My name is Twyla and I’m a shopaholic. 

I love to spend money and I can sum up my story in my own personal finance news story. 

I figure as long as my mortgage and car insurance are paid then I assume there is no harm in shopping.  I do look for deals on a lot of things and my house is decorated very modern and classy.  I am always dressed nice and I drive an upper-class vehicle.  I don’t owe a lot of money besides my mortgage.

So, what is the problem if I want to go shopping and spend some money on myself, my house and others.

Shopping is my one outlet in life that makes me happy when I’m feeling down and calms me down when I’m angry.  No harm done. 

My name is Twyla and I’m a shopaholic.

Today in my psychology class we covered learning disabilities.  Considering the psychology class is an education (teaching) class, it dealt a lot with students with challenges in class such as students that are dyslexic.

We learned about dyslexic symptoms and how to spot those children at risk.  Some of the common signs are trouble with writing, spelling and numbers such as 56 and 65.  The troublemaker of the class sometimes is the one suffering from dyslexia - they act out to try and disguise their problem.

We also learned about resources available to us as teachers.  There are a lot of dyslexia tests available should we suspect one of our students have the condition.  There was also some training done on how to approach parents of children that potentially have dyslexia.

We will be continuing the topic next class with more attention made in the area of teacher and parent relations regarding handling the delicate nature of this type of situation.  I think it will be interesting and I can’t wait.

Well, winter is almost here and I have some doubts about my car.  You see, it was out of commission a few weeks ago and it cost a few dollars to get fixed.  What scares me is that my mechanic said that it "should" make it through the winter.

That kind of security is not good enough for me.  We have a family and sometimes we drive our son to different activities, so we need a reliable vehicle.  Also, with a baby on the way next February, we for sure need one by then.

So, we decided to look for a new car.  The problem for us is that a decent car is kind of out of our price range.  We are going to have to get an unsecured loan to pay for it.  I was thinking of getting a car loan from the bank, but I thought that maybe I should shop around.

I decided to go online and see what I could find for cheap loans.  I was surprised that I found loans with better terms and better interest rates than what my bank offered.  I still feel some loyalty to my bank, so I was going to see if they could offer me a car loan at the same rate.  We have an appointment next Wednesday and we will see what they can do for us.

When I grew up I took French Immersion in school.  By learning a different language, I was given another point of view on the world.  In some respects part of my brain looked at a situation one way, part of my brain looked at things another way.

Now that I am an adult, I try to look at all things from two sides.  Usually, I can save myself some misery or even sometimes some money.  Just this past week, my point of view has helped me out in the area of finances.

You see, I decided that I needed to shave a little bit of expenses out of my budget - we were doing ok, but if we could save a few bucks, that would be better.  First off, I felt that I was spending way to much on bank fees.  You see, our savings account had fees if you were to put in money, or take it out.  What I wanted was the best savings account I could get - I wanted to at least make some money on what I had put away.

I also wasn’t too happy with the interest rate on my credit card.  Unfortunately, we have carried a balance on the card for the last few months, and it would be better if the interest we paid on the card was less than what we pay now.  I went online to compare credit cards and found I could get a better interest rate than I was getting - on a card with no fees.  That would save us about fifty bucks a month, and that would help.

Lastly, I was going to look into our car insurance.  With all the commercials on television telling me that I could save money, I am sure I could shave a few dollars off our payments each month.  I decided to do a car insurance comparison online and found if I did switch, I could save a couple hundred of dollars per year.

Now that I have found some places to shave some expenses off our budget, we can save for the trip we plan to take at Christmas… I can’t wait.

I know that there has been a lot of talk here about loans recently.  I just noticed and I thought I would throw in my two bits.

I have had some experience with different types of loans so far in my life.  I have had quite a few unsecured loans that I have used to buy everything from furniture, cars and computers.  Usually the financing period is five years or less, and getting the loan is dependent on your credit rating.  Mine credit rating is good, so I have never had any problems getting one of these.

The other type of loan I have a little experience with is a secured home owner loan.  This type of loan taps into the equity you have in your home.  We used it to add a garage to our house.  Financing time for these types of loans can be as long as any home mortgage - up to thirty years in some jurisdictions.

So depending on your needs, chances are you would get one of these types of loans.  Ask you banker or lender for more information and aid picking the product that is right for you.

If you or a friend has gone bankrupt in the past, you may be familiar of some of the problems you run into after bankruptcy.  As a short list you might find problems with are:

1. Applying for a Credit Card:
   Most banks and financial institutions will not even consider someone that has been bankrupt for a credit card.  Usually, you have to wait seven years before you can even apply and even then you might have some problems.
2. Applying for a loan:
   Getting a loan after bankruptcy can be tough.  Even though you may qualify for a loan, in most cases either you have to get a secure loan (pledge something to guarantee your loan in case of default) or pay a higher interest rate.  In lots of cases, places will not accept your application for a loan if you have gone bankrupt in the past.
3. Applying for a Mortgage:
   Mortgages are another area where you might run into problems.  You can run into the same problems as both the loans and credit cards: higher interest rates and you are unlikely to qualify if you are within seven years of your bankruptcy.  One thing you might not have as much problem with would be a bad credit remortgage.  In this case, chances are you will be approved for the next term of your mortgage although you may have to pay a higher interest rate.

How many of you have at least one credit card in your wallet or purse?  Well, I would guess most of you.  It almost seems that wallets and credit cards form a marriage of sorts: it is rare that you find one without the other.

With most of you having credit cards too, I am sure you are inundated with credit card offers from everywhere: mail, email, telephone calls, and even at malls.  There are just so many options that it is sometimes hard to compare credit cards effectively - that is until the Internet arrived.

For those of you actively searching for credit (whether it be a loan, mortgage, or credit card), the Internet should be the tool in your arsenal.  Why?  Well, if knowledge is power, the Internet gives you all the knowledge right at your fingertips.  What is also nice is that you can see what your current bank and other financial institutions offer with no fluff.

Now, go to your bank and ask them to show you what their competitors offer and I am sure you will be disappointed.  Chances are they won’t have their competitors offers handy (except for the ones where their product is cheaper).  Will the Internet?  You bet.

The other thing that gets me is that you shop around for better prices or better products for so many other things in life (such as cars, electronics, computers, etc.), so why wouldn’t you shop around for your financial products?  A good example I came across recently is that my credit card from my bank is a cash back credit card that gives me 1.5% cashback on my purchases.  What I found out is that there is another financial institution in town that offers the same interest rate, but they give 4% cash back!  Do you think I would have the card from my bank, had I known what was out there?  That’s right, it would be a big NO!

So, do yourself a favor:  when looking for financial products, shop around.  Not only may you get a good deal (in terms of a lower interest rate or payment options), but you will be able to make an educated choice.  It is your money, make it work the best you can for you - not for your bank.

I just thought I would share some of the information I have been learning about the area of finance.  In particular, I am researching topics in personal finance as I am in the process of buying a few things in the next few months that will need financing (think mini-van and home) as well as we are in the market for some other financial products.

What I wanted to talk about here today is loans.  Now, if you have ever applied for a loan, chances are most of you went into a bank or credit union to do that.  Or maybe you applied for a car loan at a car dealership.  I want to suggest to you a new tool that allows you to compare loans from different vendors and pick the one that you think is the best value for your dollar: the Internet.

I don’t know if you have ever tried shopping for a loan on the Internet, but it is perhaps one of the easiest tools to use out there.  The best part is that you can scope out what the competition is offering and you are essentially presented multiple offers from companies who want your business.

Want to know how big of a personal loan you qualify for?  Do you have five minutes?  That is really how easy it is.  You can sit at your computer when you choose, you don’t need to make an appointment, and you don’t need to be embarrassed about your credit history when you fill out an application for a secured personal loan.

In my next "lesson" I am going to talk about credit cards (I am sure a lot of you will like that )

If you looked in my wallet, you would find three credit cards.  I have a Visa, a Mastercard and an American Express.  These are probably the three best credit cards one can get.  I am very happy with the three cards that I have.

That doesn’t stop the offers from coming in the mail.  They seem very tempting at times.  I’ve got to admit that the 0% credit cards and the cash back credit card offers have had me filling out the application forms.

I keep myself in check, knowing that if I gave in, I could end up with over 20 credit cards in my wallet.  Anything I need can be purchased using one of the three credit cards that I already own.  I have told myself this enough that I am to the point where I don’t open the offers anymore.

A large portion of my day is spent promoting my websites.  Whether I am writing articles, submitting my sites to web directories, or even participating in forums, it seems there is never enough time to get everything done.

What I did come across today will help me to promote my sites and may help you.  Just remember this website address: TNX.net.  Why?  Well, TNX is a link marketplace where you can buy links and sell links.

How is it different than Text Link Ads?

It is different in its’ simplicity.  Instead of having to find each link individually, you just put the number of links you would like and input your criteria: the number of backlinks on the page and the PR of that page, and the system does the rest.  It find the pages for you to put your ad, and automatically sets up your ads.

Now, you are probably wondering about price.  Something this good can’t be free, can it?  Well you can give out this program with some free credits by checking out this story about TNX.net.  Or, if you have a website that has some PR, you can setup your site in the program and earn credits when links are sold on your site.

They also have a great affiliate program that you can earn credits when people you refer either purchase points or earn points from the sale of links on their sites. 

So, if you want to make your web marketing easier, and maybe earn a little money too, give TNX.net a try.