My dusty little blog was named one of CreditCard.org’s 10 Best Undiscovered Money Blogs. It looks like my story of paying off $70,000 of debt in 14 months has reached a new audience.

If you follow my blog regularly then you know that I’ve missed the last two editions of the Monday Morning Personal Finance News. Weekends have been very busy around the Six Figures & Broke household and something had to give – in this case it was a bit of blogging. I’m back now, though!

• If you fly often then you know about all the different “fees” that airlines charge you to get from point A to point B. A new fee is cropping up – direct flight fees. Yes, if you want to get from point A to point B without a layover in point A ½ then you may be charged an additional fee.
• It’s Tax Day! This year tax day is 4/18 and not 4/15 so you have until midnight tonight to get your taxes filed or postmarked or an extension requested. If you’re jobless, don’t forget to check out these tax breaks for the unemployed.
• Simplify your life by decluttering. Did you know that decluttering could have a positive impact on your finances?
• Do you want to save money on spices? Head to your local independent international grocery store instead of the neighborhood big box grocer.
• Are you hooked on Groupon? If so, check out this article on taming your new addiction without missing out on some great deals.
• Find out how you can go from $10,000 in your retirement account today to a million plus at retirement.

Photo: smemon87/Flickr

With all this free cash in our monthly budget, my husband and I decided that we deserved a new, fun and sporty vehicle. We ended up going out last night and buying a new RED Mercedes convertible. We figure that with the special 1.9% financing we’ll be making money by keeping our savings and 401k money where it is – besides, we can easily afford the payments now that we paid off all of our other consumer debt. What’s $798 a month when we paid off over $70k in 14 months – seriously?

Seriously – nahhh, not me! It is April Fool’s Day and I love me some pranks. Have a great weekend!

Photo: Automotive Rhythms/Flickr

Happy Monday Morning! This week’s edition of the Monday Morning Personal Finance News features stories on unpaid jobs, goodbye debit rewards programs and better, higher-paying summer jobs.

• Are you willing to work for free? An increasing number of unemployed Americans are in order to boost their resume, gain workplace experience and more.
• If you don’t already hate the big banks, here’s some news that might put you over the edge: Wells Fargo, SunTrust and Chase are nixing their debit card reward programs; Citi is researching the possibility.
• Good news for those planning on getting a summer job – there are likely to be more summer jobs available this year and at a higher hourly pay rate.
• Could the housing market be worse than experts think? This story examines the upward drift of a key indicator for housing sales in the country.
• Speaking of the crappy housing market, if you’re underwater on your mortgage there may be a little glimmer of hope for you – if you believe that bank’s care about keeping you in your house.
• Check out this slideshow on financial infidelity and how it can destroy a marriage.

Photo: bgottsab/Flickr

Did you know that there are digital libraries where you can check out eBooks? I didn’t know until a few months ago and I have to tell you, I’m in love with the service! The library system in our city has partnered with OverDrive.com to offer digital books, audiobooks and even movies to its patrons. Even though I don’t live in the city, itself, my local library is a partner with the main city’s library and so I can use the service as well. All I need to do is enter my library card number and I’m set.

You can view the books on your computer or download it to an eReader or mobile device. For example, I can download to my iPhone or my iPad. I prefer the iPad because it is bigger and I’m old and blind (okay, not really, but I *am* nearsighted). I simply browse through the available books, add them to my wish list, move them to my digital bookbag, check them out and then download the file. You don’t have to move them to the wish list first but I use that as my reading list. Anytime I hear of a book I want to read, I go and add it to my wish list. Each book or audio file is rented for a 14-day period.

For a tech geek that loves to read but doesn’t want to break the budget, this was a great find! If you’re interested in finding out if your library participates, check out the Overdrive.com Search Tool. Happy free e-reading!

Photo: Wesley Fryer/Flickr

I’d like to start sharing some guest blog posts on my site and so I figured the best place to look was to my readers. If you are interested in submitting a guest blog post related to personal finance, please drop me a note via my contact form. The post can be on anything personal finance related, including your own personal stories, news-type reports and even an opinion piece. It doesn’t have to be about Dave Ramsey’s method, it can be about anything that falls under the personal finance umbrella.

Thanks!

Happy Monday morning! This is my first Monday Morning Personal Finance News since completing Dave Ramsey’s Baby Step 2 – woo! Topics in this week’s post include dining on a dime, the need for disaster insurance and the continued rise of gas prices.

• Do you want to maximize your dining out budget? If so check out this post with kids eat free ideas and printable restaurant coupons.
• Has the recent quake in Japan made you question whether you need disaster insurance?
• Ugh, gas prices are up again. This time we’re facing a 7-cent increase in just the last two weeks.
• Bad news for Florida homeowners that are hoping for a rebound in the housing market – 20% of the state’s homes are vacant.
• If you’re in the market for a raise, check out this post on how to make the case for a merit raise.
• If you thought it was impossible to pay cash for a home, you were wrong. In January 2011, 32% of homes purchased were paid for with cash.
• If you’re looking for a new job, check out Liz Ryan’s 10 Tips to Ace Your Next Job Interview.
• This story hits close to home – Making Sure the Kids Are All Right. The article examines the importance of preparing for a special needs child’s future through a special needs trust. This is something we will be doing once we hit Baby Step 5 since we’re not sure that our children will be able to successfully attend college – we certainly hope so but we are realistic.

Photo: claytron/Flickr

As of today we have paid off over $70,000 in consumer debt. We started on this journey in January 2010 with $70,744.32 in debt and as of today, we are at $0. My original plan showed a pay off in 3rd quarter 2011 but due to hard work on our end, we were able to increase our income quite a bit in 2010.

I’ll be honest, looking back at that $70k+ figure was so daunting. I didn’t think it could be done but I had to change my attitude and just work the plan. I quickly came to learn that monthly payments don’t have to be a way of life and I tell you, looking at April’s budget and realizing that the money is going into MY savings account instead of being sent to the bank feels good!

Here is my final Baby Step 2 Update

• January 1, 2010 – $70,744.32 (I admit to having this number memorized)
• January 31, 2010 – $66,775.51 (5.7% paid off)
• February 24, 2010 – $66,173.36 (6.5% paid off – we paid cash for a $10k air conditioning unit during February)
• March 23, 2010 – $64,857.78 (8.4% paid off)
• April 30, 2010 – $61,637.78 (12.9% paid off)
• May 15, 2010 – $59,907.40 (15.3% paid off – I measured this mid-month because we broke into the $50s!)
• May 31, 2010 – $52,466.34 (25.8% paid off – we cashed in a small non-retirement mutual fund account and my husband’s commission was larger than expected)
• July 5, 2010 – $49,672.57 (29.8% paid off)
• July 31, 2010 – $47, 342.92 (33.1% paid off)
• August 31, 2010 – $40,688.78 (42.5% paid off)
• October 2, 2010 – $36,175.56 (48.9% paid off)
• October 29, 2010 – $35,884.22 (49.3% paid off)
• November 26, 2010 – $29,102.71 (58.9% paid off)
• December 30, 2010 – $21,584.09 (69.5% paid off)
• January 28, 2011 – $16,827.66 (76.2% paid off)
• March 1, 2011 – $4,725.18 (93.4% paid off)
• March 18, 2011 – $0 (100% paid off)

Thank you to those of you that have written and commented to share your support. The blog will still remain as a personal finance resource, which will include updates on our progress through our savings fund, investing, paying off the mortgage and more.

Photo: lusi

From time to time I will hear Dave Ramsey discuss the population of millionaires here in the United States. Most are made not born – in other words there are more first-generation millionaires here in the United States than there are those that were born into their fortunes. In 2010 alone, 600,000 new millionaires popped up in cities across the country.

According to an article on CNNMoney.com this morning, “The millionaire population jumped in the U.S. by 8% last year, fueled by the stock market recovery, according to an industry report on Wednesday. The number of U.S. households worth at least $1 million rose to 8.4 million in 2010, compared to 7.8 million the prior year, according to a report by Spectrem Group.”

So how does one become a millionaire? I’m not one so I don’t know the answer but my guess it is a combination of several factors: hard work, dedication, money smarts and perhaps even a tad bit of luck. I know that I’ve heard stories of millionaires that never earned a six-figure plus annual income so having a high income isn’t required.

Are you a millionaire? If so, how’d you get there? We’re not but hopefully we’re well on our way towards becoming first-gen millionaires and forever changing our family tree.

Photo: purpleslog/Flickr

Happy Monday Morning. This week is Spring Break in the Six Figures and Broke household. My husband took the week off work and although I still have blogging to do for clients, I only need to put in about 10 hours of work this week. We’re spending Spring Break this year by staying local and enjoying the outdoors, taking a shopping (not buying) trip to Ikea (the kids love that store) and hanging out with family. Definitely Spring Break on the cheap!

Without further ado, I present you with this week’s Monday Morning Personal Finance News featuring stories on how you can help with the relief efforts in Japan and a spending limit on debit cards.

• If you have money left in your giving envelope and want to help out with the Japanese earthquake efforts, read this article on CNNMoney.com with ideas on how you can help.
• If you’re a debit card user, this story on a possible $50 spending limit on debit cards should have you a bit concerned. I know that I am! If this limit is implemented, it will also limit your purchases if you use your debit card as a credit card. This may force many of us to bust out the ole checkbook again!
• This headline certainly caught my eye: Factories having trouble finding workers.
• I’m not a big doom and gloomer but this is a bit worrisome: 10 Reasons to Worry About the Stock Market.
• Are you heading into retirement? If so read this article on dealing with inflation risk during your retirement years.
• Although I’m not a fan of credit cards, this story did have me a bit miffed. The recent credit card reform is having an unexpected yet negative impact on a specific population – stay-at-home-moms (SAHMs). If a SAHM wants to apply for a credit card, she can’t use her household income but instead needs to only use her income. If she doesn’t have any then she needs her spouse to co-sign. Again, I’m not a fan of credit cards but this is just silliness IMO.
• Here’s another reader story from Get Rich Slowly – How I Avoided Student Loans – great read!
• Check out Julie’s article on finding money to get out of debt and while you’re at it, check out the other great posts on her blog, The Family CEO.