Money Tips Network

Vanguard lists five myths and misconceptions about indexing as follows:

• Myth #1: Indexing only works in "efficient" markets
• Myth #2: Who wants to be "average"?
• Myth #3: You get what you pay for—Higher cost + Higher ratings = Higher returns
• Myth #4: Market-cap weighting overweights the overvalued
• Myth #5: Index funds underperform in bear markets

The myths I want to highlight are #2 and #3.

I've had many people say to me that they don't want to "settle" for average returns which are what they believe index investing provides. However, this is not the case. Indexing provides average gross (before expenses) returns, but once costs are deducted, indexing provides superior net returns (which are what you actually take to the bank). Here's how Vanguard puts it:

After having my baby, I quit my job to stay home with her and money has been tight. Grocery couponing doesn’t work well for our family. So to stretch our dollars further without spending too much time and effort, I started paying attention to freebies around our everyday activities. I already wrote about free summer activities for the whole family. This post will extend it further and explore ways to find free stuff for kids, free repairs, services and skills.

Free services

This reader story comes from long-time reader and commenter Bill McFadin, aka Cybergeezer, who commented that he had submitted a story months ago that never ran. We asked if he would resubmit the article, which he kindly did — and then he submitted another one! Some reader stories contain general advice; others are examples of how a GRS reader achieved financial success or failure. These stories feature folks with all levels of financial maturity and income. Want to submit your own reader story? Here’s how.

I maintain that the best way for you to pay off your debts may be just a matter of your personality. My own experience with getting out of debt goes back about 25 years. I didn’t get a particularly early start; I’m 68 now and attacked my debt in my early 40s.

This week the National Association of Realtors reported that sales of existing homes rose 2.3% in July, to the the highest they've been in 10 months. Even better? Fewer of those recent sales were for underwater or foreclosed homes. Prices, on the other hand, have moved up more slowly than they did a year ago because more homes are hitting the market, and inventory is healthy, which constrains pricing.

Combine all that with continued record low interest rates, and maybe now is a good time to buy.

With that in mind, for this week's edition of Reloaded, we've collected some of Wise Bread's best home buying (and selling) articles from the past several years.

Link for teaser title: 

http://www.wisebread.com/bestdeals/today

Best Buy Mega Deals Sale, "Stargate Atlantis: The Complete Series" on Blu-ray for $49.99, Xhilaration Crossbody Handbag for $14, and more!

The Chase Freedom® is a top rewards card that masquerades as a cash back card. Not only can you redeem points for statement credits (“true” cash back), you can also use your Ultimate Rewards points for just about anything else like gift cards, products, and even travel. To get the absolute most out of your points, however, you’ll need one of Chase’s premium cards like the Chase Sapphire Preferred® or Ink® business cards. More on that below.

The card offers 5% back on bonus categories that change every quarter and 1% on everything else, with no annual fee. It’s perfect as your first main card or as a complementary card to a more lucrative Chase rewards card. In short, we currently recommend it as the best cash back credit card on the market today.

Getting ahead financially isn't easy. It requires hard work and persistence. So why risk years or even decades of hard work and sacrifice only to lose everything in one unfortunate, very costly event? (See also: Marketing, Life Insurance, and Behavioral Psychology)

"It won't happen to me," you say? I felt the same way years ago. But life happens. However unfair it may be, over time we all see some of our friends and family members face difficult challenges or even catastrophes. (I'll include a few examples of my own below.) As much as we hope to avoid them, we just can't predict or control all events. But we can at least hedge some of these risks by insuring against them.

Bad money management leads to money guilt, which leads to more bad money management.

More specifically, this is because money guilt can lead you to avoid thinking about or addressing the scenarios that make you feel guilty. You might budget less, or find yourself nervous to look at your checking account or open your bank statements. You engage in these behaviors to avoid the anxiety and guilt you experience when trying to improve in these areas. (See also: Your Money Worries Are Holding You Back)

This cycle is known as avoidance coping, and it has to stop.

We love our pets. So much so that in 2013, Americans spent a whopping $55 billion on their furry friends. Almost $14 billion of that went to pet supplies and over the counter (OTC) medicines. (See also: 10 DIY Dog Toys You Can Make For Pennies)