might be next in your life.

New Ways to Listen to Music for Free or Cheap (via Wise Bread).  Sometimes it’s easier to sing along if you didn’t pay for the song.

5 Strategies to Save Money and Sanity Big When Flying With Baby (via Money Ning).  Why early boarding may not be a good idea, and other helpful ideas.

How to Protect Your Smartphone From Identity Thieves (via Money Talks News).  All those apps you love so much might be loved even more by ID thieves.  Here’s why and what to do.

Got some feedback on any of the above?  Be sure to leave a comment.

Know someone else who would benefit from this article?  Please forward a link to my site.  And if you haven’t done so already, you can subscribe to this blog by clicking here.  Two or three times a week, you’ll receive ideas and encouragement for using money well.

Before applying for a mortgage, it’s a good idea to check your credit score. While credit reports from each of the three main credit bureaus are free (check them once a year at AnnualCreditReport.com), your credit scores are not.

Where to Get Your Credit Score

You’ve probably seen offers for a free credit score.  Usually, they require that you sign up for credit monitoring at a monthly cost.  Take a pass on that and buy your FICO credit score from Fair Isaac for $19.95.

If you are just curious to know your credit score, buying it from one credit bureau is fine. However, if you’re planning to buy a home, spring for both of the FICO scores that are available to you, the one from TransUnion and the one from Equifax.

Your two scores should be similar to each other, within about fifty points. If they differ more than that, something may have been misreported to one of the bureaus, so go over your credit reports with a fine-tooth comb.  Look especially for any notations of late payments.  If you believe you’ve always paid on time, contact that particular creditor and ask them to make a correction.

Applying for a Mortgage as Husband and Wife

If you and your spouse are applying for a mortgage jointly, both of your credit scores will be taken into account. I should say all six of your credit scores, because each of you has three scores, one from each of the three bureaus. Lenders typically base their decision of whether to offer you a loan, and at what rate, on the lower of both of your middle scores.

If you are applying for a mortgage that will require only one income, which I highly recommend, and the person whose income you will use has a credit score in the mid-700s or higher, you don’t need to worry about the other person’s score, at least not for the purpose of applying for your mortgage. It’s fine to apply for the mortgage in only one person’s name.

However, as long as both of you have strong credit scores, you may still want to apply in both of your names. That way, the mortgage will show up on both of your credit reports, and that may further strengthen your scores.

Improve Your Credit Score Quickly

If you have reason to believe that you could improve your credit score quickly enough to impact your mortgage rate, either by paying down a debt or fixing a mistake on your credit report, and if you can’t wait thirty days to see if your score will, in fact, improve after taking that action, see if your mortgage broker works with a rapid rescoring service.

For a fee, such services may be able to get the credit bureaus to update your credit report within days. But they can help only if you find a legitimate problem and the creditor involved has acknowledged they made a mistake or if you have taken meaningful action, such as paying down a large portion of your debt.

By the way, an excellent book about choosing a mortgage is Mind Your Mortgage by Robert Bernabé.

What other questions do you have about the impact that your credit score may have on your mortgage?

Do you know someone else who may benefit from this article?  Please forward a link.  And if you haven’t done so already, you can sign up for a subscription to this blog by clicking here.  Two or three times a week, you’ll receive ideas and encouragement for using money well.

But it isn’t always easy for couples to talk about money.  Nor is it easy to understand the truth about the other person’s finances just through observation.  You can see if they’re a generous tipper, but just because they drive a nice car doesn’t mean they’re doing okay financially.  The car may have come hitched to a boatload of debt.

That’s why, if you’re seriously considering getting married, it’s important to talk about each other’s finances.  When asking the following questions, focus on listening and understanding, not judging or fixing.

Five Key Financial Questions

Here are my picks for the five most important pre-marriage money questions.

1) How much debt do you have? Research shows that having debt increases the likelihood that couples will fight about money, and couples that argue about money are more likely to divorce than any other topic of dispute.  If one person has a lot of debt, find out what happened.  Did it come about through some unusual circumstance or plain old overspending?  The key here is to see if the cause of the debt has been addressed.  If not, hold off on the wedding until it is addressed.

2) What’s your credit score? Scores range from 300 to 850.  The higher the score, the better.  If a person’s score is below 700, you’ll want to dig deeper.  Do they tend to pay their bills late?  Whether or not bills are paid on time is the most influential factor in determining your score, counting for 35 percent.  A really low score may also indicate a prior bankruptcy or foreclosure.

It may sound boring or intrusive, but it’s an act of love to share your credit reports with each other.  Just as with the first question, if there’s a problem, the key is to see if steps have been taken to fix the problem.  If the person has a history of late payments, is that still going on or was that in the past?

Get your free credit reports from each of the three national credit bureaus at AnnualCreditReport.com and then buy one of your credit scores for $19.95 from MyFICO.com.  You’ll have the option of buying scores from two of the bureaus, but you just need one for now.  It doesn’t matter which one you choose.

Watch as several married people give money-related advice to those who are planning to get married.

3) Do you want to have children? This one isn’t directly a financial question, but the natural follow-up question has huge financial implications: will one of us stay home full-time if and when we do have kids?  I encourage all couples to live primarily on one income, but this is especially important for couples that want to have children and want to have one parent step out of the paid workforce.  The single most helpful financial move you can make to prepare is to live your pre-children days primarily on one income.  Are you both on the same page on this?

4) Do you use a budget? National research I’ve conducted has found that couples that use a budget experience fewer financial disagreements than those that don’t.  Do you both agree that you will operate your household with the use of a budget?  Even better, put together a budget for your first year as husband and wife before you get married.

5) How much do you give away each year? If generosity is a priority for you, you’ll want to make sure your spouse is like-minded.

There are plenty of other questions to ask as well.  In fact, early in my new book, “Money & Marriage: A Complete Guide for Engaged and Newly Married Couples,” I devote two chapters to questions and other exercises designed to help you get to know each other financially.  But I believe these are five of the most important questions to discuss before getting married.

What about you?  Are there other questions you think should have made the top five?  Leave a comment below.

If someone forwarded this article to you, please sign up for your own subscription to this blog.  Two or three times a week, you’ll receive ideas and encouragement for using money well.

One relatively simple and free way to monitor your own credit for signs of ID theft is to pull one of your free credit reports via Annualcreditreport.com every four months.  For example, pull your free report from Equifax in January, TransUnion in May, and Experian in September.  Then scan the reports for open credit accounts you don’t recognize.

It is commonly thought that, especially when it comes to a card you’ve had for a long time, you should not close the account.  That’s because credit history counts for about 15 percent of your credit score.  Close the account, the thinking goes, and you’ll erase some valuable history.  But not so fast.  According to a helpful story on Money Magazine’s More Money blog, closing an account will not wipe out the account’s history.  A spokesperson for Fair Isaac Corporation, the organization that determines your credit score, explained that after you close an account the credit agencies continue to maintain positive information about the account for about ten years and negative information for about seven years.

However, there is a way that canceling a card may hurt you.  It has to do with what’s known as credit utilization.  That’s the percentage of available credit you are using at any given time.  A lower credit utilization works to your favor.  By closing an account, you will lower your total available credit, which will likely leave you with a higher credit utilization.  If you only use five percent of your available credit at any given time and closing an account will push that to ten percent, you probably don’t have anything to worry about.  Using 10 percent or less of your available credit is ideal; 30 percent is usually seen as okay.

So, when thinking about closing an account, you don’t need to worry about its impact on your credit history.  But you should give some thought to its impact on your credit utilization.