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About:
Hi! I'm FFB, the author of Free From Broke. I'm married with two kids (and a 3rd on the way) living on a single income in NYC.

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http://freefrombroke.com/

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Total Points: 40

Questions Asked: 1

Answers Given: 8

Best Answers: 0

Where should we put our money short-term?

We're selling our co-op soon. Where's the best place to put the money while we rent before looking for a house? We don't want the money locked up too long in case we find a house we want to buy.

Asked in: Real Estate - 282 days ago - 2 answers

What is a good credit score?

I thought my 730 something credit score was very good, and figured that I would be eligible the best possible interest rate for my loan. However, I was disappointed to learn that the best interest rate the bank willing to offer me was 3% higher than what I originally expected to pay. Obviously, I walked away and I'm in the process of looking for another source. What is considered a good credit score nowadays?

Asked by: Jim in Credit and Debt - 236 days ago

freefrombroke's Answer

When you applied for the loan did you let the bank know what your score was or make them aware of what your score was? When I bought my first car the finance manager tried to charge me a ridiculous loan rate on the loan. Then I asked if that was really the best he could do since my score was around 750-ish at the time. He looked at his computer and said something along the lines of "oh yeah, look at that" and offered me a better rate (it also helped that I had a pre-approval from another source). Point is, it could be your bank is well aware of your score but they are still trying to charge you more. Give them a call and see if you can get a lower rate.

Answered 235 days ago

Who is the best online bank (not talking about interest rate)?

I know Pinyo updates his list of high yield savings banks regularly and I am considering the top 3-4 banks. But how can I tell which one is the best? I am not as concerned about the highest interest rate, which EverBank is clearly the winner right now. However, I want to know which bank has very little or no fee, good customer service, free online bill payment, etc. I want the whole package and not just high interest rate.

Asked by: Gavilan in Banking - 238 days ago

freefrombroke's Answer

I've been with ING for years now and I've never had any issues with them and their customer service is great. Any time I have called them their people were both friendly and informative. I haven't tried any other banks but ING's service has given me no reason to look elsewhere.

Answered 235 days ago

Take out a 401k loan or not?

I would be interested in hearing some opinions on my situation. I am going to school at night, I work full-time during the day, and I am in a deep financial mess. I have a 401K plan that I have now had for 20 years. I was considering taking out a loan. My salary dropped almost $10,000 last year. The recent recession has hurt me more than I thought, and I already have an equity loan that I am paying on. My daughter is starting her second year at college and there are supplies (computer, etc) that I am trying to get. I have back taxes that I need to pay and on top of that is my mortgage and other bills. I have been creative in the way I stay afloat these days, but I see myself sinking in the near future if I don't try something soon. Would using a credit card (with 9.9% interest) be a better solution to paying some bills as opposed to taking a loan from my 401k?

Asked by: samday99 in Personal Finance - 244 days ago

freefrombroke's Answer

Here's a major problem witha 401(k) loan - what happens if you get laid off? My understanding is you have to pay it back ASAP if that happens. Keep that 401(k) put away. I agree with the other answers in that you need to try to find ways to cut expenses. With your daughter going to school - If need be can she take out a loan herself? Yes, it's debt for her but a school loan usually isn't considered "bad" debt and she has time to pay it back. Once you borrow from your 401(k) it's gone.

Answered 235 days ago

What is the contribution of Freddie Mac, Fannie Mae to Financial Crisis 2008 in USA?

What is the contribution of Freddie Mac?

Asked by: akarazzak in Business and Economy - 253 days ago

freefrombroke's Answer

I remember hearing that Mae and Mac were told to offer more mortgages to lower income families. Assuming this is correct it raised the demand for housing which helped the rise of housing prices. It's possible many loans, which many are already at low down payments, went bad wich made the situation worse.

Answered 250 days ago

What is financial services?

the definition of financial & services

Asked by: BDY in Business and Economy - 275 days ago

freefrombroke's Answer

Like said above it's a really broad definition! Anything dealing with money could fall under financial services. Where I work this includes accounts payable and billing.

Answered 273 days ago

Is Cash4Gold.com a scam?

I have been hearing about these trading gold for cash places a lot. They make it seems like "broken" gold are worth less somehow. Have you tried them out? Do you think it's a scam? Comparing to the market rate of gold, are you getting good price per ounce?

Asked by: Pinyo in Miscellaneous - 283 days ago

freefrombroke's Answer

I wonder what their prices are compared to a local jeweler? Most jewelry stores won't give you full value when you sell to them.

Answered 281 days ago

What impact does the financial crisis have on the ability of small business to expand?

Asked by: rianne in Business and Economy - 283 days ago

freefrombroke's Answer

As was mentioned it depends on what type of business. Some businesses can thrive in a tough economy. Look at something like Cash4Gold - people are cash-strapped and are willing to mail in their gold to get cash. This economy can be a great time to break through with a new idea when other bigger companies are scaling back and are afraid to pour money into new ideas. On the other hand it could be more difficult to get financing or funding in this economy.

Answered 282 days ago

Where to open a Roth IRA?

Opening a Roth IRA this year, any suggestions for where to open if I'm not planning on making many trades? Taking the put and leave it alone approach (except periodic re-balancing).

Asked by: lrgche in Investing - 289 days ago

freefrombroke's Answer

I have my wife's and my Roth IRA's with Vanguard. They tend to have lower expense fees and they have a great selection of funds to invest in. Only thing with them is you generally need $3000 to invest in a fund or $1000 to invest in their STAR fund (last I checked).

Answered 289 days ago

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