Free Money Finance

YNAB Winner Named

Just wanted to let you know that I named the winner of the free YNAB giveaway announced Wednesday. Click on the link and scroll to the bottom to see if you've won.

Win a Free Copy of You Need a Budget!

I am giving away a copy of You Need a Budget! All you need to do to enter is to leave any comment on this post. Sometime in the next day or two, I'll select a winner at random and announce with a new post that a winner has been selected.

It will be the winner's responsibility to email me their contact information. I'll then send the winner's information to the You Need a Budget people and they'll work out getting the prize delivered.

A few rules for these giveaways:

1. You can not win more than one prize.

2. I will be the complete and final judge.

3. Legal disclaimer: I can not guarantee safe delivery of the items. I've worked with the YNAB people before and they're great, so I'm sure it will all work out smoothly. That said, I won't be held accountable if there's a mess up.

4. If you win something and do not contact me within a week of winning, I reserve the right to give your prize away to another winner. I won't track down the winners -- it's your responsibility to come back and see if you won.

5. Local laws, rules, and regulations apply.

Good luck! Post a comment below for your chance to win!

YNAB Winner Named

Just wanted to let you know that I named the winner of the free YNAB giveaway announced Monday. Click on the link and scroll to the bottom to see if you've won.

Win a Free Copy of You Need a Budget!

I am giving away a copy of You Need a Budget! All you need to do to enter is to leave any comment on this post. Sometime in the next day or two, I'll select a winner at random and announce with a new post that a winner has been selected.

It will be the winner's responsibility to email me their contact information. I'll then send the winner's information to the You Need a Budget people and they'll work out getting the prize delivered.

A few rules for these giveaways:

1. You can not win more than one prize.

2. I will be the complete and final judge.

3. Legal disclaimer: I can not guarantee safe delivery of the items. I've worked with the YNAB people before and they're great, so I'm sure it will all work out smoothly. That said, I won't be held accountable if there's a mess up.

4. If you win something and do not contact me within a week of winning, I reserve the right to give your prize away to another winner. I won't track down the winners -- it's your responsibility to come back and see if you won.

5. Local laws, rules, and regulations apply.

Good luck! Post a comment below for your chance to win!

YNAB Winner Named

Just wanted to let you know that I named the winner of the free YNAB giveaway announced Monday. Click on the link and scroll to the bottom to see if you've won.

Free Chick-fil-A Chicken Biscuit

The summary:

On January 1, 2009, Chick-fil-A customers will receive an invitation for a free, made-from-scratch Chick-fil-A® Chicken Biscuit with any purchase.

The invitations will be distributed at participating Chick-fil-A restaurants beginning Jan. 1 (while supplies last), and can be redeemed through March 28, 2009.

The details are here.

Win a Free Copy of You Need a Budget!

I am giving away a copy of You Need a Budget! All you need to do to enter is to leave any comment on this post. Sometime in the next day or two, I'll select a winner at random and announce with a new post that a winner has been selected. (Update: For those of you who don't know -- and some don't based on the comments below -- this is a piece of software. It's NOT a book!)

It will be the winner's responsibility to email me their contact information. I'll then send the winner's information to the You Need a Budget people and they'll work out getting the prize delivered.

A few rules for these giveaways:

1. You can not win more than one prize.

2. I will be the complete and final judge.

3. Legal disclaimer: I can not guarantee safe delivery of the items. I've worked with the YNAB people before and they're great, so I'm sure it will all work out smoothly. That said, I won't be held accountable if there's a mess up.

4. If you win something and do not contact me within a week of winning, I reserve the right to give your prize away to another winner. I won't track down the winners -- it's your responsibility to come back and see if you won.

5. Local laws, rules, and regulations apply.

Good luck! Post a comment below for your chance to win!

Get an Easy $20 if You Shop at Walmart and Use American Express

Saw this offer on the web today (I'm a bit behind in my reading). The details:

Spend $40 or more two times at Walmart Stores or walmart.com and get a $20 statement credit on your card account. You will be charged in full at the point-of-sale and your savings will automatically be credited to your statement within 5 days after you spend $40 or more 2 times from November 18 through December 18, 2008.

I was excited about the offer and wanted to participate since I shop at Walmart and use an Amex card. But I was leery since you need to register your card to get the deal. How did I know it wasn't some scam to get credit card information? So I got my card out, called the Amex number on the back, and they confirmed that it was legit. They sent me here to apply for the offer.

Seems like a no brainer for those of us who shop at Wally World and use Amex -- $20 cash for $80 in purchases. (Of course, they're hoping you spend more than $80.) :-)

Free Book Winners Named

Just wanted to let you know that I named the winner of the free book giveaway announced Monday. Click on the link and scroll to the bottom to see if you've won.

Win a Free Book (8 Copies Available)!

I'm cleaning out my office and some of you will be the beneficiaries of my effort. Today I'm giving away eight free copies of the book Be Your Own House Contractor. Here's how you can have the chance to win one:

1. Leave a comment below -- any comment.

2. Sometime later this week, I'll stop by the post, stop the submissions, and name the winners (who I'll select at random).

3. It will be those people's responsibility to check back to see if they are a winner and then email me their contact information.

4. I'll mail out the prizes at once after all the winners contact me.

A few rules for this giveaway:

1. I will be the complete and final judge.

2. Legal disclaimer: I can not guarantee the prize will get to you. I'll mail it via USPS so it should be ok, but I can't guarantee it will arrive and won't be held responsible in case there's a mess up.

3. If you win something and do not contact me within a week of winning, I reserve the right to give your prize away to another winner. Note again: I

won't track down the winners -- it's your responsibility to come back and see if you won.

4. Local laws, rules, and regulations apply.

Good luck! Post a comment below for your chance to win!

Free Dr. Pepper

Dr. Pepper is giving away a free soda (or "pop" if you prefer) to everyone this Sunday! The summary:

A voucher for the free drink will be made available on drpepper.com for 24 hours this Sunday at 12.01am. Those who print the coupon will have until February 28, 2009 to redeem it.

Details here.

Free Pizza from Papa John's

The details:

Beginning Monday, Nov. 17--just ahead of Thanksgiving Eve, consistently one of the three busiest nights in the pizza industry--any Facebook user who becomes a "fan" of the official Papa John's page will receive an online redemption code for a free medium pizza with any online pizza order.

Enjoy!

Free Book Winner Named

Just wanted to let you know that I named the winner of the free book giveaway announced Sunday. Click on the link and scroll to the bottom to see if you've won.

Win a Free Book!

Today I'm giving away a free copy of the book "The Faith-Based Millionaire" by Jay Peroni. Here's how you can have the chance to win it:

1. Leave a comment below -- any comment.

2. Sometime this coming week, I'll stop by the post, stop the submissions, and name the winner (who I'll select at random).

3. It will be that person's responsibility to check back to see if they are a winner and then email me their contact information.

4. I'll email the winner back and give them the contact name to claim their prize.

A few rules for this giveaway:

1. I will be the complete and final judge.

2. Legal disclaimer: I can not guarantee the prize. Jay has said he will deliver it, so I'm sure it will be fine, but since I can't control the prize distribution, I won't be held accountable if there's a mess up.

3. If you win something and do not contact me within a week of winning, I reserve the right to give your prize away to another winner. Note again: I won't track down the winners -- it's your responsibility to come back and see if you won.

4. Local laws, rules, and regulations apply.

Good luck! Post a comment below for your chance to win!

More Free Stuff for Voting

Here's a list of more free stuff you can get for voting today.

Free Stuff

Couple items I ran into today -- and they're FREE! The details:

• Free coffee at Starbucks on Nov. 4 (tomorrow) if you vote.

• Free samples (and coupons) from Procter and Gamble.

Free Taco at Taco Bell

In case you missed it, Taco Bell is giving away a free taco next Tuesday as part of a baseball promotion they're running.

My kids LOVE Taco Bell and my wife LOVES free stuff, so I'm sure we'll be there! ;-)

Free Resume Consultation

Found this online:

If you’d like more information, a free 30 minute resume consultation, or some advice about your career transition, just email your resume to reCareered at phil.reCareered@gmail.com, and we'll schedule a time to talk.

I can't vouch for the service, but since there's no cost, what's the risk?

Free Cereal and Bar Samples

For those interested, you can get a free sample of Fiber One cereal and a free oats and chocolate bar by clicking here.

Winner of the SumoSac Announced

Just wanted to let you know that I named the winner of the SumoSac giveaway announced Monday. Click on the link and scroll to the bottom to see if you've won.

SumoSac Giveaway, Round 2

With all of my giveaways, I include the following wording:

If you win something and do not contact me within a week of winning, I reserve the right to give your prize away to another winner. Note again: I won't track down the winners -- it's your responsibility to come back and see if you won.

Why do I do it this way? Because when 200 people enter a giveaway it's usually VERY hard to track the one winner down (believe me, I've tried.) Besides, I'm the one doing the giving away, so the least the potential winner can do is check back once to see if he/she has won. And if you don't like any of those reasons, here's another: I have the prize, and I set the rules. ;-)

Seriously, I do do all that I can to make sure the winner gets his/her prize -- I even follow up every giveaway with an announcement post telling people to check the original post where a winner has been named. If they're too lazy to do that, then that's their problem. Or if they aren't a regular reader -- just someone who stopped by to enter the drawing and never checked back -- then that's their problem too. I can't protect everyone from themselves.

All this rambling is to set the stage for the fact that the winner of the last SumoSac giveaway didn't claim his prize. That was a MONTH ago. Too bad for him, he's now lost it.

Good news for you, though, as you now have the chance to win it. Here's how you can win your very own SumoSac:

1. Leave a comment below -- any comment.

2. Sometime later this week, I'll stop by the post, stop the submissions, and name the winner (who I'll select at random).

3. It will be that person's responsibility to check back to see if they are a winner and then email me their contact information.

4. I'll email the winner back and give them the contact name at Sumo to claim their prize.

A few rules for this giveaway:

1. I will be the complete and final judge.

2. Legal disclaimer: I can not guarantee the prize. Sumo has said they will deliver it, so I'm sure it will be fine, but since I can't control the prize distribution, I won't be held accountable if there's a mess up.

3. If you win something and do not contact me within a week of winning, I reserve the right to give your prize away to another winner. Note again: I won't track down the winners -- it's your responsibility to come back and see if you won.

4. Local laws, rules, and regulations apply.

Good luck! Post a comment below for your chance to win!

Details on Equifax ID Patrol and Your Chance to Win a Free Trial

Recently I had the chance to interview Steve Ely, president of Equifax Personal Solutions, about their Equifax ID Patrol service (they emailed me, I asked "why would I need this?", and an interview resulted.) Our interview is below, and after it, there are details on how you can win a free trial of the service. And for those of you wondering, no, I didn't receive any sort of fee for this. I thought the information and giveaways were worth running the interview. You can be the judge if you think this is correct or not.

Why do consumers need an identity theft protection product?

Identity theft is now surpassing drug trafficking as the nation’s number one crime, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. Right now, there are people who want to steal your personal information. To help themselves to the credit you’ve worked hard to build—and use it to open bank accounts and credit cards, take out loans, and even file for bankruptcy.

Consumers should not wait until they have become a victim to take steps to protect themselves.  A proactive approach is the best way for consumers to protect themselves and minimize damage to their credit and financial health. That’s why Equifax designed Equifax ID Patrol -- to help prevent identity thieves from obtaining credit in their name and to alert consumers to potential instances of fraud sooner.

Fraud alerts are free, so isn’t that enough?

Fraud alerts alone are not enough.  A comprehensive, credit monitoring-based identity protection product does even more to help consumers protect themselves and minimize the damage that can be caused by identity theft. An initial 90-day fraud alert is only an indicator to a lender that additional steps should be taken to verify that the consumer authorized a request to open a new credit account, increase the credit limit on an existing account or obtain a new card on an existing account, etc.

What makes Equifax ID Patrol different from other identity theft protection products?

Equifax ID Patrol gives consumers access to several comprehensive identity protection features all in one product.

• The first feature is Equifax WebDetect, an innovative tool that constantly scans suspected Internet trading sites and provides alerts to consumers if their personal information (Social Security number or major debit or credit card numbers) is found

• Equifax ID Patrol also features our Identity Theft Resolution Specialist, a trained specialist available 24/7 to help consumers understand the process of notifying the proper authorities, banks and other financial institutions in the event that their identity is stolen.

• Our next feature is the Equifax Credit Report Control, an exclusive product that lets consumers lock and unlock their Equifax credit file online or by phone.

• Finally, Equifax ID Patrol monitors a consumer’s credit file with all three nationwide credit reporting agencies for key changes — such as when someone opens credit in the consumer’s name—and sends them e-mail alerts within 24 hours of those key changes.

What other steps can consumers do to protect their identity?

On top of using an identity protection product, there are a number of steps consumers can take to safeguard their personal information.

• Guard your cards -- Limit the number of credit cards you carry. If you misplace your credit card, contact the credit card company’s fraud division immediately. Keep close watch over your credit card billing statements and billing cycles.

• Know who’s calling -- If you receive a call from anyone requesting personal identification information, you should not share any information before verifying the caller’s identity. If the caller claims to be calling on behalf of a specific organization, take the necessary steps to confirm the person’s relationship to that company. You may want to record the caller’s name and telephone number to call them back upon verification of their identity and association with a particular company.

• Safeguard your Social Security Number -- Don’t make a habit of carrying your Social Security card with you. If someone steals your purse or wallet, they can use your social security number to apply for a job, credit card or loan. Your social security card is safest in a locked safe or drawer, out of sight, in your home.

If your SSN appears on your license, health insurance or Medicare card, ask your provider to use an alternate number such as a random or policy number instead. When carrying your cards, keep them stowed away in a safe place and only take them out when absolutely necessary.

• Put your shredder to work -- Use a shredder to dispose of pre-approved credit card offers and other mail and documents displaying your name and personal information. It only takes a simple phone call for an identity thief to activate a pre-approved credit card in your name. Simply throwing these types of offers and other forms of personal identifiable information in the trash is not enough – identity thieves are not above rummaging through your trash. 

By combining these steps with an identity protection product, consumers can lower their risk of having their identity stolen.

----------------------------------------------------

Hmm. Still not sure I need it. What do you think?

Anyway, here's how you can win one of three free trials of Equifax ID Patrol. It's a three-month trial -- after that, if you keep it, you'll be charged.

Here's how you can have a chance to win this giveaway right now:

1. Leave a comment below -- any comment.

2. Next week, I'll stop by the post, stop the submissions, and name the winners (who I'll select at random).

3. It will be the responsibility of the winners to check back to see if they are a winner and then email me their contact information.

4. I'll email the winners back and give them details on how to claim their prize.

A few rules for these giveaways:

1. I will be the complete and final judge.

2. Legal disclaimer: I can not guarantee the prizes. Equifax has said they will honor them, so I'm sure it will be fine, but since I can't control the prize distribution, I won't be held accountable if there's a mess up.

3. If you win something and do not contact me within a week of winning, I reserve the right to give your prize away to another winner. Note again: I won't track down the winners -- it's your responsibility to come back and see if you won.

4. Local laws, rules, and regulations apply.

Good luck! Post a comment below for your chance to win!

SumoSac Winner Named

Just wanted to let you know that I named the winner of the SumoSac giveaway announced Friday. Click on the link and scroll to the bottom to see if you've won.

SumoSac Review and Giveaway

Several months ago, I was sent a free Sumo Omni bean bag chair from the manufacturer. I tried it out for a few weeks, wrote a review, and gave one away. We still use it to this day, so when the Sumo people emailed and asked if I wanted to review their new SumoSac, I said "sure!" Little did I know what I was getting myself into. ;-)

The SumoSac is HUGE!!!!! As the site says, it's 3 feet high and 6 feet wide. It's so big that my son wanted to sleep in it one night when we moved to the basement to escape thunderstorms, so we let him and he loved it (and had plenty of room). He's about five feet, two inches tall.

Anyway, they sent me this monstrosity last month. It took me and my son about half an hour to open it and massage the foam into small bits (then a bit more massaging the next day to top that off.) Once we got it ready, my kids were all over it -- watching TV, reading, playing video games, and the like. My wife even got on it once, though I thought we were never going to get her off it. Then she tried to get off it herself and almost couldn't make it. ;-)

Anyway, we had to move it to our basement ultimately (where the kids have a playroom) because it is so huge that it was taking up a good portion of our living room (look at the pictures of it -- how it swallows the woman sitting on it -- and this is with it pushed up in the back, it's very wide when it's flat.) But then I found out that they have smaller models -- a five-foot version and a four-foot version -- so it doesn't HAVE to be as huge as the one I got.

I don't think I would pay $229 for one of these, but then again I've been known to be a bit "frugal." I'm not sure what a foam "bean" bag even goes for. Maybe it's a good price? I do know that one lucky reader here will be getting a GREAT price (free!) on one. But more on that in a minute.

I asked the Sumo people if they had any reviews of the product from others and here's what they sent me (many have pictures if you're interested in seeing different views of how big it is):

• Ms Xbox World
• Evil Avatar
• Double Viking
• GoNintendo
• Dueling Analogs
• Louisville Mojo

So here's my take: if you're a hard core gamer and want a comfy chair you can sit in for hours, this might be worth it to you. Or, if you have a huge gathering area for kids, teens, etc. in your home, this would be perfect as well. If you don't have the room, the cash, and the need, then it's not something you'll be interested in (though it is very nice for a relaxing day of TV watching.)

Now, here's how you can win a five-foot SumoSac for your very own courtesy of the people at Sumo:

1. Leave a comment below -- any comment.

2. Sometime early next week, I'll stop by the post, stop the submissions, and name the winner (who I'll select at random).

3. It will be that person's responsibility to check back to see if they are a winner and then email me their contact information.

4. I'll email the winner back and give them the contact name at Sumo to claim their prize.

A few rules for this giveaway:

1. I will be the complete and final judge.

2. Legal disclaimer: I can not guarantee the prize. Sumo has said they will deliver it, so I'm sure it will be fine, but since I can't control the prize distribution, I won't be held accountable if there's a mess up.

3. If you win something and do not contact me within a week of winning, I reserve the right to give your prize away to another winner. Note again: I won't track down the winners -- it's your responsibility to come back and see if you won.

4. Local laws, rules, and regulations apply.

Good luck! Post a comment below for your chance to win!

Free Sample of Old Spice

Here's a link for a free sample of Old Spice Body Wash. Click on the "Free Swagger Sample" circle for details.

Free Sandwich Bags and $5 in Coupons

The offer:

Get a free 50-count box of Ziploc® Brand Sandwich Bags and $5 in coupons for great SC Johnson products you use every day.

The first 10,000 people to respond will receive a Clean Home Journal™ Joys of Summer Gift Pack containing coupons for OFF!®, Ziploc®, Scrubbing Bubbles® and Glade® —with a total value of $5.

Free KFC Hot Wings

News on free KFC hot wings:

In honor of the spicy, bold taste of Kentucky Fried Chicken's signature KFC Hot Wings, the world's largest chicken chain announced today that Americans living in cities and towns that record temperatures hotter than those in Hell, Michigan, have a chance to win free Hot Wings. The "Hotter than Hell" offer is for a five-day period beginning today and ending July 4.

Hell, Michigan, population 70, in the southeast corner of the Wolverine state, will be the focus of fried chicken fans from coast to coast this week. Residents nationwide in one of the 50 United States or District of Columbia are encouraged to visit KFC.com to check the temperature in Hell and see how their community's mercury matches up. If local temperatures are "Hotter than Hell," individuals can register to win free KFC Hot Wings. The first 500 people who register their hometown's temperature as "Hotter than Hell" at KFC.com between 3 p.m. and 6 p.m. ET each day will win.

Lots of effort to win free hot wings, isn't it?

Free Food at Chick-fil-A

For those of you who like freebies and chicken:

On Friday, July 11, the Chick-fil-A chain will celebrate its annual Cow Appreciation Day event by offering a free meal to any customer who isn't "too chicken" to visit any of the chain's nearly 1,400 participating restaurants fully dressed as a cow.

Customers fully dressed as a cow will be rewarded with a free Chick-fil-A Meal, which includes an entree of choice, a side item, and a Dr Pepper (or another beverage of choice). And for those who are a little timid to wear spots from head to toe, Chick-fil-A will award a complimentary entree to customers partially dressed in cow attire, such as a cow-spotted scarf, purse, hat, or other accessory.

Last eFinPLAN Winner Named

Just wanted to let you know that I named the winner of the eFinPlan giveaway announced Monday. Click on the link and scroll to the bottom to see if you've won.

This was the last giveaway of this service. For those of you who would like to purchase the eFinPLAN service (remember, they have a 30-day guarantee, so if you don't like it, you'll get your money back), you can save 10% by using this FMF coupon code: 92BF3.

Free Tacos at Jack in the Box This Thursday

Free Tacos at Jack in the Box:

On Thursday, June 26, from midnight to 11:59 p.m., Jack in the Box restaurants will give two free regular tacos to any guest who presents a gas receipt. There is a limit of one order of tacos per guest.

I never knew Jack had tacos!!!!!!

Win a Free Year of eFinPLAN ($98 Value)!

eFinPlan is an online financial planner. A year of their service normally costs $98 -- but you now have the chance to get a year of eFinPlan for FREE!!!!

Here's how you can have a chance to win this giveaway right now:

1. Leave a comment below -- any comment.

2. Later this week, I'll stop by the post, stop the submissions, and name the winner (who I'll select at random).

3. It will be that person's responsibility to check back to see if they are a winner and then email me their contact information.

4. I'll email the winner back and give them the contact name at eFinPlan to claim their prize.

A few rules for these giveaways:

1. I will be the complete and final judge.

2. Legal disclaimer: I can not guarantee the prizes. eFinPlan has said they will deliver them, so I'm sure it will be fine, but since I can't control the prize distribution, I won't be held accountable if there's a mess up.

3. If you win something and do not contact me within a week of winning, I reserve the right to give your prize away to another winner. Note again: I won't track down the winners -- it's your responsibility to come back and see if you won.

4. Local laws, rules, and regulations apply.

Good luck! Post a comment below for your chance to win!

Free Tea at Caribou Coffee Tomorrow

Check this out if you'd like a free tea tomorrow:

Caribou Coffee Company Inc. will celebrate its 4th annual CoolFest and the first day of summer by giving away free Fruit & Tea blended beverages between 3 p.m. and 4 p.m. on Saturday, June 21, 2008.

Every guest who visits Caribou Coffee during that time will receive a free 12 oz. Fruit & Tea blended beverage in his choice of three flavors: White Tea & Peach, Green Tea & Mango, or Red Tea & Raspberry.

Here's where you can find a store near you.

Free Ice Cream Cake Today in Michigan

For those of you in Michigan looking for something yummy and free today:

In celebration of Cold Stone Creamery's 20th Birthday, the 41 stores throughout the state of Michigan will be treating customers to a number of special offers and activities. Also, each store will give away free slices of ice cream cake and samples from the new better-for-you smoothie line. The celebration is on Friday, June 20, 2008. All 41 stores in the state of Michigan will give away free slices of ice cream cake and samples between four and eight p.m.

Latest eFinPLAN Winner Named

Just wanted to let you know that I named the winner of the eFinPlan giveaway announced Monday. Click on the link and scroll to the bottom to see if you've won.

For those of you who would like to purchase the plan (remember, they have a 30-day guarantee, so if you don't like it, you'll get your money back), you can save 10% by using this FMF coupon code: 92BF3.

Win a Free Year of eFinPLAN ($98 Value)!

eFinPlan is an online financial planner. A year of their service normally costs $98 -- but you now have the chance to get a year of eFinPlan for FREE!!!!

Here's how you can have a chance to win this giveaway right now:

1. Leave a comment below -- any comment.

2. Later this week, I'll stop by the post, stop the submissions, and name the winner (who I'll select at random).

3. It will be that person's responsibility to check back to see if they are a winner and then email me their contact information.

4. I'll email the winner back and give them the contact name at eFinPlan to claim their prize.

A few rules for these giveaways:

1. I will be the complete and final judge.

2. Legal disclaimer: I can not guarantee the prizes. eFinPlan has said they will deliver them, so I'm sure it will be fine, but since I can't control the prize distribution, I won't be held accountable if there's a mess up.

3. If you win something and do not contact me within a week of winning, I reserve the right to give your prize away to another winner. Note again: I won't track down the winners -- it's your responsibility to come back and see if you won.

4. Local laws, rules, and regulations apply.

Good luck! Post a comment below for your chance to win!

eFinPLAN Winner Named

Just wanted to let you know that I named the winner of the eFinPlan giveaway announced Monday. Click on the link and scroll to the bottom to see if you've won.

For those of you who would like to purchase the plan (remember, they have a 30-day guarantee, so if you don't like it, you'll get your money back), you can save 10% by using this FMF coupon code: 92BF3.

Win a Free Year of eFinPLAN ($98 Value)!

eFinPlan is an online financial planner. A year of their service normally costs $98 -- but you now have the chance to get a year of eFinPlan for FREE!!!!

Here's how you can have a chance to win this giveaway right now:

1. Leave a comment below -- any comment.

2. Later this week, I'll stop by the post, stop the submissions, and name the winner (who I'll select at random).

3. It will be that person's responsibility to check back to see if they are a winner and then email me their contact information.

4. I'll email the winner back and give them the contact name at eFinPlan to claim their prize.

A few rules for these giveaways:

1. I will be the complete and final judge.

2. Legal disclaimer: I can not guarantee the prizes. eFinPlan has said they will deliver them, so I'm sure it will be fine, but since I can't control the prize distribution, I won't be held accountable if there's a mess up.

3. If you win something and do not contact me within a week of winning, I reserve the right to give your prize away to another winner. Note again: I won't track down the winners -- it's your responsibility to come back and see if you won.

4. Local laws, rules, and regulations apply.

Good luck! Post a comment below for your chance to win!

eFinPLAN Winner Named

Just wanted to let you know that I named the winner of the eFinPlan giveaway announced Monday. Click on the link and scroll to the bottom to see if you've won.

For those of you who would like to purchase the plan (remember, they have a 30-day guarantee, so if you don't like it, you'll get your money back), you can save 10% by using this FMF coupon code: 92BF3.

All About eFinPLAN

Yesterday on my eFinPLAN giveaway (still time to put your name in for the free giveaway, BTW), I had a reader ask:

Are you going to have an article up in the near future w/more details about the service?

So I dropped the people at eFinPLAN a note and asked them to summarize their service. Here's what they sent me:

Have you ever wanted to go to a financial planner to have a personal financial plan written for you? Many people hesitate doing so, because they can’t afford to pay up to several thousands of dollars for one, while other people prefer to do their own financial planning.

What is eFinPLAN?

eFinPLAN is all about affordability and accessibility. First it is only $98, costing thousands less than going to a financial planner. Secondly it is a web-based designed specifically for consumer ease of use in the convenience of their home. Most other financial planning software has been designed only for professional financial advisors to use. All you have to do is answer online questions, and then a 60+ page personalized financial report (pdf) is generated.

What does the Financial Planning Report Cover?

The report covers all of the main financial planning areas in an educational format: Net Worth, Spending, Retirement, College Education, Future Purchases, Investments, Insurance, and Estate Planning. In addition it also addresses the following areas that are not covered by most other financial planning software: Money Habits, Debt Analysis, Money Tools, Relationships and Values, Charitable Giving and Utilizing Trusted Professional Advisors. It covers over 50 topics in all.

The report is complete with an action step implementation checklist so that you can begin making progress on your financial plan.

Financial planning is an ongoing process

eFinPLAN has been designed so that if you are missing any information, you can skip it and come back to it later.  Financial situations may change with job losses, babies, etc.  Having an online tool is great so that you can update your plan when changes occur. In addition, the software has the ability to run multiple “what-if scenarios” that permit changes to assumptions, interest rates, savings, etc. to see how the plan might change when variables are changed.

Why was eFinPLAN created?

Kent and Laura Irwin founded the company with the motto to “Take the Mystery Out of Financial Planning,” to  help people because help is needed now more than ever when you consider the financial trends of middle America today such as low savings rates, high home foreclosures and debt, not saving enough for retirement and raiding their 401k balances. Most financial services companies are pursuing the top 5% wealthiest people.  However only 1 - 2% of 108 million middle-class households are currently being served by professionally accredited financial planners according to the Journal of Financial Planning. eFinPLAN is designed to help the underserved middle.

For more info, visit eFinPlan.

Win a Free Year of eFinPLAN ($98 Value)!

eFinPlan is an online financial planner/software system for financial planning guidance. A year of their service normally costs $98 -- but you now have the chance to get a year of eFinPlan for FREE!!!!

Here's how you can have a chance to win this giveaway right now:

1. Leave a comment below -- any comment.

2. Later this week, I'll stop by the post, stop the submissions, and name the winner.

3. It will be that person's responsibility to check back to see if they are a winner and then email me their contact information.

4. I'll email the winner back and give them the contact name at eFinPlan to claim their prize.

A few rules for these giveaways:

1. I will be the complete and final judge.

2. Legal disclaimer: I can not guarantee the prizes. eFinPlan has said they will deliver them, so I'm sure it will be fine, but since I can't control the prize distribution, I won't be held accountable if there's a mess up.

3. If you win something and do not contact me within a week of winning, I reserve the right to give your prize away to another winner. Note again: I won't track down the winners -- it's your responsibility to come back and see if you won.

4. Local laws, rules, and regulations apply.

Good luck! Post a comment below for your chance to win!

March Madness Winner, $50 Gift Card Winner, and Donations to Charity

Well, it was a close battle, but Snowflaking:  A Primer (Snowflaking) beat How I Taught My Preschooler the Value of a Dollar (Dollar) for the championship in my March Madness tournament. Congrats to you both -- your posts were wonderful!

In addition, I named the winner of the $50 gift card courtesy of SmartyPig. Click the link and scroll to the bottom to see if you won.

Finally, I promised to make contributions to the charities of those whose posts were in the final four of my tournament. Therefore, later this week I'll be contributing the following amounts to the following charities:

• Make A Wish Foundation - $500
• Leukemia & Lymphoma Society - $250
• American Cancer Society - $100
• Russian Children's Welfare Society - $100

Congrats to all the participants -- the posters and the voters! You made it a great event!!

$50 Winner Named

Just wanted to let you know that I named the winner of the $50 lender account drawing announced yesterday. Click on the link and scroll to the bottom to see if you've won.

I was supposed to have several more of these to give away, but Lending Club has postponed the giveaways. I'm hoping they will eventually give me what they promised, but for now we're all on standby. Stay tuned.

Win a Free $50 Lender Account From Lending Club!

Lending Club is offering a few free $50 lender accounts (a bonus $50 will be available in the cash balance of your lender's account -- you can use it to invest in loans or withdraw it) that I'll be giving away the next few days.

Here's how you can have a chance to win the giveaway right now:

1. Leave a comment below -- any comment.

2. Sometime tomorrow, I'll stop by the post, stop the submissions, and name the winner.

3. It will be that person's responsibility to check back to see if they are a winner and then email me their contact information.

4. I'll email the winner back and give them the contact name at Lending Club to claim their prize.

A few rules for these giveaways:

1. You can not win more than one prize.

2. I will be the complete and final judge.

3. Legal disclaimer: I can not guarantee the prizes. Lending Club has said they will deliver them, so I'm sure it will be fine, but since I can't control the prize distribution, I won't be held accountable if there's a mess up.

4. If you win something and do not contact me within a week of winning, I reserve the right to give your prize away to another winner. Note again: I won't track down the winners -- it's your responsibility to come back and see if you won.

5. Local laws, rules, and regulations apply.

Good luck! Post a comment below for your chance to win!

Free Money Finance March Madness, Championship; Your Chance to Win a $50 Gift Card Too

We're down to the last two posts of Free Money Finance March Madness (if you wonder what's going on in these posts, see my article announcing March Madness and/or click on my March Madness category link and scroll down to read all the posts involved in this subject.) I've listed the "game" below -- simply comment on which post you like better. Here we go:

• Snowflaking:  A Primer (Snowflaking) - Snowflaking is a concept that many people actually employ but few people can name. It involves systematically and purposely saving and earning small amounts of "extra" money to reduce debt or increase savings. Doing this in a purposeful manner can make a huge difference in your financial health.  This post outlines what snowflaking is and how to get started implementing it in your own life.  It has worked wonders for me!

VERSUS

• How I Taught My Preschooler the Value of a Dollar (Dollar) - It's important to teach young children about hard work, saving, and spending.  In a quite accidental way, I used a chart system to teach my son the value of money and hard work.  If you teach your children about delayed gratification early, it will have a positive effect on their money management skills throughout life.

In addition, I still have a $50 gift card courtesy of SmartyPig for one commenter dwarn at random. Here's how you can win it:

1. Leave a comment/vote below for your favorite post of the two above.

2. Sometime on Tuesday, I'll stop by the post, stop the submissions, and name the winner.

3. It will be that person's responsibility to check back to see if they are a winner and then email me their contact information.

4. Once I'm contacted, I'll mail out the card.

A few rules for these giveaways:

1. I will be the complete and final judge.

2. Legal disclaimer: I can not guarantee safe delivery of the items. The prize will be sent via mail and since it comes from SmartyPig, it should be fine, but since I can't control the mail I won't be held accountable if there's a mess up.

3. If you win and do not contact me within a week of winning, I reserve the right to give your prize away to another winner. Note again: I won't track down the winners -- it's your responsibility to come back and see if you won.

4. Local laws, rules, and regulations apply.

Good luck! Post a comment below for your chance to win!

Winner Named

Not an April Fool's post -- I just named the winner of the 1 GB flash drive. Click the link and go to the bottom of the page to see the winner.

Free Money Finance March Madness, Final Four; Your Chance to Win a Prize Too

We're down to the final four of Free Money Finance March Madness (if you wonder what's going on in these posts, see my article announcing March Madness and/or click on my March Madness category link and scroll down to read all the posts involved in this subject.) I've listed each "game" (one post versus another) in segments along with the wording provided by the author when the post was submitted. I've also listed a keyword(s) after each post title to make it easy to vote (as a made-up example, you can just comment: Game 1 - Saving; Game 2 - Investing, etc.) Be sure to comment which one you like better out of each set of two. Here we go:

GAME 1

• Snowflaking:  A Primer (Snowflaking) - Snowflaking is a concept that many people actually employ but few people can name. It involves systematically and purposely saving and earning small amounts of "extra" money to reduce debt or increase savings. Doing this in a purposeful manner can make a huge difference in your financial health.  This post outlines what snowflaking is and how to get started implementing it in your own life.  It has worked wonders for me!

VERSUS

• A little-too-late advice on building wealth (Late) - Well, we're all stupid.  Some of us stupider than others, but mama always told me stupid is as stupid does.  If you can read this list and you haven't messed up all of these points already, you may find a way to destupidify.

GAME 2

• 8 Lessons I Learned From The Cheapest Family In The Nation (Lessons) - This post was the single most popular post I wrote last year.  It garnered a huge response on the net and a lot of discussion to boot. I think it's a great and inspiring look at a real-life family's frugality.  The Economides family proves that with teamwork, strategy and determination, we can all live below our means and live well with less.

VERSUS

• How I Taught My Preschooler the Value of a Dollar (Dollar) - It's important to teach young children about hard work, saving, and spending.  In a quite accidental way, I used a chart system to teach my son the value of money and hard work.  If you teach your children about delayed gratification early, it will have a positive effect on their money management skills throughout life.

In addition, I still have one 1GB USB drive available to give away (see details on it here.) All the rules, exceptions, etc. detailed on the linked post apply, but the basics are -- leave your votes for the best posts above and one commenter will be selected at random to receive the drive FREE!!!! Good luck!!!

Free eBook: Limited Time Offer

I just found out that the ebook Build or Remodel Your Own House is now FREE for a limited time. I'm not sure how long the free offer will last, so if you want a copy, head over and get one asap!

Giveaway #4: Win a Free 1GB USB Drive with TaxCut for 2007 on It!

H&R Block sent me a few 1GB USB drives with TaxCut for 2007 on them that I've been giving away today. This is the last of the giveaways.

Here's how you can have a chance to win this giveaway:

1. Leave a comment below -- any comment.

2. First thing tomorrow (Wednesday), I'll stop by the post, stop the submissions, and name the winner.

3. It will be that person's responsibility to check back to see if they are a winner and then email me their contact information.

4. Once all the giveaways are completed, I'll mail out the drives (shooting for this weekend.)

A few rules for these giveaways:

1. You can not win more than one prize.

2. I will be the complete and final judge.

3. Legal disclaimer: I can not guarantee safe delivery